UMass Amhert course in close to installation!

[Jason Beers]

Heard the baskets are all in and ready to grab some discs! I was wondering where the course starts and where we should park since I do not have a parking permit.

[Ed Faits]

Heard the baskets are all in and ready to grab some discs! I was wondering where the course starts and where we should park since I do not have a parking permit.

The first tee is just to the north of the Observatory on Orchard Hill. The course is a wonderful nine hole layout in a scenic area, even in late winter. Enjoy the view of the distant hills from off the second tee. Lots to love here. Brian did a great job on the layout.

Parking may be a problem during the week without a permit, but I called campus visitor center and its OK to park in any of the lots around Orchard Hill on weekends. I'd suggest paking in the lot to the big lot to north west of Grayson / Dickenson residence halls, then take the short walk up the hill to the observatory and the first tee. The ninth basket will take you back near the parking lot. http://www.umass.edu/visitorsctr/downloads/map_2012.pdf
I didn't investigate bus options, but I'm guessing if you are motivated enough there is a way to park and get to the course.

Please be respectful of the land, and please do not try to retrieve a disk from the environmentally sensative wetland to the right of the 3rd fairway.

If you are a recreational level player like me, swallow your pride and use the short tee on hole #4, it might save you a brush with the briars on the long narrow fairway.

Still lots of trimming and cleanup to do here, but I'll be back soon to play this fun course again soon. This is a great addition to disc golfing in Western Mass.

[Brian Giggey]

Heard the baskets are all in and ready to grab some discs! I was wondering where the course starts and where we should park since I do not have a parking permit.

Since this is a UMass course, parking was not allowed to be addressed. You can park for free after 8:00p and on weekends. That being said, you can park next to hole 6 on East Pleasant Street or take your chances in the parking lot between 1 and 9.

- The 1st hole is located by the Observatory off Orchard Hill Drive.
- Signage was placed last night and should move you throughout the course rather well.
- If you put a disc in the pond on #3, leave it.
- #4 is a toughy, but there is a rec tee at the top of the hill. The blackberries to the right of the hole cannot be removed.
- The walk between 6 and 7 has JUST be green lighted for creation. Please stay between the pink ribbons.

Facilities Management did a great job, but there is still some serious clearing that needs to be done on holes 5 and 7. That being said, the course is playable so have at it.

Thanks to Chris Barden, Drew Gardner, Ed Faits, Pete Charron, Zeena Hutchinson, Bill Cooley and Gabe for your help on Saturday the 16th. It sure is nice to be able to fire of some quick 9 hole loops in Amherst.

[Jason Beers]

Awesome, thanks for letting me know. I'll be sure to respect the course and hopefully I won't need to worry about the water on 3 anyway Good job with all the hard work and major thanks to everyone involved with the creation of this course. I can't wait to (try to) get my non dging friends into the game now that they have no excuse with a course so close.

Edit: Just got back from playing 3 rounds at the course. It is a ton of fun and I imagine I will be here a bunch. The water on hole 3 was not a problem and hole 4 was also fine. The rough is definitely rough (so many prickers!) but just throw good shots and stay out of it and you'll be fine . Hole 7 was kind of rough, and we also found barbed wire sticking up out of the tee area. We pulled up a loose piece that was detached and moved it off to the side, but there is still a large chunk that we couldn't pull up. We bent it down as best as possible so no one gets hurt, but someone might want to head out with some wire cutters and/or a shovel. The signage was great and we had no troubles navigating the course, and I will absolutely be making good use of this course all spring and summer long.

[Jeff Wiechowski]

Just an FYI, someone left a less that stellar review of this clearly unfinished course. Looks like he did zero research and expected a finished course.

http://www.dgcoursereview.com/reviews.p ... =rev#46874

Sounds like the same goofball that complained about our bucket targets at Blatnick when we were still in the design phase.

[Brian Giggey]

Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Jason. The rough on the 4th hole will get pushed back in time. The 7th hole will also open up once we get a team out there to pull those dead vines down. Sad to hear about the wire near the tee box...we just relocated it the other day too. I'll be back in Amherst in a couple weeks and I'll go out with some wire cutters. Looking forward to playing a round together.

Edit: The review has been removed as it's untrue and sheds a poor light on a new course. Baskets were in the ground on March 16th and approval was granted by the police department in early 2011.

[Matt Mourovic]

Played a quick round here last night after work... had a blast playing DG a mile from my house. Really looking forward to seeing how this course develops - I like the layout the way it is now and see a ton of potential for the expansion to a full 18.
Many thanks to the guys who put in so much work to make this happen. I know from experience that it can be very difficult to do even simple things at UMass, so I can't even imagine what it was like to get them to literally reshape part of the campus. I and the people who will play this course frequently really appreciate your hard work and dedication. If you need help with clean up or whatever, put the word out on NEFA - there's a group of players who either work at UMass or live very close by who will be happy to pitch in to improve the course.
Thanks again guys - see you out there.

- matt

[Brian Giggey]

Played a quick round here last night after work... had a blast playing DG a mile from my house. Really looking forward to seeing how this course develops - I like the layout the way it is now and see a ton of potential for the expansion to a full 18.
Many thanks to the guys who put in so much work to make this happen. I know from experience that it can be very difficult to do even simple things at UMass, so I can't even imagine what it was like to get them to literally reshape part of the campus. I and the people who will play this course frequently really appreciate your hard work and dedication. If you need help with clean up or whatever, put the word out on NEFA - there's a group of players who either work at UMass or live very close by who will be happy to pitch in to improve the course.
Thanks again guys - see you out there.

- matt

That's great, Matt. Glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully we can meet up for a round in the near future. We will be doing some work days in the upcoming weeks after students get back from spring break.

We appreciate your comments as well. It was an uphill battle with quite the monster, but for now, the 9 holes are in and we're hoping the success of the course will soon merit permanent tee pads, signage and expansion to the back 9. We were blessed that we were plugged in Phase 1 of the new Master Plan back in 2010, that's for sure.

Support e-mails to the UMass RSO and reviews on DGCR will be used in the University meeting in May in determining if the course is a success or not.

[Matt Mourovic]

That's great, Matt. Glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully we can meet up for a round in the near future. We will be doing some work days in the upcoming weeks after students get back from spring break.

We appreciate your comments as well. It was an uphill battle with quite the monster, but for now, the 9 holes are in and we're hoping the success of the course will soon merit permanent tee pads, signage and expansion to the back 9. We were blessed that we were plugged in Phase 1 of the new Master Plan back in 2010, that's for sure.

Support e-mails to the UMass RSO and reviews on DGCR will be used in the University meeting in May in determining if the course is a success or not.

Hey Brian, how do I send a support email to the RSO? I'll be happy to send one and solicit some others from community members and fellow UMass staffers. Got an email address / stuff that should be mentioned in the email?


- matt

[Brian Giggey]

Hey Brian, how do I send a support email to the RSO? I'll be happy to send one and solicit some others from community members and fellow UMass staffers. Got an email address / stuff that should be mentioned in the email?

- matt

Hey Matt,

You can send any e-mails to umassdiscgolf@gmail.com.

Include whatever you see fit --- how its a good use of underutilized space, how disc golf can help eradicate invasive species, how its accessible to all ages and skill levels, how it connects you to significant on-site features, how its a good outlet for your energies, etc.

It's all up to you. Thanks for your support.

[Brian Giggey]

http://us6.campaign-archive2.com/?u=42b ... faf346a1cb

^^^
Explore Disc Golf's march newsletter went out this morning, and we hope you take the time to give it a read. It gives a glimpse into our newly opened design of the UMass Amherst Disc Golf Course, touches on the UMass Amherst Disc Golf Team playing in the National Collegiate Disc Golf Championships in early April, and features The Mobile Disc Golf Experience's upcoming appearance at Rooster Walk in Martinsville, VA on May 24-26 this summer. Check it out!

[Will Raich]

Love the course so far. Just to clarify, I believe that parking is free after 5pm, not 8pm. I could be wrong, though.

[Brian Giggey]

The course map:

[Matt Mourovic]

.

[Titan_Bariloni]

Gigs,

I played the course there the other day with Sully
I had some fun out there and you created some cool shots

I am still recovering from pricker cuts and I often found my self in them..lol...they are rather vicious
I hope in time some local nut goes ape shart on them and kills them all

as much blood as I shed I will say I shall return

regardless of prickers or anything else I applaud you for getting us a course on a great spot to enjoy for years to come...that said I will prob always complain about the prickers...lol

[Paul Sullivan]

I played it again this last Monday. Brought Seth along with me. He really liked it until he threw his brand new Stalker(Crystal ZZZ) into the water

Played it four times.... -1, -1, -3, -3 When the wind is blowing it is a much tougher course.

Hope to see you all out there soon.

The parking spot off of North Pleasent St is where to go. That way you get a couple of holes to get your BP up before you have to walk up to hole #1.

All kinds of room, with so many options for tee and hole locations

[Brian Giggey]

Glad you guys both got to play it. There is definitely some prickers out there, but it's nice to see them getting beat down through natural use of the course.

In regards to other tee locations, I know the UMass Team put some alts out there. I will probably hold off until UMass gives approvals for the back 9. That being said, there is a lot of room out there for alt tees and baskets, but it will most likely remain a technical, beginner friendly layout that is accessible for newcomers, yet possibly to shoot -6 or so on 9 for advanced.

Get at me next time you are in town --- I've still only played it 4 times, but it's nice to see Wednesday leagues getting 20-30 people each week!

[Brian Giggey]

I played it again this last Monday. Brought Seth along with me. He really liked it until he threw his brand new Stalker(Crystal ZZZ) into the water

Played it four times.... -1, -1, -3, -3 When the wind is blowing it is a much tougher course.

Hope to see you all out there soon.

The parking spot off of North Pleasent St is where to go. That way you get a couple of holes to get your BP up before you have to walk up to hole #1.

All kinds of room, with so many options for tee and hole locations

q4t.

[Steve Marcil]

played the course today lost a couple discs a Teedevil either in the brush on the left as you make the turn or in the tall on the right on 5 and a TD rush to the right in the thick brush on 7. Love the course but the brush piles need to get cleaned up along with some low hanging branches that were damaged with all the rain we just got. But overall good course

[Brian Giggey]

Glad you

played the course today lost a couple discs a Teedevil either in the brush on the left as you make the turn or in the tall on the right on 5 and a TD rush to the right in the thick brush on 7. Love the course but the brush piles need to get cleaned up along with some low hanging branches that were damaged with all the rain we just got. But overall good course

Glad you enjoyed it Steve. We are extremely blessed that Facilities has even continued to mow the course, as they expressed they wouldn't come May onward. The course received enough of positive feedback that the 9 is now permanent, and conversation about the back 9 is taking shape. We'd love for some of the brush piles and branches to be removed, and we can do that once students come back.

In regards to everything else, most of the laminated signs have blown away, but permanent signs and a message board should be approved by Fall.

[Brian Giggey]

Slow and steady, as usual at UMass.

"The first phases of several other projects, including a disc golf course on Orchard Hill and renovations to the Lincoln Campus Center concourse, were also finished, he said. Both projects are expected to be finished next year."

http://www.amherstbulletin.com/search/9 ... n-projects

The committee went on walk of the back 9 on December 11th and loved it. Hopefully wetland delineation and permitting will go smoothly.

[Titan_Bariloni]

course was a pile of crap

sorry but this place needs a better plan

broken baskets every where
it did not seem to be vandalism but poor installation

I think a few of us need to discuss this

I don't wanna here crap from anyone, go play and tell me it's not a disgrace to DG
on what shoulda been a huge opportunity for DG

what can I do to help?

[Travis Reed]

https://www.facebook.com/UmassDisc

They still have an active club at the university that was running a weekly league this fall. Contacting them would probably be a good start.

[Titan_Bariloni]

Why would contacting people who use the course and allowed it to degrade to that be a good start?

serious question

[Titan_Bariloni]

actually after quickly browsing the page...

it's sad

not one mention of the COURSE they rep

it is all self promotion and score based brags

I expected nothing less once I read the words facebook in the link

not one course work day mention
not one mention of the broken baskets
not one mention of anything other then scores

It was just a quick browse and was almost vomit material knowing what the course looks like

Recent post as of couple days ago

Not trying to be a dink but I don't think they are the ones to resolve this
sad

[James Reinle]

The 3rd and 9th had been removed, when Umass was doing some construction there, whoever reinstalled them (outside contractor maybe), would be to blame, if those were the ones you saw broken.

[Brian Giggey]

course was a pile of crap

sorry but this place needs a better plan

broken baskets every where
it did not seem to be vandalism but poor installation

I think a few of us need to discuss this

I don't wanna here crap from anyone, go play and tell me it's not a disgrace to DG
on what shoulda been a huge opportunity for DG

what can I do to help?

Hey bud,

Can you fill me in? We recently bought a house in Shutesbury and rarely swing by the UMass course. It's been a long time actually. They are still dragging their feet on a message board/permanent signs, let alone anything else.

Let me know what you saw. Sad to hear the course not getting taken care of. Don't hold back. Would love to know what its like and I can send an email to Facilities. We are pretty hands off over there, as we have our plate full and UMass has taken over.

Also, I got a guy who was passed my way by Chuck Kennedy about getting a course on Army Corps land. Can I pass him your way? I I don't have experience with them yet.

[Titan_Bariloni]

responded in pm and other thread

I understand about people dragging feet

If RFG would just construct the dam kiosk, better signs and haul us more material we could be that much closer to the cherry on top....but who really eats the cherry anymore...morelike thePB drizzle on the whipped cream

[Brian Giggey]

Great news came last week! After 3 years, UMass Amherst has FINALLY approved signage for Explore Disc Golf's 9-hole disc golf course design on campus. Time to bust out the Chartpak markers! Baby steps

[Jason Southwick]

Hi Brian,

How many courses have you installed? How many of these still exist?

Finally, are any of them any good?

Thank you for your time,

Jason