A student’s motivation and love of disc golf may bring the sport to Kent State.

A disc golf course is under consideration as an addition to the planned recreational fields going up by next fall.

Ivy Lumpkin, a junior communications major, has pushed the idea for about a year now.

“I want to bring something new that people could do to Kent State,” Lumpkin said. “I ultimately want to boost participation around campus and get more people involved with campus activities.”

Lumpkin isn’t the only one who would be excited to see a disc golf course on campus.

“I would love to have a disc golf course on campus,” said Bobby Lyle, a junior integrated social studies major. “It’s a fun sport to play when the weather is nice and the best thing about it is it’s really cheap.”

Anthony Natali, a sophomore business major, said the course would be a good idea and also a great edition to campus.

“Disc golf looks like a fun sport and will catch on quickly if it’s promoted well,” Natali said. “I just really like it because it will be free, and its something that my girlfriend and I can enjoy without me having to spend a lot of money.”

Kim Rufra, associate director at the Student Recreation and Wellness Center, said she thinks a disc golf course would be a great edition to recreational services but the only problem is finding room to put the course.

The average 18-hole disc golf course is about the size of two football fields and with the new recreational fields going up, it will be difficult to fit a whole 18-hole course there.

Rufra said a 9-hole course by Allerton Apartments is the best place for the course.

Two hundred people responded to a disc golf survey conducted by the SWRC. Of those 200 people, 110 said they would be interested in participating in disc golf. Forty-three percent of those who took the survey are students and 32 percent are faculty and staff.

A disc golf course wouldn’t be very costly for recreational services to build or for students to use, Rufra said. And although Rufra likes the idea of the course, she said there are some safety issues that need to be taken into account.

“Challenges with crossing roadways could pose a threat,” Rufra said. “Also, with the discs being so big and heavy—not like a regular Frisbee—someone could be hit and injured.”

Lumpkin wants to see disc golf turned into an intramural sport if the course is built, and Rufra can definitely see the idea happening.

Contact Darian Thomas at [email protected].