Swover Creek Brewery DGC reviews
14
0
Work in progress, but amazing potential 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Jun 21, 2020
Played the course:once
Pros:
Wow, the full 18-hole course was more than I expected. Most brewery courses that I have seen are fun, friendly, and manicured. This is a big, wild, challenging, wooded beast, on an amazing property for disc golf. The course has a ton of variety, with left and right turning holes, big uphill and downhill drives, and a nice mix of two-shot holes, challenging par 3s, and short technical holes.
The front nine is mostly park-style with mown grass fairways and a few trees to miss. This gives you a chance to loosen up your arm and dial in your accuracy. You will need accuracy on the back nine.
On the back nine the course has more teeth. Still lots of elevation changes, but tightly wooded fairways require accuracy, distance, and (most likely) the ability to scramble from the rough.
Well-defined fairways, often tight but always fair. Quite a few downhill bombs that were a blast to throw. Several treacherous hanging basket placements with sloped greens that require risk-reward decisions. Orange tape on trees showed the direction of the basket in a few places, which was helpful.
Tee signs are fairly basic but provide hole distance and general direction. The course is just off I-81, so it is easy to hit for the traveling player.
The Swover Creek Brewery itself looks like a ton of fun. We played before they opened for the day, but there was a taproom, lots of covered outdoor seating, and a dog park. The folks who worked there were friendly and super-helpful.
The place just has a really nice vibe.
The front nine is mostly park-style with mown grass fairways and a few trees to miss. This gives you a chance to loosen up your arm and dial in your accuracy. You will need accuracy on the back nine.
On the back nine the course has more teeth. Still lots of elevation changes, but tightly wooded fairways require accuracy, distance, and (most likely) the ability to scramble from the rough.
Well-defined fairways, often tight but always fair. Quite a few downhill bombs that were a blast to throw. Several treacherous hanging basket placements with sloped greens that require risk-reward decisions. Orange tape on trees showed the direction of the basket in a few places, which was helpful.
Tee signs are fairly basic but provide hole distance and general direction. The course is just off I-81, so it is easy to hit for the traveling player.
The Swover Creek Brewery itself looks like a ton of fun. We played before they opened for the day, but there was a taproom, lots of covered outdoor seating, and a dog park. The folks who worked there were friendly and super-helpful.
The place just has a really nice vibe.
Cons:
Natural tee pads, particularly on the woods holes, are some of the worst I have seen - sloped, uneven, short, and lumpy. I threw standstill on many holes, not by choice, and even standstills were hindered by the uneven surface. Better tee pads would greatly improve this course.
Tee signs are located on the front corner of the tee pad, which can interfere with the desired line or the throwing motion. On one hole I smacked my hand against the tee sign on a backhand follow-through.
Rough is thick in places. Despite spending a decent amount of time in the rough (strictly for the benefit of the DGCR community), no discs were lost.
Mosquitoes swarmed in a few areas despite liberal application of DEET. Poison ivy was noticeable along a few fairway edges.
Tee signs are located on the front corner of the tee pad, which can interfere with the desired line or the throwing motion. On one hole I smacked my hand against the tee sign on a backhand follow-through.
Rough is thick in places. Despite spending a decent amount of time in the rough (strictly for the benefit of the DGCR community), no discs were lost.
Mosquitoes swarmed in a few areas despite liberal application of DEET. Poison ivy was noticeable along a few fairway edges.
Other Thoughts:
This is a hard course to rate. On the one hand, the course has amazing potential and I had a blast playing it. The land is perfectly suited for the style of disc golf I love to play (woods with elevation), and obviously a ton of thought and work has already gone into this course.
But. The course is new and raw. Tee pads significantly detracted from my enjoyment of the course. I want to be worrying about hitting my line, not falling on my face or smacking my hand on a poorly placed tee sign.
The course map was pretty basic but the UDisc app made navigation pretty straightforward. There are a few places where you will see multiple baskets, so check the tee sign, map, or app. Or just trust the tee pads, which were consistently oriented in the right direction.
Baskets are a mix of newer banded baskets and older single-chain baskets that have been enhanced with cross-links. All baskets caught reasonably well, so I take responsibility for any missed putts.
Many baskets were blind from the tee, and many holes required two shots to reach. Generally fairways were sufficiently well defined that we were comfortable teeing off without knowing exactly where the basket was. We did scout ahead or use a spotter on a few holes.
I would love to play this course again with better tee pads. Preferably later in the day, when the taproom is open.
But. The course is new and raw. Tee pads significantly detracted from my enjoyment of the course. I want to be worrying about hitting my line, not falling on my face or smacking my hand on a poorly placed tee sign.
The course map was pretty basic but the UDisc app made navigation pretty straightforward. There are a few places where you will see multiple baskets, so check the tee sign, map, or app. Or just trust the tee pads, which were consistently oriented in the right direction.
Baskets are a mix of newer banded baskets and older single-chain baskets that have been enhanced with cross-links. All baskets caught reasonably well, so I take responsibility for any missed putts.
Many baskets were blind from the tee, and many holes required two shots to reach. Generally fairways were sufficiently well defined that we were comfortable teeing off without knowing exactly where the basket was. We did scout ahead or use a spotter on a few holes.
I would love to play this course again with better tee pads. Preferably later in the day, when the taproom is open.
2
0
d_Cas
Experience:
4.9 years
1 played
1 reviews
Great vibe, fun hangout course 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Jun 22, 2019
Played the course:2-4 times
Pros:
Property has a great vibe
Pizza and beer sold on premises makes it a fun afternoon hangout spot
Good use of elevation
Two hanging baskets are a fun addition
Lots of different shot shapes to try out
Good mix of left/right shot shapes
New holes are mainlywell designed. This is no slouch course any more.
Pizza and beer sold on premises makes it a fun afternoon hangout spot
Good use of elevation
Two hanging baskets are a fun addition
Lots of different shot shapes to try out
Good mix of left/right shot shapes
New holes are mainlywell designed. This is no slouch course any more.
Cons:
Most baskets have been upgraded to axiom baskets, but really are still not a long term solution.
High grass/thick rough is a lost disc hazard on some holes
Natural teepads, some uneven footing
Wooded holes need some fairway work.
High grass/thick rough is a lost disc hazard on some holes
Natural teepads, some uneven footing
Wooded holes need some fairway work.
Other Thoughts:
The course was fun enough and close enough to play again. Most of the holes are played in the same field, which can get kind of old. It's not a course that you throw the same shot every hole, however. There are 9 holes and about 7 distinct shots required. If the course added another 9 with some woods mixed in then I'd come back all the time.
Update 6/20
Since this review was originally written, the owner/designer removed 5 of the original holes and added 14 new holes in the woods on the mountain behind the brewery. In general, the new holes are very well designed. There's lot of elevation and great shot shaping. The original 9 holes looked like a back yard course. The new 18 has a Blockhouse vibe. It's a very nice piece of property, and a lot of fun. With the restaurant and brewery on site, combined with the potential for the course, I really believe this could be a destination course for the state. Teepads and baskets would bring it up to 4+ stars for me.
Update 6/20
Since this review was originally written, the owner/designer removed 5 of the original holes and added 14 new holes in the woods on the mountain behind the brewery. In general, the new holes are very well designed. There's lot of elevation and great shot shaping. The original 9 holes looked like a back yard course. The new 18 has a Blockhouse vibe. It's a very nice piece of property, and a lot of fun. With the restaurant and brewery on site, combined with the potential for the course, I really believe this could be a destination course for the state. Teepads and baskets would bring it up to 4+ stars for me.
