Jefferson Barracks Park
Jefferson Barracks Park Disc Golf Course:
St. Louis County
Designed by: Jerry Bayse
Re-designed by David McCormack 1996
Installed 1992
Tees: 4’X12’ concrete.
Baskets: 18-DGA Mach III
Par: 54-57
Course record: 42 in the easiest and 47 in the long.
Jefferson Barracks or JB as its known locally is the St Louis Homey course. Located just 25 minutes from downtown St Louis off Hwy 55 in a national cemetery park. There’s rarely a time, rain or shine, that the parking lot here is not full of cars. We have a Sunday nooner, which is a $5 random draw doubles and 3-9 week cumulative leagues that run in the spring, summer and fall on Tuesday night.
This 18 hole course is designed in and out of the mature 200 year old hardwood trees with lots of sloping greens and medium elevation changes on almost every hole. The 1 tee 3-4 pin placement style design which is common with all St Louis County courses is perfect for changing this versatile course from a beginner friendly recreational course to a very competitive tournament lay out. All fairways are very fair and there are usually at least 3 or 4 big trees to negotiate on every hole. Most holes are pretty straight forward but, you may want to grab a scorecard at the kiosk, as the course meanders back and forth over the road, in and out of the trees.
I find this course to be one where many types of straight flying shots are required with different release angles. The precedence here is landing the disc on the green in order to have a good putt for bird. The difficulty on this course is on the greens and almost every single pin and putt is from a sloping, undulating terrain. A player with a hot putter can easily go way under on most layouts, but if your putting is shaky, expect to bogey by 3 putting or just lay up for your par and move on to the next hole.
Its hard to pick one hole as a signature hole as there are so many that look so cool, but I would have to go with Hole # 3 in the B placement, which plays through large trees on the left and right and over a sink-hole of heavy woods. The basket is in between 2 medium sized trees on a sloping uphill angle with a drop off behind the hole as well.
If you like park like course where you can make birdies and don’t have to worry about losing your disc, JB just might be your best bet when in the ST Louis area.
Directions: Illinois – Take 255 across JB bridge, Exit Telegraph Rd. North. Missouri – take 270 until it changes to 255, exit Telegraph Rd. North. From Telegraph Rd. North – Follow Telegraph, keep right when Telegraph splits off and the road becomes Kingston Drive. After passing a string of apartment buildings on your right you will come to South Broadway on the right, turn and enter park. Keep right through stone entrance way. Follow this road until first right, this will lead you up a small hill to the course parking lot.
