#1 Course designer

[BionicRib]

What are we gonna argue about next? Who the greatest QB of all time is? I will respond simply by saying I don't have enough information to give that answer......Because most of the designers have designed most of their courses in the region (and I use that term losely) does that mean we are arguing who is a better designer or who thinks there area is better?...........If I had to pick two areas where disc golf is just flat out (as whole) a notch above everybody else........I would say the twin cities area in Minnesota/Wisconsin and around Charlotte.........(which I've contemplated selling my house and quitting my job just to be able to be apart of worlds this year)

[DavidSauls]

Originally Posted by mashnut

I haven't played any of Houck's designs, so I can't comment on those. Some of Chuck's designs I've played are excellent, Highbridge and the IDGC courses are really challenging and interesting. I love his multiple fairway holes, like on Bear or on a couple of the IDGC courses. Stan's designs that I've played are pretty cool too, I really enjoyed the ones I played around Charlotte. Outside of that I'm just not familiar enough with other designers to have an informed opinion.

Chuck's only the designer, or co-designer, on the Headrick course. If you played the Jackson course at IDGC, you've played a Houck design.

[optidiscic]

what a bunch of poooooo

greatest designer lol

[Jukeshoe]

I like how everybody just jumps right in naming their most widely known local designer without at least attempting to define 1) exactly what constitutes a great course and 2) what constitutes a good designer (i.e., volume, consistency, quality, some combination of those things and/or other things).

[jenb]

"John Houck is synonymous with excellence in disc golf course design. His knowledge of disc sports is unparalleled and he is perhaps the most celebrated designer in the sport today. His courses have been played by thousands and have been used in regional, national and international tournaments including the Disc Golf World Championships. John's attention to detail and ability to challenge disc golfers of all skill levels made him the obvious choice to oversee the development of the three courses at the PDGA International Disc Golf Center.

I would highly recommend John Houck to anyone seeking to develop a quality facility."

Brian Graham
PDGA Executive Director

Plus he looks like Bob Ross! No one can locate a basket next to a "happy little tree" like he does.

[harr0140]

Look at Houck's site . . . he says he is the #1 course designer so it must be true (its on the internet)

Seriously though I have played a lot of Houck, a lot of Chuck kennedy, a lot of Stan McDaniel and they all are great designs. I will not say one is better than another because it is almost impossible to declare that. Put the top designers on the same property and then see what they all come up with . . . unfortunately impossible but that would tell you who is the best designer . . . what you are discussing is more who was in charge of the greatest course. Or put them all on a crappy property and compare who comes up with the best design to utilize the property to its best (again that means different things to different people). They each had their own issues to deal with on each property.

It's kindof like comparing art . . . we all have our tastes and noone is actually right or wrong!

[Martin Dewgarita]

^Sounds like another opportunity for a reality TV series. We'll take the 5 names most discussed here, give them various "identical" pieces of property, have some kind of blind rating process by the most qualified reviewers from this site, add some contrived drama, and bam, another MartinD production co reality hit.

[grodney]

Y'all should be talking about who is #2, because there's no question on #1.

[mashnut]

Originally Posted by DavidSauls

Chuck's only the designer, or co-designer, on the Headrick course. If you played the Jackson course at IDGC, you've played a Houck design.

Good to know. In that case, I put him right up there in my top 3 designers (out of the designers whose names I know, and that I actually know I've played their designs). It's a tough thing to quantify. I've played 550 courses in 40 states and I still don't feel qualified to make a real comparison of a large segment of course designers.

[jcrab66]

bob horning did a nice job with that meadow ridge course so he should get some love in here too...