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River Park reviews
8
0
Best in Berrien County By Far 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Sep 22, 2017
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
Full disclosure: I am admittedly a bit of a course homer here so PLEASE take this review with a gigantic grain of salt. I am just extremely excited to have a decent 18 hole course within 15 minute drive of my house. Believe me, I will make every effort to be impartial but I guarantee nothing.
- Course set in a beautiful multi-use park on the Saint Joseph River away from the other activities.
- Very well thought out course design. Nice balance of doglegs and nice variety of long vs. short and open vs. wooded. The variety is refreshing.
- Prodity T1 baskets. These are awesome.
- #16 is far and away one of the most scenic holes I have ever played. The position of the basket with the river in the background is absolutely breath-taking.
- Pin placements are brilliant on a lot of holes. #9 is a good example where its a tightly wooded anhyzer downhill shot. Such an unusual shot and the risk vs. reward is absolutely huge as a kick off the trees can be devastating. #12 is another great example with it's deceptively easy uphill shot along with #14's slight downhill green that is absolutely diabolical OB creek right behind it. #16 basket is just borderline absurd but completely fair IMHO. Discs will be lost to the river here.
- Foot bridges. Seems silly but this really is a huge plus. This park is subject to a minor amount of seasonal flooding and the Township has done a great job installing foot bridges over the ditches that occasionally fill with water.
- Navigation is easy peasy. Pay attention to the newly installed signs and you'll never get lost.
- Course set in a beautiful multi-use park on the Saint Joseph River away from the other activities.
- Very well thought out course design. Nice balance of doglegs and nice variety of long vs. short and open vs. wooded. The variety is refreshing.
- Prodity T1 baskets. These are awesome.
- #16 is far and away one of the most scenic holes I have ever played. The position of the basket with the river in the background is absolutely breath-taking.
- Pin placements are brilliant on a lot of holes. #9 is a good example where its a tightly wooded anhyzer downhill shot. Such an unusual shot and the risk vs. reward is absolutely huge as a kick off the trees can be devastating. #12 is another great example with it's deceptively easy uphill shot along with #14's slight downhill green that is absolutely diabolical OB creek right behind it. #16 basket is just borderline absurd but completely fair IMHO. Discs will be lost to the river here.
- Foot bridges. Seems silly but this really is a huge plus. This park is subject to a minor amount of seasonal flooding and the Township has done a great job installing foot bridges over the ditches that occasionally fill with water.
- Navigation is easy peasy. Pay attention to the newly installed signs and you'll never get lost.
Cons:
- Grass tees with a toe-kick. This will be changed in the near future and I will adjust my score and review accordingly as this happens.
- Misc amenities are missing but in the works. Benches are going to be installed soon and like the tees I will adjust this review and score when they are installed.
- While I LOVE the design I do think one hole needs adjustment and that is #10 simply because it is just too easy.
- Misc amenities are missing but in the works. Benches are going to be installed soon and like the tees I will adjust this review and score when they are installed.
- While I LOVE the design I do think one hole needs adjustment and that is #10 simply because it is just too easy.
Other Thoughts:
When installing a disc golf course in a community where no real disc golf scene exists I think it is important to make the course easy enough for newbs. The danger is making it too easy so that once the newbs become intermediates they will loose interest in the course. River Park however, does a brilliant job of balancing those two factors. While this isn't going to impress any top tier pros with 1000+ foot holes it will be interesting enough for most, if not all, Ams. Personally, its a course I could play over and over...or at least until my pain meds wear out...
It is a course in development and it definitely has quite a raw feeling to it. That said, Benton Township parks along with volunteers organized by Larry Leonardi have done a great job carving this course out of the woods. If you ever meet any of these folks be sure to thank them profusely.
Now, like every other course in this corner of Michigan there are a few irritants out there every dg'er ought to be prepared for and does not affect my score. I have seen rather large poison ivy plants off the fairway so be sure to know how to identify this bit of nastyness. While Larry has done a great job keeping the holes away from the really swampy areas (which is why there is a long-ish walk between 14 and 15) you are still going to be the target of bugs and lots of them so come prepared. Also, flip-flop huckers are not going to enjoy this place with its hilly nature and in spots, a little muddy.
It is a course in development and it definitely has quite a raw feeling to it. That said, Benton Township parks along with volunteers organized by Larry Leonardi have done a great job carving this course out of the woods. If you ever meet any of these folks be sure to thank them profusely.
Now, like every other course in this corner of Michigan there are a few irritants out there every dg'er ought to be prepared for and does not affect my score. I have seen rather large poison ivy plants off the fairway so be sure to know how to identify this bit of nastyness. While Larry has done a great job keeping the holes away from the really swampy areas (which is why there is a long-ish walk between 14 and 15) you are still going to be the target of bugs and lots of them so come prepared. Also, flip-flop huckers are not going to enjoy this place with its hilly nature and in spots, a little muddy.
