The object of the game is to throw your disc into the basket at the end of each hole.
MoDNR photo by Ben Nickelson
Published by
on
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a flying disc? You never know what you might see at Missouri’s state parks and historic sites. Since the creation of disc golf in the 1960s, and with the fandom that has followed since, the sport has become a popular activity nationwide, It’s not hard to see why.
Disc golf is an outdoor activity you can play alone or with others. It’s a great distraction and it’s fun — very, very fun! There are more than 13,000 disc golf courses worldwide, with 9,000 in the U.S. alone, and Missouri State Parks has jumped on the bandwagon.
“When I started working at Mark Twain State Park, it didn’t take long for me to discover this was a great place to put in a course,” said Rachel Hoemann, an avid disc golfer and the superintendent at Mark Twain State Park, near Florida. She designed and her team installed the Halley’s Comet course, which is the first disc golf course in a Missouri state park.
“Ever since I learned to play disc golf several years ago, I’ve thought about putting in a course at the park where I was located,” said Hoemann. “The sport is fun and can be played by all ages and any skill level, and it’s a great way to be active and enjoy the outdoors!”
How do I play?
- Get a disc: Choose a golf disc that is suitable for your skill level and playing style. Most players start with a putter or a mid-range disc. Remember, these discs are smaller and heavier than the standard Frisbee® discs we have previous experience with.
- Find a course: Find a disc golf course near you, like the Halley’s Comet course at Mark Twain State Park, and familiarize yourself with the layout and the basket or target you are aiming for.
- Start at the tee pad: Stand behind the designated tee pad and make your first throw, or stroke. Be sure to think ahead and aim for the basket!
- Continue to the basket: After your first throw, continue to play by walking to where your disc landed and making your next throw from there.
- Keep score: Keep track of the number of throws it takes to reach the basket, this is called a “hole.” The goal is to get your disc into the basket on each hole with the fewest throws as possible.
- Finish the hole: Once you have successfully thrown the disc into the basket, move on to the next tee pad. The player with the fewest strokes on the previous hole is the first to tee off on the next hole. Repeat this process until you have completed all the holes on the course.
- Final score: Add up the number of throws it took you to complete all the holes on the course to get your final score. The person with the lowest score wins bragging rights!
A few extra rules and tips
Many courses include out-of-bounds areas, which are often waterways, roads or forested areas. If your disc lands in an out-of-bounds area, a one-stroke penalty is incurred. Some courses also include a mandatory, or mando, which is one or more designated trees or poles in the fairway that must be passed on the correct side as indicated by an arrow. If the disc passes on the wrong side of the mando, a one-stroke penalty is incurred.
Most courses will have an overall course map at the beginning of the course and most have a map for each individual hole as well. Some courses will have scorecards available at the site and there are many mobile applications that have maps and an online score card as well.
Learn more about Mark Twain State Park and the Halley’s Comet course by visiting the Mark Twain State Park webpage.
