By Trevor Jackson
DISC golf continued to show its popularity in the Limestone Coast and further afield, with 47 players gracing the picturesque Valley Lakes course.
Mount Gambier Disc Golf Club players were agin joined by a contingent from Adelaide, with some accurate shooting along the way.
Overall scratch winner for the men was the favourite Hayden McPherson, with Sam Caon in second place, ahead of Ben Foley.
Sarah Lee claimed the women’s scratch, from Amy Weyers and Kate Eldridge, while Austin Woman was best for the juniors, ahead of Sam Halliday and Jessica Holman and Maddie Mililch.
Mount Gambier Disc Golf president Matt Weyers said McPherson continued to set the pace in the league, currently holding both the official and unofficial course records.
“He is quite a handy player and has some very good skills,” Weyers said.
“He is in form at the moment and it will be hard for most of us to catch up.
“On his best day he can be five to seven shots ahead.”
Lee was also in impressive form, just one shot off the women’s course record.
Weyers said she is a classy player with plenty of skills transferred from Ultimate Frisbee.
“Sarah was gunning for the record all day and finished with nine-over,” he said.
“She is a very methodical player and will be very good to watch in the future.
“She is an Adelaide player and has only been playing for a couple of months.”
A closest to the pin competition was also held for the three categories, with vice president Ryan Nicholson claiming the honours for the men, Jessica Holman the juniors and Maddie Milich the women’s.
“Ryan Nicholson took out the male closest to pin and from what I saw he did pretty much everything except put it in,” Weyers said.
“Maddie Milich won the women’s and she is just in the transition from juniors to seniors.”
Weyers said one factor which has seen the continued growth of the sport in the Limestone Coast is the inclusion of the Adelaide players.
He said in the current covid-19 climate and no tournaments being played as a result, players looked to keep their ratings up.
“Adelaide has almost doubled its membership, mostly through the Ultimate Frisbee players,” Weyers said.
“Also with travel not being an option, they are all looking to play some disc golf and get on arguably one of Australia’s greatest courses.
“They make the trek down here regularly – we are seeing anywhere from eight to 16 players on league days travelling down from Adelaide.”
Another popular feature of the sport is the involvement of families.
“We had two families on the weekend – the Holmans and the Hallidays,” Weyers said.
“The Ellis family usually come out and play as a family, including the grandfather.
“They all get to play as a family in a beautiful setting.
“We also have former footballers, netballers and soccer players who look for ways to do something competitive.”
The next outing for the club will be a random format day on November 7, before the Aussie Disc Golf Day promoted around the country on November 21.
