‘Tournament-quality’ disc golf course nears completion at Copper Sky

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The new disc golf course at Copper Sky is expected to be ready in time for a tournament planned for late January.

A new disc golf course is coming to the Copper Sky Recreation Complex.

It is expected to open by Jan. 26, in time to host the Maricopa Open, which starts that day. The course is complete except for four of the holes, according to Mike Riggs, deputy director of Community Services.

“The nets are in and most of the tee pads are poured,” Riggs said. “There is a need. It is a popular sport. We had a partnership with Ace Hardware to help cost-share on the project.”

The idea of a new 18-hole course began a year ago. With Maricopa Ace Hardware helping the city on the project, cost to Maricopa taxpayers is under $10,000. Mike Richey, owner of Maricopa Ace Hardware, told InMaricopa that he paid $5,000 to Eric McCabe, 2010 Pro Disc Golf world champion, for planning and design of the course, and the city purchased the hardware.

Riggs said this project is very inexpensive, “especially for the amount of response it’s getting.”

The new course is especially designed to host larger tournaments as its “Blue Course” is 7,190 feet long and circles the distance of the sprawling 98-acre park.

“It is a growing sport, so there are a tremendous amount of people in town who play disc golf all of the time,” Riggs said. “Another angle was to go to the tournament level to bring people in.”

The 18 holes are separated by varying distances to challenge beginners and expert level players. The course covers grassy and granite areas and has water obstacles.

“I believe they are trying to hold a tournament on Jan. 26 and 27. The balance of the tee boxes will be in before that time,” Riggs said.

“We are excited to offer this to the inventory of things we offer our community,” said Community Services Director Nathan Ullyot. “That’s what it comes down to. It is both a passive and a direct programming opportunity.”



This is a corrected version of a story that published Dec. 10. The designer of the course is Eric McCabe. We regret the error.