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Hickory Hill Park reviews
15
0
EspressoPatronum
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience:
18.9 years
256 played
247 reviews
One of the More Unique Niners Around!
Reviewed:
Played on:Sep 1, 2023
Played the course:once
Pros:
- nice water hazard on hole 1, but was completely dry in September
- nice newer Mach baskets
- hole numbers on baskets
- large concrete tees
- tee signs with maps (fairly basic, but they work)
- prairie style holes present unique challenges not found on most courses
- some decent length variety for a 9 hole course
- respectable level of technical challenge for a 9 hole course
- nice newer Mach baskets
- hole numbers on baskets
- large concrete tees
- tee signs with maps (fairly basic, but they work)
- prairie style holes present unique challenges not found on most courses
- some decent length variety for a 9 hole course
- respectable level of technical challenge for a 9 hole course
Cons:
- rough on prairie holes can be rather unforgiving
- holes 4-6 are pretty open and uninspired
- some moderate safety hazards
- almost entirely flat, some minimal rolling hills
- backtracking between a few holes
- no navigation aids, holes could be shortened to allow for better flow/no backtracking
- limited amenties: no bathrooms, practice basket, etc.
- holes 4-6 are pretty open and uninspired
- some moderate safety hazards
- almost entirely flat, some minimal rolling hills
- backtracking between a few holes
- no navigation aids, holes could be shortened to allow for better flow/no backtracking
- limited amenties: no bathrooms, practice basket, etc.
Other Thoughts:
Hickory Hill Park is one of the better 9 hole courses in the Chicago suburbs. If holes 4-6 were pushed back into the woods behind the field and things were cleaned up a bit more, I think this could be a 3 disc/star course. Sometimes I groan at the sight of these prairie style courses; while I love that it is uniquely Illinois, they are brutal for finding discs. Hickory Hill does a nice job of bringing some unique landscape and natural beauty without being punishingly difficult.
The course actually does supply some good technical challenge for a nine hole park course. Shots are mostly straight and don't require tons of shot shaping, but fairways are fairly narrow on 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9 and there are obstacles which require a level of precision. Holes 1 and 2 start off in the prairie area before starting to open up on hole 3 with some more typical tree hazards. Holes 4-6 are much more open and pretty repetitive before 7-9 go back into the wooded and prairie area.
The biggest con to the open holes is that 5 and 6 might not be playable when soccer is going on. Similarly, many of the holes play too close to walking paths, particularly the overly long hole 8. This does not help the course's rating. Holes 7-9, particularly 7 and 8, also play along a road. You are separated from it by some dense growth but if you airmail a disc to the left much at all you're going to be in a world of hurt going to find it. The backtracking on multiple holes is a bit frustrating; instead of making hole 8 over 400 ft. why not just shorted it up a bit so it flows into 9 properly? Hole 9 also throws directly at the parking lot which isn't great.
All that said, this is a cool course, and one of the more tolerable prairie courses I've visited. While I'm not this far north often, given the chance I'd definitely come back here. This is a newer course and the fairways are still a bit rough. They were pretty well cleaned up during my visit but within the month prior people had been complaining about multi-foot tall grasses. Hopefully the maintenance keeps up, and in the meantime I recommend a sturdy pair of shoes on this course.
The equipment is all newer and in great shape and this was a fun round that felt a bit more removed from suburban sprawl than it really was. I recommend checking this one out if you are nearby, especially if you like a well designed 9 hole course like I do. There are several better ones in the Chicago area, but this one is above average.
The course actually does supply some good technical challenge for a nine hole park course. Shots are mostly straight and don't require tons of shot shaping, but fairways are fairly narrow on 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9 and there are obstacles which require a level of precision. Holes 1 and 2 start off in the prairie area before starting to open up on hole 3 with some more typical tree hazards. Holes 4-6 are much more open and pretty repetitive before 7-9 go back into the wooded and prairie area.
The biggest con to the open holes is that 5 and 6 might not be playable when soccer is going on. Similarly, many of the holes play too close to walking paths, particularly the overly long hole 8. This does not help the course's rating. Holes 7-9, particularly 7 and 8, also play along a road. You are separated from it by some dense growth but if you airmail a disc to the left much at all you're going to be in a world of hurt going to find it. The backtracking on multiple holes is a bit frustrating; instead of making hole 8 over 400 ft. why not just shorted it up a bit so it flows into 9 properly? Hole 9 also throws directly at the parking lot which isn't great.
All that said, this is a cool course, and one of the more tolerable prairie courses I've visited. While I'm not this far north often, given the chance I'd definitely come back here. This is a newer course and the fairways are still a bit rough. They were pretty well cleaned up during my visit but within the month prior people had been complaining about multi-foot tall grasses. Hopefully the maintenance keeps up, and in the meantime I recommend a sturdy pair of shoes on this course.
The equipment is all newer and in great shape and this was a fun round that felt a bit more removed from suburban sprawl than it really was. I recommend checking this one out if you are nearby, especially if you like a well designed 9 hole course like I do. There are several better ones in the Chicago area, but this one is above average.
