Pros:
Stellar old school design, variety out the wazoo, gorgeous to see, super fun to play - that's really all you need to know, so don't complain if my review's too long.
• Discplay: Phenomenal variety; 24 holes that don't feel repetitive at all.
+ Elevation: Varies from subtle to mammoth and is wonderfully employed without being overdone: up, down, rolling, gullies, along ridges (where roll-always can hurt), pins on slopes, and yes, there are even several flat fairways.
+ Mostly moderately to well-wooded with a few lightly wooded holes and some fairly open fairways that have a few (well-placed) trees.
+ Holes that allow a variety of lines to force decision making and holes that force a specific line.
+ Holes that play much longer/shorter than posted.
+ Fairways with L/R/straight tee shots, ranging from open to very well wooded;
+ Nice variety of distances and fairway types with holes that call for finesse, holes that call for power, holes that demand both.
+ Clever pin placements: several on or near slopes, a few well-guarded, some nicely tucked into the trees off a fairly open fairway.
+ Risk/Reward that's fair: Many holes can make you pay for leaving the fairway with difficult recoveries, but it's always fair. If you only stray a little, recoveries aren't too tough, but the farther you stray, the tougher they get. Pin placements w/pucker factor to punish poor decision making.
• Equipment:
+ Chainstars are in good condition, as are the concrete tees.
+ Tees signs have #, distance and hole layout.
+ Benches at many tees.
• Memorable holes: #19... I'll probably never play a more memorable hole, sincerely.
a) Truly an incredible disc golf hole: a heart-pounding 621' downhill bomb with a wide, grassy fairway flanked with dense woods on either side. Toward the bottom of the hill, the left side opens up and continues downward to the left, allowing RHBH shots to fade so far down, you'll either laugh or cry. You could park it for a deuce (like the guy behind be) or get 7 (like me)... either way, it's incredible.
b) It's the most majestic looking hole I've ever seen. An opening through the trees perfectly frames the city in the distance with the bay in the foreground... you can literally see for miles. There are actually many other memorable holes... but 19 just takes the cake.
• Routing/Nav: Intelligently laid out and flows well. Easy to follow because it's seen a lot of traffic, so paths to the next tee are usually obvious. The only tricky spots are from 17 to 18 (what looks like the obvious path is a walking trail) and to a lesser extent, from 8 to 9, and ... everything else was straightforward. Map should help if you get turned around.
• Aesthetics: The entire course is wonderfully appealing and has an ambience about it, but the view from the 19th tee is perhaps the very nicest I've taken in on any course - picture post card quality. As nice a walk through as I've ever taken, this place is almost enchanting. Despite the number of trees, the fairways and sight lines are open enough that it never feels claustrophobic. Relaxing to the point that it helped me "get into the zone."
• Plenty of shade on hot days
Cons:
Cons: I really loved this course, but couldn't shake the following:
• quite a few tees were sandy and to the point of being hard to clear off (particularly #9) which affected some shots.
• Shows signs of erosion and is aging. Wish I could have seen this place years ago.
• Chainstars are very tough to see in the shadowy woods... you can be looking straight at them and not see them. A flag or some paint would be sweet.
• Certainly not an easy course, but I can't believe Pros will find the challenge they need here. Would have benefitted from a 2nd, more challenging set of tees to better fit a wider range of skill levels - not sure it's feasible at this point.
• I can see this place being very slippery when wet -just a warning, not a knock.
Other Thoughts:
Hickory Hills is as enjoyable a course as I've had the pleasure to play: beauty, variety, more fun than a barrelfull of drunken monkeys. An extremely complete and well put together course that I absolutely must play again.
Shot a 79 for all 24 holes (including a 7 on hole that can be deuced). No doubt in my mind I could card a 72 if I had the opportunity to play here often. Considering I'm an 850 rated player, who's never played this course before, I simply can't believe it would push top level Ams or Pros. That's really the biggest thing holding back my 5.0, and to a lesser extent, the erosion and sandy tees. I can't fault anyone for awarding a 5.0, but from my perspective, a course has to better accommodate a range of skill levels to earn that rating.
Campers: Just 15 min from Traverse City State Park, with: clean, private showers, shady sites, plenty of restaurants and directly across the street from a public beach.