Note: With the summer approaching, local disc golf enthusiasts are rallying to maintain area courses and increase opportunities to play. The News Star visited our local courses and interviewed people interested in growing disc golf opportunities in Garvin County. See also articles on Lindsay and Elmore City.
Concerns around the Flightline Disc Golf Course in Pauls Valley have led Tyler Johnson to found the Garvin County Disc Golf Association.
“I thank Jesus Christ for giving me this opportunity,” Johnson said. “I’m excited to do this in Pauls Valley and Garvin County.”
Johnson has started similar organizations in other towns he has lived, including Ada, Durant and Seminole. In addition to helping build and maintain disc golf courses, the groups have hosted tournaments for athletes and workshops for beginners and schoolchildren.
“It’s a great sport for youth - low impact, non-contact and great on the environment,” Johnson said.
Goals for the new association include hosting minis and other events at the Elmore City and Lindsay courses, helping Stratford build a course, and keeping a course in Pauls Valley. Minis are tournaments aimed at beginners, but still include an entry fee and prizes.
“It’s not just about Pauls Valley,” Johnson said. “This is a stepping stone. Once we’re established, then we have some weight behind us. People are leaving our small towns. Why can’t we have people come to us? Disc golf is one way to bring people to us.”
Membership in GCDGA is $35. The association can be found on Facebook by searching “Garvin County Disc Golf Association” or contacted by email at gcdgaok@gmail.com.
Renewed interest in disc golf in Pauls Valley began with an online discussion. Concerns about the unmowed, therefore nearly unplayable, state of the Flightline Course surfaced in the Friends of Stratford, Oklahoma, Facebook group April 9. Stratford residents wanted to investigate purchasing the baskets from the Pauls Valley course to use for a Stratford course.
Johnson, who lives in Pauls Valley, saw this discussion, which inspired him to take action to save the course at its current location. Johnson spoke to the Pauls Valley City Council at the April 28 regular meeting about leading a group of volunteers to mow and maintain the course. Council members were receptive to the idea, and two days later, Johnson did exactly that.
Johnson signed up to speak to the board again about the completed maintenance and to propose an official Community Maintenance Plan between the City and his group of volunteers.
At the May 12 city council meeting, the council discussed with Johnson potential problems with the disc golf course’s current location next to the airport, and then denied the proposed maintenance plan.
“The good news is we support having a disc golf course in general,” Councilman Jonathan Grimmett told Johnson during the meeting. “The problem is it’s been brought to our attention (and I’m sure it has been to yours too), the problem with the activity out there.”
The problems mentioned included complaints from airport staff that non-pilots were going into the airport’s unlocked terminal to use restroom facilities, hanging out and accessing complimentary provisions intended for pilot use.
Discussion then shifted to possibly moving the disc golf course somewhere else. Grimmett mentioned using income generated from baling hay on the course’s current site to move the holes and markers to a new location. Possible locations discussed were a 9-acre tract near the slough at Wacker Park and somewhere at the Pauls Valley City Lake.
While moving the course poses its own challenges, Johnson offered to help design a new course.
“I have the capacity and skillset to do that, and I’m not going to charge them an arm and a leg, and it doesn’t take much to get baskets,” Johnson said.
City Manager Joe Livingston agreed at the meeting to meet with Johnson about scouting new locations.
As of Wednesday, Johnson was still waiting on a response from Livingston regarding a meeting.
“I’d really like for the City to follow through with working with me,” Johnson said.
Johnson likes the potential of new courses.
At Wacker Park, he envisions a 9-hole beginner course with different shot types and baskets bought with grant funds.
“With it near the Rec Center, we could have simple obstacles where players could learn to shape their shot,” Johnson said.
At the City Lake, Johnson envisions relocating the 18-hole Flightline Course. The current course has tees with concrete pads and granite markers with hole information, par and hole location. Johnson wants to use aluminum signs pinned to the original granite markers at the new course.
“I want to keep the heritage of Flightline,” he said.
