Ottawa, IL

Fox River Park - Old Layout

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1.785(based on 9 reviews)
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Fox River Park - Old Layout reviews

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2 1
mgcarney
Experience: 14.9 years 94 played 55 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Delightful 9 hole 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 20, 2015 Played the course:once

Pros:

This course has some nice variety. Always on the short side, but enough variety to stay interesting. The course flows pretty naturally, but had to check the map a couple times.

Parking is right across the street by tee #1, which was pretty nice.

The locals seem to really care about this course. Holes were stocked with scorecards/maps.

Cons:

Hole 1 is right by the gazebo, which a local decided a disc golf basket would be a great obstacle for the middle of their game of bags... Had to skip.

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3 0
hevyevie
Experience: 14.9 years 39 played 9 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Nice little local park 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Sep 26, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

Nice tee pads. Maps and score cards provided. Scenic view of Fox River. Decent layout. Extremely friendly locals. Clean restrooms. Plenty of ace opportunities. Good parking areas.

Cons:

Some of the baskets were questionable. One was missing some chains, another the basket was bent and re-straightened. Played through vacant backyards and near houses. Multi use park so expect pedestrians. Could get busy during the summer months.

Other Thoughts:

All on all it was a decent little course with good views and friendly people. Not extremely challenging which makes for a good beginner course or someone looking to brush up their game. With the directions provided you have to go under a 12ft. tall bridge. Be careful with high profile vehicles. Almost scraped off my A/C unit on my camper.
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6 0
notapro
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 20.7 years 568 played 281 reviews
1.50 star(s)

Beginner 2+ years

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

Pros:

- Course is set in a small city park, bordering a neighborhood and the Fox River. There is a walking path winding through the park, and lots of benches, and a pavilion, interference is definitely possible.
- There is a decent amount of large trees here to force a lot of line shaping. A good amount of holes are very friendly to a RHBH anny shot, like #3, #4, #5, #7, and #9. There is usually a hyzer line present but it is either much tighter or much longer to get to the pin. A few other holes have the hyzer line more or less blocked, so it is interesting for right handed players. Low branches here and there also add challenge, like #7.
- #6 has an elevated tee, which makes the hole more fun.
- Good signs, pads, and baskets. Navigation can be a little tricky, but maps were present last time.

Cons:

- Biggest con here is the major conflicts with the park. Holes play very close to, or even through, the pavilion present, and park benches. On a busy day there would be a major problem.
- A short course, at an average of 232' per hole. Definitely not for people looking to air out drivers. And, while some of the lines can be tricky, there is almost always a wide open path to the basket one way or another.

Other Thoughts:

- Fantastic course for beginners to learn about the game and practice some different flights. Enough trees to make things interesting, with some ace runs around 200', and one longer one over 300'. Not too bad for more experienced players to throw the putter around, either.
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8 0
crazyfingers85
Experience: 22 years 12 played 3 reviews
2.50 star(s)

another local opinion 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 6, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Other Thoughts:

whats really awesome for me is that this course is even here. it took a lot to get that course. when they were redoing the park and they proposed the disc golf course alot of locals and city workers were like "huh?" so when it went through, i was so stoked. all in all everyone is right about the quality, and the city does not do anything for it but mow. so it is up to us locals to fix the tee markers, clear the tree limbs, and pick up the trash. i am going to personally fix the tee markers if i am not answered back by city hall. but if you look at this course and see were they have planted trees, it looks like someday it will be a pretty cool little course. just a locals opinion. if anyone reads this who is local, please message me if you would like to help in fixing some of the flaws of the course.
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10 1
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.1 years 831 played 767 reviews
0.50 star(s)

Huh? 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Apr 10, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays through a flat park with scattered mature trees, and nice views of a river. The trees provide obstacles while leaving multiple lines available on all holes. The fairways were grassy and mostly well kept. The tees were decent concrete pads with a fine surface to tee from. The baskets were in good shape and catch fine.

There were a couple interesting holes, particularly 5 and 6, that offer a little elevation and a little different feel from the rest of the holes on the course, as well as a good exposure for the sport by the basketball courts.

Cons:

The course was squeezed into several sections of park and what seemed like empty lots between houses. This meant that the course had very odd flow and was difficult to follow, which wasn't helped by the lack of any signage on the posts at each tee. [UPDATE: Course maps and signage have been updated, so the course is much easier to follow and play.] It also meant that many holes played very close to yards and houses which takes away from the atmosphere of the course and makes for some safety issues too.

There are several places in the course where you are shooting directly over other park features like a water play area, gazebo and basketball court, as well as very close to roads and sidewalks making for a fairly unsafe course in general. On top of that, the lack of signage and the missing 7th basket make for a very run down and neglected feel to the course. Other than a couple mildly interesting holes, there aren't any shots that really draw you back to this course and keep it interesting.

Other Thoughts:

This is a course that I wouldn't recommend for pretty much anyone who isn't stuck living near this course with no other options within easy driving distance. It's approachable for beginners, but with lots of safety hazards and some silly holes way too close to houses. More experienced players won't find any real challenges other than not hitting someone on a busy day. Even if you're passing through, don't bother with this one unless you just want to add to your course list.
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6 0
Hypnotik Robot
Experience: 6 played 3 reviews
1.00 star(s)

A Local's Opinion 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 9, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

It's local and is a good spot to practice when I've got an hour of free time.

It's located along a nice area of the Fox river, which adds a bit of scenery.

Cons:

It's small and not too well kept up. The signs on the markers have been missing for years and I don't foresee the replacement happening soon. Recent construction has left the course even worse off. In front off and off to the right just a smidge a large gazebo was recently built alongside a fountain for children to play in. The fountain only added to the foot traffic and children walking the path, which cuts right through the first and second fairways. The gazebo has a few picnic tables underneath it and families gather there while their children play in the fountain so we've been throwing from the pathway to the left to avoid hitting people or even the gazebo itself.

The basket for hole 7 was removed to allow construction vehicles to pass through and hasn't been replaced even though construction finished back in June. During this time we've just been playing to the 8th basket, which isn't a problem since there is hardly ever more than two groups playing through the park at a time. Then you just double back to the 8th tee and play to the 8th basket again which is an easy hole to ace.


Now that it's winter there is also an ice skating pond in the direct middle of the fairway on hole 2, at least there is supposed to be. I doubt many people go to the rink but I'm sure some do, which would only add to the pedestrian hazards.

Other Thoughts:

If you're not already in the area then don't even bother playing this course. It is not worth the trip. I only gave it a 1 because I live in Ottawa and I play it regularly. If I had traveled from out of town to play it would have been given a 0.

Back in August the city planted a bunch of trees all throughout the park and I feel like they're in nice places to help define the layout of some of the holes. There are a few that will certainly be in the way though once they get a little larger.

In summation, if you're local drop by to brush up on your game but expect pedestrians and kids to be in your way a lot because this is a multi-use park. if you're not already in town and were thinking of taking a drive to play this course, don't bother.
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7 0
hognosesucker
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24.9 years 443 played 85 reviews
0.50 star(s)

Strange/bad setting for dg 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 26, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Tiny city park along the flood plain of the fox river and some decent views
-concrete pads
-Holes 5 and 6 (the holes by the basketball court) are actually pretty decents. 5 is a kind of tight short straight shot , 6 is a downhill putter or mid shot. Nothing tricky, just a nice change of pace from the rest of the course

Cons:

First, let me explain the park. It is very small with houses and private property on the edges and the course plays on either side of the road. Many of the tee pads or baskets are located near people's backyards, which was kind of creepy. For instance the pin for 4 is in someone's side yard, 9 is by someone's backyard, 6 tees by the side of a house. etc. you get the idea.
-Secondly, not one of the tees had signs. All of the teesigns had been pried off. Therefore you had no idea the distance the location of the pin (which wasn't a problem until hole 7-9), or whether you were in the right place.
-Hole 7's basket was gone, I looked all around for it, but couldn't find it or even where it was supposed to be.
-The layout was kind of screwy, not hard to follow, but 9 crosses 8's fairway, and there is no signage between 2 pin and 3 tee and it's not in sight from the basket.

Other Thoughts:

All in all, this course was terrible. Between the vandalism and throwing near people's yards, and not knowing where to park, (for future reference, park in the lot on the right side of Superior, across the street from hole one, by the bathrooms and water fountains) it was hard to give this course any recognition. It was almost like one of those courses that they put in for foot traffic to keep hoodlums and vandals away, but it didn't work because there was still vandalism and they didn't think of actually designing it in a fun or interesting way. I rarely drag on about courses this way ,after all, I have fun throwing the discs, but this was a sorry excuse for a course.
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1 4
sobkwk
Experience: 4 played 3 reviews
2.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 15, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Close to the Illinois Valley area. Good place to get some practice.

Cons:

Might be difficult to find your way around the first time visiting.

Other Thoughts:

If you live close it's worth going to check it out for some practice.
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7 0
Rexdiscus
Experience: 18.8 years 192 played 8 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Decent little course. 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 18, 2008 Played the course:once

Pros:

I like the fact that it is right by the Fox River. It makes for a nice scene. It is a nice little nine-hole course. It is somewhat open, but there are a few trees that come into play. The course design flow pretty well.

Cons:

The tee signs were old and did not list distances. Maybe the signs have been updated since I played there in August 2008. A few more trees and elevation changes would be nice.

Other Thoughts:

Birdies are to be had if you play every hole as a par three. There is one hole that has to be at least 450 feet. My guess is that it is close to 500 feet with some nice fat trees at about the halfway mark that could come into play. My disc hit one of those trees and led to a four. I think there is little chance to get wet unless your shot is extremely off line. If you like fishing, why not play a few rounds and cast a line after disc. You may not want to drive thirty or more miles to play here since no other course is within twenty miles, but if you are planning a trip to Starve Rock, it would be worth stopping in Ottawa to play Fox River Park. I think this course falls between a 2.5 and a 3.0, but it needs a little more of something to give it a three, so I must go with the 2.5. I still plan on hitting it in a few weeks when I go camping in LaSalle County again.
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