The Ranch reviews
7
0
nbaaten
Experience:
18 years
7 played
2 reviews
Disappointed in The Ranch 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:May 23, 2021
Played the course:once
Pros:
Many opportunities to air out your shots
Different pin positions make for interesting challenges
Many tee pads are logically placed relative to the last hole played
Different pin positions make for interesting challenges
Many tee pads are logically placed relative to the last hole played
Cons:
Expensive--$10/person
Probably half the tee pads had no sign showing where the pin was or where to go for the next tee pad
Signs that were present were cheap, stick-like 3' tall "sign posts" with laminated map, some of which were missing
Indifferent staff were less than helpful
Probably half the tee pads had no sign showing where the pin was or where to go for the next tee pad
Signs that were present were cheap, stick-like 3' tall "sign posts" with laminated map, some of which were missing
Indifferent staff were less than helpful
Other Thoughts:
As you enter this dilapidated abandoned ball golf course, you get the feeling that this is a place that has been forgotten by time and left behind. The one employee that was there when we arrived couldn't have cared one way or the other whether we came or not. Minimal direction and no effort was given to show our party of four where the first tee pad was, which was not obvious by any means. Certainly an inauspicious start.....
The first few holes were great. Tee pads were nice, signs showed alternate pin placements and where to find the next tee pad after you played the hole. Nice!
Many of the holes had interesting challenges, various lengths, some holes were even par 4--not normal for many disc golf courses. Sweet!
As you start heading towards the holes with "water" hazards (marsh hazards in late-May), the signs started getting less helpful..... Hmmm....strange timing, given that you don't really want to lose a disc and, if you're playing with (relative) beginners, *really* bad timing to skimp on specifics, requiring that you walk the hole first before you play it. Okay.......
As you continue to play the course, some signs are just flat-out missing--particularly not helpful when you're shooting into a marsh hazard. Some holes we just had to make up our own way to play towards a basket because it wasn't obvious which pin we should be working towards. We paid for this course? Really?
The course finishes out with a whimper, making it hard to figure out where to go next (no signs).
Over-all, given the run-down feeling of a place being left behind by time and forgotten by the locals, the lack of caring and maintenance of the course by the staff (at least all the baskets were there), and the price, I'd rather play somewhere else. I did like that most holes were long with interesting challenges.
If you're playing with people who have not been playing DG for awhile, you can make up alternative "tee pads" for the holes involving water hazards, as those are almost guaranteed to suck up their discs It seems reasonable to me that a place that charges for play would have done that already.
If you're a nature enthusiast, there are many opportunities to enjoy the flora and fauna, as we saw red-winged black birds, hawks, vultures, an owl, and wild rabbits.
The first few holes were great. Tee pads were nice, signs showed alternate pin placements and where to find the next tee pad after you played the hole. Nice!
Many of the holes had interesting challenges, various lengths, some holes were even par 4--not normal for many disc golf courses. Sweet!
As you start heading towards the holes with "water" hazards (marsh hazards in late-May), the signs started getting less helpful..... Hmmm....strange timing, given that you don't really want to lose a disc and, if you're playing with (relative) beginners, *really* bad timing to skimp on specifics, requiring that you walk the hole first before you play it. Okay.......
As you continue to play the course, some signs are just flat-out missing--particularly not helpful when you're shooting into a marsh hazard. Some holes we just had to make up our own way to play towards a basket because it wasn't obvious which pin we should be working towards. We paid for this course? Really?
The course finishes out with a whimper, making it hard to figure out where to go next (no signs).
Over-all, given the run-down feeling of a place being left behind by time and forgotten by the locals, the lack of caring and maintenance of the course by the staff (at least all the baskets were there), and the price, I'd rather play somewhere else. I did like that most holes were long with interesting challenges.
If you're playing with people who have not been playing DG for awhile, you can make up alternative "tee pads" for the holes involving water hazards, as those are almost guaranteed to suck up their discs It seems reasonable to me that a place that charges for play would have done that already.
If you're a nature enthusiast, there are many opportunities to enjoy the flora and fauna, as we saw red-winged black birds, hawks, vultures, an owl, and wild rabbits.
2
4
Ptrain51
Experience:
3.7 years
11 played
2 reviews
What if… drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Jun 26, 2022
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
The Ranch provides you an opportunity to play disc golf. There are teepads and baskets. Not much more I can say that is positive other than it feels like your own space since there are no others around.
Cons:
Piss poor course management. They simply do not care. The grass and weeds are almost always overgrown. I'm talking 4 feet tall in areas. The baskets are old hand me downs. There are no restrooms on the course and walking back to the clubhouse to use the one there is not worth the lengthy trek. Be sure to pack water because there aren't any spigots on the course. The beer in the clubhouse is old.
Other Thoughts:
The course would go from dogshit to just fine if they took the time to mow. Sadly, I don't think they have staff willing to mow. That, or they don't have fuel for the tractor. I am willing to operate the mower if possible. I used to love coming here, but now I ask myself, "why the hell did I come here?"
8
0
Is that water? 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Aug 12, 2020
Played the course:once
Pros:
• Easy to find
• Assuming no one's coming, you can warm up on 19 or 20's basket on your way to #1
• Most holes have multiple basket locations
• Restrooms onsite
• Signs are just ok at the moment
• Baskets are a mixed variety but are in good shape (although the numbering gets a little screwy around #14)
• If you like water, this course is your jam
• Assuming no one's coming, you can warm up on 19 or 20's basket on your way to #1
• Most holes have multiple basket locations
• Restrooms onsite
• Signs are just ok at the moment
• Baskets are a mixed variety but are in good shape (although the numbering gets a little screwy around #14)
• If you like water, this course is your jam
Cons:
• If you don't like water, this course might not be your jam
• A little tricky to navigate in spots (more on that below)
• No tee pads yet (currently borrowing the cart path in many places)
• No garbage cans anywhere
• Par is odd in a couple spots (more on that below)
• A little tricky to navigate in spots (more on that below)
• No tee pads yet (currently borrowing the cart path in many places)
• No garbage cans anywhere
• Par is odd in a couple spots (more on that below)
Other Thoughts:
Tips:
• Be ready for water
• Spotters aren't a bad idea
• Rounds are $6 although there is an all-day option for a little more
• Maps are available online (https://udisc.com/courses/the...ver-dgc-8N5p)or at the pro shop
• On #1, on the left side of the fairway where you see reeds and cattail things sticking up over the hills, underneath those is water
• Be good and warmed up by the time you reach #5, because right in front of you is H2O. The basket is basically straight ahead and hidden behind the waterfall/pond thing on the hill. You have two options here: long and left, or slightly right and straight across
• #6 has more of that wet stuff about 150' out. Either lay up or bomb it over but don't be too far left or else dampness
• On #7, the water ends right at the basket, so you have plenty of room right to stay dry
• Yes, #8's mando is left of the tree, so you need a nice smooth straight shot over the bridge, or else...you know
• #9 has water way over on the left but it's pretty easily avoided
• #11. Yup, all water. Be right of the basket. Course crew might think about some hay bales near the water by the basket. That's a mean rollaway.
• #13 has water on the right but there's plenty of room left
• #14 is very wet and not short. If you can thread the tunnel on the left, you're good, otherwise the safe shot is long right and soft RHBH hyzer at best. You need at least 250' to make it, so if you don't have it, lay up left and then bomb.
• #16 and #17 didn't quite match the map but I think that's because a tournament was coming (and there's a little bit of water on the left, but it's easily avoided)
• #18's basket is not spotable until you get way down there. It's a good ways off the left side of the fairway but basically dead straight from the tee box.
Random Thoughts:
Let me state right up front that I'm completely aware of the newness of this course so take the rating and commentary as temporary and I'll update it in the future.
With that said...this is a 20 hole course that covers what used to be the back 9 of an executive style ball golf course. This is not a beginner friendly course due to one thing (which you've probably guessed based on my tips above): water. There is water just about everywhere on this course and even in the areas where the water is dried up, the remaining vegetation can easily eat a disc. You need to be an intermediate player and above or else you're going to be skipping holes or trying to workout safe ways around (which might not be fun for you). Pars are earned out here because even when water isn't on your mind, the baskets are usually on hills or protected by trees so you're fairly constantly strategizing on attack angles. As for the tee pads, as of now, there are no tee pads yet so its either cart path or dirt/grassy ground. I'd call all of these 'decent' but it'll be great when level tee pads show up because it's one less thing to think about. Baskets are a mix of types but they're all in good condition. The only annoyance is the numbers don't always match. Tees are marked by orange flags/paint and marked with small signs on stakes and navigating around was easier than expected although it did get a little tricky in a few spots, I suspect, because a tournament was about to happen. This meant that most baskets were in the long positions, or all new positions, and a few tees had been pushed back. A minor annoyance really but what was of greater annoyance was staring at a few 500' par 3s on the backside of the course. The length I don't mind, but after having a few reasonable par 4s on the front, this was an odd occurrence. Again, not sure if this was due to the tournament. Overall I left the course +4 with 1 birdie, but I left 3 makable putts out there, so par is attainable, and the big dogs will certainly find birdies and get under par. The course conditions are actually pretty good for what is clearly a shut down golf course. It's mowed and there are benches. The only thing to pay attention to is all the holes in the ground where the critters have moved in, although crossing the bridges out there felt Indiana Jones-y with the condition they're in and all the creaking they were doing. Fun stuff. They do need to get some garbage cans out there though as I didn't see a single one but did see several bottles (bad form peeps! pack out your trash!).
Bottom Line:
There's a lot of potential for this course. The layout might need a tweak or three, but once the usual things go in (tee pads, signs, basket indicators, garbage cans, etc), you'll really have something, just make sure you like water before you head out. I look forward to a return visit to update my review. Keep up the good work course crew!
• Be ready for water
• Spotters aren't a bad idea
• Rounds are $6 although there is an all-day option for a little more
• Maps are available online (https://udisc.com/courses/the...ver-dgc-8N5p)or at the pro shop
• On #1, on the left side of the fairway where you see reeds and cattail things sticking up over the hills, underneath those is water
• Be good and warmed up by the time you reach #5, because right in front of you is H2O. The basket is basically straight ahead and hidden behind the waterfall/pond thing on the hill. You have two options here: long and left, or slightly right and straight across
• #6 has more of that wet stuff about 150' out. Either lay up or bomb it over but don't be too far left or else dampness
• On #7, the water ends right at the basket, so you have plenty of room right to stay dry
• Yes, #8's mando is left of the tree, so you need a nice smooth straight shot over the bridge, or else...you know
• #9 has water way over on the left but it's pretty easily avoided
• #11. Yup, all water. Be right of the basket. Course crew might think about some hay bales near the water by the basket. That's a mean rollaway.
• #13 has water on the right but there's plenty of room left
• #14 is very wet and not short. If you can thread the tunnel on the left, you're good, otherwise the safe shot is long right and soft RHBH hyzer at best. You need at least 250' to make it, so if you don't have it, lay up left and then bomb.
• #16 and #17 didn't quite match the map but I think that's because a tournament was coming (and there's a little bit of water on the left, but it's easily avoided)
• #18's basket is not spotable until you get way down there. It's a good ways off the left side of the fairway but basically dead straight from the tee box.
Random Thoughts:
Let me state right up front that I'm completely aware of the newness of this course so take the rating and commentary as temporary and I'll update it in the future.
With that said...this is a 20 hole course that covers what used to be the back 9 of an executive style ball golf course. This is not a beginner friendly course due to one thing (which you've probably guessed based on my tips above): water. There is water just about everywhere on this course and even in the areas where the water is dried up, the remaining vegetation can easily eat a disc. You need to be an intermediate player and above or else you're going to be skipping holes or trying to workout safe ways around (which might not be fun for you). Pars are earned out here because even when water isn't on your mind, the baskets are usually on hills or protected by trees so you're fairly constantly strategizing on attack angles. As for the tee pads, as of now, there are no tee pads yet so its either cart path or dirt/grassy ground. I'd call all of these 'decent' but it'll be great when level tee pads show up because it's one less thing to think about. Baskets are a mix of types but they're all in good condition. The only annoyance is the numbers don't always match. Tees are marked by orange flags/paint and marked with small signs on stakes and navigating around was easier than expected although it did get a little tricky in a few spots, I suspect, because a tournament was about to happen. This meant that most baskets were in the long positions, or all new positions, and a few tees had been pushed back. A minor annoyance really but what was of greater annoyance was staring at a few 500' par 3s on the backside of the course. The length I don't mind, but after having a few reasonable par 4s on the front, this was an odd occurrence. Again, not sure if this was due to the tournament. Overall I left the course +4 with 1 birdie, but I left 3 makable putts out there, so par is attainable, and the big dogs will certainly find birdies and get under par. The course conditions are actually pretty good for what is clearly a shut down golf course. It's mowed and there are benches. The only thing to pay attention to is all the holes in the ground where the critters have moved in, although crossing the bridges out there felt Indiana Jones-y with the condition they're in and all the creaking they were doing. Fun stuff. They do need to get some garbage cans out there though as I didn't see a single one but did see several bottles (bad form peeps! pack out your trash!).
Bottom Line:
There's a lot of potential for this course. The layout might need a tweak or three, but once the usual things go in (tee pads, signs, basket indicators, garbage cans, etc), you'll really have something, just make sure you like water before you head out. I look forward to a return visit to update my review. Keep up the good work course crew!
