Whatever It Takes to Make Disc Golf Popular

A hammerhead shark landed on a disc golf course recently.

There was a news story a few days ago about a baby hammerhead shark that literally fell out of the sky and landed near some disc golfers. The disc golf course is located near Myrtle Beach; apparently, an osprey had snatched the shark from the ocean (but then dropped it in mid-flight).

It's a fairly minor story, but at least it shined some brief attention on disc golf.

All too often, people don't know much (or anything) about disc golf. And in order to explain the sport to them, it's helpful to say "frisbee golf." That gives them some idea of the game.

I love disc golf. And I'd like to see more people play it. So I'm glad when there's a news item that mentions the sport.

There isn't typically a lot of mainstream attention paid to disc golf, though. It usually takes something special to catch people's attention. James Conrad’s famous throw-in at the 2021 World Championships certainly did that. And Calvin Heimburg's 425-foot ace during the 2023 Discraft Ledgestone Open made it onto ESPN’s weekly SportsCenter highlights.

But it takes time to gain cultural recognition. However, disc golf is on a great upward trajectory.

It's possible that disc golf will eventually surpass traditional golf in terms of popularity and appeal. Disc golf just has a lot more positives. It's relatively inexpensive; all you need are a few plastic discs. It's also much easier to play; just get out there and start throwing. And it doesn't take hours and hours to play, like traditional golf.

So hopefully disc golf will keep catching on...