Amador County – About 30 people attended a ribbon cutting ceremony Sunday at Mollie Joyce Park to mark the opening of a new flying disc golf course in Pioneer.
Amador County Recreation Agency executive board president and Sutter Creek Vice Mayor Linda Rianda cut the ribbon as a line of sponsors and volunteers lined the ridge above hole number one’s fairway.
ACRA Executive Director Tracy Towner-Yepp introduced Rianda and opened the ceremony by asking for a moment of silence for Fred Joyce, whom she said passed away last week. Fred Joyce was the donor who made the park possible, deeding the use of the park to the Recreation Agency. The park is named after his late wife, Mollie Joyce.
ACRA received the deed of the 76-acre park from Fred Joyce on Feb. 5, 2008, on condition the park be maintained for public recreation use. The park was long used by a Sacramento school district for a science camp, but for several years had been in disrepair.
Immediately after taking over Mollie Joyce Park, ACRA began to refurbish the two overgrown Little League Baseball fields. The fields have been revitalized, with installation of donated underground irrigation pipes, and regular ballgames have returned.
Sunday the disc golf course, which has 9 permanent holes, and a goal to get 9 more, held its first tournament, with about 25 players. Towner-Yep, program director Matt Nestor and others at ACRA have worked with local disc golfers, who volunteered to help design the course around Mollie Joyce Park’s hilly and wooded terrain.
Jackson Rancheria Casino made a big donation to purchase 8 of the baskets used for holes, and Brandon Wedge, co-owner of Play It Again Sports in Jackson, sponsored the purchase of another basket. Four other baskets have been sponsored, but not yet purchased and installed.
Local and regional golfers, including Paul Dalmau of Pioneer, Ray Birch of Ione and Wedge of Sutter Creek have volunteered on the project.
Sunday also marked the first official tournament at the course, the Martin Luther King Tournament, organized by Nestor for ACRA. Ray Birch won the professional division with a two-round score of one-over par. Brandon Wedge was second.
Kyhber Easton took first place in the amateur men’s division, while Peter Hertzog II took second place, Taj Easton was third, and Justin Agustin was fourth. Tara Easton took first place in the women’s amateur division.
Former ACRA program manager, Adam Lindsey, who also worked on the course, took first place in the recreational division. Second was Robert Moncada, and third was Jaysin Cabrol.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
