Hornet's Nest DGC (no, not that one), is an 18-hole course residing in Clark Memorial Park on the northwest side of Mt. Sterling. This course has plenty of elevation and mostly open lines, making it a decent option for recreational players. Plus, when I played, there were no actual hornets, making the name delightfully misleading.
Location of Clark Memorial Park is off Damon Rd, which is accessible from Quincy Rd./ Highway 24. The course entrance is marked by a large sign and is a gravel road to the right before the road you're on deviates to the left. After you park, hole one will be to the southeast of the parking lot, kind of around the large shop building. There's a few fast food and gas options in Mt. Sterling, and not much else in any direction until, Quincy, Beardstown, or Jacksonville (no, not that one), so make sure you stock up before your round or before you drive home if you aren't a local. There's a new 18-hole course just north of town, making for a nice double header if you're passing through or course bagging like I was. 18 holes in Beardstown and Camp Point are also nearby if you're wanting a full day of golf.
Amenities are straight forward in Clark Memorial Park. Other than disc golf, there's a shelter and a playground, along with restrooms (not sure if these are year-round or not). Other than a family setting up for a birthday, I had the whole park to myself on a nice day in September, so I don't imagine you'll run into many other disc golfers on the average day.
Course Equipment check all of the boxes at a surface level. The baskets, while older, still caught surprisingly well for their age and model (DN Liberties). The teepads are all rubber. The tee signs, which are the largest ones I have seen thus far out of 146 courses played as of the original writing of this review, have gigantic tee numbers, a large sponsor spot, and a hole distance an layout on the right side. Looking at other reviews that mention a lack of distances present, it seems to me the layout and distances were originally an afterthought. I'm glad they managed to find space for that information on these "modestly" sized signs.
Course Design at Hornet's Nest is very open, using up most of the available land to squeeze 18 holes into this park. The first nine holes don't have too much difficulty to them other than elevation, with some more difficult shots in the back half. Overall, this is a course with forgiving enough lines and elevation to be a decent choice of newer and rec players to learn at.
Elevation is the most consistently available obstacle at this course. After a couple of flat holes to start the round, you have a long hole three that has a slope behind the green and a hill all along the left side of the fairway. Hole 7 also has a bit of elevation by the green, made evident by the tall pole on the pin so you know where it is, and holes 8, 13, and 15 also have notable downhill lines. On the other side of things, Holes 5, 6, and 18 are all uphill. Hole 12 plays as a valley.
Shot-Shapes are forgiving as well at Hornet's Nest, with not too many holes requiring a specific shot. Hole 3 is going to be a little more forgiving to RH anhyzer or forehand shots off the tee. Hole 5 has a couple of gaps, allowing you to throw around the left or right side of a patch of trees and cabbage. Hole 12 doesn't really have much of a fairway with the trees and valley, making a roller shot almost necessary. Hole 14 is going to be rewarding to those with a gentle left ending shot. Hole 16 will need a right ending shot and hole 17 a left ending one if you're going for gold. All of the other holes will leave you with either a straight shot or an open enough fairway to give you options on what you're most comfortable throwing.
Distances are pretty forgiving here, ranging from 156 to 406 feet long. There aren't pars on the signs, but playing as a par 3 course, the distances will either allow most folks to get up and down for a par or challenge for a birdie on a few holes without much difficulty. I would say most of the holes play around the 275 to 325-foot range after considering elevation.
Difficulty is easily accessible to most if not all new and rec players on 90% of the course. The open fairways that make up most of this course will allow folks to go with what they are most comfortable with for shot type, with occasional trees or brush to navigate. Intermediate players and up will be going birdie chasing at this course.