Mike C. Likes It!

Mike C. sent me this email Thursday after trying the Hill for the first time. Here's what he had to say:

Jim and I went down (Wednesday). Between your written hole descriptions and the map, we navigated pretty well. We had some trouble finding #8 but eventually did. For the 13 holes, I shot 46 (only 1 deuce, #10). I'm certain I can shave at least 4 off that. Jim did a couple worse I think.

The course is very interesting with a lot of potential. I especially liked holes 8, 13 & 14. Naturally, it's going to take a lot more clearing and touching up but it's going to be a fun course when complete. (It reminded me very much of Hunt's in Rindge NH. It's very woodsy and very tight.) It would be nice if some of the holes could break out into a field area for a few open shots. Any possibility of that for the remaining holes? I didn't really see much open space but I know we didn't see all the available land. The elevation changes add a lot (but pretty tiring on a hot day!).

You guys have done a lot a good work. I'll definitely be back.

Thanks for the review, Mike. The remaining holes will go through the woods, although Hole 15 goes down a fairly wide straight road (and when I say "fairly wide" I only mean about 20 feet!). There just aren't any open fields to use -- that's part of the reason we were allowed to put the course here. :-)

Bill the Neighbor Hits Devens

I brought my neighbor Bill (left, going for a birdie on 9) to the course for the first time today. It was his third time playing ever and he did pretty well. I think that after he gets a few more rounds under his belt, he'll be a force to reckon with.

It was a good day; on 13 holes I shot a 44 and Bill shot a 48. The trees weren't very hungry today.

Bill putts back up to 10 after overshooting the target




Bill lets one rip off elevated tee 13

John tees off down the alley and over the rock on Hole 4

Wednesday Weekly Results: 7/19

Well, we had a decent turnout for our first night -- 3 golfers. We even coerced course-neighbor JohnO who was running laps around the soccer field to join us for two holes. Even though it was his first time playing, John did great scoring a 6 on H1 and 3 on H2. Nice.

We played 13 holes and had much fun. Sadly, I am no longer undefeated at the Hill as DaveJ played some steady treeless golf with a 44. Despite his 2 birdies, course newcomer MarkH ended with a 48 and so did I (the trees were hungry last night).

Hope to see more of you out there next week!

Wednesday Weekly

Now that we've got 13 holes done, a few us a decided it was time to actually start playing the course! So starting this Wed., July 19, 6:00 PM, join us for the Wednesday Weekly. To make it interesting, maybe we'll play for a couple bucks per person and a few random prizes.

Meet in the soccer field parking lot. Hope you can make it!

Come check out MA's newest course!

Hole 14: No Match For A Brush Hog!

Hot damn! And I do mean hot damn. Yesterday's workday was brutal in that 90-degree heat, but not as brutal as it could have been without T.M.'s chainsaw and monster Gravely Brush Hog. Man, that thing was awesome!

T.M. picked a great time to drive up from Rhode Island to help us out since we were working on the baddest hole on the course, a 320+ uphill mofo with lots of saplings and brush to clear. T.M.'s Hog whipped through that stuff like butter and the fairway looks amazing. Definately the nicest-looking hole of the course so far. I appreciate your help, T.M. Power tools rock.

David, Matt, and Rob also braved the heat for several hours dragging branches here and there, cutting limbs, and doing some weedwacking. After working for about 6 hours, we called it a day and TM, Rob, and I played a round. Not some of our best golf, but we made it through...

Words for today: aching, dehydrated, sunburnt, leg and arms of lead.

BTW, join us for our first Wednesday Weekly, July 19, 6PM.

Upcoming Devens Workdays

Come out and help build the course! We are almost done but need a few more people to pitch in. How about YOU?

• Wed July 12, 6PM: Steve and I will be moving cut trees into one big pile on holes 13 & 14. Play follows.
• Sat July 15, 9AM: T.M. is driving up from RI with chainsaws and other tools of destruction. Many hands needed to drag stuff away. T.M. is a pro tree guy, so we should whip through the course. This is great news. Thanks T.M. Play follows.

Hope to see you non-GHDGO players out there. We are SO close to getting phase I done. Thanks!

- John

Back Up the Hill We Go

I started hole 14 over the weekend and it's going to be a doozy. After three or four downhill holes you have to head back up at some point and now is the time. You'll definately have to use some course management on this one. Weenie (or smart) arms can layup and big arms can go for it but risk off-roading in the woods.

BTW, you can blame Matt Stroika for stretching this hole out. It was his idea! Thanks for coming out to review the course, Matt. I appreciate the suggestions (and compliments too).

On Monday, SteveB and I played a round at Borderlands and picked up the four loaner baskets. Thanks guys!

I'll probably head over there this weekend and continue on 14 if anyone wants to help. Lemme know.

Say Hello To Disc Golf, Devens!

After a slow start on Friday evening, our disc golf demo exploded at about 7:30. All of a sudden we had people everywhere and discs were flying in every direction. It was great to see and thankfully no one got bonked in the head!

There were a bunch of kids and their parents and even a few random people that wandered over to see what was going on. Most people seemed genuinely excited about this "new" game and were filled with questions and comments like, "Yeah, I've heard about this thing. Cool." Almost everybody I talked to wanted to know when the course would be finished and wanted to be sure we let them know. So, that was nice to hear. We even collected our first $13 in donations.

Many thanks to Rob and Steve Walker and Steve Berthiaume who brought their baskets and discs for all to use. Thanks also to Mark Mudgett who donated a box of used discs and a t-shirt to the Club and lent us a basket to use even though he couldn't stay. Mark had a prior commitment but wanted to help out anyway. What dedication! :) Mike Connell went above and beyond donating a buttload of new plastic (and I'm talking NICE new plastic), some minis, stickers, and a t-shirt. Wow! Thanks very much, Mike! And thanks to Brian's wife for bringing over some snacks to keep us going.

All in all it was a fun evening that reaffirmed my belief that disc golf is here to stay at Devens!