gimmicky course layout

[Marmoset]

So I am refining an 18 holer around my office complex. There are parking lots, buildings, cars, etc. There isn't a ton of room to work with but I have some really solid holes. I can't modify, build, or plant anything because this is all very hush-hush; I can only play on the weekends so the fun-police don't find out about it.

The problem is that some of the holes are short, open, or otherwise unchallenging for experienced players. So I started adding gimmicks. Now I have a course full of OB lines, drop zones, island rules, bunCRs, restricted/ obstructed tee pads, and mandos. All of those gimmicks are added on top of the standing rule that a building hit is a 1 stroke penalty, windows are 2 strokes, and cars are 2 strokes. So after playing it several times I almost feel like it is a mini-golf obstacle course. But its a really good obstacle course. My goal is to build a short but highly demanding course. But I don't want it to be overly brutal just for the fun of it.

My question is: at what point is a course too gimmicky? Is it considered bad form to rely on gimmicks to make your course challenging?

[tallpaul]

Ya gotta do what ya gotta do....should be fun for you and your buds....I wouldn't expect an A Tier anytime soon though....

[jkdisc]

i dont think hitting cars is very cool, if there is a good chance of that i might rethink it

[Marmoset]

Tournaments are out of the question.
Unless its a glow tourney! Hmmmmm...

[Marmoset]

i dont think hitting cars is very cool, if there is a good chance of that i might rethink it

Cars don't come into play 99% of the time. I added that rule to make sure that people stay away from cars in the off chance that one happens to park near a fairway.

[tallpaul]

Hitting cars IS very uncool. That's about the quickest way to make someone hate disc golf; short of hitting their children....that I can think of.

[Marmoset]

Hitting cars IS very uncool.
Thank you. I agree 100% and I have already addressed that issue in my course layout.

[jkdisc]

there isnt a park or something you could go to at night and set this up?

[Marmoset]

Okay.
Let me re-start.
Considering a course where there are no cars to hit, my question is: at what point is a course too gimmicky? Is it considered bad form to rely on gimmicks to make your course challenging?

[Three Putt]

IMO, no. If you don't have the land or the trees or the topography, put in the windmill and the clowns mouth and let 'er rip.

If you do have the land and the trees and the topography and you resort to gimmicks, you are an idiot. But in your case you are just doing with what you got. I'd rather play a 200' hole with a gimmicky challenge than just stand and throw a 200' hole.

[Three Putt]

Oh, and hitting cars in uncool, dude. :D

[Dave242]

I agree with the do what you need to to make it fun and challenging (and safe) for you and your buds. Shoe-horning a fun (even goofy fun) course into a piece of property is better than not doing it!

I would say that if a newcomer stands on the tee and reads the map or ground rules and can not figure out how they work, it is too gimmicky. If the ground rules change from hole to hole in a manner that a player could not remember after 2-3 rounds, it is too gimmicky.

[prerube]

Lime Bluff in PA has a putt-putt feel at points, but is still a real DG course

[Steve West]

My question is: at what point is a course too gimmicky?

Perhaps you are asking the wrong question. Maybe you should be asking "at what point is a course to tresspassy?" Or, "at what point is a course too property-damagy?"

Have you considered a miniature disc golf course?

[biscoe]

if winthrop gold ain't too gimmicky then there is no such thing as too gimmicky.

marmoset- which course is this?

[Marmoset]

Short answer? My course. Not an official course, just a slew of holes I have designed in my free time.
I work for Virginia Tech and my office has property around it. I throw a lot during my lunch break and I have come up with some interesting holes. Only a handful of people have played it.

Steve West- I have been throwing at work for the past 5 years. Everyone knows I throw out there and I have never been asked to stop. I have also never ever damaged any work property or private property (cars).

Yes I have considered a miniature golf course. My course has gold, blue, white, and red tees. It also has some separate super class tees. One set of tees never requires more than a 100' throw but it is still extremely challenging because of winds, elevation, OB, mandos, and some trees. It is kind of miniature golf-y.

biscoe- I think I spanked Winthrop in the gimmicky department.

[Trampy1]

Remind me of a game we play with my practice basket. it is basically disc golf horse. You have to make a trick shot (throw thru the legs, blind shots, weird grips, etc...) and then everyone has to follow. We got to where we were banking shots off of nearby trees, skipping off of the deck, and throwing mid-leap.

By the way, this works great as a drinking game (you miss it-you drink, you make it-the throw designer drinks)

[mashnut]

Remind me of a game we play with my practice basket. it is basically disc golf horse. You have to make a trick shot (throw thru the legs, blind shots, weird grips, etc...) and then everyone has to follow. We got to where we were banking shots off of nearby trees, skipping off of the deck, and throwing mid-leap.

By the way, this works great as a drinking game (you miss it-you drink, you make it-the throw designer drinks)

We do exactly that all the time, it's a lot of fun. The trick shots get sillier (and less likely to go in) the longer you play. In the winter, we've been playing in the basement of the apartment building, and I made an upsidedown fh putt from inside a washing machine...

[djjeremiahj]

My question is: at what point is a course too gimmicky? Is it considered bad form to rely on gimmicks to make your course challenging?

without seeing the course... of course...
too gimmicky?

i'd tend to think that it's a skills development concept more than a skills test concept.

You gotta do what you gotta do, and make do with what you've been given.

Maybe, instead of trying to focus on it being a normal course, focus on it being a course that only has 1-2 really specific shots per hole. if it helps you master a few of the key shots in the game its purpose could be very well served.

[Steve West]

Steve West- I have been throwing at work for the past 5 years. Everyone knows I throw out there and I have never been asked to stop. I have also never ever damaged any work property or private property (cars).

Good. The main goal of my post was to discourage others from thinking it would be cool to go out and throw a golf disc just anywhere.

Yes I have considered a miniature golf course

To clarify, I'm talking about a course where the discs used are mini-markers, and the baskets are half-sized. (Not just a short course with windmills.)

As for your real question: as long-time Frisbee-tosser, I think most courses do not take advantage of all the potential flight characteristics of a disc. The more flight patterns you can include, the better - as long as it tests a disc-tossing skill. I don't think of that kind of design as gimmicky, but some would.

An example: making a disc hover over and descend vertically into a smokestack would be something I would consider a skill, not a gimmick.

[Marmoset]

Good. The main goal of my post was to discourage others from thinking it would be cool to go out and throw a golf disc just anywhere.
100% agreed.

An example: making a disc hover over and descend vertically into a smokestack would be something I would consider a skill, not a gimmick.
Oooooooh!