Mesa, AZ

Freedom Lakes

3.545(based on 13 reviews)
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4 0
Creosote
Experience: 34 played 3 reviews
4.50 star(s)

One of the best courses in the area 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 27, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is a beautiful course. It has lots of old-growth trees, and it's grassy. There are water-hazard holes and some very long holes. They have been doing upgrades on this course for the past few months and it really shows! They have also cleaned the course up in the past couple months.

Cons:

None.

Other Thoughts:

They have recently added signage and some new tee boxes. It is now set up with 18 baskets and it plays great! It used to have 9 baskets with different tee areas...it was great then, but I like the new layout even better.

I like the fact that this is a pay-to-play course because it keeps the course less crowded than some others in the area. It is inexpensive enough ($5) for me to not be concerned about the fee.

I think the reviewer below was reviewing a different course. This is not a short "warm up" course at all. It's a fairly long, full length course with plenty of challenge for experienced players.
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1 6
90991
Experience: 3 played 2 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Decent 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 14, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice small warm up course

Cons:

On a course like this of course I paid to play however if I knew the course prior I wouldn't have played it. All in all its a decent what should be free course.

Other Thoughts:

I'm from Iowa and its a fast fast fairway so if you are planning on any skip shots and your from the Midwest its not like home courses
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5 0
nightwing
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.4 years 281 played 60 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Four Diamonds...no rough. 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Dec 4, 2016 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-Beautiful place. Lush grass, mature trees. Nice!
-LOTS of 'shots'. Long range shot shaping.
-Variety of control shots. Challenging greens
-Risk vs Reward with only a few 'Automatic drop-in pars'.
-Worth the $5.00 even for a quick round.
-Way cool to stay at the pretty decent 'Green Tree Inn' right there ON the course parking lot.

Cons:

-Not beginner friendly (but not many will come here).
-Lost discs in water (but shallow...mostly retrievable).
-Confusing layout at first (but it was clear soon enough).

Other Thoughts:

I was surprised to see this course rated below 3.5. It is a lovely and challenging day of golf for any strong Am or Pro player. The two course pro guys were VERY helpful and took the time to get me going in the right direction. Leave time to get oriented . There were a few pretty well chosen discs for sale, as well as restrooms, in the nice little trailer of a Course shop. The course was available all day on my second visit 3/19.

The first thing I noticed is that 'Foot Golf' or 'Soccer Golf' is big here. They ALSO had a complete course layout right ON the ball golf course and there were over 30 soccer players there, but mostly in one big group, so maybe that isn't usually the case? The second thing is that there were very few golfers on the beautiful and windless cool afternoon I spent there. Clearly the powers that be know they need additional revenue and I never got that edgy 'We're only tolerating you' vibe like you can at some Disc on Ball courses.

It takes a few minutes to get the layout figured. Each tee-pad is marked, mostly in spray paint on concrete near or on the Ball Golf Pad. You can play a short loop of holes 1 thru 5 or 6 thru 18.

I chose to play a forehand and a backhand to each hole. That 36 holes, with many re-throws and a twenty minute break, took almost five hours. But a foursome could get around in less than 2 hours without jogging.

I'm an average Grandmaster Pro and found the course to be pretty forehand friendly, shooting par, and really backhand challenging, at 7 over par. For a right hand/backhand thrower, your long range flex or anhi will get a workout on those right hand pin locations.

Top pros will prefer the tougher 'Tournament Layout' and may want to call ahead and see when it's available. Local Pro/Advanced types will be plenty challenged to get under par and Intermediates who throw over 200' should have a blast too. Short armed recs will have a long day but hey, come when it's not too hot and this is a nice place to be.

Note that you will want to bring some beater discs. The water is in play at least as much as at Vista, though it is shallow and you usually can fish it out if you just roll in.

All in all, I am surprised to see this course rated under 3.5. Apparently there have been recent improvements in signage and I can see how that might have been a problem. Follow the signs and figure out the format and this is a very fun and rewarding course. There were more great, long lines here than any course in the area, and only a few 'Dull drive, easy approach, drop in your par' yawners. .
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1 2
pianocomposer
Experience: 27.4 years 21 played 21 reviews
4.50 star(s)

One of the Finer DG Courses 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 22, 2016 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Well laid out, long but fair. Beautiful design. Lots of traps and tricky shots. Good for Intermediate and pro players. Totally unique.

Cons:

Very long so not fun for your beginner friends. Pay to play. But its not TOO expensive! You play the same tee off twice (but to two different basket locations). Poor facilities. Gotta watch out for the ball golfers. None of these cons bother me at all.

Other Thoughts:

I just love playing this course. You can't bring bad or short players here. But it's a lovely setting, yet shooting par is difficult. Maybe this is the future of disc golf.
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0 1
fighting otter
Experience: 8.4 years 2 played 2 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Everything you'd want out of a course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 15, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course is on a golf course. I thought that would be a downside. But the golf course is a little crummy and isn't well-maintained for golf, so it makes for an excellent disc golf course.

We just happened to play the day before a tournament, so we played the tournament layout. It was excellent. A lot of variety. The trees and lake provide some drama. I'm a beginner (but longtime ultimate player), and the course was challenging for me but lots of fun because of the variety.

There were two other disc golf groups going at the same time, and they were super helpful.

Cons:

Tees aren't well marked (but you can figure it out)

You sometimes cross paths with ball golfers.

The lake is tricky. I wussed out and didn't lose any discs, but I'm sure I would have if I were trying hard.

Other Thoughts:

Cost is $6. We started at 7AM. I'm not sure when the time restrictions are put in place for disc golf, but there wasn't any when we went.
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4 0
The Valkyrie Kid
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 46.4 years 1562 played 1507 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Better Than Some Ball Golf Courses I've Played! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 19, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

Let me start by stating that I'm not usually a fan of playing disc golf on regular golf courses. I've played some really poorly designed ones, some way over priced ones, lots of average ones and none that I would honestly state, that I would like to play on a regular basis. Fiesta Lakes might be a little better than most. At least, I think the design is better than most and I believe I've played maybe a dozen by now.

My initial impression was not favorable. The clubhouse is rundown. The guy working there was not friendly, took my $8 (cash only), was more interested in watching his TV and then complained when I asked for a map. Then he gave me a half page which I had a difficult time deciphering. I would have gone back in and asked for help if hadn't been useless.

After stumbling around trying to stay out of the golfers way, I finally figured out that there are two tees by each golf tee and then two baskets down somewhere around the green. I had no way of knowing which was # 1 or # 10 but I happily played one the front nine and the other on the back nine.

Sometimes the tees are marked with twine sticking out of the ground, sometimes they're spray painted on concrete and sometimes I just teed off from the golfers tees. The baskets are DGA models with #s on the inside red tape.

I especially liked the tee placements for 8 and 17. They were both just close enough to water's edge to be a little bit scary but not ridiculously so. And it's also probably the prettiest place on the course here.

Cons:

For my $8, I'd like to receive a decent, legible map that is easy to figure out.
It looks like they once had rubber mats out for the disc golfers but now there is only burnt grass.
No signage.

Other Thoughts:

I found the course an excellent place to throw some rollers. There is a little elevation to contend with, mostly off the tees. The water can come into play on a few holes. #5 basket in the short position gives you the choice of throwing an anhyser out over the water, which is probably the most advantageous choice for stronger players ......or for us wimps......throw the much easier and safer hyser wide right around the tree avoiding the water.

Fun course, but for $8, it probably wouldn't get a great deal of my disc golfing business.
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4 1
todd9500
Experience: 41.7 years 335 played 8 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Pay-to-play Mesa DG course deserves our support 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 8, 2016 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Beautiful nine hole course with many tall eucalyptus trees, some elevation changes, and a small lake. Course is shared with ball golfers. DG green fees were $8 for two rounds of nine holes --- $18 for ball golfers. Disc golfers should call the clubhouse at 480-969-0377 if you want to tee off before 2pm (during the winter months) to see if that's an option.

Course design/difficulty/obstacles/out-of-bounds: Challenging technical course with the OB greens, mature trees, and a lake that comes into play 4-5 holes. There are two baskets per hole. Nice mixture of short and longer holes.

Course condition: Excellent. Fast - can deploy rollers on a few holes.

Navigability/ signage/maps/tee pads: Maps are given out at clubhouse. Start at Gazebo shooting south. Baskets have numbers on them. No signs at tee-pads. Most holes use the existing cement available. Hole #2/11 uses a worn dirt pad. It may take one round before you know where everything is at.

Local DG involvement: Great work by designer Rob Hart and the Mesa DG Club to add this course.

Amenities/Benches/shelters/picnic tables: They have new owners and are in the process of obtaining city permits to start construction on a new clubhouse. There are picnic tables near the clubhouse area. There is bench seating near many of the tee pads. There are a couple of portable toilets on property.

Cons:

Later hours for disc golfers in the winter months. $8/18 holes.

Other Thoughts:

Remember the Disc Golfer's Code: 1) Play Smart - Never throw into a blind area or when players, spectators, pedestrians, or other facility users are within range. Use a spotter. 2) Respect the Course - Observe all posted rules. No littering, graffiti, or abuse of equipment or flora. 3) Represent the Sport - Be positive and responsible. Teach others.
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10 3
TalbotTrojan
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.2 years 112 played 104 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Run Down Ball Golf 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 27, 2015 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The championship layout makes good use of the land for the most part and provides a good challenge. The longer holes on this course fall into the category of spectacular at times. There is good elevation change, not something typical of other courses in this area. The course is on a ball golf course that does indeed get some maintenance. There are 18 baskets on this course with most tee pads marked by paint, usually on concrete near the ball golf tees.

Cons:

There were far too many dink and dunk holes on the championship layout for it to really be worth too much. Additionally there were far too many places on the course where luck became a factor. I saw far too many good shots catch an edge and roll into one of the many ponds that you play around on this course. Sometimes the discs chose not to roll and other times they did. Sometimes you would think there is no chance that it is going to roll and then it did. There appears to be little to no way to predict how or when the rolls are going to come. Even the ball golf portion of this land feels old and unkept compared to what one might expect from a course you would have to pay for. The club house for instance had holes in the wall. It is really impressive that the club house was even standing to begin with. The deck on the bask side has become a liability as it si old and run down as well. There are a few places on the course where there used to be nice gazebos for players to wait under and in all but one place that I noticed these have been taken down.

Other Thoughts:

I will admit that I have only played this course in its tournament layout. That means that I have not played the typical course. After talking with the guy running the pro shop, it did become evident that the typical disc golf course here is not quite the same as the tournament layout. The ball golf course itself is old and run down. The pro shop is a joke and the building is barely standing. Most of the greens look unkept. But there did appear to be a good local crowd that enjoyed this course on a regular basis. If there is a disc golf crowd that makes it profitable for the owners I would expect to see some better things from this course in the future. There were some really fun holes on this course, even some that are part of the regular layout. The long holes were really great holes. The long holes are also not for the beginner. Because of the cost and some of the things mentioned above, I do not feel that this is a course to go play if you are in the area. There are other better and free courses to go play before you go here. The piece of land is so nice that there is hope for the future of a really good course being here. There needs to be a redesign to get ride of the high number of really short holes on this course. If you do choose to go here, you should know that they typically only let disc golfers on the course after 2 pm.
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7 1
TheGrim
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 14.1 years 75 played 45 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Golf Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 29, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

You can't ask for a better looking course than this. It's on a beautiful little executive golf course with lots of large trees and a lovely little pond. The trees provide a great deal of shade and are used quite well in the course design.

The two pin locations for each hole is an especially nice touch. The alternate locations are well thought out and designed to add challenge to the course. I like that some of the longer ones are on one round while others are on the second.

The use of elevation is quite well. Most of the tee pads are elevated, but the baskets are spread out with uphill and downhill shots. It's a great mix.

The course doesn't favor right or left handed players. Most pins are located on either side of the fairway and the round design is good at mixing them up.

Four of the holes offer great risk/reward options, 5/14 and 9/18. On 5 you have the option of gunning for it to try to clear the pond, but need a solid 360 ft throw to do so. You can throw something more stable and attempt to have it cut in by the trees, but you risk the trees swatting it down into the pond.

14 is the same tee pad as 5 and the alternate location is also tricky because of the freeway on the right and the pond on the left.

9/18 are from the same tee pad and almost force you to throw over the pond. There is a window to avoid doing so but it will almost certainly add a stroke onto the hole. The good news is that it's only about 260 to clear the pond so it's much more doable. I played with a guy whom was playing his first round ever and he was able to flick over the pond.

The course is easy to follow as it follows the flow of the golf course.

The golfers I met were extremely nice and even let us play through when we were moving faster than them. They found the disc golf integration to be fascinating and liked it.

Cons:

By far the biggest con is the price of the course. When we went it was $10. The guy at the club house said that they adjust the price based on the time of year. As more ball golfers use the course they raise the price for disc golf.

The only other real drawback is the lack of signage. Tee signs would have been nice to determine what hole was what cage. That being said the clubhouse gives out maps that are pretty easy to read, even though they are in black and white.

Other Thoughts:

The pro shop guy said that they play a lot of tournaments there and I can see why. The course is beautiful and offers some great par 4's and a par 5 that are pretty legit. Even some of the par 3's were pretty tough. It's refreshing to see that kind of design.

This was an absolute pleasant surprise to find. The name of the course sounded a bit hokey to me, but it turned out to be fantastic! I preferred the course over the others in the area that I played. That should be expected I guess, what with the steep greens fees and all.

The combined disc/ball golf course is a fantastic idea. It made for a beautiful setting for a round of disc golf!

Overall it gets .3 down for being a 9 hole (usually I take a full point but the alternate pins really almost negated the full point) and .5 for the price. A solid 4+ rated course in my book.
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3 0
caravan2001
Experience: 34.9 years 34 played 8 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Fun course worth playing... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 14, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Manicured greens
Nice variety of shots for righty and lefty
Good baskets
Fairly easy to navigate
First tee is 100 yards from my hotel room

Cons:

Pay to play- $10 is a little steep imo
No real tee pads

Other Thoughts:

This is a fun little course. It is great if you don;t have a lot of time, you can play it pretty quickly, but there a number of fairly long holes. $10 is too steep I think. $6 or $7 would seem more fair. Good variety of shots. Fairly challenging. My first time sharing a course with ball golfers. There were a few parties out there but it was no problem at all. I prefer this to Fountain Hills where there are so many pedestrians everywhere that it affects the round. Plus less goose shit than FH. Lost my one driver in a water hazard on 14 I think and finished with my midrange. In town on business and the course literally butts up against my hotel so that was sweet. This is only the second course I have played in Phoenix but it was fun and definitely worth visiting for a round. I'd give it a 3.2 if I could.
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2 5
chadd
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Pay to play 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 25, 2013 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Lots of shade on an older golf course. Decent variety of holes.

Cons:

The people that run the course keep changing the price. $5 one time $6 another and yesterday they wanted $10 per player. When there are enough free courses around save your $. You also have to share the course with ball golfers, a little crowded.

Other Thoughts:

Theres also a crazy greens keeper that roams the course demanding to see your receipt. Kinda crazy and I wont be back.
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9 1
Psicko
Experience: 20.8 years 25 played 15 reviews
4.00 star(s)

different than the usual courses in the valley 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 21, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

It is a well maintained course that shares a golf course. This course doesnt look like it is busy with ball golfers, especially in the afternoon. Compared to other golf courses in the area it is pretty ghetto, which makes it better for us dg'ers if we dont have to deal with the ball golfers. I didnt see any ball golfers when I was on the course.

Tees were all on concrete except hole 2/10.
Navigation is pretty easy, as all of the dg all tee's are close to the ball golf tee pads except hole 2/10.

The layout is challenging, I wouldnt suggest this place to a new player as there are several water hazards where bad throws will be punished. Accuracy is a must on this course, there is more line shaping needed here than the majority of the other courses in the valley. On hole 9/18 there is a water carry with a tree branch overhanging that can get in the way if you are not careful.

There are big trees which equal a good amount of shade while playing. Good for summer dg here.

Cons:

It is a 9 hole disc golf course on a 9 hole ball golf course. Each tee has two permanent placement baskets, so if you play each pin position on each hole, it will equal 18 holes. There are no dg tee signs, luckily the course is easy to navigate with a map in the "pro shop." Hole 2/10 does not have a concrete tee box.

Other Thoughts:

Even though there are two pin placements for each hole, the different pin placements make the hole play differently, which is good. Only one hole feels similar when playing to A and B pin positions.

I will be back.
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9 1
chillis
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24.4 years 103 played 29 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Just what the doctor ordered 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 22, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Fiesta Lakes is a beautifully maintained course with huge trees providing great challenge, shade, and scenery. The disc golf course is laid out on an existing executive 9-hole golf course and this means you have all the positives/amenities associated with a golf course.

With the exception of Hole 2, all the dg tee areas are near the golf tees, so navigation is a breeze.

The layout is challenging - with a handful of par 4s, plenty of trees to get in your way, golf greens to avoid (they're OB), doglegs to position yourself for an approach, and water to avoid, there's plenty of obstacles to ponder and overcome. Only two holes (9 & 18) force you to throw over the water. On the other holes with water in play there are options to go around the hazard.

From a safety standpoint: There aren't any conflicts concerning baskets and tee areas being too close. Even wild approach shots won't endanger players on the next tee. Also, there is netting between the holes bordering the driving range to the north-east.

Cons:

Not many Cons to be found. The layout satisfies me enough to where it's hard to find anything wrong with the course.

There's a chance a busy course could become a bit of a hassle as ball and disc golfers vie for spacing. But due to the casual nature of the course this will likely be avoided by simple golf pace and courtesy.

Mixed tees - some are concrete, most are short grass. It would be nice to have rubber mats or something for the tee areas w/o concrete.

Other Thoughts:

Visit the Pro Shop for scorecards and course maps.

This is a great summer course as it provides loads of shade and rest areas.

Although it is approachable by beginners, this course strikes me as more of an Intermediate/Advanced experience because of the water in play and length of the layout.
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