Kensington Metropark hosts disc golf day before major championships

Kensington Metropark turned disc golf into a low-risk first step for families, staging a free Discovery Day at Martindale Beach for kids 18 and under and putting professionals Lindsay Maas and Chandler Fry in front of the next wave of players. The setup was simple and smart: teach the basics in a park setting, keep the price at zero, and make the first round feel less like an exam than an invitation.

The day was built around more than instruction. Players got a Closest to the Pin Challenge, a Farthest Throw Competition, free Kona Ice tickets and a free commemorative mini disc, all designed to make the sport feel accessible for families trying it for the first time. That matters in disc golf, where the barrier to entry is already lower than most sports and the learning curve can be shortened quickly when someone shows you how to grip, throw and line up a shot.

Nate Heinold of the Professional Disc Golf Association described the sport as casual, park-based, inexpensive and much shorter than ball golf, which is exactly the appeal Kensington was leaning into. Discovery Day was not trying to create elite players in one afternoon. It was trying to turn park visitors into participants, one easy throw at a time, and that is how sports actually grow.

The timing gave the event extra weight. Kensington is preparing for the 44th annual Discraft Great Lakes Open from Aug. 7-9, followed by the PDGA World Championships from Aug. 26-30. District Park Superintendent Jim O’Brien said the World Championships will be the largest event the park has ever hosted, and the scale is hard to miss. Upward of 20,000 spectators and players are expected to stay, eat, sleep and play in the Kensington area during the event window.

Heinold said the championships should generate millions in local economic impact, which makes the youth clinic look less like a side event and more like the opening move in a larger summer run. Before the elite cards tee off, Kensington used its shoreline space at Martindale Beach to show casual visitors what disc golf looks like when the sport is handed to beginners with no pressure and a clear path forward.