Last week Bill and I played 18 holes over at the Zilker Park disc golf course. Actually, we played the same nine holes twice. Only the southern nine are open, after being replanted earlier this year to improve drainage and prevent erosion. Now the other half of the course (near Barton Springs Road) is closed for similar renovations.

The goal of this sport is to hurl small frisbees across long distances into large metal baskets. Regular golf terms are also used in the disc version: birdies, pars, bogies, tees, fairways, out-of-bounds, and penalty strokes. The discs themselves are even classified as putters and drivers.

All of the Zilker holes are par 3’s. Some have narrow fairways, all have obstacles. For example, the basket for Number 6 (shown above) lies under the large tree in the distance. To get there, the disc must travel a treacherous path over stone benches, large bushes, small trees, a two-lane road, and a construction fence. I managed to hit all of those (some twice) on my way to the basket. Not keeping score was a good decision.

Our outing included a few unforeseen problems, such as disc-eating trees and fire ant hazards. In spite of all this, I really had a wonderful afternoon. Disc golfers are a polite and patient bunch, and it’s a fun sport, even for inexperienced players.

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