Teeboxes - big, beautiful paved boxes. I had no problem getting a full run up on any hole. At 6'4", that's uncommon.
Elevation - Obviously there's going to be some elevation change in a course called The Canyons. A couple of holes have massive drop offs: 50-100ft! A couple really fun holes here.
Signs - The signage is good (not great). But given the layout (see below) it would be impossible to play this course without good signage.
Variety - With 2-3 boxes and 1-2 baskets on each hole, there are a lot of choices.
Pro shop - Any course with a pro shop is a solid addition.
Trails - There are paved trails, well-maintained gravel trails, and lovely wooden staircases to help players get around.
Landscaping/Maintenance - The course seems to be lovingly maintained with mulch around most (all?) of the baskets, the aforementioned trails and staircases, clear teeboxes, and many, many more signs of a loved course.
Friendly folks - Due to the crisscrossing nature of the course, I ran into quite a few people. All of them were friendly and a couple even pointed me back in the right direction.
The greens - Besides the mulch around the baskets, I found most of the baskets to be well-guarded by some combination of trees, elevation, or water. A well-guarded green makes for exciting putts, and forces players to become better. This was my favorite part of Canyons.

Options: This was a big one for me. More isn't more. I had read that there were a lot of combinations, but my jaw dropped when I opened up Udisc. There are *twelve* non-tournament layouts on Udisc. That's 9 to 11 too many layouts, in my opinion. This feels like a real barrier to me, as somebody who comes here about once a year. Knowing the course as a local is certainly a normal thing, but you shouldn't need to be a local to make sense of which combination of holes and baskets to choose. I ended up playing 1 - 18 in order and picking the combination that I thought looked like the most fun.
Layout: This is related to "options." I'm no stranger to courses that have longer walks between holes or courses that have confusing layouts. Typically it's worth it because the course designer has built a series of good to excellent holes that instantly make you forget about the long walk because you're so busy either admiring the hole or deciding what to throw. This was not the case here (see below). At Canyons, I got lost a couple of times even with a map and even with occasional help from locals. That's insane.
Course design, Field holes: I was very disappointed with the holes here. If this is a top-tier course, it should have, at most, one field hole. Even being generous with the definition of "field hole," I counted 5 separate field holes.
Course design, hole layout: I found most of the holes uninspiring, even boring. The lines were loose, and most straight ahead. The elevation and the well-guarded baskets were the only thing that saved the design for me. And, frankly, I felt like the elevation could've been put to better use. There were no real dog legs to speak of. There were a couple of par 4's, but they were just "throw it far twice" and not strategic lines that reward shot selection and execution.

Here's where I speculate what kind of a player I'd be if this were my home course (played 2 - 5 times a month). I think my putting would be solid. The mix of well-guarded baskets and open baskets would create ample opportunities for high pressure putts. My mid-range game would be good. I threw a roc or buzzz off the tee for many of the holes. My drives might be big but largely inaccurate. The forgiving field holes wouldn't force me to be careful with my throws, though I would be able to practice them. I think my accuracy overall would be hurt, there are almost no tight lines on the course.

Ultimately, this course does not live up to the hype that I've read in the reviews. As somebody who travels a lot, all over the country, this course could be a lot better. My guess is that this course is the cream of the crop for the courses in the immediate area. Players' reviews are skewed by what else is "on the menu." They've likely grown accustomed to the convoluted layout and by mixing up which boxes and baskets they use, the course feels fresh to them each time. I don't think Canyons is a bad course, but I do think it's overrated. I'd like to see a simpler layout, continued good use of elevation, greater use of the water (only a minor threat on a few holes), and things like par 4's that require hitting landing zones and not just two long throws.

-makes good use of the creek that runs through the property
-wood chips in non-grassy areas and paths
-excellent signage
-good mix of open/long vs. shorter/wooded
-short pins/tees as well as intermediate and longs
-some very memorable/signature holes
-lots of extra facilities like bathrooms/water/clubhouse

-2 parts of the course (9 holes?) are only accessible via standing rocks in running water. I guess these are low-water condition holes? This design is mind boggling to me. Have to assume that bridges are in the plan but maybe not budget
-course navigation doesnt make sense at times; runs you back and forth to get to some holes
-safety can be an issue with holes over paths, tees behind other,shorter tee positions. Park is busy with non-disc golf traffic

This is a 3.75 course currently, and with some changes would be 4. I think sometimes 20+ hole courses could be a greater 18, as is the case with this 27. Course seems very new and manicured, but am curious what will happen over time with a lot of foot traffic and erosion. Some holes may not be built to last.

New course with a variety of shots needed to score.
Great Mach X baskets
Teepads are large and perfect
Signage is a huge plus especially for a new player to the course such as myself.
The park layout with a creek winding thru it provides a great scenery of bridges and wildlife.
Course is new and while I was playing park employees were cleaning up debris and I could tell that pride is taken in this landscape.

Many long walks between holes
Several easy 250-300ft holes from the "whites"
the long 500ft holes were in the open and didn't take much of a challenge to score.

Please make sure to park in the south entrance to save some walking...therefore if you're coming from the north, turn at the second entrance.
Overall I enjoyed this course and would rank it #1 of the Joliet area courses.
It's worth the trip and keep up the good work!

- Sharp, clear signs
- Very new course, looks like. Wood chip trails and etc

- way too much water. Granted, a guy told me it is not normally as high as the two times I've been here, so I'm going to try it again soon and update here. It was like brown-water rapids when I went. Had to really fight to get my disc back from the depths.

There was a huge highschool running event going on here last time I went. Hundreds of runners. None were in the way of my shots, this is a well-designed course.