San Francisco Disc Golf

Disc golf review: our local course.

You can play disc golf in San Francisco, in Golden Gate Park. Local volunteers have created a fun and challenging disc golf course in the park.

What is Disc Golf?

Disc golf is an odd hybrid, golf crossed with frisbee. The course is laid out like a golf course, with players starting at a "tee", then throwing their discs down a long narrow stretch between the trees, and ending with the disc being thrown into a basket at the flag pole.

Players keep track of the number of throws they make throughout the game; the lowest score wins.

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The Golden Gate Park Course

This 18 hole disc golf course was created entirely by volunteers in 2007 and is maintained solely by volunteers as well. I talked to some of the regulars and they told me that it's a very friendly group of people playing here and they welcome newcomers.

The woodland setting is delightful. The course winds through the tall forests of Golden Gate Park, which also makes it rather exacting for beginners.

If you're a decent frisbee player, disc golf shouldn't be too hard. It is tricky, though, to keep it straight down the fairway; plenty of trees are waiting nearby to snag your disc!

This was the first disc golf course in San Francisco. It's free to play, open to the public, and no reservations are necessary. 

The only other disc golf course in San Francisco is the one at McLaren Park, built in 2017. This one shares a course with the Gleneagles Golf Course, so the playing times are more limited, and it's a private course, so you have to pay to play.

For those of us who aren't so hot at frisbee, we spend a lot of time fishing the discs out of the bushes. I think it's a 2-stroke penalty to move your disc back to the fairway. Rats. But it's still a lot of fun.

Practical Tip:

Bring more than one disc per person; my son lost his disc around the 6th hole, so that was the end of the game!

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Hours and Fees

There are no fees! It's always free to play disc golf here.

The course is open whenever Golden Gate Park is, which is generally 5 am to midnight. The course isn't lighted, however.

The course is closed occasionally for maintenance, usually on the first Saturdays of the month during morning hours.

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Disc Golf Equipment

This is a bring-your-own-equipment course. Fortunately, all you need to bring is one or two discs per person.

Disc golf has become more popular recently, so the discs are easy to find in most sporting goods stores, and Amazon of course, and run around $8 to $20 each. We got the cheapest ones and they worked just fine.

The plastic discs are like frisbees, just a bit thicker and heavier. And little smaller than a frisbee.

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Rules of the Game

This is played a lot like regular golf. Players start at the tee for each hole, then throw their disc towards the "hole", which is a suspended metal basket at the other end of the fairway. You make your next throw from where your disc landed.

Golf etiquette applies; the player furthest from the hole throws first. Don't throw if another player ahead of you is within reach of your throw. Remember to shout "Fore!" if it looks like your disc may go astray and get too near another player. There are more details posted at the first tee.

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Location of the San Francisco Disc Golf Course

The course runs between JFK Drive and Fulton Street, just east of 30th Avenue in the western half of Golden Gate Park.

The easiest access is to enter the park on 30th Avenue, off Fulton St, north of the park, and turn left on JFK Drive.

There is plenty of free parking on JFK Drive, where the course begins at the first tee at Marx Meadow. (This is the section of JFK open to cars.)

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Tournaments and Events

For more info, including tournaments at the park, check out the SF Disc Golf Club's site.

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More to explore in the park...

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