Pros:
+ Tee signs are colorful and informative.
+ The guiding signage is very helpful.
+/- The central creek comes into play a lot. (a LOT!)
+ The tees are remarkably grippy rectangular pads made of tiny rocks, but...
Cons:
- ...Many of them are worn down or damaged.
- It isn't a very complex or dynamic course.
- Crossing the creek was tedious at times.
- Walking paths and sports areas to be wary of.
Other Thoughts:
Steeplechase Park feels like a great place for friends to gather and have a good time. This theory is supported when I witnessed several school-aged friends helping one another and their discs over the fence dividing the park from the school next door. However, while it might be just the ticket for disc golfers in walking distance, it isn't as good for those of us with motorized mobility. Drive half an hour in any direction, and you're bound to find a better course.
Ouch, okay, let's get right into it, then. I wasn't really blown away here. Most of the fairways were way too open for my liking. That isn't to say that they were totally bland and barren. They just have that mostly open park-style of tree cover. That's not necessarily a bad thing by itself if the terrain can compensate with enough elevation and/or other natural features.
For example, my favorite one, link5, is a nice gentle downslope with a respectable peppering of trees to dodge and a basket that is kind of close to the creek that snakes through the park.
Honorable mention goes to link10 that requires you to sneakily punch through a cluster of trees alongside that creek and then finish with an uphill putt.
Steeplechase is almost completely flat, though. And as for that one natural feature available to it, get used to seeing it. Plum Creek makes several appearances. You'll have to cross it several times. Sometimes there is a bridge. Sometimes there is not. Still, I'm glad that it was there to add that little extra layer of drama and tension to what would otherwise be ho-hum fairways.
In the interest of fairness, I met a pair of locals during my round here back in November 2023 who told me that the course was basically underwater up until a few days before my round due to a massive storm that swept through that part of Texas in late October. Some of the small footbridges were washed away when the creek overflowed. So, the navegation issues might already be fixed by now. But that doesn't affect the fairways.
Link1 was boring for being so straight, flat and wide open. 17 might be worse because it has a walking path right there alongside the fairway. But this is a course in a public park, after all. Please be mindful of other park users and don't enter private property. A few of these links get really close to private residences (links14, 15) and the school grounds that I mentioned in the beginning (link16). It sometimes feels like the course was crowbarred into the park just to have one.
I've had a lot of negative things to say about Steeplechase, but don't let that get to you. It was not a great course for me. If you prefer to air out your throws and cover maximum distance each time, then you will enjoy this course more than I did. If you and your friends just want a simple place to play while you talk about stuff, then this course is for you. If you are a course bagger passing through along I-35 south of Austin, then this course is an easy get. If you are new to the sport and want an introduction to water features, then come on down.
Otherwise, it's simply not bad.