Reedy Creek Park Disc Golf Course in Charlotte, NC

Basic Information

Course Location: Reedy Creek Park

Geographic Location: east side of Charlotte, NC (35.26841, -80.71591)

Date Visited: November 2023

Number of Holes: 18

Course Length: 5675/4493 feet, par 57/54

Cost to Play: free
Difficulty Level: recreational, high

Carts: usable, but expect some stairs and steep areas

Potential to Lose Discs: low to medium due to dense woods

Park Information: https://parkandrec.mecknc.gov/Places-to-Visit/Nature/reedy-creek-nature-center

DG Course Review Page: https://www.dgcoursereview.com/courses/reedy-creek-park.568

UDisc Page: https://udisc.com/courses/reedy-creek-dgc-kr5C

Course Walkabout Video, Front 9: 

Course Walkabout Video, Back 9:

Driving Directions: On the east side of Charlotte, take I-485 to Rocky River Road (exit 36).  Exit and go west on Rocky River Rd.  Take Rocky River Rd. 2.7 miles to the signed park entrance on the left.  Turn left to enter the park, and follow signs along the main park road for the disc golf course.  Park in the large blacktop parking lot that serves the picnic shelters, disc golf course, and some other amenities.  #1 tee is by the practice basket and information kiosk near the entrance to this parking lot.

Course Constructions:

Tees: concrete, 2 per hole

Baskets: 1 on most holes, but a few holes have 2.  Veteran baskets with a couple of Mach baskets; older but in good shape on my visit

Signage: hole signs on each tee, some signs pointing to next tee

Amenities: practice basket, benches on most holes, hiking trails, restrooms across the parking lot from the course, other amenities elsewhere in the park

Summary Review: 4 Stars (out of 5)

Built in 1989, the disc golf course at Reedy Creek Park is the oldest disc golf course in Charlotte, although it has been modernized/redesigned at least once.  The course occupies a heavily wooded area over moderately hilly terrain.  Most fairways are fairly generous for a heavily wooded course.  The most recent redesign lengthened the course by adding a new set of tees called the Stout tees, but over half of the holes play under 300 feet even from the Stout tees.  Thus, this course is somewhat lacking in variety in terms of hole length or style.  As an odd feature, many of the original tees had a bench behind the tee, and you will be throwing directly over many of those benches if you play from the Stout tees.  A couple of nature trails wind through the course, and I did encounter other park users while playing here.  Overall, this course and park are quite popular, so you probably won't be alone here.  The course route forms 2 loops of 9 holes each with one loop on each side of the park entrance road.  There are a couple of longer walks from basket to next tee, but there was only 1 point (after hole #7) where I was unsure of where to head next.  Course maintenance was fine with very little brush in the understory when I came here.  This course tends to get lost among the many bigger and newer courses in metro Charlotte.  Provided you don't mind shorter and tighter courses, you will have a good round here.

Hole-by-Hole Review 

Distances taken from hole signs.  Picture sequence for each hole is 1) Stout tee, 2) approach, 3) basket to tee.

Hole #1: 272/233 feet, par 3

Comments: almost a warm-up hole, the opening hole is very flat, very straight, and not particularly tight.  A straight throw with decent distance will set-up a birdie opportunity.  #2 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #2: 275/211 feet, par 3

Comments: now the course really starts.  This hole plays across a small creek right in front of the tee, and you have to decide whether to go right or left of a cluster of trees in the middle of the fairway.  The left line is more direct, but it creates a tougher angle to attack the basket, which is tucked in the trees to the left.  I chose the right line with a right-to-left disc flight and managed a par.  #3 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #3: 308/257 feet, par 3

Comments: a slight dogleg right, this tight hole demands a long and accurate throw if you want a birdie opportunity.  The basket sits atop a low wooden retaining wall on the left, and this is the first of several times this type of construction is used on this course.  #4 tee is in the small clearing behind the basket.

Hole #4: 283 feet, par 3

Comments: one of the more open holes on this course, the tee sits in a small mowed-grass area before the hole enters the woods and doglegs right.  Low limbs hang over the fairway in front of the basket, so you need to keep your disc low.  #5 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #5: 260/218 feet, par 3

Comments: a classic hole that plays across a steep ravine.  The window to throw through is very tight from the Stout tee but not as tight from the original tee.  Another wooden retaining wall 15 feet in front of the basket complicates your putting if you miss short and blocks any attempt at a run-up shot.  #6 tee is a couple hundred feet to the left near a small clearing.

Hole #6: 486/357 feet, par 4/3

Comments: one of the longest holes on this course, this dogleg right plays partially over a small mowed-grass area, but there are plenty of trees and woods to navigate.  There are 2 baskets on this hole: the short white basket and the long blue basket.  Choose the level of difficulty you want.  #7 tee is up the narrow trail to the right.

Hole #7: 263/196 feet, par 3

Comments: a short but strange downhill hole, the two tees offer two very different angles to play toward the basket.  From the Stout tee this is a tight but fairly straight hole, but from the original tee it is a sharp dogleg left.  Only a perfect (and maybe lucky) throw will get through the jumble of large trees on the hillside in front of the basket without hitting bark.  #8 tee is several hundred feet away; follow small orange discs nailed to trees.

Hole #8: 270 feet, par 3

Comments: very similar to hole #1 but a little tighter and playing the opposite direction.  #9 tee is to the right.

Hole #9: 209 feet, par 3

Comments: a short dogleg right with a reasonably wide fairway.  A well-executed throw will land short left of the basket and set-up a birdie opportunity.  The parking lot is through the trees to the right; #10 tee is to the left, down the steps, and across the park road.

Hole #10: 258/215 feet, par 3

Comments: after 2 somewhat pedestrian holes comes this clever and tight dogleg left playing over a small swale.  I aimed at the small tree straight ahead at the end of the chute and used a slight right-to-left disc flight.  Another wooden retaining wall about 25 feet in front of the basket prevents a run-up attempt.  #11 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #11: 525/251 feet, par 4/3

Comments: this is the other hole with 2 baskets, and it is the longest hole on this course if you play to the long basket.  The short basket makes this hole a fairly pedestrian but still tight dogleg right, but the long basket sits gradually uphill in a tight corridor of trees.  The long basket offers plenty of challenge for most players.  #12 tee is to the right.

Hole #12: 208 feet, par 3

Comments: an uphill slight dogleg left, there is only one super tight area: about 50 feet in front of the basket.  If you can get through that window with your tee shot, you should have a birdie opportunity.  #13 tee is to the left.

Hole #13: 413/331 feet, par 4/3

Comments: a long sweeping dogleg right, this gradually uphill hole is tight but not as tight as some other holes on this course.  The smattering of longer holes adds some variety to what would otherwise be a steady diet of short holes.  #14 tee is to the right near the edge of the clearing.

Hole #14: 327/260 feet, par 3

Comments: this hole starts in an open mowed-grass area, but it heads into the woods, doglegs right, and heads moderately downhill.  Aim for the opening in the woods straight ahead and go with a left-to-right disc flight.  The last of the low wooden retaining walls sits to the left of the basket and long, so miss short and right to make best use of the slope and avoid the wall.  #15 tee is to the right.

Hole #15: 343/263 feet, par 3

Comments: a persistently downhill sweeping dogleg left, the fairway is wider than on some other holes, so you have enough room to maneuver a disc around the corner of the dogleg.  This longer hole presents a very fair challenge.  #16 tee is to the right.

Hole #16: 284/242 feet, par 3

Comments: this hole plays back uphill parallel to the previous hole.  There is one tight spot about 80 feet in front of the Stout tees, but otherwise the fairway is rather generous.  If you miss that tight gap, you will struggle to make par.  #17 tee is to the left.

Hole #17: 360/277 feet, par 3

Comments: a downhill dogleg left, this hole is similar to hole #15 but with a sharper dogleg.  #18 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #18: 331/212 feet, par 3

Comments: a gradually downhill dogleg right, the Stout tee plays through tight gaps between trees while the original tee has a more generous fairway.  A cluster of trees in front of the basket forces you to choose between a shorter but tighter route to the right and a longer slightly wider route to the left.  This is a solid closing hole on a solid course.  To get to the parking lot, walk behind the basket to the park road and angle left on the park road.