Bellows Field Beach DGC, located in Waimanalo, HI on the southeast side of Oahu. Established in 2011, this nine hole course is the first permanent course on the island. With new DISCatchers and tee signs near every tee, this course is easy to navigate and can be played in 40 minutes or less. Because it is on a military base, the course is often empty, allowing for players to throw more than one drive and work on putting in the wind. Holes range from 175 - 432 ft. and are all Par 3. There is a kiosk at the beginning of the course near hole one, by the Turtle Cove parking lot, along with tee signs on large rocks showing par, distance, basket location and major obstacles to avoid. Holes are somewhat tight and wooded on holes #1, #2 and #5, with the rest being mostly to completely wide open for the remainder of the holes.

The course is located about 50 yards from the beach, with several amenities/activities for everyone to do including volleyball, tennis, basketball, restrooms, equipment rentals, dining and even lodging at Turtle Cove. Parking is ample but one must be sponsored on or have a valid military I.D. in order to access this course. Once on, there are plenty of areas along the beach to set up and have a picnic or bbq, making for a relaxing day all around.

Favorite hole(s): Hole #2 and Hole #6

As others have stated, this course was intended for novice and intermediate players to learn the sport. This course is still quite enjoyable however for the more advanced/open level player considering the constant trade winds coming in from the Pacific Ocean making the wide open putts rather difficult at times. The fact you are playing in Hawaii and are putting at the only permanent baskets in Oahu makes up for the lack of distance and challenge at times (i.e. holes # 4 and #7).Tee pads are natural and dug out some but considering the distance and location, it was more than adequate.

The largest issue I had, although it may not have been an option, was the location of the course itself. It worked fine for its target audience, but I truly felt that the land just before you got to the course would have allowed for a MUCH more challenging and memorable course. There were many more trees, allowing for tighter lines, elevation changes, and more protection from the wind and sun. Hopefully they will add an additional nine holes to Bellows, incorporating the area I mentioned. This would greatly improve my rating and allow for the more serious player to be challenged.

Least memorable(s): Hole #4 and Hole #7

Getting over to Bellows along the H3 is one of the most beautiful drives on the island and is well worth the drive if coming from the Honolulu/Waikiki area. With family on the island, I visit Oahu at least once and year and have had the privilege to play almost every permanent/temporary course here. It is wonderful to see that they have finally put baskets in permanently in such a wonderful location. I look forward to the next time I visit and hope that eventually the local HDGA will ALSO be given a chance to install a permanent basket course that won't require military I.D. or sponsorship in the near future. The locals are wonderful and always very friendly and I wish them all the best!

* You're in Hawaii, it's beautiful.

* Hole #1 plays just to the left of a busy road. There's sand to reduce skipping but still pretty risky.
* Hole #3 plays across a busy path (bikes, golf carts, walkers). Throwing past the basket puts you in risk of hitting someone on the tennis court.
* Hole #6 plays to the left of a busy parking lot.
* The pin for hole #8 is about 30 feet from a large, busy, sandbox/child play structure.
* All of the above in conjunction with THE MOST WINDY CONDITIONS I'VE EVER SEEN. Maybe it was just bad the day I was there but I ended up driving and putting with a Firebird... it was the only disk that wouldn't get blown away instantly.

I really admire the fact that they are trying to cater to disc golfers but the pin placement and weather conditions make even the easy shots VERY risky.