Great for beginners. Experienced players will only need a putter or mid-range.

It's only nine holes. In the middle of the campus, so there is foot traffic. Very short open shots primarily.

For what it is, it's not terrible. I played it a lot when I was new to disc golf.

UMD is a very beginner friendly course. It's where people in the Duluth area should go and play first if they want to get their feet wet with disc golf. It provides 9 holes that have some good mixture, yet don't prove too difficult for those who have little experience.

The course itself is a simple 9 hole, not too many obstacles, a few sections of OB, a giant sculpture to navigate around (or through if you want to impress your friends), and a quick and easy playthrough. By yourself you can likely finish in 20-30 minutes.

The course has a good mix of basket lengths too. The shortest being 120ft and longest being 258ft. Aces aren't uncommon here, so it is another mark for impressing your friends.

It's almost too easy of a course. Those who play often, or have played other courses in the area will find little challenge here. The few obstacles aren't all that punishing and it provides little risk/reward shots. There are little shot variety, almost every hole can be completed by shooting straight down the middle of the fairway.

They also removed a tree near the tee on #3. It makes the hole much much easier than before. Your only threat is the two trees on the right which are easily avoidable.

Depending on the time of year and/or day it may be very busy and you can be waiting behind a group, especially during the nicer fall and spring days with students wanting to get outside some more.

The course layout isn't anything to write home about. It does not loop back around and it is confusing for people who have never played or seen the course to get a grasp on the layout.

It's not a bad course by any stretch. It's well maintained, the baskets and teepads are in great shape, and is in a popular part of town. It is simply a beginners course and anyone who has more than a year or two of experience will simply have to lower their expectations on this.

-Course is on UMD property therefore its very clean and well maintained.
-All tees have paver style tee pads.
-#7 offers the option of throwing a huge hyzer around the sculpture.

-Course is not a "looping" layout. If you want to play the course multiple times, you must walk the distance back to #1
-Short Holes lacking variation
-No tee signage or info board.
-Trees rarely come into play except for #1
-Only one pin position per hole.
-Course can be crowded at times...it all depends on students schedules during the academic year.

This course is where I learned to play the great sport of Disc Golf. When I lived in the Duluth area, I would play this course, and Superior, WI's Central Park course all of the time. I would strongly recommend to others who are learning how to play or interested in starting to give these courses a try.

If you're looking for a greater challenge, I suggest Miller Creek DGC located at Lake Superior College.

--Good course for a quick, casual round
--The holes are all in the open but are often constructed around/behind trees and other obstacles that require a variety of shots
--Baskets are in good condition and newer
--New tee pads made from paver bricks. Very well done.

--Most, if not all holes, require only a midrange and putter, so there is not a lot of variety in the "distance" aspect
--There are no hole diagram signs at the tees, so pars and distances are nonexistent
--Usually busy during the school year and fairly busy during the summer months

Good course for a casual game and practicing placement shots. Overall, a good course for a casual game with friends.

Grading Criteria:

Landscape quality
3/5

Baskets, Tees and Hole Diagrams
3.5/5

Variety in hole distances
1.5/5

Variety in hole types
(field/wooded holes; hill/level holes; etc)
1.5/5

Difficulty/Challenge
1.5/5

Course flow
3.5/5

Busyness
4/5

Lack of outside interference
(pedestrians; traffic noise distractions; etc)
1.5/5

Fun factor
2/5

Use of Available Land
4/5

Total: 2.6/5