Highbridge Hills - Highbridge Gold reviews
22
1
A Gold Standard Being Revitalized
Reviewed:
Played on:Sep 27, 2022
Played the course:once
Pros:
Highbridge Gold is one of five 18-hole courses on site at Highbridge Hills Disc Golf Megaplex in northern Wisconsin.
Anyone who plays this course is going to remember hole 8. This 1440' monster is the longest hole I have ever seen on a course by about 250' - and the longest hole on a layout I actually played by an even wider margin. From the tee, there is a nice view of a large wooded hill way off in the distance. My imagination ran wild and envisioned the basket somewhere up on top of it, even though I knew that was silly since that hill is at least a mile or two away. The actual fairway is straight and relatively wide, dotted with a couple of large trees. The terrain gently rolls up and down, with an overall slight downward incline. No idea what par is, but I played in a headwind and slight rain and wasn't even mad about scoring a 10.
The finishing hole is nice too, playing maybe 500'-600' up a slight incline. It's another wide fairway with a few large trees, and this one is also broken up by several small sections of rocks. Turn around when you reach the basket and you'll be treated to another great view.
Hole 8 is admittedly an outlier, but the hole distances here are championship level throughout. The first six or so holes are relatively technical, but after that it mostly opens up to the wider fairways described above. There are always at least a couple of trees to work around, and some potential water hazards on a few holes as well (they were mostly dried up when I visited in late September). There are appreciable elevation changes on several holes, although overall I would say it's a little less significant than on other HH courses. For most DG'ers, the distances will more than make up for it. I suspect the wind often plays a role as well.
The basket situation here is varied. Holes 1-7 and 17-18 have two baskets per hole. The long baskets are yellow banded DISCatchers with the band spray painted gold. The longer baskets are red Chainstar Pros. The remaining holes have only one basket each, and the make and model varied by hole as of my visit - but all of the baskets were in good shape.
Anyone who plays this course is going to remember hole 8. This 1440' monster is the longest hole I have ever seen on a course by about 250' - and the longest hole on a layout I actually played by an even wider margin. From the tee, there is a nice view of a large wooded hill way off in the distance. My imagination ran wild and envisioned the basket somewhere up on top of it, even though I knew that was silly since that hill is at least a mile or two away. The actual fairway is straight and relatively wide, dotted with a couple of large trees. The terrain gently rolls up and down, with an overall slight downward incline. No idea what par is, but I played in a headwind and slight rain and wasn't even mad about scoring a 10.
The finishing hole is nice too, playing maybe 500'-600' up a slight incline. It's another wide fairway with a few large trees, and this one is also broken up by several small sections of rocks. Turn around when you reach the basket and you'll be treated to another great view.
Hole 8 is admittedly an outlier, but the hole distances here are championship level throughout. The first six or so holes are relatively technical, but after that it mostly opens up to the wider fairways described above. There are always at least a couple of trees to work around, and some potential water hazards on a few holes as well (they were mostly dried up when I visited in late September). There are appreciable elevation changes on several holes, although overall I would say it's a little less significant than on other HH courses. For most DG'ers, the distances will more than make up for it. I suspect the wind often plays a role as well.
The basket situation here is varied. Holes 1-7 and 17-18 have two baskets per hole. The long baskets are yellow banded DISCatchers with the band spray painted gold. The longer baskets are red Chainstar Pros. The remaining holes have only one basket each, and the make and model varied by hole as of my visit - but all of the baskets were in good shape.
Cons:
Of the five HH courses, this one was clearly last on UP Mountain Man & Co's list to bring new life to. I think I was actually one of the first players to play the full 18 since the change in ownership several years ago, as signage on site indicated that the "back 9" of the course (actually holes 8-16) had recently reopened. This explains the hodgepodge of baskets and lack of second baskets on those holes. But it also means that the other infrastructure I experienced here is even more mediocre than elsewhere at HH:
- Some holes had older concrete tee pads in fine shape, but other holes had pads that could use a re-pouring and others yet had just turf for pads.
- The "Front 9" holes had hand painted tee signs, although the pin locations seemed to be missing from the painted maps. The "Back 9" holes just had the hole number and distance Sharpie'd on white PVC pipes.
- Navigation was OK on the "Front 9", but tricky on the "Back 9". I recommend taking a photo of the map at the pay station, as it has the correct hole locations for this course Sharpie'd on.
Overall, even though this is an old course it essentially feels like a new, unfinished course right now. This is totally understandable, but I have to review based on the current state of the course.
As a standalone course, I could ask for a few more short/tight fairways to balance out all of the long/mostly open ones. In reality though, I could just walk across to
the Woodland Greens or Blueberry Hill courses on site to get that. So not really a major gripe.
A second set of shorter (not too short on this course) tees would be a nice upgrade.
- Some holes had older concrete tee pads in fine shape, but other holes had pads that could use a re-pouring and others yet had just turf for pads.
- The "Front 9" holes had hand painted tee signs, although the pin locations seemed to be missing from the painted maps. The "Back 9" holes just had the hole number and distance Sharpie'd on white PVC pipes.
- Navigation was OK on the "Front 9", but tricky on the "Back 9". I recommend taking a photo of the map at the pay station, as it has the correct hole locations for this course Sharpie'd on.
Overall, even though this is an old course it essentially feels like a new, unfinished course right now. This is totally understandable, but I have to review based on the current state of the course.
As a standalone course, I could ask for a few more short/tight fairways to balance out all of the long/mostly open ones. In reality though, I could just walk across to
the Woodland Greens or Blueberry Hill courses on site to get that. So not really a major gripe.
A second set of shorter (not too short on this course) tees would be a nice upgrade.
Other Thoughts:
The following notes apply to all HH courses:
- Large dirt parking lot at the top of a hill, which itself offers views better than you'd find on most courses.
- Multiple porta potties.
- Multiple practice baskets scattered around.
- Kiosk info at pay station including large map of all 5 courses.
- Signage says pro shop and food are sometimes available, but I got the vibe those were holdovers from previous ownership. Maybe they are open for special events.
- Onsite camping available.
- Pay to play: $20/day or $10/round or other options that I won't go into here (check course website for latest info). Can pay with cash, check, or Venmo. Signage at the entrance to the course says to display a receipt on your car but you don't get a receipt from the pay station - this was a bit confusing. I paid via Venmo, had fine cell phone service throughout the complex, and was one of the only people there throughout my visit so I figured I would be contacted if there were any issues.
IN ITS CURRENT 2022 STATE, this course is way overrated on here at its current ~4.5 average. BUT, once this course is dialed in again it is going to be epic. Give it a year or two and a return to 4.5 rating is definitely not out of the question.
In the meantime, I strongly recommend a visit to HH overall. As noted in my other HH reviews, my recommendations in order are:
1. Blueberry Hill
2. Granite Ridge
3. Woodland Greens, especially if you have a noodle arm.
4. After that, if you still have time it really comes down to what type of course you prefer. If you like tight technical courses, you'll probably prefer The Bear over Highbridge Gold. But if you prefer wide open bombs, you'll love Highbridge Gold. Of course, the best option is to stay a little longer and play all five courses.
- Large dirt parking lot at the top of a hill, which itself offers views better than you'd find on most courses.
- Multiple porta potties.
- Multiple practice baskets scattered around.
- Kiosk info at pay station including large map of all 5 courses.
- Signage says pro shop and food are sometimes available, but I got the vibe those were holdovers from previous ownership. Maybe they are open for special events.
- Onsite camping available.
- Pay to play: $20/day or $10/round or other options that I won't go into here (check course website for latest info). Can pay with cash, check, or Venmo. Signage at the entrance to the course says to display a receipt on your car but you don't get a receipt from the pay station - this was a bit confusing. I paid via Venmo, had fine cell phone service throughout the complex, and was one of the only people there throughout my visit so I figured I would be contacted if there were any issues.
IN ITS CURRENT 2022 STATE, this course is way overrated on here at its current ~4.5 average. BUT, once this course is dialed in again it is going to be epic. Give it a year or two and a return to 4.5 rating is definitely not out of the question.
In the meantime, I strongly recommend a visit to HH overall. As noted in my other HH reviews, my recommendations in order are:
1. Blueberry Hill
2. Granite Ridge
3. Woodland Greens, especially if you have a noodle arm.
4. After that, if you still have time it really comes down to what type of course you prefer. If you like tight technical courses, you'll probably prefer The Bear over Highbridge Gold. But if you prefer wide open bombs, you'll love Highbridge Gold. Of course, the best option is to stay a little longer and play all five courses.
2
10
mmcfly101
Experience:
17 played
16 reviews
Pro course 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Jul 24, 2018
Played the course:2-4 times
Pros:
Epic course at the Disc golf Mecca. This is probably the course that the Pros love the most. It is much longer than the other courses. Expert course. Carts are recommended (seasonal).
Cons:
Not recommended for beginners or the meek. You will throw a lot on this one. It's a very long course. My group rarely plays this one with all the other options.
Other Thoughts:
There are also layouts that use alternate tees, Blueridge, granberry, ect.
The main courses are Gold, Blueberry, Woodland Hills, Granite Ridge, Bear. There is also a course at the campground.
The main courses are Gold, Blueberry, Woodland Hills, Granite Ridge, Bear. There is also a course at the campground.
13
1
Gold has seen better days 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Jul 9, 2016
Played the course:once
Pros:
-Good mix of length (although it is skewed more towards longer distance)
-Good mix of shot shaping required
-Good mix of tight, wooded holes and open holes
-Camping onsite
-Good mix of shot shaping required
-Good mix of tight, wooded holes and open holes
-Camping onsite
Cons:
-Fairways are in awful shape, grass gone on many holes. In it's place is lumpy mud.
-Garbage is everywhere.
-In general, the course and amenities are badly in need of repair.
-Signs are at each hole, but mostly destroyed
-Benches are at each hole, but mostly destroyed
-Garbage is everywhere.
-In general, the course and amenities are badly in need of repair.
-Signs are at each hole, but mostly destroyed
-Benches are at each hole, but mostly destroyed
Other Thoughts:
As much as I wanted to like this course, I couldn't. The basic structure and layout are definitely there to be a championship caliber course. If you look at the photos of the course on here, look at them with a grain of salt. Yes, the holes are still that length and shape. But, imagine it with garbage everywhere and multiple fairways destroyed from car tire tracks turning it into a mud pit. Not only that, but the buildings on the property are in serious disrepair. The "clubhouse" at the beginning was filthy with broken glass. The concession area was not open and from the looks of it you wouldn't want anything from it anyway. This was midday on a Saturday by the way, so everything should have been open.
On to the course itself, I can't stress enough: the layout, distance and hole shapes are all top notch. This is definitely a course for the more advanced player, especially because of the severe distance on several holes. There were additional challenges presented with the terrain in such terrible shape, not as though the course needed more challenge. Additionally, the course has had issues with being mowed lately. On this particular day, it was badly in need of mowing. The first nine holes were worse than the last nine. There were times when the grass was thigh high and that was supposed to be the fairway. All in all, I was thoroughly unimpressed with the course and actually quit the day of disc golf early because of the condition of the Gold course. I had planned on throwing at least one more course and maybe two, but enough was enough. In it's current shape, I cannot recommend this course. If it gets fixed up (which would take a lot of time and money) then by all means I would come back. But until that happens, I will not be back.
On to the course itself, I can't stress enough: the layout, distance and hole shapes are all top notch. This is definitely a course for the more advanced player, especially because of the severe distance on several holes. There were additional challenges presented with the terrain in such terrible shape, not as though the course needed more challenge. Additionally, the course has had issues with being mowed lately. On this particular day, it was badly in need of mowing. The first nine holes were worse than the last nine. There were times when the grass was thigh high and that was supposed to be the fairway. All in all, I was thoroughly unimpressed with the course and actually quit the day of disc golf early because of the condition of the Gold course. I had planned on throwing at least one more course and maybe two, but enough was enough. In it's current shape, I cannot recommend this course. If it gets fixed up (which would take a lot of time and money) then by all means I would come back. But until that happens, I will not be back.
