By Samia Khan, Jayplaywriter Grunge golf Photos by Steven Bartkoski
If Tiger Woods was really hardcore, he'd be playing Frisbee golf
Myles Ikenberry would never wear a polo shirt. He wouldn't be caught dead in a country club and would refuse to pay for green fees and golf clubs. But he still plays golf: Frisbee golf, that is.
After losing sight of his disc on the first long hole of an afternoon round, the Salina junior begins hunting for it in shrubs, bushes, mud and trees — something Tiger Woods would never have to do. While searching, ikenberry mentions how he discovered this hybrid game: in high school advanced physical education class.
There was an advanced PE? "Yeah! I was a fuckin' PE all-star!" Ikenberry says.
All-star status aside, ikenberry cites many of the same reasons most players do in describing the appeal of Frisbee golf, also known as disc golf. It has all the allure of real golf: It's a mental game, a sport for all ages, a time to be with friends outdoors, and it's relaxing yet exhilarating. But it's cheap, it's physical and it's dirty. It's blue-collar golf. There are no fees; discs can be as cheap as $6, and there are no well-kept greens. You're out digging for lost discs in a wooded creek just like iken-
The basics of disc golf are similar to regular golf. There are 18 holes. The goal is to throw the disc in the hole, and the winner has the lowest score under par. Different types of discs drivers, putters and mid-rangers serve specific aerodynamic purposes, just as different golf clubs are used for different shots. The holes are elevated metal baskets with chains down the center acting as netting. Players carry a bag of discs. Some players also carry towels, bug spray and poison ivy lotion just in case. Others on the course just come with the clothes on their back and whatever disc they can find. This game doesn't discriminate.
berry.
Disc golf participation has boomed in the last decade. The only disc golf course in Lawrence at Centennial Park,
**Left:** A well-placed throw takes time to perfect.
**Right:** This player's putt might put him under par.
Sixth Street and Rockledge Road, was installed in 1991 when the sport had cult-following status. Now, the park will sometimes host more than 100 players at once. Students and Lawrence residents can join the Kaw Valley Disc Golf Club and participate in league play on Tuesday and Thursday nights at 6 p.m. "On a nice day, it's slammin' out there," says Henry Pohocuscut, former vice president of the club. Pohocuscut now plays in professional tournaments and placed fourth in his division at the 1999 World Amateur Championships. At that tournament more than 400 spectators watched along with local media. Growing media attention to the sport has already caused some changes. Starting in 2005, a yuppie element will be present: collared shirts for participants in all major professional events. Even with this change, Pohocuscut is waiting for the day he can watch a full tournament on ESPN. It'll happen soon, he says.
Nathaniel Marshall, club president, says the game has become so popular in Lawrence that the city needs another course. He is in the initial stages of working with the city to install another course by Clinton Lake or the Riverfront Park area. Competitive participation is growing 10 percent per year, and Marshall estimates a 30 percent yearly growth in recreational participation. The Professional Disc Golf Association sponsors several national tournaments every year. It's even catching on around the world. Now, we've given our friends in Japan blue jeans, David Hasselhoff and disc golf.
Students at the University of Kansas can even take a disc golf class for credit. It may not get you into Harvard Business School, but HSES 108 is a single-credit course that offers basic instruction in the game. Nick Altieri, Lawrence freshman, has been playing for two years and is taking the class as a fun elective. He says the class plays for leisure and doesn't follow the rules of the game strictly.
The game is about more than throwing a Frisbee. Just take a look at the tee-pad, the platform from which players tee-off, it's more of a runway. Each player takes a galloping start before using an Olympic discus-worthy throw to jettison the disc to
He moves on to the next hole and begins talking about the time he rode his bike to the park to play by himself, lost the disc on the first hole, spent an hour and a half looking for it and got poison ivy all over his legs. He was so exhausted he took a nap on the park bench before biking home.
Ten minutes after losing his disc, Ikenberry is still looking for it in the marshy overgrowth of cedar trees. He finally crawls out of the patch of jungle, takes two steps to his left and finds his disc right on the open grass. He laughs it off. It's what comes with such a genuinely hands-on sport.
the desired target. For Marshall, there's nothing more satisfying than hitting a long shot or hearing the chains shake when the disc hits, reverberating like breaking glass. Ikenberry agrees driving the disc long and on-target is a thrill. He's the Happy Gilmore of disc golf: He makes monster drives but falters at putting. It takes time to learn the techniques of each different throw.
There are trees, hills and creeks to maneuver. The average hole-length on the course is 261.33 feet, with some holes longer than 300 feet. "When guys come out here for the first time, you can see they're so embarrassed because they throw real girly," Ikenberry says.
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You can't get that at a country club.
Jayplay 9.16.04