Pros:
- Nice, colorful, descriptive tee signs. Good tee pads and baskets.
- A handful of fun shots with some interesting lines and putting greens, particularly early in the course.
- Good distance variety including plenty of longer fairways for those who really like to air it out.
- Pleasant park with an interesting and somewhat unique environment for disc golf in Illinois.
Cons:
- A large portion of the course consists of wide-open shots with limited line shaping.
- Easy to lose discs in the tall reeds and a few other locations.
- Fairways located in the marsh portion of the course frequently have standing water.
- Course layout results in many shots playing over or close to walking paths and near other fairways
Other Thoughts:
Shady Oaks had been on my to-play-list of Chicago Suburbs courses for a long time, but the Joliet/Lockport area has such an abundance of good courses that it took me a couple of years before my desire to bag new courses reached enough critical mass for me to make the drive north. While I'm sure this is a great course to have nearby, there is not enough here for me to want to make a repeat trip.
I was interested to see what disc golf in a marsh would be like, and while the fairways bordering and crossing the tall reeds make for a very cool environment, it turns out I much prefer the layout presented in the first 4 or 5 holes. I particularly liked hole 2, with the basket perched on a tiny green just across a small creek that runs through the course, and hole 4, a great 2-shot hole that plays across that same creek on the second shot. Much of the middle portion of this course consists of wide-open holes, where the wind and OB paths create the challenge. One of the biggest issues affecting my enjoyment of this course was the standing water present in many of the fairways. Halfway through the course my feet were soaked, solely from playing lies that had landed in the fairways. This isn't only a comfort issue but makes second shot run-ups and throws difficult on the longer holes such as 10 and 15. It had rained in the week preceding my round, but not for a couple days, leading me to think this is a typical course condition. Bring your waterproof shoes to this course if you have them.
There are multiple pin positions at Shady Oaks, which is always great especially for locals. However, the tee signs, which are otherwise fantastic, do not indicate which placement is currently in use. This is especially problematic on some of the blind holes. Two of these blind holes play from one side of the mass of tall cattails to the other, something that can certainly be problematic when playing without a spotter. Discs going into the reeds have a great chance of never being found again. The walk from hole 10's pad to basket is very cool as you are flanked on either side by the towering reeds, but it is one of the only locations on the course that is not particularly cart friendly as the old path is entirely underwater, and the makeshift trail consisting of wooden pallets is not very sturdy or level.
This is a tough course for me to rate. There are a few holes I really like, and the environment is cool. However, the high chance of leaving with soaking wet shoes and socks and fewer discs dissuade me from playing a course with a lot of holes I find fairly boring. If you are in the area and don't have the time to travel further out, this is definitely a course worth playing, just come prepared for wet feet and extra safe play or skipping holes if you don't want to lose plastic.