Disc golf course opens in Oldsmar park

OLDSMAR (FOX 13) - Disc golf isn't new to the Bay Area, but a course in Oldsmar is.

Early on, it confused some of the locals.

"The city got a question from a local resident asking what the chain-styled deer feeders were doing in the park," the park's designer, Trevor Toenjes said.

The baskets are targets for those who come to play Oldsmar's Disc Golf Course. Toenjes designed it inside the city's Sheffield Park. 

"This is Tampa Bay's very first championship level course. It's a par-60 for the pros, probably one of the hardest pro courses in this area, and the first course truly designed to host national tournaments," he said.

Toenjes says the course, which opened last summer, is a training ground for players who want to go out and compete on the national tour.

"We get a lot of challenge out here throwing out this wind, and a lot of distance. We utilized a little bit more of the terrain in the park here, some buried tee pads, some raised tee pads to simulate a little bit of the hillside play that you get in the other parts of the country," he said.

Isaac Chaney, who once played professionally, now lives just minutes from the course. And, it's one that is expected to be a breeding ground for future professional players.

"I mean, I really enjoy it because I love the flight of the disc. There's a lot of wind out here, so you get weather. You're throwing into a tailwind or headwind, there's a lot of stuff that can happen out here," Isaac Chaney said.

The Oldsmar Disc Golf Course stretches 8,600 feet. It hosts a sport that's hidden amongst the natural terrain of oak trees, a canal and this trail. Soon, disc golf will be no stranger to anyone who comes across these targets not used to feed wildlife.

"We always say that disc golf is a walk in the park. It's great exercise, getting out off of the couch, getting into the sun and enjoying the Florida weather."