Williamson County disc golf course closed for six months because of dead trees
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
GEORGETOWN — The drought has killed hundreds of trees at the Southwest Williamson County Regional Park, prompting officials to close the park’s disc golf course for at least six months while they look for ways to reduce the risk of limbs falling and injuring golfers.
Williamson County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to close the course while the parks department comes up with a plan to remove the dead trees.
Randy Bell, the county’s director of parks and recreation, told commissioners that hundreds of trees were either dead or dying on the course.
“There’s even a dead cedar, which doesn’t break my heart,” Bell quipped, explaining that the dead trees pose a safety threat to golfers because limbs could fall at any moment.
The 18-hole disc golf course sees 7,000 paid visits a year, meaning more than 7,000 people likely play on the course a year because the payment is optional, Bell said. The course, which opened in 2006, has also seen an increase in tournaments in recent years, he said.
Bell said that there’s no known treatment for the dying trees and that the county’s only option is to try and maintain the health of growing trees.
“We’re left to go with what nature deals us,” Bell said.
Other disc golf courses in the county include Leander’s Benbrook Ranch Park Disc Golf Course, 1100 Halsey Drive, and a course run by the Brushy Creek Municipal Utility District along the Liberty Walk greenbelt between Cat Hollow Park and O’Connor Drive.

Contact Benjamin Wermund at 246-1150