Do you fancy a walk in the park? Are you or your family looking for a fun new hobby? Do you need an excuse to exercise?

If you answered yes to any of the above, well you’re in luck. The North Bend Park, outside of Boydton, is opening Mecklenburg County’s first 9-hole disc golf course on Sept. 7th. The Corps of Engineers has partnered with the Southside Virginia Disc Golf Association (Halifax, VA), the Roanoke River Basin Association, Dominion Energy and ODEC to bring the sport of disc golf to lake country.

Disc golf is a sport where players throw specially designed discs from a tee off location into a suspended catching device, golfers call a basket. The objective is to get your disc in the basket in the fewest number of strokes possible, much like the game of traditional golf. Unlike the sport of traditional golf though, most disc golf courses are usually designed with more natural obstacles between you and the "hole". Players select specific discs to shape their throws around trees, over water and to cut through the wind.

The sport of disc golf has been around since the late 1970s and is played in more than 54 countries. There are more than 8,000 disc golf courses and over 120,000 lifetime members according to the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) website.

"The sport of disc golf is literally for everyone,” says Alex Bush, one of the designers and advocators for the course at North Bend. "You can have a great time playing casually with friends and family, or you can play competitively in professional events across the US," says Bush. "We are extremely excited to bring disc golf to North Bend Park and I know that once people experience the sport for themselves, they will be hooked like so many others."

The sponsorship speeches and the ribbon cutting ceremony will begin at 9am on the 7th, followed by a short demonstration clinic and then a guided tour around the 9-hole disc golf course. North Bend Park will offer free admission to the park for this event which will be located in the recreational section of the park. Discs will be provided for all that want to give the sport a toss!