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Wellsbranch250's Backyard Course In Development.
- Thread starter wellsbranch250
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Holy crap that looks fantastic!
I wonder if I can talk my wife into moving to Alabama...
I'll be in Alabama again in April. Can I come play?
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It wont be complete, but id be willing to show you the progress come April.
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I'll have two DGCR trusted reviews over tomorrow, throwing sunday doubles. Mr Butlertron and GMcAtee. I have a modified 9 hole layout barely playable. We are playing placements B on 1 and 4 and placement A on 9. we are throwing 3 tees on each of these three holes (White, Red and Green) for 9 holes.
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EarthRocker
Birdie Member
I'd come and just play the one "waterfall" hole over and over from any angle possible. After at least 4" of rain...
So pretty out there. Wow. I can't imagine how cool it is during the green months.
My company (not 'mine,' but the one for which I kill myself to earn Bio-Survival Tickets) has a branch in Huntsville. I've never visited it, but I can see that happening in the near future.
Nice work, sir!
So pretty out there. Wow. I can't imagine how cool it is during the green months.
My company (not 'mine,' but the one for which I kill myself to earn Bio-Survival Tickets) has a branch in Huntsville. I've never visited it, but I can see that happening in the near future.
Nice work, sir!
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I'd come and just play the one "waterfall" hole over and over from any angle possible. After at least 4" of rain...
So pretty out there. Wow. I can't imagine how cool it is during the green months.
My company (not 'mine,' but the one for which I kill myself to earn Bio-Survival Tickets) has a branch in Huntsville. I've never visited it, but I can see that happening in the near future.
Nice work, sir!
It appears 2 inches of rain will do it too as I had waterfalls again this past Saturday. Even without the waterfalls, its one of favorite shots on the course. Hole 3 will be a killer down shot plummeting 120 down a valley. Hole 7 is a 600 foot dogleg left par 4 that drop 150 feet in elevation. And hole 5 is V-rock. an uphill shot through a massive split rock
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The Way Too Early Review - V-ROCK DGC
Pros:(1.831 Rating) A developing course that needs several thousand hours of work.
- RAW BEAUTY - In the courses young state, the natural beauty is the only aspect that is undeniably stellar. Of the six holes that have been cut in and playable, two are heavily wooded down shots with rock elements in view and play. Hole (9) specifically has basket placement (A) on a large jutting rock and plays down 30 to 45 feet depending on the tee. In periods of heavy rain, there are actually waterfalls that frame basket (A), but the course is likely not playable when a deluge occurs. Hole (1), the only openish shot, is nice looking too. It has plus 100 foot tall oaks and hickories framing basket placement (B).
- SIGNATURE ROCKS - In addition to the beautiful rocks on (9), Hole (5), V-Rock, is a killer line. You have to see it yourself to understand why. Hole (6) has it's short placement guarded by Curtain Wall Rock and it requires a high arcing throw dive-bombing from above. Curtain wall rock is roughly 10 feet tall by 30 feet long There's also Cove rock at the par 4 placement on hole (6) and a field of car sized boulders on (7). Unfortunately, hole, (7) is not playable at the moment.
- ELEVATION - The most elevation in North Alabama already, and the biggest risers and fallers on the course layout aren't even in play yet. Hole (1) plays up a good 50 to 60 feet to the par 4 placements. Hole (4) white tee plays down about 65 feet and the blue tee is an additional 5 feet. Hole (9) plays down 30 to 55 feet depending on the tee and basket combination. Eventually holes (3) and (7) will both play down over 100 feet, becoming the biggest down-shots in all of Alabama. The elevation impact will eventually equal or exceed every course I've ever played. More than the IDGC, Langley, Hobbs, Austin Ridge Bible Church and Mahr Park to name a few. I say about equal to Panther Creek's elevation.
- SHOT SHAPING - When completed, this will be a very technical course with several big moving lines. Right now I'd say it's too luck based on some shots. More trees will need to be removed to produce pure lines and tees need a lot of work.
- SKILL LEVEL FRIENDLY - Of the six fairways in, Hole (6) has two tees, Holes (1), (5), (8) have three tees and holes (4) and (9) have four tees. The tees are color coded according to the PDGA guidelines. Green for Novice, Red for Recreational, White for Intermediate and Blue for Advanced. I have played with first timers out here on the Green tees, and they were not overwhelmed. On the flipside, the Blue tees installed thus far keeps this Intermediate level player humbled.
- QUICK PLAY - 9 tee shots Can be played in 25 minutes solo right now as it's best to throw multiple tees on 3 holes. I recently did a 16 tee round with two others in just over an hour.
Cons:Lots of issues with V-Rock in its young state.
- 6 BASKETS - Only six baskets have been attained thus far. The owner plans to obtain more, but he's not there yet. This somewhat limits the overall variety on the course.
- FORGIVENESS - The fairways are not fully developed and raw. Ricochets in the wrong direction can be very punishing. Lots of brier and steep terrain to traverse to retrieve discs in some instances.
- MAINTENANCE - Parts of property have arguable never been kept up, ever. Lots of rocks, vines and branches littering fairways. Old barbed wire in a few fairways.
- OSAGE ORANGE - The most awful plant in the history of mankind. Yes this plant produces fruit, but it also has 3 inch dagger thorns. It's in the process of being completed eradicated.
- SNAKES - I assume there are snakes on this property. I'd wear boots from April through September.
- WAIVER- A waiver of liability is required to play. In addition to the above noted items, probably ticks and poison Ivy as well. Who knows, a tree might just decide it's time to fall too.
- TERRAIN - The definition of not cart friendly. Anyone who does not like courses on mountainous terrain should avoid playing here.
- NAVIGATION - Impossible without the owners help, although you're not playing here without him. There is layout discontinuity after (6), requiring a 500 foot walk. The only navigational items thus far are the online map and the colored rocks.
- TEES - Its clear this owner doesn't care about tee surfaces Mostly natural ground so far and most are not level. Only 7 of the 19 tees are in decent shape.
- CHAINS - Sub-par. An MVP blackhole, three Dynamic Recruits, a Chainstar light and some unknown single chain model.
- CHARACTER - In addition to poor tees and baskets, the other typical items aren't here either. Just four seating stumps thus far on steep terrain. There is however a decent sized shelter near holes (1) and (4) and a lot of alternate basket placements. No practice basket, bag hangers or tables. Only Rudimentary hole number signage is in place.
- PRIVATE - This course is only playable when the owner is present. Seems like the kind of guy who would build a course just to be able to trash it in a review.
Other Thoughts:V-Rock, in my bias opinion, has the right natural features to be one of the top 9 hole courses in America. However, it's going to take several years, a lot of sweat and continued determination to get there. I hope I can see it though. Anyone coming here needs to realize that this course is a work in progress, and I would only rate it a low 2 on DGCR had I stumbled upon it somewhere else in my travels.
- COURSE FRIENDS - A special thanks to my friend GMcAtee who's helped me 5 days already out here. I get so much more done it seems when he stops by. Also thanks to my DGCR friends Mr. Butlertron, Hello Kitty and cumurph and non site member friends Tim D, Tim M, Steve, Adam, Justin, Bill and Sherry for helping out as well.
- CHALLENGE - Playing all the tees comes out to roughly a upper Recreational challenge, which I think is average. It's going to get amped up as the course develops additional holes and tees, but It's not there as of this review.
Pros:(1.831 Rating) A developing course that needs several thousand hours of work.
- RAW BEAUTY - In the courses young state, the natural beauty is the only aspect that is undeniably stellar. Of the six holes that have been cut in and playable, two are heavily wooded down shots with rock elements in view and play. Hole (9) specifically has basket placement (A) on a large jutting rock and plays down 30 to 45 feet depending on the tee. In periods of heavy rain, there are actually waterfalls that frame basket (A), but the course is likely not playable when a deluge occurs. Hole (1), the only openish shot, is nice looking too. It has plus 100 foot tall oaks and hickories framing basket placement (B).
- SIGNATURE ROCKS - In addition to the beautiful rocks on (9), Hole (5), V-Rock, is a killer line. You have to see it yourself to understand why. Hole (6) has it's short placement guarded by Curtain Wall Rock and it requires a high arcing throw dive-bombing from above. Curtain wall rock is roughly 10 feet tall by 30 feet long There's also Cove rock at the par 4 placement on hole (6) and a field of car sized boulders on (7). Unfortunately, hole, (7) is not playable at the moment.
- ELEVATION - The most elevation in North Alabama already, and the biggest risers and fallers on the course layout aren't even in play yet. Hole (1) plays up a good 50 to 60 feet to the par 4 placements. Hole (4) white tee plays down about 65 feet and the blue tee is an additional 5 feet. Hole (9) plays down 30 to 55 feet depending on the tee and basket combination. Eventually holes (3) and (7) will both play down over 100 feet, becoming the biggest down-shots in all of Alabama. The elevation impact will eventually equal or exceed every course I've ever played. More than the IDGC, Langley, Hobbs, Austin Ridge Bible Church and Mahr Park to name a few. I say about equal to Panther Creek's elevation.
- SHOT SHAPING - When completed, this will be a very technical course with several big moving lines. Right now I'd say it's too luck based on some shots. More trees will need to be removed to produce pure lines and tees need a lot of work.
- SKILL LEVEL FRIENDLY - Of the six fairways in, Hole (6) has two tees, Holes (1), (5), (8) have three tees and holes (4) and (9) have four tees. The tees are color coded according to the PDGA guidelines. Green for Novice, Red for Recreational, White for Intermediate and Blue for Advanced. I have played with first timers out here on the Green tees, and they were not overwhelmed. On the flipside, the Blue tees installed thus far keeps this Intermediate level player humbled.
- QUICK PLAY - 9 tee shots Can be played in 25 minutes solo right now as it's best to throw multiple tees on 3 holes. I recently did a 16 tee round with two others in just over an hour.
Cons:Lots of issues with V-Rock in its young state.
- 6 BASKETS - Only six baskets have been attained thus far. The owner plans to obtain more, but he's not there yet. This somewhat limits the overall variety on the course.
- FORGIVENESS - The fairways are not fully developed and raw. Ricochets in the wrong direction can be very punishing. Lots of brier and steep terrain to traverse to retrieve discs in some instances.
- MAINTENANCE - Parts of property have arguable never been kept up, ever. Lots of rocks, vines and branches littering fairways. Old barbed wire in a few fairways.
- OSAGE ORANGE - The most awful plant in the history of mankind. Yes this plant produces fruit, but it also has 3 inch dagger thorns. It's in the process of being completed eradicated.
- SNAKES - I assume there are snakes on this property. I'd wear boots from April through September.
- WAIVER- A waiver of liability is required to play. In addition to the above noted items, probably ticks and poison Ivy as well. Who knows, a tree might just decide it's time to fall too.
- TERRAIN - The definition of not cart friendly. Anyone who does not like courses on mountainous terrain should avoid playing here.
- NAVIGATION - Impossible without the owners help, although you're not playing here without him. There is layout discontinuity after (6), requiring a 500 foot walk. The only navigational items thus far are the online map and the colored rocks.
- TEES - Its clear this owner doesn't care about tee surfaces
Mostly natural ground so far and most are not level. Only 7 of the 19 tees are in decent shape.- CHAINS - Sub-par. An MVP blackhole, three Dynamic Recruits, a Chainstar light and some unknown single chain model.
- CHARACTER - In addition to poor tees and baskets, the other typical items aren't here either. Just four seating stumps thus far on steep terrain. There is however a decent sized shelter near holes (1) and (4) and a lot of alternate basket placements. No practice basket, bag hangers or tables. Only Rudimentary hole number signage is in place.
- PRIVATE - This course is only playable when the owner is present. Seems like the kind of guy who would build a course just to be able to trash it in a review.
Other Thoughts:V-Rock, in my bias opinion, has the right natural features to be one of the top 9 hole courses in America. However, it's going to take several years, a lot of sweat and continued determination to get there. I hope I can see it though. Anyone coming here needs to realize that this course is a work in progress, and I would only rate it a low 2 on DGCR had I stumbled upon it somewhere else in my travels.
- COURSE FRIENDS - A special thanks to my friend GMcAtee who's helped me 5 days already out here. I get so much more done it seems when he stops by. Also thanks to my DGCR friends Mr. Butlertron, Hello Kitty and cumurph and non site member friends Tim D, Tim M, Steve, Adam, Justin, Bill and Sherry for helping out as well.
- CHALLENGE - Playing all the tees comes out to roughly a upper Recreational challenge, which I think is average. It's going to get amped up as the course develops additional holes and tees, but It's not there as of this review.
Going to be in Huntsville this Wednesday night through Sunday morning - hint hint hint
You call that a complete review? You didn't mention whether the course gets crowded, leaving me to guess....
Great stuff. You should print that and save it somewhere, somewhere that you might stumble across it in 10 years.
Great stuff. You should print that and save it somewhere, somewhere that you might stumble across it in 10 years.
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^Land that only a disc golfer could love!
Seriously, that looks like a pretty spot. It is nice that prime disc golf land isn't necessarily ideal for many other uses. Isolated, densely wooded, with minimal level ground, and crisscrossed with ravines? Sounds perfect for us!
Seriously, that looks like a pretty spot. It is nice that prime disc golf land isn't necessarily ideal for many other uses. Isolated, densely wooded, with minimal level ground, and crisscrossed with ravines? Sounds perfect for us!
Pictures do not do it justice. You must be part billy-goat to play here. I don't think I have ever played a course with more elevation than this. What a pleasure.
I'm not going to write a review in the typical format...
I just want to write my impressions of what this course currently is - it's not complete. But what is there is absolutely brilliant. Not something I would recommend showing up with anything less than good and solid footwear. Oh and leave the great big bags and carts in the car. You're not going to want to carry around 20 discs here. The hills are steep and there are rocks everywhere. What was really fun was listening to Mark and his vision for this property. This is one of those great situations that I have seen before with a private course when a DG'er decides they are going to buy some land and make the best possible course out of what is available. It was just so fun to see the lines he's picked out and cleared or has yet to clear and see the vision he has start to take shape.
There are several factors here I have never seen anywhere else. Ever. First is the INSANE amount of elevation there is here. I cannot think of another course that has ever had this much elevation in 9 holes. Second factor is Marks use of multiple pin locations and crazy number of tees on each hole. Usually, when there are long and short tees the long is just a longer version of the short tee. Not so here, each tee is a different look at the same hole. Mark isn't putting in 2 tees each hole - many of them are getting FOUR tees. And yes, most of them have completely different looks at the basket.
What really makes this course is the use of the existing rocks sticking out of the ground. The V-Rock itself is really something everyone ought to see - definitely the signature element of the course.
The biggest knock on this course I may have is that it isn't done. Mark is so in tune with what this course needs from steps, tees, trees cut down, etc. so it's really hard to be critical on any one item since Mark already knows it needs to be fixed.
I just want to write my impressions of what this course currently is - it's not complete. But what is there is absolutely brilliant. Not something I would recommend showing up with anything less than good and solid footwear. Oh and leave the great big bags and carts in the car. You're not going to want to carry around 20 discs here. The hills are steep and there are rocks everywhere. What was really fun was listening to Mark and his vision for this property. This is one of those great situations that I have seen before with a private course when a DG'er decides they are going to buy some land and make the best possible course out of what is available. It was just so fun to see the lines he's picked out and cleared or has yet to clear and see the vision he has start to take shape.
There are several factors here I have never seen anywhere else. Ever. First is the INSANE amount of elevation there is here. I cannot think of another course that has ever had this much elevation in 9 holes. Second factor is Marks use of multiple pin locations and crazy number of tees on each hole. Usually, when there are long and short tees the long is just a longer version of the short tee. Not so here, each tee is a different look at the same hole. Mark isn't putting in 2 tees each hole - many of them are getting FOUR tees. And yes, most of them have completely different looks at the basket.
What really makes this course is the use of the existing rocks sticking out of the ground. The V-Rock itself is really something everyone ought to see - definitely the signature element of the course.
The biggest knock on this course I may have is that it isn't done.
Mark is so in tune with what this course needs from steps, tees, trees cut down, etc. so it's really hard to be critical on any one item since Mark already knows it needs to be fixed.
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Course work has been moving along, but overgrowth has begun to take back a couple of the newly cut lines. I've been focusing a lot of time on turning never before mowed land into mowable land to make ongoing maintenance easier. below is the new line i cut over the weekend. now i got take out a few stumps, remove bigger branches, de-rock and then begin a lifetime of mowing.
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Gblambert
Birdie Member
It's like sculpture. Except Michelangelo didn't have to worry about the marble growing back when he wasn't looking.
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