OCHS grad helps get course at Amanda’s Field in Upper Township

PETERSBURG — “It’s like hiking in the woods and throwing a disc while doing it,” Chris Scott said of disc golf, a growing sport in the region and around the nation.

Upper Township installed a course last summer at Amanda’s Field, where Scott and others play casually or as part of an informal league that meets monthly. He called it a passive sport that is good for people of all ages and skill levels.

“That’s the beauty of disc golf — there’s no age limit or requirement,” Scott said, noting one of his friends brings his 5-year-old son along to throw discs when they play.

He also said one of the people who “helped get the ball rolling at Amanda’s Field,” Stephanie Marx, is in her 50s or 60s and plays regularly.

“It’s all about playing to your personal best, not as much about being competitive,” Scott said.

On President’s Day, Scott was with daughter Penelope, a week shy of turning 4 years old, as he practiced on the Upper Township course. Penelope, while holding her Elmo doll, did some practicing herself, albeit from about a foot away from the basket.

The game is played like standard golf in that players start at a tee and take turns until reaching their goal. In disc golf, it’s a basket beneath hanging chains that work to stop the disc instead of a 4.25-inch-wide hole in the ground.

Andrew Vesay of Upper Township was at the course as well Monday with his 9-year-old daughter Charley and her friend, Evelyn Melli, whom, Charley happily pointed out, shares her birthday and is in the same fourth-grade class at Upper Township Elementary School.

Vesay said they’ve been playing at the course since it opened. “We love it,” he said. “It lets you get outside and get some fresh air and exercise. It makes good use of the park.”

Asked what she liked about the sport, Charley agreed with her dad that it is fun to throw the discs and to run around with her friend.

“I just like the adventure of it,” Evelyn added as she and Charley giggled.

Although the little girls seemed to have just as much fun throwing the discs randomly as they walked toward the next hole, those who do it competitively take turns using one of four types of throwing disc — distance driver, fairway driver, midrange and putter.

Scott said a round can be played with as few as a single disc but noted he carries more.

“In my bag…