Sigh...OK so basically it looks like this course is getting watered down. They cleared out a TON of trees, planted a TON more and are shortening a ton of holes. I think the only holes that aren't changing at 1 and 17. ... Again, we could be completely wrong and could be looking at the wrong baskets from the tee's, but it's the best we can make sense of it. When it was spray painted in to the ground we followed tee pad #'s to pin placement #'s and lost a little hope for the future of the course. Harry Myers is a great course that offers a plethora of types of holes, short, long, wide open, wooded, dogleg right, dogleg left. Someone also mentioned that parks and rec wanted the course shortened and watered down for weekend warrior type players. I understand we can't manicure the course for NT's and DGPT stops, but hopefully....hopefully in the end it offers a little of both.
Mark, as I explained on Instagram today, you are not looking at the right tee/basket combinations. The new course is actually a bit longer from the longs. For touring pros, the 10 Gold pin positions add, on average, 60' per hole, most of which also offer a trickier angle and/or more risk. Of course, the park isn't any bigger than it used to be, which is why the course doesn't stretch to 8500' or 9500'. Can't have everything.
Trees are gone to make lines more fair, and trees have been added for challenge and to maintain buffers between holes and with sidewalks. A ton of brush has been removed throughout, and I'm hoping more will be gone in the next few months. A couple holes are getting retaining walls to deal with erosion, which also means that instead of having to throw from on top of dozens of exposed tree roots, players will have a flat, reliable surfaces hat provides better footing.
There is nothing "pitch 'n' putt" about Harry Myers 2.0. The original course had four holes under 235' from the Blue (long) tees; the new course has none.
Almost everything about the new version is better for anyone who currently enjoys the Blue tees. It was also important to make the course better for touring pros who come to town to compete, especially for the Nick Hyde. The Gold 2.0 is a much, much better test for them.
Just so everyone knows, the City NEVER said a word to me about making the course shorter or easier. That rumor is 100% without basis. We only ever talked about making if more fair and more challenging -- and more appropriate for the world's best once or twice a year. I did not want to make 2.0 harder for new players, so -- thanks to the City's willingness to accommodate those players -- we now have Red (short) tees on EVERY hole, and the new version is actually shorter overall for them.
You will be able to see it all within a matter of days. The new signs arrived today, including 18 new "Next Tee" signs. A dozen more trees went in today, including ten 20' cedar elms -- how many cities plant trees that big on their disc golf courses? So I'm asking you for just a little more patience.
It is a fact of life that you can't please everyone, but I expect ALMOST everyone, if they give the new course a few plays with an open mind, to easily prefer the new version. If you've been playing disc golf for a while, you're probably a better player than you were ten years ago. In the same way, I am a better designer than I was ten years ago. And the Rockwall Parks Department is more committed to their course than ever. Their effort on this project has been TREMENDOUS, and everyone in DFW is about to see how fortunate they are to have a parks department that values disc golf this way.
I'm glad to see that YOU also value this course. Hang in there.
Thanks.
