Chickasabogue County Park - Howler Ridge reviews
18
0
Right Twix 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Feb 16, 2021
Played the course:once
Pros:
(2.714 Rating) A heavily wooded course requiring mastery precision.
- RAW BEAUTY - The thing I enjoyed most about this course was the rustic nature of all the wooded lines. This one is almost entirely heavily wooded. Very few man-made structures are in view from the layout. It felt like I was in a sub-tropical jungle. A handful of holes even have some decent elevation in play. Hole (16) was my personal favorite. The tee shot here was from a mini 15-foot high bluff and it played along a creek element from mid fairway to the basket. Among the 24 Mobile area courses, I would bet that Howler would rank in the top 5 for natural aesthetics if a poll were taken.
- SHOT SHAPING - The second thing I really enjoyed here was fairway complexity... for a majority of the holes. I made a huge mistake on this work trip and only grabbed two discs. I probably would have used eight different discs from the tee if I had my whole bag. Fairways move both ways and a couple lines even require some "S' movement. A couple lines did however require mystical powers to avoid the many trees, but I'll get to that in the cons.
- CHALLENGING - Only 4,500 feet long, but intense. Being a precise thrower is paramount to score well here. I would bet even par would draw round ratings over 900. Ideal for Intermediates and rec players that like woods courses. Advanced players that like technical courses will likely enjoy it too. Bombers need not apply here and should head to either Langan Gold or Daphne across the bay.
- CHILL AREAS - I appreciated all of the benches on the course. If I were a local, this is the kind of place I'd want to go to for social rounds, barring any seasonal bugginess. It's obvious that the course gets significant play, although probably not as much as the Original layout.
- RAW BEAUTY - The thing I enjoyed most about this course was the rustic nature of all the wooded lines. This one is almost entirely heavily wooded. Very few man-made structures are in view from the layout. It felt like I was in a sub-tropical jungle. A handful of holes even have some decent elevation in play. Hole (16) was my personal favorite. The tee shot here was from a mini 15-foot high bluff and it played along a creek element from mid fairway to the basket. Among the 24 Mobile area courses, I would bet that Howler would rank in the top 5 for natural aesthetics if a poll were taken.
- SHOT SHAPING - The second thing I really enjoyed here was fairway complexity... for a majority of the holes. I made a huge mistake on this work trip and only grabbed two discs. I probably would have used eight different discs from the tee if I had my whole bag. Fairways move both ways and a couple lines even require some "S' movement. A couple lines did however require mystical powers to avoid the many trees, but I'll get to that in the cons.
- CHALLENGING - Only 4,500 feet long, but intense. Being a precise thrower is paramount to score well here. I would bet even par would draw round ratings over 900. Ideal for Intermediates and rec players that like woods courses. Advanced players that like technical courses will likely enjoy it too. Bombers need not apply here and should head to either Langan Gold or Daphne across the bay.
- CHILL AREAS - I appreciated all of the benches on the course. If I were a local, this is the kind of place I'd want to go to for social rounds, barring any seasonal bugginess. It's obvious that the course gets significant play, although probably not as much as the Original layout.
Cons:
Could be a much better course with a few work days and a few hole tweaks.
- IFFY LINES - Sections of Howler felt splendid and the terrain is terrific. However, a bunch of the lines just felt too unreasonable. For example, hole (1) starts off great from tee view, but as I walked down the left turning fairway to scout for the basket, I noticed more and more and more tree coverage. I'm sure it's birdied, but man it feels too lucked based. Hole (11) was another example, although some of my complaint here may have been partly caused by a partially fallen tree. On this hole, there is a line of trees along the right side for 150 feet or so. Players have to sky hook a disc from left to right between two closely spaced trees way down fairway and then have the disc sail another 70 feet or so into a deep guarded pocket. Again, it felt too luck based. Finally I'll note 13 which I'm sure is birdied quite often too. I missed my drive by 1.5 degrees aiming down the center of a tree gap 100 feet down fairway. This equates to missing by 2.5 feet left of where I was aiming. I hit a tree. It just felt too tight to be any fun. Even David Copperfield would not be able to convince anyone that he missed all the trees at Howler.
- FORGIVENESS - Considering the expected amount of ricochets, players will be searching. Some of the Jungle here is oppressive thick too. Houdini himself would likely have been quoted in saying "I have escaped many things in my life-time, but being left on (8), will never be one of them." Please don't take beginners here, they will hate you. Disc loss is probably a bit higher than normal here and retrieving errant drives could be an adventure.
- NAVIGATION AND SIGNAGE - It was adequate on my play. No course map at the entrance of the layout, but once finding (1), it's not too difficult to get around. Lots of navigational arrows between holes directing players to the transitional pathways. As for the tee signs, they only provide the basic info of hole number and distance. They are very easy to read, but they were built using low quality materials and probably won't last but a couple years.
- MAINTENANCE - Holes (8 thru 12) felt a bit less tended too compared to the rest of the course. Perhaps because it's the furthest section from the parking lot. I think I played here during the most ideal part of the year, winter. During the summer, this place could be a full-on jungle like a scene out of Predator.
- HOLE VARIETY - Parts of the course felt repetitive. Generally, this is a one theme course. Technical heavy woods play. Even though its not noted on DGCR or the tee signage. Hole (15) is a par 4. 450 feet and doglegging to the left a good 150 feet. It's also the widest wooded fairway. The other curve ball was hole (12), which was the one and only openish hole. Twelve holes play between 200 and 300 feet.
- IFFY LINES - Sections of Howler felt splendid and the terrain is terrific. However, a bunch of the lines just felt too unreasonable. For example, hole (1) starts off great from tee view, but as I walked down the left turning fairway to scout for the basket, I noticed more and more and more tree coverage. I'm sure it's birdied, but man it feels too lucked based. Hole (11) was another example, although some of my complaint here may have been partly caused by a partially fallen tree. On this hole, there is a line of trees along the right side for 150 feet or so. Players have to sky hook a disc from left to right between two closely spaced trees way down fairway and then have the disc sail another 70 feet or so into a deep guarded pocket. Again, it felt too luck based. Finally I'll note 13 which I'm sure is birdied quite often too. I missed my drive by 1.5 degrees aiming down the center of a tree gap 100 feet down fairway. This equates to missing by 2.5 feet left of where I was aiming. I hit a tree. It just felt too tight to be any fun. Even David Copperfield would not be able to convince anyone that he missed all the trees at Howler.
- FORGIVENESS - Considering the expected amount of ricochets, players will be searching. Some of the Jungle here is oppressive thick too. Houdini himself would likely have been quoted in saying "I have escaped many things in my life-time, but being left on (8), will never be one of them." Please don't take beginners here, they will hate you. Disc loss is probably a bit higher than normal here and retrieving errant drives could be an adventure.
- NAVIGATION AND SIGNAGE - It was adequate on my play. No course map at the entrance of the layout, but once finding (1), it's not too difficult to get around. Lots of navigational arrows between holes directing players to the transitional pathways. As for the tee signs, they only provide the basic info of hole number and distance. They are very easy to read, but they were built using low quality materials and probably won't last but a couple years.
- MAINTENANCE - Holes (8 thru 12) felt a bit less tended too compared to the rest of the course. Perhaps because it's the furthest section from the parking lot. I think I played here during the most ideal part of the year, winter. During the summer, this place could be a full-on jungle like a scene out of Predator.
- HOLE VARIETY - Parts of the course felt repetitive. Generally, this is a one theme course. Technical heavy woods play. Even though its not noted on DGCR or the tee signage. Hole (15) is a par 4. 450 feet and doglegging to the left a good 150 feet. It's also the widest wooded fairway. The other curve ball was hole (12), which was the one and only openish hole. Twelve holes play between 200 and 300 feet.
Other Thoughts:
Howler is one of those courses that I really wanted to like or even love, but just didn't. This is my preferred style too. Moving lines, tight plays, a little elevation, a little water and a nice little vibe feeling going for it. When I weigh all the positives and negatives together, this one feels like a 2.75 now in my personal ledger, but with easy potential for a 3 or perhaps even a 3.5 or 4 with some major tweaks. Among the heavily wooded courses in Mobile, I personally have it behind The Admiral, Cottage Hill and also the adjacent Chickasabogue Original layout. I've played every course in the metro as of this review too and would personally slot it as 8th out of 24 courses. Considering that there are two courses here, the park is huge and that it has camping, this is actually a pretty rock'n little place to spend a day, especially for those that enjoy wooded courses.
- AMENITIES AND EXTRAS - Average. The tees are a mixed bag for the surfaces. 5 holes, (8 thru 12) were natural. The remainder of the back tees were a good size at about 5 feet by 10 feet. The short tees were all natural and were barely marked at all. Baskets are not top of the line models but are adequate. As noted in the pros, lots of benches. There are some facility bonuses of note as well. Restrooms, picnic areas, hiking trails and camping sites are all present here. This is a huge park, over 1,000 acres.
- BUGGY? - This course has the look and feel of a place where the mosquitoes carry off their victims. I played when it was 25 degrees out. That's not a typo. The ground was frozen solid. So yeah, I admittedly and thankfully don't know if this place is buggy or not. There were no bugs on my visit.
- TIME PLAY - This one took me 45 minutes at the break of dawn solo.
- PAY TO PLAY - The only place in the country that I've played that it cost me one dollar to enter the park. Well actually two dollars, since I bagged both courses here at different times.
- AMENITIES AND EXTRAS - Average. The tees are a mixed bag for the surfaces. 5 holes, (8 thru 12) were natural. The remainder of the back tees were a good size at about 5 feet by 10 feet. The short tees were all natural and were barely marked at all. Baskets are not top of the line models but are adequate. As noted in the pros, lots of benches. There are some facility bonuses of note as well. Restrooms, picnic areas, hiking trails and camping sites are all present here. This is a huge park, over 1,000 acres.
- BUGGY? - This course has the look and feel of a place where the mosquitoes carry off their victims. I played when it was 25 degrees out. That's not a typo. The ground was frozen solid. So yeah, I admittedly and thankfully don't know if this place is buggy or not. There were no bugs on my visit.
- TIME PLAY - This one took me 45 minutes at the break of dawn solo.
- PAY TO PLAY - The only place in the country that I've played that it cost me one dollar to enter the park. Well actually two dollars, since I bagged both courses here at different times.
4
1
Howler Ridge 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Oct 8, 2016
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
Woodsy and shady, good for escaping the sun during hot southern summers. Challenging tight course that will keep you on your toes. Plenty of birdies to lower your score if the longer holes eat you up. Benches on just about every hole. Elevation comes into play on many of the holes, not extreme elevation but enough that you'll notice it's not flat. Concrete tee pads on all but 5 or 6 holes. Nice hike through a forest.
Cons:
-only one set of tees
-birdie holes feel repetitive, seems like there are 6 or 7 holes out there that are mid-range slight turnovers.
-navigation can be an issue. After hole 7 there is a long winding trail to hole 8, pay close attention to small arrows on trees.
-some tee signs are missing
-a couple of the concrete tee pads are too short
-birdie holes feel repetitive, seems like there are 6 or 7 holes out there that are mid-range slight turnovers.
-navigation can be an issue. After hole 7 there is a long winding trail to hole 8, pay close attention to small arrows on trees.
-some tee signs are missing
-a couple of the concrete tee pads are too short
Other Thoughts:
I hope this course gets re-designed sometime in the future, as there is potentially a 4.5 star course out there with the terrain. There are so many trees that would need to be removed though that it would be quite an endeavor. The dense trees are why so many of the holes on Howler Ridge are short, it was a lot of work just cutting the small holes out of these thick woods.
7
0
enragedmullet
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience:
12.5 years
115 played
79 reviews
Surgeons need only apply 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Aug 9, 2015
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
- Bag holders on most holes - a couple in disrepair.
- Benches on most holes
- Garbage cans on some holes
- Most signage helpful (see below)
- Laid back ambience, less crowded than the front 18
- Scenic walk through the woods
- Will stress your finesse; a tight, technical course
- Benches on most holes
- Garbage cans on some holes
- Most signage helpful (see below)
- Laid back ambience, less crowded than the front 18
- Scenic walk through the woods
- Will stress your finesse; a tight, technical course
Cons:
- Signage/navigation unclear/difficult on some holes (see below)
- Can be a bit buggy, but then again so can a lot of courses
- No nearby restrooms
- A little cramped, unless you're a surgeon, prepare for firing some tree-seeking missiles
- Can get repetitive, no gripper'n'rippers, save perhaps hole 15
- Can be a bit buggy, but then again so can a lot of courses
- No nearby restrooms
- A little cramped, unless you're a surgeon, prepare for firing some tree-seeking missiles
- Can get repetitive, no gripper'n'rippers, save perhaps hole 15
Other Thoughts:
New Ridge brings Chickasabogey up to 36 holes - a great place for a fun full day of DG. A lot of holes have conrete tees, and I think the rest will be filled in eventually, the course is still a work in progress but has come a long way in the last year.
A glaring issue is navigation - most of the signage comes from laminated sheets of paper left up after the last tournament, and while there are some arrows on trees pointing you to next tees, some of the holes can get really confusing, to wit: From hole 7 go straight past the basket, through the woods, over the "bridge" and up the hill to get to tee 8; To get to T-10 from 9 follow the middle trail - the one with no yellow or red paint on the trees.
15 is my favorite hole, just because it's the most open (Not saying much) and it's the longest.
Either don't wear sandals or pay attention to where you're stepping because there are lots of little stumps sticking out of the ground here looking to break a toe, it really is a hike of a course.
All in all I've enjoyed the New Ridge, but it's debatable as to which 18 at Chickasabogey is better. The front 18 is a little less cramped and has at least a couple nice open shots. New Ridge can get cramped and repetitive. If you're looking to stress your finesse and test your control, have fun! but if you're looking for a nice and easy 18, try the front 18, or for that matter a different course.
A glaring issue is navigation - most of the signage comes from laminated sheets of paper left up after the last tournament, and while there are some arrows on trees pointing you to next tees, some of the holes can get really confusing, to wit: From hole 7 go straight past the basket, through the woods, over the "bridge" and up the hill to get to tee 8; To get to T-10 from 9 follow the middle trail - the one with no yellow or red paint on the trees.
15 is my favorite hole, just because it's the most open (Not saying much) and it's the longest.
Either don't wear sandals or pay attention to where you're stepping because there are lots of little stumps sticking out of the ground here looking to break a toe, it really is a hike of a course.
All in all I've enjoyed the New Ridge, but it's debatable as to which 18 at Chickasabogey is better. The front 18 is a little less cramped and has at least a couple nice open shots. New Ridge can get cramped and repetitive. If you're looking to stress your finesse and test your control, have fun! but if you're looking for a nice and easy 18, try the front 18, or for that matter a different course.
