Tucson, AZ

Groves Park

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2.555(based on 22 reviews)
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1 1
uponthesart
Experience: 4.2 years 2 played 2 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 18, 2020 Played the course:once

Pros:

simple course
concrete tee pads

Cons:

tee pads and set up somwhat convoluted, so it was hard to figure out how to play it the first time
park is way back in a neighborhood, so a bit tricky to get to

Other Thoughts:

overall was a fun course, and there was a nice crowd when i was out, but some tees are really hard to find
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4 0
jdog17
Experience: 10.9 years 13 played 13 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Counterintuitive 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 23, 2018 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-It has grass
-It's has multiple concrete tee pads
-There's a tree here and there
-Has a brand new map (which you will need)

Cons:

-Totally flat
-Goes in a circle, then turns back around and goes in the same circle (sorta) again
-Tee pads for each hole can be difficult to figure out even if you use the map since the 3 tee pads on each hole work in two directions
-Not much distance
-Giant pain in the ass to get to, at the end of a convoluted neighborhood
-I'm not a great DG player and this course is almost too easy

Other Thoughts:

This course drives me nuts because (while I admit I suck at navigation) I have been on much longer, more arduous courses with blind shots and they were far easier to navigate. There are A, B and C pads on each hole and the only marking is a brick that kinda leads to the basket. I just find it really hard to navigate this course and it looks super easy. For me, it's not intuitive at all.
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5 0
tankmlee
Experience: 8.6 years 19 played 6 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Fun, maybe a little too easy 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 29, 2017 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

-lots of basket placements
-all concrete teepads for the "A' course
-good use of land
-pins change position about once a month
-local players are super friendly and helpful
-4 leagues a week and every league has 10+ people
-alternate "B" and "C" pads add a huge layer of difficulty and length

Cons:

-fairly boring park
-no facilities
-occasional random oblivious people walk through park
-can get crowded playing with only 9 baskets
-trees keep dying and opening up the course making it easier
-some of the teepads are damaged
-the park map is there but it doesn't show the multiple pin positions
-most of the b and c pads are blind so playing them with people in the park is a challenge
-lot of cactus' in the rough
-parking lots gets crowded easily

Other Thoughts:

I personally know the guy who changes the pin positions here and he likes to keep the pins in the toughest positions, but has no real rhyme or reason to when the baskets move.

There are plans to put all concrete teepads for the B course as well.

the locals care about this course a lot and it shows, they have a very good working relationship with the city and they have been improving the course more and more.

this park is not perfect but it has lots of potential for a 9 basket course.
If you feel like playing this course and don't know your way around most of the locals would be more than happy to show you.
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2 0
pmay5
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 20.8 years 480 played 245 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Great use of the space, creative course. 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 9, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

Good baskets, two concrete tee pads per hole.
Creative basket placements, #2 was elevated, #3 in the middle low tree limbs, #5 back in the desert, #9 in the far corner of the park.
Good use of the available land. They used the trees available and worked all the way around the park, even stepping into the desert a few times.
Probably not much else going on in this park, except dog walkers, so mainly a DG Park.

Cons:

Neighborhood wasn't the best, but didn't have any trouble.
No elevation available, but I don't count that against the course.
Most holes were rather short, but its not a big park!
No water, restrooms, shelter available.
No tee signs or map at course, so print a map from here.

Other Thoughts:

The designers did a real good job to lay out 18 holes, playing to 9 baskets, in what is a pretty small park. It doesn't look like there are too many others activities in this park, partly due to the condition of the neighborhood. So this is pretty much a DG park, with some grass, which is probably a luxury in the desert.
It looks like the local club plays some events here and I saw 4 others playing on the weekday morning I was there, so it does get some rounds played.
I would definitely play here often, especially if I lived on this side of town.
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1 2
Chromezero
Experience: 13.7 years 10 played 8 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Groves Park - A nice, short course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 22, 2014 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Groves Park is a short course but still fun. It's 9 baskets and can be played as 18. It has a lot grass, which is rare for Tucson courses. It has some challenging holes but is great for teaching newer players. The regulars at this course are generally friendly.

Cons:

Some of pads/holes are tricky to find if it's your first time there. It would be nice if there were tee-pad placards or maybe arrows to point you to the next hole. Occasionally, an ATV or two can be heard racing around the park.

Other Thoughts:

This has become one of my favorite courses in Tucson. It may not be "World Class", but it's great for a quick round after work.
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4 1
swatso
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.6 years 755 played 414 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Nine By Four 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 22, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

While there are only nine baskets (plus one for practice), there are two tees per hole, and the course does play back upon itself, so there are two 18-hole layouts.

Cons:

Dead flat.

Minimal obstacles - an occasional tree trunk or branch to miss, with only one basket offering a challenging approach through trees (number -5, set barely inside the wild space).

Some baskets much too close to private property or entrance/parking lot.

Other Thoughts:

Course plays in a clockwise, then counterclockwise, manner around the edges of a small public park located between a school/neighbourhood and undeveloped area. The course is open and short, so ace runs and birdy chances should be in abundance for the experienced, but offer some challenges to the less-advanced player.

Navigation: The online map I used mid-May 2014 has one error - there is no longer a basket-4 near the fence/play area. There is a new basket in the open space between old basket-7 and basket-8. Otherwise, the map did help me locate all the short (concrete) tees, and I mostly found the longer tees, which seemed to be transitioning from dirt patches/single brick to "real" hard-surface tees.

A place to play/practice/safari?/glow?, but not very challenging.
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1 2
Outdoor Craziness
Experience: 11.9 years 19 played 14 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Nothing to call home about... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 30, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The location: it's disc golf in the ghetto. The course isn't much, but the organizers are doing their best with what they've been given. It's a pretty sketchy area, but this definitely opens the game up to a lot more people. I think that deserves some praise.

Cons:

The challenge: the A-tees are all pretty simple par 3s. I'd say this is a great place to introduce someone to the game, but it's also a great place to get robbed. And I've heard about people being held up at gunpoint out here.

The parking: a few of the holes require throws over the parking lot. Beware of errant drives...

The wait: since there are only 9 baskets, it's pretty awkward waiting for groups to finish before you can go.

Other Thoughts:

I only play here if I have to.
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5 0
The Valkyrie Kid
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 45.8 years 1563 played 1507 reviews
2.50 star(s)

A Green, Grassy Course In Southwest Arizona Is A Treat! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 6, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

I was pleasantly surprised to find a green, grass park here in Tucson. The baskets are placed are around the perimiter of the park. There are concrete pads for the longer tees. # 1-9 play in a clockwise direction, then you can play it counter clockwise 10-18 going back the opposite way. I would have had no clue about this had I not ran into a couple of locals to show me the way.
I only had time to play # 1-9. This layout was fairly short and easy. Very recreational in nature. At least three ACE runs. Definitely each hole was an easy birdie.
Previous reviewers have mentioned the punishing OB with it's cactus, etc. At least, speaking for the front nine, I thought it would be pretty difficult to miss these fairways and get to the OB's.

Although the park is fairly small aand flat, there are a few trees and the designers have done a nice job using them to create obstacles.

Cons:

I could see this clockwise/counter-clockwise design being a problem when there are multiple groups playing here.
This is a beginner/recreational course. Nothing more. If you're looking for more of a challenge in the Tucson area, you'll have to drive up to Marana.

Other Thoughts:

I was cool with this course. Playing on grass was a treat after playing the desert courses in New Mexico and Arizona. Groves is a great place to teach someone the game. It's a fun little throw that doesn't take forever. It has some great little ACE runs. When in Tucson, I highly recommend it.
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3 0
bsnone
Experience: 20 played 6 reviews
1.00 star(s)

Much better elsewhere... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 11, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Decent baskets and fairly good tee pads. Basket placements make use of what little trees are in the park but at least they tried! Probably a great place to take a first timer, provided that the other person knows the layout.

Cons:

Layout is very confusing, I had my iphone with me and had to check the map on this site between every hole to know where I was going. Easy short holes - an average player could play this course with a putter only (short course) or a midrange and a putter (longer tees). Lots of crossover between holes and dodging other players is a regular occurrence. Just really tough to navigate - it was a point of frustration.

Other Thoughts:

If this were my backyard, I'd probably play regularly just to go throw but it was not at all worth driving across town to try out. I was actually surprised with the amount of traffic on the course for such a dull layout.
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1 1
ZDotHalbach
Experience: 12.9 years 21 played 12 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 5, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice baskets
Well manicured park
Some holes may make you think
Concrete tees

Cons:

No tee signs
Confusing flow (ended up playing backwards)
No benches
Course can interfere with other park activites
Not much variation of shots

Other Thoughts:

Just another 9 hole course is all it really is.
Some minor improvement can make this course a lot better
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2 3
rdwyer
Experience: 13.7 years 19 played 6 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Definition of Average 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 14, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Lots of grass, not typical in Tucson, and nice to see. Decent baskets and tees.

Cons:

Very simple. There is really nothing in between the teepads and the baskets, and you could probally go through this course with just a midrange and a putter. Mulitple tees on different sides of each hole sometimes mean you're throwing at someone else. Confusing course layout, print out the map if you can

Other Thoughts:

If you live on that side of Tucson, it's worth stoppng by, but I drove about 25 min over there and it's not worth that drive. Stick to santa cruz river park, I'd say
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3 0
Patsie87
Experience: 5 played 3 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Simply fun course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jan 16, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

JUST CREATED AND UPLOADED A MAP OF ALL TEES I HOPE THIS REALLY HELPS OUT!!

Most holes have multiple tees and the back ones can provide some very interesting shots. All close tees are cement and as long as you know where hole #1 is (in grass on left of parking lot by the school) the course doesn't get confusing. Not many trees and a great place to practice.Some of the holes are very short but some of the back tees out in the desert can make some of the holes very challenging. Great place for beginners and practice shots.

I am drawing out a map next visit and will try to get it uploaded!

Cons:

The shortness of the course can my annoying at times and lack of trees can leave a lack of challenge and make the course boring at times. Some of the back tees are simply just a brick in the ground marker a tee or a circle drawn in the sand out in the desert which seems to always be there but if you dont know what youre looking for you may not find some of the back tees.

Other Thoughts:

Great course to go and practice without any stress.
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3 0
naturenut
Experience: 18.8 years 19 played 3 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Groves Course 2+ years drive by

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

Pros:

Nice tee pads and baskets are in good shape. The course is well maintained. Friendly helpful players there, makes navigating a bit easier. Good course to work on short game, most drives can be done with a putter.

Cons:

Very short course. It can be difficult to navigate. There is no elevation change in the entire course. There are very few obstacles. Makes for a very easy round. There is not nearly enough room for a full 18 holes. Signs at the tees would be nice to make sure you are in the right spot.

Other Thoughts:

Careful not to throw your disc in surrounding areas. If you wish to get a good 18 holes in near Tucson, go over to Marana. Overall, Groves was not a bad course to go to for a quick round. Good beginner course to improve your skills, but not a good representation of a typical course where there is a wide variety of demanding shots with either elevation, obstacles, or both.
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1 3
tbone618
Experience: 8 played 7 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Fore! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 13, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Wide open holes make for excellent beginners course. Short, easy holes, bring down your score, but lack in difficulty.

Cons:

Back nine holes are the same as front nine only in reverse order. This means that you are constantly throwing at other players. Fore!!!

Other Thoughts:

Only play it on a weekday when few are playing.
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3 0
Anger Monsoon
Experience: 5 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Real easy from the A tees; interesting from the Bs 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 20, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Grass inside the (small, as other reviewers mention) park. This is a good course for beginners and players wanting to work on their short game without a lot of obstacles or difficulty. The grass makes it cooler, though the sprinklers run in the morning. The A tees are fairly easy to find; and the actually plays interestingly in both directions. You can wear sandals if you want here. There are two water fountains.

The A tees are all short, though there is some interesting OB (prickly pear cactus, mesquite, and lots else if you get outside the perimeter of the park.

The B tees--though hard to find (download course map from the website and play with a regular or expect to look around)--are much more interesting. All the B tees add significant difficulty for better players. Many of them play from outside the perimeter of the park, so you have to clear 200-250' of nastiness to even get on the fairway. Many big hyzer drives from the B tees. And from those tees, you need more shots (forehands, anhyzers, hammers maybe).

Cons:

For my money, the A tees are way too easy, and except for a couple, not very interesting. Only one of the holes is a difficult drive. A decent player should be able to shoot -8 on a good day without too much trouble on the A tees. Plenty of aces out there, but they're not aces you're going to feel really good about.

Admittedly the designers did a good job with a very small chunk of land here. And the Bs are much better. But still...

Other Thoughts:

This is a pretty good course from the B tees. I'm not a fan of 9-basket courses, but they do a good job with this one, especially from the B tees. Warm up on the As. It's nice to have another course in town that is cooler and grassy, and this is closer to a lot of Tucson than driving out to Marana to play Marana Rock (which is a great course, much more challenging). Still, I play it all the time. Enough OB and weird cacti to keep things interesting.
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7 0
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.1 years 831 played 767 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Watch the rough! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Dec 29, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays around a very small flat park, with a couple nice trees and very punitive rough around the edges. Though the park is tiny, the space is used very well, and the 9 baskets really didn't feel too crowded. The layout made for a very nice mix of different types of shots, despite the lack of many obstacles or any elevation.

The course only has 9 baskets, but is designed to play both clockwise and counter-clockwise around the park. This was an ingenious way to make 18 in a way that created a very different set of holes on the back 9, and was much more interesting that many other 9 holers with alternate tees for 18.

The park area where the majority of the tees and baskets was a very nicely maintained and mowed area. The rough was left very much as-is, and made for some great risk-reward decisions (let me tell you, it's no fun throwing your upshot from the middle of a patch of prickly pear cactus).

Cons:

The course really needs signs, or at least a map at the beginning of the course. It was not an easy course to navigate. Despite all the tees and baskets being fairly obvious, it was not always easy to determine which tee was next or which basket to shoot at.

A course map would have also made the existence of the long set of tees more obvious. Unfortunately, many of these are more hidden, so if you don't know about them you probably won't stumble upon them.

Though the forward/backward layout was ingenious, it made for some waiting when there were players coming the other direction. This wasn't a major deal, but it certainly could have been much worse if the park was more crowded.

Other Thoughts:

This course was a fun little find in an out of the way park. We enjoyed the round, and I would definitely go back if I were in the area. I wouldn't recommend driving way out of your way just to play this course, but if you happen to be in the area it's definitely worth a short stop.

The local club seems to do a lot of nice maintenance work, hopefully that means that they will get around to marking the course and the various sets of tees better. If this were done, I think it would be a really nice little course.
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6 0
heywillard90
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.8 years 31 played 28 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Oasis 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 15, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

A very nice park considering that you are in the middle of a desert. Although open, trees create descent obstacles to shoot around. The dg community really has made the best of what they had to work with at this park and I wouldn't change anything.

Cons:

THIS PARK IS PROBABLY THE SIZE OF TWO FOOTBALL FIELDS AT MOST. Cactus patches are on the outskirts of the park, if you lose your disc in them be prepared for a world of pain. I got a 5 inch cactus fruit with barbs all over it stuck in my leg. Find a map because the course isn't marked. The A course has some shots too short, and the B course has some tees that I couldnt find so it is probably best to create a course that has a mix of A and B tees.

Other Thoughts:

This park is like an oasis in the middle of the sonoran desert. Of course it would never be too big considering the limited water supply, so you are playing in a very small space. But this course is as good as it will ever get so the designers deserve a lot of credit. Grass does make the experience a bit more enjoyable.
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2 5
FoleyT
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 18.8 years 86 played 84 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Good use of limited space 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 17, 2008 Played the course:never

Pros:

Good variety of holes considering the space available, and ingenious layout utilizing double tees to make a completely different back 9 from the same baskets.

Cons:

We played this one early on a Sunday morning and were the only ones out there. I imagine it might get a bit crowded and frustrating during the 'busy' usage hours.

Other Thoughts:

Good beginner course. Worth the trip to Tucson.
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5 2
jace
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.1 years 46 played 33 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Groves 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 13, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

Very nicely laid out for use with only 9 baskets. Never really felt like we played the same baskets on the back 9 which was good!
Nice concrete tee pads with course fairly easy to follow. we had a map which helped to locate some of the 'B' course tee pads which we played from occassionally.
Very excited to be able to practice a good variety of approach shots due to basket placement around trees.
Really loved that a bad drive off the tee still allowed for some recovery on shot number two. This is a wide open course with alot of forgiveness.

Cons:

No bathrooms.
Open park provides little shade.
Too flat - but still plays very well - especially for beginners which is why it was designed.

Other Thoughts:

a shelter and a bathroom and this course is a 3.0 IMO.
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6 2
weum107
Experience: 27.9 years 110 played 16 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Groves Digger! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 12, 2006 Played the course:never

Pros:

Nice little park with grass and several open fairways. Good baskets and creatively laid out. "Back 9" tee placements play pretty well and help to complete this cozy course.

Cons:

As is the case with any "double-up-for 18" 9-hole course, 18 different ones is always better. You only have so much room at Groves Park, though, and it is well utilized. A fun afternoon for sure. Nice work.

Other Thoughts:

Took a trip across Tucson to play this course while visiting girlfriend (U of A student). Enjoyed everything about it, but course navigation was a bit of an issue. It was somewhat challenging to find some of the tee boxes, but not too bad. Worth the trip...good times!
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