A really nice collection of par-3s with good natural features.

-Amenities: Well, some of them. See Cons for more. Course kiosk with map, practice basket, concrete tees, red and blue DD baskets, next tee arrows on spokes.

-Natural Features: A great variety of features in play. There are tunnels, hills for tees, a river in play on seven holes, thick woods, and open fields. These come into play as fairways and greens, and they're what make this course stand above most par-3 courses.

-Navigation: The flow is very easy. It's not always easy to find baskets with the current state of tee signs, but an improvement upon these would result in super easy navigation.

-Shot Shaping/Gameplay: One of the most interesting loops of par-3s I've seen. Holes range from open to extremely tight, and in length from 200' to almost 400'. Water is a great feature when it appears, which is about a third of the course, whether as a punishment for going long, a punishment for turned over drives, or an eerie threat on the shortest hole of the course. The progression of the holes is a nice alternation of very thick woods fairway (which, while totally throwable, are also bogey chances on misfires) with sparse woods shots (requiring careful shot selection but power) and more open shots (that begin or end in the woods to add a great factor of difficulty). There are a couple of island holes, some ace runs, nail-bitingly tight putter shots, big lazy hyzers, and some tunnels that can send you OB instantly. Two of three holes, possibly more, would be right at home on a destination 4.0 course.

-Tee Signs: Easily the biggest con here. The tee signs have mostly worn off, which means no numbers, no distances, no pars, and no maps. It's really a huge shame, and the single reason Dillon isn't a 3.5.

-Park Hazards: Not uncommon. The road is in reach on (1), (2), (14), and (20), a dog park is to the right of (15), and a sidewalk comes into play on (19)-(20).

-Retrieving Discs: Should you find the river, the way in to disc retrieval is treacherous. Having waterproof shoes and/or extremely good footing will be important.

-Gaps and Rough: A handful of holes might pass the line of fun or fairness. (1) is a very difficult opener that probably starts many people over par with its tight tunnel leading to a left finish and perched basket. (9), (12), (13), and (19) deal with a lot of rough, and at least (13) will probably draw criticism for its tightness.

-Par-3: It seems hardly a con with the variety the course has, but in my opinion, gameplay is always better with a mix of multi-shot holes and par-3s. Dillon makes this almost feel like a non-issue, it's so engaging.

-Basket (9): On my second appearance, it had been smashed flat. Hopefully will get fixed.

Dillon is a really fun course. The par-3s are inventive and challenging, but definitely birdieable. The scenery is often enjoyable, and it provides a consistent fun factor that many courses don't have. That said, the tee signs are a big con, and hold the course back. On the whole, it's near the top of my Good list, and I hope it will get the money to replace tee signs and solidify its ranks in the Very Good. This one, along with Live Oak, make Sumter a nice place to come for a light day.

Has your wife/girlfriend ever gotten a new haircut/style that looks identical, but you're supposed to notice the subtled difference? Say hello to Dillon Park. It was redesigned, and yet it still felt exactly the same as the old layout.
- I liked the old layout of this course. You can read my old review here - https://www.dgcoursereview.co...&mode=rev#65160. And yes, you'll notice a lot of copying and pasting from that layout.
- From the blue tees, holes average 268 feet; from the reds you're up to 345 per hole. From the blues, you're throwing a lot of midranges off the tee.
- Course has a nice flow through the park. First five holes are in the same field, with a smattering of trees on each hole serving as the obstacles.
- I'd say #6 is the course's signature hole. Some may argue #8 or 16. #6 tees off from the road, with a slight downhill fairway over a winding creek along the left side of the fairway and thick trees/rough on the right. Hole opens up in the final third. Great hole to throw multiple discs.
- From #7 onward, the course is weaving in and out of the woods. Wooded holes are, overall, generous. As should be expected, the tightest fairways are on the two shortest holes - #13 at 154 feet and #16 at 140 feet.
- #8 has the same creek as #6 that winds throughout and alongside the left side of the fairway. The creek is much more of a factor here. Once you clear the creek on this 316 foot layout, the basket is tucked away in the woods on the right side. If you're short of the basket, the further left you are, the better angle you have. The further left you are, the more you bring the creek into play. Solid design.
- This is a good course for beginners/casual players. There are short tees for newbies/kids. It does take the water out of play on #6 & 8. On #16, it somehow becomes a 41 foot layout. Only a child can brag about an ace on that layout.

Despite a redesign, some holes still feel as if they're works in progress. #9 seems like it was one of the old, abandoned holes. Nope, it's still an existing hole despite it's overgrown, neglected look and feel. I wouldn't want to search for a disc in that rough. Lucky me, I had my best tee shot of the day, landing under the basket. So I got done fast.
- The course (blue tees) needs one longer, tougher hole. A couple par 4s or 5s would add just a little bit to this layout.
- I did notice some of the long, red tees. On a couple layouts, I looked for where they should be, and saw no sign of them. Glad I picked the regular layout and avoided that headache.
- Signage is still inconsistent. Less than a year earlier, apparently all holes had tee signs on them. In October '20, many were already missing. Glad I had an online map to help my navigation.
- Better signage between holes would be a big plus. After #8, there's an arrow pointing towards a path. You get to the path, and it goes two directions. Granted, it shouldn't take long to realize if you're headed the wrong direction. But, why not add additional signage here and in other spots.
- #15 boarders along the dog park. Any disc that sails right is in there. May need to use extra caution if the dog park is busy or be prepared your disc may become a chew toy before you get to it.
- I didn't notice a single bench on the course. The only trash can I saw was on #1, but there are several others in the park not too far from the course.
- The rough in spots is extremely thick. If you sail right on #6, you're walking through deep mud trying to spot a disc. Just keep in mind when throwing.

Overall, Dillon Park is a nice course. They got rid of a lot of the disaster, headache-inducing holes from the old layout. Even an average hole is a huge upgrade over a horrible one.
- #15 through 17 is the best stretch on the course. I think #15 is the toughest layout. A 275-foot dogleg right around the aforementioned dog park. From there, you're throwing to a basket maybe 25 feet in front of downward slope to a creek. Anything long and you're seeing a stroke penalty.
- #16 is a downhill, 140-foot shot to an island green. Creek runs along the left side. Not overly difficult. Just don't get aggressive and you should get your 2 here.
- #17 is good for the tee shot. Throwing over the same creek through a gap in the trees. Your basket is in the open, with a large tree serving as another obstacle.
- For the most part, aggressive tee shots will be rewarded, especially on the open holes. If you can navigate a disc around a tree, you'll see your fair share of birdies.
- Five years after playing the old layout, I played the new layout. It's still has the same bones as the old layout. It's still a good course, fun for the locals and others in the area. Overall, I enjoy this course. And for me, that's what's most important.

The redesign of the course was a necessity. Due to flooding and the inability to keep up with the old layout, a newer less difficult layout has emerged. The pros are that the course is maintained a lot more frequently. A variety of shots are required on this layout. I use forehand and backhand equally, as holes are balanced for left and right turning and dead straight. The creek is used on several holes in the fairway as well as near the green, making for some tricky death putts.

The course may seem too easy for some. Granted some holes are difficult par 3's (3,6, 8, 18) the rest are very birdiable. The course was changed to accommodate a burgeoning disc golf community. An advanced player could easily shoot 7-9 down. But harder doesn't necessarily mean more fun right?

There some real stand out holes on this course and some holes that are purposefully reachable for an easy birdie. For a beginner, this course will be challenging and a whole lot of fun. For an advanced player you will have fun getting birdies. Stand out holes are 1, 6,7,8,9, 13,16, (love throwing a big hyzer through the gap on 17) Hole 20 is an island but isn't marked too well. There is a drop zone on the path up by the basket if you dont hit the island marked by the path, the fence, the road, and flags on the left. Better tee sign are in the works for the future once the club can build some funds up.

-Concrete tee pads (Even have a concrete drop zone on one hole)
-Arrows posted for easy navigation
-Wide range of hole types.

-Still a little overgrown on wooded walk paths
-Tee signs are very small and moisture makes them hard to read.
-Some tee signs are missing from holes.
-Old tee sign posts look worse for wear.

Played the new layout for the first time Sunday. I will say it is much improved over the old layout. I will provide a hole by hole breakdown of the day below:

Hole 1: Tough little hole to start out the gate. Would it kill you to let someone get warmed up? Tough little left hand break with basket on a small bank. Decent hole here.

Hole 2: Tee sign says it is over water, but it was relatively dry when I played. Be careful entering hazard zone. Lots of cypress knees sticking up that would hurt if you tripped and fell. Several trees in line with narrow lane options.

Hole 3, 4, & 5: Not much to see here. Basic shots with a bunch of huge trees you have to dodge.

Hole 6-9: This is where it gets interesting. I would say these are the best 4 holes on the course and they are back-to-back. 6 was a long s shape flick for me. 7 is an awesome forced tunnel shot. 8 is a long flick to a hidden basket on a hill. (Really need to work on steps for the hill.) 9 is a short wooded flick for me. Only complaint is there is a lot of growth on trails at hole 9 that need to be trimmed. Cool holes though.

10-12 are basic holes you find on most courses.

13 is stupid tough to birdie with all those trees, but it is an easy par, so not bad overall.

14-15 are once again basic filler holes.

16 is a hairy little short island hole that looks simple but requires a lot of touch. Love the concrete drop zone (that I had to use.)

17-18 are more filler basic holes...

19 is very tough with a tiny hole to hit. I have decided to just layup here in the future and take a 3. Very tough hole with how it is currently cut into the woods.

20 is another basic hole to hopefully leave you with a better taste in your mouth after hole 19.

Overall decent course. It could use more cleanup, and I would say it still has potential. Clean up the tee signs, a little more trimming and cleaning. I look forward to playing the next time I am in town.

Also, FYI... the distances in Udisc do not match the tee signs.

9/28/20 Update:
Out of the 66 courses I have reviewed, this is where this course ranks along with similarly rated courses:
Rank-Course, Location
44-Broadlawn Park, Ardmore, OK
45-Alex Clark Memorial DGC, McKinney, TX
46-Lake Bistineau State Park, Doyline, LA
47-North Lake Park, Denton, TX
48-Sertoma Field DGC, Walhalla, SC
49-Dillon Park (New layout), Sumter, SC
50-Dacusville DGC, Dacusville, SC
51-Pauls Valley Flightline DGC, Pauls Valley, OK
52-Michelin DGC, Spartanburg, SC
53-Holmes Park, Greenville, SC