Pros:
+ The whole course plays within a lively state park. The player will feel as though they are enjoying a nice stroll as they throw.
+ Each and every tee pad is made of basic but sturdy rubber atop a wood and rock foundation. All tee areas have a bench for sitting and a broom for courtesy sweeping.
+ Two pins per hole.
+ Hole 9 brings the player back to the parking lot/bathrooms as well as hole 18.
+ A nice park-style course with plenty of hybrid-type holes.
+ A lot of tree-dodging and tunnels for tacticians to practice their aim and placement.
+ The elevation challenges are pleasant and manageable.
Cons:
- Even though I played in late autumn, I can clearly see how overgrowth and impossible areas of rough can be a real problem at this course.
- Wooden planks and tree trunk bridges on some of the soggier parts communicate to me how often this course probably floods over during wet weather.
- Some of the holes feel interchangeable and/or unremarkable.
- Some ridiculously restrictive OB here!
-Not too many opportunities for big arms to get a long glide.
Other Thoughts:
My favorite hole at this course would probably be hole 4 because of its pretty valley shot. I liked being challenged to dodge trees both with and against gravity.
My least favorite hole here could be hole 14 because of how straight and flat it was with just an open tunnel.
As for the course as a whole, FDR DGC is a great choice for the disc golfer. Before I go any further, I want to say that my review is based on the short layout. Plus, the Sun was already low in the sky when I started my session, so I had to more or less rush through it all. However, despite my quick tempo of play, I still had a very good time here.
All holes have just one tee pad. The difficulty is decided by which basket you aim for each time. Many courses have two tee pads with just one basket. FDR Park's approach accomplishes basically the same thing. I will say, though, that it was a relief never having to worry about whether or not I was on the correct tee pad for my desired layout. It all depends on the basket for which a player aims.
Regardless of which difficulty you elect, however, some of those holes can be downright irritating. Holes 2 and 7 jump to the front of my mind as prime examples with their bonkers OB areas. Without a doubt they force a player to think and focus, but new players will definitely feel a bit betrayed by the unreasonable boundaries of these out-of-bounds areas that otherwise seem just fine to land in.
Outside of that, this course has some nice low-pressure shots to enjoy. Mind you, it is mostly wooded disc golf at this place. Although, the spaces between trees are wide enough for me to comfortably call this course a hybrid-type: meaning that it often incorporates elements of wooded and open holes in the same hole. This allows both power players and precise players to enjoy taking their own approaches, but I still feel that this course caters more to skillful placement over power; though both styles can be successful here. Just watch out for mud in the low sections of this place. I get the feeling that some parts of this course simply never dry out.
I do want to say that nothing reached out and grabbed me at this course. To my mind there were no grand vistas or impressive hole layouts. Everything was tight, effective, functional and efficient. I won't fault FDR for that. It is certainly a lot more organized and cleaner than a fair few courses I've played. As a side note, I've got to point out the first time that I have ever seen two baskets stacked on top of each other was right here at hole 15! That was an unexpected delight to behold.
And finally, my favorite thing to bring up in any review is the 'next tee' signage. This course absolutely has it, except it's only really prevalent on the white (long layout) baskets, according to a local I bumped into early on in my session, and he was right. So I can't subtract any points from the course because every hole has a next tee sign. However, I can't add points, either, because the player always has to find the white basket in order to know where to go next. Most of the time, it's obvious to begin with, but that's not the point.
Bottom line: The course at FDR State Park will almost certainly scratch your disc golf itch. While it's not the most impressive course, it's got more than enough going for it to make the player feel satisfied and accomplished. Warmly recommended.