I just got a sneak peek of the beginning process of building a new course at SDG. As you may know SDG currently has 3 courses on UDisc Top 100 Courses. All 3 of our 18-hole courses were on the 2020’s list and all improved their position from the previous year.
The land is hilly, has some water running through it, and will have a good mix of open areas and wooded fairways. At this time, trees that are dead, dying or dangerous and smaller than 6” are being turned into chips, providing good compost and nourishment for the remaining forest. We love the woods, clearing the dead stuff will make it easier for people to enjoy.
More videos will be forthcoming of the progress. We had to take a short break because of equipment issues. We will be back to working on the course in the next couple of days. Until then you can see the videos and updates we have made so far in this YouTube video on our channel.
I’m going to answer your most pressing questions first.
When can we play it?
The answer is not determined yet, sorry 😔. We are hopeful for a launch of the Front 9 in 2021 and the Back 9 to be determined. I am excited about this strategy, a little at a time. One of my favorite courses, Pineland Farms Patriot did this with their course and I enjoyed playing a difficult 9-holes twice. Putting in a course takes hundreds of hours of work.
Is it going to be long?
Yeah, wicked long. It’s not going to be for the average weekend player, it won’t be child stroller friendly, and you’re going to make jokes about getting medals after finishing 18 holes. There’s no determined footage yet. We know where hole one, nine and eighteen will be, the balance of holes TBD. It will be substantially longer than the Eagle which is a 15 footer short of 7,000 feet. So make sure to bring plenty of water when you go out there.
Water Hazards?
Some. So far all I’ve seen is a stream about 3-15 feet in width. I didn’t see a pond hole like we have on hole 8 of the Eagle course. As with all water courses you should bring a KwikStik or other retrieval device for your discs. But I don’t think you'll need one here very often.
If it’s not for the average weekend player, who can play it?
Right now, we’re having discussions about this. We want the course to be fun, challenging, and rewarding. If a player does not have a high skill level, they are not going to have a good time. That is not what we want at SDG, we have courses for every skill level. We are looking into a possible membership for this course, or a certain level of experience/expertise in the sport. There will not be a 850+ rating requirement or anything like that, but we want to make sure only players who have the skills are on that course.
Does it have a name yet?
Nope. It will undoubtedly be a bird name like the other courses, Owl, Hawk, Falcon, and Eagle. But at this time there has been no formal name given. I want to call it “The Chickadee” as it’s the Maine State bird. The other thing I gleefully want is to see people post on the Maine Disc Golf Scene (Maine’s biggest disc golf facebook group) “The Chickadee kicked my butt today.” Maybe that’s why they let me write, tweet, and give lessons and not name the courses.
Will there be multiple pin positions or tee pads?
The plan now is to have two tee pad positions, 1 long and 1 short on the holes that make sense. I am a fan of this, some folks don’t need the extra 50-100 feet of distance as a challenge but still have the technical abilities to play a tight course. I haven’t heard anything about different pins. We have changed pin locations in the past for safety reasons, and to add a challenge. So that’s up in the air.
It’s a long walk from the pro shop, how do we get there?
The current plan is to have players come to the pro shop to pay and check in. Then have them drive out to the separate parking lot.
Anything else you think we should know?
It is going to be highly technical. I have only been out there once for 20 minutes, but I can see some of the fairways which will be incredibly challenging, for sure! There is going to some hilly terrain to take into account, not baskets on mounds, but you will be throwing your drives from bottom and top of hills. The fairways are tight, welcome to Maine.
This course will not be a part of any other course, it will be a standalone. It’s going to wrap around the outside of hole’s 9 and 10 of the Hawk. Players familiar with the property will know the long stream that wraps around both the Eagle, Hawk, and Falcon. The unnamed course will be on the other side of the stream, so you will see other folks, but you won’t be in each other’s way.
This will present players with another choice when they come to the pro shop. We’ve already got 3 separate 18-hole courses. Another one will add more variety and challenges for players.
If you have any questions that you would like answered leave them in the comments section on Facebook (where Angie our Instagram guru will answer them), or in the comments here (where I’ll get to them). I’ve told you everything I know about the course so far. I hope this satisfies your appetite for a little bit.
May your discs miss all the trees,
Andrew Streeter #70397
2件のコメント
We actually DO think of the ladies. We already have porta potties situated along all 3 of our 18 hole courses. I’m sure this one will no different.
This sounds great! However, as a woman who often needs to pee, (not just behind a tree) I’d like to politely suggest placing a portable bathroom half way through the course. Too many courses in Maine don’t have portable bathrooms available at all making them essentially unplayable for many women with similar or varying bathroom needs.
Please think of the ladies!