Winter Challenge - Week 1

On Sunday, my ForecastFox plug-in said it was 3 degrees outside. I thought to myself 'wow, this would be a great morning for disc golf.' That might be because I'm determined, or because I'm an idiot...but this determined idiot managed to make it out to Sunny Hill Disc Golf Course in Streamwood. Once there, I accomplished the following:

1. Did not lose any discs.
2. Did not die.

Therefore, I must label the initial leg of the 2008 Winter Challenge a success! I really set myself up for success, as I knew it would be difficult to lose a disc in a course as open as this. The course, however, was just as busy as it was when I played it in the fall.

Okay, so that's not very busy. Really, I'm glad it wasn't. While I didn't lose a disc, I certainly came close three times. The worst was on the second hole. I thought I got a good look at where the disc went, but I totally lost it. I walked around for maybe ten minutes while some dumb, fenced-in dog barked at me. When I finally gave up, I found the disc walking toward the next hole. The third was not so kind, either - the disc was buried in the snow behind someone's house, but I found it with greater ease.

The terrain wasn't too bad - some areas were easy to walk on, but there were also some places where the snow was unnecessarily deep. Like, maybe where I fell face-first on the second. There was maybe two feet of snow on top of these large rocks - now why in the hell are there rocks at some park? That could seriously injure someone, or more specifically, some moron playing disc golf in the winter.

But actually, it was not all that bad playing in the cold. I am stocked up with all of my winter gear: thermals, waterproof boots, wool socks, Hot Hands hand-warmers, hoodie, the Chicago Bears windbreaker that I got with my new Sports Illustrated subscription, and some awesomely weird scarf/mask/hood hybrid my wife got me for my birthday. With all of that great stuff, I was able to stay properly warm. I also kept a single glove on my left hand, and between throws, I would keep my right hand in my pocket with the hand-warmer. I could not have been much better protected from the elements.

In all, I enjoyed the first day of the Winter Challenge. Maybe the next course will have tee markers that aren't totally covered by Vince Palumbo's constant lying about his aces. Give it up, Vince - there's no way you aced all nine holes at least three or four times. You should spend more time practicing and spend less time being a big fat liar.

For winter disc golf, Sunny Hill in Streamwood, Illinois is...recommended!

Sunny Hill Park & Shady Oaks Park - Streamwood, IL

Streamwood is a pit.

Okay, that might be a bit unfair to pits. Seriously, though...when I think of disc golf meccas, I do not think of Streamwood. I wouldn't have thought that before playing disc golf in Streamwood, and I certainly wouldn't think of that after having played there. Streamwood has two courses: Sunny Hill Park, a cute little nine-hole, and Shady Oaks, an old behemoth of an 18-hole course.

A few weeks back, I played them both in a single day. I will apologize for the lack of pictures, but please understand that you aren't missing much. Sunny Hill is located in a kind of park district complex just off Irving Park Road, about a half mile west of Illinois Route 59. The first tee was kinda hard to find, but it didn't take a hole lot of looking. All holes are well marked with blue posts coming from the ground, displaying a sign with brief hole details. Dirt tees are a bit inconvenient, but oh well.

The holes themselves were pretty fair. Nothing special, but nothing awful either. The park has some decent elevation changes, so it seems like Sunny Hill was a good park to put a course at. Not extremely wooded, but what trees they do have provide at least some moderate obstacles. Not a ton of variety, as a lot of these holes felt the same. The terrain was iffy, and there were too many geese. It was like an angry goose army, and I felt a lot of resentment when my shot on the second hole forced them to disperse.

The course flowed fairly well. Some holes required a bit of backtracking, but it's understandable. I went on a Saturday morning with absolutely nobody else on the course and found my way fine (save for I think hole 7. I read the sign wrong on that one). The only thing that might get in the way of your game is foot traffic for walkers/joggers. I applaud the people of Streamwood for placing this course in the middle of a park quite expertly. The course doesn't interfere with any of the park or the tennis courts, which I don't see enough of.

On the hole, this was a plesant, relaxing, quaint disc golf experience. The course is fairly well maintained and did not sway me too much either way. Not great, but definitely not bad. I don't like courses near houses, that's for sure. I had an errant shot go into someone's unfenced backyard, and that was just too close for comfort. I also had an encounter with a tennis player:

Tennis Player: What's that you've got there?
Me: A disc...for disc golf.
Him: ....
Me: Frisbee golf...you know, where you throw frisbees into metal baskets like that (while pointing at a basket).
Him: ....How do you do it?
Me: You just throw the disc toward the basket and make it in as few shots as you can, like golf.
Him: It looks like it's hard to get it in the basket. You'd probably just have to drop it in there from like a foot away.

Okay, how can someone not know what disc golf is? Especially someone who frequents a park where disc golf is played!? The guy seemed pretty taken aback, incredulous even. Just the idea of disc golf seemed enough to throw him for a loop. But whatever, that guy sucks. The course, however, did not suck. I can say that I was glad to play it.

Shady Oaks, however, made me want to gouge my eyes out. A lot of people like this course and I have a hard time understanding that. Is it just because it is 18 holes? There isn't anything particularly interesting about it, unless you find poor layouts and old, scary baskets interesting.

I first arrive at this course and try to park in the west-most parking lot. The one between the road and park district building with about 10 spots. They were all full, but I did notice the sign saying "disc golf course." At least I know where the first hole will be. I park in the rear of the building and back track up to the sign, only to discover that the first hole was closer to where I parked. Brilliant.

The first few holes played average enough. The signs provided little by way of assistance, and they were inconsistent enough. Some holes had different signs from others, with the older looking signs being the least helpful. They just nudge you in the direction of the hole in most cases. I believe it was the fourth hole where I just had NO clue where the basket was. There was a basket out in the open and one in the woods. I played toward the wrong basket and then quit that hole. We did not see eye to eye.

The obstacles on this course suck. Not because they're not tough, but because they are unnecessary and stupid. There is tall grass...why in the hell do you need tall grass!? It provides a challenge, but a bad challenge. You know, like how there are white people and "the wrong kind" of white people (further explained in posts here). There is also some awful, marshy, thick nonsense on holes eight and nine where I almost lost my Leopard on both holes. Just gut that stuff and put up some normal people trees! The one bright spot: there is a creek running through some of the holes, but it is shallow and has good visibility. And even then, that's a stretch...a good water hazard is oxymoronic. The course is challenging, but in a way where too many shots have potential to lose discs. Also, there are too many nearby houses.

The course does not hold water well and much of the ground was nasty. The baskets all looked about 30 years old and were very unreliable to throw into. Not a lot of elevation, but that shouldn't be a surprise. There was fair vairety here, but nothing too special. It's just a really plan, old-looking 18 hole course that has some nonsensical ideas by way of challenge. A 750' hole? Yeah, that's nonsense. This course was just poorly designed. Does not flow well, does not play well, and a decent amount of garbage. Boooo!

Slight redemption comes in the form of a nearby 7-Eleven. I think there is one just south on Barlett Road. That sounds right to me. They have disc golf supplies...they even had an Innova starter bag at this location, which I haven't seen at a 7-Eleven before. The discs are on the counter and easy to browse, so thumbs up. And at last check, this was home to the HAWAIIAN PUNCH SLURPEE. That was awesome, when I wasn't spilling it all over the interior of my egg-like car. It also made it look like I was wearing lipstick. I wasn't, though...really.

In all, a fun day of disc golf. It also included a much-regretted trip to Roselle, but that will come later. Here are my scores.

Sunny Hill
Variety: 2
Terrain: 2
Flow: 4
Cleanliness: 4
Overall Score: 3

Shady Oaks
Variety: 3
Terrain: 2
Flow: 2
Cleanliness: 2
Overall Score: 2.25

A course doesn't have to be incredible to impress me, just do some of the little things right. Keep a course clean, make it easy to follow, have decent signage and baskets. Sunny Hill does that, and Shady Oaks doesn't. I recommend you play both and make your own opinions. Sunny Hill may be too much of a pitch and putt for some people, while others may enjoy their rounds at Shady Oaks. I say thumbs up for Sunny Hill and pure indifference to Shady Oaks.