New London Tech is a long course. It is a long course because it can be. Its discernible quality is its length. It's like saying growing to 7 feet tall is a skill.
- According to UDisc, the average player spends two to three hours playing one round at NLT. It took me an hour and a half to finish all 18. Feel like taking longer would have just been a waste of time.
- For big arm players, if you want to have a big scoring separation between yourself and noodle arms like me, this is a course for you. Congrats that you got a 4 or 5 on a 1200-foot hole while I got a 6 or 7. Were the first 600 feet of the layout necessary?
- The course's most creative, fun stretch was from holes #10 to 14. More creative layouts in this five-hole stretch than the rest of the course.
- After a lot of long holes, it's amazing that a 343-foot hole seems like a legit birdie chance (#12). What's more amazing is that I actually threw two good shots in a row and made a 2 here. This after smacking the rocks in front of #10's basket, eliminating another birdie run.
- The approach on #11 is an amazing view. A straight path leading directly to the basket in what looks like an enchanted forest.
- #7 was the best of the long holes, and I don't think it's even close. A mere 758 feet on this hole after just playing a hole nearly a quarter mile long (#6 at 1275 feet), you start out throwing straight, before the fairway takes a 90 degree turn to the right. So far, so good. You're now throwing over an ever-so-slight valley, past a row of trees before the fairway curves back left. This approach offers a creek in front of the putting circle, rocks on the left and trees long and right. An outstanding station-to-station, multi-shot hole. If this course had more of these types of holes (think Nevin in Charlotte), and my final rating would be much higher.
- Tee signs are outstanding. With the basket not visible on most holes, and many holes not having a visible basket even after two throws, your tee signs are your eyes on the course. In that sense, it gets high marks.
- The course also offers a comedic value. A warning sign that the course is aimed for championship level players despite having little to no elevation, having extremely wide fairways, and little to no punishing rough? Funny indeed.

The first two holes play down the same extremely wide clearing. It's as if the power company came in and did a clearing, and the designer put in two baskets along this right of way. It was at this point that my concerns about the course began to increase.
- That said, this course WILL beat down unsuspecting, unprepared, and unfit players. I did play when temps were in the 40s. Perfect for walking at a fast pace and not sweating. Granted, I had already played 36 holes that morning, including Mayflower Hills. Playing in July when it's 90 degrees out and even fit players will be slowing down considerably throughout their rounds.
- Some players won't have the patience for this course. Taking 4 or 5 throws to get in putting range will discourage some. Seeing a lot of 5s, 6s, and 7s on a scorecard will discourage even more. Seeing a final score in the 80s will cause even more discouragement.
- Course doesn't have a lot of variety, especially when it's taking a couple shots to get to where accuracy matters. On a 1,200-foot hole, does it really matter how accurately your first couple throws are? Not really, it's not until the third, fourth, or fifth throw before those matters. So, in essence, you're just throwing for throwing's sake.
- I'll go back to Nevin in Charlotte. Hometown bias, I know. #12 is 970 feet. But each shot serves a clear purpose. First throw is from the open fairway to the edge of the woods. Better land in/close to an opening. Second shot needs to hit the bend, setting up your approach. Following shots get you in position for a 4 or 5. NLT misses that point on a lot of these longer holes. Rather it's a sword-swinging contest to see who can be furthest down the fairway.
- You're not bailing out early here. If you show up, you know it's a marathon. If you somehow randomly pick this course as a newbie to play, and you ignore the warning signs, and don't know how long 12,000 feet is, then that's on you, my friend.

I was expecting New London Tech to be the highlight of a two day, 15-course trip through central VA and northern NC. It got lapped by Mayflower Hills as the region's best course. And it's not even close.
If you shortened some of the longer holes, you'd have much better appeal. #5 is fine as is. But, holes like #2, 6, 9, 15, 17, and 18 all need some other challenge besides length alone.
- I'm glad I played this once to simply say I played here. Based on every IG post from this course showing the warning sign, I was expecting more actual challenge. Things like elevation, narrow fairways, doglegs, s-curved fairways, or water. Once I realized I could simply throw a 250-300 and straight on every hole, it became a very simple strategy.
- For the modern-day fanboy, I think the main appeal here is the name behind the course. Replace that with a small-town Virginia disc golf club who tried to create one of the longest courses around, and the attitude would be different.
- It was jarring to be playing right up to people's backyards on #9. I'm guessing the selling point for those houses wasn't being located on some 'big time' disc golf course.
- If I threw 100 feet further, I'd probably have shaved 8-10 strokes off my score. Still, my round rating was pretty good. I guess some of the big arms are sailing throws deep into the woods.
- If you want to play here to say you have, then by all means, play here. I'd suggest Mayflower Hills instead. Or, some of the private courses in the region.
- There are some very good aspects here, for sure. It's just a shame that gets lost in the shuffle.

-New London Tech is one of the hardest courses in the world from the golds. You are faced with a serious demand every time. We thought Independence was incredibly hard, and it truly is, but New London Tech is harder. Just about all of the fairways are logical and offer a clear line to have some sort of chance for birdie for the pros. One thing this course truly needed was some shorter pads that are a little more forgiving and more accommodating. They are still very difficult, but have less barriers to fight through. There are a few par fives that are less than 750'. Two of which, are open and give bigger arms easy birdie looks and possible eagle opportunities. Still, several of the holes on the shorts are incredibly tough and even still probably rates about 940-950. My guess on the golds is 1022.

-Incredibly well polished. As hard as this course is, most of the fairways are very clean and more than 40' wide. The tighter fairways are well polished too.

-Great tee signs with hole information and diagrams. The diagrams can really help you strategize since all OB is marked on the signs. The front nine has three times as much OB as the back nine. There's a lot of danger, but a lot of distance needed to cover even with the danger. So the hole diagrams are especially useful at a course like New London Tech. You have to know which side of the fairway you want to lean more toward. The right side is OB the entire way on holes #1, #2, #3, #6, and #9. Holes #5 and #7 I would recommend walking up at least half of the fairway before throwing. #5 has a TON of OB, both left and right and on the wood line on the left of the entrance where the basket is. There's also a pond as if that isn't enough OB already. #7 has OB on the right side all the way to the first landing zone, and it's to the left the entire way until you clear the second landing zone. This is a shorter but strategic par five.

-There is a driving range beside the parking lot in the open strip of land. There are markers placed in increments of hundreds so that you have a good idea of how far you threw. You will want to throw some practice drives. There are woods on both side of the driving range; it is maybe 100' wide. My recommendation, keep throwing drivers in the driving range until you throw at least 85% of your max distance straight and accurate.

-Blue Chainstar Pro baskets. They are cool and they catch well. Green turf tees that are laid out on even ground.

-Few very interesting upshots that you are left with. #6 being an island green over a conservation area and #7's being over a small valley that plays as OB. #14's green was probably my favorite. I enjoyed this hole the most. It's one of the least difficult holes. You throw out of a small shoot from the woods and cross the open strip of land back where #13's tee is and enter the other side of the woods downhill to a slightly elevated basket. The green is surrounded by some pretty grass.

-There's a great mix of open and wooded. The first four holes are all wooded. #1 and #2 give more room for drivers. #3 and #4 are still pretty roomy but they are a little more narrow than the first two. #5-7 are still pretty wooded for the most part but are more spacious. #6 and #7 are on a strip of open land with woods on opposite sides. A few holes are very open and call for longer drives. Most players won't be able to par these holes by routinely throwing mids and putters, so you're really called to throw drivers over 350' accurately from the longs. The shorts are much more accommodating and have less distance requirements and reward players that can throw a long way.

-For a course in Virginia that's close to Liberty University, Independence Park, and Mayflower Hills, all of which are very hilly, I wish there was more elevation at New London Tech. Many holes on the longs have elevation changes around 20', but remember that it's 11,400 feet from the longs. 20' isn't that much, especially when the degree angle of the hills are mostly very slow and acute. All things considered, for a course this long, the elevation is light.

-#13's fairway is the only fairway that I had an issue with. It's very deceiving off the tee. You tee off on an open strip of land and enter the woods through a gap that instantly splits into two incredibly tight lines that go left and right. This hole isn't impossible; it's right in the middle of the pack I'd guess. It's just not very rewarding.

-#5 can be a pain. You throw blindly over a hill that quickly descends back down. The hill prevents you from seeing the OB on the left and right. There's a lot of tall grass over the hill shortly before the pond. You don't want to go big off the tee on this one unless you can throw over 500' comfortably. It takes a good 500+ shot to clear the OB pond. The entrance to the woods is probably close to 600' from the tee. The left side of the entrance of those woods is OB too. The chances of you going OB are much higher than you staying in bounds by the time you finish #5. If you are having an off day, you could potentially throw multiple OBs on this one.

-Honestly wish there was a "make or break" type 250' ace run here from the longs. One that's very attackable but scary and penalizing. Would be a nice confidence booster for players with better control. #4 isn't much longer than that at 287', but it's a good bit uphill so it doesn't really feel like a "must get" for pros. I've played many courses where even rates over 1000, and several of them have one or two holes that are shorter and a little more gettable. The new course at Buffalo Mountain is a prime example.

-Another course in Virginia that will leave even the best of the best players struggling to shoot par. It's an absolute beast! None of the holes here are easy to birdie, several are not easy to par. Several of them are so difficult to where a bogey doesn't feel bad at all. In the 2021 Battle for Bedford, there were 109 players in the open division and 322 total rounds played/completed. Four holes were birdied less than ten times. With #6 being birdied only twice out of those 322 times it was played, and #17 being birdied only one out of those 322 times it was played (congrats Evan Scott!).

-From the longs, there are two par fives that measure over 1200'. #6 being 1275' and #9 being 1234'. They are very different from each other aside from length. It's like Gustave the man eating crocodile in the Philippines that was hopefully captured by now and Dorrie the Sea Dragon from Mario 64. Gustave is probably the most vicious reptile of all time and Dorrie is a friendly sea dragon that minds his business and doesn't hurt anyone.

#6 is lethal the whole way through. There's OB entirely on the right hand side and some difficult rough on the left hand side. The tee shot is difficult enough. You want to throw about 300' straight and have a left fade at the end without skipping OB. If you throw over 350', you'll still have 900+ to go and the second landing zone before the intimidating upshot is over 600' from the first one. I had two good drives on this one. I didn't make it to the second landing zone on my second shot because I can't throw 600'. I then threw a putter on a slight hyzer to lay up and have a good look at the basket to hopefully par this hole. I missed the island and ended up taking a double bogey. #9 was a pretty routine par. There's some OB on the right, but the fairway is wider. There are several rows of trees on the left, but they aren't too punishing. For players that can throw 400' ust throw a big drive on a slight hyzer, and then throw two more big drives right to left and you'll probably make a par. A birdie is in reach here for distance throwers. Of course, if a couple of drives go wrong you will struggle but this one is very attackable. Probably one of the least intimidating holes on the course. It's incredibly long, and there are barriers to entry due to distance, but it'll give anyone that can throw at least 300' the "can do" feeling. My guess the open division, which a rating average presumably 970 will average between a 6.7 to 6.8 on #6 and between a 5.2 to 5.3 on #9. If you watch the Foundation Disc Golf Video where Paul and Brodie walk you through the course, you'll see Paul describe #6 without any emphasis at all. He describes it like it's just a normal hole. It's hilarious!

-#2 and #18 feel like par fives, and would be in most cases. They are par fours from the longs. Especially #2 being 970', wooded, and OB completely on right side. There was the prospect that this may be the hardest hole on the course. The fairway is over 50' nearly the whole way, maybe until the last 200'. I threw two drivers pretty accurately and was left with about 200'. This hole is a good bit downhill (maybe 25' in total) so it loses some of its long distance and has a pretty spacious fairway considering it being wooded. It still feels like a par five. #18 is 849' and is probably 25' up. It's open, and the fairway could be 100' wide. But boy it's brutal. I threw a driver too aggressively and landed in the right side of the woods and took a 6. Hoping to birdie this beast of a finisher while standing on the tee will leave you disappointed. You'll feel like you're trying to rescue a submerged bodybuilder from the deep end of a swimming pool playing #18 long.

-#18 is a par four from the long and a par five from the short. The long is 849' and the short is 672'. Not in support of the shorter version being a par five and the longer being a par four, even when the shorts are more for advanced amateur players. I know that the shorts are supposed to be less difficult, but #18 short still isn't long or technical enough for advanced players to not be able to make a three. It's blatantly a challenging par four from the shorts for ams and a challenging par four from the longs for pros. #9 short should be a par four too. It's 716' and very open.

-Personally, it's not really up my alley. It's well kept and has clear lines, but it isn't a rewarding course. You could do everything well and still end up with a bogey or worse. I like the mix of open and wooded. The approach shots on #6 and #7 are memorable in a very positive way. The split fairway approach on #17 was neat too. I love that the fairways are a little more welcoming so that there's room to throw a driver in the woods. I wish there was more elevation and maybe one shorter hole where most players won't feel like they have to throw a driver. I like Independence (Venhorst) better. It's the other course in Bedford that Paul designed. The other private course that Paul designed is even better than Independence!

-I signed up for the Battle for Bedford and we are playing New London and a new private course. It was three rounds last year (which I did not play). I wish there could be a third round at Independence for the pros. It's another beast of a course that rates over 990. It has as much character as New London Tech, it has a little less variety than New London Tech since it's mostly wooded and the hole distance range is 270'-670' while New London Tech has a range close to 1000' (287'-1275'). Independence has lot more elevation and water. To me, Independence is the better course of the two that Paul designed here in Bedford. But that's just how I feel. I think it's overhyped.

A huge layout offering a great variety of long holes.

-Amenities: This course is getting all the fixin's. Nice powder blue Chainstar Pros, big turf tees (both short and long), complete tee signs with maps on the longs, next tee signs, course kiosk with map, practice baskets, driving range, clearly marked OB, benches and big tee decks. There's also a big, clear warning sign noting that the course is designed for highly skilled golfers, though open to all.

-Dual Tees: A much-needed option here, as the short Blue tees knock 3,000' feet off the pro tees, making the course playable for an intermediate thrower like me.

-Beauty: Though road noise is often around, this course is visually quite secluded. Other than fairways, the woods feel untouched and private, and then you'll be surprised by a meadow of green grass. It was a good choice of land for disc golf.

-Challenge: It's advertised as hard, and it is hard. The amateur tees may be a bit oversold (my even round may be one of my best, but I don't think it could be *too* amazing from an intermediate player), but I don't doubt that the long tees are a professional-level challenge clocking in over 11,500'. Confident tunnel driving is 100% necessary.

-Shot Shaping/Gameplay: A treat with lots of multi-shot holes and variety. Par-3s offer a great mix of elevation, side hills, and shaped lines that are birdieable with commitment. Six par-4s and a marvelous four par-5s add a ton of multi-shot variety. The fairways are generally moderately wide through the woods, and the shaping is natural even when specific. Rough can vary in its effect, and there's a decent mix of holes using natural rough and holes utilizing OB ropes. The progression of the course is nice, and there aren't moments when the whole character suddenly changes. This course is a treat to play, and a great study in disc flight path. In short, what you'd expect if a world-class player could design as well as he plays.

-Breaking Stride: Holes (9)-(11) pull back on the beauty a noticeable amount. The first two are wide open through a power-line alley, and the third has some ugly construction.

-Youth: I think if I play this course in three or more years, I'll probably give it a 4.5. Most of the undesirable qualities are results of the course being new. The woods fairways are rugged and haven't yet recovered from being carved out. Some of the open holes have copious saplings that need to grow up to really make them interesting. Paths between holes are still rough, and the short tees haven't gotten signs yet. Once the grounds mature to cover up the signs of construction, I think it'll feel great.

-Conservation Areas: A baffling situation where on many holes the OB line is also marked as a nature conservation area that shouldn't be entered. Does this mean that all OB throws are lost discs?

-OB Marking: Some places have unclear rope marking. Granted, these are out of the way places that you shouldn't be ending up anyway, but the point of rope is to make things unambiguous, and it's not doing that.

-Signage: Definitely would like short tee signs, but more importantly, I'd like to see really detailed tee signs. On long holes and blind holes, knowing the fairway shapes more precisely will help to set up subsequent shots.

-Road Noise: The only detractor from the natural setting is a pretty consistent stream of cars on US-460. Not anything to be done about it.

-Transitions: Some pretty long transitions, especially for the short tees. As if the 8,000-11,000 feet of course wasn't enough walking

New London Tech is a great course. Paul McBeth has done an excellent job on this design, and despite the way it's marketed, it's entirely accessible to amateur players as well as his pro peers. Through most of the course, the quality of lines reminded me of the iconic courses I've played like IDGC Jackson and Idlewild.

Despite that, I found this one remarkably difficult to rate. The course is still breaking in, but I think that once it's matured over the signs of construction, it will be a 4.5 for sure. Some days I wonder if it's actually more a 5. Right now, it's at the very top of my 4.0 list, the ideal tweener between Excellent and Phenomenal. Time will tell how it's received, but either way, make a stop here if you get a chance, and you won't be disappointed. Unless you like short holes, that is.

~Similar Courses: In many places, reminiscent of IDGC Jackson (Appling, GA); wooded holes slightly less claustrophobic Elon Park - Angry Beaver (Charlotte, NC); though I've never played there, the more open holes remind of Smugglers' Notch - Fox Chase (Jeffersonville, VT).

A bona fide Gold level course, New London Tech is a versatile blend of wooded disc golf holes, open bomber holes, and runway wide tunnels, all with good elevation change mixed in. Though a hilly course, there isn't a lot of extreme up and down but the course is so long (took us about 3 hrs) that this is a good thing. The property is very pleasant to play through and you're mostly secluded in the woods. Other than some tall bridges, the course was fairly cart friendly.

What it does best is combine length with accuracy. To score well (or just score par if you're not a Gold level player) you need to be able to consistently throw well-placed bombs. Many of the holes favor really long midrange/putter throwers or those that can land a driver softly because skips off the sides of the fairways can routinely land you OB. Often when you're not OB, just being on fairway's edge can encumber you with low-lying branches. Throw far. Throw accurately. Score well. It's that simple.

The holes have lots of unique fairways so you don't feel like you're throwing the same line over and over. Sometimes you need a flex, sometimes a slight flip-up and drift, sometimes a dead straight, etc. Most of the tee shots don't require any extreme lines but inevitably when you get off the fairway you'll have to get creative. Many holes really require great angle control to reach the basket, those lines where you need the disc to subtly turn or fade at the end of the flight.

Occasional portajohn is available, thankfully. Most of the tees had benches but not much if any trash cans so pack it out.

It's a long round and I'm not sure you can really play a "quick" nine holes because I got the impression that I was miles away from the parking lot after hole 9.

If you don't enjoy a challenge or throw at least over 300' comfortably this is just a pleasant hike for you. Short tees or pin placements would go a long way in attracting a wider spectrum of players.

There are just a couple of holes that aren't quite right yet. A pole-saw through most of the fairways would be a subtle but big improvement, especially on fairway edges. Hole 13 is the clear "bad" hole. The gap is extremely small, especially considering you're trying to hit either of the split fairways behind it instead of simply punch through it. The split fairways are narrow enough that there's enough challenge just trying to sit down in one so opening the initial gap would go a long way.

One of the last 4 holes has a similar issue to 13 except it's in the woods the whole way and also has a split fairway approach. The fairway is very narrow, to the point where not being within a couple of feet of dead center is more of a scramble scenario than a conventional shot. This fairway is lined by nice, old growth trees so there's not much that can be done about widening it without significant tree cutting but the rough could be thinned out some so that going off fairway (inevitable) isn't so punitive.

The turf tees were nice and flat but seemed a little slick. We played in the morning after a night rainfall but the tees seemed to improve as the day warmed/dried up.

This is one of the few Gold courses that is actually appropriate for Gold players and seems well done and natural instead of gimmicky or too much arbitrary OB. I would put it right up there with Rolling Pines, Diavolo, etc. Given a choice between those three, I'd probably choose New London Tech because it has the most variety of hole types (tight woods, open woods, open) and there's a bit more puzzle factor in trying out how to execute the best because a lot of the tee shots don't have an obvious preferred line.

Course environment is very diverse with open fairways to tight tunnels to island greens this course challenges different shots and allows for a true variety of play. Tee pads are made from repurposed artificial grass and fairways will likely be very well cut and maintained.

Expect a normal round to take around 3 hours. This is not a walk in a the park. This is a 6 mile hike with 90% of shots being full power for an beginner/intermediate player. Distance is your enemy with few holes being tighter tunnels. As someone who's max distance is around 350 feet, expect to pick up a stroke or two each hole on distance alone.

I wrote my review from an intermediate player's perspective before short tees were built. This is a course built by a professional disc golfer (Paul McBeth) for professional disc golfers. Distance alone is your main enemy. Where other courses in the area challenge precision and putting, placement, strategy, and distance is critical on this pro-level course.