Springfield, IL

Lincoln Park - South

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3.775(based on 31 reviews)
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Lincoln Park - South reviews

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10 0
aren
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 25.4 years 98 played 14 reviews
4.50 star(s)

An Updated Look at Lincoln South drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 7, 2022 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Up front - this is my home course and I've had input on designing some holes. I'll try to be as objective as possible, but this course really needs an updated review considering all of the changes in the last couple of years.

- As of Nov. 2022, there are now tee signs and Mach X baskets that replaced the nearly 20-year old Mach IIs

- There is a good mix of wooded and park-style holes throughout that challenge your entire bag. The red tees are a solid introductory course, but the blues really do offer a good challenge. A 54 would be about 1000-rated.

- New tee and pin locations have been added to a handful of holes in recent years to give added variety and challenge. Hole #3 received a complete rework with two new pin positions and clearing of rough. Holes #1, #2, #6, and #11 have added either new pins and/or tees in the last couple of years for additional challenge.

- For as little elevation as there is in central Illinois, Lincoln Park South does have some and makes good use of terrain. And there are multiple pathways to reach several of the holes - #9 is a great example. You can throw directly to the basket, but over the road nearly the entire way, or there's a wide hyzer shot that's much safer, but tougher to reach the pin.

Cons:

- This is in a public park, and a few holes may have non-golfers in the same space. Hole 15 can certainly present problems as new benches often have pedestrians within circle 2 on the weekends. While I love hole #4, the blind tee shot runs parallel to a road many pedestrians walk on.

- Additional amenities like benches and trash cans near some tees would be nice.

- There are some signature holes (#4, #6, #13)... and then there are some holes that get you to and from the signature holes. While some of these "transition" holes (#5, #14) have been better carved out, there are a few holes that stand out a bit as not meeting the same standard as the rest of the course.

Other Thoughts:

Lincoln Park South is an outstanding course, but a few lackluster holes and the close shared space with other activities keep this from being a top score. While there is another course on the north side of Lincoln Park, this one is the clear favorite with great use of the woods, elevation, and the upgraded amenities.
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2 1
Illinois-sidearm
Experience: 13.7 years 44 played 7 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Needs Signage 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 20, 2019 Played the course:once

Pros:

Brilliant layout. Great mix of short and long, straight and dog leg holes. Shady for hot sunny days.

Cons:

With the tricky lay out on some holes, the course desperately needs signage throughout. Would have been much more enjoyable.
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5 0
Brig4209
Experience: 12.3 years 33 played 3 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Signs...heard of them? 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 20, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

*One of the best courses I have ever played, deserved a rating of at least a 4.5, but i will get to that below.
*Multiple tee pads, great use of terrain, challenging (but accessible) pins, multiple angles of attack on each basket.
*Just overall a great course and cannot wait to go back.
*2 courses in one park is awesome as well, I played both in one day.

Cons:

*I would love to hear the reason the city has for no signs at either of the 2 courses in this park, I take that back there was one sign, and it had a "layout" of the course, but didn't tell you which of the 2 courses it was for. *Not a single sign on any hole, I don't know how many times I walked the fairway before a throw just so i could have some idea of where the basket was, and knowing distance would have been a huge help as well.
*It would also be helpful to add disc golf -> to the entrance way signs. Got lucky and found one course, wasn't until hole 3 that i was confident which course I was even on.
*Trying to find the next tee was an adventure too. They have these little markers on some of the basket sleeves, but a lot of them are missing, and still weren't that great.

Other Thoughts:

I honestly believe that if the powers that be at this park put just a little bit of time and effort into that course, seriously just add course maps at hole 1, then some tee pad signs, and markers at the baskets leading to the next tee pad. They do just this and this becomes one of the best pair of courses around. Would be the perfect place for tournaments.
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2 4
pianocomposer
Experience: 27.4 years 21 played 21 reviews
4.50 star(s)

Best course in Springfield 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 5, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Well layer out and challenging at any level. Elevation changes. Nice mix of open and trees. Perfect for tournaments.

Cons:

Some shots may interfere with park lovers. May be too challenging for beginners.

Other Thoughts:

Was my home course for 8 years. Ppl from out of town love this course but also hate how hard it is.
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2 6
donny vomit
Experience: 12.8 years 18 played 8 reviews
3.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 12, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Best course in spfld

Cons:

Worse course in spfld for signs ,no par numbers , or footage distances, and grass management.

Other Thoughts:

Love this course, but the reluctance to put down signage well just sucks.playing here since last Feb. And still don't know what par is for this course on the holes them selves. Don't go by the sign by no#1 that sign was several designs ago. Other than the signage and no par#s this is the best course in town hands down.
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7 0
steven2361
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.5 years 286 played 55 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Sweet Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 3, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Multiple concrete tees and good signage here. A great variety of lines and distances on this course with some fun elevation. Hole two has an interesting down sloping fairway to the right. 4 is such a cool par 4. It is a placement shot down a hill through a gap and then a short approach over the fountain pool to the green with an up sloping back stop. 5 is a short, fun uphill hole. 6 is a cool downhill par 4. First you must hit the tight gap heading downhill. Then to get to the green for a birdie putt you must navigate the fairway that slopes towards the ob road with a treacherous basket placement atop the slope. 9 is a cool downhill shot with the fairway as a peninsula surrounded by an ob road. 10 is a tough birdie as the fairway goes way uphill making the hole play much longer than its listed distance. 11 is a fun par 4 where you can rip a drive off the tee and then a have a challenging low ceiling shot to a protected green that sharply drops away behind the basket. 14 is a super tight tunnel shot through the woods. Once you get out of the woods the terrain drops away and then slopes back up to the green.

Cons:

Some holes lack interest for me like hole 3, a short dogleg left with no good line. 12 is a boring straight shot or a flukey skip shot left when the pin is over there. 15 is a short hole with the basket in a tricky position on the slope on the right. The green is cool but the drive is boring. 17 is a boring open straight shot or big hyzer.

Other Thoughts:

Much better course than the North course in the same park.
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9 0
Shade Seeker
Experience: 20.3 years 111 played 10 reviews
4.00 star(s)

A True Gem 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Dec 13, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

This is my home course and it is a true gem! The setting is beautiful with elevation you wouldn't expect in the heart of the prairie. The park is filled with mature oak trees. There's a lovely lagoon and even some woods.
There are concrete tee pads on all tees, with 2 or 3 tee placements 12 of the 18 holes. There are at 2 basket placement positions on nearly every hole.

The signs are pretty basic. The map at the first hole pictures the old course so isn't much help with navigation, but the tees and baskets are numbered and there are "next tee" signs at the bottom of each basket. There are no benches devoted to the course but the course maintenance is outstanding. The layout takes great advantage of the terrain, although you are nowhere near the parking lot after playing #9 and have quite a walk to your car after #18.

Most of the holes have multiple lines to the basket and there is a good variety of short and long holes. The course favors RHBH players a little bit, but is fairly balanced. There are some challenging risk-reward decisions on several holes, with an road OB on #6 to make you think about your drive and approach to the side-slope basket. Baskets on #14, #15 and #16 are also posititioned on tricky slopes. The course is very fair, with no reliance on lucky shots execpt for the #3 hole through the woods from the long tee.

There are several "wonder holes" at Lincoln South. #4 is a beautiful, downhill dog-leg right with woods on the right and the lagoon looming dead ahead for long drives that don't make the turn. It's my favorite hole on the course, especially when the basket is positioned at the alternate spot across the lagoon. This postition requires a decision about whether to lay up or go for it, and four mighty oaks and deep water add to the risk. Unfortunately, this position is rarely utilized. The blue/white tee on #6 demands a downhill tunnel shot through the woods, follow by a tricky, side slope approach shot. #11 is a long hill-top hole that calls for a long distance drive followed by a low, controlled second shot to a basket on the "edge of the table" and another risk-reward choice. #14 is a phenominal layout through a tunnel in the woods, across a small valley to a basket perched on a hillside in the woods beyond. The lagoon lies downhill on the right for the full length of the hole. Getting a 3 on this one always feels like an accomplishment.

Cons:

One con of the course is that the basket positions aren't changed very often. For the most part, you either get the long or the short positions all at once. It would be great if they could mix it up a bit, but I shouldn't complain if I don't want to volunteer. The other major con is that the lagoon does not really come into play except for when #4 is set to the "tournament position" mentioned earlier. This is a Park Disctict decision. There used to be a nice shot over the water but they installed some waterside benches in the fairway which forced a move of the hole. I guess when you're sharing a park with other users you can't have everything, but one can't help but to fantasize about a ridge-top tee in the woods above where you could rip one out of the trees and over the water.

Other Thoughts:

I love this course and I tip my hat to the Springfield Park District and the Springfield Disc Golf Club for creating and maintaining 2 great courses on this property. In my opinion, Lincoln South is one of the best courses in Illinois.
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5 0
JohtoVillage
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24.6 years 160 played 74 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Fun but Dangerous 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 3, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

The South course has some really neat holes with great elevation, great usage of the park, and beautiful scenery. Multiple pin placements were a nice addition for the most part.... Hole 4 is a beautiful left to right, sweeping downhill hole with a pond coming into play. Hole 6 is a huge hyzer hole playing back up the hill with out of the bounds road to the right. Hole was an interesting hole bordering a neighbor's yard with a tight green. 10 was a tough uphill hole with out of bounds way left and 11 was a monster par 4 with a low ceiling green. 13 was a very unique hole with a nice hyzer drive - the hole required you to hit the landing area and then throw downhill about 150 feet into a protected green with out out of bounds road long. Then it got real interesting.....

Cons:

Hole 14 needs some serious work....this was simply a brutal brutal hole. Not only was the fairway incredibly tight, but the hole was simply unfair. No hole should be over 550 feet with that type of fairway. After this hole things became extremely confusing. We found tee pads that indicated hole 15 which appeared to be a hole over the pond....but it turns out those were old pads and the tee was over the pond and the basket was back into the woods. 16 was a dangerous shot so close to the road, and felt eerily like the North course: long, with a low-ceiling shot and no defined fairway. Hole 3 was also extremely odd....it looks to be a brand new hole but there wasn't really a fairway on the hole. It was just 180 feet of a hyzer-woods shot with a brush/shule/woods all around. Some of the holes had concrete pads while others didn't. In addition, while I typically like a course that has some options via multiple pin placements.....there were way too many pin placements on the course and it became confusing which pin we were playing towards. In addition, while I typically like a course that has some options via multiple pin placements.....there were way too many pin placements on the course and it became confusing which pin we were playing towards. Some of the distances painted on the concrete pads seemed to be a bit confusing.

Other Thoughts:

All in all, this was a fun course. There were some really memorable holes and I did enjoy the course. If not for the danger factor I would give this course a 4. If I knew that smart players were the only ones to play this course (and would watch for cars and pedestrians) I would have no beef with this course. But the fact remains....this course has some dangerous areas. I would change my review to a 3.5 if holes 3 and 14 had widened fairways and the tee situation on hole 15 was remedied either by moving the old concrete pad to the new tee area or removing the old concrete altogether so people weren't confused. If you are curious...I would rate the North Course 2.5 stars based on the fact that a lot of the holes had the following characteristics:
1) Low-ceiling shots
2) No real defined fairway
Its okay to have low-ceiling shots, but a majority of the holes required a low shot. Also, a lot of the holes seemed to have no true fairway....just had trees in the middle with some type of route. Hole 2 is the best example: 400+ foot hole with an apparent route right up the middle between the two oaks, but when you pass the two oaks you are literally throwing into a bunch of small saplings that cannot be considered a fairway.
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4 0
smyith
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 23.1 years 218 played 68 reviews
3.50 star(s)

The Challenging Course 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 3, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

- Red/White/Blue tee pads, some shared
- Multiple pin placements
- Very challenging layout
- Lots of risk reward
- A few risky greens especially #4, #11, and #14.
- Shot placement and smart play are a necessity
- Many true par 4s
- This course is a little more removed from the rest of the park.
- Lots of other activities at the course, including the water park.

Cons:

- This course is in need of some serious tree trimming!!!! Low hanging braches everywhere really destroy the lines. A few holes with this feature are OK but when they are an overwhelming feature it becomes a bit much.
- The cement tee pads are nice but they are not level with the ground around them. making timing-steps and run-ups not safe. Worst part is the longest holes have the worst issue.
- No descriptive tee signs. Lots of walking the fairway to find the hole.
- Water (personally i am not a fan of water OB. losing your disc to OB is lame. A permanently marked OB circle is just as effective and no one loses a disc. (not holing against the course)
- Holes #3, #5, and #12 are stupid. there are no real lines at the basket. Chuck n' pray holes.

Other Thoughts:

**Played in the 2011 Mother Lode on the Mother Road from blue tees**
The South course is far more challenging than the North. Shot placement and accuracy are very important to score well. This course will really test ADV players and provide a good challenge to PRO players. I would say True par from blue tees is around 57-58, with holes #4, #11, and #14 being true par 4s. Holes #6, #13, and #18 being par 3.5.
Hole #4 is a tricky beast. The pond next to the basket is nasty. Choice and execution are essential for good scores. Not many birdie opportunities so get them while you can.

This course is a 4 disc layout. But... there are some things that seriously take away from its quality. They could easily be fixed/improved.
First, hole #3 ranks in my top 5 for stupidest holes ive ever played. the line from the tee doesnt complete go to the basket. you have to count on your disc crashing through and getting "lucky".
Second, holes #5 and #12 are clear Chuck'n'pray holes. There is no true line at the basket. Greens are overly protected and need to have some definitive line cleared. Also, those pillars on #5 would be awesome if you could incorporate those into the hole design.
Third, low hanging braches are insane. You are forced to constantly disc up to make the distances. Im 6'2" and walking down the fairway i was ducking under branches alot. You are forced to disc up constantly if you want to make the distances.
Forth, the tee pads on several holes are sometimes a couple inches above the ground. I personally like to take a couple of timing steps leading into my x-step. the teepads themselves are long enough for just my x-step. So i found myself catching the teepad edge often. the worst part is that the longest hole on the course, #11, was the worst culprit.

With that said, this is a fantastic course. I highly recommend this and North. I am truly jealous of those in Springfield with such great home courses.
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2 0
Redleg
Experience: 13.4 years 63 played 17 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Nooby on the course! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 27, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

Very Challenging course for a new player. Great location. lots of different placement of holes. Lots of long holes. Busy park but course is laid out so you do not have them interfearing with play very often.

Cons:

They were moving the baskets for a tournament and some of the holes were very hard to find and basket markers did not match holes in a few cases. I was told that once they go back to normal play it will be better.

Other Thoughts:

for a guy who has only played for 4 days total at this point. Great place to play!
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5 0
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.7 years 831 played 777 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Nice park course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 26, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is the more technical and hillier course of the two in Lincoln Park. There is more brush and woods in play to really punish errant drives, and a lot more holes with fun elevation changes. There are a couple fun downhill shots, and some tricky uphills mixed in. Most of the course plays through grassy park areas with mature trees, offering multiple lines and often a lower ceiling to contend with. A few shots play through the woods to add some tighter lines.

There is a pretty good mix of right and left turning holes here, it felt pretty balanced. There are long 'tournament' settings for most pins, and those also looked like they offered a great variety of lines to hit while adding quite a bit of length and difficulty. There is a good mix of lengths out here too, with a few longer holes where most players will pull out a driver, and lots of short to medium length holes that are reachable but only with a good shot.

The tees are mostly concrete, and are in nice shape. The few holes that don't have concretes yet will get them soon, so that wasn't a big issue. The tees are marked with nice posts that have the hole number and which tee you're playing, as many holes have alternate tees. The distance to the pin is painted on most tees, and there are next tee markers at the base of every pin.

Cons:

There are some navigation issues, even with the next tee markers. Some areas of the course have several tees and baskets close together so it occasionally takes some time to figure out where to go next. Some of the sections of the course felt a little repetitive, when you're using park style terrain it's difficult to make that different of holes at times.

The tournament pin placements looked like they would add a lot of fun and challenge, but they also bring roads into play quite a bit more and I don't think they're used all that often. The new holes in the woods need some work. They aren't cleared out, so they're just poke n pray type shots right now, and don't fit at all with the rest of the course.

Other Thoughts:

This is a fun course with some nice challenges, and especially with another course onsite it's definitely worth a stop. Beginners will find some length and some holes that are a little punitive of errant shots, but overall it's not too frustrating for newer players. More experienced players will find some nice challenges, with some rewarding birdie opportunities mixed in.
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8 1
harr0140
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 15.8 years 1512 played 480 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Redesign needs a redesign 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 6, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

1) 3 sets of tees, some overlapping between red and white and some between white and blue. Pick a color and play along! I like variety and options to allow for more people to be able to play a course.

2) Fairly beginner friendly because it is mostly open. Sure there are mature trees and there are the couple adjusted holes with tight wooded fairways, but for the most part, beginners shouldn't be too frustrated.

3) Colored stripes on the posts (grayish on the South) next to the tees help you find where you are going. The North course also has a different color post (blueish) soy ou don't end up crossing between courses unkowingly amd it would be possible if they were not numbered and colored.

4) Mach baskets with # plates facing the tees are always helpful.

5) Next tee indictor located on the locking mechanism. Its a good idea, and this is the first time I have ever seen that. It is up to the installer to make sure they are in the right spot, and if baskets are going in and out the person doing the work better know how that works or it will be a hinderance.

6) Very nice park with all sorts of activities. Playgrounds, bathrooms, and a whole lot of room to play.

7) #4 is just an awesome risk/reward hole. I threw a big anny and it made the turn all the way around and was headed to the frozen pond, but fortunately fo rme it hit the last tree and I was left with a 75' putt. I missed but to have a run at birdie on that hole was a great feeling and fun to execute.

8) Nice variety in distance and shot shaping. With the newer holes it also adds the variety by including tight woods shots (see cons also though).

9) Practice baskets were available by the parking lot.

10) Massive Oak trees always make for good disc golf because they are so wide but also because they have sprawling branches that force you to throw low too.

11) Map kisok at the first hole is helpful but has not been updated after the redesign.

12) Distances to the baskets are painted on the concrete in the back corner which is a good idea. It helps you decide which tee it is, without the chance of having tees vandalized.

13) Elevation and undulation are helpful to the fun factor on this course. There isn't a ton of elevation change but enough to make it fun.

14) Concrete tees are perfect!

Cons:

1) New Hole #3 is really odd. The red tee is no more than 80' to the basket and in uncleared woods. #5 is another new hole that uses the dense woods and needs more clearing. #11, 12 and 13 are all the same. If there were fairways that would be better but it seems unfortunate that these holes needed to be changed because it clearly neagtively impacted the course design.

2) Flow is grossly interrupted and we nearly got lost 3 or 4 times due to the new configuration. We apparently played #5 tee to #6 basket and then walked backwards to play #6 tee to #5 basket, then we were lost, but we eventually figured it out. Then we did it all over again on 11-13.

3) #18 is a long long way from the parking lot. It's not a huge deal, but I typically like to see the first and last holes ending near each other. Its simply worth mentioning, as long as the holes were designed the best way possible an issue like this can be overlooked.

4) Directionals would be helpful on the new holes for sure and in a few other locations. Having the #'s on the posts is helpful, but a sign would be better than those small next tee things on the locking mechanism.

Other Thoughts:

I would compare this course to Anna Page but the redeisign has really changed things around. It isn't wuite on par with Anna Page but it could be if some issues were taken care of.

This course was in a transition phase I think. I am not sure if the changed holes will be staying the way they are but some work needs to be done to make thos eholes acceptable. There also needs to be some clearing of the trees to make actual fairways. Signs need to be put in place to help and the distances need to be listed. I am doing an evaluation based on the current setup, but as soon as I hear things have been updated I will edit my rating and my review. I JUST DON'T WANT PEOPLE GOING TO THIS COURSE EXPECTING A 4 DISC RATED COURSE WITHOUT ISSUES. IN IT'S CURRENT STATE I GIVE THIS COURSE A 3, BUT IF THE ISSUES I HAVE MENTIONED GET RESOLVED, I COULD SEE IT BEING A 4 DISC RATED COURSE, ASSUMING THE NEW HOLES RECEIVE SOME ATTENTION. REGARDLESS THE NEW HOLES WILL MAKE THE COURSE FEEL DISJOINTED, BECAUSE IT OBVIOUSLY WAS DESIGNED DIFFERENTLY THE FIRST TIME. I LIKE VARIETY BUT I THINK THISJUST MAKES THE COURSE INCONSISTANT.

On a positive note, Abraham Lincoln's tomb is just a mile or so away. Check it out if you have a chance.

Outside of the new redesign, this course is solid and a lot of fun, so please take my issues with a grain of salt, there are still a lot of positives.
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4 0
Warrick1
Experience: 14 played 5 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Beginner's Perspective 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 25, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Tee pads and markers, although the markers were in the process of being updated to a new layout. Good baskets. Wide variety of shots and hole types kept the course interesting.

Cons:

For the beginner, this is a more challenging course than the north one. The course was going through some changes and a couple of holes were difficult to follow but that will be corrected as the course markers are updated. The course is more closed in on several holes with some thick woods and narrow, narrow fairways. A lagoon can cause problems on a couple of holes as well. I did lose a disc in the lagoon after it hit off a tree and landed in the water.

Other Thoughts:

This course seems better for the more advanced player. Less so for a beginner like myself and my wife. It is a really good course - very challenging. But if you are still new to the sport, play the north course. My wife and I enjoyed that one more as we had more fun and lower scores.
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1 7
eggmixer
Experience: 27.7 years 113 played 5 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Schweet Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 11, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

Beautiful Park
Nice concrete tee pads
Great challenge
Nice Variety of holes - distance, obstacle, OB


Cons:

Course layout still in flux - No map - really wasn't a problem at the time since we met up and played the 36 holes with the guys who are doing the new layout - there were markers at the base of the baskets that you could conceivably navigate by.
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7 0
uigrad
Experience: 34.9 years 36 played 13 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Great combination of variety and challenge 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 6, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

NOTE: Even though this review is dated as 2010, I have re-written most of it based on my play in August of 2011 :)

This course has a core group of local golfers that have really invested a lot. Most of the work has been done through volunteer time, by people that really care, and it shows.

Even though this course was probably a typical aged park course, the group has brought it up to modern standards. Nearly every hole has multiple tees and pin positions, and the distances for each combination (often 6 combinations) are printed on the concrete tees.

The distances for the holes covers a wide spread. The longest hole has a distance of 750 feet from the blue tee to the far pin location, and it doesn't even have wide open fairways!

Most of the holes offer multiple paths to the pin. Those who can drive precisely will have a nice advantage.

There are a lot of interesting features as out of bounds areas (lagoons, cliffs, fountains, and park roads), and plenty of amenities. Even with the cliffs and lagoons, the layout makes it unlikely that you will lose a disc to any of the hazards.

The thing that is truly unique about this course, though is the variety. Some holes are all about distance, while others are all about accuracy. The design for hole 5 made me laugh out loud today as we played it. It's clear that the designers very much wanted the course to have character.

Even thought this park has 2 full size courses, don't think that they crammed it into a space that is too small. You won't breeze through this course quickly. Expect semi-difficult terrain, and frustrating shots. If you are out of shape (as I am), you will probably be worn out by the time you finish it.

Cons:

The main disadvantage to this course is still the layout. The course was redesigned shortly before I initially made this review to make room for the new course in the northern part of the course. When I first reviewed this course, I spent a lot of time discussing the confusing nature of the course. Since then, the baskets with incorrect numbers have been corrected. 4x4 posts with tee numbers have been planted near every tee (previously you just had to guess). And the NextTees help you find the next hole.

Still, the map at the front of the course is incorrect. Some tee pads (such as #2) are angled incorrectly, so it is hard to determine which basket you are seeking. The tees do not have maps. And sometimes the tees can be hard to find (ie #15), and sometimes the baskets can be hard to find (ie #5)

The other big issue with this park is that there can be a lot of people. When I first played the course, I encountered walkers, kids on bicycles, playgrounds full of kids, and a group of LARPers that blocked some of the tees for hole 4. If you go on a weekday, this shouldn't be a problem. My second time playing was a Saturday in August, and this time, I had very little problem with nonplayers being in the way, other than hole 15.

Worst of all, for a multi-use park, there are a couple of blind shots. Sure, blind shots are fun, but with this many other park-goers, you just don't want to take the chance of hitting someone. On busy days, you may need to send someone ahead to spot pedestrians, or just skip some of the holes.

Other Thoughts:

The distance between holes and the confusion caused by moving things around are all associated with the plan to expand the park to 36 holes. I haven't tried the north course yet, but I think that the golfers in Springfield are extremely fortunate to have 36 holes in a single park.

My original rating (2010) was a 2.5, but I've raised it to a 4 now that the posts with tee numbers have been added.

As far as rating the Springfield disc golf community, I'd give them extremely high marks. Their website shows that they are very active, and they have a lot of experienced players will go out of their way to help newer players. Now that the city has three 18-hole courses, all with multiple pin placements, it seems like a great disc golf environment for the locals.

If you want to try this course now (before the numbers are fixed), check out the plan for the layout here: http://www.discgolfclub.org/S...sion_Kent.pdf

The .pdf was the plan used for building the modifications, so it may not be completely accurate, but it can help in a few places.
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6 0
cooktastic
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.1 years 113 played 15 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Mixed bag...potential to be great. 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:May 25, 2010 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

This is one of the prettiest parks I've ever had the pleasure of playing in. The park is very well maintained with such a variety of activities available there (playgrounds, shuffle board, horseshoes, ice rink, ball fields, and of course the 2 18 hole disc golf courses). The terrain on the south course is an ideal setting for disc golf with nice elevation changes, water, a few heavily wooded holes, a few more open holes, every hole has amazing big mature trees. The course has really nice concrete tee pads (multiple tees) and nice DGA baskets. Most holes have interesting multiple pin locations as well. It is a very difficult course with some really long holes with a couple shorter ones thrown in. Very nice mix of hyzer/anhyzer shots on this course.

Cons:

The course that is there is a very challenging yet fun mix of holes to play. Having said that...I have played the course twice (with two different layouts because of the new north course now)...and both times that I have played have been so frustrating because the signage is so poor. I was using a map off of this site and got so lost on the course. The tee's and baskets are not numbered correctly and the middle section of the course where multiple holes are close together are very hard to navigate (not knowing where to go). I didn't even play all 18 because I didn't know which hole was next and so forth...I just had to ignore the incorrect signage and guess which was the next hole. This is such an easy fix with some proper signage on the tees and baskets...AND some simple signs pointing you in the right direction for the next hole...I can't believe that this solution hasn't already been addressed.

Other Thoughts:

I REALLY like this course...but can't give it a higher rating simply due to the fact that the fun I had out there was so tempered by my frustration at it taking so long because I couldn't find my way around. This would be one of my favorite courses if and when this is addressed. Springfield is a great town with a good disc golf community...that is why it surprises me that they haven't made it easier for non-locals to enjoy this beautiful course.
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5 0
odysseus81
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 27.4 years 99 played 35 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Dazed and Confused 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 25, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

The park was made for disc golf---particularly the part that they put the south course on. I love the topography here. Wonderful elevation changes as well as large mature trees everywhere. Each hole feels like a separate challenge with no two holes feeling the same. Great concrete tee pads throughout. The course appears to be immaculately maintained by the workers there. The baskets were in very good condition (DGA Mach III's?). Tremendous challenge from all the tee pad's. The course definitely forced you to throw most every shot you have....although both the North and South park seemed to favor anhyzer lines from the tee pads we played; which is a bit unusual for most courses.

Cons:

This course could have been enormously fun, but instead I was just frustrated most of the time trying to figure out where the next hole was...and what hole we were even on. Recently, the second course was added to the park and they took a few holes from the old course and added them to the new. They then added a few new holes to the old course, but the result is total confusion for someone who has never played out there. I did have a current map, but it didn't help much at all. On most holes, the tee sign is blank or incorrectly numbered. Very few of the numbers on the tee signs match the numbers on the basket...and almost none of the numbers on either the basket or tee sign are correct at all. Because of those things it was really tough to figure out which pins to throw at. It is an easy fix...which is why I am surprised they haven't done anything to help that. Spray paint on the ground or trees, or putting some thing on the sign and baskets to indicate the new numbers would have easily eliminated my frustration an added a disc or more to my review score.

Other Thoughts:

This review might not sit well with the Springfield crew, but it is not meant to be a slight to them at all. It is a fair representation of what I experienced out there yesterday. I traveled 3 hours to play and had high expectations. The course could become one of my favorites if they can work out the flow/signage issues. All the pieces for greatness are there, they just need to help me make sense of it all=)
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1 5
ruzz2112
Experience: 24.4 years 13 played 4 reviews
4.00 star(s)

New Holes Configured May'10 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 2, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Best course in Central Illinois overall.

Cons:

BEWARE the course has changed. The new North course starts 1,2,3 as the old 16,17,18. Now 15,16,17,18 was 17, 12,13, 14. Somehow they inserted and juggled around 6-14.

Other Thoughts:

Need new map somehow. I've played this one +20 times and could not understand the new layout 6-14. Where is #14?
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5 2
ElementZ
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.5 years 221 played 209 reviews
3.00 star(s)

South Lincoln 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 6, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is a nice park and a lot of the holes were nice and long and interesting. It's a beautiful park and there were dozens of people here walking along, biking, and just having fun, so it was fun to be a part of it.
Multiple tees and pin placements are sure to make every round unique and enjoyable.
The Springfield community is just plain awesome. I love this city.

Cons:

I had two major problems with this park. About 80% of the maps on the tee signs were torn off which made it really hard for me to know what was going on. I figured it out, but it took a little bit of work.
The second problem I had is that the map given on this site and the actual hole #'s were off. I think they were right for the first 4 or so, but then they started getting inconsistent which made it hard for me to follow.
I had a very hard time trying to figure out the flow of the course while transitioning holes.
As mentioned, there were a lot of people there so hitting someone is an unfortunate possibility. Be careful!

Other Thoughts:

While you're here, definitely check out Lincoln's Tomb and play Douglas Park if you have the time.

Oh, and check out Springfield's Disc Golf Club's website

www.discgolfclub.org
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9 0
#19325
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 23.4 years 351 played 178 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Lovely Lincoln 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 3, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

The park is one of the best kept courses in Illinois. It has large cement tee pads and multiple pin positions. The fairways are always well manicured when i've played there.

It has some minor elevation and some unique holes. It does not have a lot of heavy rough or tight tunnel shots but it has enough trees to make it difficult. Roads come into play on several holes making some tough out of bounds.

Lincoln South has a wide variety with 3 sets of tees. SSA for the Blue tees was 55.21 and 44.06 for the red using results from the tournament this year. I am not sure what SSA is for the White tees but it would obviously fall somewhere between. This course will test every shot in your bag.
http://www.pdga.com/course-ra...?TournID=9479

I would absolutely love this course as a home course. You have many options with the multiple tees and pin positions. It's really fun to play and you won't have to worry about looking for discs. It's a nice stroll thru the park.

Currently Hole #3 is one of the most unique and best holes in Illinois. It's a fantastic par 4. There are 3 other really nice par 4's (#9, 11, & 14.)

Hole #17 is a really cool hole to. You throw across the pond with some tight road out of bounds on the left and woods to the right.

Cons:

There are a few areas where flow is an issue. Course directional arrows would help. This course lacks a few tight tunnel shots and rough. With the addition of the new 18 hole course on site 3 new holes will be added to the course and 3 average holes will be removed and used on the other course. I got a preview and will probably move this rating to 4.5 once that is complete. Those 3 holes should make this course play tougher too.

Other Thoughts:

Douglas Park is a shorter course but pretty fun to play. It's not far from Lincoln.

Springfield Disc Golf Club website forum is active. If you are looking for people to play with post there.

Check out my Illinois Top 10 list.
http://discontinuum.org/index...1486.msg68704#msg68704
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