Pros:
-A church property course with a variety of open and wooded holes. Long range gaps to hit from the tees, and a very short-range gap from the tee. An elevated tee with one elevated basket placement, and a hole with street play. Some water in play, along with wind on a few holes, and a U-turn hole. Obstacles very close to fairways, makes the course very challenging.
-#8 a unique short hole on a three-pillar wooded framed mound surrounded by trouble. At first glance looked like a basket place on top of Noah's Ark.
-#14 was realigned just a few weeks before my round. It's now parallel with #15, and what was before #14 crossing the #15 fairway.
-Tee signs have hole number, map, distance, par, and show two tee pads? Each tee sign has scripture quotes.
-Navigation is clockwise, tee signs have next hole indicator.
-I found the course memorable 2 ½ months later.
-From the bag a variety of mid's, fairways, and drivers.
-Beginners and Recreational players will find the course difficult, and lost disc potential high. Intermediate and Advanced players will be tested by the course obstacles.
Cons:
-Overgrowth on the course makes some gaps very difficult specifically #4 trying to hit a gap 200 feet down fairway, and #5 with bushes growing in the fairway, among other places on the course. Most fairways are a tight squeeze. I didn't find the course scenic.
-Tee signs indicate long tees; I didn't see any long tees at all. #18 tee sign is missing.
-There is a road that runs through the property effecting a few holes, just check both ways.
-#9 basket is right center of #10 fairway. If someone makes the wrong turn from #6 basket, they could catch a disc from the #6 tee.
-With tall grass bordering open fairways, overgrowth on other holes, narrow width fairways bordering ditches that could have water in them after heavy rains, most of the holes on the course have high lost disc potential. A player on #9 waived me thru as he was looking for a lost disc in high grass, he had made the remark that he had lost other discs there before. I was waived thru by a group on #15 in the woods and was asked if I had seen a pig on #14.
Other Thoughts:
Covenant DGC is my first church course that I've played, and overall, I was very impressed, and the course offered more than I was expecting with variety. Having now played 5 courses in the Greenville area, it was the busiest on a Tuesday morning, so it must be popular. I found the course to be very challenging and said hello to a lot of trees. But with the short distances, not too difficult to recover. With the overgrowth along the course, the course has a trashy feel to it, but it's not, just very little scenery. Maintenance with the overgrowth a few times a year, I could find the hidden gem shining. My biggest personnel con is the lost disc potential, holes 1-2, and 18 you get a pass, but all the others its lurking. I looked a few times but left the course with a full bag. Two others on the course not so lucky.
With the variety of the layout, and the challenge my overall rating is anchored on a 4.5. The time to play with some disc looking, and snapping pictures was one hour.
The U-turn Hole:
-No. 6 at 242 feet is a narrow straight away hole until about 200 feet when it hooks to the left around heavy trees and bushes. If you run thru the fairway there's tall grass waiting for you. The purpose is to avoid walking back towards the tee to reach #7 tee. From the basket keep the trees to your left and you have protection from the tee, and then cross over to reach #7 tee when #6 tee is in your view. Too bad there's not a way to do that with #9 and 10.
Notable Holes:
-No. 5 Par 3 at 277 feet is a straight away hole through a narrow fairway of about 25 feet until it doglegs right in the open at 200 feet. The basket sits in the open, and wind will play a role around the basket. The fairway thru the 200-foot gap is lined with skinnies and heavy brush. There are bushes at the dogleg as well. If you don't make the dogleg clean, you're going to waste a stroke. I wasted a stroke.
-No. 7 Par 4 at 495 feet straight away to the basket with high grass on the left a strip of fairway about 40 feet wide with skinny trees all the way down, street play right center, and another strip of fairway just 15 feet wide with heavy trees and brush to the right. Basket sits in the open on the left fairway but protected by the skinny trees. The street is o.b. I skipped across the street to the right fairway and hit a skinny on approach.
-No. 9 Par 3 at 237 feet from the tee is a 5-foot narrow gap that runs about 40 feet. Past the gap about another 40 feet is heavy tall grass at about 4-feet high. After the gap the fairway breaks into a dogleg right at a 35-degree angle running straight to an open basket. The fairway is only about 30 feet wide, the tall grass on the left and heavy trees and brush on the right. If you make the fairway, you won't know it until you walk pass the gap. I found an opening higher up in the trees above the gap and thru a Star Leopard high with hyzer (lefty). Only about a 130-foot drive, but relived to find it safe in the fairway considering the player ahead of me was looking for his disc.
-No. 11 Par 3 at 210 feet is the only elevated tee on the course at about 7 feet, a straight away and your thinking ace run. Only about 15 feet wide with heavy trees, brush, and extended branches. Caught branches on the left.
Signature Hole:
-No. 8 Par 3 at 174 feet an open tee straight away to an elevated basket on three layers of wooden frames with soil filled around each frame. Very narrow levels of only a few feet, the basket is about 8 feet high. Around the basket is trouble. In the front and around left a wide and deep ditch with water a likely lost disc, it was dry when I played. Around the left of ditch and back is heavy trees and brush. I found myself in the left ditch, very intimidating putt upward and laid up to the lower level.
Trouble Hole:
No. 17 Par 3 at 318 feet is the longest par 3 on the course. Is a straight away hole and narrow only about 15 feet all the way down. To the left is heavy trees and brush, to the right the wide and deep ditch. The basket sits to the left and behind it more heavy trees and brush. After heavy rain filling the ditch with water, this hole becomes very difficult to stay on fairway, and not to lose a disc on either side. With a dry ditch I kept it away from the left, and into the ditch.