A question for New York state residents

[Mando]

I would LOVE to play Hyzer. It looks like it would easily make my personal top 10.

Also people need to remember that a lot of New York is buried in snow 1/2 the year and there are still more and better courses than some areas.

I think there are more states that wish they were up to NY's standards. Alabama has only 35 courses, and Arizona has maybe 30, so lets pick on them

I'm not picking on NY, just trying to understand.
Considering it's size and natural beauty, it seems like possibly the state with the most untapped potential for top-notch disc golf courses. Simiiar topography as PA, but with more land. FWIW, Joralemon looks like the most idyllic DG east of the Mississippi. It's definitely on my short wish list.
I went to Cooperstown once and camped at Glimmerglass. Gorgeous !
Now, I see it's got a 9 hole course rated 1 1/2...

 

[rikardob]

I would love more courses around here but the quality we have is amazing. The Greater Rochester Disc Golf Club and Niagara Region Disc Golf are both excellent clubs who do everything they can for the golf scene around here. As for why we don't have more... it's all red tape. That is all.

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

I'm not picking on NY, just trying to understand.
Considering it's size and natural beauty, it seems like possibly the state with the most untapped potential for top-notch disc golf courses. Simiiar topography as PA, but with more land. FWIW, Joralemon looks like the most idyllic DG east of the Mississippi. It's definitely on my short wish list.
I went to Cooperstown once and camped at Glimmerglass. Gorgeous !
Now, I see it's got a 9 hole course rated 1 1/2...

And the compliments to my baby keep coming !!!! Spent Monday and Tuesday this week clearing dead woods from the new fairways and paths. Added some signage too. Back again this Saturday for MORE workin'.........

As for why we don't have more... it's all red tape.

Agreed........

 

[ssjfewp]

rikardob is correct and it's not for a lack of trying. Many officials (aside from being slow moving on anything) are hesitant and feel it will cause wasted space as locals will not use it. They also fear the type of crowd disc golf will draw in. This has been my experience in attempting to install couses in NY. Local clubs do what they can to improve existing courses but many of those have red tape as well. Dan Doyle has been making great headway and we'll be seeing some more gems pop up in the next few years. At this point I'd recommend any visitor coming to leonard park in mt. kisco should be accompanied by a local guide if you want to enjoy the historic course.

 

[rikardob]

We wanted to put a course in Delaware Park around Hoyt Lake here in Buffalo just a few months ago.

Vice President John Dudek said:

We are unable to install a disc golf course in Delaware Park. With the activities and fields that are already in the park, we really don't have adequate space to consider it. We also have a limitation with what we can add to park due to it's listing in the Register of Historic Places. I think the only park that might have enough open space to sustain a disc golf course might be Lasalle Park off Porter Ave.

 

[Mando]

And the compliments to my baby keep coming !!!! Spent Monday and Tuesday this week clearing dead woods from the new fairways and paths. Added some signage too. Back again this Saturday for MORE workin'.........

Thanks for all you do !
Behind every great course is a ton of often unnoticed and under-appreciated hard work. People wonder why certain places have such great disc golf, well it's the people behind the courses that make the difference. Like Stan McDaniel in Charlotte and Walt Dropcho in Pittsburg.

 

[cdavid74]

DG State of the State Address

The southern tier of New York is currently a disc golf dead zone (TC3 and Corning the lone exceptions) but that is going to change very soon. There are new courses in different stages of development in the Binghamton, Oneonta, Cobleskill, and Corning areas. Also a temporary course in Ithaca appears to be on the verge of a redesign and permanent status. Across the state the sport is growing at unprecedented rates. DisCap in Albany has three new projects at different stages (Saratoga, Hunter, and Schenectady), and are eying other sites as well. They are also in the midst of the Joralemon Park expansion project which is nearing completion. In Syracuse, Clay Park was redesigned and expanded from 13 to 18 holes this month and it sounds like many issues with the previous layout have been dealt with. Courses in the Rochester area have seen major improvements this year in preparation for the 2011 worlds, and in Buffalo they just added a championship caliber course to their already impressive list of courses.

As for the state parks, remember that 3 of them (Green Lakes, Oquaga, and Gilbert Lake) were established in 1977 and are relics that remind us how far the sport has come in 30 years. They were designed to be played with frisbees not modern equipment. (In that respect the latest review of Gilbert Lake is really an unfair assessment of the courses design) Glimmerglass was a project by an eagle scout that played the game at Gilbert Lake did not realize a more modern sport existed.

Change is coming at the state parks. I have been told by CNYDGA (Syracuse) leadership that redesign/expansion is in the works for Green Lakes and could happen as soon as next year. Disc golf is also part of the new master plan for Saratoga Spa State Park which is the crown jewel of the NY State Park system. Gilbert Lake is on my radar, but I have two other projects that are higher priority based on location and free access. Oquaga should be scrapped.

Downstate Warwick is the area's mecca. I don't know much about the Skylands Club, but their presence reaches beyond NY and into the tri-state area. I believe I read something about a new Doyle/Brinster project in NE PA. From what I understand the big challenge with establishing a NYC/Long Island course is concerns regarding scrap metal thieves. I have to believe there is more to it then that.

All in all the sport is gaining a major foothold upstate and as the number of courses continue to grow you will see more interest in the sport and maybe someday you will see a New Yorker competing in the upper echelons of the sport.

 

[Mando]

Thanks CD, very informative post.
Looks like a huge dead zone north up in the Adirondacks, but I guess alot of that is under National Forest control.

 

[cdavid74]

Thanks CD, very informative post.
Looks like a huge dead zone north up in the Adirondacks, but I guess alot of that is under National Forest control.

The area between I-81 and I-87 corridors, north of the Thruway is very sparsely populated. The two main population centers in that area are Watertown and Plattsburgh. Watertown players have easy access to the Syracuse courses and Plattsburgh discers can get their fix on the other side of Lake Champlain in Vermont. Massena, Potsdam, and Ogdensburg, along the St. Lawrence river are all pretty small communities and it looks like there are courses in the Ottawa area ~30ish miles away.

Potsdam and Plattsburgh are college towns that could possibly support a course.

I'd love to see a course or two pop up in the Utica area, to give me some more travel options. I would also love to see a course in the Lake George/Glens Falls area.

(I spent ten years as a NYS 411 operator and still harbor tons of useless info about every nook and cranny of the state)

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

(I spent ten years as a NYS 411 operator and still harbor tons of useless info about every nook and cranny of the state)

Useless no more, Dave !! Find me a spot to put a course in the Clifton Park area............

 

[Vepr]

A course on the island?

Maybe the Lighthouse project will include one. Thats...if it ever gets done.

 

[nott84]

I grew up in the Hudson Valley and let me tell you, the Minnewaska/ Mohonk area in new paltz would be perfect for disc golf. I can just imagine how epic it would be. There should be one near every SUNY school at least. I live in Yonkers now and I have four within 30 minutes and warwick is about 60. I would love to have double that. The catskills are such a great area as far as nature goes. Unfortunately I can completely see people turning down proposals in any protected land like that.

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

The Catskills are such a great area as far as nature goes. Unfortunately I can completely see people turning down proposals in any protected land like that.

Perfect example of this......... the Woodstock course

Word is that he town wants the course back now.......... too bad the baskets are headed to Hunter Mountain.

Hole #3

 

[nott84]

Perfect example of this......... the Woodstock course

Word is that he town wants the course back now.......... too bad the baskets are headed to Hunter Mountain.



Is that what happened there? It was up and down before I got the chance to go up...

 

[Strauss]

The area between I-81 and I-87 corridors, north of the Thruway is very sparsely populated. The two main population centers in that area are Watertown and Plattsburgh. Watertown players have easy access to the Syracuse courses and Plattsburgh discers can get their fix on the other side of Lake Champlain in Vermont. Massena, Potsdam, and Ogdensburg, along the St. Lawrence river are all pretty small communities and it looks like there are courses in the Ottawa area ~30ish miles away.

Potsdam and Plattsburgh are college towns that could possibly support a course.

I'd love to see a course or two pop up in the Utica area, to give me some more travel options. I would also love to see a course in the Lake George/Glens Falls area.

(I spent ten years as a NYS 411 operator and still harbor tons of useless info about every nook and cranny of the state)

Hello all, I have been lurking on this board for over a year and reading this post made me join so I could post. I am from Plattsburgh NY and just wanted to let you all know we have a brand new 9-hole course that was just installed this fall. I was the one behind all of this, as I worked hand in hand with the town of Plattsburgh recreation department in designing and building the course. The head of the town rec department is an awesome lady, she has took action on everything I have asked her to do and she really listens to the players needs. The course is not officially finished, they are in the process of finishing up laying the concrete teepads, and next spring will be it's official opening. All the baskets are in and the course has been groomed, a few teepads are done and the ones that aren't have a box made of 4x4 so you know where to tee-off from. In the spring they will be putting up a big sign marking the course, along with tee-signs next to each tee-pad and a sign-in book at the parking lot. There is also a practice basket up for putting practice. The course is free to play, and a bunch of us have been playing it daily since the baskets went in.

I have been informed that the town was already approved for another 9 baskets, and that they will be working on funding over the winter. So come next spring we should have a full 18-hole course with a nice little "practice" putting area as well. Top of the line Innova baskets, concrete tee-pads, nice tee-signs at each pad, and the course will be mowed and groomed everytime the town mows the baseball fields...so in other words it will be well manicured over the summer For those of you that know the Plattsburgh area, the course is at the Cadyville Rec park. If you can get there, you can't miss the course. If anybody wants more detailed directions just send me a pm, the town is looking for lots of people to play. The more people that play, the more the town is going to ready and willing to install more courses!

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

Is that what happened there? It was up and down before I got the chance to go up...

Something to do with allowing the public to play on private land............ even though the property owner approved. Zoning issues.

 

[cdavid74]

A course on the island?

Maybe the Lighthouse project will include one. Thats...if it ever gets done.

Is the lighthouse project the one the Islanders owner is working on? Kind of like a Long Island version of the Meadowlands' Xanadu project?

I would think the disaster at the Meadowlands would have them thinking twice in Nassau County.

Maybe when the Islanders move to Kansas City they can put an indoor course in Nassau Colosseum!

 

[timg]

Strauss,

You need to add that course to the site!

 

[jkdisc]

im from upstate central ny originally and i moved to virginia about a year ago. i never heard of disc golf when i was in ny. now im really into it and trying to get better, but i played all winter here and thats not possible in ny.

 

[WillACarpenter]

Western NY has some of the best Disc Golf Courses I have ever played.

Ellison and Baker farm are 2 well known courses in Rochester
Beaver Island, Chestnut Ridge, Como Lake, Emory Park are all courses near Buffalo that would put most of Maryland (my current state) to shame.

And these courses keep getting better! Chili (baker) just got cement pads last spring, and Basil got them late last year. I Basil gets a serious bridge it's going to be AMAZING (I love that course the way it is..but that bridge is insane)

And Parma's getting cement too and I wouldn't honestly say that Parma beats Chili's pants off ALL DAY LONG...or at least it would, if it had cement tee pads to act as markers for the place (bring a map if it's your first time...)

Not to mention Naples opened up this past spring with a great 9 holes. A bit short...but they're trying to stretch out the back nine...plus there is one 420' hole already...and the shots are technical.

I wish there were more in the finger lakes, and plan on working towards that end. I am going to try and get one in the City of Canandaigua and one in the Town of Canandaigua within the next few years. If EITHER of them come true I'll be a happy man...but I think if I can get either of them up...then it'll be a lot easier to get the other one...

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