Tee to Green - Lime Bluff Recreational Area - Part 2

Welcome back to part 2 of the first entry in my Tee to Green series! This week, we are finishing our look at Lime Bluff Recreational Area. If you haven’t checked out part 1, make sure you go do that before reading this section!

Below, we will be picking up the hole breakdowns on the back 9 of the course. If you don’t remember, this course was one of the first I ever played and the first course I was exposed to truly competitive disc golf at. I made some incredible friends and learned what it meant to be a Wind Wizard. Let’s dive deep into the back 9 and see what it has to offer!

 

Hole 10 – 309 feet – Par 3

Hole 10 acts as sort of an introduction to the back 9 of the course in both a literal and geographical way. The back grouping of holes 10 through 15 runs along a small stretch of land and are packed pretty close together, making for tighter out-of-bounds lines and higher requirements for good shots. The tee shot for this hole isn’t super complicated. The basket sits on a partial mound that acts as an elevated tee pad for future holes. This elevated basket location adds additional pressure to the drive, forcing players to want to get closer to avoid the uncomfortable putt uphill.

Aside from the elevated basket, there isn’t too much that is complicated about this shot. At only 309 feet, most players are able to get this one close. This should be a pretty straightforward par. My play here is to either swing it wide with my Tesla or attack the basket directly with my Ice Squall. This is definitely a hole that I’m not happy to walk away from without the birdie.

 

Hole 11 – 495 feet – Par 4

I know what you might be thinking. A par 4 at under 500 feet? That must be pretty easy on such an open course. The answer is surprisingly, “No”. There are a few things that lend to this hole’s difficulty. The first is that the entire left side of the hole is marked as out-of-bounds which is set to protect the adjacent fairway as well. What accentuates the difficulty here is how the tee pad is placed and positioned. Sitting along the thick rough on the right side of the hole, all angle to the right is cut off which almost forces players to throw something understable. I’ve seen so many people walk up to this one for the first time and hyzer out of bounds left because the tee pad is subconsciously forcing them to throw there.

Let’s say you make it off the tee and keep it in the fairway. The next problem you have is that there are a number of trees in the middle of the fairway, forcing you to play over, through, or around them. This presents a challenging second shot that will have you searching your toolbox of mechanics to get right. I’ve seen all manner of shots work here. Plus, with the basket tucked into the side of the fairway, it is legitimately possible to throw your disc 15 feet from the basket and still be in a 2-putt scenario.

My play here will always be some sort of midrange or Zone shot to place myself in a position to either go over the trees with a thumber or through them with a second placement shot. If I take a par on this hole, I don’t feel like I lost much to the field, but a birdie can feel pretty great, considering the minute difficulties that can lead this hole to turn disastrous for some players.

 

Hole 12 – 407 feet – Par 3

If you thought the last fairway was tight, you would be rather dismayed to know that the next one is tighter still, with out-of-bounds lining both sides. What makes this worse is that it’s a par 3, forcing you to be a bit more aggressive with your shots to avoid the bogey. The tee shot forces one of two distinct lines. You can either choose to play the forehand or turnover. The biggest issue here is ensuring your disc makes it back into safe territory. If you don’t come back at all, you went out very early and re-teeing might be your best course of action. This route can definitely get you further down the fairway, but it’s very dangerous.

The other obvious route is the hyzer up the right side. This isn’t as dangerous, but it puts a serious cap on your ability to cover distance. Most tee shots taking this line will end up only about 200 feet up the fairway, setting up another rough hyzer around a tree but with less distance to give you a better angle. While this tee shot gives you a safer route to staying in the fairway, it doesn’t leave you with a great second shot.

There is, of course, one other option off this tee pad. As they say, “There’s always a gap in the sky”. My play is to go with a thumber off of the tee pad and play the short basket. This sets up a pretty doable turnover or shorter hyzer to approach the basket. The other play I have seen is the gigantic Simon Lizotte-esque sky hyzer. When executed correctly, this can get you way up the fairway. When executed poorly, this will get you a 3^rd shot from about 100-feet up the fairway, hoping you can save a par.

 

Hole 13 – 429 feet – Par 3

Here is another long par 3 that will pressure you to keep it in the fairway and play your angles. For those of us who cannot throw 400 or more feet, you’ll want your drive to play with the out-of-bounds on the left side of the fairway which will open up the angle on your second shot to approach the basket. There is a row of trees on the right side of the fairway that will severely cut off that angle if played with too closely.

The approach to the green isn’t too treacherous. There are sporadic trees to deal with, but nothing too complicated. The basket hangs on a pole, making for a slightly more intimidating finish, but the biggest issue to avoid is leaving your upshot long in the brush behind the basket. My play on this hole is either a Zone to the left side of the fairway or trying to cut off more distance with a midrange. From there, a baby thumber or Berg shot to the basket will suffice.

 

Hole 14 – 398 feet – Par 3

We reach the end of the back side gauntlet with this hole. Standing at about 400 feet, this is the 3^rd par 3 in a row with a very difficult distance requirement if you want to even sniff a birdie. The out-of-bounds line runs along the left side of this fairway, keeping it narrow once again. On the right side of the fairway is the wood line. I’ve seen my fair share of discs go into that wood line and never be recovered until weeks later. If you don’t intend to go for the birdie on this hole, you really need to think about your drive placement.

The short basket is positioned behind some guarding fence that sits high enough to be obstructive to throw over. Additionally, there are trees around and behind the short basket. This makes the approach to the long basket difficult because of the forced upward nose angle and angle requirements. You can mitigate these problems by throwing from the left side of the fairway, where a baby hyzer angle opens up, but that puts you dangerously close to the out-of-bounds line. Tread lightly here.

The final difficulty of this hole is the basket which was placed on a beautiful wooden pedestal. My play here is pretty simple. I’m playing for the short basket and dealing with whatever I’m dealt. I consider myself to be a pretty consistent scrambler, and I would rather try to manufacture an upshot than deal with being out-of-bounds.

 

Hole 15 – 652 feet – Par 4

The longest hole on the course can be quite deceiving. If it wasn’t for the tee shot, this hole would be two straight distance shots and not be that concerning. What makes that not possible on this hole is the lane of trees you have standing before you off the tee pad. More specifically, it’s like 1 single tree in the middle of the lane. If you decide to go up the gut, you have 1 tree to miss, but if you hit it, you leave yourself with 500 more feet to play through. If you kicked to the left or right, it might be an obstructed 500 feet. If you don’t want to mess with the lane, you can choose to throw to the left off the tee pad, but doing so will add unnecessary distance to the hole.

I’ve seen the lefties really shine here. Wink. Wink, Skip. You can also throw a turnover or power forehand. You can even throw a roller if that suits your fancy. The name of the game on 15 is make it past the lane of trees. From there, it’s simply open distance with a couple small trees and a hanging basket. There is an out-of-bounds corn field on the right side, but you need to do something wrong to be there.

My play has always been to throw the gap. If you hit it, birdie is available. If you don’t hit it, par is still very doable. If they just cut down that one tree…

 

Hole 16 – 391 feet – Par 3

Are you noticing a trend of near-400-foot par 3’s? The back 9 on this course really benefits the big arms and requires us normal folks to keep consistent with getting pars. For this tee shot, you are throwing for distance, trying to put yourself at the proper angle to approach a basket that is tucked into a small section of trees. There are only a few things to avoid here. First and foremost, don’t hit the large tree that guards the short basket. That will put you in a bit of an awkward position to approach the green.

Secondly, don’t turn your drive over in the wind and end up in the cornfield. That would not only give you an out-of-bounds stroke, but it would also place you in a pretty horrible position to approach the green. If you’re a monster, throw the big hyzer and watch everyone wish they could do it. If you’re a normie like me, throw something straight that finishes left and enjoy your 75-foot upshot.

 

Hole 17 – 398 feet – Par 3

This is one of the more iconic holes on the course because of the wall that guards the basket from the long tee. Lined at the top with old minis from back in the day, this monument stands as a reminder of the course’s past. Sitting at just shy of 400 feet, this par 3 isn’t the hardest hole on the course, but the wall creates an artificial barrier, causing many players to leave their upshots too long or too wide.

An out-of-bound road lines the right side of the fairway, keeping you from going too wide into other tee areas and fairways. There are some sporadic bushes and trees in the fairway that keep you from throwing just any shot off the tee, but keeping something in the fairway isn’t too difficult. The key for hole 17, if you aren’t bombing for the green, is to throw something that pushes up the center and finishes left. This will give you a better angle into the green and allow you to visualize your upshot better than being in the very center.

My play will always be to get as much of this hole on the drive as possible. I’ll follow that up with a careful upshot over or around the wall, hoping to keep it close. Although, I can never walk up the fairway without making some kind of joke or comment that throwing your upshot through the window in the wall gets you one stroke off your final round score.

 

Hole 18 – 396 feet – Par 3

Surprise. Surprise. Another near-400-foot par 3. This course loves pushing the envelope off the tee pad. Let’s be honest though. Who doesn’t love throwing bombs and seeing how close you can get to the basket? That couldn’t be more important anywhere else on the course than on hole 18. There are a few trees to contend with and an out-of-bound path on the left. The key is to push your shot as far as you can due to the importance of your upshot.

The final basket of the course rests atop a grassy mound that keeps the basket at what feels like 10 feet in the air. It’s an incredibly intimidating putt to have to finish your round off with. This is where your upshot comes into play. You need to put your disc at the base of that mound to give yourself the best chance to finish with a par. Trying to land on the mound is possible, but it usually results in a rollaway of at least 5 to 10 feet. You need every inch of that.

What happens when you miss that putt, and your putter is now sitting at 25 feet on the opposite side of the mound? Are you running that putt? As you can imagine, those unwilling to surrender to the mound can sometimes take some pretty big scores on this hole. What I love the most about this mound is that no matter what your round looks like or how close the competition is, leads can be lost, and rounds can be won on that mound. Bogey isn’t looking so bad now, right?

 

Conclusion and Course Thoughts

Lime Bluff Recreational Area is a fantastic course at being whatever kind of challenge you want it to be. The short layout is super scorable and fit for all skill levels. The long layout pushes the boundaries of your distance, asking you to be incredibly accurate at 375-400 feet. In the back 9 alone, the average par 3 distance is 389 feet. One of my favorite ways to play the Bluff is to flip a disc at each tee pad and see what layout you’ll be playing.

Whoever designed this course was definitely thinking about players at all levels and prioritized the joy of getting birdies with the short layout and the joy of flight with the long layout. The best part is that the course continues development to make its layouts more enjoyable and challenging at the same time. My good disc golf friend, Erik, has talked about some improvements they are looking to make at the course, and they all sound incredible.

If you have ever played at the Bluff, you just know that it’s an enjoyable experience every time. If you haven’t played there, I would encourage you to make a stop next time you’re in the Williamsport, PA area. You won’t be disappointed. The best part is that the course is pretty quick to play if you’re looking to get a round in without a lot of time spent. However, you can also connect with some incredible people and become an honorary Wind Wizard.

Have you played this course before? What do you think about it? What other courses would you like to see me breakdown? Would you be interested in seeing these courses reviewed in video format? Let me know in the comments!

 

- Gary Daddario III (www.thumberlife.com)

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