When Can I Come Back?
8 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: -Multiple Concrete tees
-Good Baskets, 2 per hole, sometimes stacked
-Decent signage
-Immaculately cut fairways
-Good mix of open/technical, left/right, use of elevation
-Part of a 3 full 18 course park
-Good for most skill levels
Cons: -Had to look at the map a couple of times
Other Thoughts: Anna Page Park - East plays along with 2 other 18 hole courses in a wonderful park on the west edge of Rockford, IL. The oldest of the 3 courses is in amazing shape. Your choice of red or blue is met with corresponding baskets. Most holes have the other basket in a differing challenge spot. 5 holes have a second tee pad and at these holes the baskets are stacked on top of each other. Usually, the blue on top. but #17 was red on top. Decent signage was easy to follow. There were a couple of spots where I had to look at the map, but not often. The fairways were impressive. I felt like I was on a country club WB course. I played red and it was approachable without being short or gimicky. We really enjoyed our round here. Glad we chose this one of the 3, but would like to take a stab at those 2 at some point. There are only a few courses that have drawn me in as this one has. It says, "Come and play again". I will. Just have to be in the area again.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.
An Old Dog With Some New Tricks
11 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: - Two baskets on almost every hole and two tees on a few as well
- Trees are used well to provide challenge either early or late on more open holes
- Good variety with rolling hills used well and a smattering of more tightly wooded fairways
- Part of a complex with three quality courses
Cons: - Fairways tend to be largely open
- Several locations of tall grass or thick rough can make finding discs off the fairway difficult
- Navigation is occasionally challenging, especially with some holes having new pad or basket locations that are not yet reflected on tee signs
Other Thoughts: I was lucky enough to play the East course at Anna Page Park the day after a new set of permanent, blue banded DISCatchers were installed in the long pin positions, several of which are new. The course was recently mowed and well maintained. The mix of new DISCatchers and Black Hole baskets are great and catch well. There is a nice challenge gap between the short and long pin positions, making the course more accessible to a range of skill levels. The concrete tee pads are nice, though a few around the park did feel slightly too short. The tee signs are large and colorful, but some are out of date and a few seemed to be missing or not installed yet. The Google course map in the Links/Files section has been updated and was very helpful for navigating the course.
The majority of fairways on this course are largely open, but I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of challenge and variety that was present. Many, if not most, of the holes start and/or end in the woods. So, while much of the fairways are unobstructed or scattered with a few mature trees, there is still a healthy bit of challenge and you have to pay attention to you angle of approach on many a protected green. The East course frequently avoids an issue present on most open courses where a bad shot off the tee is not punished and an upshot for par is still relatively easy. On many holes a bad shot, or even a decent shot that did not finish with a good look at the entrance to the green, will make getting par challenging, even if you are in the middle of an open field. Line shaping and angles are more important than is apparent at first glance, especially on the blue holes. There are also a smattering of much more wooded fairways and on several holes the rolling hills are used to great effect, even if the overall elevation differential in the park is nothing all that exciting.
Long grass is used to define fairways on a few holes. It isn't overdone or overly encroaching, but it can make finding your disc on an errant throw quite frustrating. Similarly, if you find yourself off the fairway and in the woods, the rough is usually very thick and will definitely punish your shot and likely present a challenge even finding your disc. Some of the new long basket placements were carved out of the woods (I recall holes 5, 9, and 18 in particular) and are still very rough around the edges. They definitely need to be cleaned up and broken in but based on my first impression of the general maintenance at Anna Page I have no doubt this will be addressed before too long.
After finishing my round, I was surprised that this was the lowest rated course in the complex, even if not by much. Unfortunately, the South course was closed for maintenance on the day of my visit, but I enjoyed the East course as much, if not more, than the West. Having three courses on site is great, especially when they each offer something slightly different. It feels like a lot of love and work has been put into these courses, especially recently. Anna Page makes for a great day of disc golf and was well worth the hour and a half plus drive each way.
11 of 11 people found this review helpful.
A Course Aging Well
4 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Varied pin and tee placement. Blues are long, Red/pink are short.
Excellent signage with cues to next tee, distances and wood post signage. Few courses do it better!
This course has aged beautifully with well placed pins with guardian trees, making a comfortable challenge. Most trees are large, but recently, many of the ash trees took their leave from the park due to the emerald borers. So sadly some of the trees that once made the park and exceptional course, have parted and part of the reason I have rated a little lower than I originally would have.
There is a good mix of open and guarded shots now.
The Rockford Disc Golf Club has done a lot to plant replacement trees, so as the course enters into it's fourth decade of existence, it will once again be quite special! Just watch out for those seedlings for now!
Probably my favorite course at Anna Page out of the three there. Nicely done, large and planned. Really shows the best of the park.
They do mow the grass pretty frequently, too, but still thick for rollers if that's a preferred shot of choice for the long distances.
Cons: Usually just one pin placement available at a time, for majority of holes, so double check before you throw which pin is actually placed.
Like most of the courses at Page, stay on fairways! The long grass swallows discs, never to be heard of again. I think of it more as a challenge than a "con," but some dislike it. This particularly applied to hole three on longs. Make sure you hyzer away from it!
Other Thoughts: Probably my favorite course at Anna Page out of the three there. Nicely done, large and planned
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.
Awesome place for a day of disc golf!!
4 Helpful / 2 Not
Pros: Signage was great- Teesigns were accurate and attractive, and "next tee" signs were used when needed (sometimes under the basket)
There's also a nice course map next to the parking lot that was quite helpful since it was my first time.
Teepads- nice, sturdy concrete pads. Even one particularly long hole had a broom!
Maintenance: Fairways were fair and clean. The course did still have some teeth if you got off the fairway but still had multiple lines to the pin.
Baskets: Seemed to be in good shape, no unfair spit outs. I believe they were mach 3's. They were also marked with colored tape for multiple hole layouts. I think south course had chainstars.
Lots of the teepads had accompanying picnic tables which is always a nice touch. Some are a bit graffitied with some graphic images, which may not be a good representation for young or new players.
Cons: The only things I can say is that a few more trash cans and some soap in the restrooms would be nice. I didn't notice a ton of trash, but some spare cans and trash here and there.
Other Thoughts: Overall awesome course! Good for newer players yet also attackable for intermediate through advanced players.
4 of 6 people found this review helpful.
best course at the complex IMO
4 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: This was the third of the three courses that I played at Anna Page, and I think I saved the best for last. The South and West courses are terrific as well, but I liked the East course best!
Each teeing area has big cement tee pads, and a great map. Most tees have benches/ table/ garbage cans. The maps show a huge photograph of the hole with multiple pin locations marked with distance. There is also a drawing of the overhead view depicting the fairways and possible lines. The next tee direction is also pointed out on each map.
Almost every hole has two baskets (a short red/pink basket, and a long blue one). they have bright blue or pink tape on them making them easy to spot from far away. The few holes that have only one basket have two separate tee pads for blue and red.
The rolling wooded terrain is ideal for DG and the land is used beautifully to create a good mix of long holes to heavily guarded baskets and shorter technical shots. The fairways are scattered with large trees creating many different line options causing you to really stop and consider you shot and disc selection on the tee. You will go up, down, left, and right several times each! The holes will challenge advanced players to make birdies, while still being accessible to novice players for pars.
Cons: Some of the pins and fairways play awfully close to some tees, and there is a little bit of a flow concern (a little confusing for a first timer, but hey- I should have just looked at each tee map- Duh!) I could easily see discs flying into other groups on busy days.
Other Thoughts: While I like the wooded South course, and hilly West course, I think the East course at Anna Page best combines the two. The two baskets on most holes, each basket offering a truly different hole from the tee, makes this course my favorite of the three.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.
1 Helpful / 1 Not
Pros: First course I played and still enjoy getting out on this course when I can. The course is open enough to have fun, but has some challenges along the way to keep it interesting. Well maintained by the park district and the board members.
Multiple baskets help change the course up a bit as well.
Cons: Being a nature lover, I find it disheartening to see random trash on the course, especially when I know they have random clean up days just for this reason.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.
2 Helpful / 2 Not
Pros: The east course can be beginner friendly or very challenging depending on which layout you choose to play. The fairways are close cut with thick grass around the borders. New signs were installed last fall.
Cons: Dense thickets of honeysuckle & buckthorn are throughout the woods. Club volunteers & the Rockford Park District are working together to remedy the problem.
2 of 4 people found this review helpful.
Getting better all the time
3 Helpful / 1 Not
Pros: Open enough to give less experienced players a chance, and long enough with enough obstacles to keep it challenging for more experienced players. Some holes that used to be meh have been lengthened or given better definition to make this a much better course than what you might have played five years ago. These include 2, a very narrow pro-type shortie requing a midrange or PA dart, 3, a gently fading alley approach. 5, lots of options for the tee pad drive with a long air it out second shot. The new 6 with a web of dead guardian trees. A longer uphill lefty friendly 9. 11 now takes you through some trees, 14 finally lost the overhanging branch that penalized good upslope shots. 15, a bomber from a majestic (for AnnaPage) elevated tee), and 16, a legit pro upslope bomber that challenges everyone. This is a couse that does a lot with the limitations of the landscape. I personally really like the ace run on 1 to get you started. The initial birdie gets you revved up. Lots of variety with distances to bring out a variety of discs from your bag. Although open in appearance obstacles can make this corse play tighter than you'd expect.
Cons: Newer baskets would be great. Would like to see a real gap in the trees on 12 so u have the option to go through or around. That's about it.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.
This one packs it in
3 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: This course is really fun
Very nice terrain for DG
Mature groves of different types of trees
Two baskets on most holes
Multiple concrete tee pads on some holes
Good signs on every hole
elevation changes from rolling hills
Nice and secluded
good baskets with color coding
Lots of chances to air it out
Cons: some cluster in the design and maybe slightly confusing for 1sters
dangerous possibly with crowds and errant shots
not the most challenging course
Other Thoughts: This is a pretty fun course for intermediate players with nice rolling hills and clusters of trees and other growth. This course is pretty easy to follow but some of the tees are close to the previous baskets might be dangerous at times. Nice flow to the course with a variety of shots needed but not too long on the distances. Not too much risk as far as roll aways or water hazards. This course might not be as difficult or beautiful as the west course but it might be more fun. Just a solid disc golf course that made the most of the land available with a good design that really packs in a lot of DG with the multi tees and dual baskets.I had a lot of fun at this course but I think the clustered design could be tweaked slightly.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
A reason to visit Rockford
3 Helpful / 3 Not
Pros: The card tricks you immediately into believing the course will be easy. The deuce on the first hole is followed by the most protected 220 foot hole I've ever seen (I deuced once when I could still throw hammers OVER 100 foot trees, and a few other times from 50-75 from the right).
The course is simply magnificent from that point on. It is full of mature growth tree and large ares of shrubs, and the designers have tucked the pins away to protect from easy ace runs on the shorter holes (and you know you've earned your deuces on those). Longer more open holes, such as #5, still force you around shrubbery and to make a great second shot to save par.
A seemingly easy, lefty friendly, hole like #9 forces this lefty to use a driver at a mid range distance to navigate the huge hyzer curve. The 10th is similar but with slightly altered technical obstacles.
The 14th is a huge favorite, a protected green that gave me the rare deuce when I ricocheted a hammer off of the telephone pole and parked it (leaving creosote on my disc!).
Cons: A few fairways cross.
Other Thoughts: The original is still my favorite because it is challenging and technical without overwhelming length. It's a great reason to visit what Money Magazine once called the worst city in the US (maybe the only reason outside of that vegan Indian restaurant).
3 of 6 people found this review helpful.
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5+ 
2/15/2017 
2/16/2017
Review By: bearmax 
This review was updated on 8/10/2017
Hole #8 (Taken 8/2017) 
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