Pros:
- Round Barn (named for the huge white round barn at the entrance) plays through a grassy, mostly open area that has a smattering of trees throughout. One or two holes include somewhat tighter looks off the tee, but nothing gets into "technical" wooded golf. The course is open enough that most botched tee shots still result in a par.
- H20 is definitely the best part of this course. Unfortunately it only comes into play on #'s 2,3, 4, and 5 with #'s 3 and 4 Red (i.e., the longs) easily being the standout holes. Both offer risky water carries while offering a safety route for less experienced/skilled players.
- Good signage, tees (many are circular, adding to "round" motif), baskets. No lack of amenities. Dual pin positions offer a more difficult layout as well as the shorter Silver holes. #9 has the Silver and Red baskets stacked atop each other (Red on top). Definitely something I hadn't seen before; the concept seemed neat, but the execution (with a tight cluster of tree trunks behind the pin) took a lot of the risk out of gunning for the upper basket.
- Decent use of the minor elevation changes throughout. Nothing spectacular, but all the major wrinkles are used to utmost effect (#18 comes to mind).
Cons:
- The major con here is that much of the course seems the same. Not much distinguishes the non-water holes from each other. The holes aren't bad, per se, just kinda bland.
- Several of the holes towards the middle of the course seem tightly clustered together, with potential for fairway overlap. This could become a bit of a safety issue on busier days.
Other Thoughts:
- The greatest attribute of Round Barn is the nice lake. Not only does it provide some challenging, well-designed holes, but it also is a pleasant relief from some of the nastier Chitown-area "water" holes. Runoff ditches, scum-filled ponds, pollution, and poop-water are all "water" hazards I've seen in Chicago. Thus, the relatively clean and picturesque lake does much to help Round Barn's appeal.
- Overall, decent without ever really wowing. Simply not enough standout holes to bump it up to a 3.5.