Billipo
Birdie Member
I am curious as to the minimum number of holes a course needs to warrant a trip to the course. Assume you have options to play other nearby courses (all within 10 miles) of similar quality but with 18 holes.
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Make it worth my while
- Thread starter Billipo
- Start date
Ive played some great disc golf holes on weird courses. You might not find the entire course to be the best time ever but some of the odd ball courses with lower ratings can have a really fun hole or 2. Maybe cool view or feature of the park etc also sometimes can be surprising.
Ill never pass up playing a course if im close enough.
Ill never pass up playing a course if im close enough.
I have never run across a course with less than 9 holes but I know as far as I am concerned a decent 9 hole course is worth a trip. I just play it twice through! Sometimes the 9 holers are more simple and nice break from "serious" disc golf. Other times they are just less packed during the busy times of the season and its nice to not have to wait at the tee pad every single hole.
If I'm making a trip specifically to play disc golf (defining trip as at least an hour's drive), then my destination has to have at least 18 holes. If it doesn't, and it's not a tournament, I'm not likely to make the effort.
However, if I happen to be passing through or am in town for some other purpose and have time to kill playing disc golf, then any course will do. Well, any well designed and cared for course. I've played some ****ty 18+ holers that weren't worth the time to play even if they'd been in my backyard.
However, if I happen to be passing through or am in town for some other purpose and have time to kill playing disc golf, then any course will do. Well, any well designed and cared for course. I've played some ****ty 18+ holers that weren't worth the time to play even if they'd been in my backyard.
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It's more about the ratings for me. I have no problem running through a short course twice. But if it sucks I don't even want to play it once...
This is hard to answer without a bit more info. Generally speaking i'd swing by just about any 9 hole course I was passing by if playing others in the area. But if we are talking about making a (long-ish) trip just for that 1 course...I'd likely want a full 18 or that 9 would have to be special and played a few times through.
I've traveled significant distance to play 9 holers, some of which I will gladly make the trip for again - Lambs Creek @ Pioneer Grill is 9 holes, and I'll occasionally travel the 1.5 hours to go out for lunch and play a round or two.
Yeah, OP needs to word this a bit better. Within 10 miles is nothing, I'd make a visit to a 3 hole course on the side of Mordor at least once, just for giggles.
Now to play a course regularly with similar 18 holers in the area, it would just have to offer something different than those other courses (wooded/open, length, not busy, etc). I'd play a well designed 9 holer just as easily as a mediocre 18. <18 holes doesn't bother me if it's good enough for practice rounds, almost more beneficial really.
Usually anything less than nine holes is an elementary school or KOA campsite that offers nothing other than baskets in some generic flat-lands, so that's why I voted the way I did. Nine holes being the standard, I wouldn't go out of my way to play it unless it offered something unique. However, I'd play any course with any number of holes if it offered a really exceptional layout or rare terrain. It's about the journey, not the destination.
I occasionally drive 10 miles to play a little 12-hole course that is nothing special, and in fact would be better if it were re-designed as a 9-hole course, even though I have much better options, much closer.
If it were 30 miles I wouldn't, unless I could package it with some other errand or another course.
Though we recently took some kids and drove an hour to kid-friendly 9-holer with 3 sets of tees, got rained out after the first round, but enjoyed it nonetheless.
There are so many variables. How good is the less-than-18 course, what are the other options, how many other options you have (the same fine 18-holer may get really old if its the only one in town), can you package it with another course on your trip, etc. Impossible to say.
If it were 30 miles I wouldn't, unless I could package it with some other errand or another course.
Though we recently took some kids and drove an hour to kid-friendly 9-holer with 3 sets of tees, got rained out after the first round, but enjoyed it nonetheless.
There are so many variables. How good is the less-than-18 course, what are the other options, how many other options you have (the same fine 18-holer may get really old if its the only one in town), can you package it with another course on your trip, etc. Impossible to say.
I drive 10 miles to play anything anymore.
If I'm going on a road trip, there had better be more than one course to play, or there had better be some non-DG stuff I have to attend to.
If I'm going on a road trip, there had better be more than one course to play, or there had better be some non-DG stuff I have to attend to.
Billipo
Birdie Member
clarification on poll
Clarification..
"I am curious as to the minimum number of holes a course needs to warrant a trip to the course. Assume you have options to play other nearby courses (all within 10 miles) of similar quality but with 18 holes."
1. Don't look at this as the first time visit to add to courses to conquered course list.
2. You know all courses that you can decide to play that particular day.
3. They are similar quality and no so far apart in driving distance. Within 10 miles of each other.
4. You aren't injured, have to work in a half hour, or one course is on the way to your favorite smoke shop.... (please don't read to much into to poll)
5. You haven't been starved of play, or played excessively on any particular course
Hope this helps.
Clarification..
"I am curious as to the minimum number of holes a course needs to warrant a trip to the course. Assume you have options to play other nearby courses (all within 10 miles) of similar quality but with 18 holes."
1. Don't look at this as the first time visit to add to courses to conquered course list.
2. You know all courses that you can decide to play that particular day.
3. They are similar quality and no so far apart in driving distance. Within 10 miles of each other.
4. You aren't injured, have to work in a half hour, or one course is on the way to your favorite smoke shop.... (please don't read to much into to poll)
5. You haven't been starved of play, or played excessively on any particular course
Hope this helps.
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Once you bring all those limits into play (I've bagged all the courses, played them enough to know all the holes, I'm feeling fine, have the time, and, for imagination's sake, all the holes are basically equivalent in fun, challenge, 'crowdedness', etc, etc...), it sounds like you're asking for a 'favorite' number of holes we'd like to play...
I much prefer playing a round over just putting at home. So any course is better than none, and the number of holes really won't matter. I'd probably throw 18-36 holes in total. But if they're all equivalent, they'd be equivalently repetitive (in this thought experiment), so my answer would be 'two or more', because I'd have to walk out and back anyway.
Now, in the 'real world', I'd play a course with only three holes over and over if they were Idlewild #11, Pike Lake State Park #12, or The Goat Path #8.
I much prefer playing a round over just putting at home. So any course is better than none, and the number of holes really won't matter. I'd probably throw 18-36 holes in total. But if they're all equivalent, they'd be equivalently repetitive (in this thought experiment), so my answer would be 'two or more', because I'd have to walk out and back anyway.
Now, in the 'real world', I'd play a course with only three holes over and over if they were Idlewild #11, Pike Lake State Park #12, or The Goat Path #8.
Billipo
Birdie Member
Thanks for Input
Disc golfers who submitted to the poll...
The purpose of the poll was two fold.
First was to get an idea how many more players would be interested in playing an existing 12 hole course if it was expanded to 18 holes. The information collected ,though not scientific, provides some idea of the increased interest. There is currently an initiative to add six more holes since the original installation was limited to twelve due to existing funding and timing to utilize funds (not a lack of space). The poll results will be used to help to reenforce justification for the additional holes.
Secondly, this particular course is 12 holes. Since I had already submitted the poll, I was curious if a 12 hole course would be of more interest to players than if the course had been installed as a 9 hole course (without players knowing it could have been twelve). Results could argue (maybe?) that 9 or 18 should be installed since 12 or 15 see to do little for increased player interest. Open for discussion.
Please provide comments. Drive long!
Thanks for participating.
Bill
Disc golfers who submitted to the poll...
The purpose of the poll was two fold.
First was to get an idea how many more players would be interested in playing an existing 12 hole course if it was expanded to 18 holes. The information collected ,though not scientific, provides some idea of the increased interest. There is currently an initiative to add six more holes since the original installation was limited to twelve due to existing funding and timing to utilize funds (not a lack of space). The poll results will be used to help to reenforce justification for the additional holes.
Secondly, this particular course is 12 holes. Since I had already submitted the poll, I was curious if a 12 hole course would be of more interest to players than if the course had been installed as a 9 hole course (without players knowing it could have been twelve). Results could argue (maybe?) that 9 or 18 should be installed since 12 or 15 see to do little for increased player interest. Open for discussion.
Please provide comments. Drive long!
Thanks for participating.
Bill
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2011
- Messages
- 5,731
Depends entirely upon "are the holes worth it?" to me. I'd play an up and back 2-holer if they were both AWESOME holes. I won't play a 948375398475 hole course if they all blow. So, yeah, hole quality for the win!
