ONTARIO — The 18-hole disc golf course in Marshall Park is now open.
Andy Kissinger, who spearheaded this new addition, is glad to see it finally come to fruition. The project began in early spring of 2015 and picked up momentum in the last month, going from “concept to playable,” he said.
The course is located across from the baseball complex on Dunlap Drive, close to the dog park. Kissinger said the course does not interfere with the walking trail. As with everything else in the park, there is no charge to use the course.
“We would really like to get people out there to play on it because like with anything new it’ll need some fine-tuning and some adjustments, but we’d like to get feedback from people,” he said.
The object of disc golf is to complete the course in the fewest number of throws of the disc. Participants stand at a designated area and try to throw the disc into a basket. The player with the lowest score wins.
Mike Taylor of McComb, a village northwest of Findlay, helped with the course’s design, saying disc golf is one of his passions. He’s worked on about five other courses, including the one located in his hometown.
While he likes playing the sport, getting to help design a course is especially rewarding because it’s an opportunity to contribute to something that many people can enjoy. “I like being able to give back,” he said.
Kissinger also received assistance from Troy McCallister of Sulphur Springs and Mike Tarchanin of Galion, who helped with general labor.
“Pretty much everyone I talked to was willing to help in some capacity,” Kissinger said.
That includes Andrew Stofer of Modern Woodmen of America. Modern Woodmen donated $3,500 to help get the course up and running. “I thought it was a great opportunity for our company to get involved in and help raise money for something that can benefit the community,” Stofer said.
As a way of saying thank you for the generous contribution, Kissinger said the course is named “The Woodsman Disc Golf Course at Marshall Park.”
The course is about a mile long and may be expanded to include 24 holes, Kissinger said. But first, he’d like to get signage and concrete tee pads installed. He also wants to add benches and other amenities down the road. To help see that these features can be added, people are encouraged to donate funds by contacting Kissinger via the “The Woodsman Disc Golf Course at Marshall Park” Facebook page.
