- 9 well marked holes

- fresh baskets, clear signage, easy navigation.

- mix of open and wooded shots.

- good variety of hole shapes - some straight shots, some doglegs, etc.

- zero challenge.

- nothing over 200'. Putters will suffice, maybe mids on the first two holes.

- seriously, no challenge at all. you'll feel bad if you score a 3 on any of these holes. hell I felt bad walking away 8 under because I didn't score an ace.

This course manages to be both good and bad at the same time.

It's good because it uses the available space well, presents a variety of tee shots, is well marked and maintenance is top notch.

It's bad because there's no challenge at all, and the holes feel repetitive due to how short they are.

I'm not sure I would have done anything differently with the available land. This isn't a spot where they could have fit in an 18 hole championship level course by any means. But I can't help but wonder if some holes could have been extended another 50' to provide a little more variety.

It's a nice stop for absolute beginners, course baggers and ace hunters, otherwise it's a hard pass.

Marvin Efird Park is a beautifully maintained park that plays host to this wonderful 9 hole beginner/pitch & putt course. The course has grass tees, and DISCatcher baskets. While more experienced players will likely be able to navigate the course with a single putter, the course features enough variety to stay interesting. There are straight ahead shots, dogleg shots, open holes, and wooded holes.

You get a scenic view of the pond/lake beyond Hole 2's basket when you're putting out. Due to the parking lot's location, I actually started on Hole 3, and I feel like this is actually the best way to play the course.

On my first visit, I played before the tee markers were put into the ground, but there were flags denoting where the tees were planned for (at least on most holes). So I played from a bit further back on some of the holes. There are now more permanent tee markers, but I also realized many of them were much closer to the baskets than I had anticipated.

For more experienced players, the course won't offer much outside of 9 chances at scoring an ace. Holes 1 & 2 are the only two holes that offer even a little bit of distance. And they are still both under 200 feet long. If there were space for long tees, I think the course would benefit from them. I played Hole 9 from about 60 feet further up the hill on Hole 9, which was a blast. I am not confident many holes have that much extra room though.

For a course designed so clearly with beginners in mind, I found the choice to put Hole 2's basket so close to the water to be somewhat odd. A bad kick off the trees and a disc could end up rolling/flying in the water. Would be discouraging for beginners.

A few of the holes almost feel like miniature versions of holes you might find on a larger course. Hole 7 had a tree right in the middle of the fairway. If the hole was longer and wider, it wouldn't really have stood out, but on such a short & narrow hole it didn't feel necessary other than to frustrate new players.

I thought Marvin Efird was a beautiful course, and think it is an excellent place for beginners to learn the sport. It's the sort of course that helps grow the sport. For now I am going to give it a 1.0 rating because it just doesn't offer enough for anyone other than absolute beginners. I do believe the course will serve that niche really well. If there were maybe two to four more holes in the 190 ft to 225 ft range the course would probably deserve a slightly higher rating.

Favorite Hole: 9

This is the little course that nobody knows about. But, based on home prices, you know the park isn't lacking for funds.
- Short, beginner friendly layout. It's an AcePlace layout, and one of the better ones I've seen.
- Course weaves between open and wooded layouts. There is not a single hole where trees don't come in to play. And there's not a single layout where the trees are too much of a deterrent for kids and new players.
- Course weaves through parts of the park that aren't interfering with other activities. The closet issue you'll find might be teeing off on #9, but you're throwing away from the stable and playground.
- Plenty of parking. The two times I've played, there has been a total of two other cars in the disc golf parking lot.
- Great park for the family. An excellent playground, lot of trails, and a pond. It's a very nature-centric park, which is why disc golf fits right in here.
- Lots of ace runs. For such a short course, they'll still have to be earned. You've got low ceilings (#4 & 8) or sharp doglegs (#5 & 6) that will make these well earned short aces. Think Dorton Park (sans #3) with a hint more challenge.
- #8 is my favorite hole. I like the low ceiling tee shot aiming at a basket on the edge of another wooded area.
- #9 is the fun, throw multiple discs, layout. It's slightly downhill, so an ace run can easily sail 40 feet past as I've discovered both times I've played.

This is close to its apex. There's little to nothing to complain about.
- Signage should be better. There needs to be a clearer sign to let players know which parking lot is for disc golf. Granted, if you park in the wrong one, you're starting at #8 or 9.
- Signage between holes. There could be a couple more arrows on the longer transitions when you cross over the park road (from #3 to 4 and #8 to 9).
- Grass tees. Again it's part of the course's minimalist footprint. And no holes are longer than 200 feet, so no run ups are needed.
- Obligatory course will be too easy for more experienced players. Blah, blah. You shot nine down. I get it.

The first time I played here the baskets had just been put in the ground. There was no signage. I was frustrated with the layout, thinking this might be a dud. I was pleasantly surprised how much nicer the course played once it was completed.
- This might now be the best course in the Charlotte area to bring kids, families, and first time players. The course has so much working in its favor.
- For a course with an average hole length of 134 feet, you are going to be hard pressed to find another course with as much variety as this one.
- This is an excellent course for practice. The sharp doglegs or low ceiling layouts reminded of throwing second shots after a less than ideal tee shot on a typical, longer hole. We've all had to throw a sharp, 110 foot dogleg hugging the tree line to get up and down to salvage par. Very few holes offer practice like this.
- I'm giving this a 1.5 rating. It earns a half point bump for being an outstanding beginner-friendly layout. Had I reviewed after my first round last Fall, it would have earned a 0.5 rating.
- You can easily play through three times in an hour. I would be here a lot for practice work if I lived close by.

A brand new course that could rapidly become unplayable without work.

The park is small and tight, and the start of the disc golf course is not immediately obvious, as you see baskets from the conclusion of the course driving in. Once you find the start, you'll be going through a couple of clearings and some small stands of trees on this short round.

Marvin Efird has nine new DISCatchers, and arrows marking the way to the next tee-off spot. Tee signs with number and distance were going in as I played.

The advantages of this course are that it's short and it's aceable. Starting on (3), it's basically a par-2 course with very short holes that beg you to go for it. The park is well cared for, so you won't lose discs in tall grass or get lost.

There's also a decent attempt at variety. Some holes are basically open with perhaps a slight finish, others are tightly wooded, and some are in between with a guarded basket. The best hole of the course is (9), a downhill and touchy tunnel shot.

Quite a few things are missing. There are no tees (just the signs), no course map, and no indication of correct parking.

The lines are suspect on occasion. This is especially true of (5)-(7), which don't really have viable air shots between tee and basket. Hole (2) also seems sketchy, especially with water in reach of a particularly bad ricochet.

It's also a really short course. These are ace runs, but they aren't particularly interesting ones. It's more like they used up the remaining space at a park however they could. This is also the case when you consider how piecemeal the course is. Two holes here, three here, one there…and working around park roads and a playground between holes.

Marvin Efird is a tiny course with very little besides baskets and basic signs. I've seen worse, but most are better. On the whole, without improving lines, flow, or beauty, it fits squarely in the Poor category.