When frisbees and golf collide

Matt Unrau

Valley Press

Featuring a number of local folfers the dominant player of the Western Montana Folf Tournament on Sunday turned out to not be anyone bearing a disc.

On an unusual gusty day mother nature took flying discs for a ride.

“It just makes it twice as hard,” says Dayton Creek folfer Lucas Michel. “That wind really affects your short game.”

With gusts up to 25-30 miles an hour especially on the western side of the elementary school in Hot Springs, the effect on Michel’s short game proved to be the deciding factor in the doubles round.

Leading by four strokes Michel and his partner had easily closed in on hole number 16 and looked to finish the day on top.

However, the plastic ball catcher that doubled as a folf disc basket sat 11 feet into the air and was especially susceptible to the wind gusts.

After closing within one foot of the hole the duo were then forced to watch helplessly as their disc drifted over the goal four times in succession to put them four strokes back on the hole and tied with Dennis Brands of Missoula and Matt Unrau of Plains.

Feeding on their newfound hope for the win Brands and Unrau birdied the next hole to put them one stroke up and finished the 18th with a par and the win by a mere stroke over Michel’s group.

“This is the first folf tournament that I’ve ever been in,” says Brand. “It was really exciting coming down to the end (of the round) being so close. It was fun to win.”

The win was good enough for a $60 payout and bragging rights for the first-ever Western Montana Folf Tournament in Hot Springs. On the singles side Jason Inman shot the low score of the day to take home first place honors.

Doug Copley is the man responsible for bringing the tournament to Hot Springs.  The folfing fever hasn’t quite gotten a tight grip on Hot Springs yet as the town still does not have a permanent course. However Copley has seen the rise of popularity of the sport, and sees the potential for Hot Springs to adopt the sport as one of its own.

This tournament featured a temporary course set up around the school weaving through the football, track and baseball fields. “It was kind of quirky, but definitely an interesting use of the space,” says Michel.

The holes also featured some very interesting goals including electrical poles, sheds, playground equipment, sponsor signs, plus a few regular baskets. To spice up some of the holes even more Copley put a spin on a few of the holes requiring the competitor to throw under the uprights, into a dugout and through a narrow pathway between the batting cage and basketball courts.

All this extra work was worthwhile for Copley as he regularly likes to promote the town and build tourism . “It’s in my blood,” says Copley as he has done a lot of promotional events for pubs and lounges in the past. This tournament was sponsored both by Synes Hotel and Fergies’ Pub.

In the spring Copley plans to build a permanent 9-hole course at either the rodeo or Camas Hot Springs. He hopes this course will serve as a fun summer activity for the kids at Hot Springs. “There’s not a youth center (in town),” says Copley. “There’s no athletic thing to do in the summer and it could develop into a really good thing if there was a permanent course.”

With the permanent course Copley also plans to make a local weekly folfing league and have a monthly or annual bigger event like this tournament.

This is something that peaks the interest of both Michel and Brands. “Any disc golf course is a good one,” says Michel.

Brands on the other hand would enjoy competing in future tournaments in Sanders County. “I’m hoping that there will be more tournaments like this in the area that I’ll be able to compete in.”