• Discover new ways to elevate your game with the updated DGCourseReview app!
    It's entirely free and enhanced with features shaped by user feedback to ensure your best experience on the course. (App Store or Google Play)

Champaign, IL

Dodds Park DGC

Permanent course
2.755(based on 8 reviews)
Filter course reviews

Filter reviews

Filter reviews

Dodds Park DGC reviews

Filter
13 0
Nate32
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 10.8 years 75 played 60 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 13, 2022 Played the course:once

Pros:

Dodds Park DGC located in Champaign, Illinois is a lovely park equipped with disc golf, baseball, playground, soccer etc. Dodds Park would be my dream park for field practice since it's so massive. I don't have any parks this large where I live. This park really captures what I think of when I think of the midwest.

Dodds Park DGC is a well maintained park with lots of different activities going on at once.
- Great Innova Discatcher baskets and spacious concrete tee pads. Large fairways and lots of room to throw long shots. You're definitely going to need some drivers for this course.

Interestingly enough there is a large US Olympic Committee Monument of some sorts near hole 4.
-Lots of hazards on most holes offering players a challenge. Each hole is pretty straight forward so it was nice to see that they mixed it up a little bit with having the hazards come into play.

As this is a multi use park, they seem to keep it in very good condition. Most of the holes play in the open field area with little obstacles, but holes 5, 6, and 7 play through a little bit of woods.

This is a great place for practicing distance. You won't really need very much technicality on this course, but it's a great place to practice distance throws. You shouldn't have to hard of a time getting around but I would recommend taking a picture of the map near hole 1.

Cons:

Dodds Park can get pretty busy, especially on a nice summer night when I went. I ran into lots of people walking through the paths. On hole 8 especially I had to wait for quite of a few groups of walkers to pass through.

There isn't a big wow factor to this course. It's pretty flat with no elevation change at all. All the holes look decently similar as far as uniqueness. All the holes are straight as well. No dog leg lefts or rights which is a shame.

Other Thoughts:

If you're in the area I recommend stopping by. I had a very enjoyable sunset round. It was nice to see they have multiple pin locations to offer for some more variety, as this course doesn't have a lot of it.

Dodds Park is in a good location near some major highways. Amazing spacious parking lot. Overall I enjoyed playing here. The course upkeep is phenomenal and it checks all the boxes for hardware.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 0
Maxrosen
Experience: 26 years 44 played 5 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Learn how to play some wind... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 11, 2015 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-18-holes with nice, big concrete tee pads
-nice, big DisCatcher baskets (I like these a lot, especially in windy conditions
-barely anyone on the course or using the park in general. I played during the week around 4pm on a windy day and saw 3 people
-good mix of headwind, tailwind, sideways winds
-utilizes the small amount of elevation available in Illinois
-creek in play on about 1/4 of the holes brings a little more challenge to the course
-some nice, mature trees on course making some shots technically challenging
-pretty easy to navagate hole to hole, especially without any signage

Cons:

-if it's you're first time at the course, it's a little difficult to find the first tee--not well marked or marked at all
-no signage on the course... It looks like stuff used to be painted on the tee pads at one point.
-I would definitely like to see distances posted on a sign by the teepads
-had to throw hard every drive-- not a mixture of technical and open--be prepared to throw it far if you want to get a decent score

Other Thoughts:

I have now played this course twice. The first time I was unimpressed and didn't think this course was much of a challenge. I went back yesterday and played in 20-30mph constant winds and it changed my outlook on everything. Holes that were easy to park the first time now required way different shots and disc selections. It was pretty much an Innova Star Max for the head winds or a Innova Blizzard Boss for the tailwinds for me.
I was pleased to get some practice in the heavy winds, it's definitely a part of my game I want to work on. So if you are someone who is a beginner or even AM1/AM2 player, trying I manage this course on a windy day--expect to learn some lessons, because I know I did.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
7 0
MidwestZest
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24 years 103 played 73 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Dodds 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 27, 2015 Played the course:once

Pros:

- Open, multi-use park setting that plays around a baseball complex and near a soccer complex.
- Very well-manicured park - which means cleanly mowed, pruned trees, and clear fairways.
- Ample parking.
- Great, brand new Innova Discatchers.
- Wonderful tee pads - installed nicely, and perfectly roughed up for grip.
- Practice basket splitting the difference between 18's basket and 1's tee (although it's installed a little low into the ground.)
- Pretty good use of vacant parts of the park without much activity.

Cons:

- No kiosk or hole signage at all. Surely could be easy to miss holes 5-6-7 if you didn't have a map the first time through, which I nearly did.
- Probably very windy here quite often.
- Not a ton of elevation for the course designers to work with.
- Trash cans all over the park...but none located on the disc golf course.
- Lots of fairways are installed close to each other or overlap, which could be a problem. Particularly if it's windy. (3-4, 10-11-12, 15-16)
- Some tee pads are very close to other fairways (5 in 6's fairway, 9 in 8's fairway). These were a little disappointing from a safety aspect.
- The creek that runs along the length of #12 is surely a major disc-eater. It certainly provides a challenge, and requires some active strategy for players on how far to push their luck on where they cross over the creek. Unfortunately, it's packed with cat tails, which could make finding a disc ridiculously hard.
- Played a lot of spike hyzers instead of what looked like the intended line. (1, 2, 6, & 11, in particular).

Other Thoughts:

- To local players, I would best describe this course as a sister-course to Maxwell Park in Bloomington/Normal. Very similar styles, shots required, scenery, and wind conditions.
- The addition of good signage would probably push this course up to a 3.5 for me, which is probably around its max, considering a few of my safety concerns, and the available trees and elevation to work with.
- Glad that Chambana finally got a full 18 hole course! It's been a long time coming.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
6 0
wjgray2
Experience: 19.1 years 92 played 2 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Dodds Park is finally here! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 16, 2014 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

-The course presents you with a good mix of shots off the tee with backhand and flick lines open on all holes.
-There is some risk / reward on a few holes with out of bounds in play. Esp. with sidewalks (on and over) as out of bounds.
-Course offers a variety of short birddie oppertunities (if you can get around the trees) balanced with longer holes.
-Excellent concrete tee pads. One or two were slightly slanted, but overall they are well constructed and spacious.
-The two pin placements on every hole make the course play much differently. In most cases they are not just longer versions of the "A" placement, but are entirely new lines.
-Good use of the available land features. There is not much topography change in east-central Illinois, but the little there is on the property has been incorporated into the design. The creek/weeds come into play on a few holes and will eat your disc if you go in it.
-Nice brand new Innova DISCatchers

Cons:

-Deep weeds along creek will eat stray shots. You are lucky if you find your disc!
-Long walk from Hole 18 to Hole 1 / the parking lot.
-Course can get a bit congested on nights when they have softball games

Other Thoughts:

The course plays on the outskirts of a softball complex among the available trees and along a weedy creek. There is a sidewalk that winds through the park and a street that boarders many holes. Playing pavement as out of bounds increases the challenge and is encouraged!

This is the best course in Champaign Urbana and the surrounding area.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Top