By Jennifer Litz
Editor
January 23, 2008

Eulogistic reports recall Heath Ledger was a high school dropout—and sports champion—before he was recruited for a homosexual athlete role in Aussie soap, “Sweat.” No doubt Ledger would have enjoyed the sport that one might deem “Poor Man’s Golf”—at least before stardom hit and Ledger became the opposite.

But that moniker really wouldn’t do it justice.

Sure, Frisbees—er, discs for disc golf, that increasingly popular takeoff of traditional “ball” golf, will only run you about $7-$25. And the cost of a golf driver? No comparison.

But when it comes to fun and activity level, disc golf is right on par with its predecessor. Actually, Concho Valley Disc Golf Association President Carl Wamsley says it’s better.

“It takes more talent than ball golf, it takes strategy,” Wamsley says. “I like playing ball golf too . . . but this has more exercise, more walking.”

Before you golfers chuck your nine-iron at the computer screen, look at the differences (and similarities) between the two types of “golf.” The discs (forcibly evolved from Frisbees come David Dunipace’s 1983 beveled-edge golf disc) are scaled up from golf balls, and thrown at above-ground, steel basket targets, also scaled up from regular holes. “Baskets” are heralded by a rewarding 'clink' of metal. Typical courses are nine holes.

Disc-to-hole distances can be substantial. “Our holes in San Angelo range from as short as 140 feet to as long as 600 feet,” says Jason Moore, membership director of the Concho Valley Disc Golf Association. Moore lists the city’s disc golf courses: Grassy Meadows, Brentwood Park, and Picnic Bend Park.

So is it possible that it’s a bit easier to drive your 43 millimeter ball to a faraway hole than to arm-propel a Frisbee to a basket with less force, subjecting it more to that tried-and-true adversary, the wind?

Well, this isn’t a physics class. It’s for fun. That’s why you’re more likely to see Texas native Matthew McConaughey playing disc golf, shirtless, than uber-competitive Tiger Woods.

Then again, throwing probably makes it harder to put.

Throwing for a Cause

If you’ve never tried disc golf, this Saturday’s your chance. The Concho Valley Disc Golf Association is hosting an Ice Bowl at Bright Brewing in Eola. Entry is $10 and three cans of food. Don’t bring the cans of food? You’re not going to play disc golf.

Mark Cannon owns the Eola brewery that sits on about 5 acres. He says the event is shaping up to be bigger than expected. “I talked to several customers coming in, got a call from Abilene this morning,” Cannon says.

That’s interesting—Abilene has its own Ice Bowl. In fact, disc golf groups around the nation host Ice Bowls between January and February to raise money for charity. This one is also about publicizing disc golf in San Angelo.

The sport has a great local foundation. Carl Wamsley, who has played disc golf in championships from Florida to California since the 80s, spearheads the local disc golf association; John Houck, disc and disc golf course engineer, Disc Golf Hall of Fame inductee, and host of several world-class disc golf championships lives only miles away in his Circle R ranch between Wimberley and Blanco.

Houck hosts disc golf benchmark tourney Texas Team Championship. Jason Moore and five other men, deemed “Warlock Disc Golf,” won this Championship last November. “Now we have one of only six of these disc trophies in the world,” he says. The team lineup was plucked from the 40-strong Concho Disc Golf Association. But it has more history than that.

The Warlock Disc Golf team originally started as a hockey team. “I guess we got too old to play hockey and get up and go to work the next day,” Moore says. “This is a friendlier sport. Half of the team is from the hockey guys, and the other half is some we’ve picked up.” The Warlock team went 5-2-0 during tournament. Moore plans to compete in the 9-man division next year, requiring him to recruit a woman, a 40 year old and a 50 year old for next year.

Luckily, 51-year-old Carl Wamsley has played competitively for about 21 years. But even he was late to the game, which started in the mid seventies. “To give you a good idea on how grown the sport is, it’s in 28 foreign countries: Japan, Australia, Russia’s looking at it, already in France and Sweden, the Netherlands; England . . . everyone there is playing.”

Saturday’s Ice Bowl will be a singles event. Moore is a co-sponsor with his company, Cortese Flag & Silkscreen Company, which does print work on flags, t-shirts, and more. The first 25 people to sign up for Saturday’s event (day of) get a free t-shirt from the company. Entrants are allowed any two discs-- driver and putter, mid and driver, mid and putter (see how close to ball golf?). Holes will range from 80 to 300 feet. Are you a woman curious about the event? Sign up: the female contingency is looking to beef up their presence.

The Concho Disc Golf Association’s next big tournament will be the Crush on the Concho on March 15 and 16. It’s one of the biggest events of the year hosted by the local Disc Golf Association.

For more information on the Concho Valley Disc Golf Association, visit www.conchovalleydiscgolf.org .

For more information on disc golf in general, visit www.pdga.com .