Update 7/15/2020:
After having played this course a second time, it would be a cold day in hell before I took a true beginner to this course. I would love for someone more experienced to walk this course and Cornwallis Rd and justify this as a Green course and Cornwallis as a Red. Cornwallis is much easier to play. But I did finally find the tee for #13 by following the secret trail to Peter Pan's hideout.
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There are a bunch of reviews that state this course is "good for beginners". This course is not actually good for true beginners. I think people have forgotten what it's like to be a beginner, or they have a different definition of beginner.

After reading other reviews of the course I was completely unprepared for what this course actually plays like. Tight lines without much in the way of layup opportunities.

I'm going to re-review this after I have played again, but as someone who has about 200 rounds under my belt at this point, if this was my introduction to disc golf ... I might not like disc golf.

Pros:
- The holes are fairly short.
- If you need to work on hitting your lines, this course will require a variety of different shapes. RHBH Turnovers that can't be forehands, forehands that can't be turnovers, tight low hyzer shots, tight straight shots, short high hyzer forehands, shots that need to clear a 3.5 foot obstacle 5 feet off the tee, working from awkward stances on the teebox, etc.
- If you want to practice your death putts, you'll actually have several on this course.
- If you need to learn to manage downhill rollaway risk into OB, this course has it.
- If you want to practice some pressure shots, this course has a few. Being forced to carry OB short, miss trees that will drop you into the OB, and avoid OB long (#12) isn't something you are going to get on most sub-rec level courses, nor is needing to throw a tight low hyzer with OB right (#8), nor is throwing a dead straight shot with OB left and right (#17), not is carrying an OB road the entire way to a green that slopes 30+ degrees away from you (#18).
- The rough is rough in many places. You will be punished if you find the thick stuff, so, again, it encourages you to hit your lines.

It sounded like I was listing cons above, but I do consider those to be pros. The course is certainly attackable by better players, but beginners needing to work on those skills can work on them here.

But all of the above could be considered cons if you are looking to play a less challenging round on a putative green level course.

Other cons:
- Maintenance seems to be hit and miss. #1 is going to be nearly impossible to throw from soon do to the mimosa starting to encroach on the tee shot. #3 has high weeds growing up nearly to the tee area, forcing a blind, high throw on a down sloping hole to a green sloping away.
- Comparing the pictures from the 2013 to what the course is like now, the holes may not be playing as designed. #1 is now playing as a tight turnover that would be tough forehand, with a tunnel of trees tight to the bridge. Compare that to the picture of #1 from 2013.
- Navigation is nearly non-existent, especially in the places that need it the most (holes that have been redone due to nearby construction). Be prepared to hunt around for the next tee and scout the basket. Be prepared to rethrow when you have thrown from an old tee and see the new one.
- On #17 green you need to double back away from the green, ignoring the clear path in front of you, to a nearly unmarked tee area next to a maintenance shed that looks directly at a road and then throw a tee shot over the road the entire way. It's very unclear that this is the shot you are supposed to throw.
- You may need to throw standstill on many tee shots, as frequently the tee areas are root and rock bound.
- I never found a tee for #13. I had guesses on where it might supposed to be, but it was muddy, uninviting and marked differently than all the other tees.
- The mosquitoes are as to be expected for a low lying course in NC that seems to see a fair amount of standing water at times. Bring your bug spray.
- Did I mention low-lying? Conditions were fairly good when I was there, but I wouldn't play it after a rain.
- The course possibly interweaves just a little more than normal with the walking trails. Potentially distracting, but probably not too dangerous unless you get unlucky and miss the rough and whiz into the walking path.

I think there is probably something to be said for playing this course until you can master it. The first 5 holes kind of lull you into thinking that you won't be challenged in a new way, but the tight flex forehand I was forced to throw on #6 was more indicative of the rest of the course. If you go in having been led to believe that its an easily scorable course for newbies, you may have a bad time.

I think there may be potential here for a much better experience, with better navigation and better tees, but I worry the low lying nature of the course means it won't get the love it would need to really fill the niche it should.

This is course is MADE for shaping shots and putters. I used a pig, p1x, p2 and buzz and was completely fine which was nice.

I think the entire course was par 3s, which was great for a change.

Plenty of birde opps.

Hanging basket?!..super cool

Lots of foliage and very difficult navigating through course.

I think one hole was 90ft....why?

Have been doing construction and has effected parts of back 9.

Would play in fall/winter...maybe, there are too many other better courses in the area.

Bethesda is a fun pitch-and-putt style course, great for beginners, but worth playing for intermediate players too:

+ The holes are all under 200 feet, making this a true "pitch and putt." This is not a course advanced or most intermediate players will find challenging, but it's great for beginners. Most players won't need more than a putter or a midrange on this course. Lots of ace runs!

+ I'm a fan of memorable holes, unique features, and risk/reward elements. Hole 12 delivers with a hanging, swinging basket. I almost aced it!

+ Lots of tight, technical holes to try out your midrange accuracy and go for aces.

+ For a green level course (yes, that's below red level), there's decent hole design variety. There are a couple downhill holes, a couple uphill ones, some left to right, some right to left, and some dead straight.

In the Triangle, you will find many courses that you may consider a better use of your time. But if you're in the Durham/Briar Creek area, this is a fun course and you may want to check it out. Here are the cons:

- Not a challenging course unless you're a beginner.

- The underbrush is a little out of control, at times. I'd recommend using a spotter on a couple holes, if possible, to reduce the risk of disc loss.

- The redesign makes the course a little confusing (random signs and tee pass from the old layout). Also, many tee areas are uneven with roots, rocks, etc.

In the area, Cornwallis is a similarly short course, but a notch better and much more popular with the local scene. I would say Cornwallis is a red level course -- or even white from the long tees. If you're looking for a slightly better challenge in Durham, try it out. If you want to step up even further, Cedar Hills, in Raleigh, and Valley Springs, also in Durham, are a good bit better. But for beginners or for a quick round or for ace runs, give Bethesda a go!

I actually like this course quite a bit. There are some fun quirky holes here. There are some tough shots. And a round can be played very quickly.

The first hole is an ace run unlike any I've seen. The basket is buried on a hillside so that the lip of the basket is close to even with the ground level.

12 is the best hole here for me. Over a creek to a hanging basket with a second creek just past the goal, making going for it a risky proposition.

For a short course, in which every hole can be deuced for the most part, there is a decent amount of challenge. The fairways are narrow, and force controlled straight throws. There is surprising use of elevation as well, with some interesting downhill shots.

And with the light brush and the short nature of the holes, Bethesda is a course that welcomes the quick pop in, or multiple successive rounds. A lot of fun can be had here.

That said, there are also a few dull holes, which is bound to happen when they're all so short. And they are short. Only two holes surpass two hundred and two feet. There too many holes that require merely a straight shot of 100 feet and change.

But hey, that's par for a short, quick course. The bigger problem here is one that could be rectified. That's the tees. The tees are identified by two rocks and a small sign hung on a tree. That would be fine with me if the tees were flat. A lot of them are uneven with loose materials. In autumn, fallen leaves can make them seriously slick. There are small stumps in the way. (You will trip over the stump in the middle of the two tee.) The worst is hole nine, where you tee off from the sidewalk, which is raised, and too small to talk a step.

The stumps aren't limited to the tees. Walking down some of the fairways can have you looking like Mark Orlando. With leaves on the course, the small stumps are hazardous to your shoes.

The lines are mostly too tough for beginners but more advanced players will find most of the holes much too short. Still, fix the tee situation and remove some of the stumps and this will be a solid course.