A week ago, I highlighted New Melle as a probable top 3 course in the St. Louis area (in my opinion), and while doing so, I noted a few other recent contenders entering the ring in St. Louis. I noted The Bunker and Creve Coeur-Hillside as courses under construction that could wind up with strong designs, and also noted Sioux Passage as a well-known course I haven't been to in a while. I haven't played every St. Louis course yet, but wasn't sure there was any others out there that were as strong of courses.

And then I played La Vista Park in Godfrey, Illinois.

La Vista Park's location is along Route 3, just a little up the road from Alton. Route 3 has multiple gas stations and a dollar general close to the park, so any snacks or gas you need are easily assessible. Route 3 can also be easily accessed via Illinois 100, which is the highway a lot of folks will likely end up on to get to this course. If that's the case for you, take in the riverside views as you drive along the Mississippi.

Park amenities are pretty straightforward. The park is 93 acres, and is protected by a Forest Legacy Easement. In addition to disc golf, the main feature of the park is a paved walking trail that connects at Delmar/Route 3 and Route 100 down the hill. There are trash cans and benches along the way, as well as picnic tables for park goers to use. The disc golf course uses the land on either side of this trail. I believe there are some non-paved trail options further down the hill as well. The park has a small parking lot at the entrance on Route 3, as well as a port-a-john. In addition to disc golfers, the park gets a lot of traffic on the trail.

The course equipment at La Vista is all brand new and in great shape. At the parking lot, you will find a very large kiosk that has a full map of the course, with some club/league/event info on the opposite side. Hole 1 also has printed scorecards. Being a Gateway Disc Sports design, the Titan baskets are great and catch discs well. There are between 2 and 3 pin placements on each hole. The pictures on DGCR currently are actually a little out of date, as the top ring of the baskets now have yellow bands that note the hole number and also have Bluff City Disc Golf's logo. This coloring really helps the baskets stand out, especially in the woods. There are 3 sets of tees to choose from: Red, White, and Blue. The white tees are concrete and will have the primary sign for each hole. Update - The blue tees on-site are now either concrete or use the pathway, a nice improvement to the course. Red tees will mostly be natural still, though there may be plans to upgrade these in the future I am unaware of.

The signage at La Vista deserves special praise, as this course sports the best signage I have seen on a course yet. Please note that the signs on this website are actually out of date now despite the course being built in 2019; unless someone else gets to it, I'll try to get back soon to add updated photos. Each white tee sports a large sign that includes a large graphic of the hole layout, including all 3 tees and the 2 or 3 pin placements for that hole. The signs also include which in is in use, and a full list of distances for each tee, meaning most of the signs you will see include 9 different distances. Each red and blue tee is also easy noted by a small sign that also includes distances and the pin location in use. The new tee signs also note the par for each tee and pin location, which can range from 3 to 5 on one hole depending on which tee you are using. Some of the longer walks between tees also include directional signs, making navigation pretty easy here. Perhaps my favorite feature are the red, white, and blue arrows that can be found on numerous trees throughout the course to show you where each tee is located as you approach a new hole. The design of these is so beautifully simplistic, and really adds some great character to this course. Overall, the signage should make navigation here a breeze, and should also give you great idea of where you are throwing.

La Vista's course design has been done in a way that makes it accessible and enjoyable for a full range of skill levels. The multiple tees here offer unique rounds from each other more so here than on any other course I have place thus far. The red tees are short enough to provide a fun experience that will still test newer players that may not have the technical throws or power required for the white or blue tees yet. Meanwhile, many of the blue tees offer substantial additional challenges to the reds or whites, whether that be with additional distance, tighter lines, or the angle of the opening drive. Hole 15 is a great example of this. The red tees offer a short and open approach, while the white tee is pushed over 150 feet back at the entrance to the woods, with the blue tee being a similar distance as the white but being placed on more extreme angle to challenge a player's RHBH hyzer distance. I also appreciate that some of the holes combine the white and blue tees where there just isn't enough room to offer 3 different drive options, just as some holes only have 2 pin placements due to the same reason. Sometimes, less is more.

As the course description states, La Vista offers a mix of open and wooded holes, providing plenty of variety on your round here. The course has a really nice progression in difficulty to it as well. Holes 1, 2, and 3 are mostly open holes and aren't too long. Then, holes 4 through 7 are wooded technical holes that vary in length. As a whole, the front 9 is fairly short. Then, the back 9 provides longer distances and more par 4s and 5s while mixing the open and wooded holes. What's nice about La Vista is that there's a mix of short and long holes both when it comes to the open holes and the wooded ones. The gold placements on holes 4 and 7 were in use on my round, requiring intentional 300+ foot drives. These were complimented by short but tough short shots on 5 and 6. On the other end of things, holes 1 and 16 offer relatively short open drives, while other holes like 11 and 15 offer long open shots that still require some strategy to your approaches. Even 1 and 16 are tricky, as a shot with too much hyzer can land you in rough, but the trees on the left side of these holes keep you from hooking a drive too much.

This course has plenty of highlights that could be listed. Hole 11 if a true bomber hole that requires careful 2nd throw placement depending on which pin is in use. Hole 15's two furthest placements incorporate great risk/reward situations, as they are placed along a ditch and a drop off behind the gold placement that can punish a missed run. 12 is a great, long, wooded shot over a valley that will penalize early tree hits. Lastly, hole 4 from the white/blue tee offers a fun downhill wooded drive that intimidates you with 2 trees placed early in the fairway, making for a real mind game for golfers.

This course is still very new, so some additional work is likely still in progress. I think the fairways were all pretty fair, but as the course ages, things should only open up more over time. It would not surprise me if the alternate tees end up getting more attention overtime as well, whether that be additional concrete, turf, or some other option. In the meantime, I can see some of the red and blue tees getting a little dicey when wet, so watch your step.

When wet, this course may be slick, especially in the woods. Be careful after rain or snow melting. Holes 7 and 12 have some spots of clear water run off that lead to tricky footing. UPDATE Not even 5 days after writing this review and the local club has posted that they are working on a footbridge on hole 12, so keep in mind that this course is still under construction in a way, and should continue to improve in the near future.

Off fairway shots will absolutely get punished here, as the woods are pretty thick with trees and honeysuckle. This is easily remedied by staying on the fairway, but let's be honest - we've all had those days. Careful if you get a bad kick or release, as some spots will make it truly a chore to find your disc. I haven't seen any mention of poison ivy around the course yet, but it's very wooded and I played my initial round in early March, so it could be around.

This course has a lot of bling shots, which could bother some players. Personally, I found the tee signs to be detailed to the point where I could easily tell where the basket would be, and which woods opening in the distance was the one I should shoot for. Despite many of the pins being out of sight from the white tees, I never found myself in a position where I did not feel confident about where to throw as an intermediate player that DGCR typically rates between 900-930. If you're not a fan of blind shots, this course may make for an annoying round.

I didn't notice an abundance of garbage cans or benches. Some are around the park, and I imagine this is on the to-do list for the local club. The concrete pads a very new and were likely the priority. There are enough trash cans around the park where you should be able to find one on occasion. Pack out what you pack in.

Some tee pads are in very similar spots to others in the wooded holes, but this is honestly getting picky given how much variety the majority of the pads offer on course. Even on the open holes, the tee pads will at the least offer a 50-foot difference in distance.

Parking could be troublesome if the park is busy or if there's a tournament. I wonder if they just use the field by the street in some cases, but parking could be a struggle on nicer weekends.

Some of the pars can make certain holes feel like "tweeners". For instance, hole 15 in the gold pin doesn't feel like a true par 5 from the white tee. This isn't something that bugs me, but may be a con for others.

La Vista is 2 years old (if that), and this is only its 5th review on the site, so it may still be going under the radar a bit. It seems like a lot of the local scene has caught on to this course, especially with the local clubs getting more sanctioned events at the park, but this course should not be overlooked by visitors to the area. This course has a bit of everything, and has a very polished feel to it. As time passes, the course should only get better as the wooded holes settle in. With all of the work along the fairways and on the paths to each hole, it's clear the local community puts substantial work in on the upkeep of this course too, which should also help this course age well.

This is truly a course that can serve just about every skill level, and is the highlight of a region of St. Louis that has wound up with a nice selection of courses. There are 6 courses, including 3 18-holes, within 20 minutes of each other in the Godfrey and Alton area, with Sioux Passage not being too far over the river with its 36 holes.

Check out Bluff City Disc Golf on Facebook for more information and updates on La Vista as well as the other courses in the area. Van Man Disc Golf is the nearest pro shop, though it's a bit south of Godfrey. The staff there are among the nicest and most helpful you will find anywhere though, and I'd say they're worth the drive to check out.

If you want classic St. Louis courses during your visit, there's plenty to choose from like White Birch, JB, and Sioux Passage. If you're looking for the best the area has to offer though, then put La Vista on your short list for your visit. There's something special being put together up in Godfrey, and more people should know about it and check it out. if you live in the area, get up to Godfrey and get yourself a great round of golf. I can't wait to make the 45 minute drive from my home to experience this course again.

La Vista while still new is one of the top courses in the area. It features 3 sets of tee pads and 3 sets of pin placements. The white tees are 5x12 concrete pads and turf will be installed shortly for the reds and blues.

Course is a mixture of wooded (1/3) and open holes (2/3) with lots of elevation changes, multiple tees and placements. It starts off pretty easy before entering the woods where you'll have to be accurate on the short but tight wooded holes. Once you're out of the woods there a few holes that will test your turn over skills unless you decide to go big over the brush before finishing the front 9

The back 9 is all about the distance with holes ranging from 450-750 feet. The basket placement for most of the back are in the woods just off the fairway, which really takes advantage of what the park has to offer.

Not really cons but if you get off to the side of the fairway in the woods it can be thick.

Another great design by Dave and Gateway Disc Sports

Check out Bluff City Disc Golf page on Facebook for all the latest info on this course and others in the area