Two Courses in Rolla, MO

[odysseus81]

Thought you all might like to know that there are 2 courses coming to the "disc golf black hole" of Missouri (South-Central MO). A nine hole course will be in Ber Juan park and it should be playable within a month or so. The budget was VERY limited from what I have heard from the city, but it is a great starting point.

The even bigger news is that Lions Club Park is moving forward with what should be a wonderful 18-hole championship caliber course by April. We are in the beginning stages of the process, but it definitely appears to be moving forward.

Growing up in St. Louis I played disc golf a ton growing up, but since I left for college (I am now 28) everywhere I have lived in MO has been a disc golf wasteland. Rolla is a great place for disc golf and I am certain the community is going to embrace it. I am pretty pumped about getting these courses going....

[Three Putt]

Interesting. Ber Juan had an 18 hole course laid out several years ago with posts that would have been an absolute nightmare with how it would have conflicted with other park users. There seemed to be room for 9 holes, but the park guy seemed more offended that I didn't like the 18 holes courses he set up than interested in hearing my suggestions. Ber Juan would be a good exposure point in the community for the sport, a good spot for a fun recreational course. The fact that I live on the other side of 10th Street from there would just be a bonus.

The Lions Club has tons of room and could do basically any kind of course they wanted. It's good to hear they want to move forward. The last time I talked to them they were trying to sell off the 63 frontage of the park and didn't want to develop any of the back of the park until they knew what they were doing long term. They didn't seem to have a Master Plan of what to do with all the land they have. Disc golf would be a perfect fit out there and they have the room and the trees to have a fantastic course.

Who is working on the design of these?

[odysseus81]

The Ber Juan baskets are set up and I played it tonight. They are temp baskets in permanent foundations...with the intention of adding permanent baskets as these break down. There is NO marking at all for tees, but you can go to http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_z9Yrl7Jw8lk/Skwo_MiWmzI/AAAAAAAAAJk/6k6zoZCREu0/s1600-h/course+b.jpg to view a course map. Maps are supposedly going to be available by Monday. David McCormack essentially designed the course and really did a nice job. Hole number 8 is a signature hole where the basket is situated on a damn for the pond. They are supposed to be adding pads and tee signs in the next few months.

[Three Putt]

There are two # 2's on the map. I didn't see a basket up by the pool so I don't think that hole is there. There are some really long walks between holes, so I'm sure it is a McCormack design.

Here is my hometown in a nutshell...after being the largest City in Missouri that had no course for several years, they finally get one. They install the baskets late in the week on a holiday weekend, potentially a great exposure point since a lot of people could be in the park. They don't mark the tees in any way AND the community center is closed from Friday-Monday for cleaning, including the park offices. There is no way to get any information about what the yellow bar-b-q grills are until Tuesday. So they left people with really zero chance to enjoy these 9 baskets that just went in this weekend. I'm glad odysseus81 seems to be on the inside, becasue without the map he posted I'd have to Safari until Tuesday.

Oh, well. Now I have a home course. Yippee.

[Three Putt]

If the tees actually get put where the map says, it might be a pretty nice home course. It has one good uphill shot and uses the creek to make a couple of holes a little tricky. It uses elevation well. It has a couple of long golfless walks and # 2 & # 3 and # 7 & # 8 conflict potentially (depending on tee positions) but it's a nice little 9-holer. I thought # 5 was kind of a boring hole until my hyzerflip did more hyzering than flipping, there is a HUGE dropoff over there to the left I didn't even notice. # 8 was OK, it's hard to deuce without risking the overshot into the pond but it's simple to three.

That whole area of the park where # 5 sits is supposed to at some point get developed into additional ballfields and the gravel over there is supposed to be the parking lot for those fields. If that ever happens that hole will be tough to play with a lot of traffic back there. But for now it's a nice open shot with some hidden dropoffs that I didn't notice from the tee.

The bad thing was that several people noticed the baskets and headed over to the park. It was safari Hell. Everybody is just making up a course and doing whatever they want. I showed the map to five groups of people while I was over there. The tee for # 1 is right over by the side of the community center, would it have killed them to post a map on the door so you would have had a chance to know what to do? I guess so.

[BerJuanDuffer]

I'm glad to see folks are already beginning to enjoy the course. I played it Wednesday night after installing the last target at about 9:30pm. Shot a par 31 in the dark. It may take me weeks in the daylight to hit that score again, as my game is not usually that good.

Temporary tee flags are now up. Maps will be available at the Centre in a few days, but folks wanting to play before then can visit berjuandg.blogspot.com (http://berjuandg.blogspot.com/) to see the "course b" map (ignore the lower "hole 2" option).

Hole number 5 will continue to be an open hole for a couple years until the park puts that area into use. It's also a good launching point for adding a few long holes if you want to throw at trees/poles etc. and stretch your game out to 18 holes.

I want to publicly thank David, Kermit, Ken, and Seth for all of their input into the course design. Also all of the folks who came and played the draft design and gave comments that eventually led to the current design.

In the future, look forward to a bridge over the creek near target 1, tee pads, multiple pin locations, etc.

[cooktastic]

Thanks for all the work on this. It's really nice to not have to drive well over an hour to play any longer. I have been out and played it several times now and you guys used the territory very well. Good elevation changes...a couple of well placed trees make for challenging tee shots...and I love the pin location on 9. Looking forward to seeing it continue to improve as it is finished. Again...great job.

[discinvan]

http://gatewaydiscs.blogspot.com/2009/11/rolla-lions-club-18-hole-championship.html
Here is what Dave from Gateway has blogged about the new 18 hole course. Sounds awesome I am glad to have a reason to want to go to Rolla and work now. I used to hate going down there because there was no courses close to play.

[odysseus81]

There are now 2 bridges up at Ber Juan (holes 1 and 7) and they are getting ready to move 1's tee box which will be an improvement in my opinion.

Todd,
Any idea when that change is going to happen?

[Three Putt]

Are you talking about the tee by the back of the building? I thought that was going to be the tee for # 2. # 1 was supposed to basically stay the same, # 2 was going to be moved to shoot over the pond and # 3 was going to be the old # 2 tee to the current # 3 basket. Todd sent me a map this morning because I asked him about helping me mark blue tees for the Ice Bowl, and that was the map I got. The old # 2 tee might be the new blue # 3 tee according to the map, not sure about that.

If holes 2-3 do not get moved before the Ice Bowl I'll set up a temp basket and we will play that hole over the lake. If it does get moved I might set up the old hole # 3 just for grins. It depends. 2-3 was going to be a bottleneck the way it was originally, so if we have a decent turnout setting up the bottleneck hole might not be a great idea.

The park will be empty so we could set up a hole in that area between the street and the Centre and put the pin on the edge of that big dropoff down to the tennis courts. That will make you walk in front of the building instead of behind, but you are going to have a long walk from 9 to 1 no matter what (although putting a hole over there will make it a longer walk :eek:) and with the tee for #2 behind the building it might be better to make people walk the other way anyway.

Just thinking out loud. We have time to bounce ideas around.

[odysseus81]

Sorry about that...it is definitely Number 2 that is being moved.

I walked Lions Club proposed course today....
There is a TON of clearing out that needs to be done, but if all that happens (and it is supposed to) the course is going to be spectacular....top notch difficulty. A ton of really tough shots. I would be surprised if Lions Club doesn't take this thing the distance, because it doesn't seem like they do anything half way. I can't wait!

[Three Putt]

Did you have a nice hike in the snow?

It does look like it could stack up as a very good course. The spots where it is open has some rolling hills, and the spots where it is relatively flat are heavily wooded. It could add up to some good golf. It's really hard to tell about the shots because of how dense the woods are, but I'm sure it's going to be tough. The two courses should compliment each other very well.

Now we just need to find out if UMR has any land out there by Fraternity Drive and start working them for a course...or am I being greedy?

[odysseus81]

It was pretty chilly...were you out there? We saw a few prints in the snow walking between some of the holes and wondered who was out there. As far as mostly wooded courses go, this has the potential of being one of the nicest ones around. It is up to the Lions Club to see how far they take this thing. Visualizing it as best we could (there are over 200 trees and a bazillion branches that are coming out) this thing will test every element of your game.

I agree that it will be an excellent complement to Ber Juan. I could definitely see another 18 going in somewhere at Lions Club in the future. There is still a TON of unused land. No..I defintely don't think you are being too greedy. I say the more the merrier =) Got any connections with the school?

Also, I think moving two and lengthening 3 at Ber Juan will add quite a bit to the course. It would be nice if our first order of business was to mark pro tees out there somehow. I mean all they have are the cheap metal poles to mark the am's....how hard could it be to get them to back up for 9 more?

[cooktastic]

It is a good time to be a disc golfer in Rolla MO. I am so excited about the course out at Lion's Club after walking it with Odysseus the other day. It will be a very technical course that will test out your full repertoire of shots. I am very excited about the prospects...bummed that I can't be there for the Ice Bowl at Ber Juan.

[VictorB]

Good to hear that mid Missouri is getting more courses! As the VP of the CDGC, let me know asap when the 2nd course is completed and I'll try to schedule a road trip to go down and play the 2 courses, possibly during a grand opening weekend or something of the like. Just shoot me a pm here or over at DGR, I normally check both sites frequently.

[TxDiscGolfBoy]

Been in TX for a while now man, but lots of family in MO....in Rolla at that. So glad to hear it man. Thanx for the info!!!!!

[odysseus81]

They had a work day this past Saturday at Lions Club and the amount of work that got done was phenomenal. Over 100 people out there working. This course is going to be special...they are really spending time on all the small stuff that gets overlooked when a new course goes in. I am told that the grand opening is supposed to be in march sometime.

[REDARMY]

They had a work day this past Saturday at Lions Club and the amount of work that got done was phenomenal. Over 100 people out there working. This course is going to be special...they are really spending time on all the small stuff that gets overlooked when a new course goes in. I am told that the grand opening is supposed to be in march sometime.

i'll definitely have to get in touch with the laker league guys. this sounds like it's gonna be great!

[Three Putt]

We got dropped to page two, that will not do!

Lions Club has a lot of work done, but the weather has been terrible so I'm sure they have not been able to do as much as they would have liked. Still hearing March as the "in" date. They have a lot of members so it's not impossible for them to pull that off if we get a break in the weather ever. It looks good so far.

Ber Juan had an "interesting" tweak recently. Hole #2 was moved so the tee is over by # 1's basket and hyzers around the pool. I'm hoping that gets moved. We played a tournament there this weekend and we had at least three drives that I saw go into the pool. That's no good. Add to that the fact that I'm a weenie arm and I can hit the tee for #2 off the tee for #1 with a putter and you have a whole bunch of not good. From what I understand the parks director does not like the tee for #2 by the building because you have to cross the bridge three times. I agree that the flow isn't great, but I'd rather have people backtracking over the bridge as opposed to throwing blind spike hyzers into the swimming pool. It will probably stay as is until we get close to the pool opening, then push will come to shove.

We got to test out some B tee placements this weekend. Teeing #7 off the levee is cool. Other than that I wasn't really blown away by any of the tees. They made the shots longer, but I'm not sure they add a whole lot other than distance. The only other B tee I though added something to the hole was on # 2, but I'd like that whole hole to go away so that doesn't do much for us. # 4 got a lot of attention because it was way at the bottom of the hill, but really it was just longer. That's kinda how I felt about most of them.

Making # 5 shorter seemed to mess with people, I saw people blow drivers 50' past on that shot all day. It was just a little wide-open Roc shot, so people must have had a problem judging the distance on it. While it might seem counter intuitive, adding some shorter tees might allow us better variety. A shorter tee on #9 up the hillside gives that shot a totally different feel. It takes the pond out of play and brings those trees on the hillside and the shule to the left of the basket more in play. That might make for a better variety of shots as opposed to just pushing the tee back and adding another 100' to the hole.

[althuisd]

any word on progress of the Lions club course?

[Three Putt]

I had an old Lion's Club member rant at me for 10 minutes about how the disc golf course is the worst thing that ever happened to the park and how the members behind the course are doing it for themselves and don't show up to do the work yada, yada, yada...it was a pretty impressive rant. His main gist was that this was the first project in that park that was being done for a group of members, not for the community. Which of course is B.S. Do you think for one second that there were not some of the guys working on that pier wanted it mostly so they would have a place to fish? Who can go back and say what someone's motivation was?

At any rate, it seems like there are some internal "issues" there. He did say that the baskets are cluttering up the Den, so those evidently have been delivered. I wasn't out there this weekend, but there did not appear to be any new work done last weekend. The project seems stalled, but they are way too far in to back out now.

I was unsuccessful in finding out if there are more work days scheduled, which is why I was talking to the guy in the first place. I'll post if I hear anything.

Best Disc Doubles starts on April 8 at Ber Juan. Be there or be...someplace else. :\

[odysseus81]

I'm not sure what that guys rant was about, but there are a large number of people on board with the project. The main reason it stalled out was because the weather was soooo bad in february. I was out there last week and they have definitely made quite a bit of progress. This course is going to be really special. You can get a very good feel for all the holes if you go out there. They spray painted recently and it helps follow the course.

The guy that said people in LC are doing this for themselves is a joke because there are probably only a handful of people in the LC that had even ever heard of DG before the project was started. They are using a part of the park that literally had no use before. I can't wait to see the finished product. It will be something that Rolla can really be proud of...

[Three Putt]

So are there work days scheduled? I have people asking me, but I can't seem to get any info.

[odysseus81]

Yeah, they moved the work day from tomorrow morning to Sunday at 1:00.

That is official---from a Lions Club member that received an e-mail saying that. If you want to get a taste of the quality of work that is going to go in out there, head over to 16 and look at the bridge that they put together...very nice.

There are a few holes with decent walks, but in these cases, it seems like it is necessary to maximize the land usage.

I asked to be kept in the loop for when work days are....I will try to keep this updated as I hear about them. I am sure they welcome all the help they can get.

[Three Putt]

Now I'm bummed. I finally had a Saturday free. I have to be at work by 2 on Sunday. :mad: I'll get an email sent out to the people I know about, maybe some folks can get out to help. Are you going to be out at Ozark Mountain?

Long walks between holes are a McCormack trademark. Once you bring him in to design a course, the long walks are a given. So, that's really no surprise. I don't mind a long walk, it beats standing on a tee having people on another hole throwing at you (think the new #2 tee at Ber Juan.) All you have to do is put directional signs up so people know where to go and it's a non-issue in my mind.

Having better communication between the people in the Lions Club who have a positive outlook on the course would be a good thing, because I've had four members complain to me about it. It makes you wonder what is going on when all you hear is the people with a negative outlook. Even if they are the minority, they are getting to be a rather loud minority. I'd rather hear something good.

[cooktastic]

I have been past Lion's Club several times in the past couple weeks and seen a few trucks of guys working out there even on weekdays. It is coming along...not as quickly as first planned...but coming along none the less. Several more big work days and they could be getting close. And I agree with Odysseus...this course has the potential to be pretty amazing. A ton of variety...I was really struck by how it seems to not favor rightys or leftys...good breakdown of hyzer vs anhyzer shots. I really can't wait to get a chance to play it.

[MSTdger]

is this course finished yet? I would like to play it before I go home for the summer. Great job on the Ber Juan course!

[odysseus81]

No, it should have baskets dropped in the next few weeks. It won't be truly completed (concrete tees, permanent signs, etc) till probably early fall...but it will be in very good shape when the baskets drop. The Lions Club has done an AWESOME job...

[DriveCrusher2]

i have actually been working on the course now for 3 days, i mowed down all the bushes on 15, 16 and 17 and had to dig holes 3, 10, and 12 is still not dug so there can be a pin placed there, those are the only three holes without pins, i am supposed to mow on saturday starting at hole 1 and going through the whole course mowing it down, 8 and 12 need to be level because some guys that were helping thought it would be a good idea to drive through the holes while it was wet, so the ruts need to be smoothed out, they are gonna be grinding stumps not this upcoming weekend but the following and once that is done the only thing left is to place the pins that are missing and assemble and weld the baskets and put them in the pins and then its go time!

[DriveCrusher2]

the only thing left on lions club is to grind the rest of the stumps, place tee signs and drop the baskets

[odysseus81]

Are they wanting to do that this coming weekend? Do they still have the stump grinder?

[DriveCrusher2]

from what i understand it was supposed to be worked on this morning and should have it back this evening but idk if they are gonna have someone running it during the week or not i am unsure what their plans are at this point, as soon as i will post it to this thread but as of right now the status of the course is still the same, only 1 through 6 has the stumps gone when i went out there today it looks like they have some tee signs set up but i am not sure if that is what they are didnt get a close look at them

[DriveCrusher2]

so the plans are from what i hear they want to clean hole 14 up a little bit at the corner and i still wasn't told if they have the stump grinder or not i will be out there Thursday with someone so that we can look at 14 and figure out what we need to do on it and will find out then when they will have the grinders back, if u have any questions post them on this thread and i will ask the guy out there on thursday and give u his answer

[odysseus81]

I walked the course today and it is really coming along well. I know they initially planned on putting benches at each tee. Is that still the plan? I have a feeling, the more benches the better for the out of shape guys playing out there=) The thing I was wondering is if they are gonna thin out all the brush that is piled up around the corner on both sides of 14 towards the green? If you throw a disc in there, it is gonna be ridiculous to get it out....

I am really impressed with how this thing has come together. It is going to be filthy difficult. There are going to be some people that learned to play out at Ber Juan that are in for a surprise=)

[DriveCrusher2]

i dont know about the benches (i hope they do for your sake odysseus haha kidding) but i can tell u that yes there is an orange ribbon or whatever on 14 that somebody put through there i dont know if u saw it or not but everything from that ribbon to the corner is gonna be taken out except for the trees, they are gonna stay, i will ask about the benches tomorrow

and yes the people that learned to play at ber juan are in for a big surprise haha

[Three Putt]

Benches are a nice touch and they dress up a course to make it look great, but even as old as I am I mostly just use them as a place to set my bag down while I'm teeing. Disc golf tends to be played at a fast pace. Usually when I play I have some guys one discn', running up to their lie behind me and I have to haul *** just to stay ahead of them. There usually isn't time to sit and stare at the trees unless you are backed up while playing in a tournament. Usually when I find somebody on the course sitting on a bench, they are doing something I'd rather not see.

Besides, Lions Club is mostly flat. Sure it's long, but when we play 7B and walk up the levee four times at Ber Juan that is probably as much of a physical workout as Lions Club will be. What Lions Club is going to be is mentally tough. No more sloppy "that's not what I was trying to do but I have a shot from there" execution on the wooded holes out there. I'm going to have to look up that old Monty Python lumberjack bit, I have a feeling I'm going to be singing that song a lot.

[DriveCrusher2]

well played sir well played indeed

[DriveCrusher2]

just talked to one of the guys from lions club and he said that hopefully all the stumps will be grounded up this weekend and the baskets can go in, i am hoping this is what happens, i have been waiting too long to play this course

[Three Putt]

I know you said last week that all of the stuff from the yellow mark in was going to get cleared out on #14. Is that still the plan?

[odysseus81]

I saw that there were people out there on Sat and Sun...any idea if anything got done?

[DriveCrusher2]

nothing got done, they were supposed to have the stump grinder and i dont know why they did not get, that is the only thing that needs to be done is grind the stumps everything else is ready to go

[VictorB]

Is there any sort of timeframe as to when this course will be completed? Or is it playable right now?

[odysseus81]

I heard they were looking at dropping the baskets next week. The course is technically not playable yet. When it first opens, I am pretty sure there won't be much as far as permanent tee signs. The course is very well marked as far as navigating the course. There are tons of signs to point you towards the next hole. It is almost impossible to gt lost out there. I think the tee signs will go in once they decide on permanent tee spots. They will have natural tee pads for a little while till people have played it a bit and given them feedback. Eventually concrete pads should be going in (maybe later this year?). Funds are not an issue...
They really want to knock this out of the park.

[DriveCrusher2]

from what i have heard the course is playable, but there are a lot of stumps still out there and they dont want to drop the baskets with them still out there, unless they have changed their minds and have decided that they will grind the stumps the next time they get the grinder and drop the baskets anyway, so idk what their plans are as of now, all i know is they dont have all the stumps ground out and the baskets can be dropped anytime, so i wish they will do it soon

[Three Putt]

Did #14 get thinned out? I've thought about walking back out there to check, but I'm still picking ticks off myself from the last time I walked out there. :eek:

A word to those traveling to play this when it is in: long pants, bug spray, ivy block and other deep woods precautions are advisable here. It's not a big deal if you are prepared. I stopped by to check out the work without taking precautions and paid the price.

[DriveCrusher2]

i agree with u on that, i havent been back there in a while to get a look at it, i know they are finishing the assembly of the cages, today and do not know if when they are going in, and from what u say yes bring bugspray especially for holes 13-14, there is a nest there some where im sure of it because i will, walk through that course avoiding those holes and only pick 2 or 3 off of me but when i go through those two holes im pulling 10 or more, idk if they are gonna spray those holes or not, either way just to be safe take bug spray till it gets cold

[REDARMY]

odysseus or three putt, keep me advised via this thread what's going on out there.

i still wanna work on bruce to get the laker league to take a trip out there.

[Three Putt]

I was planning on talking to Bruce when Lions Club is done. The Lakers move pretty quick once they get an idea, and we have never had a solid date to shoot for so I've seen no reason to get him excited yet. Once there are baskets, I'm pretty sure the Lakers are going to show up whether we want them or not. :p Just kidding, the Lakers are cool...as long as you are not shooting behind them.

I've been trying to get Bob the Wad out here since Ber Juan went in to help me with alt tee ideas, but he hasn't shown much interest up to this point. Actually I never talk to Bob anymore, I talk to Jeff Wulf and Jeff talks to Bob. Anyway, hopefully once the 18 hole course is in Bob and Jeff and whoever else from the Lou will want to head out here and give me some feedback.

[Three Putt]

I was out there for T-ball tonight...no pins yet. :(

[TxDiscGolfBoy]

I have family in MO. I'm totally gonna have to hit those up. My step-mom's sister and her husband live there.

Are there pics of them up?

[odysseus81]

No, there are no pics up...as soon as the baskets are dropped I will try to get a course page up and post pics of it.

[cooktastic]

Don't get me wrong...I am so grateful for Lion's Club putting this course in and all....but man is it getting a little irritating lately not seeing anything get done...especially when it is so close to being completed. Just a little anxious to play it I guess.

[Three Putt]

I hear you. On the one hand there is a very good course going in and we really didn't have to do anything, so that is super-cool. On the other hand, I'd rather have to do something and have more control over what is going on.

The reality I think is that we are going to operate this way for a long time. The City controls what goes on at Ber Juan and the Lions Club will control what goes on at Lions Club. Both of those entities have rules and regulations that are going to make it very difficult to have the sort of events that other communities have unless one or both of them decide to relax some rules for us. That kind of stinks, but on the other hand it beats driving to Jeff City or putting at trees.

So, the glass is half empty or the glass is half full. Or somebody screwed up and ordered the wrong size glass. It really depends on your perspective. Once the course is open we will forget about the delay in opening pretty quickly.

[cooktastic]

Yeah...I hear you there. Just so frustrating being so close (it is very playable as is if they just dropped the silly baskets)...but not knowing how much longer the wait will be. By the way the course looks...I'm pretty sure in the end it will be worth the wait.

[dghooligan]

The baskets are in and the course is playable! There is a preliminary score card and map available on the Rolla Lion's Club Facebook page. I am new to this site, but just thought you all would want to know!!

[cooktastic]

Ask and you shall receive!

[odysseus81]

I hear angels singing off in the distance

[dghooligan]

Here is the link that should automatically download the score card: http://web.mst.edu/~tharp/Scorecardv2.pdf

[REDARMY]

I was planning on talking to Bruce when Lions Club is done. The Lakers move pretty quick once they get an idea, and we have never had a solid date to shoot for so I've seen no reason to get him excited yet. Once there are baskets, I'm pretty sure the Lakers are going to show up whether we want them or not. :p Just kidding, the Lakers are cool...as long as you are not shooting behind them.

I've been trying to get Bob the Wad out here since Ber Juan went in to help me with alt tee ideas, but he hasn't shown much interest up to this point. Actually I never talk to Bob anymore, I talk to Jeff Wulf and Jeff talks to Bob. Anyway, hopefully once the 18 hole course is in Bob and Jeff and whoever else from the Lou will want to head out here and give me some feedback.

well you know of course about the lakerfest thing they're doing at el shaddai here shortly, so i'd guess it'll be a couple weeks further from that before a trip of this distance is planned.

but either way, i'll probably see bob (or at least jeff) in the next week or so, so i'll re-plant that bug (about coming down for consultation) in his ear if you haven't already on the RCF forums.

[Three Putt]

well you know of course about the lakerfest thing they're doing at el shaddai here shortly, so i'd guess it'll be a couple weeks further from that before a trip of this distance is planned.

but either way, i'll probably see bob (or at least jeff) in the next week or so, so i'll re-plant that bug (about coming down for consultation) in his ear if you haven't already on the RCF forums.I still talk to Jeff through email quite a bit. He seemed to want to wait until there was an event with cash to win to head down here. He might have to wait for a long time.

Anyway, the two courses in development have developed.

[fairweather_fan]

came down from the lou today and played the two courses- had a blast. ber juan was a nice little warmup (although there was some confusion re: holes 2 & 3), and the lion's club course was a great experience- even saw nikko and dave mccormack playing a few holes while we were out there. it reminded me a bit of the of brent hambrick (http://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=131) course in columbus- less mature, obviously, and a bit less 'epic' than hambrick, but with a similar mix of holes, terrain, and trees (of course, hambrick has the advantage of being a 27 hole course). lots of fun, and should be a really good course in the near future.


i also took some pics- the course was looking great today!
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h185/revrec/hole10tee_35.jpg


http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h185/revrec/hole16bridgeandgreen_35.jpg


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[odysseus81]

Thanks for making the trip out. I am glad you liked it. I am pretty sure they are still quite a ways from putting finishing touches on it. I do know that once the rest of the stumps are removed (this week), they are supposedly going to do a much better job of maintaining the course. If they maintain the course like they do the rest of the park, it will be immaculate.

[MooseT]

Provided the stump grinder doesn't fail again today (the reason for the delay between the first session and this one) the stumps should be gone by the end of the day today. Once this is complete, mowers will be able to keep the course groomed. Since the Lion's volunteer their time, they hit the barrier of kids spring sport schedules (family time) coupled with a wet winter and spring, this leading to many delays. The next two weeks are going to be concentrated on preparing for and running the carnival. This carnival and the raffle for the 2010 Camaro they are giving away constitute the club's largest fundraisers. Without them, the funds to build this course wouldn't be available. If you are in the area and appreciate the course, please go to the Carnival. Every dollar raised goes into the park and back to the community.

There is much work still to be done and improvements will continue for years. The committee will get together after recovering from carnival to plan the upcoming course of action. The goal is to get the course to you and continue to improve until it is considered perfect. I know the committee is all ears on suggested improvements.

[MooseT]

I have been informed that stumps have been cleared in holes 1-14 after 13 hours of grinding Monday and Tuesday. Additional stump grinding will be needed for holes 15-18. The brush which was pulled into the fairway on 14 has been removed and ruts in holes 6, 10 and 11 have been repaired. Hole 4 will need to dry out more before those ruts can be addressed.

As you have already been discussing, hole 14 needs a little modification due to the pin placement being changed after the fairway was established. This will require some clearing through the area that has had the underbrush cleared. This optimally will be done before the stump grinder is rented again. Additionally, any clearing required for secondary pin placement should be done before the next stump grinder rental. However, the Lion's are already beginning setup for the 75th Annual Carnival which begins a week from tomorrow. That being said, I anticipate little spare time to focus on the course again until after the 4th.

Please be aware that budget is an issue on this course (contrary to a previous post), as the club continues to financially support the projects for youth, blind, deaf, handicapped and many other projects on which our community depends. This course is intended to be an additional service without taking away from our ability to serve those we are already helping. Since most of the items for the course are labor intensive and not capital intensive, our lack of limit is on the amount of things that can be done through hard work, especially with your help. The bridges were all hand made by members and signed off on by a Professional engineer. However, all of this takes time and a little money for supplies. The Lions want this to be the best course it can be, but are realistic in realizing that perfecting this course will take time. The comittee anticipates the course work will never really be done, as there will always be room for improvement.

Keep commenting on the course as the disc golf committee is watching the comments and is using the input in their decision process moving forward.

In the requested budget for this upcoming year (budget cannot be determined until after Carnival) are secondary pin sleeves, concrete Tee Pads, which will go in after several months of play and feedback, a couple small picnic table pavilions, trash cans and graphic signs for each hole. Additional beautification and convenience work is also budgeted, but the specifics have yet to be finalized.

Let's hope for a good Carnival this year.... come out.. have fun with the Lion's drag your friends, play a little disc golf before carnival and help support the fundraiser that will help continue to improve this course.

One thing the Disc golf community can do, is pick up a stick on each hole as they play and remove it from the roughs and fairways, and keep providing feedback as we go.

[odysseus81]

MooseT--Thanks so much for keeping us posted with what is going on out there. I know there a bunch of local DGers that keep an eye on this page (whether they post or not). The work you guys are doing out there is fantastic and the course is great. It is going to be difficult to tear myself away from LC to play at Ber Juan--your course is truly going to be exceptional in comparison. I realize that budget is always an issue, but we really appreciate the fact that you are spending the necessary money and putting in the necessary time and effort to make the course so great. I wish the same could be said for the other local course.

I am very glad to hear they are going to take a closer look at 14...it was one of the few negatives that stuck out to me when we played the first time. There definitely needs to be some kind of realistic way to navigate that hole if you throw a great first shot.

One other thing I would take a look at moving forward is just thinning out a few of the areas just outside of the fairway (13 definitely comes to mind). It is good for the rough to be unforgiving, but you still want the opportunity to get in and have a chance at finding your disc...it is really thick in a few spots. When I play it again, I will try to pay attention to any other places that jumped out at me.

I would leave you with one question--will there be any thing done about the ticks out there? Are there plans for spraying out there at all? I know it is no secret about the problem, just curious if any potential solutions had been tossed around.

Thanks for your time and candor--I hope the Carnival is packed and has great weather!

[MooseT]

Thanks for the feedback. When we were working the course the most, the ticks weren't out yet. We didn't really start noticing them until the last work day before we put the baskets in, and really noticed them while putting in the baskets.

We have picked up materials to treat the course and are working to line out a time, amongst all the time being spent getting ready for carnival to get out there with a spreader so that it is down before the next rain. The deer population on the course is heavy. Although it is nice to see the deer, the downside is the ticks. Since ticks climb into the trees to find a host, then retreat to the ground to rehydrate, treating the ground should help greatly. We are hoping that by treating the roughs, trails and fairways, that this will make things better. We are watching and listening. Unfortunately, this is crunch time for us.

A lot of the work that has been mentioned moving forward could be expedited after carnival by a group of DG folks coming out to join us for a day of trimming and moving brush. I will be sure to post any days on here as well as on our facebook site.

Hole 14 was originally a straight shot hole with two bridges in the plan (one betwen 14 and 15, and one between 17 and 18). Therefore, the current 90 + degree turn was a trail, not a fairway. It was then modified to where it looks like the 90+ degree turn at the end (assuming you go to the end of the straight fairway) was intentional. We combined the trails between 14 & 15 and 17 & 18 to accommodate for adding a bridge for hole 16 making for the extra challenge of shooting across the creek, and to reduce the number of places folks cross the road to one. Currently the "road" at the end of the long straight shot is actually the fairway. Which I don't think is realistic for that hole.

We believe moving the fairway back into the area where we cleared the underbrush will make that hole much more playable. That was why we cleared the underbrush to create what reviewers have referred to as the pinball shot. I anticipate the fairway curving through there sometime shortly after carnival so we can get the stumps taken out of there when we get the stumps on 15-18. I want the committee, including the person who walked the course with Dave last week, to get a chance to go out there and talk before marking trees to be removed and getting them out. I want to understand Dave's plans for the challenge on that turn before I go in chop trees out and screw up what he envisioned.

Keep posting suggestions. I have been forwarding some on as email to the committee, and there are others who are watching and reading as well. Do understand that many of us plan a little Lion's Club downtime with our families after carnival. So, if you don't see us out there, it doesn't mean we think we are done. It just means our families want us back for a few weeks.

[Three Putt]

I'm pretty sure anybody who actually lives in Rolla "gets" the importance of the Carnival to the Lions Club. I've actually been surprised at the amount of work that has been done on the course this close to the Carnival.

Once you have work days in mind let me know. We have 11 teams playing doubles at Ber Juan and a handful of other guys I have email addresses for, so I can get the word out to 25 golfers pretty quickly. Hopefully between that and here we can get a decent crew together.

There is also a social group on this site for Rolla disc golf here. (http://www.dgcoursereview.com/forums/group.php?groupid=151) That is our de facto web site for now. Feel free to post work day info there.

[odysseus81]

Couple of random thoughts--
Thanks for clearing things up on 14. It sounds like there is a solid plan in place and I think it is great you are still working with Dave as the course is further developed. As much disc golf as many of us have played, he is still the professional designer and the expert.

I am soooo relieved to hear you guys are planning on treating the area for ticks. That will make a huge difference.

Is the plan for there to be two sets of tees marked (spray paint for the pro tees?) for every hole? I noticed a few pro tees, but I didn't see too many.

I am continually impressed with how well thought out everything is out there. You guys are great. Let us know when there is an upcoming work day and hopefully some of us can head out there.

[MooseT]

Thanks for understanding... Carnival started for some of us back in March when we started selling car tickets. I will be sure to post work day info when we get a chance to get back out in an organized fashion.

In response to the TEEs, the long range plan is to have Concrete primary TEES, then professional TEES marked the way we are currently marking the White Tees with feedback welcome on whether those should be natural or mulched. There is also discussion of adding a set of beginner Tees.... However, I am not sure what our final decision will be on those.

There will also be secondary pin placements which will go in once we have everything up to snuff with the primary pins. Once again, the goal was to let you play as soon as we could, while still working on improving as we go.

[odysseus81]

Sounds great on the tee pads. I have been to a few courses with three sets of tee pads and it can work, if done right. It is great that you guys are doing the pro tees....when it gets closer to time, I have a pretty good cost effective alternative to concrete for the pro tees (better than mulch but abut the same cost).

Good luck next week with the carnival!

[odysseus81]

Has there been any progress out there in the last week? I haven't been able to make it out there. Are there any work days lined out?

[MooseT]

We have secured a great deal of mulch which will begin showing up in a couple weeks. The committee hasn't been able to meet yet, but will be getting together on Tuesday to map out the next round of activity on the course. The rain has been coming in just enough to keep us from going in to finish smoothing the rough spots on the course. However, if people are chomping at the bits, things that can be done without organization are as simple as grabbing a few rakes and cleaning up the limbs and twigs that haven't been cleaned yet. Limbs and twigs can be carried into the woods away from the fairways. Once we have had our meeting on Tuesday, I will post an update on possible work days. Was kind of hoping for the heat to break a little... but i better stop holding my breath.

[odysseus81]

I look forward to hearing how things go in the meeting tomorrow. This heat has been ridiculous...I am having a hard enough time getting motivated enough to mow my own grass=)

[MooseT]

What is your opinion on Mulch on the fairways?

[MooseT]

I walked the course today and see the TEE was already moved on 2. I apologize for the TEE being moved before trimming up the huge CEDAR on the left side of the fairway. I will try to get that trimmed up soon. I will need to get help though as that will require more than one person to get all that done without killing myself in that heat.

[odysseus81]

Explain what you mean when you say that...

[Three Putt]

What is your opinion on Mulch on the fairways?Sorry in advance for the rambling answer.

Mulch is one of those things where good park management and disc golf clash. If you think about it, a fairway is nothing more than a walking path. If you think about it as a walking path, mulch is a no-brainer. It defines your path, it keeps weeds and crud down, it give you nice cushion while you walk and it keeps you from tromping around in the mud when it's wet. Really the only downside is that it is labor intensive in that you have to spread new mulch every year.

However the mulch in disc golf really puts the breaks on your shot. That has a dramatic effect on how the course plays, and a lot of players do not like it. I've heard players complain that it makes approach shots too easy because you can just fire the disc in there and not worry about it skipping past. I've heard other players who like to play the big skips complain that it makes a course too hard. So for a lot of players it a bad deal. Other players like the mulch. It's kind of a toss-up.

From my perspective, mulch on the wooded holes makes far too much sense from a park management perspective to overlook. On those holes in the woods, I think mulch is the way to go no matter what some disc golfers might say. I'm assuming those are the only holes you are talking about; on the open holes that have grass in the fairway it would make no sense to mulch.

[odysseus81]

How did the meeting go last night? Any updates you can share?

My personal opinion on the mulch is that while it looks nice, the upkeep and the way it changes the course are not worth the work. I think you would hear more complaining about it then praise. I will start a discussion on this website and see what others have to say.

[odysseus81]

Here is the thread I started:

http://www.dgcoursereview.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18944

[odysseus81]

Seems like the board consensus thus far is to only do it if it is something that you are going to be able to maintain annually. I still have my concerns, but the board has spoken =)

[odysseus81]

Any updates Moose? I was out there briefly yesterday....yikes the weeds are getting pretty rough. We need to have a weedeater party out there or something. Looks like there has been progress on 14.

[MooseT]

Sorry for the lack of communication... things have been crazy and much has been going on in the background.

Course has been brush hogged, and we have a member going through with a DR mower in the roughs.

Be aware this week there will likely be some heavy equipment on the course to help resolve some issues which have thus far made it difficult to maintain the course. I don't have a firm time since this work is being done on a volunteer basis and isn't being contracted. The hope is to smooth the fairways more, dig out any stumps, fix the culverts to better accommodate a mower, and to widen paths that may not currently be able to accommodate a mower/bush hog). We were also discussing several dead trees, especially around holes 7 and 8 which need to be removed.

The current plan after this is done is to have a crew come in which we may soon have at our disposal to rake the course and get any branches and stuff cleaned off the ground. We also hope to be able to seed any areas which we believe will accommodate grass.

In about a week or two we will begin receiving mulch which will begin to go down on the trails. At this time, the committee has chosen to not mulch the fairways. We are reading feedback and want to see how the maintenance of the course is affected without it at this time.

We are holding off on a work day until after the heavy equipment has been in to do what they can do with the ground. I would like to have one shortly after S&T is back in session.

To sum it up, because of what we have lined out in the short run, i don't think I am ready to call a work day until i am positive I know what work still needs to be done. I do know we have a lot of trimming to do, but anticipate that being done with pole saws. I am thinking this will be done preceding a work day which would then be focused on going hole to hole in clean up mode. It would be great to have a ton of disc golfers out for that providing input and feedback on each hole as we go through.

[odysseus81]

Moose--I was starting to worry about you man. I am glad to hear you guys are getting in there and cleaning it up. It was getting really rough in the woods....and I was worried because I was in Columbia this weekend at one of their courses and a few guys had been out to LC recently with negative comments on the condition. I just don't want it to develop a bad reputation in the immediate area. I assured them they need to come back in 2 months or so. I think I had them convinced =)

Personally, I am glad you are keeping the mulch off the fairways for now. That can always be done later and I think there are many things that need more immediate attention. Everything else sounds great.

I am really looking forward to playing out there after it is cleaned up. No big deal on the work day..I am not dying to work in 100 degree weather if we don't have to. Surely it is gonna cool down here soon.

Has there been any progress on the tee sign front? Where do things stand with the first set of concrete tee pads (from a timeframe standpoint)?

One final suggestion would be that something be done with the PVC sticking out the tops of the baskets. Maybe paint them bright orange or put bright flags on them. If the goal of those is to help people locate the baskets better from the tee, either of those things would go a long ways towards enhancing it.

[andrewkh]

thats awesome but a little late. got stuck in rolla a few times in the past for a couple days and would have loved to have had something to do.....who knows...maybe i'll be back threw that way again someday

[MooseT]

The TEE pads have always been the plan for late fall to allow for some place before putting down 18 huge chunks of concrete which can't be moved.

The PVC will go away once we have the 2nd pins dug, and the sleeves placed. Those, at this time, are lower priority to other work.

I assume you are referring to the graphical TEE signs when you refer to the TEE sign front. I haven't had a chance to talk to the person responsible for those graphics, but we do need to make sure we have everything, including the 2nd holes in their final places before we can create those.

Without having an unlimited budget, we are at the mercy of all of our volunteer schedules. The last month has been riddled with staggered vacations and HOT weather. Once we get the course ground work done, we should be able to turn the mowing over to our regular park staff. Once that is done, our committee can stop worrying about that part of the course. This will make the maintenance independant of our volunteer schedules.

In addition to work stated, over the last month, an additional 56 trees have been removed to accommodate for improvements and preparing for 2nd pin placement. Those stumps too need to come out.... hopefully this will happen this week when all the other ground work is done.

I will be able to say more once this ground work has been completed.

[MooseT]

In preparation for the ground work being done this week, I went ahead and did some branch trimming on 2 to make it a little less tight getting into the woods tonight.

[odysseus81]

Sounds great...I didn't realize you had taken out another 56 trees...that is awesome. I am looking forward to getting out there this weekend and seeing the progress. I am sure it will be a huge load off you guys to turn the groundskeeping over.

It wasn't a big deal with the tee pads...I was just curious if you guys are still on place to put this in when you had initially projected (late fall). The reason I brought up the tee signs was because one of the people in Columbia mentioned them specifically.

You guys are great. Thanks

[odysseus81]

Heading out to LC tonight. Looking forward to seeing all the progress....

[odysseus81]

It is really looking good out there. You guys really got some things done last week. I am impressed with how much more spacious it feels. There is room to overthrow baskets because you pushed back all the bramble in places. 14 was a major improvement. I like the tree being gone on 18's tee as well. The walking paths were huge and very smooth. Persoanlly, I am a little unsure of #2. It feels like a really similar hole to 9---just shorter, but I have only played it that one time from the new pin position. It may age like a fine wine the more I go out there. Overall I think the course is really coming along.

You would be happy to know that there were quite a few guys out there playing last night. At least 8 cars when we were there. Obviously people are responding to the work being done. Any updates?

Thanks Moose!

[cooktastic]

Yeah...I agree...the work to clear out some of the underbrush that was pushed off the fairways really improves the playability of the course. The new smoothed fairways and larger walking paths are really nice too. Cleaning up the greens by making them bigger was one of the better things you got done out there in my opinion. Keep up the good work...really enjoying the course.

[MooseT]

Additional smoothing on the fairways is taking place this week. hopefully will have stobs and roots out by end of the week. At this time, I am thinking about a work day for Sunday the 29th.... anybody on here able to make it if I set one up for that day? The goal for that day is to clean up 10 feet out on either side of the fairways where we havn't yet and to get any brush, logs, twigs, up and out of the roughs. Basically to make the course less of a disc eater. Although pole saws, pruners/clippers and rakes would be a great help, the main thing we need is bodies to get the stuff out of your way when you play.

I will watch this for feedback and will let you know if we can pull this together.

Thanks,
James

[Three Putt]

I don't think I have anything going on that day, so I should be out there.

[odysseus81]

Unfortunately, we are going to be in branson till wednesday of the following week on vacation so I will be gone. Sorry man.

[MooseT]

I am able to get the committee together on the 29th. therefore, we are scheduled to work on Sunday August 29th starting at 8:00 am. Please spread the word and come out whenever you can that morning. I am not sure of an end time. It looks to be a cooler day so far (mid 80s) so we will work until we feel we need to quit for the day. Please be prepared to move brush and sticks. Additionally any lopping shears, or saws that can be used for trimming low branches and cutting saplings down to the ground in the roughs will be helpful. The larger the group we get, the more we will get done.

Thanks,
James

[MooseT]

The work day at the Rolla Lions Disc Golf course will go from 8:00 to 5:00.... If you can't be there at 8:00, please come out when you can.

[odysseus81]

How did it go yesterday? Decent turnout?

[Three Putt]

I was out there in the morning and the turnout was pretty light. Hopefully some more folks came out in the afternoon.

[odysseus81]

The course looks great. Played yesterday and I am thrilled with where things are. As far as i am concerned, the course is ready for the first set of concrete tees. I am very happy with all of the primary pin locations and tee pad positions.

I haven't heard any criticism in a long time about the courses layout.

[dahig]

leaving centralia,il. wed. in route to tulsa. plan on stopping in to play wed. morning,somewhere around 8:00.
any scorecards/maps at the park?

[odysseus81]

There are scorecards in the mailbox when you first get there. The course is very easy to navigate...but there are no tee signs yet. I think you will be glad you came by. I wish I could play a round with you, but I have to work.

[Rzrbax]

I have played the Lion's Club course twice now, and must say that I really enjoy the layout. This is the first course I have played with that type of baskets... They are great! I will certainly be driving up from Lebanon more often to play this great course! Thank you Lion's Club and all who have helped make the course possible and keep it in great shape.

On a side note, a friend of mine has lost 3 discs at the course. A Budweiser Bowtie Wraith in the creek on #18, a "Need more Cowbell" Boss on #8 (way right), and a Yellow Valkyrie on #13 left side pine trees. Is there a separate forum or place to post these lost discs to help recover them? Thanks for your help.

[odysseus81]

http://www.dgcoursereview.com/forums/group.php?do=discuss&group=&discussionid=887

[MooseT]

Thanks Rzrbax.... there's been a lot done, and there is much left to do. We appreciate the feedback!! unfortunately, haven't seen your discs... When all is done, I am hoping to come up with a good solution to assist with this endeavor (maybe a drop box or lost and found). Unfortunately, finishing the course is taking priority at this time.

[odysseus81]

Hey Moose...any updates, timeframes, etc...?

Thanks

[MooseT]

TEE pads will begin construction tomorrow.... We had a guy go through and cut the branches down on the left side of 13. He left them where they fell. If someone wanted to pitch in while they are out playing, we will be stacking the branches on green area between the baskets on 13 and the TEE on 14 for a final burn. If you want to drag a few branches as you play through to that area, it will help us get that cleaned up sooner.

[MooseT]

There is discussion regarding modifying the TEE area for 9. However, it would require a bit of work. Looking into possibilities.

[odysseus81]

That is great news on the concrete. Can't wait! I am curious what is driving the change of tee for 9. I have never had a problem with it. It is a fair but difficult shot. Where would the new location be?

[cooktastic]

Yeah...I really like the current layout of 9 too. One of the most difficult holes on the course...but not frustratingly so.

[MooseT]

Here is David's thinking from a note he sent last night after playing the course this weekend:
"With all of the clearing around 9s current tee location, it makes it very inviting for the longer throwers to use this area when teeing off on 8,
This is actually a good thing for 8 as it give a lot more choices and certainly a risk reward factor that was not there before. Unfortunately, this new landing area for 8 is also 9's tee pad.
I would suggest moving 9's tee over and into the woods about 60-80 feet east!
If you go from 9's basket towards this area you will see what appears to be an almost perfect semi-circle of cut grass already leading into the woods. I'd take the tee straight back into this area about 80 -100 feet back and make a path from this area back to where 9's original tee off is located. This will recreate the original intention of what was actually supposed to be a tunnel type shot for 9 and also put a little more seperation on 9 and 10,,,, since 9 will now be coming from 20 degrees due east from where it was." We are weighing the options.... this will require more clearing....

[MooseT]

ground work for the pads started this afternoon.. first several pads will be poured tomorrow.

[odysseus81]

I guess that is why he is the pro. I hadn't considered that issue, but it makes total sense. In fact, that is the shot I have been going for from that tee (haven't pulled it off successfully, but I am trying =). That is an awkward situation, because you can't necessrily tell that there is someone on 9's tee when you are throwing. It would not be pleasant to be hit in the back of the head with a disc.

[MooseT]

The nice thing is that since 9 is playable as it is, we can go in, make the modifications and clean up the new "tunnel" before we switch people over. While our crew was in to do the ground work for the TEEs, I had them clear the tunnel and a pathway to it. This will allow them to pour the new TEE as part of this week's work. Then, when we get the new area cleared, we will just need to pull up the TEE markers, add a sign and extend the mulch trail to make it clear where to go. (And modify the Scorecards).

The concrete crew is out there today.... there are a lot of guys out there. Be prepared to come across them if you try to play today or tomorrow. Please keep an eye out to make sure people aren't messing with the concrete when it is fresh.

[odysseus81]

We played out there today. Looked like 11 pads were done and the rest would be done today. There were quite a few people out there working. The pads look great. They are quite long which is great for the run up. Really impressed with all the work done and I tried to make sure i told everyone I ran into work out there how much we appreciate it.

For whatever it is worth, moving back the tee for 8 makes that an impossible shot to clear the woods and throw towards the old 9 tee. Maybe one out of 100 guys that play the course could pull that shot off. I could see that as a pro tee location, but that is filthy for the regular tee. I know it is too late for that feedback, but I didn't realize it was discussed moving it, or I would have piped in quite a bit sooner.

Regardless of that, thanks so much for all the work put in.

[MooseT]

That was actually his reasoning for moving 8 back to begin with. However, I think he is still trying to recreate the Tunnel shot which was the original intention.... It may take a little bit to get that original feel back (ie shaping of trees and side brush over the next year or so), but I think the extra work of moving it will be worth it in the end.

Currently 9 is the only one without a TEE pad. The pad was poured in the future location, but we won't move the players over there until we get it cleaned up. It will be obvious what we plan when you are on 9 now.

[odysseus81]

What do you guys think about putting up some kind of outdoor bulletin board where we can post information about the course, as well as events going on and Lions Club information? Just putting something near the pad you poured for the pavillion next to the parking lot.

Just a thought...

[odysseus81]

Also...we have been trying to drag branches to the fairway of 13, but there are still quite a few to get. When are you guys planning on doing the burn? I will try to make sure we have people there to help.

[fairweather_fan]

heading down rolla way to play the lion's club course again today- maybe i'll bring the camera and try to take an updated set of pictures...me and at least one other StL-area golfer will be teeing off around 11am if anyone can make it out.

[odysseus81]

Sorry I missed you dude. Did you get some good pics?

[fairweather_fan]

no pics this time- it was a pretty cold and overcast day, and i thought maybe i'd grab the camera for our second round through the course, but it just didn't happen...

i will say that the course looks and plays significantly better than when i first went down (shortly after installation), and it already looked/played darn good! the slight changes in where the tees are placed all seemed well thought out (although i liked when 15? forced you to shoot through the gap before getting to the open field), the tees are good and of an appropriate size, and the clearing out of the underbrush and thinning out branches/trees/etc. for the first few feet off the fairways all made the course more enjoyable and a more reasonable challenge. kudos to all who have helped get the work done.

me and my fellow StL compatriot got beat down by a few strokes by ryan j., who i think is on this site occasionally...looking forward to making the trip again, maybe waiting until spring, to see the continued growth and improvements to the course. didn't get to play ber juan on this trip, hoping to give it a second go 'round next time i'm down there- i thought it was a fun little warm-up the only other time i've played it.

[Three Putt]

There are more than a few of us that have enjoyed a beat-down from Ryan, so no worries.

[fairweather_fan]

There are more than a few of us that have enjoyed a beat-down from Ryan, so no worries.

it wasn't fair, i tells ya'...he had the local routes! :D

[Three Putt]

For whatever it is worth, moving back the tee for 8 makes that an impossible shot to clear the woods and throw towards the old 9 tee. Maybe one out of 100 guys that play the course could pull that shot off. I could see that as a pro tee location, but that is filthy for the regular tee. I know it is too late for that feedback, but I didn't realize it was discussed moving it, or I would have piped in quite a bit sooner.FWIW, moving the # 8 tee back has brought that route toward the old # 9 tee into play for me. From the shorter tee I couldn't hit that up and over route but I could hit the opening over to the left following the defined fairway fairly consistently with a hyzer shot. From that shorter tee I basically followed the fairway. With the tee so far back I can't hit that opening with any regularity any more, and trying to get over to the left is a pretty awkward forehand shot that I don't really have when I miss. Since I'm best-case taking two shots before I have a look at the basket either way, now I'm just throwing a putter straight up into the open in front of the tee and then going up and over with the hyzer on my second shot into that huge open area where the # 9 tee was.

So it's just one of those things; the longer tee takes the up and over shot away off the tee for the big arms but it brings that shot from the fairway into play for the weenie arms. Either way it's a good deal that the tee for # 9 was moved.

[jarvis73]

Hey lets not hate on my local routes!

[Three Putt]

The only thing I hate about your local routes is that I can't hit them.

[Roc Lover]

played 4 rounds at lions club last month, its a great course, well maintained (fresh pads from what i understand also) Course is very fun and challenging. First time i played it i was omw back from vichy and i was like whats all the fuss about its not "that" hard of course. Then i went back and crushed 3 rounds in a day and it was more difficult that time. I think i shot par or close to it, 1 time, but the rest i shot like a 59, 61 or something else awful. Its a good course tho and ill def. be back.

[Three Putt]

I went by Ber Juan after work today. There were two tees installed on # 1. I didn't see any work being done on # 2 and didn't go any further into the park.

[odysseus81]

What kind of tees?

[REDARMY]

What kind of tees?

i'm guessing (hoping) concrete as when i was there sunday, there was a patch of leveled ground roped off at 1...

[Three Putt]

They were coverd. but it looked like concrete.

I emailed Kristy, and she said they needed to do something about the big mud pit by the building so these two tees got done. She said she didn't know of plans to do any more right now. It's a start, though.