Very nice location, quiet, in a nice park with good parking, outhouses, benches, nice tee pads, and good baskets. Pretty easy to find your way around. Nice wide fairways so you shouldn't have to worry about tossing a disc into the nasty rough on a drive. I moved this course up from a 2.5 to a 3 just because it's such a nice country park.

The thing which really stands out for me here is how many runs there are where the players have to walk back across the fairway on the way to the next tee - a poor layout and could result in really slow play if the course was busy. This is yet another course with acres of wide open fairway leading to baskets sitting just a couple feet from rough where you could lose not only a disc, but playing partners, punishing anyone making an aggressive second shot. Several runs could conflict with picnic'ers or other park users on a busy day.

This was a fun course, even on a windy day, but there isn't a ton of challenge, especially on the front it's mostly throw it down the middle, lay up close because going past will result in disc hunting, make a putt. The back is a little more challenging as it's mostly in the woods. There's a "signature" hole, I forget the number, it plays into the woods and the back basket is blind because it's on a small ledge partway down a cliff. Again, only a fool would try to make that from any distance, because a miss is going to require rock climbing gear to retrieve. (Maybe not that bad, but it's a long way down). This is a decent family course, played conservatively there is little chance of lost plastic. With a little better mowing, (should be able to miss 5 - 6 feet long without being in the weeds) it could be fun to play aggressively.

Absolutely stunning park course sort of out in the middle of the country. The first 2/3 of the course is relatively open, taking use of the few obstacles in place. The last 1/3 of the course is wooded, and provides some very interesting shots, especially from the longs.

Great concrete teepads at both shorts and longs. Descriptive tee signs and solid catching baskets.

The park is almost always in pristine condition, which is really a huge part of the allure. What elevation there is here, is used well.

Tee signs only on one teepad at each hole.

The main gripe with this course is the open nature of a LOT of the holes. Distances do vary, which helps, and the few obstacles are used well. There are some younger trees on the course, so that should help in the future.

This is a great place for a round to work on different shots. While it plays open for a good while here, it still holds a high replay value....which is probably due to it's serenity. If you're out here alone, you'll feel alone.

The short tees are great for beginners, and the long tees add distance for intermediate players. I'd have to think advanced players would get bored here after a couple rounds, though. This is definitely not the beatdown some other courses in the area can be.

With Silver Creek and Rollin' Ridge both within 20 minutes, it's in a great spot to be included in a day of spectacular plastic chuckin'.

1) Nice signs and very well built. Hole #, Par, and distances listed on each sign along with a hole sponsor. Well thought out investment . . . lets hope they last longer than most tee signs.

2) Massive trapezoidal dual concrete teepads are the best in the business. I love these pads and what they offer to the course. They also used the mulch around the teepads effectively and that really adds to the playability, sustainability of the tee complexes from reduced erosion, and also the look of the course from reduced compaction and soil exposure. This is just another thing this course did the right way!

3) DGA Powder Coated Blue baskets as seems to be the norm for this part of Wisconsin.

4) Maintenance seems to be a priority on this course. The turf was mowed well, the mulch was in place, and the property was very clean.

5) Benches in many spots, picnic tables available for a mid round snack, garbage cans available in multiple spots, mulch used around tees and baskets, all in all they have just about every amenity that can be asked for.

6) DIstance variation from 195-420 on the slongs and 148-347 from the shorts. It is always nice to see distance variation as it makes you think different shots and throw approaches to some baskets. I like this variety and is becoming more and more a requirement for me to thoroughly enjoy a course. Repetition can be a fun killer!

7) The alternate basket on Hole #12 deserves .25 discs just for having this available. The basket is always in too which is even cooler allowing for people to play the normal basket or the long on any given day.

8) Practice basket is available up by the first tee area and there is enough room to practice putting but it is close to some playground areas which would inhibit approaches and longer putts from being doable when multiple people are around.

9) Good directional signs are available in a few spots where the flow could get confusing. Another thing they did right here.

10) Rest rooms available in the parking area are much appreciated. Grills also available for your Johnsonville Brats! I could spend a whole day here!

11) Retaining walls built around a few of the tees to help the erosion and also keep the area level at the end of the tee pad. Much appreciated and well done. Way better than most retaining walls that seem to be built on courses.

12) Overall this course is beginner friendly. Many of the holes will not challenge the better players, but some will and I do think the potential is there for improvements to some of these boring holes. Regardless all skill levels could enjoy this course.

1) The front 9 holes are somewhat boring. I do appreciate the more wide open holes coming early as it gives everyone a chance to warm up their arms, but the overall impression of this 9 is that is too easy, not real imaginative, and somewhat boring. I know the property dictates what you can do, but this could have been an incredible course if some better land was used. It is not the designers fault in my opinion, he did what he could with the land, it simply brings down the overall impression of this course.

2) #5 and #6 are somewhat rough and could use some cleaning and maintenance to make them better holes.

3) The openness of the first 11 holes is the biggest con on this course. Sure there are woods available and some of the baskets are close to the woods, but overall it would be nice to see some trees planted on a few of these open fields. I only fear that they might not survive all the plastic driver hits. If they could tighten up some fairways and maybe put a little more trouble around the baskets on these holes they would have a much better front 9. They aren'y horrible but the overall impression is overwhelming in how much better holes #12-18 are compared to 1-11.

I am glad to see this course included int he Manitowalk in the Park despite the fact I may never play that tourney because of a conflicting golf tourney the same weekend every year. Silver Creek is awesome but Indian Creek is just horrendous. If only you could take the back 9 here and the back 9 at Indian Creek and you might have a decent 18.

I like this course a lot, it was built properly, all things were well thought out in advance, they invested in all the amenities from the beginning. It is well designed for the property and it has a nice variety overall. I would like the challenge to be more ever present but maybe they can invest in some nice hardwood trees to make the more open holes better.

While the overwhelming feeling of this course is positive, it is hard to overcome the blandness of the first 11 holes. If they were able to improve these holes with some trees, or add holes on some of the better terrain on the property this course could be one of my WI favorites. If it stays the way it is, it will remain a well maintained, average challenge, and average design (no offense to the designer, he did what he could I am sure) with all the amenities one looks for on a course. I do wholeheartedly agree with others that tucking some of those baskets into the tighter wooded areas would make this course better. Why not make some 50-100' approaches into these native wooded areas. Afterall, you would likely only be removing buckthorn in a lot of these locations!

The long tees most certainly will add some challenge, but it doesn't really alter the open boring feel of the front 9.

I guess what I am saying is a few thousand dollars of an investment in some trees might be worth it. Hey the county surely has a tree spade, maybe they could just spade in a bunch of Maples and other hardwoods from some of their other properties to bring the cost way down. It would make this course so much better, but as it is, I did thoroughly enjoy the course. It isn't in my top 50, but it does have that potential. It is above average, I just basically wish the challenge was more used on the beginning holes.

The course begins in open rolling grassy areas with some scattered areas of trees off the fairways to catch errant drives. The back nine goes into some thick woods for some tighter more technical shots to add some variety. There is some minor elevation change throughout the course, and it's used pretty well to create a little more challenge and interest. One hole has an alternate basket further in to the woods than the short pin that offers a great roll away green down a steep little hill (I think it's hole 12 with 2 baskets). The wooded holes do a nice job of mixing up the shot shapes, with a good balance of right and left turning holes. The front nine has some good length with a couple holes you can rip a drive on, and the back nine has less length and more technical challenges.

For such a new course, the amenities here are quite good. There are dual concrete tees that are large and textured. Each hole has a nice tee sign showing the hole layout and the distance to the pin from both pads. There are next tee signs where needed, there are a couple non-obvious walks but they are clearly marked so the course is very easy to follow. The baskets are new and catch great. There is a putting area by the parking lot with enough space to throw some approaches at the pin.

The front nine gets a little boring, too many of the holes are wide open with only wind as an obstacle. Apparently tree planting is planned, so this could slowly get better. There isn't enough length variety on either section of the course to keep both nines from feeling a bit repetitive. There were some potential alternate pin placements throughout the front nine that would make it much more interesting with baskets that could be put into the edge of wooded areas or near elevation changes for a little more challenge. The dual tees are nice, but they don't change up the course much, they only change the distance a little on most holes so it's not worth an extra round to play both sets of tees. It would be nice to have signs at both sets of tees, but I know that's expensive and even more maintenance required.

This is a nice course, and clearly is still improving. It could use a little more variety and some more creative pin placements, but it's not a bad place to play. Beginners will find the course approachable, with not too much length or challenge from the shorts. More experienced players won't be truly tested, but there are some fun shots here. Don't plan a whole trip around this course, but if you're in the area it's not a bad stop. By one tee there is a path down to the river for a view of the falls, it's worth a quick walk down.

1. Variety. While the course is primarily open, shot shaping is required around trees and wood-lined fairways, and a decent mix of straight holes with righty- and lefty-friendly designs. The few wooded holes in particular were pretty cool, with elevation coming into play as well as tight fairways. Hole #1 is a reachable blind hole with a large conifer dead-center in the fairway, so it's a good opener hole in that it's conducive to righty or lefty shots. Hole #12 is a cool downhill hole requiring a big RHBH hyzer, easy to end up in the woods if your hyzer line isn't executed properly.
2. Maintenance. This course just opened, but it's clear that in this county park setting it is well cared for and receives plenty of funding. Didn't see many trash cans on the course, though I'm certain those will be coming, especially with Manitowoc's biggest tourney (with one round now played here, the other at Silver Creek) right around the corner. No litter problems yet.
3. Dual concrete tees. This is always nice to see, especially since a lot of courses have limited funding and usually choose to do just one set of tees in concrete, leaving (usually) the shorter tees natural/woodchip/etc. It's clear the Manitowoc crew wanted to kick things off right with their newest course, and all of the tees were level, and even while playing a round in the rain I didn't see any water pooling, so they are draining excellently.
4. Multi-use park setting. If the wife and kids don't want to play a round from the shorts, there's a nice little playground, or they could head down to the falls and do some fishing, or have a picnic.
5. Nice handcrafted benches at every hole. Not a physically exhausting course, so benches at every hole may seem a bit superfluous, but on a busy day and being in the open (i.e. hot sun), these will be much appreciated.
6. Putting practice basket near parking lot.
7. Bulletin board near parking lot. No info posted yet, but I'm sure this board will get used with the upcoming tourney.
8. Next tee signs where appropriate. Still recommend printing a course map (in the links section above) for first-timers out here until permanent navigational aides are in place.

1. The first few holes are pretty bland, lots of wide open shot followed by wide open shot to an unprotected basket, albeit with gently rolling fairways (but not enough elevation change to really affect your shot or lie). Holes #1-5 and #10 all play AROUND little wooded islands instead of going into or through them, which would make this course much tougher (and enjoyable if you're into that kind of wooded punishment). Most of the Front 9 is very reminescent of Indian Creek, and it's not until Hole #14 that you actually get the chance to shoot into some woods, and it IS a blast once you get to these holes and get to finish out your round with some real finesse shots and narrow fairways. I'd suggest playing the Back 9 twice, but there's no real 9-hole loop design here where you can easily just play the Front or Back.
2. I noticed on numerous occasions where pin positions were lackluster when observing the surrounding terrain that could have been utilized (a sharp dropoff in the woods just behind the pin, a small clearing in the woods, etc.). Just simply relocating some of the baskets could drastically change some of these bland holes and add some real risk. But, this is a county park and I'm sure there were severe limitations on where they could install baskets, how much brush they were allowed to clear, etc.
3. No permanent tee signs yet, but I'm not knocking any points off for this. There's a sample sign at Hole #1, and throughout the rest of the course you're greeted with "Course Under Construction" signs, so obviously this is still a work in progress.
4. The long tees aren't much different than the shorts, just longer. Most of the longs are just stuck 40-100 feet behind the shorts, maybe just off to the side, without changing the feel of the holes that much. I like when a course tantalizes me with short tee locations that make me want to play another round from short tees just to get a different experience (Tendick Nature Park suffers from this same flaw with their dual tees).
5. There are restrooms near the parking lot, but hit these up before you start your round since, like stated, the course doesn't wrap back around to this point until Hole #14. Especially keep this in mind with children -- My son had a bathroom emergency on Hole #8, which is about the furthest point AWAY FROM the restrooms! Again, not knocking points off for this; it's just quite a haul back if you "need to go" at some point in the turn.

As stated in my review title, this course doesn't quite live up to Silver Creek. I did find it much more enjoyable than Indian Creek, although I admit I wasn't expecting much more than another Indian Creek when seeing the course installation photos. The redeeming holes are found on the Back 9, and without these I probably wouldn't have given this more than a 2.5 (in actuality it would've been more like a 2.75). The wooded holes fulfill the need for a balanced course, but Cato Falls isn't so crazy wooded that noobs/kids/casual players will get extremely frustrated. All in all this was a fun course, and with the falls nearby I can envision spending a day out there with the family, picnicking and enjoying nature with a few rounds of DG thrown in for good measure.