Before I get into this review. Let me say when I played here, the #'s on the tee signs were in what used to be called the tournament layout. Meaning what was originally #6 is now the first hole, #7 is now #2 and so forth. The old #1 is now #14, old #5 is now the finisher. So when you see the shorter hole over the water, you'll see the tee sign labeled as hole one.

-As soon as I pulled in, I had a feeling that Venhorst was going to be more about disc golf than anything else. I was right. There aren't really any extracurricular activities here. It's just an awesome disc golf course. The location is very tranquil and apposite for a top notch course being around some ponds on a hilly piece of land. The first hole goes right into it being over the pond off of an elevated pad from the long. The short pad is at the bottom of the hill right at the bank, making the pond more clearable. The basket (in both pins) is tucked in the woods on the other side of the pond and over a hill with a rocky face, making you want to throw high enough so you won't hit the rock and roll down the hill.

-The second hole is a hard par four up a big hill in one of the more open spots of the course. Even from the short pad, this is a pro par four. The next hole (#3) is a big downhill par three. I played the longs and it was 366' long in the B position. I threw a putter and parked it. From the short pad, it was 305' and still a long way downhill to the pin. A very fun hole to throw multiple drives on! #4 was for me, one of the toughest holes from the longs. It was deceiving because of its fairway. You throw off a steep hill (similar to the previous hole except smaller), and the fairway has a creek in play right in the middle. It's casual water, meaning if you go in there it is not out of bounds. The green is guarded by some trees. The initial gap was difficult for me to hit. I threw a fairway driver when I should've thrown a mid. This was a neat hole too. The first four holes really show the elevation this course has to offer, there is more throughout the course though.

-The tee signs and diagrams are drawn out and accurate. Looked cool on the black rubber. The tee pads are nice too.

-Uniqueness. I am a big fan of Paul McBeth; he's always been one of my favorite pros and the ideas he had with some of the greens make this a destination course. Those pins are more frequent in the A pins. When I played, the baskets were in the B pins so I didn't get to play the island greens on #5 and #8, but I did enjoy #10's green on the ridge. #13's green was nice too around the bricks and next to a fence.

-Continuing on #13. This hole is truly amazing! 667' from the long and 570' from the short. A gorgeous par four off of a hill in the clear. The hole is a dogleg right par four. The woods in play are punishing enough but a little more forgiving than some other parts of the course. Once you get to the landing zone, you want to avoid the OB fence and the road. Basket is down the trail. Just a beautiful and all around, top notch hole.

-Flexibility. There are two sets of tees. If you decide to play the longs and the pins are located in the A positions, you are going to have a hardcore challenge. The short pads are still difficult to those pins even though the holes aren't as long. I played the long pads to the B pins and they were slightly easier, but the course was still very difficult. However, the short pads to the B pins are more typical and forgiving. None of the holes on that layout would play much over par for pros if any would at all.

-If you play the longs, the deck you get to tee of on #8 is very neat.

-The last two holes are very fun over the water. #17 is a nice downhill par three out of the woods with the B pin being maybe only 20' past the bank. #18 is on the other side of the pond and plays back over. The B pin is a 540' par four down a pretty large hill just begging the bigger arms to try and reach it. The A pin is a 435' par three and straighter ahead from the pad, making the pond easier to clear. Basket was in the 540' pin and I tried to go for the eagle, but it anhyzered too much because of a headwind and I lost a disc in there. It floated, I jumped in there after taking off my shirt and shoes, and got out because the mud at the bottom was soft and quick and the disc was maybe 60' from the bank. Didn't want my nipples to freeze. Course ends with real temptation that could end grand or end on a sour note. Just don't go in the pond if it's winter.

-This is a destination course that has some epic holes, but there were a few that didn't work well for me. #11 and #12 were both weird short holes with bizarre fairways. I managed to be a few feet from the pin on #11 but that was the perfect disc with lucky timing. The gap off the long pad is very small and the fairway turns instantly. A slight hyzer. #12 was very weird in the 215' pin. The tee shot isn't too funky, but the hole plays as a small dogleg and there's no real landing zone to the pin. Just a bunch of trees you want to sneak past.

-#9 in the A pin feels almost like a softer par four. I never played it, but I did see the marker. If you saw the youtube video that Foundation Disc Golf posted with Brodie and Paul, you know that Paul said he was only able to reach it once before. I know the long pads to A pins are the toughest layout; even is probably 990 rated. But this hole, as well as #15 in the longer pin demand a little too much. Over 400', tight, and fade. #15 was insanely hard being over 400' as well and the green being well guarded after requiring a slow and long accurate right to left shot. Not to mention, the rough is probably the roughest on this hole. Just too much to deal with to be a par three.

-Beware of traffic when you pull in and pull out. Not a con on the course at all, but just on pathway to enter and depart. The gravel road is very narrow and can't fit two cars going in opposite directions. It's about a quarter mile long. A previous reviewer brought up the limited parking and that's very true. If I were playing in a tournament here, I'd leave home early to try and find a secure spot so that I wouldn't have to park in an uncomfortable or hazardous spot next to the hill or on the path because of overflow.

-Slip hazards on the tee pads. Hole #4 from the long pad is off a steep hill that instantly drops a near 25' in elevation from the get go. If you play after a rainfall, be VERY careful on this pad or you could really get hurt. #18's long pad is sketchy too in that context. The short pads aren't quite as treacherous because none of them are on hills that immediately drop at the end of the pad, but it still hurts to fall.

-I really love Venhorst. It's a challenge that I strongly enjoy because of its originality with some of its greens and the elevation that comes with it. However, with the land it is on, I think it could be better than it is now. #15 was the main hole I disliked because it's long, dense, somewhat tight, and very unforgiving. A three would feel like a birdie. It'd be one of the easier holes on the course if it was a par four, but I still think it'd be harder than a few holes even from the longs to A pins if it was a par four.

-#13 is by a long streak, the greatest hole I have played in the state of Virginia. No question about it. I haven't played many courses in Virginia yet, but this hole is truly fantastic. Obviously my favorite hole on the course. I loved the big uphill par four on #2 and the huge downhill on #3. The downhill water holes made a very gorgeous ending. Those water holes are an indication that Venhorst is not at all for casual players. It's a course strictly designed for serious players that have some distance because it takes good amount of distance to clear the water on both #17 and #18. You could argue that there is a lay up option, and you'd be correct but laying up will frustrate players with limited distance when that is their only viable option.

-I know that some starters may come here anyway. If you are a beginner, do NOT play here!! Please wait and take the time to improve your distance and accuracy. It'll come with practice and dedication, but this course is not a stepping stone for starters looking to improve. Taking on this course as a beginner would be like a modernized and the more predictable version of David and Goliath. Sorry, but it wouldn't be a fun experience. It'll take more than one great shot to score well here. If you are seeing improvement in your game, I'd recommend you play the short pads because the course is still hard from the shorts.

-To all open players, come on out! Venhorst is a whole lot of fun!! Glad I drove four and a half hours to play it! If you lost a disc you throw well with, you'll want to replace it before coming to Venhorst. Again, it's awesome but you don't want to play here without the disc you are the most comfortable with.

-Clearly marked signs
-Excellent Tee Pads (with brooms)
-Beautiful, New Baskets
-Excellent Variety (Tunnel Shots, forehands, backhands, water carries, elevation control, etc.)
-Clean Course (Obviously signs of tree maintenance, but there was not trash, and everything looked so pretty).

-Some holes have VERY thick woods next to it, so it's not too fun to fish out a missed shot. I'm talking about bushy vegetation (not trees off the fairway)
-Basket locations change based on the day, so that could affect your score just based on the day of the week (some might like that variety, though). Might be nice to have 2 fixed basket locations in the future?

Honestly, I wanted to review this course because I've heard some negative reviews just due to its difficulty. I typically score about a 930-960 round in Charlotte, NC, so I was expecting to have a tough round even though I play a lot of tight wooded courses often. IT'S NOT THAT BAD! If you know how to Hyzer flip or throw something in a tunnel, you'll have a GREAT time! The main complaint I hear is about how many trees there are off the fairway, but I think it's reasonable to get punished for missing the fairway and rewarded for hitting a nice shot. I definitely missed some shots, but I still felt like I could attack Par on plenty of them. If I had a little more range on my throws, I probably would've been able to attack some more birdies on the back 9, but it was such a beautiful course, I didn't care. The variety is what excited me. Paul managed the elevation super well in my opinion, and the course made me use every disc in my back and every shot in my arsenal. It was a beautiful scenery to try and get creative from on or off the fairway. If you are in the area, play this course. Am tees are fresh and the Pro tees are super fun and challenging. There were a couple dead zones in the pro-tee turf from time to time, so make sure you test your footing before committing to a shot.

Okay, the clickbait title was just a joke, settle down McBeth fan boys. This is actually a great course that is ideally suited for players that like a wooded challenge. Not to beat around the bush but you're gonna beat around the bush a lot if you leave the fairway here.

Baskets are Dynamic Veterans which IMO are some of the best around. Short tees are made of large pavers and work great. Long aka McBeth tees are very large turf tees. The tee signs are very unique; flat pieces of slate-looking stone with illustrations painted on them.

The terrain-wise the course is a smorgasbord of challenging features. Very hilly land where flat footing is a rare novelty on many fairways. Pesky creeks that may or may not be OB. A small pond is cleverly used for 3 daunting water carries. Occasional grass covered fairways and of course, 90% of Bedford's trees (stat completely made up).

This course is very reminiscent of a private course you'd encounter in the foothills or mountains of the Carolinas. A gazillion trees, extremely punishing rough and frequent elevation change are your constant nemesis. Even entering the secluded, out of the way park feels like you're arriving at someone's private course.

The McBeth designed long tees to long pins, which I played because I'm an idiot, are as you would expect quite arduous. The hole length to par ratio is out of most players' league in terms of expecting a birdie or even a par, i.e. 400'+ wooded par 3's. If you can't lace a narrow, long fairway with a driver you are going to have a bad time. You also need to be in decent shape as getting to some of these long tees requires trudging up very steep slopes.

This course tests golfers to throw all the basic shot shapes very precisely. From a flex forehand to carry the first pond hole to perfectly flipped to flat putters or mids on the many downhill gauntlets here. Some of these holes have greens that are extremely difficult to reach off the tee without some sort of flaring skip. In short it's a very difficult course to play if you're playing blind.

Overall I think McBeth did a great job. However there are some things to mention here.

Some of these holes have very indistinct fairways. Hole 17 looks like a total crapshoot from the tee. Hole 16 is also confusing off the tee because the dirt road that goes down the right side is arguably wider than the actual fairway. This hole requires a very specific line off the tee which is a common trait of this course. Unlike most holes where there's "more than one way to skin a cat," McBeth seems to favor the "my way or the highway" method. Virtually all of the completely wooded holes require a line that needs to stay within a 2.5' square area throughout the entire fairway. In other words, you have a very slim margin for error for missing McBeth's intended line.

Some of this and other drawbacks to the course will be abated with time as the course gets broken in and trees die and fall out of the way. For the time being, when you leave the fairway you can expect few if any scrambling opportunities. For example, you can be within the circle on hole 6 and not even have a way to pitch out for a par.

The more open holes I think could be improved with some limb trimming; especially hole 7 where the uphill approach is very pinched off at a tight angle due to the limbs along the fairway. All of the water carries had some branches poking uncomfortably into the gap. Normally that's just part and parcel of wooded disc golf but when barely grazing a leaf can be the difference between landing dry or wet it becomes much less desirable.

Some steps cut into the steep approaches to many of the long tees would be greatly appreciated. A couple of them I'm not sure would be passable if they were wet because of the red clay.

So if you find yourself in Bedford and you fancy yourself a small gap hitting machine you will love this course. If you're not a woods wizard you'll still enjoy this course because it's very lovely varied terrain, creek, and pond in play makes it an upper tier course. I know the design is solid because my brother, who never beats me, almost did simply because he did a vastly better job of staying on the fairway than I did, aka "golf."

I can also tell you that if you play Mayflower Hills before you play here that you will be worn out. This is not a course you want to tackle with dead legs or low energy.

I can easily see myself raising the rating of this course in the future as the rough gets beaten in where it's not so punitive and maybe if the fairways open up a bit. It's also a course you'll appreciate after more rounds as you learn the lines.

With its unmarked gravel entrance in a residential neighborhood, narrow fairways carved raw through the woods, and fantastic signature holes, Venhorst has the feel of a great private course...that happens to have Paul McBeth as a neighbor to help with the design.
+ A long, challenging course, that's mostly wooded but also features a few semi-open holes, and two or three dramatic water carries. Big elevational changes add to the epic feel.
+ Multiple holes here are very memorable, and could be signature holes on any other course. All of the water carries, but especially hole 5, are among the more dramatic that you'll find on any course, as they cross the entire width of these large ponds. Following these, the semi-open long par 4s (holes 7 and 18) are also fantastic, and make tremendous use of elevation and late fairway turns to create dramatic finishes to the baskets. And several of the wooded holes are also quite scenic, such as holes 9 and 10 whose fairways follow a small creek towards the baskets.
+ Two sets of tees on most holes. The concrete short tees are suitable for strong intermediate players and above, who should have opportunities to fight for birdies, though it will be a tough battle throughout.
+ The long tees, designed by none other than local resident Paul McBeth, are currently on adequate-quality turf, which I'm sure will be upgraded. Not sure how much design work McBeth really had to do, as the long tees are usually just 100 ft. further than the shorts and use the same angles and lines. But that extra distance makes a huge difference to the difficulty, and these long tees will present a considerable challenge to strong advanced and open players.
+ Most holes have two basket positions, a short B and a long A, on excellent DD Veteran baskets. These pins dramatically differ in their distance, the finishing/approach angles required, and in their difficulty. A very helpful sign on the way to hole 1 indicates which positions the pins are currently in.
+ Every teepad has its own signs, which are simple drawings but adequately display distance, shape, etc.
+ Arrows on the basket spokes help with navigation, as do additional arrows on some transitions.
+ 5- and 13-hole loops return to the parking lot, offering some opportunities for shorter run-throughs, or short breaks at your car.
+ This quiet park is seemingly only used for disc golfing and some pond fishing, largely making for peaceful play.

I enjoy long, challenging wooded courses, more than anyone I know. But Venhorst is not my favorite in the genre.
- Lack of shot variation in the woods - nearly all of these holes are laser-straight tunnels, perhaps with a left or right finish at the very end. But there are essentially zero opportunities for sweeping hyzers or big turnovers, generally you are just asked to throw straight over and over again. You also rarely have to consider early gaps or late windows, as most of the fairways are the same width the whole way down. Forests offer many opportunities to creatively shape fairways on all sorts of angles and widths, but this course ignores those possibilities and largely sticks to restrictive, straightjacket tunnels, which I have to say are not very fun after awhile. See also: the Camp Hydaway course 20 miles to the east, which this course reminded me very strongly of, and which I have similar issues with. At least Venhorst is saved by some excellent holes in the semi-open.
- Several of the basket positions require abrupt, late finishing fades that I feel are unreasonable and borderline unrealistic. This also affects scoring separation and fun, as I feel these holes will generate very few birdies, and an abundance of boring layups.
- Several of the wooded holes feel like filler, to eat up the distance between the signature holes. But perhaps this feeling is just a consequence of the lack of shot variation again.
- Emphatically not a beginner-friendly course, even from the short tees. The repetitive long wooded tunnels will be too punishing, and the water carries do not offer safe bailout zones. Beginners do have other options in the area, but perhaps red tees could be installed here, even if they're just small markers in the ground.
- Very slick clay presents serious footing concerns on some of the steep slopes, particularly the downhill drop of hole 8. Players with balance or coordination concerns will have to tread very, very carefully in many areas, especially after a recent rain.
- After throwing off the tee on hole 5, proceeding to your lie requires walking back through hole 4's green, presenting safety concerns.
- Not every hole has a long tee, which isn't made clear on any signage, and led to some fruitless searching when I played that layout. Consequently, some of these short holes felt very out of the place on the long layout.
- More navigational signage is needed in some places in the woods, as there are many old trails that can cause confusion.
- Recent tournaments started play on hole 6 and finished on hole 5, which offers dramatic starting and closing holes near the parking lot. By contrast, the 'normal' layout requires getting to hole 1 via a non-obvious walk from the parking lot across or around hole 18's green, and begins the course experience with three wooded holes that I would sequentially rate as being decent, poor, and very poor, before finally getting in gear on hole 4. Not a good first impression, and not sure why the tournament layout isn't permanently followed instead.

I expect this course will receive a lot more polish and shine in the coming months from Foundation, their rabid social media followers, local clubs, and of course foot traffic, which could all help considerably. From what I saw, I also suspect the 'A' pin positions are markedly better than the Bs, which I tried from both tees. My current rating for the course accounts for these likely improvements, and perhaps I'll revisit to play the 'A' positions to confirm that, and hopefully more.

This is as close to perfection as it gets for a purely wooded course. It's extremely difficult,even from the short pads. It will test every type of shot in your bag inside the trees and requires both pinpoint accuracy and distance off the tee to score. Par is an amazing score here.

Many times, difficult woods courses rely on unfair lines to show their teeth. This course doesn't have anything i'd consider unfair. A few holes have strange lines, but they're plenty fair.

Most holes have multiple tees and multiple pin locations, always a plus!

The property is beautiful. Supposedly it was a private retreat in it's past life. I'm grateful that someone chose to dedicate it to our sport, we're lucky to have it.

It's strictly a woods course. I've said in previous reviews that I don't give out anything over a 4.5 for a purely open or a purely wooded course, regardless of how good it is, because the reality is it doesn't test all aspects of your game.

This course isn't accessible for new players. It's not trying to be, clearly. I will never dock points for a course being difficult, but hopefully newer players will choose to go to any of the more accessible Bedford/Roanoke/Lynchburg courses before trying to tame this guy.

There are still some holes that need some tweaking to make them great. Hole 17 is the one that comes to mind for me, but others are still in the process of being tweaked as well. The course is new, and for as new as it is it's in phenomenal shape.

Parking is extremely limited, especially for a tournament scenario. Tee time events can work, but shotgun starts will be tricky to pull off with the current parking capacity.

The 9-hole loops do not intersect at the parking lot/pavilion. For tournament and casual play this is and will always be a minor con in my book. It makes planning drinks difficult, makes planning doubles/weekly events difficult (longer walks to starting holes and back to the parking lot etc...) but again, no points were docked for this. The course DOES loop back, but after only 5 holes.

A few holes have what some people may consider "unnecessary" OB's. This course is tough as it is. It's one of the rare courses that is going to challenge you without anything artificial being added, so the decision to add a few artificial OB's seemed to me to be slightly double-punishment. Hole 18's fence is the only artificial OB that I felt added to the hole in a good way. The artificial island green, the peninsula green, the ob island at the creek hole, all completely unnecessary and detract from an otherwise good course. Others might disagree with me on this but you won't find a single person that will tell you this course is easy, and removing a few artificial OB's isn't going to change their sentiment. This is probably my biggest complaint but is something that is easily remedied, so I'm hoping they consider it in the near future.

This course is the latest addition to the phenomenal list of courses popping up in Southwest Virginia over the past few years. I spent a lot more time on the cons than i did on the pros, but that's just the nature of my review method. The rating I gave it stands on its own.

I can think of only a few purely wooded courses that are up to snuff with this one. It's easily a top 5 wooded course for me along with W. R. Jackson, Lake Claiborne and a few others, though not quite on that same level. Time should only make this course even better!

If you aren't scared of a challenge and want a good workout, don't be afraid, ok maybe slightly afraid, of Venhorst Park!