Pros:
(2.815 Rating) (REVISED - replayed December 2018) A sports complex course with a lot of variety.
- UNIQUENESS - For a par 54/55 course, the ChainDragon has wide range of hole types. There is water in the form of water carries, stop short of water and parallel water plays. There are pocket shots in both directions and there is a nice hooking left play on hole (4). There are wooded shots, open shots, blind shots and a couple tunnel plays. There is a great overhead play on (12), otherwise it's a poke and hope shot. They had added a par 4 (8a) in the summer of 2017, but it now rendered unplayable with the new ball field. If a game is not going on one can find it, by downloading the DGCR map, I tweaked the course map to show its location. Really the only thing missing is a par 5, placement doglegs and elevation (see cons)
- ACEABILITY - Numerous holes are aceable. You'll have exceedingly great opportunities on holes (1) and (11). I have personally aced holes (4) and (11).
- CHARACTER - A touch above average. To start, there is some seating at about half the holes. There are two tees for pros and ams at seven holes. The tees are all concrete or asphalt, with the asphalt paths being infinitely long. There are some trash cans along the layout as well. There are also restrooms and drinking fountains toward the ball field concessions buildings. There are several great shelters along the layout. Perfect for the summer pop-up thunderstorm.
- NAVIGATION - Improved since my first visit in Fall of 2015. An updated course map at hole (1) was installed in April 2017. Updated hole signage was installed in May 2017, and it indicates the next tee on them. Baskets have a painted spoke to indicate direction to next tee as well. The walk from (7) to (8) is the most challenging. Its across the street and west of the pond. The par 4 tee for hole (8a) is located across the street at the south side of the pond shore.
- MAINTENANCE - I've played over 50 rounds here and the grounds have always been mowed and the complex is very clean.
- QUICK PLAY - A single can easily complete a full 18 in about an hour. Groups of 4 should be in at around 2 hours.
Cons:
Two minor flaws with this course, and future concerns.
- SKILL LEVEL FRIENDLY - This is not a beginners course, even with the shorter length. The odds of losing a disc here is exceedingly higher than normal, especially for those that can't carry 250 foot water shots. Beginners are best to stay clear of holes (3), (10), (11), (13) and (14) or plan to go home empty handed. Get yourself a floater to be safe. I personally carried a Wahoo here from Innova and it floats.
- DUEL USE HAZARD - The park is home to more than disc golf. There are soccer fields, baseball fields and tennis courts that can come into play with an errant shot on five holes. However, myself as an Intermediate level player, only hole (9) really comes into to play for me as a safety hazard risk. That said, there is a possibility to be forced to skip a hole, or to have extended waiting at times. In my fifty plus rounds here as of this revision, I have only been forced to wait or skip a hole for the ball field hazards 3 or 4 times, all on Hole (9).
- ELEVATION - Really none to speak of. I know that this is typically for Florida, but this course is flat for even Florida standards. No more than 6 or 8 feet of change throughout the entire course, with most of it being at the retention pond banks.
- TEE SIGNS - Two issues. 1. Unfortunately the distances on the signage is off quite a bit on a few holes. For example hole (11) lists at 164, yet satellite correctly shows it to be about 30 feet longer. Hole (15) is another example which may be off by 30 feet, give or take. 2. The signs are becoming sun bleached and are deteriorating faster than I ever would have guessed. A couple won't be readable by the end of 2019.
- FINISH AWAY FROM PARKING - The walk back to your car after hole (18) is about 600 feet.
Other Thoughts:
The ChainDragon has slipped a bit as of recent. When I first showed up here in Fall of 2015, I would have scored this course a 2.5. With lot of improvements, the Chaindragon hit its peak in the Summer of 2017 and it was the was the highest course I had rated in area at that time. Since its peak, nothing has been added or upgraded and I actually think the course has taken a few steps back with my re-visit on Dec 31th 2018. It appears a lot of local energy is being directed towards DeFunk Disco and Anderson Pond, and so I now feel that those courses have eclipsed this one, as well as Ferry. Regardless, still a nice spin. Unfortunately not a great beginners course due to the amount of water hazards, but for everyone else it's definitely worth a look see if they live or are vacationing in the Fort Walton / Destin area.
- REVISION NOTES - I had been slowly been increasing my rating for this course from Aug 2016 till Fall 2017. There had been significant improvements in navigation with the new hole signage and the new course map. Additional concrete pro pads had been poured and a par 4 option with two additional tees had been added to hole (8), which I now play all the time. Benches had been installed at many holes as well. There's an alternate basket placement on (10) perches on the top of the pond bank mound. Holes (9) and (18) have complete alternate hole set-ups with alt tees and alt basket locations for tournament play. As stated above, on my re-visit in December 2018, navigation and beauty had deteriorated.
- DESIGN - I had to the privilege to work with amazing club president Josh Gallaspy to alter a few holes. Most notably hole (10s) alt basket placement to a risk reward elevated location and the design for (alt 8s) pro tee fairway design and tee location.
- UNFAIR CRITICISM - It has been noted in other reviews, unfairly criticizing the original designer for being lazy for not cutting into the adjacent pines areas. The entire course was built along the edge of the park boundaries at that time. The park boundaries have since grown. They are not allowed to cut trees greater than 3 inches.
- RAW BEAUTY - The raw beauty of the course is about average. The best part is the plethora of tranquil water features. The worst part is all the man-made park structures and ball field fences.