Pros:
Roy G flies sweet, right out of the box. This course provides a strong challenge, an enjoyable walk, some very beautifully framed fairways, and a low chance of lost discs. The course has had a great opening as a virtually finished product. The designers and constructors are true professionals in their craft. The course has a broad appeal to all levels of players. If you're fortunate enough to have the opportunity to play Roy G, PLEASE leave the course cleaner than the way you found it.
There are some amenities that stand out right away. The tee pads are the best that I've ever played on, hands down. The throwing surface is bordered with bricks to prevent the inevitable erosion and cracking that occurs on pads that aren't properly framed. The tee areas have several large benches that are well positioned. The tee signs are the industry gold standard. Many places on the course have large rocks that have been moved and arranged to increase the beauty of the course. The second half of the course offers a decent amount of tree canopy.
The designers have implemented many progressive erosion control measures. Having the foresight to anticipate future wear and implement solutions is another testament to their professionalism.
The fairways are appropriately wide for the required length of shots. There are no random pimp trees. The course is eminently fair and players are fully responsible for their success or lack thereof at Roy G. The rough is punishing on the score, but not the body and finding discs is fairly easy. There are two sets of tees to accommodate a range of player skill levels.
The holes are well spaced, providing adequate safety and visual buffer with only one exception. The routing flow is very intuitive and rock-lined paths draw players through the course with minimal effort. Roy G is the second best course in Austin, behind Circle C.
Some of the highlights include:
Hole 7 is a picture postcard from the tee. I stood there and imagined that I was living in a Monet. The hole is a dead straight, medium-long par 4 with two routes off the tee. Nothing tricky, just a gorgeous tree-canopied corridor and a fair challenge.
Hole 9 is a 340 ft par 3 that bends sharply left about halfway down. It is difficult to "park" the hole using an overstable disc. The optimal shot needs to be thrown with hyzer with a disc that will slowly flip up and bank gently left. Not enough disc golf holes require this degree of subtle disc flight manipulation.
Hole 10 is a 330 ft par 3 with one of the tightest routes on the course. It's played straight up the gut to a well-framed basket. It's not so tight to be unfair, but does produce some anxiety on the tee pad as it is much tighter relative to the rest of the course.
Hole 14 is a very demanding medium-long par 4. The tee shot is fairly tight for a power drive and requires a slight left to right shape to set up a realistic chance for a birdie 3.
Hole 15 is a 700 ft par 4 that plays looong. The tee shot is another picture postcard moment at Roy G. Take a moment to soak in how wonderfully framed this hole is from the tee. There are two main routes down the second half of the hole. The left route is much more direct, but tighter. It's one of the best risk/reward decision moments on the course.
Hole 17 is a beautiful reward for having played most of the way around this tough track. The hole is perfectly framed with the river behind the basket and Austin skyline in the distance.
Cons:
I feel like I'm beating a dead horse on this issue, but the fact that this course does not have two loops of nine holes that bring players back near the parking area is a con. This could have been easily incorporated here, affording players the opportunity to play 9, 18, or 27 holes and replenish supplies as needed. The first tee is a good hike from the parking lot and it's also a long hike back from hole 18's basket.
The course is difficult to locate in the back of the park without any directional park signs. There isn't a main course sign, practice basket, or warm-up area near the first tee. Although the navigation is largely intuitive, there are a couple places which could use "next tee" signs.
I'm on the fence about the decision to not provide any trash receptacles at Roy G. The course has only been open for 3 days now and is quickly accumulating litter.
The course is not well balanced in terms of power and technical requirements. While it is by no means "wide open", it does over-reward power. The crush, crush, crush nature of the course gets a little redundant. Many of the blue tees are a bit too long and are actually gold. Likewise, many of the white tees are actually blue.
The course has only minimal elevation changes. The course offers very little in terms of dynamic putting situations with drop-off's near baskets.
While the course is beautiful, fair, and challenging overall, it falls short of Circle C, Austin Bible Ridge, and East Metro in terms of great memorable individual holes.
Hole 15's tee pad is right on the edge of hole 14's fairway and exposed to incoming shots.
Other Thoughts:
Don't be a dirty discer; leave the course cleaner than the way you found it.
To read about my review philosophy check out the other info section on my profile.