Pros:
-well-groomed course, freshly mowed
-great elevation change for Chicago area
-nice newer concrete tee pads
-course seems to be continuously improving and has been expanded from 9 to 18 holes
-front and back 9 both have clear start points near parking
-nice tee signs
-garbage cans at some holes help keep course clean
-alternate basket options on some holes add some interest, though they are pretty basic alternates
-nice mix of hole lengths to provide for beginners as well as still challenge experienced players
-tee sign for 14 is helpful
Cons:
-navigation on hole 11 is a bit weird
-some of the rough is so tall you will never find your disc
-next tee signs would be helpful in a few more places
-hole 15 sign appears to be missing/tee is not consistent
-most holes focus on distance more than any real technical challenge
Other Thoughts:
This course is worth a play and seems like it can be fun. There were a few things that frustrated me that I suspect would disappear with repeated play.
One, and this is kind of embarrassing, is I literally threw the opposite direction on Hole 11. I'll maintain some of the mowing patterns here are a bit odd and the area behind the tee seemed more open... but eventually turned out to go to nothing. My fault there though.
Hole 15, as far as I could tell, was a bomb from the top of the running hill. There was no tee sign and no concrete tee like all of the other holes, so while a fun one to throw, it was a bit odd.
There were one or two places I could have benefitted from a next tee sign, having never played the course. With another play or two, this would not be an issue, but a few times navigation was not intuitive. Ironically, there are 2-3 next tee signs here, but they were mostly in places where they weren't sorely needed.
The maintainers seem to be improving this course over time, and the reviews seem to be getting better with it. They have added concrete tee pads and expanded from 9 to 18 holes. It also looks like the tee signs have been replaced with improved ones. They even have a wooden fence built around one of the tees to protect throwers from discs flying down from the previous hole - I love this! The clear starting signs for the front and back 9 near the same parking area are very nice, especially for league and tournament play. In general, the course was very well-maintained as long as you don't go into the rough. I did lose one disc (my own fault for where I threw it) in grass that was almost up to my waist. You could look for your disc forever if you get into one of those areas, but for the most part they are away from the main fairways.
The course plays around a reservoir (two, really) that admittedly could lead to some major losses if you went way off course. I didn't have issues with this and most of the fairways keep you well away from the truly steep/dangerous slopes. The downside is they pull the baskets in winter, probably to help discourage people from going near the reservoir when it is semi-iced over.
This course didn't exactly wow me, but it is a solid course that is well worth playing if you're in the area. I prefer a bit more technical challenge and I feel like most of this course just wanted to see if you could throw over 300' consistently. To be fair, there are some shorter holes for the beginners out there, and I think this course could appear to most skill levels. There are some alternate baskets which are kind of fun.
All in all, I love the commitment Palatine seems to have to the park and I'll probably play it again when I get a chance. The baskets, tees, signs, and fairways are all in great shape.