Pros:
- Foundation Park, home to both a championship quality 18-hole course and a significantly easier 9-hole course, provides an awesome example of park-style disc golf done the right way. The "beginner" 9-hole course, while accessible to beginners, will still provide some challenge even for more experienced players. The holes are all relatively short in length (even from the natural grass blue tees), but with two sets of tees and two pin positions, there is enough variety here to keep things fresh and interesting through multiple rounds.
- Concrete pads at the red tees and markers in the grass for the blue tees; both are in fine condition, as it seems the blue tees see minimal wear and tear. Signage helps with distance, and the very basic shape of the hole, but the details are scant. With the shorter hole lengths, this doesn't create as much of an issue as the lack of detailed signage does on the 18-hole course. Next tee signage, trash cans, and a course map at the parking lot are all sufficient and well-implemented.
- Variety and scale. For a nine hole course, Foundation brings it. At no point throughout the round did I feel like I was playing a park-style niner. The scope and design of the holes all seemed to be at the same level as a full-blown 18-hole course, which is encouraging to me as I live in the region of crappy Chicagoland park-style 9ers. There's enough challenge and variety here to satisfy most discers, even if more skilled players will be playing "deuce or die" golf. A good balance also exists between wooded and open, with semi-open shots coming in to play (e.g., #'s 1 and 5). A couple of large pines surround #7's pin, creating a tricky approach zone.
- Water comes into play nicely on #'s 2 and 3. Enough of a hazard to put a bit of a scare in you, but easily avoided if your discs stay on line. The creek plays to the right for both holes. Gently rolling elevation throughout adds enough up and down to keep this course from being flat, but there's not enough to warrant a "moderate" designation.
Cons:
- The tee signage, while mostly sufficient, lacks some detail and could be upgraded to have more detailed/accurate maps of each hole.
- Concrete pads would be a nice touch at the blue tees, but the natural tees didn't detract much from our round. I could see them being more of a con in rainy/muddy conditions.
- The tee signage indicates whether the pin is in A or B position; however, the signage did not seem to match the pin positions. Either the hole maps were inaccurate or the pin indicators weren't set correctly (I'm leaning towards the later).
Other Thoughts:
- I really enjoyed my round here. Enough of a challenge to provide a solid warm-up for the adjoining 18-hole monster lurking across the road, but also accessible enough for beginners or lesser players. This would be the perfect course, in my mind, for a family that wants a leisurely walk in the park while also getting in their dg fix. Although Foundation 9er does a great job accentuating the 18-hole layout, it is solid enough to stand on its own, any day.