Disc golfers display skills
MUDDY CREEK TWP — Many of the best disc golfers in the world put their skills on display Sunday at Moraine State Park.
Planned along with the second day of the Regatta at Lake Arthur, Sunday was the field events day that precedes the Pro Disc Golf Association's Pro World Disc Golf Championships.
The annual tournament is organized by the PDGA and this year is hosted by the Pittsburgh Flying Disc Society, the organization that acts as steward to the courses in the region.
Tournament play will be Tuesday through Saturday at four 18-hole courses: the Lakeview Course at Moraine, Slippery Rock University, Knob Hill Park in Marshall Township, Allegheny County, and Deer Lakes Park in Tarentum.
There will be 400 people from 10 countries and 46 states, divided by age and gender, competing, PDGA Events Manager Michael Downes said.
The rules of the game are similar to regular golf, with each throw counting as one stoke and each “hole” ending with a metal basket the players must throw a disc into.
The field events, which 73 of the pros signed up for, are several competitions meant to be fun and to showcase different skills.
“It's a good way for them to unwind and have fun. For some of the touring pros, disc golf is their full-time job,” Downes said.
The day started with a distance competition at the north shore amphitheater and included a nine-hole putting competition, a skill-shot competition and a minidisc golf competition at the south shore.
There also was a merchandise tent set up where vendors sold golf discs and other gear and a demonstration area where people could learn more about the sport.
Patrick Brown of San Francisco said he arrived on Wednesday to play the courses and prepare to compete in the world championships for his sixth time.“The courses are awesome. They are very physically and mentally demanding and very aesthetically pleasing to the eye,” he said.Brown is sponsored by disc-manufacturer Innova and competes in about 30 tournaments each year, making disc golf his full-time job.“It's such a fun game. It's a walk in the park. It's just a great experience to get out and play and it's cheap, all you really need is a pair of shoes and a disc,” Brown said.Jeff Bauman of Detroit said he is competing in his second world championships.He played the Moraine course for the first time Sunday and said he was impressed with the level of difficulty.He also noticed that the volunteers with Flying Disc Society had been busy preparing the courses by installing new tee pads, trimming trees and roping off out of bounds areas.“It's a lot of work to do that stuff and we really appreciate it,” he said.With the Regatta going on, Sunday was a chance for people who may never have heard of disc golf to see what it is.Swedish-based disc maker Latitude 64 sponsored an area Sunday where newcomers or amateurs could throw some discs and get pointers from a couple of professionals.Tomas Ekstrom, one of the owners of Latitude 64, said the sport's popularity has “skyrocketed” in the past 10 years.“They say the sport is growing 15 (percent) to 20 percent each year worldwide and you can see it as a manufacturer,” he said.In Ekstrom's native Sweden there are about 100 disc golf courses, but in nearby Finland there are more than 500, many of which were built recently, he said.Matt Ankrom of Mars got some throwing tips Sunday from pro Jon Baldwin.Ankrom said he has only played a handful of times, but can see the merits of the sport.“It's a little more casual and laid back. You just show up and play, there's no tee times, you don't have to pay,” he said.The tournament also attracted some fans who took the chance Sunday to meet the pros and get their autographs.Matt Menchyk of Butler said Sunday he had been looking forward to seeing the pros in action.“It's fun to see pros play a course you've played before and see how they see it and how they play it; they're impressive,” he said.Tom Thorton of Pittsburgh said he thinks the sport is taking off in popularity, but needs to be promoted more widely.“I'd like to see more investors in the game,” he said.“If businesses outside of the disc golf community can put their presence into events like this it could get more exposure.”
