Sioux City, IA

Briar Cliff University

2.255(based on 4 reviews)
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12 0
mndiscg
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.9 years 483 played 478 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Could use a remodel 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 25, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

+9 baskets and 18 tee markers on a fairly scenic, hilly, private small college campus in NW Iowa
+Nice course map at the start. Take a photo of it or use the same image that is linked on this site. You will need it to navigate and find tees if you are not playing with a local. I will probably use it again the next time that I play.
+The campus grounds are pretty well maintained as there were a few groundskeepers working when I was there. The course itself could use a little more attention but the campus is take care of.
+Solid elevation here makes some of the holes fairly interesting. Overall, there is a good collection of holes here. Some interesting lines. The land they had to work with weaves around the outskirts of campus and athletic fields and was probably pretty hard to design with.
+This course is solid for beginners and you shouldn't lose a disc here. It's intended audience is probably students and it suits that crowd well. If I went to BC, I'd be making Safari holes all the time and getting creative with the layout.

Cons:

-Navigation is bad. Use the map on most holes to hopefully find the tee marker. They are square markers made of marble (or some nice looking rock). I had the most luck looking for worn out patches of earth and then usually finding the marker right in front of those.
-Baskets are old, single chain.
-I GPS'd my walking of the course. Ended up at over 3 miles. ~17k feet of walking for a course that is easily less than 1/3rd that distance. There are some really long walks between holes and you really need to use the map to navigate them. Parking is also kind of weird. I played a whole round and I'm still not sure what's best. I didn't find the course map until I finished hole 9.
-Safety/hitting cars could be an issue if campus was busy. I played during the summer and it was pretty chill but it might be different Sept-May.
-Tees are natural and most are showing good wear. I usually picked a flatter piece of ground to toss from instead of the actual tee box.

Other Thoughts:

+This is one of those courses that is probably a lot more fun, and highly rated, if you are a student here or a local that plays frequently. Travelers or one time players are going to be frustrated by the navigation, long walks, poor tees, etc.
+The land they have, while fairly piece-meal, is solid. They already maintain it well. If the college wanted to put real tees and signs in and work on the navigation aspects a bit, this course could bump up to a 3 or even higher with a more thorough re-design. The course appears to be 9 years old.
+I live in SC now and would be glad to show someone around the course. PM me here and I'll try to check my messages frequently. I'll try to play the course a few more times in the meantime so I know the layout well.
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5 0
lazrman778
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 13.2 years 264 played 100 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Briar Cliff University 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 26, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

Has natural tee pads that are flat and fair to tee off from

More open than wooded fairways - beginner friendly

Quiet - had whole course to myself on a Monday afternoon

Free parking - but it's a walk to the first tee and from last basket

Cons:

Has no tee pads

Has no tee signs

Missing hole #7 tee marker

Needs next tee signs (had to consult the course map a few times)

Some holes play very close to the road (one can expect some delays)

Course design and flow could use improvement as there are long walks between holes 4&5 and 7&8

Other Thoughts:

This a short, fun 9 hole university course in Sioux City that I enjoyed playing on a windy Monday afternoon. I had a little trouble finding the first tee marker but when I did I was glad that there was no snow on the ground to cover any of the markers. If you're playing here for the first time, you should definitely look at the course map as some of the tee markers are hard to locate and I couldn't even find hole #7 tee marker. This course is really basic with about 4 holes uphill, 2 downhill, and 3 that are flat and would be great to play for the beginning player or student. There is a par 4 but I felt that it was really a par 3 - so not much variance in hole distances. Some of the holes play fairly close to the roads so that potentially can cause some concern in safety and delays depending on how busy the university is. A couple of holes had some long walks in between. After finishing the first 9 holes, there is a course map posted that shows you how to play holes 10-18 - essentially holes 1-9 in reverse order. Other than that, it's a reasonable course to play. If you're in this area, this course might be worth bagging.
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4 0
cmeyers
Experience: 42 played 3 reviews
1.50 star(s)

A little confusing 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 28, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

Mixed elevation.
Relativity short course.

Cons:

No signage.
Tee indicators are bricks in the grass.
No indication of distance or location of next tee.
Baskets have some to be desired compared to local courses.
Long walks with no direction between
4&5 and 7&8.

Other Thoughts:

Updated the map on UDisc during my round. Was unable to locate the tee blocks for hole 7.
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4 0
Esiersdale
Experience: 17.2 years 232 played 9 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Nice alternative to area courses 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 1, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Free to play, very little congestion on the course, decent quality baskets, flow of course allows for 9 holes in 30 minutes at a brisk walk. A place to practice some dialed in mid-range shots and windy putts. It is a great course to introduce someone to the game or to play a quick round between classes at the school. As the course is set at elevation in comparison to the rest of Sioux City, there are decent views in almost every direction.

Cons:

Not an obvious navigation, particularly between holes 4&5 and holes 7&8. Not too much challenge in terms of length/obstacles other than fairly regular windy conditions.

Other Thoughts:

Very little chance for disc loss, which is a nice change from Sertoma and Crystal Cove nearby.
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