We're Halfway There
10 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: You'll find elevation, distance, and variation at Jones East. One of three courses on site, East offers several tricky approaches and a few very nice placement based two-shot holes.
Huge parking lot with a practice basket, course sign and even a small chain-ring Marksman basket to really dial in your putts.
All the tee signs are very informative and tell you whether there are multiple pins or not.
There are so many options for play, especially with the gold course interspersed throughout. There are alternate tees on holes 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9, while alternate baskets are available on 1, 3-6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 15, and 18. That's a lot of alternate layouts that can be made which is always a big positive.
The main feature of this course is it's water carries. Holes 4 and 11 are the toughest, but it also comes into play on 10, 12, and right behind the basket on 14. Hole 11 is the best as it is only 382' and is definitely reachable for the just-above-intermediate player, but sitting just 30' from the basket is the pond, which is about a 70' water carry. It's a tough decision. Hole 4 has water most of the way down the fairway, but there is an alternate tee to keep the water out of play.
Plenty of enjoyable elevation. Hole 6 is uphill and has a lot of trees on the way up. Holes 8 and 9 are both big downhill bombers, and Hole 16 is a double-drop with the last drop just in front of the basket.
The two-shot holes make placement the biggest challenge instead of just distance. Hole 3 is a long uphill that will really punish you for going to the left by sticking you behind the bathroom building. Hole 7 is my personal favorite. A blind tee shot from either tee (there isn't really a short/long tee here. Its more of a left/right), you must push the far side of the landing zone, but not so far that you go OB (like me). From there the fairway cuts back to the left and you've got a small but steep downhill to a very small green. Hole 9 forces you to stay to the left off the tee or be in some nasty trees.
The OB is well-marked and well kept up. It adds a lot of challenge and keeps the most dangerous of player honest.
A few more extra challenges, hole 12 short is a nice elevated basket, 13 has some tricky guardian trees to access the green, and hole 17's green will punish you if you're even 15 feet long.
Cons: While having some of the best holes of the East/West dichotomy, East also has some of the worst. 1, 2, and 3 are all flat without much in the way. 5 and 8 are just carries over OB grass that feel forced in to get to 18 holes, and 17 and 18 are just 1 and 2 in reverse. It's unfortunate that there are so many unimpressive holes when there are also some very good holes here too.
With so many gold baskets on this course, it can be really confusing what exactly you're shooting for, especially when some of them are so close together (looking at you 13 and 15). It's really important to pay attention to the tee signs of the course you're playing and nothing else.
A few navigation difficulties. Having to go out on the road for 1 to 2 and 17 to 18, and finding 16's tee from 15's green is pretty difficult the first time. We are lucky to live in the Udisc age.
Other Thoughts: East has some excellent holes to really test your placement and accuracy, but unfortunately the rest of the course isn't at the same level. East is definitely the tougher of East vs West, but there isn't the same sense of completeness that West has.
Overall, though, East is 100% worth your time. Play it, enjoy it, and throw better than I did on 4 so you don't have to go for a swim.
10 of 10 people found this review helpful.
5 Helpful / 1 Not
Pros: Jones East is a very big Disc golf course. The veteran baskets our in amazing shape, and great tee signs. The course allows you to throw big distance drives. Good mix of lefty/righty holes and open bombs. The east side uses the water well here as multiple holes have you throwing over it. Theres a couple holes that are very high risk high reward which I enjoy. Couple really cool basket placements and settings. Good use of elevation change and well marked obs.
Cons: The layout is beyond confusing. There's short and long pads on some holes, as well as jones gold playing through most this course. some holes had 3 baskets even on them. Not even sure if we played it how it was truly designed to be played. Not a great place for beginners as most the course is open long holes. Not much tree coverage and the summer sun on this long course is rough.
Other Thoughts: Jones east and west together makes a great day of disc and a destination area. I did prefer the west however as the layout just flows better.
5 of 6 people found this review helpful.
Jones in My Bones
9 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Jones East is fun. It is my favorite of the two 18 hole layouts in the park, although I have only played one round at each, and the round on the West was 3 years ago. The East has fairly consistent rises and falls in elevation, nothing shocking, but it's a factor. There is water in play on several holes, and plenty of OB. The trees will add formidable challenges on a few holes, or at least shape the tee shot most of the time. The winter lawn was nice, and gave some good skips, but the tall grass areas were blanketed with leaves and can still hide an errant shot.
A lot of the holes have long and short concrete tees, and good quality signs are posted at each one. The yellow rimmed baskets from Dynamic Discs will often have alternate pin placements as well. Next to the parking lot there is a practice basket, as well as a narrow profile putting target.
Hole one is a nice starter, with a lot of trees that include a mando forcing a tee shot to be on the left side of the fairway. A building hides the long pin placement, with a road that is OB behind it. Hole 7 is my favorite, with an uphill drive to a landing zone that has quite a few trees, leading to a downhill shot toward the long pin that is also surrounded by trees. This was the only birdie for me on the round, but its a killer hole no matter the outcome. 11 and 12 play across a pond, to heighten the suspense a bit. 11 is a bit longer and may tempt a safe layup to prevent losing discs or taking penalties, but you can go for it and drive the green successfully. 12 can give an ace run with the putter, but it is on an elevated pin that holds the basket about two feet higher than normal. 13 has an interesting dogleg that turns right at the end of the fairway through a gap in a line of trees. 18 is a wild way to finish it out, with the tree lined creek all the way along the right side. It's a long par 3 that ends alongside the parking lot, creating a lot of OB to the left near the basket. My scorecard exploded on this hole, I took a circle 8. Christmas Eve snowman. NOT what I asked for.
Cons: There are walking trails that may bring pedestrians into the range of a disc occasionally. The basket on 18 is very near the entry to the parking area, and invites a dented fender from a poor throw or untimely gust of wind. Wind and water could add up to lost discs, beginners could be intimidated by a couple of holes.
Other Thoughts: The East half of the Jones Park duo is probably my favorite. My memory of the West has aged, but I'm pretty sure that I would recommend the East if you could only get to one of them.
The landscape changes more consistently, between slight elevation changes, water and trees. Maybe a few more birdies to be had, somewhat dependent on the layout, perhaps. A couple of the holes were mostly wide open, but there is a good bit of variation required shot to shot and hole to hole. Diversity of switching up tees or changing pin locations can create fresh looks too.
I was 11 over for the one round sadly. I was missing a lot of putts. Mostly it fell apart when I went 5 over par on the last hole. If I played that one par it would have been nice. My only birdie was on 7, which was in the par 4 long position, and felt pretty good.
9 of 9 people found this review helpful.
Beautiful and Well Designed.
1 Helpful / 2 Not
Pros: Well designed course, variety of shots, championship level holes, some two-drive holes, rolling hills, lake, green grass, just the right amount of trees, good fairways, restrooms.
Cons: Not beginner friendly, holes are on the longish side.
Other Thoughts: I heard they are putting in some short tees which would increase the appeal to amateurs.
1 of 3 people found this review helpful.
Looks like I need to work out
2 Helpful / 5 Not
Pros: - Well kept
- Scenic
- Great baskets
- Good driving pads
Cons: - Couldn't find hole 1 so we started somewhere around 6.
- Many holes had us digging for discs in shoulder high OB grass since we couldn't drive far enough.
Other Thoughts: I like to think I can drive a decent distance, but a couple of these holes put that to the test (and I failed). We had just played West, so this may have been tired arm syndrome, but I felt it was a bit rough for any player at my level/strength. Which means most would be in my scenario.
Otherwise, very good looking and difficult course.
2 of 7 people found this review helpful.
Top Notch Course
3 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Good use of elevation and OB's. Long armers dream with many a skill shot with technique required. Being about a 950 or so rated player I questioned at first the par for many of the holes until I got into playing it. It demands a quality shot at the pin on most holes to give yourself a chance for birdie. It can get you in trouble if you can't control your drive
Cons: Can't really find many negatives. Maybe just some holes were a little too close for my liking to other things such as benches, ball fields and roads but it does give it the precision element.
Other Thoughts: Nice city with all amenities within a mile or so from the course; restaurants, hotels, convenient stores,etc. There are also additional courses within 5 minutes drive of this one. Can make a day out of it and play many holes.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
Excellent challenge of a course
4 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: I played this course twice for the PDGA Amateur Disc Golf World Championships in July 2013. Once for practice and once in competition.
This course is a great challenge. The use of elevation and limited water hazards here is well done. It deserves its par 60 status and a score in the 50s should be considered well played.
Most of the holes that use water have a way to lay up for people with smaller arms (except for maybe hole 12).
Course is in great shape following Worlds. Nice tees, nice signs, nice baskets.
Lots of parking at various places around the park allow you to conveniently start at the beginning, or the middle.
Located next to Jones Park - West. One can easily park once and have nice long 36 hole round.
Very few holes that I remember that clearly favor only left hand throws or right hand throws (maybe hole 4 and 14?).
It is a long course, but technical enough that someone with a short arm but accurate control can still score well against a big arm thrower.
Cons: Some of the OB that I played with in Am Worlds was temporary. The course is not quite as challenging if the casual player does not have the same OB marked.
A few unimaginative holes: I thought Holes 3 and 17 left something to be desired. This is just my opinion and others may like them. Hole 17 felt a bit simple. I think the tee box can be moved slightly to make this hole better. Hole 3 feels a bit forced. I don't feel like using a building in the fairway on a 500 foot hole makes for a good challenge, it's just annoying. These are the only 2 holes I have much negative to say about.
The tall grass, while nice for a clear OB line, makes discs frustratingly hard to find. Some of t he grass has thorns so its not fun to walk through.
This course is a long walk. This is not necessarily a con for everybody, but some casual players, or people with less endurance, will not be able to enjoy this course because it is too long.
No restroom near the parking lot at Hole 1. Restroom is at the parking lot where the two Jones courses meet in the middle.
The course map on DGCR is old. It has the wrong hole numbers, at least compared to what the numbering was for Worlds.
I don't know for sure, but I would guess the drop zones that were marked for Worlds are not permanently marked.
Other Thoughts: Just wish I lived closer to Jones Park so I could play it more often!
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.
Did That Just Happen?
12 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: This course sits in a very nice park that actually has two disc golf coruses in it. The tee pads are incredible consistent and the design of the course makes really good use of land. Many trees and other plant features offer a challenge as OB comes into play on several holes. The variety of shots and length of holes makes this course feel challenging and yet fair at the same time. There are some long pin placements that can really make a hole significantly more challenging. New tee signs and baskets are in place and make the course feel newer than it is. The park does have other amenities for family members who may not like playing disc golf. There are also restrooms at various different places on the course. There is a good amount of elevation that comes into play on a few holes. There are a lot more of those holes that you will remember, either for how well you did on what looks like a tough hole or because of how poorly you did on a really tough hole.
Cons: There are a couple of places where the course plays near other park features that might be in use by other park visitors. There are a couple of places where holes are close to eachother and tee shots may come close to other players. The ground can get really soggy when it is wet and you will find some really muddy places, especially around the water features.
Other Thoughts: When the new baskets and tee signs went in, the start of this course was moved to the parking lot on the far East side of the park. This means that the same parking lot should no longer be used for both courses. This will make tournaments easier but casual play on both courses more difficult. This is probably one of the places you will want to stop at if you are in this part of the country. The course is very fair and does not punish players who cannot throw as far. That is in comparison to the temporary course in Emporia on ball golf courses. The fact that there is a second course to play in the same park is a big plus. I found this course to be really encouraging, even in the midst of some tough holes. The fun factor on this course was really high for me and the uniqueness of most shots on the course pushed the rating higher.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.
Longer Half
4 Helpful / 1 Not
Pros: This course utilizes water very well. The water is there and definitely in play, but not too intruding.
This course really tests your arm, especially with the Emporia wind.
The technical holes on this course are a great change of pace.
If this was the only course you play in a day, its a great length.
Great baskets!
Cons: There is a lot of back and forth on this course.
Distance is great, but it would be nice to mix up the distance a little bit more. This was my 3rd course out of 4 on a day trip, and it was by far the longest and most tiring.
Other Thoughts: This is a great course to test your distance and somewhat of accuracy. However if you are playing multiple courses in a day, make sure to plan a lot of time for this one. I would like to give this a 4, but there is too much back to back and monotonous of holes.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.
The beast
5 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Good variety and not just a bomb it type of course although the length is there. Best baskets in town. Usually not busy at all the west course gets more action. Requires strategy and thought but also allows for the grip it and rip it mentality on some holes.
Cons: The length can be both a pro and con depending on your mood and level of play. It is sometimes too much of a course for your average player but the good thing is you can just walk to the other side of the park and play the west course. Wind will always be a factor but it's Kansas so get used to it.
Other Thoughts: I really like this course but since getting back into the game recently I just don't have the skill to make it all that enjoyable. If you're looking for a challenge or are a top amateur/pro then have at it. I just prefer the west course. Oh and bring a long stick or some floating discs. There is water on both courses and the wind will land you in some eventually.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.
Join Disc Golf Course Review for free to add your review. Have an account already?
Sign In to add a review.
Course Extinct 
Hole #5 (Taken 6/2013) 
1 
12/3/2021 
12/12/2021
Report this Review
