Festus, MO

West City Park

Permanent course
3.365(based on 22 reviews)
Filter course reviews

Filter reviews

Filter reviews

West City Park reviews

Filter
10 0
Tyler V
Gold level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 16.8 years 147 played 98 reviews
2.00 star(s)

A Long, Challenging Course With All The Potential And None Of The Follow-Through

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 28, 2023 Played the course:once

Pros:

West City Parks disc golf course, also known as Larry G. Crites Memorial, is a long 22-hole course that combines long open shots with narrower fairways through varying degrees of woods. This course will really test your driving distance to make par on many holes, and is not set up to be a fun time for new players.

Location of West City Park is a few minutes from I-55, making it an easy stop while on the road. The course is located on the drive that's all the way on the north end of the park; some reviews made it sound like this little parking lot and drive weren't accessible to cars in the past, but it seems to be now. There are plenty of gas stations and food options as well in case you need to stock up before what will be a decently long round at West City. Course baggers will enjoy the proximity to Jokerst Memorial Park, which is a great stop if you want a round of golf that's shorter, or, you know, more fun than West City. For a day of disc golf, Hillsboro and Grace Way are 9-holes nearby, as well as St. Louis as a whole. Going south, courses are present but more spread out south of Woodsy Bogler.

Park Amenities are plentiful across this expansive park. There are multiple playgrounds and bathrooms, including a port-o-john by the start of the course. There are also plenty of pavilions and ball fields, including a nice baseball/softball complex across the street. My friend and I noticed some mountain bikers along the tail end of the course by hole 23, but other than that, there doesn't seem to be too much overlap between disc golf and other park uses with few exceptions.

Course Equipment is a mixed bag on this course. The baskets are Gateway Titans, and while some were tilted, they're overall in good shape still. THere are concrete tees for the most part, and were nice to throw off of. There's varying signage on the course; some nicer laminated signs for the "big guns layout" include a detailed picture of the hole layout, distances, and pars, while other older signs had pars, distances, and a basic to non-existent layout of the hole. Some holes also just got a hole number. At least one basket had a directional sign on the bottom of the basket to the next tee, something that could be useful elsewhere on the course as well.

Course Design at West City has some variety to it, though the vast long fairways will be what you remember after your round. With three par 5s and several other par 4s, this course will give your arm a workout.

Shot-Shaping isn't something explicitly required on most of the fairways, but will come in handy at times. The wooded holes such as 14, 16, and 17 will require particular angles to get down the fairway, and hole 12 is an uphill shot that will reward you if you can manage a right ending shot at that high angle. Hole 3 is a RHBH hyzer that is well guarded. Hole 21 is the opposite with a right turning shot. Some other holes like 7 and 15 don't necessarily require a particular shape but rather simple accuracy to miss trees around the fairway. Most holes, however, are pretty open and will simply reward distance.

Distances are, well, distant as a whole on this course. 9 holes top 400 feet, with your par 5s coming in at 859, 718, and 679 feet respectively, the later two involving a hill on the green. The wooded holes are mostly shorter, with 12 being the shortest at a mere 97 feet (plus elevation), but as a whole, the 9,009 feet this course is listed at feels like an understatement.

Elevation is not robust in this park, but the hill between the upper and lower portions of the park and disc golf course really makes a difference for the six holes that play along or across it. Holes 3, 4, and 20 play down, especially 4 and 20 (ayy), making for some of the more fun tee shots you'll find here. The other three holes finish uphill, adding some pepper to your approaches. Hole 2 slightly plays downhill to start, and Some of the wooded holes have some slight elevation. Other than that, it's a flat course, with that singular hill across the middle of the park pulling its weight.

Difficulty Level at West City is decently high, making it a not-so-great option for newer players. The long fairways throughout the course combined with the tight wooded shots mean that anyone who can't both throw long drives and accurate wooded shots is going to have a hard time on some or all of this course. Jokerst is much more forgiving and a great place to learn the fundamentals before graduating to this course.

Course Highlights for me would be holes 1 and 4. Hole 1 was a fun start to the round, being nice and open, with some challenge coming in throwing around the pond. Hole 4 was definitely my favorite tee shot, with the downhill drive off the tee down a narrow gap in the trees into a more open field.

Cons:

Course Equipment at West City needs some TLC badly. The older tee signs really don't have a lot of information, with some only having a hole number. The newer signs for the "big guns layout' are nice but didn't seem to be consistently present. More permanent signs that aren't taped to the older ones would be great, along with more directional signs. Some of the basket sleeves are also in need of some attention; hole 4 was the worst culprit with what had to be an almost 45 degree slant.

Navigation will be a big challenge without Udisc, and while Udisc is useful, newer players might not know about it. I like when a course can easily be navigated by a brand new player who just picked up some Innova DX plastic from Dicks Sporting Good or Walmart, and this course does not have that. Multiple transitions have numerous white signs in view, and some of the wooded transitions are far from obvious as well.

Missing Equipment on holes 18 and 19 really make for the worst of my previous two points. Hole 18 is missing a basket, and hole 19 is missing a tee sign. With 18 being along the creek, this is a really bad spot for anyone to decide to throw blind. Hole 19 is also a tight wooded shot in the opposite direction up a hill, but with no tee or sign, you'd never know about it without Udisc. This is apparently one of four newer holes added to the original 18 hole layout, and it seems like they decided to not finish building it.

Proximity To Other Park Amenities is not a big problem at West City, but the pavilion along hole 1 and the path behind hole 2 are two areas where you might want to keep an eye out for other park goers.

Flooding is an apparent issue for the lower section of the course based on older reviews, and the fact that Udisc has a layout specifically addressing the flooding. The lower section of the course is surrounded by a creek, and the west half of this area seems to get the worst of this flooding when it happens, with sogginess hanging around long after storms. Watch the weather leading up to your round here.

The 4 New Holes, being 6, 7, 8, and 19, don't add anything new to the course other than one somewhat challenging tee shot off 7, relatively to extremely open shots on 6 and 8, and an incomplete wooded hole for 19. Not much value is being added by these 4 holes on an already long and monotonous OG 18.

Fun: this course doesn't have much of it unless you like throwing a large number of bomber shots during your round. This course on average is long open shot after long open shot until you get to the wooded holes, most of which either don't have a clear fairway, have an unreasonably shaped or tight fairway for non-advanced players, or just don't have equipment present. Then more bomber shots to end your round. Some courses make for a fun round despite outside negative factors. This course seems to have the opposite problem.

Other Thoughts:

This course should be good when looking at it on paper, and has enough dedicated land with just enough variety of tree coverage and elevation to make for a fun 18. Somewhere across the large portion of land this course uses is the makings of a fun 18 hole course, I just know it. Instead, we have ourselves numerous long and wide open fairways, wooded shots that are much more likely to be frustrating for the average play than fun, and poor or missing course equipment throughout the course. The more I write about this course, the more I want to rate it even lower.

I think the course is disappointing mainly because it could be great. There's more than enough land to make some fun holes of disc golf, and the fact that they could (apparently almost) afford 4 extra holes of equipment tells me there is, or at least was, a budget somewhere that could have been used to add signage to help with some truly horrendous flow issues with the navigation. Your flooding bypass layout on Udisc still includes some of the lower area. If that part doesn't flood, why not just leave the other part unused? You have plenty of trees in the lower portion and woods in the east portion of the park, so why not try to use those more and clear some fairways better? Is there a budget with the local club or parks department for better signage? So many questions, to which I don't expect nor really care enough to get an answer for as someone who lives 45 minutes away but also lives closer to many better courses.

The 3.43 average rating left some hope for a fun round, but this course was the most disappointing disc golf experience I have had since owning an Innova Groove. I think the most telling thing about this course is that among the various amenities listed on the parks and rec page for this course, disc golf is nowhere to be found. The park

Until this course gets investment, I don't want to think about it anymore. Come here if you want the review votes or course bagging checkmark. Otherwise if you need 18 holes to play, play Jokerst twice.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
14 0
wellsbranch250
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 10.2 years 652 played 631 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Filler Fields 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 26, 2020 Played the course:once

Pros:

(2.655 Rating) A long sprawling hybrid course that will only appeal to a small niche of players. Note, this course has added four extra holes in the last couple of years, and thus my hole number references won't match the prior reviews.
- CHALLENGING - Higher skilled bombers are going to like this place more than everyone else. Yes, there are some neat guarded positions and a few technical woods lines, but much of the skill demand here is length off the tee.
- TEES - Most of the tees were concrete, which is good, but they needed to be a little wider IMO. They are only 4 feet by 12 feet and thus on a few I started my run up from off to the side on the longer holes. The tees on the new holes were just natural ground on my play. There are duel pads on over a dozen holes.
- SIGNAGE AND NAVIGATION - There was a mailbox on (2) stuffed full with updated scorecards and maps and it made navigating this course a lot easier. The tee signage is decent, but nothing spectacular. There was a missing sign on (8) on my play.
- HOLE VARIETY - Above average overall, but there are a bunch of similar tee shots that are just featureless bomb plays. There are a handful of wooded holes and water comes into ricochet play on a pair of holes. There's a 30 to 40 foot bluff that's used on six holes. Lots of par 4s, three par 5s and a couple technical short par 3s. A good mix of distances on the par 3s too.
- CHAINS - Nice Gateway Titan baskets. A couple along the mid layout bluff were leaning.

Cons:

It bites off more than it can chew.
- NOT FUN - This is a big expansive course in a 50 plus acre city park. You can tell the designers tried to push this course to the limits, and in doing so it caused other problems. A lot of unnecessary length was added using open fields. In fact, there's approximately 4,000 feet of flat featureless filler on this layout. Nine of the short tee shots are just merely chuck-it as far as possible without worry plays. Very boring. I didn't even care anymore by the time I had seen my fourth of these similar tee shots. I would just walk up with driver in hand, drop my bag and seamlessly tee off. I just wanted to leave as quickly as possible by hole (13). There are a few wooded holes, but only a couple were any good or fun to throw. Several of the woods lines were super constricted and slightly overgrown and with some poison ivy in spots. You can always tell a course isn't getting much play, when the weeds are growing into the baskets. I agree with mrbro855, Jokerst DGC down the road is way more fun than this course.
- DRAINAGE - It's clear that the course doesn't drain well in spots. Several reviews make note of these issues and even the score card says to skip (4,5 and 6) when the fields are flooded.
- EXTRA HOLES - This is one of only a few times I've played a course where I thought that the few added bonus holes made the course worse. First hole (6), a mostly open flat shot with a couple young trees to bomb over. Add in the fact that it's been flooded for over a half year, according to condition reports I read. (7) is a 360 foot poke and hope threw a field of 10 to 15 year old trees. (8) is a flat treeless 360 foot yawn-fest. Finally (19), a boring 150 foot tunnel shot up a 10 foot wide walking trail because there was a 250 foot walk flow gap previously.
- NO BENCHES - This layout is 9,000 foot plus and requires a good 3 miles of total walking. It's not acceptable to have zero benches on this course. Not everyone has a Zuca. The only pitstop is between (12) and (13) as there is a pavilion with tables nearby.
- MAINTENANCE - The higher ground open fields were well mowed and this seemed like the extent of the maintenance that had been done in the last month. Weeds had grown into 3 or 4 baskets on my play. Likely disc collection spots in wooded areas were overgrown.
- BEGINNER FRIENDLY - Newer players should go to Jokerst before here. They will hate this place.
- COURSE STARTING LOCATION - It does not appear one can park next to tee (1) anymore as the park road has been turned into a walking path. For this reason, I started on hole (2). The community board and mailbox with scorecards were moved to tee (2) as well. I assume most locals start their rounds here.
- SPACING - Several of the longer holes parallel each other with no trees in between. A pavilion comes into play on hole (1) and some walking paths come into play. Overall a very minor issue compared to the cons listed above.
- TIME PLAY - It took me 90 minutes on an empty course at the break of dawn, and I was rushing. Figure 3 hours for a foursome to play the entire layout.

Other Thoughts:

I was expecting a great course walking in, and left disappointed. The course was not in good shape and I could see many reviewers rating it even lower than I have with the conditions I dealt with. I took off less than a ½ point for all the maintenance and flooding issues. Had the course been in primo condition, I might have given it a low 3. However, I bet this course is rarely in primo conditions as the course is just so big and unpleasant to play that there are likely few, if any, course volunteers trying to keep it in check at the hard to reach areas. That's kind of where this course fails. Nearby 9 hole Jokerst probably draws 5 to 10 times as many players.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - I scored this aspect average. There are definitely some nice looking tee shots, like on holes (4) and (14). The big pond on (1) and (13) adds a little appeal and the wooded stretch after (13) is decent to walk through. However, there's a lot of featureless open landscape bringing the overall score way back.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
2 0
redtolk
Experience: 23.8 years 17 played 3 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Land down under 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 10, 2017 Played the course:once

Pros:

Vairety of shots, several long wide open drives, ease of finding baskets with help of the map.

Cons:

Unmarked baskets, lots of trees, lots of baskets deep in the trees. No water fountain to be found.

Other Thoughts:

Bring plenty of water, some shade, and be prepared to lose a disk to the thick out of bounds forrest, muddy creek, or many baskets along think trees. Also helpful to bring bugspray, and your walking shoes as this is a long course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
9 0
mrbro855
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 10.5 years 363 played 105 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Not for me.... 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 31, 2016 Played the course:once

Pros:

Solid signage, concrete tee pads, combination of both open and wooden holes, long and short holes. Also, part of the course is along side a scenic creek.

If you like to bomb it, there are plenty of opportunities:

Holes 1,3-7, 9, 15, 17 and 18 are all holes that are over 400 feet with minimal if any obstacles.

Holes 2, 8, 10, 11 are all short enough to provide birdie opportunities, with enough challenge to the basket placements to make them interesting.

Cons:

Some of the longer holes (6 are over 500ft) were repetitive in that for shorter throwers (like myself) it's just making numerous same throws to reach the basket.

Lot of walking from basket to next tee on numerous baskets.

Apparently, it must stay marshy on holes 3-5, if consistency on the reviews is any indication.

I didn't like 12-14. These were wooded holes with either a real narrow throwing lane or no discernable one.

Other Thoughts:

For the higher rated player, this is probably a great course. For the over 55 y/o player with a mediocre tee shot who's looking for "fun" courses, this didn't do it for me. I actually had more fun cross town at Jokerst Park.

That said, there are more positives than negatives. I just can't recommend it for beginners or for players who aren't looking to bomb a lot of shots.



Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 0
Moosejuice
Experience: 12 years 87 played 19 reviews
3.50 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 4, 2015 Played the course:once

Pros:

- Nice concret tees, good signs with all distances for A and B tees and pin locations.
- Great baskets.
- Really long fairways on most holes for those who love long shots. Most were over 600' on the A tees and many were around 800'. Hole 18 B tee to B basket is a whopping 1009'!!

Cons:

- If your new or not a long thrower this course would be a pain. My wife throws about 100' feet so hole 17 would have taken her about 8 throws. Gets kinda repetitive for her.

Other Thoughts:

- I like this course when I am in the mood for a long walk with my DG.
- In the summer, bring a sombrero. There is a lot of sun on most of this course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
5 0
Wise Fool
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 15.1 years 125 played 116 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Going Long 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 11, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Lots of long bomber holes (a lot of the holes are over 400 or 500 feet long, with some reaching 700 to 800 feet).
-Nice long tee-pads ensure that you have plenty of room for your run-up on the long holes.
-Very good tee-signs that show distance the distance of the hole and a good layout of the hole.
-The available elevation is incorporated into the holes well.
-Holes 10-14 were a lot of fun. They were some fun tightly wooded holes.
-Water comes into play on several holes. There is a river that flows by some of the holes and then holes 9 and 18 have a lake in play.
-Gateway Titans that are in good shape and catch well.
-Multiple tee-pads on each hole.
-Most holes have out of bounds on them, which helps to add some challenge to the course.
-Mostly plays in its own field area and stays out of the way of other park areas, except for hole 18.
-Pretty park

Cons:

-The start of the course is really hard to find, it is at the way edge of the park down a one way road, in which you have to drive all the way to the end of the road to find. There aren't any signs pointing toward the disc golf course. We actually ended up starting on Hole 10 because we found it before we found Hole 1.
-Navigation is hard on this course. There are long walks between a lot of the holes and it is not always clear which direction the next tee-pad. Directional arrows at each basket pointing to the next tee would really help this course out.
-We played this course have it had rained and it was really muddy, and I could see it being muddy for a few days after a good amount of rain.
-The area around hole 4 was really nasty. It was very smelly and there was a ton of dead fish in the drainage area.
-A lot of the baskets blended in with the foliage, so that a lot of walks up the fairway to actually see where the baskets were located.
-Course got quite repetitive on the front nine and holes 15 and 17. Holes 3 to 7 are basically a shot across a long open field to a basket hidden in some tree and underbrush, which starts to get a little boring. Hole 7 and 17 feel almost like the same hole, except holes 7 has more of a change of going into out of bounds areas. Though holes 10 through 14 provide a nice change from the rest of the course.
-Course was very overgrown. There was lots of tall grass on many of the holes. It looks like from the pictures that the course may get mowed sometime, but it definitely hadn't been mowed in a while, and took away from the enjoyment of the round.
-There is a picnic pavilion, bench and parking area in play on hole 18, which could conflict with other park users.

Other Thoughts:

I'm glad we ended up starting on the back 9 rather than at hole 1, because I found the back 9 a lot more compelling than the front 9. If you like lots of longer holes, this is the course for you, but I wouldn't go out of my way to play it.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 2
brekko
Experience: 16.5 years 51 played 5 reviews
4.50 star(s)

Solid StL course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 26, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Every type of hole you could want exists on this course. Tight line wooded holes, wide open bombs, short skip shots, sweeping downhill shots, water shots, etc.

Right now hole 3 and 4 are somewhat overrun with water, but we just picked a decent spot to tee off and hole 4 is actually really fun with a sort of island pin surrounded by the current standing water.

The holes are for the most part secluded from the rest of the park, save a few out in the open, but the don't interfere with major features except potentially people fishing.

The entire course is well manicured and signed, as long as you get a map to direct you across some of the awkward transitions from hole to hole it's relatively painless.

Cons:

Current wet conditions make 3 a lot tougher than normal, and the pad for four is entirely underwater.

Other Thoughts:

If you are in the area this is the course to play. I played 5 other courses in the area (Jefferson Barracks, Crystal City, Endicott, and Logan) and this was my favorite of those top rated contenders.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
7 0
Golden Tuna
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 23.1 years 185 played 31 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Open Bombers & Tight Woods 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Nov 2, 2013 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Multiple Pads, Multiple Pin Placements, Scenic Park, Water Holes, Nice Baskets, Good Flow, Mostly Easy to Follow, Not Crowded, Bathrooms & Trashcans, Course Area dedicated to Disc Golf

West City Park is a large park in Jefferson County that has made room for a big, long open bomber disc golf course. Each hole has Pro & AM concrete tee pads as well as 2 basket locations. If you play the Pro pads and the baskets are in their long positions, this course can really stretch out. Even though you get a lot of practice throwing big bombs out here, there are also quite a few technical holes (primarily on the back 9) that will test your accuracy.
There is a scenic lake (that loves to eat discs) situated right between the baskets for hole 9 & 18. Most of the rest of the holes are safe, but you can run into trouble with the river on holes 5, 6, 13,14,15 & 16. I'd recommend bringing a couple discs that you wouldn't mind losing for your first visit. Some of the greens can be very fast and you can go from putting for a 3 to pulling your putter out of the river 100' down the hill if you're not careful. The last hazard to watch for is wind. Since a lot of the course is set in open large fields, there are huge gusts of wind that you'll have to contend with.
Though the course area is mostly dedicated to disc golf, there is a walking path around the park as well as soccer fields and playgrounds, so be careful and be courteous.

Cons:

Somewhat Redundant, No Running Water, Open Fields, Prairie Grass

Overall, this is a great course, but it can get a little repetitive throwing across open fields on a bunch of holes. Luckily, there are numerous technical holes tucked in the woods that split up the big open bombers. There is also a good use of elevation here, so even the big open holes usually force you to hit a gap and play up to the basket about 150' The only problem is, you typically can't see the basket from the pad and have to walk a bit to find it. That said, common sense will almost always point you in the right direction. Also beware the tall prairie grass scattered throughout the bottom bowl of the course. Its not as bad as it used to be, but it does still love to eat discs.

Other Thoughts:

This is a fun course and the best option for this part of town. If you're going to be South of St. Louis, West City and Jokerst are off the same exit and worth the trip to play. The local club, the Jefferson County Sharpshooters is made up of some great guys that would typically be happy to guide you around if you need it. Just search for them on facebook.

Traveler's Tip: As you Exit Hwy 55 and head down Route A, you'll pass numerous fast food restaurants. When you get to the bottom of the hill (where you turn right), there will be a Phillips 66 on your left. This is the last place to get food/drink before you get to the course. Take advantage of the stop for the bathroom and food/drinks.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 2
Broll
Experience: 10 played 10 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 1, 2013 Played the course:once

Pros:

cool views with some fairly nice layouts. you really have the chance to throw the disc. some very long holes followed by short holes. a good mix

Cons:

there are some 800' foot holes that are challenging, be ready to walk. there is a lot of vehicular traffic along with pedistrians, so be careful
Was this review helpful? Yes No
2 2
smokey102977
Experience: 19.1 years 22 played 12 reviews
4.00 star(s)

AWESOME!!! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 28, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

The length of the course along with a great mix of open bombs, tight control shots, and ultra tight greens make this a course that can destroy your confidence. Water comes into play on most holes so make sure you have an ample amount of discs.

Cons:

It is too far away from me. I prefer to play courses within 10-15 miles and this is 40 miles away. Floods frequently. Parking is not in the best location for the course.

Other Thoughts:

Needs to have some landscaping done!
Was this review helpful? Yes No
7 0
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.1 years 831 played 767 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Long and a little too open 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 6, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays in an out of the way section of a large park. A handful of holes play in tightly wooded areas. They offer some different lines with narrow gaps to hit and some nice punishment for errant shots. A few holes bring the river into play, with rollaway potential on some greens and a couple drives where a bad kick could easily end up wet. There is some rough, mostly not too thick but thick enough that you'll pay for errant shots.

Many of the holes play fairly open. There are a few reachable shots and some longer holes where you can really air it out. Some have pins tucked into tree lines, so you have to set up your approach and can end up taking extra strokes if your drive cuts in early or late. A couple others bring some ponds into play, again with roll away potential around the water. The large hill between the upper and lower fields is used a couple times to make some fun hillside pin placements and add a little challenge.

Dual tees on each hole is a nice touch, especially when they're all solid concrete pads. Signage at the tees is decent, with hole layout and distances for all tee and pin combinations. A few of the dual pin placements changed things up significantly, as did a handful of the dual tee locations. Gateway titans are some of my favorite baskets, and the ones here are fairly new and in good shape.

Cons:

There are some safety issues, with the park road and walking path coming into play on several holes, and a couple holes that play alongside one another in the field without much separation. On long holes where players are going for max distance, accuracy is likely to suffer and exacerbate the safety problems.
Some of the alternate tees and pins don't really change the hole, I would like to see short tees that made the longest holes a little more beginner friendly (I don't really see the need for 750' and 800' tees on the same hole).

There is some repetition here, it's fun to air out long drives, but there are too many holes where that's the only challenge and there aren't really any obstacles. The course seemed a little heavy on RHBH hyzers, both in the woods and on many of the approaches to the holes with pins tucked into tree lines. It would be nice to have the pin position marked on the kiosk or the tee signs, with otherwise accurate signage it's frustrating to have to guess where the basket is.
There are some long walks between holes, and no signage to aid in navigation. Make sure you print a map or have it pulled up on your phone to avoid some wandering and frustration.

Other Thoughts:

This course offers a nice mix of challenges, and definitely caters to big armed throwers. Beginners might find the length frustrating, though the shorter wooded holes offer a nice break from that (and also more potential frustration with some thick rough). More experienced players will definitely be challenged here, with length, water and some technical shots. I would recommend a stop here if you're in the area, especially if you want the chance to rip some drives.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
9 0
notapro
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 20.7 years 568 played 281 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Intermediate/Expert 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 7, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

- Course is set in a busy city park that has a lot of other activities present. A busy road/walking path, some paths through the woods, baseball diamonds, etc. Most of the disc golf is far enough away to avoid interference, but it's definitely possible.
- A section of the course is in the woods, or amongst trees, to force some tight lines. The most obvious are #12, a snaking, tight fairway with a small hump in the middle. Tough to stay clean. #13 isn't quite as tight, but still requires an accurate shot to stay out of the rough. #10 and #11 are set within a dense grove of smaller trees, not easy to get through here. #2 is a sharp blind hyzer into the woods, and #8 is a tight RH flick shot up the woods.
- A bunch of other holes come out of, or shoot into the woods as well. #3 is a gap shot from the woods, then back in the woods to the pin. #5 is a long hyzer out of a gap as well. #7 and #17 both finish uphill into woods, and #18 is tucked behind some mature trees.
- On top of the wooded holes, there are lots and lots of bomber shots here. Lots. Plenty of elevated teepads for BOMBs; even the biggest arms will find many chances to air them out. With 6 holes at or above 700', it is a distance competition on many holes.
- Water is present in many spots, and is definitely in play. To the right of #13 and #14 especially, and also by baskets like #5, #6, #15, and #16. Also in play to the left of the basket on #18. Some sloped greens make it even easier to roll/slide in on upshots.
- Nice dual concrete pads, good signs, great baskets. Navigation can be a little tricky, like around #13-#14, having a map makes it easy.

Cons:

- While it is nice to have long holes, this course takes it to the extreme. Lots of long, wide open shots that are great for bombing, but pretty boring otherwise. Little to no obstacles, it gets pretty repetitive.
- Some pro pads are just longer, and don't add too much. Not a big deal, some are very different. It would be nice if the shorts were a little shorter, to be honest. Ha.
- #7 and #17 are almost the identical hole, and are right next to each other. Heads up for stray shots here!

Other Thoughts:

- A well balanced course, with length, length, and length! Pretty much split between open bombers and wooded to semi-wooded holes. Seriously though, bombs away. Definitely lots of character with water, pretty big elevation changes here and there, sloped greens and protected baskets. The only real knock is some wide, wide open holes, and others that are pretty open. Beginners might get frustrated with the long length and some bad hazards.
- Really torn between a 3.5 and a 4... I'm going 3.5. Too many similar shots I guess.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
11 0
t i m
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 26.8 years 285 played 43 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Great potential, but it ends up being just a long hike across open fields... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 10, 2012 Played the course:once

Pros:

* This course has a couple of good pin placements and a few cool shots, 1,3,7,10,17 are the best examples.
* Having multiple tees is a plus.
* Having a mix of long/short holes is also a plus.
* Park itself is very nice, with lots for family to do if they don't want to play disc golf.
* Well maintained

Cons:

I hate to dock any course with more cons than pros, but this course just feels like a place that fails to live up to its rating, and, far more importantly, it just fails to be fun.

* In playing ~200 courses, I've never spent so much time throwing max-D drives across a flat, open field. This course feels like a waste of time and of energy.

* The couple of holes that have trees--LOTS of trees--like 12,13,14--are set up to be virtually unfair -- plinko holes without clean lines. As if having too many trees on a few holes makes up for having few-to-none trees on most other holes.

* A lot of otherwise open holes are made more difficult by placing pins in tricky placements right next to the water -- this is interesting and creates score separation for a tournament, but is frustrating for casual play, since its the risk/reward of frequently losing discs.

* Signage is so-so. Finding your way from hole to hole without a map would be very frustrating ... especially when it can be several hundred feet of walking between most holes.

* Repetition is high on this course -- lots of holes feel the same and, effectively, are the same. Max-D drive, followed by max-D drive across a field. Or, when there is more interest to a hole, its still a virtually identical repeat of a previous similar hole -- max-D drive across open field, followed by a tricky, mostly-open RHBH hyzer to a basket with water behind it.

Other Thoughts:

This is a course I really wanted to like. During a recent disc golf trip in St. Louis, my brother and I hit 9 of the top-rated courses in and around the city, and this was our least favorite of the bunch, by far. It was the only one that really failed to be FUN to play. When disc golf stops being fun, you should do something else. So that's one of the most damning things I can say about a course. It's just not fun to play.

Long, long walks across almost entirely open fields, repetitive upshots, and repetitive hole design make this a dull, uninspiring exercise in practicing your longest drives. A stack of drivers and a football field would give you a similar afternoon, and you would probably learn more from the experience.

I wish I had suggestions for how to improve this course. As it is, I think it would actually be a decent tournament course for big-arm pros... especially on a windy day, when it would make the basket placements high risk/reward. Still not necessarily fun, but at least it would give it purpose.

If I were making recommendations to improve this course, I would tighten it up and shorten it up (I love long courses, but they have to have the terrain to make it fun -- it needs to be placement golf). There are a lot more tree options in the borders of the big field in the back, and those tree options and elevation aren't being used as well as they could. The 13-14 area could use a little thinning out to make it fair, and if there were a way to put more holes in that part of the course--its beautiful there--it would help break up the monotony and make this a much better course for daily play.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 2
J Rob
Experience: 2 played 1 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Good course coulf be great 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 27, 2012 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Makes you play Golf! Lots of good golf holes. two pads per hole and two pin positions. Flows well for the most part. The park is great.

Cons:

A few of the pins are in bad spots when considering saftey and weather. Hole 12 is a joke at best.

Other Thoughts:

Overall I had a blast and will be back, would love to see a lil adjustment on some pin placements.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
4 2
Stud Muffin
Experience: 18.3 years 30 played 14 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Challenging, yet messy 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 14, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

>18 Basket course with professional level distance.

>Multiple Cement Tees w/ Multiple Basket Positions.

>Long open baskets, tight wooded baskets, elevated and protected positions of baskets. GREAT variety.

Cons:

>#3 Basket to #4 Teebox, mudhole. NOT, just a mudhole, the wonderful aroma of dead fish. In this you either get to A, crawl through the woods where no real path is, or B walk through the mud and dead fish.

>Far too long of a walk between holes, and though the map helps, sometimes you have to wander around a bit to find the holes, so it is that much more walking.

>Too extreme angle hills for older players, becomes dangerous. Hey, I am all for a challenge, but I played one round with a older player who fell more than a few times, and quit after 9 vowing to never play the course again. This didn't happen on errant shots, but at basket locations and fairways. 2 basket, 3 fairway, 7 basket, 8 fairway. I hate to say it, but if you are not able to hike, you are not able to play this course. WARNING TO ALL OLDER PLAYERS!

Other Thoughts:

I am rating this a 4 in spite of the fish aroma mudhole, because we have no control over mother nature. A lot of repetitive holes makes this park's highest potential a 4.5 to me. The lack of flood planning makes it's potential a 4.0. That is what I give it, and I am not going to penalize it any more for what I hope is a temporary condition.

*Only updating to say, the course drainage has not been as much of a problem as of late. The course can be very challenging, and is very very long. My rating stays the same.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
1 8
dragonhide
Experience: 14.5 years 8 played 2 reviews
4.50 star(s)

My first real course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 27, 2010 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Varied terrain Hills, woods, open field, water hazards, etc

Nice park overall.. has restroom facilities.

Cons:

Muddy after a rain in the lower fields, rickety walk-way made with wooden pallets that tend to break when you walk on them- be careful! Nice thought though, keeps us out of the mud!

Other Thoughts:

My nearest 18 hole course, and I feel fortunate because it's such a varied course.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
11 0
hognosesucker
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 24.9 years 443 played 85 reviews
3.50 star(s)

West City Park-great in so respects, ok in others 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 23, 2010 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-dual concrete pads, two pin placements per hole
-championship course length (I consider over 7000' for 18 holes in this category)
-good mix of wide open holes (9 holes) and semi technical to super technical holes (9 holes)
-decent use of elevation from rolling hills to steep uphills and downhills, but mostly flat otherwise
-a lot of water hazard variety, 2 holes around a pond, 6 holes involve 1 or 2 shots near moving water.
-variety of lengths from <150' to >800'
-great pin placements for many holes, lots of greens perched on hillsides and several with dangerous upshots and putts involving water
-ok shot variety, mostly big open drives but the technical shots offer some opportunities to throw rollers, anhyzers, spike hyzers, sidearms, and overhands
-new pavillion right at hole 1, kiosk at hole 1. Holes 1, 9, 18 near parking lot (9 hole loops)

Cons:

-holes in the lower bowl are in a floodplain area, thus it is a sloppy mess when the river is up.
-would be tough to navigate if playing w/o a guide for the first time, lots of holes with large walks btwn pin and next pad, on top of which there are no next tee signs, particularly problematic areas are 3-4, 8-9 (9's sign is not at the pad yet) 9-10.
-several "semi-shared" fairways (18, 9, 1), (17, 7) really you are just throwing in huge treeless fields (undefined fairways) so errant shots may end up in another fairway.
-more r-->l shots than any other, r to l favored on creek holes, and technical holes, not really a factor on field holes
-The con that carries the most weight for me though is just the lack of variety, too many treeless where you pull out your longest disc on the tee and then throw it again before the upshot. Shot placement is not of huge importance here on the field holes (half the course).

Other Thoughts:

Overall I really enjoyed the course, the field shots were a lot of fun, it was like a driving range, I just wish errant shots were punished a bit more. Also the club (JC sharpshooters) is full of great people who love their golf and their courses, get ahold of them for a guide.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
5 2
numbernine
Silver level trusted reviewer
Experience: 14.8 years 103 played 49 reviews
4.00 star(s)

This one is loooooooooooong! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Sep 8, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

- This is a well laid out, very dificult course that is not for the weak of arm. There are 3 or 4 holes around the 800 ft. range that challenge even the veteran disc golfer.
- The park that contains the course is well maintained and in a safe area.
- Great variety of shots. There are a couple of 800+ holes and a few under 150 holes that test your skill.
- loads of elevation change! a couple going up and a couple of downhill hills.
- one of the holes, pardon me for not remembering which one it is, goes through an entire grove of fir trees. not a long hole, but super technical. my disc stuck on the top of one tree, as I tried to tomahawk my way over.
- The shorter holes are in the woods and make you think about every throw that you make. This is great fun!
- The pads and baskets are in great shape too.
- water is in play on a few holes.
- alternate tee pads on almost every hole.

Cons:

- If you're from out of town, this course is NOT easy to find. we kind of drove around until we ran into it.
- The weeds in some places on this course are RIDICULOUS. Some were over 9 foot tall. if you guys find my leopard, KEEP IT!
- could use some more facilities on this course as far as water goes. this is a BIG course that spreads out all over the park.

Other Thoughts:

Great course and great fun! Bring some water with you!
Was this review helpful? Yes No
2 7
discdork
Experience: 21.8 years 11 played 11 reviews
4.50 star(s)

best in area 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 10, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

everthing that makes a course great,elevation changes, wind, open fairways, wooded shots, a couple ace runs, very long par 5s , water hazards,concrete pads, signs, dave macs true masterpiece

Cons:

not enough bathrooms , WARNING this park eats discs

Other Thoughts:

this course has come a long way from its start, it now has concrete pads thanks to the jc sharpshooters, hole 12 is known as the snowman by locals for the eights that can easily be writtin on your card! some more bathrooms and this course would be perfect for a large a tier event best course in st.louis area
Was this review helpful? Yes No
12 1
Brokensaint
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 16.4 years 336 played 31 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Big Windy 2+ years

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

Pros:

Hole 1: From elevated, throwing long across an open field. OB road to left, lake to right (but not in play). Basket at far side of field. Next tee to the left of basket.
Hole 2: Short throw. OB road on right, trees to left. Pin is tucked in trees on left, down a slope. Cool little hole. Next tee is to right and up from basket.
Hole 3: Shooting down slope, through a narrow chute of trees and into an expansive field. Pin is deep left across field, surrounded by trees and slightly elevated. Next tee is back and right from basket.
Hole 4: Basket is across field and slightly right of tee. Undeveloped rough to the right. Next tee is right of the basket.
Hole 5: Trees and water to left, field to right. Pin is set back on the left in the trees, against the water. Next tee is right of the basket. Similar to 5, trees to left, water behind, field to the right. Pin set into trees on left against water. Next tee to right of pin, in the field.
Hole 7: OB on right, field to left. Pin is across field and up slope, protected by trees. Next tee is to right of pin and down.
Hole 8: Short throw up slope through a tight channel. Basket to the right. Next tee at crest of slope, across road and in field.
Hole 9: LONG. Pin is straight from tee, but you won't see it. It is at far side of the field. Pond to right, Baseball diamond to left. Pin is behind a couple small trees.Next tee is to left of pin. Go around baseball diamond, across road.
Hole 10: Throwing downhill from small clearing into dense trees. Pin is located in the center of this copse. Next tee is to left of pin.
Hole 11: Throwing from copse of trees into small clearing. Pin is straight ahead, but you are throwing from jail. Next tee is about 40 feet beyond pin and to the right in the trees.
Hole 12: Probably my favorite. Narrow channel made of tight, skinny trees on both sides and arching over the top. Fairway curves back and left from tee. Pin is positioned to the right of the fairway. (Reminds me of another troublesome hole 12, the Blair Witch hole at Endicott) The next tee is to the left.
Hole 13: Short hole. MANY young trees fill the fairway. To the right, a huge drop off to the river/creek below. One bad hit and your plastic is swimming. Next tee is past the pin.
Hole 14: Ace Run. Much like 13, many trees, water to right, just a narrow left arcing gap to get to the pin. Crest the slope to the road, then walk right towards next tee.
Hole 15: Throwing from elevated, field to left, trees and river to right. Pin is situated in those trees against the water. Next tee just beyond the pin.
Hole 16: Shorter version of 15. Next tee is in the field to left.
Hole 17: Long. Throw across field, through the trees up the slope. Pin is at the crest of the slope at the end of a narrow channel. Next tee is across road from pin and in the field.
Hole 18: Long. Across open field and then across the pond past the pavilion.

Cons:

Could definitely use better signage and more (ANY!) restrooms. Also, the park doesn't mention Disc Golf anywhere on its signage. A few holes seem repetitive.

Other Thoughts:

I enjoyed playing this course, and will come back. Even though some of the holes repeat themselves in layout, one will be long, one will be short, so the throws will be different. The big field throws are not my favorite, but the wooded shot here are unique and very challenging, making it all worthwhile. The course is a little RHBH generous, but the water risk will make you think about your throws.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Top