IT HAS proved popular in America and now the number of people taking part in Disc Golf in Basingstoke is starting to grow.

Around 28 people put their skills to the test by taking part in a Disc Golf tournament at a temporary course laid out at Down Grange.

The sport, which involves players throwing Frisbee-like discs around the course in the least amount of throws by using metallic baskets as a target for each hole, first burst on the scene in America in the 1960s.

There are currently around 30 Disc Golf courses across the UK.

The tournament, which was organised by the Basingstoke Disc Golf Club, saw 28 people of varying skills battle it out on the course, playing 18 holes in the morning and a further 18 holes in the afternoon.

British Disc Golf Champion, Daniel Ryan, was victorious on the day scooping a £10 voucher for Catch the Spirit - a website which sells Disc Golf equipment.

As previously reported by The Gazette, the Basingstoke club is in negotiations with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council about the possibility of creating a dedicated course for the sport at Down Grange.

Chairman of the Basingstoke Disc Golf Club, Robb Hamilton said that the club is in the process of submitting a detailed plan to the council.

He said: “It (the tournament) was very successful. Everybody enjoyed the course and we had a lot of good feedback from it. I wanted to get some of the players from higher divisions here to play the course so I could get feedback on our holes and if they spotted a hole that was better.

“It was really good and I got a couple of points about the holes and making some of them longer.”