Local Course Offers Disc Golf
Anthony Gadson
Sports Writer
They're two separate forms of golf, but each shares the same enthusiasm from its participants.
Developed in the 1970s, disc golf has picked up steam in the recent years, but it still pales in comparison to conventional "ball golf."
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"It's so new that people don't understand it," Little Bighorn Golf Course co-owner Dale Custer said.
"It's been growing by 10 percent in popularity each year, and that's pretty good for a new sport," he added.
To help promote the sport, as well as his course, Custer and his brother, fellow co-owner Darrell, transformed additional, unutilized, land into a disc golf course.
"We have 162 acres acres here, and had assets that weren't being used," Custer said. "It's nice and spread out, so we tried to come up with ideas to utilize it. Disc golf came up, and we decided to do it."
The clearing of trees through woods began last summer, forming the 18-"hole" 7,196-foot course, which can be managed by cart if a player prefers.
After establishing the course, Little Bighorn's disc golf days began, although the owners quickly found out that more work would needed.
"We didn't anticipate that much upkeep, but found out there was a lot of labor involved," Custer said. "Since last year, we've made improvements, like keeping the grass cut and clearing out briars."
Following the improvements, Little Bighorn now has a disc golf course that intertwines with its regular course. Despite sharing the same area, the disc golf area works around where possible errant golf balls may fly.
With the course up and running, Custer is optimistic that the sport catches on in the area.
"It's popular in South Bend, Fort Wayne and Peru, but it's not known too well here," he said.
Demonstrating the sports wide appeal was a tournament held at Little Bighorn Sunday, where all the players, outside of Custer and his son Adam, were from outside of the area.
"The people were from Fort Wayne and South Bend, where they have clubs," Custer said. "I hope to be able to start one here as well."
Like "ball golf," disc golf is won by completing 18 holes in the fewest amount of strokes. Instead of a hole, competitors aim for a disc golf target, most commonly an elevated metal basketball. Par for most of the "holes" is three, but a four isn't uncommon, especially for holes such as No. 4's 713-foot distance. To achieve this par, you may need more than you're common Frisbee.
"We have amatuer and pro tees," Custer said. "The pros will come out here with a bag of 14 discs. The people that are really into it, do like to get competitive."
That competition stems from as many throwing styles as there are discs, such as fairway, super distance, midrange and putter, to name a few.
"There's so much more variety," Custer said of thoughts he's heard between regular and disc golf. "In regular golf, the goal is to just hit the ball straight, for me as an average guy. On the disc course, there's individual preferences, as well as obstacles to go around. Every throw is unique."
While different discs have different flight patterns, the sport is also open to the average person who just enjoys throwing the Frisbee around.
"It's good for all ages," Custer said.
And for those looking to keep track of their performance, Little Bighorn has a league that meets at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday evenings, with plans to offer a $2,500 prize to anyone in the league that gets a hole-in-one on a specified "hole."
The prize money may seem extreme, but with people making a living out of the sport, it shows how the sport is catching on.
"One of the guys who helped us design the course told me the sport was his source of income," Custer said. "He said he travelled around, making $300 to $500 just playing disc golf."
Some may make a pretty penny off the sport, but Custer's main goal in setting up the course was to offer people in the area an outdoor activity that can be played for $3.
"We were looking to set up some sort of entertainment close to home," he said.
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