Written by Mickey Scott of MetroplexDiscGolf.com
Photo: Ziggy King putting

I was told that they are more a part of the park than the Trees.  Trees grow, fall, and lose limbs and leaves. But these guys never seem to change.

If you go to Fritz Park (about a mile West of Loop 12 and Shady Grove on Britain St. in Irving) on a Saturday morning, you will see a group of Frisbee loving guys doing their thing. They spin, they yell, they tip and spin the disc. Their enthusiasm never wanes. For twenty three years they have met at about 9:00 AM on Saturdays for freestyle Frisbee action prior to the weekly disc golf tournament.

The regular disc sports participation must help these "Fathers of Frisbee" stay young. Their ages range from 50 to 66, but the members of this group bounce around with the vitality and energy of teenagers.

Ziggy King, who is 66, said that the regular disc golfing and freestyle Frisbee must be part of the reason he is in such good shape. He can still throw a disc the length of a football field, and hits 35 foot putts with ease. Ziggy feels fortunate that he has never had any major injuries.

King is a DFW metroplex legend in disc sports. He competed in the Second Annual World Frisbee Championships at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, in 1976! Ziggy recalled that '76 was the first year that the pole hole was used in the disc golf portion of the competition.

In the Freestyle contest, the winning team of Jens and Erwin Velasquez actually used King's music during their winning routine. The Velasquez brothers credited King's musical composition (Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of The Moon with a synthesizer score recorded on top of it) as being a significant reason that they won.

Ziggy also recalled competing against Marvin Vitatoe. Vitatoe was a well known basketball player who played for UCLA in 1970 -1972 and the University of Hawaii from 1972-1974.

King won the Texas State Championships Masters division four years in a row, from 1987 to 1990. That was a competition which included five disc events, one of which was disc golf.

There is also a photo of Ziggy making a sick catch in a published book! Fittingly titled, "Frisbee By The Masters", by Charles Tips, the book features a photo of King making a catch under his legs as he flies through the air.

King also helps to run the regular mini tournaments at Fritz Park that have been a staple of the DFW metroplex golf scene since the mid 1980's.

Other stalwart members of the group are Kevin Geesa (56), Mike Russell (59), Mike McKenzie (58), John Garmon (61), Greg Oliver (50), and Thor Overy (55). Geesa (below) is also a world class disc golfer who has won many tournament titles over the years. He was crowned the World Champion Advanced Masters disc golfer in 2001.

Fritz Park's disc golf course is the oldest existing course in Texas. Skyline Park, across from Lake Highlands High School in Dallas, put in the first disc golf course in 1982. Skyline's course was removed many years ago.

Mike Moore made a proposal to the Irving Parks and Recreation Department for a nine hole course to be installed in Fritz Park in 1982. The proposal was denied. Moore and Glenn Hale (PDGA# 2461) tried again in 1983. The proposition was accepted and the parks department put the course installation into their budget for 1984.

Moore and Hale spent several weeks designing the course. They had help from members of their softball team (The Freeks), many of whom were disc golfers. A prominent member of the group was James Grider (father of professional disc golfers Nolan and Mike Grider).

Moore was both the first Fritz Park course pro and tournament director. Hale took over as course pro in 1985 and ran the Fritz Park Open in 1985, 1986, and 1987. Hale continues to be a force in the Pro Grandmasters division. He recently cashed in the Veterans Park Open, finishing in a tie for second place.

In 2001 the park was temporarily closed for a major renovation of Delaware creek (which runs throughout the course). After the updates, the layout of the course was completely changed. Only a few of the original nine holes remained.

The substantial creek maintained it's abilities to add O.B. strokes to your score and reduce the number of discs in your bag. And the entire park has always been full of large trees which add to it's beauty and to the course's difficulty.

What is now hole two (originally hole five) also remained intact and puts even the most skilled golfers to the test. It is about 500 feet in length, has the O.B. creek to the left, and a tree line to the right. Off the tee there are also a couple of major trees to miss. A three on this hole is satisfying and anyone who has ever deuced it will remember it, and tell that tale forever.

The Irving Disc Sports Association (IDSA) host weekly mini disc golf tournaments every Saturday which begin at 10 AM. Participants should arrive early to get signed up. The minis are usually at Fritz Park, but move to W.O. Harrington Park in Irving (for draw doubles) on the second Saturday of every month. The freestyle action starts at about 9AM prior to the mini. There is also usually a second session of Frisbee play after lunch, beginning at about 1:30 PM.

Want to be a part of history? Want to stand next to (or tip a Frisbee to) a Texas legend? Then head on over to Irving for their next mini tournament.  They'll treat you like an old friend.