By Stephen Dethrage
Tuscaloosa has quietly become one of Alabama’s best disc golf destinations, with five 18-hole courses in or near city limits that range from wide-open, beginner-friendly layouts to a private, pro-level course designed by a two-time world champion. Whether you’re bringing a full bag on a disc golf road trip or just want to throw a few rounds between other West Alabama adventures, here’s where to play.
A few ground rules before you head out: most Tuscaloosa courses are free and open dawn to dusk, but always check in on current conditions before you go, respect posted rules at mixed-use parks, and pack out anything you bring in. The last course on the list, Cactus Rock, is privately owned and only open for play on limited weekends.
Ol’ Colony Disc Golf Course
401 Old Colony Road, Tuscaloosa, AL 35406
Ol’ Colony is a classic course beloved by the Tuscaloosa disc golf community: an 18-hole, par-59 layout that opened in 2014 on the grounds of the Ol’ Colony Golf Complex, sharing space with the ball-golf course next door.
Designer Brian Thompson routed the course through a mix of open field shots and tightly wooded holes, with enough rolling elevation to keep things interesting without wearing out beginners — most holes run under 400 feet, with a handful of longer 400-plus-foot tests mixed in.
Because it sits on golf-course property, Ol’ Colony comes with a few extra perks: concrete tee pads, DISCatcher Pro baskets, on-site restrooms and drinking water, and access to the clubhouse snack bar (a collared-shirt dress code applies on the ball-golf side).
One thing to know before you go: Tuscaloosa County PARA has announced plans to relocate the disc golf course from Ol’ Colony across Union Chapel Road to Munny Sokol Park, citing a lack of restrooms and parking near the current layout and safety concerns from errant throws near parked cars. PARA says it will transfer the existing baskets to the new site, but hasn’t set a firm timeline, so it’s worth a quick check with PARA before you make a special trip.
Bowers Park
2101 Bowers Park Drive, Tuscaloosa, AL 35405
If Ol’ Colony is Tuscaloosa’s flagship, Bowers Park is its free-to-play crown jewel. Opened in 2003, this 18-hole, par-55 course is carved into steep, heavily wooded terrain that regular players describe as feeling more like a hiking trail than a golf course — expect real elevation changes and tree-lined fairways from tee to green, with a mix of concrete, turf, and dirt tee pads along the way.
It’s rated a moderate difficulty overall, but the hills add up over 18 holes, and it’s not a good fit for anyone with limited mobility.
The tradeoff for the workout is scenery and shade and a gorgeous creek running throughout as long as there’s been enough recent rain, which makes Bowers a favorite for players looking for a more immersive, forest-course feel than Tuscaloosa’s flatter layouts offer. It’s free to play, dog-friendly, and has restrooms on site.
Palmore Park Disc Golf Course
3701 Fosters Ferry Rd, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401
Palmore Park is Tuscaloosa’s most beginner-friendly full 18, and it’s built that way on purpose, with mostly flat terrain, so the course relies on out-of-bounds lines and tree cover rather than hills to create challenge. That flat, open layout also makes it an easy walk for families or groups with a wide range of experience levels.
What sets Palmore apart is its four separate tee options on most holes — Red (beginner), White (short), Blue (long), and Gold (pro-level, with holes stretching past 900 feet). The baskets are newer Innova DISCatchers, and multiple pin positions per hole keep repeat rounds feeling fresh. Palmore is also built to host tournaments of 100-plus players, and PARA rents the course out for event play.
The Hangar at Bobby Cardinal Park
7325 Robert Cardinal Airport Rd, Tuscaloosa, AL 35473
Tucked next to Tuscaloosa Regional Airport, The Hangar opened in 2021 as an 18-hole, par-54 short course designed by Todd Bryant, Tyler Fields, and Matthew Yaeger. It’s flat, open, and cart-friendly, with grass tees and Mach VII baskets. Course players describe the setup as beginner-friendly without being easy, since accuracy still matters even without big elevation changes to navigate.
The setting is pretty striking, too, with the entrance at Bobby Cardinal Park marked by a retired U.S. Air Force T-33 jet on static display — a fun landmark if you’re trying to find the course for the first time. Most holes play in view of the airport’s control tower and taxiing aircraft, so it’s common for small planes to take off or land nearby during your game.
It’s free to play, and dogs are welcome, though there’s no drinking water on site, so bring your own.
Cactus Rock
Off Port Mayfield Road, Tuscaloosa, AL (private course — advance scheduling required)
Cactus Rock is the outlier on this list, and it’s a tough course to get to, much less play. The final stretch into the course runs down unpaved roads in deep woods that, in my experience, GPS apps like Google Maps lost track of, so confirm directions with the course directly rather than trusting your phone the whole way.
Once you’re there, the course doesn’t ease up: it sits on steep, relentlessly hilly terrain, the layout is long even by disc golf standards, and finishing 18 holes can mean many miles of hiking and elevation. In Alabama summer heat, the course will test you regardless of how many rounds you’ve played.
The 18-hole course opened in 2024 on land Nick Williams and his brothers bought themselves, after Williams grew frustrated hauling out to public courses that weren’t kept up. Paul McBeth, the two-time PDGA world champion, designed the course alongside collaborators over roughly half a dozen visits, and Nick Williams says the process was trial and error:
“The first time out, we’d just add a basket, a flag, a tee pad. We’d basically cut out the most basic path, like a four-wheeler trail, then every time they came back, he’d flag more trees and we’d kind of just peel it back.”
The course transports players out of anything that feels like the other local courses, save maybe Bowers, with creeks and towering cliffs along the 18 holes. The course’s rustic bridges and staircases — built by a friend of the family using post-and-tenon joinery instead of nails — are homegrown work too.
McBeth’s friendship with the property’s other owner, Chicago White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease, is what turned a modest weekend project into a championship-caliber course.
“We said go big or go home,” Nick Williams said.
Williams says the long-term goal is to make Cactus Rock a regular Pro Tour stop within four or five years, likely paired with Olympus, a sister course McBeth and Cease also own near Brooksville, Florida, built into a former limestone quarry.
The course offers three sets of tees — a “Shorts” layout (par 63) for recreational players and two much longer, harder pro layouts for advanced and professional players.
It’s currently ranked among the top 100 courses in the country on UDisc, with a 4.9-star rating. There are usually portalet restrooms on site, but in Summer 2026 Williams said they were between providers. Dogs are welcome on leash, and there’s no drinking water, so bring plenty, especially in summer. Play is scheduled and limited to certain dates; players need to book ahead. It’s cash-only: $10 to play, $5 for a non-playing walker.
Plan Your Trip
With five 18-hole courses inside a short drive of each other, from Ol’ Colony’s classic mixed-use layout to Cactus Rock’s championship-level design, Tuscaloosa is an easy add for any disc golf itinerary through Alabama.
Pair a round with a paddle on Lake Tuscaloosa, a hike in one of the area’s wooded parks, or a stop at one of the city’s bars, breweries or restaurants to round out the day.
About Stephen Dethrage: A lifelong Alabama resident, Stephen Dethrage is an avid outdoorsman always looking for his next spot to kayak or hike. He is also the founder and editor of the Tuscaloosa Thread, a free, hyperlocal news website.
