Sport of disc golf soars in popularity amongst Calgarians during COVID-19 pandemic

The sport of disc golf has always had its regular enthusiasts and die-hard frisbee hurlers, but the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated its popularity for Calgarians as a fun way to get outdoors with friends.

Above-average temperatures made for the perfect conditions Saturday for the ‘Somewhat Super Bowl’ Disc Golf Tournament in Forest Lawn.

About 40 players took to the tees for the competition.

“It's unbelievable, if you look at the statistics of people signing up and joining the sport in the last year alone it's more than doubled,” said tournament organizer Joshua Kiist.

“So it's not a new sport by any means, it’s been around for years and years but it's really gained popularity and grown traction since the whole pandemic started as a way for people to get out of their house.”

In fact, the sport was so admired by Calgarians that the city had to begin creating more courses to keep up with demand.

Five new courses opened up in Calgary in the span of the last year located in Glenmore Park, Stanley Park, Lindsay Park, Marlborough Park and Currie Reservoir.

People like Trevor Caza have only been playing the sport for the past six months, but he’s been hooked ever since.

“It’s just basically taken over my life,” he said. “I was trying to find a pedal bike but I just couldn't find a bike to buy that wasn’t less than $6,000 so I found a set of discs, picked them up and have been loving it ever since.”

“Everyone that I've met out here has just been super friendly, outgoing, helpful and always throwing in tips to make you better.”

One of the more elite players in Calgary, Melissa Bright, started getting into the sport around the beginning of the pandemic.

She’s now a sponsored player, but says it’s the people around her that have made her want to come back to courses time and again.

“It's fantastic to get outside and play with people that you haven't played with before and a lot of my good friends are now from disc golf so it’s just really all about the community.”