- Swinney Park has two 18-hole DGC loops straddling a large u-turn in the St. Marys River in downtown Ft. Wayne. A mixed-use bridge spans the river to connect the East and West courses. Along the steep riverbanks is thinly schuled patches of woods. To play both courses in one go 'round, simply take the bridge to cross the river when it appears. On the West course, after finishing hole #3, cross the bridge and jump on at hole #18 of the East course. If playing East first, after finishing hole #17, cross the bridge over the river and jump on the West course's hole #4. The river views from the bridge crossing are well worth it.
- Water spills and thrills here are above average on three points: sheer number, scenic aspect, and challenge. Nine water holes on both the East and West course for a total of 18 out of 36. St. Marys River is a moderate-sized river with a great vibe for discin' despite being in a fairly large city. The challenge here is sneaky. Sometimes the river lurks far in the background, punishing only egregiously wayward clunkers, other times it's front and center such as hole #17 on the East course with one of the fastest greens I've seen. Two of the best holes from a challenge factor are hole #'s 14 & 16 on the West course, which play over a small creek (not the river). Hit the gaps to make it over the water carry to protected pins atop wooded hills. Pure tastiness. West # 6's elevated peninsula green (with a muddy marsh pond surrounding it) is another standout in the H2O department.
- Elevation. Not a ton to speak of, but what is there is used to utmost potential. The drop-off to the river factors into a lot of holes. Hole #17 East has a quick hard drop-off to the river directly behind the basket, making it a real risky green. West #14 & 16 have some of the best elevation on the other course, as noted above.
- Adequate amenities: okay signage, tees, baskets. Flow & navigation makes sense, and the bonus 18-hole loop over the bridge at Swinney East is slickly executed.
- Swinney West has a couple of seams of elevation to work with, unlike the East course. Slightly rolling grassy areas come into play on hole #'s 1-9, 13, 14, & 16 - 18. A good mix of uphill, downhill, around hill, etc.
- West course has a marsh and creek in play as the main water hazards, vs. the river. The marshy pond area around #6 and the water carries over the creek on hole #'s 14 & 16 really stand out as exceptional holes.
- A couple of different places to jump on in case the course is jumping. Hole #'s 1 or 10 are good departure points from the West parking lot, and you can always divert to the East course after hole #3 in case of backups or delays.
- Park is well-maintained with minimal trash.

- The marshy peninsula hole lost a little of its glory due to being mostly muddy glup.
- A bit clustery in places. A few switchbacks to the next tee. A few tee areas a bit too close to previous baskets.
- The Swinney courses seem very popular with local discers (and rightfully so, they're super fun/solid jams); accordingly, don't expect a quick round out here during peak times.

- West Swinney's three big water hazard holes (#'s 6, 14, & 16) have less a chance of eating a disc than the East course, even though the West water comes directly into play with water carries and a fast, narrow, raised peninsula green. The creek that #'s14 & 16 throw over is just small enough that most discs should be retrievable with a little work with a big stick or retriever device.
- Swinney Park has two above-average disc golf courses in one big 36 loop! Scenic river bends, solid discin', what's not to like? Each Swinney Course receives a 0.5 disc bump in my ratings rubric for the 36-hole layout, which was intense, especially after driving a couple of hours and bagging Shaoff and Mastodon.

I've played this course twice now, with those rounds about 5 years apart. My development as a player lead me to appreciate this course. With a few small tweaks, it's a 4 or 4.5 rated course.
-Every hole has an "obstacle." There's something you need to navigate in order to get a birdie. Some are easier than others, but there are no freebies.
-Many holes have late obstacles, within the last 30-70 feet, that keep a good shot good and make a great shot great.
-Requires all shot shapes. Forearm or backhand dependent players will be able to get by with their preference, but you're rewarded for being able to do both.
-Challenging and rewarding par 3's. Par should be achievable for most players with some experience.
-Course is mostly separate from the rest of the park. It's a big area with walking trails and a playground, but you rarely feel like you have to play around/avoid anyone.

-Tee pads. Fix these and my review is at least a 4. Some are cracked/broken. Others are noticeably uneven. I practiced run ups multiple times, from different part of the pads, trying to find something that felt comfortable. This is a factor on at least half of the holes. A small misstep can really mess up a drive if you're not careful.
-Directions are just okay. If you don't check a map or UDisc, or catch it while driving in, you'll spend a good chunk of time looking for hole 10. Also, the path to 15 is not obvious. I missed it and walked most of 16's fairway before figuring out my mistake.
-Old baskets. They're in good shape for the most part, but they're still old.
-I think every hole plays a good 20-30 feet longer than the signs say. I've measured on google maps, and that proved true for a handful of the holes.

This course pushed current players and embodies the old school mindset of "everything is a par 3."

Not a pro or con, but you get little to no ground action on these fairways. It's a mix of grass/ivy/clover and more. My discs more or less stopped where they landed.

HOLE BREAKDOWN:
-1 is a perfect starting hole in my opinion. The obstacle is the slightly downhill elevation and the trees surrounding the basket. It's a great warm up hole if you don't have time beforehand. You can park this with a putter or go overstable driver.
-2's basket is straight and left from the tee. You'll probably want to use a disc with a fade of 1 or 2 so you can push forward enough. If you flip your disc up and go straight, you'll leave yourself with a circle two putt. There are also branches you need to throw under.
-3 let's you open up more. This is a mostly straight, slightly downhill shot with a couple trees on each side of the fairway. You could flex something down there if you want.
-4 is a tough birdie. It's uphill, kind of parallel to 3's fairway, but it's a longer shot. You need to throw about 200/250 to get to flat land. From there you have a 100-150 foot upshot into the green. The basket is surrounded by trees, branches force you to keep the upshot low, and it drops off behind the basket. The closer your drive is the better.
-5 is a downhill, mostly open right hand backhand hyzer. There's one tree in your way to throw around. In my experience, you need a more overstable disc than you expect. I tried to flide a putter and midrange down and ended up 35-40 right of the basket both tries.
-6 is one of the signature holes. You need to throw about 270 feet to an opening in the woods. Landing in the opening gives you a 120 foot upshot that goes uphill to peninsula with water surrounding. The closer you get to the basket, the tighter the lane gets.
-7 is a low straight shot. High branches force you to keep the disc down. There's also water behind the basket.
-8's teepad was very dirty (probably from flooding?) You throw slightly uphill through a tunnel to a basket on the left. It drops off behind the basket.
-9 is a downhill shot fading left. You need to push forward far enough to miss a large branch guarding the lane to the basket. The basket is also within 15 feet of water, so you don't want to go long on your drive or your putt.
-10 is across the main parking lot. It's an open field shot. Either a long right hand, backhand turnover or forearm shot.
-11 is a flat, open shot between a couple trees. The fairway is probably 50 feet wide. It's one of the easier holes
-12 is either a straight shot, or you can play a hyzer to the right, fading left. If you do, stay tight to the back side of the one tree to miss. The closer you keep it, the closer your putt will be.
-13 is either a right hand forehand shot over the road/walking path, or there's a tight backhand shot 20 feet off the tee. The backhand fades well into the green if you hit the initial gap. You need to keep the shot a little low to avoid branches.
-14 through 16 is my favorite stretch. 14 requires a good amount of power. It's uphill, through a gap that's over the creek. You need to turn the disc (or fade) right and push high enough up a hill to the basket. Pro-level shot in my opinion.
-15's tee is behind 14 basket, so keep walking east. This is a 400 plus foot tunnel shot that is completely fair. You have between a 30 - 40 foot fairway with one tree to miss in the middle. Land in the fairway, and you can par pretty easily. It needs a great shot to land in the circle. This hole may be on my dream 18.
-16 is the best example of the "late obstacle" I mentioned above. This is a slightly uphill shot, and you need to push straight the last 30-50 feet to make in into the green. The basket is up on a mound, with tree branches all around it. Most good shots will land you on the mound with a tricky putt.
-17 is a tunnel shot. You could flex a disc right and let it fade back in left. The basket is protected by a few, large trees.
-18 ends the course with a tunnel shot option or a shot out left that fades right. The basket is on a hill, sloping down left. The tunnel shot would be a great ace! There's one gap to hit, probably 150-180 from the tee. The baskets about 90 feet beyond the gap.

This course is pretty awesome.
New signs are perfect
Nice shots on most holes
Very easy to navigate
Huge big trees that come into play
A few water shots but nothing crazy
A few wooded shots to go with the open fairway shots

No where to sit
Baskets are a little beat up, but not a real problem

I really liked both the East and West Swinney courses they flow well, and I shot a great game on both without getting lost or losing track of discs. Good courses

*Very mature, well maintained park
*Some signature holes- hole 6 peninsula, neat line on 13, and hole 16. Probably forgetting some good ones.
*Lots of elevation for flat Northern Indiana
*Some updated tee signs

*Several holes with the basket close to other teepads or fairways
*Prone to flooding
*The tee signs that haven't been updated are mostly gone
*I crossed some fairways getting to the next tee
Lots of throwing over walking paths. Not a big deal in the winter though.

Overall, this was my favorite course on my Fort Wayne road trip. It was a lot of fun with several unique holes. While playing it, I couldn't help but think about how big tournaments are held here. There's just too many dangerous areas if you overthrow a basket by only TEN feet or miss your line by a few feet and fly over the next tee. I parked hole 16 on the mound. When I walked up to the basket, my thought was thankfully I parked it cause ten more feet I'd be sitting on 17's teepad!

I'd love to play here again. Just not during a big tournament with 80+ players.

1) Concrete tees
2) Some elevation changes
3) Multiple water hazards
4) Highlight Holes: 6, 7, 14, 15, 16
5) Scenic in parts. Front 9 and 14-17
6) Another 18 hole course right beside it

1) Only 1 set of tees
2) Signs are old. Some are unreadable
3) Baskets are prone to spit outs. The inner chains are too short.
4) Canadian geese sitting/interfering on the holes and pooping everywhere
5) Holes 10-13 are boring, but I don't necessarily hold it against the designer because the land isn't as nice in this area. Still a con though.

This is a good destination for disc golf if you're in the Fort Wayne area. W Swinney has some fun holes to shoot. Holes 6 and 7 are really cool. 6 is on a mound with water on the left and behind and 7 has the water right behind it and a scenic view of the river on the right. 7 is cool because you have to club down. The water is only 25' behind the basket.

Holes 10-13 are flat and boring in comparison. However, it picks back up with 14-17. Elevation changes come back and water is back in play. Hole 15 looked like a monster 400+ hole with the river on the left and trees throughout with a narrow fairway to shoot through, but I couldn't play it because a giant tree fell on the tee and there were numerous ponds that had formed all throughout the hole from the recent onslaught of rain there.

This is not a championship level course, but it's a fun course and it's worth at least 1 play to experience it. I might go back to play it when it dries out and also to hit up the East course which I didn't have time to play.

- Mixture of tight, open, long, and short.
- Fun course to play.
- Many hole in one opportunities.
- Many hazards, but losing a disc is unlikely.

- No trash cans.
- No restrooms.

A very fun course that is good for beginners. Better than West Swinney in my opinion. Needs more updated signs. Beginners may want to skip the 6th hole, as the basket is on a very tight peninsula.

This is in my opinion the better of the two Swinney Park Courses. There is another course across the river.

19 Spiderweb baskets (including 1 red painted practice basket) that are extremely grippy. Minimal bounce outs.

Water hazards: 6-9 and 14-17 all have water hazards of some sort. 6 stands out the most: a peninsula shot where the basket is about 8 feet higher than the fairway. 14 & 16 cross a creek. 7-9 border a pond. 15 and 17 border a creek.

Elevation: With exception of holes 7, 10, 11, and 12 all holes have some sort of elevation change.

Concrete tees.

Carved signs on most holes. Could use a fresh coat of paint.

Variety. Trees, hills, water, and distances vary per hole. Just when I thought this course was easy, I met hole 6.

Signs are carved out of wood and have a map, distance, and hole number.

Course is two 9 hole loops. 9 and 18 both end near parking lot.

Some signs are missing and the ones that are still standing need replaced.

Only one tee per hole. Some holes definitely need an alternate tee pad either longer or shorter depending on the hole.

No trash cans nor benches.

No course map at start of course. It would really help new players.

I really enjoyed this course. It had several elements that courses where I am from (Indy) do not necessarily have (water, peninsula shot, hills).

Several trees look like they were recently cut down which may have made this course easier. Most of those trees were near baskets.

Trash cans, benches, freshly painted signs, and alternate tees would boost this course to a 4.

I'm not in Fort Wayne very often but I would like to play this course again.

-Nice spiderweb baskets
-Interesting pin placements makes for some challenging putts.
-Good concrete teepads
-Some elevation and water to think about

-Needs new signage.Some signs missing, some broken.I hope they make new signs like the ones at East Swinney across the river.
-No trashcans at all on the course, although not too trasy when i played.
- Course will hold water after a heavy rain. when the river is high, this course will flood.
- A bit of a walk between 9 and 10 & 12 and 13.
- Teepads for #9,#13 and #18 are next to each other. Could be confusing to people new to the course.

The restrooms were closed for the season.
Hole 6 basket has been moved back to the peninsula between the ponds. It is now 394'.

The course plays through a nice city park with a few rolling hills, scattered mature trees, and some wooded areas with brushy rough. There is enough rough on several holes to penalize a shot that goes off line, but not enough to really eat discs. There are some nice stands of evergreen trees that are used well to make some tough and creative pin placements. A few water hazards come into play to add a little risk/reward.

There is a good mix of hole lengths, from ace runs to longer open shots that most players will reach for a driver on. There are some different lines to hit here, some with room to get creative and some where you have to hit a tight line through the trees. The little bit of elevation in the park is used well to add some challenge and fun. The baskets are reasonably new and in great shape. The concrete tees are a good size and have a decent texture on them.

The course is pretty heavy on the RHBH hyzers, it could use a better mix and balance of hole shapes. The navigation is a little rough in spots, make sure to bring a map or a guide if you don't want to spend some extra time wandering around the course figuring out where to go next. There is a biking and walking path that runs through a lot of the course, so you have to wait on pedestrians and bikers on lots of holes if it's a nice day.

This is a course worth hitting up, especially with another course in the same park. Beginners might find the water hazards a little punitive, otherwise it's a pretty beginner friendly course for the most part. More experienced players will find a few nice holes and some creative pin placements, but it's not a really challenging course and it's a little lacking in variety to challenge better players.

West Swinney is a challenging course with some good variety. Ranges vary from just over 200' clear out to 405'. Small rolling hills also add some modest difficulty to the park. The baskets appeared nearly brand new. Large trees provide adequate shade through much of the course. You will need to incorporate several types of throw to negotiate this course well.

The water hazards on this course are ridiculous. Many of the baskets are placed so close to water that you feel penalized for even trying to make good shots. I found myself playing it safe far too much to be enjoyable. While I only had one go in water, which I easily recovered, by the end of the course I felt like I should have just sacrificed a disc to the river simply to appease it.

I would not call this a well maintained course. While the baskets are new, that was about the only thing impressive about its appearance. Many of the signs were broken. There were no course maps, which I would have been completely lost had I not had an course experienced player with me. The grass needed cut, fallen limbs picked up, and there were many holes in the lawn.

West Swinney has a lot to offer. There are a good amount of trees on the course, it has some nice elevation changes, there's OB mostly in the form of water, it has a great mix of distance and requires a number of different shots. Because of the elevation, water and variety of shots, you really need to hit you lines and place your shots well to score here.

It rained 2-3 days before I played here and some areas of the course were still swampy and hole 15's fairway was underwater.

The course has looping 9's which is nice if you parked here. I parked at East Swinney and had a hard time finding hole 10 as it's a long walk from hole 9.

Navigation was an issue on a few holes and I nearly missed hole 15.

A few of the holes are so gimmicky I feel I have to mention them. By that I mean there are basket placements that are trying to add difficulty to a hole, but instead they go beyond risk/reward and are now ridiculous and lucky. Hole 9 is a good example of this. It's a downhill hyzer (RHBH) shot that's 280ft. A pond is literally 6ft to the left of the basket so you can easily throw a good shot, land well inside the circle and be OB (I did not lose a disc here so I'm not bitter and trying to take it out on the course). Hole 16's basket is complete guarded by branches on the surrounding pine trees. There's no gap, just poke and hope. Hole 12 is also bordering on a poke and hope.

Overall this is a fun course I would play a lot if I lived in the area. Because of the amount of water I wouldn't recommend this course for beginners.

^Well maintained
^Variety of challenging shots
^Layout has a good flow and uses the parks terrain to its advantage.
^Water is in play on at least 7 holes
^Nice teepads

^During wet periods a couple holes will be soggy
^Park can get busy on nice days, and a few holes involve a walking/biking path that you need to watch pedestrians on.
^Not enough trash cans

I don't have alot of negative to say about this course as it is IMO the best course in my area. East Swinney is just across the river and makes for a great Double up day. DO NOT back into your parking spot.

The course plays through a well-maintained park on the West side of the St. Mary River. The little elevation the park has to offer comes in play on several holes. Most of the course plays through mature growth, with a few open holes, and maybe one or two tighter holes. Teepads are in great shape, in addition, a sign at each pad provides accurate distance. The baskets at this course are some of the best baskets around. This course offers plenty of variety including short/long, left/right turning, tight/open, and water holes. Restrooms are available by the playground around hole 11/12. Locals are friendly so ask to join them for a round.

The course can become a flood zone when the river is high, in addition, it holds water very well so some of the holes may soak your shoes after a heavy rainfall. Restrooms are available at the pool, but I think the pool may be indefinitely closed. Tee signs could use some updating as they have seen better days. There is a biking/walking trail that weaves through several holes. Obviously, they have the right-of-way...that being said, you may have to spend some time waiting on a pad. Lastly, navigation can be difficult for the first timer or sometimes even the second timer.

I really like the design of this course. I believe it has the best design in the Fort Wayne area. It offers plenty of variety making the course suitable for all levels of players. The fairways are nicely groomed and well thought out using large trees as obstacles making very few holes "bleh." This course offers plenty of ace runs with a few let 'er rip holes.

The course takes advantage of all elevation in the park (not too much, but makes it better than an all flat course) as well as the water in the park. The river can come into play on a long drive/approach on hole three or a bad drive on hole 7. The small pond also comes into play on three out of four consecutive holes. Hole 6, which has recently been redesigned, has now become what I believe to be the second most difficult hole on the course with the "new" peninsula pin location. Hole 8 has swallowed a disc of mine and hole 9, the water is very in play for any righty who gets ace hungry. A creek comes into play if you go long on hole 7, if you come up short on 13 (or can't make it around the massive pine), again if you go long on your approach to 14, and then again on 15 if the weeping willow snags your disc. For the most part, discs that fall into the creek are retrievable. But as you can see, water does play it's part in this course.

This course is a must play while in the area. East side is just across the bridge making it double worth your while. For a first timer, you'll definitly want to print out a map or play with a local. Great job to the Fort Disc Golf Club and the city department for keeping this course looking so good everytime I go to play it.

Fun, challenging course. The pond, stream and river make for interesting shot choices. Newish holes are a nice touch as well as the nice, concrete tee boxes. Grass is very well maintained. Locals are very nice - let me play through when I was playing by myself. Very well laid out using trees / shrubbery to hide holes.

Not great for beginners. Going from hole to the next tee is too often confusing - good thing I had the course map on my iPod. Hole 15 looks like it gets flooded - very over-grown and wet.

The longer holes and the wooded holes and the water holes make it difficult for beginners. If you're in Fort Wayne and looking for something to learn on, I would recommend Shoaff Park instead.

I didn't throw any discs into the pond, but I watched someone do it. It's easy enough to do on hole 6 even though that was probably my favorite hole. Doesn't look fun!

Great variety....good balance of open and tight holes...elevation changes are nice....and some challenging holes

oh, and it is really close to the other course!

floods easily...bugs can get bad on a few of the holes.

great course!

This course plays in great mature growth along a river with a pond and stream in the course. Fair amount of hills that are vitalized well. A couple tight fairways, but mostly around large obstacles or along OB line. Concrete tees in good condition (I remember when we had natural and boy did it blow). Al Pier baskets. Restrooms and fountain off of #12. Beautiful scenery, as this park used to house a gorgeous garden. Length kept around 300' or less, but #15 plays well over 400', through a tight fairway, beside the river and a stream behind the basket, to boot. I've only dueced it once after countless rounds. Everything is rather well marked. Right downtown and across the river from East Swinney.

There can be some vandalism here. Though it hasn't happened recently, a couple years ago we had to pull a basket out of the river every other week. There is a bit of a walk between 12 &13, but not bad. The locals can be a little over friendly. Usually, bike riders and joggers don't pose a problem, but first couple holes are along some paths. The busy road is kinda windy on the south end of the course. The only trashcan is near #1, by the pool.

This is the course I learned on and it has changed a lot over the years, but locals keep it up very well.