Plans for a disc course near Ōamaru are off to a flying start, all thanks to a group of volunteers.

Oamaru Rotary Club member Sven Thelning and K South director Kerry Robb were discussing the idea over a beer, and decided to make it happen, Sven said.

“It’s been something people have been trying to get done for a long time.”

Other members of Rotary were also keen to see it happen, including retired Apex engineer Mark Hay, who has been making the baskets in his spare time.

“Mark has built about a third of the baskets so far, and we also have K South putting a huge donation of time and resource to the project installation which we are planning for their quiet time over winter,” Sven said.

Kerry came up with the idea of using a piece of reserve land out the back of Weston Domain, and has all the gear and expertise to trim vegetation and prepare the site, Sven says.

The nine-basket course has been funded with a $14,000 from Sport Waitaki, funds from Rotary, and local businesses.

One of the new baskets, created by Mark Hay. Photo: supplied

“We’ve been donated enough for eight of the nine baskets,” he says.

“We just need another $600 for the last one.” 

Fellow Rotarian James Braid has also been heavily involved in the organising and planning, such as liaising with Matthew Lanyon from the Waitaki District Council Parks and Recreation team, who has helped pave the way for the development, Sven says.

“It’s all come together really well. Basically the stars aligned and all the right people seemed keen on it happening.”

The course design, which has had professional input from an expert in Auckland, has undergone a few realignments to further reduce the chances of discs being lost over fences and affecting children in the playground.

Sven says the hope is to finish constructing the course over winter, so it’s all ready to go next summer.

“One caveat is, it’s all being done by volunteers.”

Disc golf is a sport in which players throw a disc (similar to a frisbee) at a target basket. It is played using rules similar to golf. The sport is usually played on a course with 9 or 18 holes.

There are 14 disc golf courses in Otago, but the closest courses to Ōamaru are in Waimate, where there is an 18 and a 9-hole course.

A map of the nine-hole disc golf course planned for around the Weston Domain. Photo: Supplied