By John Garces/sports editor

Imagine Tiger Woods breaking out a disc on the 18th tee instead of a driver. Now, try to picture the world-famous golfer winning one of his many professional championships with a single flick of the wrist instead of having to sink a 20-foot putt.

Now, you have just a little bit of insight into the burgeoning world of the sport known as disc golf.
The spherical cousin of the universally known sport of golf, disc golf, is a niche sport that seems to be gaining popularity daily.

“ The first time I went out to play, it was because of a friend inviting me,” former TCC student Miles Seaborn said.

Seaborn, who plays at Z Boaz in Fort Worth and Bear Creek in Grapevine, had played ball golf before, so he knew the concept.

“ Disc Golf is the exact same thing except you throw discs into baskets instead of hitting balls into holes,” he said. “All that I had to do was throw the disc. Once I learned how to do that somewhat effectively, I was hooked.”

Using baskets often supported by chains instead of holes in the ground as a means to score on a hole are hardly where the similarities end.

Using discs similar to Frisbees, but aerodynamically designed for the different throws needed in a typical game, the modern version of this up-and-coming sport began in the 1970s.

Disc golf courses are often found in public parks and are free, which would seem a nice alternative if you can’t afford all those pricey greens fees.

And it is also a sport that can be played by people of all ages.

“ Try taking a 5-year-old to a ball golf course and saying, ‘Here is a ball, now hit it with this thing.’ It’s going to take a lot of practice to get them to do it well,” Seaborn said.

“ Take them to a Disc Golf course and show them how to throw a disc, and they get the idea and are able to do it with just a few tries.”

Not only is disc golf fun for the whole family, it is also a good form of exercise as most courses wind up and down hills, through woods and around water. Most golf courses are usually devoid of any nature if you keep the ball in the fairway.

In ball golf, a player has drivers, wedges, and putters. In disc golf, a player has many different throws to execute, both back-handed and fore-handed to achieve the goal of getting the disc into the basket in the fewest throws possible.

However, the challenge of adapting to disc golf after being a ball golf regular might catch some people off guard.

Seaborn said the main difference is the course.

“ Ball golf courses are generally open fairways with trees on the side and possibly one or two in the middle,” he said. “Some holes in Disc Golf seem like someone said, ‘Here is a tee box, there’s the pin, now all you have to do is throw it through 200 trees, over the creek, stay on this side of the road, and you’re there.’”

Seaborn claimed he was not exaggerating.

“ Because a disc can be thrown in so many different ways, we need obstacles to keep it interesting,” he said.
For information on local courses, go to http://pdga.com.