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Disc golf comes to Middle Park

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By David Heitz | Thursday, May 31, 2007 12:16 AM CDT | () comments

Ryan Dudgeon, of Bettendorf, plays disc golf at Middle Park in Bettendorf. The course is the second one in Bettendorf and was designed by the Quad-Cities Disc Golf Club. A $20,000 grant from the Scott County Regional Authority helped finance the project. Jeff Cook/Bettendorf News

Contributed photo You don’t have to be a professional to enjoy a day at the new Middle Park Disc Golf Course. Pictured above, from left, are Steve Grimes, director of the Bettendorf Parks and Recreation Department, Stu Smith, parks maintenance manager, Mayor Mike Freemire, Joe Taylor, Quad-Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau and Jay Reading, a disc golf professional who helped dedicate the course.

The clubs don’t weigh a ton or cost a fortune. The players don’t wear pricey, preppy clothes. And there are no greens fees.

The City of Bettendorf has officially opened its new, 18-hole disc golf course at Middle Park. The sport is proving immensely popular among people of all ages as more and more courses sprout at area parks.

“I work across the street from the park at the (Life) Fitness Center, and if I’m downstairs I can look across the street and there’s always somebody playing,” said Tracey Lopez, a professional disc golfer who works for the city’s Parks and Recreation Department. “The college kids are back, and it’s very busy. They’re just ecstatic.”

The city celebrated the course’s grand opening earlier this month. Representatives of the Quad-Cities Disc Golf Club, who were instrumental in getting the course built, offered tours and demonstrations. The course was one of three in the Quad-Cities used for the River Cities Rumble tournament, which attracted professional disc golfers from all over the nation.

The players included Jay Reading, the world doubles disc golf champion and a 1989 Bettendorf High School graduate.

“It’s a great course,” Reading said. “To me the ultimate disc golf course is in thirds. A third of the holes is in the woods, a third is in the open and a third have a land obstacle, whether it be water or an elevation change, and the Bettendorf course really follows those guidelines.”

A $20,000 grant from the Scott County Regional Authority helped finance the course. The club, which designed the course, still needs to raise about $6,000. The club also is working on putting in a nine-hole beginner course at Hollow View Park. A 12-hole course also is located at Devil’s Glen Park.

Lopez said the courses can easily be altered. “Every time we move the basket, it’s a completely new course.”

Zach Shorter, of Davenport, played the course on a recent afternoon. “It’s a really good course,” he said. “It’s probably the most advanced one around here.”

Jason Mammen, of Davenport, agreed. “Hole eight is a hellion. It takes a few throws.”

Shorter said he became interested in disc golf after a friend showed him how to play. “At first I didn’t like it. I didn’t know how to throw the disc right. Once he taught me, I fell in love with it.”

Lopez said she started out with just one disc, but now, “I carry 20 discs with me. They all do something different. There’s drivers, mid-range drivers and putters.”

The discs can be purchased at Walgreen’s, Hy-Vee or any sporting goods store. “Anybody who can throw a Frisbee can play,” Shorter said.

Added Mammen: “If you like the game of golf but maybe don’t like the culture that surrounds it, this is a cheaper alternative.”

Shorter agreed. “It’s free to play and you’re under the sun.”

David Heitz can be contacted at (563) 383-2202 or dheitz@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at www.qctimes.com.