Cape County disc golf course opening in a few weeks

The first phase of the disc golf course at Cape County Park North is scheduled to open June 1, and local business are chipping in to keep the project going and to create a permanent marketing presence in the park.

The disc golf course is the latest initiative spearheaded by Associate Commissioner Jay Purcell since taking over the duties of park superintendent last February. When former parks superintendent Bruce Watkins retired, Purcell proposed that he combine Watkins' duties with his existing responsibilities.

Within two years, visitors can expect Cape County Park North and South to have had a "complete overhaul," including rebuilding damaged shelters and equipment, Purcell said Monday.

A group of disc golf enthusiasts partnered with Purcell last year to create the course, encouraged by the success of the 10-hole course at Capaha Park. Purcell said volunteers like enthusiast Theo Wenger of the Frisbee Golf Citizens Group have donated thousands of hours creating and testing the course design. The park board approved the project in October.

The full 18-hole course is slated for completion by late fall or early winter, Purcell said. It is intended to meet professional specifications set by the Professional Disc Golf Association and is expected to draw players to the area for tournaments and recreational play.

Similar to traditional golf, disc golf involves throwing hard rubber discs from concrete or stone "tees" into metal baskets, or "holes." The winner completes the course with the fewest throws.

Since being given the green light, Purcell has been securing sponsorships that will fund the entire cost of course structures, with the county providing labor to build them.

For $1,000, sponsors can have their names or logos engraved on a permanent large granite par marker at the tee. Individuals and businesses can also have their names engraved on smaller pavers in the tee box for $50 or $150, depending on size. Three local businesses have formally agreed to sponsor a hole at the $1,000 level, and Purcell said he is in talks with others.

Bryan Greaser is a lawyer in Cape Girardeau who is sponsoring the 18th hole. He said the permanency of the marker is good for business exposure and that contributing to the course is a way to demonstrate his support for local parks. While playing disc golf at Capaha, Greaser became connected to the group interested in developing a place to play at Cape County Park North.

"Those guys have really been visionary," Greaser said. "It's really being done professionally."

Velosity Electronics president Eric Bennett said he "plays disc golf all the time." He hasn't decided which hole will bear his company's name, but he said he thinks sponsorship is a great way to support the park and permanently advertise his business. Other similar opportunities, he said, switch sponsorship names every few years.

John Dodd, owner of Cycle Werx in Cape Girardeau, is one of the volunteers who helped get the project off the ground and is sponsoring the first hole. He and his employees have already been supporting the parks system by donating time to maintain the mountain bike trails at Klaus Park.

Cycle Werx sells disc golf equipment, and Dodd said the amount of enthusiasm for the sport locally is "overwhelming." Dodd said little money is required to get started with basic equipment and that most courses are on public property, which saves entry fees.

"It's an awesome way to go walk around the park," Dodd said.

Purcell said he hopes the course will benefit all park visitors by improving trails and providing amenities such as benches. He is also looking at other ways that people interested in donating to the park or memorializing loved ones can create permanent commemorations. In addition to the traditional practice of donating a tree and a marker, Purcell said, people can engrave other items, such as granite benches, picnic tables, water features and playground equipment.

"It allows us to stretch the park dollars even further," Purcell said.

salderman@semissourian.com

388-3648

Pertinent address:

2400 County Park Drive, Cape Girardeau MO