Around this time, last year Zane State College (ZSC) celebrated the opening of their 18-hole disc golf course. Just one year later the course was home to the college’s first ever disc golf tournament bringing players of all levels and all around Ohio together for some friendly competition on the campus.
Over 60 players registered for the Original Mystery Challenge presented by Six Sided Discs, a disc golf retailer with an expansive inventory that includes some lesser known disc brands. It is part of their mission to bring variety to a disc golfer’s bag. They bring awareness through a combination of their website and social media pages that there are more options available than the few brands of discs someone may be used to throwing.
The Original Mystery Challenge goes hand-in-hand with that mission. In the first 18-hole round, only three discs could be used, these discs were provided at random to each player as part of the Player’s Pack. However, in the subsequent round a mix of any discs from a players bag could be used including their new mystery discs. Some found they actually liked those better than others that they brought. Every participant received an event exclusive foil stamped Original Mystery Challenge disc as part of the Player’s Pack that they got to keep.
“The return of our 3-disc challenge, now in its third year, has us beyond excited and we couldn’t be happier to promote a newer course in our area: Zane State College DGC,” wrote Six Sided Discs on the tournament website.
Between Closest to Pin challenges for both student and non-student players, and prizes awarded to the top 11 places there was plenty to compete for. The players (and their scores) who placed in the top 11 were: Caleb Thomas (82), Christian Scroggins (84), Jeremy Garber (86), Zhen Hughes (86), Dylan Fitzpatrick (87), Jeremy Eveland (91), Blake Smith (92), Caul Smith (92), Matt Thompson (95), Travis Gross (95), Rick Duffus (97), Tristan Tindell (97), and Tyson Omen (97). Par for both rounds was 110.
Zane State College’s Senior Graphic Designer Jesh Folden said, “Our first disc golf tournament on our home course was the perfect way to kick off our Homecoming celebration at Zane State College! All proceeds from the event went towards scholarships. Our students suffer hardships that we can’t imagine, and affording to pay for college shouldn’t be one of them. We are so grateful for the generosity of our donors and the support of our players. You truly are creating a Promising Future for Every One.” Folden is an avid disc golfer and got the ball rolling (or disc flying as it may be) on the development of the course over two years ago.
The tournament was the kick off event to ZSC’s six-day Homecoming line-up. In addition to the tournament, every night October 1st through October 6th the course was open for glow-in-the-dark play.
The Zane State College Disc Golf Course (ZSCDGC) is one of about five courses in the county. The course is open to the public as well as to students giving them something to do during their down-time on campus. What’s interesting about the ZSCDGC is that it has three sections that make it a challenge for all levels. The first seven holes are pretty open although hole three is the longest of the bunch at a 358′ and is the only par four. Holes eight through 12 take disc golfers through the heart of the ZSC campus. The buildings, trees and cement pathways (which were out of bounds during tournament play) provided obstacles that could get a bit tricky. The last leg of the course, holes 13 through 18 are set in the Collegial Woods Trails. Players have to lean on their technical skills with precision being key especially on the last three holes since discs travel in between thick brush that is part of a wildlife area.
For more information on the ZSCDGC including a course map visit zanestate.edu/discgolf. You can see all of the results from the Original Mystery Challenge on The Disc Golf Scene website. Be sure to check out Six Sided Discs online at sixsideddiscs.com.
