Mountain City, TN

Ralph Stout Park

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2.45(based on 10 reviews)
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10 0
GMcAtee
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 15 years 749 played 89 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Ralph needs some lovin'.

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 13, 2022 Played the course:once

Pros:

1. Beautiful park with lush green grass, a flowing creek, pond, and mature trees.
2. Practice basket and bathroom near parking area. (I tend to appreciate well placed bathrooms on courses, and it may even influence my review if they are air conditioned.)
3. Course makes a full loop back to the parking area.

Cons:

1. Park is flat and holds water. The ground was very saturated when I played.
2. I had to skip holes 2 and 3 due to activities around the park shelter and grass being too high on hole 2. Hole 2's basket had weeds growing through it as tall as the basket.
Hole 3's tee pad was difficult to find, and creates a long awkward walk from hole 2's basket walking down most of 3's fairway. Hole 3's basket also sits on the ground.
3. Holes 5 ~7 are really good, but tree limbs hang low enough to close up the lines. Need a good tree trimming through here.
4. Lots of guys sitting alone in their vehicle by the bathroom. Is this the local pickle park? I never need to worry about that as most people think I'm a cop anyway, but could be a problem for someone else or someone with kids.

Other Thoughts:

Not sure disc golf is a priority in this small rural town, but this little 9-holer has potential to be good.
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4 0
Notverygood
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 14.6 years 76 played 34 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Better than nothing! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 11, 2017 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nothing against mountain city, but it doesn't strike me as the place to have a disc golf course. Quiet, simple mountain town.
That being said, I'm extremely impressed that this course exists, and it was honestly a fun, quick 9 hole outing.

The course is in a small, but pretty city park just outside of downtown. A perfect use for some of the available space in the park.

The course use both the small goose pond and the pretty babbling creek as obstacle which adds some scenery and challenge, although not much, to this simple course.

New-ish DGA baskets are in great shape, and are aesthetically pleasing in the Tennessee orange. Helping our sports image, which I appreciate.

Could be a great course for people new to the game. May be the beginning of the obsession so many of us share here.

Cons:

Unfortunately, this course had some cons. The recent paving of a (new?) Walking trail has interrupted two holes, 4&6 I believe. There is no tee pad for 4, so I decided to play from the new path. Seemed like the natural place given the shelter on one side, and embankment up to the road on the other. Then for hole 6 (I may be off with these hole numbers...) the new walkway runs right where the fairway would be. Making it hard not to land on, potentially chewing up discs.

This course also lacks some difficulty. But I do think the design makes the best of the space available.

Unfortunately, this course isn't near much. A quick ride to Boone, but as far as disc golf goes, it's on its own

Other Thoughts:

This is just a simple 9 hole "starter" course. Could be great for practice with mids and putters, or introducing a novice to the game.

I wouldn't go out of your way to play here, but if you're passing by and looking to stretch out from the car ride, or like in my case staying somewhere near by, by all means stop in and throw a quick nine holes.

A+ to the city for putting in this course, I hope it can introduce some new players to the game!

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2 0
bjreagh
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 27.6 years 350 played 317 reviews
1.00 star(s)

Too much goose poo to be enjoyable 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 18, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

9 holes in a city park that plays in open fields around the perimeter of the park. The baskets are sweet looking orange colored- I love courses that use the different available colors. In a more open park like this, the orange is still plenty visible from the tee. The tees are concrete and signs are sufficient. There is plenty of room to park. There are other park activities here- ball fields, walking trail, playground. There are restrooms near hole 3's basket.

Cons:

The biggest con for me was the goose poop- it was absolutely everywhere on holes 3-7 that play around the pond. It was hard not to step on any, it smelled bad, and maybe the worst part was that your disc was probably going to land in a pile on every shot- pretty disgusting. This may seem like a minor thing, but I have never seen this much goose poop at any lake or even the zoo! The fairways, naturally, also had flocks of geese on them, which could get hit with a disc, and they get mad at you when you try to get your disc!

There is a walking trail throughout the park that runs along many of the holes- not busy when I played, but I have heard that sometimes the course is practically unplayable during certain times.

There is a large pond and a distant creek, but the water does not come into play once (unless you happen to make a horrendous throw coupled with some bad luck.)

-Hole #1's basket is close to the park road.
-Hole #2 plays along the road on a tall embankment/ditch with very high grass. The basket was close to the road, and it is very possible that a disc could land on the road or hit a swift moving car.
-I never found Hole #3's tee (although I think I now know where it is, but that puts it in a non-logical place.)
-Hole #5 was great until we saw the basket was practically outside the park boundaries in some wasteland behind an Eckerd drugstore. Sure, the creek is there in the distance, but it did not balance out the ugliness of the basket placement. (I am talking aesthetics, not hole shape.)
-#8 and #9 were designed unnaturally in an open field behind the baseball field and made for some odd walks and some backtracking and some confusion as to which basket and tee to use.

Other Thoughts:

Overall, this course is not difficult, it is a quick play, and the pond does not come into play and grass is mowed so there is little chance to lose a disc.

The holes are mostly open and flat, some have a few trees or some tall grass to avoid, and the pond and creek do not really come into play, but are just a part of the scenery. The main road and a side hill come into play on holes 1 and 2. Overall, the hole style would be a good place to introduce somebody to disc golf (during times when the geese aren't there if possible).

Recommendation- good for new players and locals, but not one you would want to travel long distances to come and play. This course is not really near anything significant and it is a pretty good drive to get to another course.

Hole 1 and the practice basket are to the right once you enter the park. Kind of confusing because hole #2 is on the left and right next to the parking lot on the left side. (I actually started there on accident and then finished with #1.)
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3 0
swatso
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.6 years 755 played 414 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Mountain Flatness 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 7, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

Volunteer-orange baskets. Practice basket. Flat, concrete tees - 4'x10'.

View of pond, steeple, mountain from tee-7.

Cons:

Oft-present walking path. Seemingly ever-damp ground. Mostly flat, mostly open, mostly short.

Other Thoughts:

Course plays in a clockwise-fashion around the edges of a small multi-purpose park.

While right-turning number-1 (second shortest) and number-2 (longest) offer some minor elevation challenge, the course is quite flat overall.

Number-3 is a bit awkward - after completing hole-2, you walk straight ahead, keeping the wall to your left. After reaching the unmarked teepad, you turn around 180-degrees, and throw a short left-turner, the re-trace your steps nearly all the way back to basket-2 before turning to go to basket-3, which is nearly flush to the ground.

Left-turning numbers 4&5 are similar, but don't be long on #5, as the swift-running creek looms not far behind.

Number-6, second longest, is probably the most interesting hole. Although flat, the creek isn't far to the left, the pond is within range to the right, there are small trees to miss/stay under early, and larger trees near the basket late.

Holes 7-9 are similar - open, ~275 +/- 25', and play in the dampest part of the course.

Beginning players will need to be a bit wary of the water, otherwise the openness and distances are quite suitable. Experienced players should have birdy opportunities on most of the holes.
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2 0
Baldzillabill
Experience: 15.9 years 6 played 4 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Nice easy home course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 21, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Great for this small town. The orange baskets are a nice touch to be in Tennessee. (Go Vols!!) Mostly flat and easy to navigate. great atmosphere and good for the entire family.

Cons:

Like everyone else has said, it can be a SWAMP!! Ware hiking boots or rugged shoes you don't mind getting muddy and covered in duck and geese poop.
The terrain is soft so it is still a good work out as the ground can give as you walk.

Other Thoughts:

Come on and try it. A good local course for me and a few more of us that live here. I want to see more people playing this great sport and we need more people in this town to realize the course is even here!

Play more Discgolf!!
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1 2
coolhand
Experience: 23 played 23 reviews
2.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 6, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

great job with the land they had to work with. interesting shots. good mix of left right straight. nice teepads. nice baskets.

Cons:

it does flood. public park. lots of people. not playing but around. wide open. not easily navigable.
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1 5
Mando
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 17.3 years 120 played 27 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 26, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Concrete pads. Great baskets.
Nice layout in a very nice town park.
Easy to find.

Cons:

The drainage ditch made for a tough transition on hole 4 ?, when I played the course.

Other Thoughts:

Great course to learn how to play dg.
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7 0
asksmity
Experience: 16.2 years 7 played 4 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Great small park course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 4, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Concrete Pads
-Very Nice Catchers
-Laid around a small city park
-Flat (a pro for some, a con for others)
-Avoidable water hazards
-Quiet

Cons:

-The drive if you are not local
-DO NOT play if it has rained within 48 hours without waterproof boots

Other Thoughts:

This is my 'first impression' review, and therefore will not be very in-depth. I will write a better one once i have played this course a few times and taken notes. I apologize in advance if you do not like small reviews, but to me seeing a course is the best review.

Please also note, i went when the snow was melting. If it has rained or snowed recently, be prepared as this course turns into a bit of swamp, literally. Other than the water conditions the course is high class.

The first hole is on the right as you pull into the park and shoots toward the entrance road. Practice hole is directly behind the number 1 teepad off to right (could be considered #10 if you turn around on #1 tee).

The course continues across the entrance road. #3 starts at a retaining wall for the highway above and shoots toward 2 with a sharp left. #4 starts next to the lake and shoots along side of it. #5 loops around behind the RiteAid. #6 and #7 shoots back toward the baseball field. There is a concrete path that "splits" the park between baseball field and the lake. #8 and #9 tee off from this path, one curves the baseball field to the left and one to the right toward the parking lot.

If i were to grade this course based on all the courses i play, i would give it a 3. If i were to grade this course based on all "small city park" courses, i would give it a close 4.5.

It is a great starter park, and nice for a quick game. If you have not played here, i would recommend just once to understand this park. Plenty of entertainment for the kids (large play area with skate park) which is all visible from the entire park.

The course is in the heart of mountain city and is right across the street from the highway 91 north entrance. If you are coming in from TN/VA i recommend taking I-81 to exit 19 in VA. Then take 58/19 into mountain city. you avoid the big mountains as opposed to taking 421. Below is a google maps rendition of the trip.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f...;t=h&z=17

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6 0
climbtoo
Experience: 16.9 years 42 played 4 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Short and Sweet 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 22, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

The first reviewer did a great job so I'll try to avoid repetition. It's terrific that small towns like Mountain City are putting in disc courses! Hat's off to those that made this course possible. I was with a group of kids, most playing their first round so we paired up for doubles and everyone had a great time. The course winds around the around the outside of the park for the first 6 or 7 holes and then works it way back to the start at the back of a the field. I like a course with a close start and finish and this one has it. The concrete t-pads are large and well textured and the signs are well done with distance and good diagrams of the hole making it easy to see work you way around the course. Great baskets and a good variety of placements for a 9 hole small park course. There is a great practice area where you can even make some mid range warm up throws.
#1 is a mid range hole that is between the gazebo and the entrance road. #2 Cross the road to find the t-pad and along the drainage. A nice long hole with the basket placed near the start of a long wall beside the main road. Don't try to cross the drainage ditch if it's been raining. You'll sink up to your knees. We had to pull one of the kids out and fish around for her shoes! #3 Walk along the wall to find the pad and you'll throw (kinda back in the direction you walked) over the drainage back into the park. A fun hyser thru some trees. #4 is a mid range hole along the lake (which will be on your right from the t-pad) There is a bench that backs up to the pad and overlooks the lake. Likely full of people feeding ducks.. :) #5 Basket is behind the drug store and you have to walk right and up the fairway from the T-pad to see it. You can reach a safe landing with either a long (230 ft ?) backhand or forehand hyser. #6 and 7 run along the back of the park. There is a dense area of weeds (not mowed) about 10 to 20' deep that separates the fairway from a wide creek. Avoid the weeds! We spent some time looking for a disc that went in and I had a good bead on where it fell. # 8 runs past the horseshoe pits to the back of the ball field. With a walking path on the left and the horse shoe pits on the right, there are going to be some days that a drive on this hole will be dangerous! Use caution and don't' throw when there is a chance of hitting someone. # 9 is a little bit of a walk from the 8 basket but you can see it back in the direction of the playground and lake. You'll play around a big tree to the finish basket. As the first reviewer noted, it's a fun, safe environment for kids and adults.

Cons:

Most of the holes are short and it's not a challenging layout. I would not drive a long way to play unless you have some inexperienced players and you want to give them a fun, easy first round. On the other hand, if you are near by or driving thru, it's more than worth the effort to stop and play a quick round. Avoid the drainage ditches on wet days! There are many opportunities to hit someone on the walking paths. It looks like they are getting ready to expand the walking paths and they will be even more of a problem. If someone gets hurt, it will be the disc course that suffers.

Other Thoughts:

It's a fun little course. Well done for what they had to work with. You can take your kids and play with them or let them hang out in the playground while you get in some holes. We need more courses like this so support them when you can.
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10 0
jackrbailey72
Experience: 14.8 years 16 played 6 reviews
3.00 star(s)

THANKS MOUNTAIN CITY PARKS AND REC 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 13, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

New course amenities-
Great Signage- New signs with Par #, distance, and hole direction/layout. Nice job Parks and Rec. The signs are also directional indicators...
GREAT tee pads- Nice new textured cement tee pads about 9-10 foot in length. Will be great in ANY weather. This is a nice touch...the tee pads can be overlooked...you guys got it right.
Baskets- New baskets (DGA orange and chrome baskets). One thing they did with the baskets (on accident or not), they put the baskets at different heights...I liked that little wrinkle. I am used to shooting at a fairly similar basket height and it made me think a little.
SAFE- environment was awesome. Grandma's, mom/dad/kids, this is a family place and the hoodlums were no where to be seen. Also, good patrol by the local 5-0...I saw 2 patrol cars pass through keeping the peace.
Course layout- The course was laid out in a logical manner using what is typically wasted peripheral space around a city park (with a couple of exceptions noted below). The center piece(s) of the course are the pond in the middle (not the kind you go after a disc in either...there is wildlife, if you know what I mean, in the water!!!!!!!) or the bordering drainage ditch.
The course itself- I am adding this as a PRO because Disc golf is not very popular in this region, but is growing. To see a small city like Mountain City erect a DG course shows this sport is gaining footing is awesome....THANKS MOUNTAIN CITY!!!
Parking- PLENTY of parking...
Warm-up basket/area- PLENTY of space to warm up, throw, and putt....
WATER- I love water holes....it is like ball golf...you get a little freaked out and it adds a little pressure. Holes 4 and 6 (6 being only if you shank it HARD right) have water, but 4 is the signature water hole with the pond running down the entire right side of the fairway.
Layout- Course starts and ends at the same parking lot...
Ease of Play- I add this (and read down my review...this is not a techical course) because this is a course where I would bring someone new to the game. This would give someone who never played a good feel for disc golf without technical, wooded, or mountainous hikes sapping their motivation.

Cons:

I am going to be kind here...this is a new course in an area where DG is new....but to be objective in the name of information....
Length- Short 9 hole course...about 45 minute walk. The longest hole is 415...most holes are in the upper 100's to mid-upper 200's (you have to know your max distances with your discs or you CAN overthrow the baskets or be able to move down to your mid-range).
Directional arrows- Tee pad for #3 is not obvious. Once you finish #2, there needs to be a directional arrow or sign pointing down to #3 tee pad. It is about a 100 yard walk down the side of the big white bridge wall. Then, once you tee off, you have to walk back up to cross the NASTY drainage ditch. Also, from 8 basket to 9 tee pad, there also should be a directional indicator.
Online files- There is not a pdf online for a scorecard or course map. I am sure this will be an addition once the usage grows.

Other Thoughts:

I REALLY enjoyed playing this course and specifically drove down to play because 1) it was a new course and 2) there were no reviews. MAKE NO MISTAKE...this is not a technical course...and I don't think Mountain City P&R meant it to be...but they have made a nice flat course where beginners, families, and children can play and get some experience. I will go back because this is stress-free disc golf on a Sunday afternoon. I like wooded, technical courses, but this was a nice mental break. I was able to work on wrist snap, drive placement, and enjoyed being out doing something I loved.

Course Info-
* #1 is on right side by the gazebo once you enter the park. This is also the lion share of parking.
* Once you are done with #1, walk across the entry road and down the hill to #2 tee pad.
* Once you finish #2, walk down the BIG white wall to the #3 tee pad.
* #5 can be a risk reward if you have the guts to shoot a R to L then back R shot across a LONG drainage ditch. OR you can shoot straight down the fairway. The basket is hidden from the tee pad on the left (almost behind the Rite Aid).
#9 tee pad is a little walk from #8 basket. From #8 basket, walk past the horseshoe pits toward the BIG sign (the back will be facing you, so you see the timbers and the back of the sign).
Give this course some traffic. If you live in the area, go out and play. I drove 30 miles to come down just to check it out. I talked to a couple of the local teenagers and was told I was the first adult they had seen play here. They would like to see more intermediate to advanced players come because they want to get better, too. This is what DG is all about, especially in an area where DG is just taking hold. Go out, support the new course, and give Props to the local parks and rec guys and gals for the course and its upkeep.
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