Carlton Disc Park Hosts Discraft ACE Tournament

Wes Vork-NSO

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Aug 23

Wes Vork-NSO

One Northland sport which is quickly gaining popularity is disc golf, and on Saturday a disc golf
tournament came to the area. The Carlton Disc Park played host to an ACE tournament sponsored by disc manufacturer Discraft and Carlton Bike Rentals. The event drew local competitors and athletes from as far away as the Twin Cities.

Discraft sponsors the tournament as a way to promote their new products and create awareness of the up and coming sport. For a $25.00 registration fee, competitors receive 2 disks, a carrying bag and a marker valued at approx $60.00

The overall winner of the event was Jason Krause from Duluth who was rewarded with an 8-disc and bag set valued at $150.00 for his efforts. Jeremy Beottcher finished second and received a framed print courtesy of Carlton Bike Rentals. Rounding out the top five finishers were Clinton Hurd, Chris Shearer, and Tom Young.

The tournament drew a total of 28 individual competitors, who each made two rounds on the nine hole course. “The tournament itself went smoother than I could have hoped,” tournament organizer Troy Ring told Northland Sports Online. Adding “The one thing that I would like to change for next year is that I would like to play 36 holes instead of 18.”

Two of the competitors were 15yr old Ben Tomhave of Cloquet and 14 yr old Michael Ring of Chisago Lakes. Though both finished out of the top five on Saturday, Tomhave won the Carlton Daze tournament two weeks prior with a 1 over par 71. Ring finished a close second with a 2 over total of 72 in the same tournament.

Tomhave, who plays both soccer and tennis, said he likes both the exercise and the challenge that disc golf provides. Ring who competes in football and basketball agreed. “It is a lot of fun, and this is a nice and challenging course.” Both commented that the course will get nothing but better as is gets used more with the foot traffic improving the throwing lanes.

Carlton Bike Rental owner Jolene Steffans, co-sponsor of the tournament believed the event was a real plus for the community, stating. “We had a nice turnout which will make it easy to build on for next year.” Tournament director Ring agreed, “I think this was a great experience for everyone involved and it was a lot of fun. We can’t wait for next year!

Carlton Disc Park is located near the high school football field in South Terrace and is open to the public free of charge. Discs can be rented at Carlton Bike Rental for those without equipment wishing to give the sport a try.

Wes Vork can be reached at wes@northlandsportsonline.com