Royston Wellness Park Disc Golf Course in Royston, GA

Basic Information

Course Location: Royston Wellness Park

Geographic Location: east side of Royston, GA (34.29172, -83.10148)

Date Visited: March 2023

Number of Holes: 9

Course Length: 2688/1540 feet, par 30/39

Cost to Play: free
Difficulty Level: beginner for short tees; recreational, medium for long tees

Carts: should be fine here

Beginner Friendly? yes, from the short tees

Potential to Lose Discs: very low

Park Information: https://www.cityofroyston.com/community/parks_and_recreation.php

DG Course Review Page: https://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=4680

UDisc Page: https://udisc.com/courses/royston-wellness-park-jared-hightower-gl4N

Course Walkabout Video: 

Driving Directions: From the intersection of US 29 and SR 17 on the east side of Royston, take US 29 west about 300 feet to Skelton Street and turn right on Skelton St.  The entrance to Royston Wellness Park is about 500 feet ahead on the left.  Turn left to enter the park and park in the only parking lot at the end of the park road.  #1 tee is the blue (or red) post behind the course map sign.

Course Constructions:

Tees: 2 per hole, dirt or plastic pavers

Baskets: Discatcher, 1 per hole, older but in good shape on my visit

Signage: course map near parking lot; a few signs directing to the next tee

Amenities: restrooms, playground, picnic area, walking trail

Summary Review: 2.5 Stars (out of 5)

The disc golf course at Royston Wellness Park offers a pleasant but uninspiring half-round.  Set on rolling terrain, most of the holes are very open with minimal obstacles, but 3 of the holes are quite tight.  The two sets of tees make the course play quite differently.  From the forward red tees, the course is basically a putter park that is perfect for beginners.  From the back blue tees, the course is longer but still not too challenging.  Both tees need better construction, and the course needs better signage.  A paved walking path encircles the course, but due to good course routing it only intersects the disc golf course at a single point.  I did not have any trouble finding the next tee even though signs are minimal, but you may want to take a picture of the course map sign near the parking lot just in case.  They actually have enough space to put 9 more holes in here; those holes would best go outside the walking path.  The fairways had been recently cleared of leaf litter on my visit, and I saw no course maintenance issues.  The park gets a decent number of visitors, but I was the only person on the disc golf course when I came here on a Thursday afternoon.  Given its location just 12 miles from I-85, this course makes a nice add-on or quick leg-stretcher stop if you are in transit in northeast Georgia even though it is not a destination course.

Hole-by-Hole Review 

Distances taken from dgcoursereview.com; link provided above.  Picture sequence for each hole is 1) long/blue tee, 2) approach, 3) basket to tee.

Hole #1: 262/187 feet, par 3/4

Comments: a gradually downhill hole that is completely wide open until you get within 20 feet of the basket.  The basket is surrounded by a nice grove of pine trees.  The red tee par seems too high on this hole, as it does on many of these holes, but it is borderline reasonable if you regard the red tees as a beginner's course or putter park.  #2 tee is to the left and back toward #1 tee.

Hole #2: 470/263 feet, par 4/5

Comments: another very open and slightly downhill hole.  A couple of large trees stand near the basket, and this hole is longer than the first hole.  #3 blue tee is to the left; #3 red tee is behind the basket.

Hole #3: 408/219 feet, par 3/4

Comments: a third consecutive very open hole.  A couple of large trees stand about 60 feet in front of the basket, but they can be avoided with a right to left disc flight.  #4 tee is behind the basket and to the left.

Hole #4: 228/170 feet, par 4/5

Comments: the next two holes are more wooded, and #4 is the tightest hole on this course, hence the high par for this hole's length.  This hole plays over a small hill, and the nice forest setting makes it my favorite hole on the course.  #5 tee is to the left.

Hole #5: 231/158 feet, par 3/4

Comments: the fairway is about twice as wide as the previous hole; otherwise these two holes are very similar.  #6 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #6: 295/133 feet, par 3/4

Comments: now the course breaks back out into the open.  This hole has no obstacles until you get within 50 feet of the basket, but a large cluster of trees surrounds the basket, forcing you to pick your angle of attack carefully.  #7 tee is behind the basket near the walking trail.

Hole #7: 230/109 feet, par 3/4

Comments: the most uphill hole on this course, and the only place where the asphalt walking path intersects the line of play.  Check for pedestrians before you throw if you are playing the blue tees.  This hole is the second tightest hole on this course, so an accurate throw is required to set up a birdie opportunity.  #8 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #8: 204/136 feet, par 4/5

Comments: very similar to the first hole, completely open at first with the basket in the same cluster of trees.  The basket for this hole sits atop a steep man-made dirt mound, which makes putting more interesting.  #9 tee is to the left near #8 tee.

Hole #9: 360/165 feet, par 3/4

Comments: a very open, slightly uphill hole with only a smattering of small trees near the fairway.  This basket is located beside #1 tee, so the course forms a true loop.  The parking lot is beyond the basket.

Hitzman-Optimist Park Disc Golf Course in Pensacola, FL

Basic Information

Course Location: Hitzman-Optimist Park

Geographic Location: east side of Pensacola, FL (30.48732, -87.18124)

Date Visited: February 2023

Number of Holes: 9

Course Length: 2445 feet, par 27

Cost to Play: free
Difficulty Level: recreational, medium

Carts: should be fine here

Beginner Friendly? somewhat, but on the tight side

Potential to Lose Discs: low

Park Information: https://www.cityofpensacola.com/facilities/facility/details/HitzmanOptimist-Park-52

DG Course Review Page: https://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=5136

UDisc Page: https://udisc.com/courses/hitzman-optimist-3BI8

Course Walkabout Video:

Driving Directions: On the east side of Pensacola, take I-10 to US 90 (exit 17).  Exit and go south on US 90.  Drive US 90 south 2.2 miles to Langley Ave. and turn right on Langley Ave.  Drive Langley Ave. west 1.3 miles to the park entrance on the left.  Park in the only parking lot; #1 tee is between the parking lot and Langley Ave.

Course Constructions:

Tees: concrete, 1 per hole

Baskets: Discatcher, 1 per hole

Signage: course map at parking lot; hole sign on each tee; sign to next tee at each basket

Amenities: playground, picnic tables, some benches

Summary Review: 2.5 Stars (out of 5)

When I first drove into the parking lot at Hitzman-Optimist Park, I thought I had to be in the wrong place: there is no way a tiny neighborhood park such as this one could offer a decent disc golf course.  Yet a 9 hole course does exist here, and it is a surprisingly pleasant one given the constraints of the park.  The course has 9 distinct tee pads and 9 distinct baskets, and it forces you to curve your disc both directions, right and left.  There is no effort to create additional holes by duplication or any other strategy; neither are there sub-standard "filler" holes.  The terrain is completely flat, but it offers a nice parkland setting with a smattering of tall pine trees throughout the area.  The trees seem to grow in a row and column configuration suggesting this may be an old pine planting, though the rows and columns are not obvious at first.  The course routing is easy to follow, and despite the park's small size it mostly avoids the playground and picnic areas of the park.  I saw no maintenance issues when I played here.  The course and park are heavily used: there were 3 other groups on the course when I played here on a seasonally warm Tuesday afternoon in addition to a large number of people near the playground.  None of the holes are particularly memorable, and in fact all of the holes are very similar in distance and lack of elevation.  Therefore, this course will not rank high with most players, myself included.  With that understanding, the course designers did a fantastic job with what they had to work with here.  If you want a lesson in design optimization for small areas in addition to a pleasant if unremarkable half-round, you can find far worse options than this course.

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: 270 feet, par 3

Comments: there are no obstacles directly between the tee and basket, but the tall trees on either side of the fairway make for a very tight line.  Those trees also form a low ceiling, which forces you to keep your disc low.  There is a concrete sidewalk about 100 feet in front of the tee, so check for pedestrians before you throw.  #2 tee is to the left.

Hole #2: 215 feet, par 3

Comments: though tied for the shortest hole on this course, a veritable thicket of tall trees between the tee and basket force you to curve your disc in from the right or left.  The two sides offer lines of about the same width, so the choice is yours.  The area around the basket is fairly open, and a good first throw will lead to a birdie opportunity.  #3 tee is to the left.

Hole #3: 260 feet, par 3

Comments: similar in spirit to the previous hole, but now a fence tight on the left guarding private property encourages (forces?) you to come in from the right.  The area over this fence is out-of-bounds (OB), but there is plenty of room to the right provided you miss the trees.  #4 tee is behind the basket.

Hole #4: 275 feet, par 3

Comments: the slight dogleg left encourages a right-to-left disc flight, and a large live oak just in front of the tree forces you to keep your disc low.  Also, mind the picnic table and playground area to the left of the basket.  #5 tee is to the left and back toward the tee, beside the bench.

Hole #5: 330 feet, par 3

Comments: very similar to the previous hole but longer.  Also, here a left-to-right disc flight could work too.  #6 tee is to the right.

Hole #6: 310 feet, par 3

Comments: similar to the previous hole, but now a left-to-right disc flight seems preferable as it gives a slightly wider line to work with.  #7 tee is behind the basket near the southeast corner of the park.

Hole #7: 270 feet, par 3

Comments: this hole plays due west between two of the rows of trees, so it has one of the best-defined fairways on this course.  No obstacles stand directly between the tee and basket, and this hole would be much more interesting if the basket were moved about 10 feet to the left to the other side of a large live oak tree.  The walking track and athletic field behind the basket are OB.  #8 tee is to the right.

Hole #8: 215 feet, par 3

Comments: a couple of large trees stand right in front of the tee, but a good throw through the tight gap between them will set up a birdie opportunity: the rest of the hole is pretty open.  This might be the easiest hole on this course.  #9 tee is 150 feet away to the left.

Hole #9: 300 feet, par 3

Comments: dead straight with no obstacles directly between the tee and basket except for the overhanging branches of some live oaks.  This hole is a nondescript finish to a nondescript course.  The parking lot is behind the basket on the left past the playground.