Pros:
This is a newer 24 hole course set on the roomy St. Johns County Fairgrounds. Ample parking is available and unless you find yourself on the course when an event is happening on the fairgrounds you'll virtually have the place to yourself. The course itself gives you the feeling you're actually playing two different courses, the front 12 and the back 12. They almost have two different personalities and it adds a little variety to the overall experience. There are virtually brand new Discatcher baskets on all 24 holes. Between the divide of the front back 12 you'll find a pretty cool custom color practice basket. There's plenty of room quick warm up. All of the baskets are still in great/new condition.
Based on the land available there is a generous mix of lengths and shot types. Other than the later mentioned flow, the designers did a pretty good job with the land available. An elevated basket on hole one adds a bit of variety although it's too bad it wasn't saved for later. A couple of pronounced doglegs and few blind shots are mixed in as well. There are at least one or two holes that push towards a par four.
While the front twelve is still a work in progress, it appears that the back twelve, which actually feels like a mature course, is maintained well. Everything on that side was clean and in tip top shape.
Cons:
Even though there's a fair mix of hole lengths, the course still feels very repetitive. Basic flat holes with lightly to moderately peppered mature pines, palms, and hardwood trees are fun but you can grow tired of them after a while. Beyond a few standout holes, there's just not a lot of variety.
The first twelve holes play across a newly soil filled flood plain and it has a "playing across a landfill" feel to it. There is no ground cover and the grade is not as smooth as you'd expect a course to be. Overall the course including the back 12 just has a very industrial feel to it. The highway, dirt roads, fences, and other distractions take away from an otherwise relaxing round.
The flow of the course is less than perfect. Ideally, the last hole and the first hole should be at least somewhere close. The last hole leaves you with either a long walk back to the car or creatively finding a way to make up a few safari holes that make the walk more enjoyable.
Finally, there are many amenities missing from the course. The tee pads, being natural, are not bad on the back twelve but the first twelve still need work. No tee signs, no benches, and other missing amenities will all be noticed as well.
The practice basket is far enough away from any parking and hole one that I doubt it will ever be used for its intended purpose. It probably gets used more a 25th or 26th hole as you make up a couple of holes to bring yourself back to the parking lot.
Other Thoughts:
Kudos to the designer and course installer. I'm told he came out of pocket for the baskets. That's a pretty remarkable contribution to the disc golf community. I'm sure the course will continue to grow and improve as time goes on. I can't wait to see it in a few years after the first twelve are broken in and some disc golf love from the locals starts to show. After I proofread this review I wondered if I made this course sound worse than it actually is. It's really not too bad. I actually had a pretty fun time out there. I drove about 30 minutes from where we were staying and I didn't regret the drive at all. If you're in the area give it a shot for sure. Enjoy!