I’ve just learned about a relatively new sport that is both green and cheap.  And it’s modeled after a sport that is neither.  Disk golf, played with Frisbee-like disks, is similar to ‘regular’ golf in that it is played on a course.  Players use putter disks and driver disks, or just a regular Frisbee.  The goal of the game is to sink a disk into each basket on the course in as few shots as possible.  Par is typically 3 shots.  And a disk golf course may have 9, 18, or 27 holes, –or baskets.

     Disk golf is much more environmentally-friendly than ball golf.  Unlike ‘regular’ golf courses, disk golf courses have not been altered to create long expanses of green that must be maintained by extensive watering and the application of harmful pesticides.  Disk golf courses are left pretty much in their existing state, and they may be found in campgrounds, in parks, and even on college campuses.  There are also forest courses.  Trees are not cut to make way for the golfers;  instead, standing trees  provide the golfers with beauty and a little extra challenge. 

     Also unlike ball golf, disk golf is inexpensive.  With an $8-$10 investment, you can get a disk.  Or if you’re a serious competitor, you might invest as much as $50 for a variety of disks appropriate for different types of shots.  The courses are often free to play, and those that are not cost in the order of $5 a day.  

     The number of people playing ball golf is declining, experts report, due to the cost and the time it takes away from  family.  Disk golf, however, is growing in popularity.  Inexpensive, it is also a great activity for the whole family.  

     Another beauty of disk golf is that it can be played just about anywhere.  Players need not seek out one of the 2,600 established courses in the U.S.  With a portable basket (available for about $200) and a few disks, a family or a group of friends can play the game in a park, in a forest, in a field, or on the beach. 

     “Disk golf is great exercise, as well as fun for all ages,” notes Addie Isbell, Membership Manager at the Professional Disk Golf Association, based in Appling, Georgia.  It’s easy for me to imagine that people who enjoy playing Frisbee, who like to run and are very physically active, would enjoy disk golf.  But how about those who love their ball golf game?  “Many of them report that disk golfing is so much fun that it’s addictive,” says Isbell. 

     Interested in joining the more than 200,000 Americans who are already enjoying disk golf?  Vsit the Professional Disk Golf Association at http://www.pdga.com/ for more information about the game, the location of courses near you, and how to purchase equipment.

–April Moore 

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008 at 2:02 pm and is filed under Good news for Mother Earth!. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.