Basic Information
Course Location: Warriors' Path State Park
Geographic Location: southeast of Kingsport, TN (36.49044, -82.48427)
Date Visited: October 2023
Number of Holes: 18
Course Length: 5187/3947 feet, par 57/54
Cost to Play: free
Difficulty Level: intermediate
Difficulty Level: intermediate
Carts: would be hard to use due to steep and rough terrain
Potential to Lose Discs: medium to high due to dense woods
Park Information: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/warriors-path
DG Course Review Page: https://www.dgcoursereview.com/courses/warriors-path-state-park-lakefront.895
Course Walkabout Video, Front 9: (coming December 20)
Course Walkabout Video, Back 9: (coming December 27)
Driving Directions: In northeast Tennessee, take I-81 to SR 36 (exit 59). Exit and go north on SR 36. Drive SR 36 north 1.3 miles to Hemlock Road and turn right on Hemlock Rd. Drive Hemlock Rd. east 1.6 miles to the state park entrance on the right. Turn softly right to enter the park. Drive the main park road 0.7 miles to an intersection and turn right, following signs for the disc golf course. Park in the asphalt parking lot on the right near the top of the hill. #1 tee is across the road near the park's secondary entrance; the tee right beside the information kiosk is #11 tee.
Course Constructions:
Tees: concrete or astroturf, 1 per hole but a few holes have 2
Baskets: yellow Discatcher, 1 per hole but a few holes have 2, in good shape on my visit
Signage: course map at the start of the Lakefront course, hole sign on each tee, signs at most baskets pointing to next tee
Amenities: benches on some holes, practice basket in the woods northeast of the parking lot, other amenities elsewhere in the park
Summary Review: 4.5 Stars (out of 5)
Warriors' Path State Park has 2 18 hole disc golf courses: the Cliffside Course and the Lakefront Course. I rank both courses as intermediate in difficulty, but the Cliffside Course is tighter while the Lakefront Course is more open. This review considers only the Lakefront Course; the Cliffside Course is the subject of a previous review.
The Lakefront Course consists of 18 of the park's 27 original holes. Oddly considering the course's name, while the lake comes into view a couple of times, the course itself never reaches the lake. The course is about equally divided between heavily wooded and fairly open holes, and some rather steep elevation is used to good effect. On the chilly Tuesday afternoon that I came here, the course maintenance was flawless, and there was 1 other group playing this course. There are a couple of holes where trails and roads come into play, thus creating safety hazards. I rated this course 0.5 stars lower than the Cliffside Course partly due to the safety hazards and partly due to the existence of several less than inspiring holes on this course. That said, of the 36 holes in this park, my 4 favorite holes are all among the last 7 holes on this course. Unfortunately, my 5 or 6 least favorite holes among the 36 are also on this course. In the end, if you like tight wooded courses as I do you will probably like the Cliffside Course better, and if you like more open courses you will probably like this course better. My recommendation is to take an entire day and play all 36 holes; very few parks have 2 courses as good as these 2.
Hole-by-Hole Review
Distances taken from hole signs. Picture sequence for each hole is 1) tee, 2) approach, 3) basket to tee.
Hole #1: 449/289 feet, par 4/3
Comments: The course starts with a long but fairly open hole with only a couple of large trees between the tee and basket, but this hole is fraught with safety hazards. The moderately traveled park road sits just to the left, and the #10 basket sits to the right less than 100 feet in front of the tee. In fact the course route crosses itself here, so players finishing #10 will walk across this fairway to get to #11 tee. This hole has potential but also some issues. #2 tee is a couple hundred feet away; go downhill to the right and cross the creek behind the playground.
Hole #2: 225/154 feet, par 3
Comments: a steeply uphill hole with a large and wide cluster of trees between the tee and basket. You could go around the trees on either side, but the left option with a left-to-right disc flight offers a wider fairway to the basket. #3 tee is to the left.
Hole #3: 257/211 feet, par 3
Comments: a fairly short but tight hole made slightly shorter by the moderate downhill. The approach throw needs to be threaded between a couple of trees, so throw accurately. #4 tee is a few hundred feet away across the clearing to the right.
Hole #4: 288/224 feet, par 3
Comments: this hole starts as a very open hole playing across a mowed-grass area, but the basket is located in a somewhat tight pocket surrounded on three sides by woods with dense understory. If you miss that pocket, you might have a hard time finding your disc, much less saving par. #5 tee is to the left.
Hole #5: 245/182 feet, par 3
Comments: now we head back into the dense woods for another short, very tight, moderately downhill hole similar to hole #3. I like how this course moves back and forth between the woods and the open areas. #6 tee is to the right.
Hole #6: 188 feet, par 3
Comments: the first really exciting hole on this course. This hole plays steeply downhill before crossing a small stream to reach a fairly open basket. You will need a slight left-to-right disc flight to get through the trees on the hillside and thus get your disc all of the way to the basket, but a good throw will be rewarded with a birdie opportunity even for players with weak arms like mine. This is a great short hole. #7 tee is to the left.
Hole #7: 215/180 feet, par 3
Comments: a gradually uphill hole that is fairly open but has a few small trees very close to the basket. This is an easy hole if you miss or barely graze the trees. #8 tee is to the right.
Hole #8: 215/199 feet, par 3
Comments: this dogleg right plays gradually uphill then steeply downhill to the basket. The dense woods preclude you from cutting the dogleg, so you will need an accurate left-to-right throw to get close to the basket for a birdie opportunity. #9 tee is uphill to the left.
Hole #9: 392 feet, par 3
Comments: this hole has a significant right-to-left cross slope. It is very open except for some dense woods (and the #7 basket) to the left, so don't fail to consider the cross slope or otherwise miss left. #10 tee is to the right.
Hole #10: 210 feet, par 3
Comments: playing the opposite direction as the previous hole and across the same cross slope, 3 pine trees stand directly in front of the basket. Avoiding the pine trees with a right-to-left disc flight should set up a birdie opportunity. #11 tee is across the park road to the left near the information kiosk; you have to cross #1 fairway to get to #11 tee.
Hole #11: 220/179 feet, par 3
Comments: the last 8 holes stay north of the park road. This short hole is gradually downhill and open with only a couple of overhanging tree limbs to worry about. It is my least favorite of the 36 holes at this park. #12 tee is downhill to the left at the edge of the clearing; the tee directly to the left is #13 tee.
Hole #12: 420/220 feet, par 4/3
Comments: next come 2 brutal holes. This hole plays very steeply uphill to the first basket before flattening out to reach the second basket. There are no obstacles directly between the tee and basket, but dense woods sit less than 15 feet to the right. Missing there would lead to a tough recovery and possibly a lost disc. #13 tee is to the left.
Hole #13: 495/304 feet, par 3
Comments: Another hole with 2 baskets, this hole is kind of the opposite of the previous hole: you drop steeply downhill to reach the first basket before climbing steeply and heading into a densely wooded area to reach the second basket. Surely this hole should be a par 4 if you play to the long basket, and this hole has the most elevation change of any hole at this park. #14 tee is uphill behind the long basket.
Hole #14: 289/209 feet, par 3
Comments: now we get back to a more "normal" hole, and this is the last truly open hole. It is a sweeping dogleg right with dense woods on the inside of the dogleg; don't even think about trying to cut the dogleg. A long left-to-right throw will be required to set up a birdie opportunity. #15 tee is in the woods to the right.
Hole #15: 210 feet, par 3
Comments: the next 2 holes play back and forth across the same heavily wooded hillside. This hole plays gradually uphill with some small trees and boulders less than 50 feet in front of the basket. The basket pole is a couple of feet longer/higher than usual, which makes putting interesting. #16 tee is to the left.
Hole #16: 180 feet, par 3
Comments: similar to the previous hole but tighter and moderately downhill. #17 tee is behind the basket.
Hole #17: 288/236 feet, par 3
Comments: possibly this course's signature hole, you throw out of a tight chute of trees and across a steep ravine. Both baskets are perched on the steep hillside that is the other side of the ravine. The left basket makes this a fairly straight hole, but the right basket will require a left-to-right disc flight and brings more elevation into play. This is a great hole. #18 tee is uphill to the left.
Hole #18: 401/180 feet, par 4/3
Comments: a long tight hole, the fairway seems to coincide with an old road or railroad grade (similar to hole #4 on the Cliffside Course). The short basket is in the middle of the grade, but the long basket is to the right of the grade. You will have to thread your disc around some trees and boulders to get to the long basket. To get to the parking lot, walk out to the park road behind the basket and turn left.
