Got to Gardner, golfed, giving it a good grade. Prodigy baskets are not my favorite, but they are brand new and shiny. The concrete tee pads are good size, but they feel slightly shorter than usual. There are extra sleeves on most of the holes, and some of the holes vary drastically depending on where the basket is set. Tee signs for each hole should be added eventually, to give par and distance numbers for each pin.

As far as the lay of the land goes, it's a nice space to put a course. There is a golf course next to it, and it has a lot of ball golf vibe. Mowed fairways that are often flanked by tall grass. Wide fairways, with some nice mature trees. Good elevation change on a few holes. There is a water hazard on the final hole with the long pin on an island green reminiscent of the 17th at Sawgrass.

Layout makes the most of the wooded areas, and will use them frequently to tighten up the lines around the tees and/or baskets. The shape of the hole can require big bends to get around trees on a couple of holes. 6 was a serious left to right tee shot that has a line of evergreens standing in the way. 12 also uses the edge of thick trees to force a giant right to left. Some of this rough can be dangerous, I had to duck under a thorny locust tree to retrieve a bad up shot by the basket on hole 11.

My favorite holes were probably 2, 4, 8, 9, 13 and 14. 2 and 4 were both long pin placement. 2 has a drive that runs between mature trees to either side of the fairway toward a basket that is on a short hill. Hole 4 tees off above a large field of grass, and the long layout is to the left, way back in the trees. 8 is uphill and has trees to the right. Both pins are reachable, but the short can result in bad rolls on missed putts, trust me. 9 is back downhill, into a shady spot under the trees. Short pin has a fairly direct route, but the long pin is deep in the pocket to the right. 13 has a slight drop in front of the basket, so only the rim is visible from the tee. A big old tree has branches taking up a lot of room on the left, tall grass lines the right, and several trees stand not too far behind the basket. 14 tees out of the trees and is just a bit of an uphill slope. Both pins are fairly short, and in a bumpy patch of ground that has a sand trap feel to it. I am not sure if the path behind it is OB, but there is tall brush on the other side.

The walk to the first hole is kind of long. Go between the practice putting green and the pond and walk to the other end of the water. The first tee is a few paces past the brown bench. There are few benches, and not any trash cans that I remember. Carry it with you and pitch it in the dumpster in the parking lot.

If the wind is blowing, it will take a toll on your score. I played in moderate wind and had a few shots that blew off course. The distance would be tough to play in a strong wind.

Some of the holes are flat and wide open. 16 is the most obvious example, but 1 and 3 also have limited resistance. This is kind of unavoidable on the grounds they had to work with.

This is a cool course. It plays pretty long at times, but not to the point you lose hope of ever getting a birdie. The ups and downs in elevation on 4 through 15 and the trees make it interesting. The balance of lefts/rights and shorts/longs can be shifted by moving the location of the baskets, but there is certainly a good mix.

I played in early January, and the weather was pretty decent for the time of year. Wind was a factor, but not terrible. Grass was mostly dormant. I am curious how thick the taller rough will be during summer.

I will be ready to return as soon as I get another chance to see if I can improve on my score. I made too many bad drives, bad approaches and bad putt attempts to post a respectable score. No birdies, and way more bogies than pars added up to a 68. At least I know where I am shooting generally, and can possibly have a better game plan.

It is worth a return trip to me. If you are in the KC area, give it a try. Several new courses have popped up south of town recently, and Gardner DGC is another nice addition.

Park in the field next to the dumpster. It is closer to the first hole, and the golf pro asks that the parking lot is saved for the golfers, There's no charge to play disc golf, but he would probably let you into the shop if you want to grab some snacks or maybe a couple of beers.

**Update - This course is getting better each time I play it. As I get to see slight alterations and play different pin placements, my opinion of Gardner DGC has grown more and more.