Disc golf clubs looks to promote sport
Tyler Wentz, president of the disc golf club, is trying to get some attention – not for himself, but for the game.
“For the disc golf club, we have three main goals,” Wentz said. “Probably the biggest is trying to increase awareness and participation in northern Utah, because in this area is kind of a dead spot. All Back East and west coast, there’s a huge amount of disc golf, but here in Utah, it’s just kind of getting started.”
Wentz said the game is gaining momentum in Utah, with the state expanding from seven courses two years ago to 13 today.
After the completion of a nine-hole, recreational course at the Student Living Center a year ago, the club is getting its first full season of competition underway.
Saturday marked the first tournament of the fall season, with university faculty and staff participating in the 18-hole event.
Wentz said the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint Conference hurt the tournament’s turnout, but the club is looking forward to hosting a collegiate-level competition next week, featuring schools from surrounding regions.
While the club is new, Wentz said the course has seen a lot of use since its completion.
“We haven’t really held many formal tournaments, but you can tell just by walking the course that it gets a lot of use,” Wentz said. “The people that leave around here at the Student Living Center love to use it.”
The nine-hole course is considered a recreational course, Wentz said, because it is shorter than most others.
“It’s a lot shorter and tighter than a professional grade course,” Wentz said. “It’s meant to be like a learners course.”
A new sport, Wentz said, disc is still gaining support in the community and plans for a full-size course are in the works.
“The county is not familiar enough with it to pay for it yet,” Wentz said. “But we’re hoping to have some ground being broken on a course by the end of next summer.”
Wentz said he would invite students who are interested in the game to come out and try it.
“Discs are available for free in the Student Living Center,” he said. “It’s fun. It’s free. It’s good times.”
-acf@cc.usu.edu