Pros:
The Original 18 holes at the Black Locust course in Kensington Metropark is a wonderful track. Luscious flora, solid elevation, and solid golf all together.
For a par 3 course, there is a good mix of distances, with a lot of the holes rewarding well placed drives and good approaches, leading to a par. You take your birdies when they come, and struggle for par on the others.
The tee pads are nice, long, concrete pads, with a good grip. The tee signs leave a little to be desired, but are servicable, and with the well defined fairway, they do well enough.
At the time of my review, the course has old chainstars, which really suck, but within the coming weeks there will be brand new Blue Chainstar Pros, which are fantastic baskets.
Navigation was a breeze, as the paths on each hole were well beaten, and there was never a long walk from hole to hole.
Cons:
There is a good amount of lefty backhand/righty forehand holes, which was really nice for me, but was not completely fair. A better variety would be nice.
This course lacks out of bounds, but it makes up for it with the insane rough, which is punishing enough that it costs you a stroke if you go in deep. However, the rough is very thick in some places, and many scratches and/or lost discs will happen.
As a par 3 course, there were no real holes I could say are true signatures. There were definitely a good amount of fun drives off the tee, but the fact of the matter was, none of them make the list for my favorite holes.
Other Thoughts:
This course is the older brother of the new "Green Course." It is a bit more tame, has an easier demeanor, but also can provide a very fun time. When playing the courses at KMP, I would recommend playing this course first, then green, but if you can only play one, play the Green Course. They are both great in their own right, and you won't get the true idea if you don't play both!