Basic Information
Course Location: Winged Deer Park
Geographic Location: north side of Johnson City, TN (36.39224, -82.36827)
Date Visited: March 2025
Number of Holes: 18
Course Length: 5803/4414 feet, par 55/54
Cost to Play: free
Difficulty Level: recreational, high
Difficulty Level: recreational, high
Carts: usable, but expect a few steep areas
Potential to Lose Discs: medium due to dense woods
Park Information: https://www.johnsoncitytn.org/business_detail_T5_R8.php
DG Course Review Page: https://www.dgcoursereview.com/courses/winged-deer-park.2029
UDisc Page: https://udisc.com/courses/winged-deer-park-mh32
Course Walkabout Video, Front 9: (coming May 22, 2026)
Course Walkabout Video, Back 9: (coming May 29, 2026)
Driving Directions: In Johnson City, take I-26 to SR 381 (exit 19). Exit and go north on SR 381. After 1.2 miles, where SR 381 ends at US 11E, merge onto US 11E north. Drive a total of 3.4 miles from the interstate to Carroll Creek Road and turn left on Carroll Creek Rd. Drive Carroll Creek Rd. west 0.4 miles to the signed park entrance for the disc golf course on the left. Turn left to enter the park, and park in the large blacktop parking lot at the end of this park road. #1 tee is uphill to the northwest of the parking lot.
Course Constructions:
Tees: concrete, 1 per hole
Baskets: 2 per hole; some holes have multiple basket positions. Short baskets are Mach III and showing their age; long baskets are Veteran and excellent.
Signage: hole sign on each tee, course map at parking lot, signs pointing to next tee
Amenities: bench on each hole, practice basket, some trash cans, walking trails, other amenities elsewhere in the park
Summary Review: 5 Stars (out of 5)
The disc golf course at Winged Deer Park occupies a hilly piece of land with some dense woods and some more open areas. The course is very well-balanced with plenty of variety. 4 holes are what I would classify as tight and heavily wooded, but the course isn't persistently poke-and-pray. 3 holes play over 400 feet, but the course doesn't overwhelm you with distance. The area is basically completely devoted to disc golf, so safety hazards are minimal. The course constructions are excellent except for the short baskets: they are really showing their age. Also, the short baskets are shorter but not necessarily any easier: many of them require a sharply bent disc flight to reach. I never had to use the course map at the parking lot to help me navigate the course. This course is popular: I saw several other groups playing the course when I played here on a nice Monday afternoon in early March. The course maintenance was flawless when I came here. While certainly not the longest or hardest course in the area, Winged Deer offers a very balanced and enjoyable recreational test, and it stands out among east Tennessee's sneaky-good collection of disc golf courses.
Hole-by-Hole Review
Distances taken from hole signs. Picture sequence for each hole is 1) tee, 2) approach to long basket, 3) long basket to tee.
Hole #1: 229/164 feet, par 3 (Basket in C position)
Comments: When I saw the opening hole go steeply up a heavily wooded hill, I thought this round might be a real mountain-trek hike. As it turns out, this hole plays up the steepest hill on the entire course. There are 3 possible basket positions, and they require very different disc flights. The C position shown here requires an accurate slight right-to-left disc flight with enough arm to get up the hill. It's a tough first throw, but a good throw will be rewarded with a birdie opportunity. #2 tee is to the right.
Hole #2: 246/220 feet, par 3
Comments: a tight heavily wooded hole that plays down and up across a shallow ravine. Judging from all of the logs laying in the rough, there used to be even more trees on this hole. Today there are several possible lines, but all of them are very tight. You will need a very accurate throw or some luck to get your tee shot close to the basket. It's only 246 feet, so pick a line and use your most accurate throw. #3 tee is behind the basket and to the left.
Hole #3: 280/218 feet, par 3
Comments: another very tight hole, this hole plays gradually uphill. A line of trees stand directly between the tee and basket. I chose to go right of the trees, but you could also go left. Either way will require a long and accurate throw if you hope for a birdie. #4 tee is to the right, possibly a little too close to #3 basket.
Hole #4: 385/280 feet, par 3
Comments: now we exit the woods for the first mostly open hole. This hole plays gradually downhill, and it is a slight dogleg right with dense woods and a steep ravine to the right. There is plenty of open area to the left, so don't miss right. #5 tee is across the park entrance road behind the basket.
Hole #5: 257/178 feet, par 3
Comments: a fairly straight hole that plays through a narrow strip of open land with the park road downhill to the right and dense woods to the left. Some overhanging limbs and a single cedar tree directly between the tee and basket complicate your decision-making; short and right are better than left and long. I chose to attack the basket from the right, and it more or less worked. This hole feels wedged-in, and it's one of my least favorite holes on this course, which doesn't have many weak holes. #6 tee is behind the basket and slightly uphill to the left.
Hole #6: 280/199 feet, par 3
Comments: The next 3 holes play southeast with Carroll Creek Road to your left. This hole is another steep uphill hole similar to hole #1 but longer and more open. The 2 baskets make this hole play very differently: they are on opposite sides of the fairway with the short basket on the right and the long basket on the left. There is dense woods just beyond the long basket, and 3 is a good score if you are playing to the long basket. #7 tee is a couple hundred feet to the left just past #16 tee.
Hole #7: 398/304 feet, par 3
Comments: The fairway on this hole is basically one long chute through dense pine forest. The hole plays down and up across a shallow ravine, but the long basket is higher than the tee. Thus, the slope does nothing to lessen the substantial distance. If your disc strays from the moderately wide fairway, good luck making 3: your next throw will probably be a short recovery throw. This hole is a real test, especially as a par 3, but it's a fair one. #8 tee is to the left.
Hole #8: 426/294 feet, par 3
Comments: the most open hole on this course, this hole plays moderately downhill with only a single tree guarding the basket on the right. Dense woods sits beyond the basket, so don't miss long. This hole is long for a par 3, but the openness makes the par reasonable. #9 tee is to the right.
Hole #9: 206/185 feet, par 3
Comments: playing the opposite direction as the previous hole, this hole heads gradually back uphill. The fairway is tighter than it looks with dense woods to the right and a concrete drainage channel to the left. Equally problematic is a cluster of trees in the center of the rather narrow fairway. You will want to hit the tight gap left of the cluster to get to the short basket and the tighter gap right of the cluster to get to the long basket. This is the shortest hole on this course, but it's not the easiest. #10 tee is uphill behind the basket and to the right.
Hole #10: 264/217 feet, par 3
Comments: a fairly straight hole that plays moderately uphill. The long basket will require a slight left-to-right disc flight; the short basket will require a sharp left-to-right disc flight. A good tee shot will set-up a birdie opportunity for either basket. #11 tee is to the left.
Hole #11: 305/253 feet, par 3
Comments: The fairway is wide, but both baskets are located in a grove of cedar trees with the long basket deeper into the grove than the short basket. There isn't much room between the branches, so you will need a low approach throw to get in under the trees. This is another tough but fair challenge. #12 tee is behind the basket and to the left.
Hole #12: 288/187 feet, par 3
Comments: a dead straight but super tight hole, maybe the tightest on this course. Keeping your disc flight straight is more important than distance, but the hole does open up once you get past 200 feet. When I came here, the short basket was the Veteran and the long basket was the Mach III, possibly by mistake. #13 tee is to the right.
Hole #13: 345/292 feet, par 3
Comments: now we head back into the woods for a tight hole that plays over a small ridge. You will need a left-to-right throw to get to the crest of the ridge and then a right-to-left throw to get down to the long basket. Both throws need to be accurate, and this is another tough but fair hole. As with the previous hole, the long basket was the Mach III when I came here, which was puzzling. #14 tee is downhill behind the basket.
Hole #14: 224 feet, par 3
Comments: a gradually downhill hole that is every bit as tight as the previous hole. Yet this hole is dead straight with a tight but clear line between the tee and basket. If you can keep your disc flying straight for 200 feet, birdie is possible here. #15 tee is to the right.
Hole #15: 443/323 feet, par 3
Comments: after 2 heavily wooded holes come 2 more open holes. This long and straight par 3 plays gradually downhill for its entire distance. The fairway is reasonably wide, but the woods on either side are dense. Throw it straight! #16 tee is to the left.
Hole #16: 577/384 feet, par 4/3
Comments: A slight dogleg left, this hole plays the opposite direction as the previous hole and therefore heads back uphill. It is also the longest hole on this course. The fairway is wider than the previous hole, but dense woods still line either side plus some lone pine trees appear in the middle. This is a worthy par 4. #17 tee is to the right.
Hole #17: 286/210 feet, par 3
Comments: the last of the heavily wooded holes. This sweeping dogleg right plays moderately downhill, so accuracy is more valued than distance. Try to just miss (on either side) the large tree that stands 150 feet directly ahead with your tee shot and hope your disc bounces down the hill for a makeable putt. #18 tee is behind the basket near #6 tee.
Hole #18: 364/282 feet, par 3
Comments: The line near the tee is tight, but the fairway opens up after less than 150 feet. The 2 baskets are on opposite sides of the fairway, so your optimal throw shape will be determined by which basket you are playing to. A long, well-shaped tee shot will lead to a birdie opportunity, and this is fun and fair finishing hole to a fun and fair course. The parking lot is behind the basket; follow the park entrance road.
