Top Disc Golf Courses In Denver

Deanna Stevenson took this photo in July 2011 of her husband, Brian, playing disc golf at the Sundance Trail Dude Ranch during the second annual Red Feather Lakes Open. She wrote "This was at hole #10 and he did make the putt!"We know the Front Range has some nice disc golf courses and that the mountains offer some unique terrain, but we weren't sure where Colorado stacked up in comparison to other states in terms of the disc golfing scene.

So we took the question to the source -- the Pro Disc Golf Association's International Disc Golf Center in Georgia. Jason Allind, the IDGC's superintendent, told us that Colorado falls somewhere in the middle when it comes to the stats -- number of courses (officially 87), number of pro events (18) and number of PDGA members (285) -- but when it comes to reputation it's "probably in the Top 5."

"Having mountains gives opportunities for lots of courses," Allind said. "Colorado has been pretty well known for courses and the caliber of events."

Allind referred to Aspen's Kiss the Sky tournament as one of the country's best, one that gets lots of touring players. For playing in and around the Denver area, we recommend:

Conifer Community Park at Beaver Ranch

11346 S. Foxton Road
Conifer, CO 80433
conifercommunitypark.org

The PDGA's Allind told us there's been a running argument between Colorado and California in terms of where the sport of disc golf originated. While that argument will likely continue long into the future, courses like Conifer Community Park are the kind of places that'll get you hooked on the sport for life -- the kinds of places where the pioneers of the sport several decades ago knew they were onto something good. This 20-hole course in a beautiful park in Conifer is a blast, with holes that move over ridges and up and down pretty hills, and there are trees everywhere. It's a great course for experts, but beginners will probably find it to be great fun, too (as long as they don't mind all those double bogeys -- or worse -- that will likely show up on their score card).

Badlands DG Course at Camenisch Park

W. 90th Ave. and Camenish St.
Federal Heights, CO 80260
pdga.com/course_directory/course/badlands-dg-course-at-camenisch-park

Badlands is an 18 hole course with some trees, some nice hills and a pond. This fun course is in Federal Heights, located in Camenisch Park, right next to Water World. On a recent visit our group nearly lost a disc in a tree on the sixth hole and then watched as some folks repeatedly landed discs in the yucky pond on the 12th. Warning -- this isn't the kind of water feature where you'll willingly jump in after your disc if it goes for a swim. Camenisch Park wasn't that well maintained when we were there, either. But it's a good, challenging disc golfing experience.

Bird's Nest Disc Park

18125 64th Ave.
Arvada, CO 80007
arvada.org

This course on 64th Avenue in Arvada will take you a while to walk. It's got some long holes and some small hikes between holes. It's well designed and the Jefferson County Open Space park is for disc golf only (how cool!) We definitely don't recommend going when it's windy, and there aren't any water features, but if you're a disc golfer in the Denver area this course is a must-do. Bring plenty of discs -- our party lost one in the seemingly ubiquitous scrub during a recent visit.

Loomiller Park

11th & Sumner
Longmont, CO 80501
ci.longmont.co.us

This short nine hole course in Longmont is a treat -- it's easy to get to and near some fantastic post-disc golfing watering holes (The Pumphouse, Oskar Blues Home Made Liquids & Solids). It's also easy to lose discs in the pond, so either bring your sharpest aim or just bring a bunch of extra discs. The pond is big. It's located on the east side of the rectangular park and comes into play on several of the holes. There's a practice tee near the first hole, located on the north side of the park on 12th Street. While you're playing watch out for residents walking dogs and children playing in the playground.

Disc Golf at Matney Park

5790 Lantern Cir
Castle Rock, CO 80104
crgov.com

This 18 hole course features some wide open fairways and limited variety of terrain. According to online reviews it's got a nice mix of uphill and downhill holes. The tee boxes and signs are nicely maintained, and the Castle Rock folks have a nice scorecard to go along with a course map online that you can print out.