Geneva, IL

The Links at Wheeler Park

3.155(based on 36 reviews)
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6 3
booradly
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 12 years 166 played 24 reviews
2.50 star(s)

the links 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Sep 28, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

-course is in a very nice park
- course maps and score cards are available at the mini golf concession stand
- has many chances for making a challenging shot
-a few good mature trees that make you plan your shots out bit not so many that you get frustrated
-has one or two good chances to ace
-has several holes that you can let your arm lose
-almost no chance of losing a disc
-solid signs around the course that make it easy to know where the baskets are and tape on the baskets that point you to the next tee pad

Cons:

- im not a fan of the rubber tee pads they have here a few are sunken down on the right side from getting so much use
- the park can get crowded some times both on the course and people using the walking paths
the far east side of the course is very close to a busy road
-this course gets super muddy around the tees/pins and then the mud gets all over the rubber pads making them almost very slick and borderline dangerous.

Other Thoughts:

- i was there one afternoon a few weeks ago and right around hole 9 or so high school track practice started and i almost took out groups of runners who did not seem to know there was a disc golf course there
- its a solid play for how close it is to my house
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2 1
4_Of_Spades
Experience: 15.9 years 36 played 28 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Nice Park and 18 Holes 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 8, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

Located in a nice old park among other activities.

Had some nice holes, I really liked the steep downhill shot on hole 12.

Moderately wooded throughout with a mix of moderately long holes (~300') to short ace runs (~125').

Baskets were good and I think signs were being added. Tees were okay.

Cons:

Course was pretty short. Was able to drive and putt on every hole.

Not much punishment for bad drives.

Holes can be close together and some are near other park users.

Navigation was an issue. I think we parked in the wrong parking lot and started at 15 or something. We were fortunate to follow and see where other groups went so we found all the holes.

Other Thoughts:

This was a nice course to play and is beginner friendly. I would recommend a play through at least once as it offers a decent 18 hole course in the area. Improvements can be made to this course though.
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3 0
Chicagolandlefty
Experience: 26.9 years 93 played 8 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Confusing with potential 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 3, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is a pretty course with a few unique shots.

There are a few holes with elevation and a few more with decently challenging and fun angles for drives. A couple drives force you to shoot around a corner and a few others involve hills.

Some of the pin locations are cleverly buried within a grouping of trees or shrubs to make for challenging entry and putting lines (I even unintentionally skipped an approach shot into one of these for a memorable deuce).

Cons:

Navigation! I think the course was in the middle of a minor redesign because there were tees to nowhere and a lack of signs all over in the first several holes. The course played differently than some of the reviews below and there were incorrect numbers on some of the tees in the beginning. My group was constantly wandering for the correct tee and hole to shoot to on the first 6 or 7 holes.

We missed 11 and 12 because we didn't know where to go after 10. We went all over the place looking for it, but eventually gave up when we found 13. This goes back to the dreadful course design. There's a course map on the way to the first tee and we all agreed it made no sense and was going to be tough to navigate from looking at it.

Some of the tee pads were unusable and we played from the grass on a few holes because of fear of injury.

Other Thoughts:

Basically all my complaints stem from the awful course design. Even simple renumbering of the holes and better signage would be enough.

That said, if that got improved this course would become a very enjoyable 18. The varied shots and challenging (at times) pin locations made it fun once we knew where we were going, but the overall take away was how hard it was to figure out where to go.

There is definitely good potential here with minor tweaking and sign improvement.
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8 2
Three Putt
Staff member
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 29.3 years 152 played 127 reviews
2.50 star(s)

A classic Chicagoland course (and that ain't a good thing...) 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Jul 6, 2013 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Geneva is a decent recreational course. Most of the holes are lightly wooded, although a couple of holes like # 11 are heavily wooded. The site has good elevation changes for the area; there are some good elevated tee on holes like #8, #12 and #14. Holes #4 and #9 have protected pin placements, and hole # 3 has the basket perched up on a small hillside. #18 has a tree border on each side of the fairway and is a very pretty shot to end on.

Cons:

Geneva has two glaring issues. The first is the tees. They are awful. The course is four months old and they are a rutted, washed-out mess. Crushed stone in a border is a terrible idea for tees, and given the affluence of the community there is no reason for the course not to have concrete tees. ***UPDATE: The course now has Flypads, which is an upgrade from the original tees. In some places like #5 the ground underneath is not flat so you have an uneven, undulating tee. However, it is an improvement to the originals.**** The lack of concrete tees might be a blessing due to issue number two...

The course design is horrible. Far, far too many of the baskets and tees are too close together, and it's not uncommon to be in sight of three or four baskets at once. On #16 I threw an accidental hyzer and found myself virtually the same distance from five baskets on a shot where I still pared the hole. There is waaayyy too much stuff crammed in there. The tees for # 2 and # 3 are really close to the previous basket. Either the designer failed to use the available land adequately or they crammed in 18 holes where there was only room for 14. The result is a shooting gallery.

Hole # 5 has already been moved, probably due to people throwing out into HWY 31. Hole # 6 may also be moving, the tee sign is no longer next to the tee. If those holes are moved, the flow in that part of the course is going to be terrible. The flow is already confusing because holes #13, #14 & #16 loop back over the front 9, and with the holes so close together which basket you are shooting for can be confusing. There is yellow tape on the baskets pointing you to the next tee, and that does help the navigation a bit.

Hole # 18 shoots away from the parking lot, so you are closer to your car on the tee than you are when you finish the hole.

Hole #12 has an interesting tee that slopes down dramatically. The entrance/exit point is at the back of the tee, but locals are scrambling up and down the slope. This will cause erosion problems and could get someone hurt. There needs to be directional signs around to the safe entrance/exit point.

The course is short. Given that it is a recreational level course that is not a huge deal, but it should be mentioned that the course is short.

Other Thoughts:

Geneva has potential, but the course needs a significant redesign to reach that potential. If additional land in the park is available, that land needs to be utilized. If there is no additional land some holes need to come out. As it stands, it is a below average recreational course. There are far too many courses like that in Chicagoland already. This site has the potential to be something better, but sadly it is not. ***UPDATE: The course has improved the tees and tweaked a few placements, so I'm going to bump up the rating a bit. It's a pretty OK recreational course at this point. I still have safety concerns over how close together the holes are, but it is passable at this point. ***
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9 1
notapro
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 20.8 years 569 played 284 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Beginner/Intermediate 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 3, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

- Course is set in a public park that has a walking path and some benches scattered about. Might be some waiting on a few holes, but overall it seemed like the disc golf is well separated.
- Majority of the holes are set in more open areas, with a varying amount of mature trees to contend with. There are some different lines to be found, with a few low ceiling tunnelish shots, some groves of trees to navigate through and around, and others with bigger, more mature trees. A wide variety overall, some are extremely tight and almost demand a roller over any "standard" shot. Flex shots and possibly FH's from either side can go a long way.
- Other holes have more forested aspects, with some short RHBH annys into and out of some denser forest areas, a nice downhill shot bordered by forest on both sides, and two in the open that require hitting a tight window to get through a piece of forest to the basket. These last ones are very tight, laying up is a serious option.
- Some good elevation changes to be found here and there, like an uphill approach on #3, decent to good downhills on a few low-ceiling shots, and a shot off a small hill on #16. Helps to keep things interesting.
- Nice variety of hole lengths, with a few over 350' and seven over 300'. Shorter ones as well for reachable, though tough, birdie or ace chances. Overall on the shorter side with an average hole length of 275'.
- Good baskets, nice signage, teepads could be worse. Navigation is easy with the map, and painted wires on the baskets point to the next tee.

Cons:

- Some of the holes here seem to be a work in progress; some almost unfair lines are needed to get to the basket. A roller helps big time on a lot of these, but holes like #11 and #13 are just too tight to be considered fair in my book.
- Most of the holes here, on the other hand, can be easily 3'd without much punishment. Even a lousy drive can be good enough, with lots of open area and very few hazards outside of the forest. The lines are definitely tricky at spots, but missing them isn't too big a deal.
- Layout is a little strange, like #2's basket being right by #3's tee, and some fairways or walks between holes that are a little close to each other. Heads up at some places.

Other Thoughts:

- All in all a fun course that offers some interesting, different shots throughout. Some are downright nasty with some thick clumps of forest to needle through, or tight groves of trees. Low ceiling shots are common, and some elevation changes are present here and there. Might be a little short for a more experienced player, should provide good challenge for everyone else.
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5 3
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.2 years 831 played 777 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Needs some work 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 12, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays through a nice grassy park with mature trees. Most of the holes have several mature trees in play. A few play through a forested area of the park with thick rough and a couple decent elevation changes. The best lines on the holes offer a mix of right and left turning shots with a decent amount of distance variety.

This is a great course for rollers, with nicely mowed grass and some low ceilings. The tee signs are basic, but plenty descriptive with hole layout and distance. The baskets are new and in good shape, and have tape on a rung of the basket and the chain hangar pointing to the next tee helping with navigation.

Cons:

The wooded holes need some more work, they aren't well cleared out or cleaned up yet. Some of this will happen as the course get more play, but there are also some erosion problems on the hills in the woods already and this will get worse with play. Several holes play near one another, and several more play near or over a walking path, many potential safety hazards.

There are a lot of shots on the course where there isn't a great air shot to get to the pin. I don't mind a couple holes on a course where a roller is the best option, but there were several here and they got a little old. There isn't much risk/reward here, a lot of holes just don't offer any punishment for errant shots. The tees are pretty awful, just rutted out gravel with wood to trip over.

Other Thoughts:

There is definitely some unrealized potential here. Many of the holes could be tweaked a little to make much more interesting and enjoyable shots, and more holes in the woods would help too. Beginners can have a good time here with little rough on most of the holes. More experienced players won't be all that challenged, there are some tough holes to birdie but that's mostly because they're awkward lines or low ceilings.
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