The Sunshine Coast Disc Golf Association (SCDGA) officially wrapped up its inaugural tournament series and ended the 2021 season with a bang at the SCDGA Championships on Sunday, Oct. 3.
More than 30 disc golfers from all over the Sunshine Coast convened at Shirley Macey Park for the final tournament in the four part, season-long series.
Paul Rietze shot the low score of the day in the Recreational Division and Chris Pugh was named division champion with three top-three finishes throughout the season, including a first-place finish in June at The Social Distancing Open.
Jeremy Newman narrowly bested Sam Lyons in an extra playoff hole to take the best score of the day in the Intermediate Division, but it was Callum McDonald who took home the division championship. McDonald fended off Trevor Connors by just a single stroke and a single point in the season series to take home the hardware. It’s worth noting that many of the players in Rec and Int divisions were essentially rookies to the sport, having just discovered it during the pandemic. McDonald, now a champion, has been playing for just over a year.
Disc golf Hall of Famer and all-around legend of the sport Glen Whitlock absolutely starched the field in the Open Division (top division) and shot the best score of the day by a whopping five strokes. He may have ended SCDGA president Denny Nordli’s “Grand Slam” aspirations of winning all four season tournaments, but Nordli was still able to win the season championship by coming out on top in three of four events. With Nordli and his family now planning to move off coast, the SCDGA would like to formally thank him for all of his efforts and initiatives since the association’s inception in 2019.
The event and in fact the entire season series were made possible by the SCDGA’s sponsors: Trail Bay Source for Sports, Matthew Kliewer Painting, Tapworks Brewing, Insight Visual Solutions Tara Blown Glass and West Coast Nibbles.
Disc golf, also called frisbee golf, is an outdoor sport with rules similar to traditional golf in that the player with the fewest shots (throws) wins the game. In disc golf, competitors throw a disc (frisbee) around trees, shrubs and other natural objects on their way to a basket target.
If you’re interested in learning more about the SCDGA or just about disc golf in general, you can follow the SCDGA on Facebook at facebook.com/sunshinecoastdiscgolf or on the web at scdga.ca.
