1. 20 MARCH 2016 PRB
Optimistic
Pessimist DiscGolfPark
About
Turnkey design
provides a
fast-track solution
for the course
C
ontrary to its name, a new disc-golf facility in Fort Morgan,
Colo., has city officials feeling positive about the impact of this
growing sport for their community.
The Pessimist DiscGolfPark opened in September 2015 at the
city’s signature 300-acre Riverside Park. It complements Fort Morgan’s
existing Optimist Disc Golf Course at the other end of the same park,
and burnishes the city’s growing reputation as a destination for disc golf.
BY JOSHUA MILLER
Photos: Josh Miller / City Of Fort Morgan

2. PRB www.parksandrecbusiness.com 21
Informational signage about the Pessimist DiscGolfPark and disc golf in general are displayed on the course
as well as individual signs at each tee pad with a map of the hole, distance, hazards, and other information.

3. 22 MARCH 2016 PRB
The Optimist course was so named
because of the involvement of the local
Optimist Club in its original development
years ago. There had always been a
dream of adding another 18 holes at the
park, and the Pessimist name was set
aside for the day that dream became
reality.
A First For The United States
The long-awaited debut of the
Pessimist course actually culminated a
fast-track process to create the course.
That opportunity grew out of a chance
encounter for me at the High Plains
Challenge, a popular annual disc-golf
tournament hosted by the city at the
Optimist course.
I connected with Austin
Montgomery, who had recently been
hired as the first U.S. designer for
DiscGolfPark, a Finnish developer of
disc-golf facilities that have been hugely
successful across Europe. Our first
conversation quickly led to the selection
of Fort Morgan as the site to design and
install the company’s first course in the
United States.
The attractive part for me was
that DiscGolfPark is a turnkey solution
for installing a disc-golf course.
Montgomery spent three days at
Riverside Park in late July, and by the
end of that time with staff input, he had
laid out the course, identified every
tee pad and basket location, and done
general sketch work for the artists to
create the course signage for the facility.
This approach overcame one of the
foremost obstacles to the creation of
disc-golf facilities by municipalities—a
lack of expertise in design and layout
of a course. The DiscGolfPark concept
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4. PRB www.parksandrecbusiness.com 23
takes care of that key element, but
still allows the city or town to handle
construction of the course in order to
control costs.
Design Details
Varied and versatile holes make a
good disc-golf course. A memorable and
challenging course offers holes with a
variety of lengths, shapes, vegetation,
and possibly elevation. Take the
aesthetics of the area into account to
ensure an enjoyable playing experience.
The city’s parks department played
a big part in the rapid completion of the
DiscGolfPark. After Montgomery had
designed the course, parks staff prepped
the areas for the tee pads and baskets,
installed frames for the turf pads, and
mowed the facility so it was playable for
its first event.
Using the DiscGolfPark approach
also helped ensure that other uses of
the public park were considered in
the course design, and that safety was
always kept in mind. A disc-golf disc is
a fast-flying object, and it may cause
damage when hitting people or other
objects. The possibility for accidents
cannot be completely excluded, but
with professional design the risks are
minimized. It is important to design the
holes so the safety of other park users,
as well as other disc golfers, will not be
compromised.
Erno Vayrynen of Discmania Inc.,
the parent company of DiscGolfPark,
says “Safety is an essential requirement
of a good disc-golf course. The use of
the whole park area needs to be taken
into account. Possible safety hazards
need to be clearly presented on the
course signs. Many times, our customers
A memorable and challenging course offers holes with a variety of
lengths, shapes, vegetation, and possibly elevation.
READERSERVICE#284

5. 24 MARCH 2016 PRB
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have suggested, for example, a local
Boy Scout as a course designer. If that
person does not have experience in disc
golf and course design, it’s unlikely that
the course will be popular or safe.”
The DiscGolfPark package includes
informational signage about the course
and disc golf in general, as well as
individual signs at each tee pad with a
map of the hole, distance, hazards, and
other information.
Positive Feedback
One feature that has already proved
popular among players at the Pessimist
DiscGolfPark is the artificial-turf tee
pads that provide a solid, cushioned grip
for players. Artificial turf is new to the
sport of disc golf, but initial feedback
from players has been positive. Tee
pads have a significant effect on the
general impression and usability of
the course. A turf mat looks tidy and
natural. In addition, the mats are durable
and player-friendly, when maintained
properly. The turf tee pads are not as
hard on shoes and the body as other
surfaces currently being used.
Also receiving positive comments
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7. 26 MARCH 2016 PRB
from players is the directional arrow on
the basket cage for each hole that points
players to the next tee. This is especially
useful for players who are experiencing
a course for the first time.
The Pessimist course garnered
positive reviews from visitors in its first
few weeks: “This course has a great mix
of technical shots as well as long, open
drives to test many different aspects
of your game,” wrote one reviewer in
the www.dgcoursereview.com website.
“This was a great course and makes this
park great with two challenging courses.
Nice river views … This makes Fort
Morgan more of a disc-golf destination
to spend a day at now.”
Challenging Players
The Pessimist course plays through
a native area along the South Platte
River corridor, around the fishing ponds
at Riverside Park’s east end. With a
blend of par 3s and par 4s, the new
course includes water shots, trees,
tunnel shots, and other challenging
features. This variety of terrain, hazards,
and other features is another part of
the DiscGolfPark concept, which can
customize courses to the site, as well as
the target audience.
“There’s no reason to design an
18-hole championship-level course for
elementary school kids. That course
needs to be designed with extra safety
in mind, with shorter, yet still interesting
and varied holes,” says Vayrynen. “Disc
golf is a game with an easy starting
threshold, but disc golf is being played
by players of varying levels of skill and
experience, and course design must take
this into account.”
Soaring To New Heights
The Pessimist course opened in
mid-September and played host to the
Johnny Roberts Memorial Tournament
the first weekend, with 140 participants.
Like the Optimist course, Pessimist is
free and open to the public to enjoy at
all times, except when special events
like tournaments are scheduled.
DiscGolfPark is based in Finland
and has designers all over Europe,
including Germany, France, Norway,
Sweden, Denmark, Poland, and Russia.
The sport is extremely popular and
thriving in Finland, where disc-golf
tournaments are broadcast on TV, and
the number of courses has quadrupled
from just over 100 in 2008 to more than
400 today.
The sport of disc golf is also
growing rapidly in the U.S., and
DiscGolfPark has a goal to establish 500
new high-quality courses in the country
by 2020.
Fort Morgan’s reputation as
a mecca for the sport is reaching
Directional arrows on basket cages are
especially useful for players who are

8. PRB www.parksandrecbusiness.com 27
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beyond Colorado. City officials hope
the addition of the Pessimist course
will continue to attract more players
and visitors to the area and make Fort
Morgan a regular stop for professional
and national disc-golf tournaments.
It’s possible that Opportunist,
Realist, and Perfectionist disc-golf
courses could be in the city’s future.
Meanwhile, the initial success of the
Pessimist course has the city nothing
less than … well, optimistic. PRB
READERSERVICE#261