External links
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Disc golfers | |
| Disc golf tournaments |
|
| Brands and manufacturers | |
| Countries | |
| Venues |
|
| Years | |
| Governing bodies | |
| Media | |
The World Disc Games (WDG) is a semi-regular event that brings the entire world flying disc community together for a week of overall disc events that allow people to compete in and enjoy disc sports. Beginning in 1978, and originally called the Santa Cruz Flying Disc Classic, the WDG has its home in Santa Cruz, California, with promoter and hall of fame disc sport player Tom Schot. [1]
Disc sports competitions at the WDG include ultimate, freestyle, disc golf, discathon, self-caught flight, accuracy, distance, and double disc court. In July 2003, World Disc Games X held in Santa Cruz with over 500 participants.
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Disc golfers | |
| Disc golf tournaments |
|
| Brands and manufacturers | |
| Countries | |
| Venues |
|
| Years | |
| Governing bodies | |
| Media | |
Disc golf, formerly known as frisbee golf, is a flying disc sport in which players throw a disc at a target; it is played using rules similar to golf. Most disc golf discs are made out of polypropylene plastic, otherwise known as polypropene, which is a thermoplastic polymer resin used in a wide variety of applications. Discs are also made using a variety of other plastic types that are heated and molded into individual discs. The sport is usually played on a course with 9 or 18 holes (baskets). Players complete a hole by throwing a disc from a tee pad or area toward a target, known as a basket, throwing again from where the previous throw landed, until the basket is reached. The baskets are formed by wire with hanging chains above the basket, designed to catch the incoming discs, which then fall into the basket, for a score. Usually, the number of throws a player uses to reach each basket is tallied, and players seek to complete each hole in the lowest number of total throws. Par is the number of strokes an expert player is expected to make for a given hole or a group of holes.
A frisbee, also called a flying disc or simply a disc, is a gliding toy or sporting item that is generally made of injection-molded plastic and roughly 8 to 10 inches in diameter with a pronounced lip. It is used recreationally and competitively for throwing and catching, as in flying disc games. The shape of the disc is an airfoil in cross-section which allows it to fly by reducing the drag and increasing lift as it moves through the air, compared to a flat plate. Spinning the disc imparts a stabilizing gyroscopic force, allowing it to be both aimed with accuracy and thrown for distance.
Ultimate, originally known as ultimate frisbee, is a non-contact team sport played with a disc flung by hand. Ultimate was developed in 1968 by Joel Silver in Maplewood, New Jersey. Although ultimate resembles many traditional sports in its athletic requirements, it is unlike most sports due to its focus on self-officiating, even at the highest levels of competition. The term "frisbee" is a registered trademark of the Wham-O toy company, and thus the sport is not formally called "ultimate Frisbee", though this name is still in common casual use. Points are scored by passing the disc to a teammate in the opposing end zone. Other basic rules are that players must not take steps while holding the disc, and interceptions, incomplete passes, and passes out of bounds are turnovers. Rain, wind, or occasionally other adversities can make for a testing match with rapid turnovers, heightening the pressure of play.
Santa Cruz is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 62,956. Situated on the northern edge of Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz is a popular tourist destination, owing to its beaches, surf culture, and historic landmarks.
Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration. The distinction is made between amateur sporting participants and professional sporting participants, who are paid for the time they spend competing and training. In the majority of sports which feature professional players, the professionals will participate at a higher standard of play than amateur competitors, as they can train full-time without the stress of having another job. The majority of worldwide sporting participants are amateurs.
USA Ultimate is a not-for-profit organization that serves as the governing body of the sport of ultimate in the United States.
Flying disc freestyle, also known as freestyle Frisbee in reference to the trademarked brand name, is a sport and performing art characterized by creative, acrobatic, and athletic maneuvers with a flying disc. Freestyle is performed individually or more commonly in groups, both competitively and recreationally.
DeLaveaga Disc Golf Course, commonly known as "DeLa", is a world-renowned 29-hole disc golf course in the hills of DeLaveaga Park above Santa Cruz, California. It was established in 1984. It boasts one of the original long disc golf courses, with some holes measuring more than 500 feet in length. The 27th hole, known as "Top of the World," is one of the most famous holes in disc golf; the tee box is situated nearly 600 feet from the pin—and 100 feet above it. DeLaveaga placed #10 on Release Point's 2019 list of World's Best Disc Golf Courses.
The Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the promotion and sustainable growth of disc golf. The PDGA is the global governing body of disc golf. The organization promotes the sport through tournament development, course development, rules and competitive standards, media and sponsor relations, and public education and outreach.
The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) is the international governing body for flying disc (Frisbee) sports, with responsibility for sanctioning world championship events, establishing uniform rules, setting of standards for and recording of world records. WFDF is a federation of member associations which represent flying disc sports and their athletes in 100 countries. WFDF is an international federation recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a member of the Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF), GAISF, and the International World Games Association (IWGA), and it is a registered not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation in the state of Colorado, U.S.
Sports in Canada consist of a wide variety of games. The roots of organized sports in Canada date back to the 1770s, culminating in the development and popularization of the major professional games of ice hockey, lacrosse, basketball, baseball, soccer, football and cricket. Canada's official national sports are ice hockey and lacrosse. Golf, baseball, tennis, skiing, ringette, badminton, cricket, volleyball, cycling, swimming, bowling, rugby union, canoeing, equestrian, squash, and the study of martial arts are widely enjoyed at the youth and amateur levels. Great achievements in Canadian sports are recognized by Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, while the Lou Marsh Trophy is awarded annually to Canada's top athlete by a panel of journalists. There are numerous other Sports Halls of Fame in Canada.
The Masters Cup is an annual disc golf tournament held at DeLaveaga Disc Golf Course in Santa Cruz, California. The event features both amateur and professional divisions. The 23rd annual Masters Cup was held April 18–20 (amateur) and May 2–4 (professional), 2008.
Flying disc sports are sports or games played with discs, often called by the trademarked name Frisbees. Ultimate and disc golf are sports with substantial international followings.
Tom Monroe is a champion of virtually all flying disc sports, including ultimate, freestyle, field events and especially disc golf.
John Houck was born May 15, 1960, in Long Beach, California. He has designed more Championship disc golf courses than anyone living today. Since 1983, he has been devoted to the evolution and promotion of disc sports, including golf, ultimate, and freestyle, with a focus on the growth of disc golf since 1988.
Good Times is a free-circulation weekly newspaper based in Santa Cruz, California. Good Times is distributed in Santa Cruz County, a coastal area that includes Capitola, Rio del Mar, Aptos and Watsonville. It is owned by the Northern California-based Metro Newspapers. Dan Pulcrano is the CEO and executive editor.
Canadian Ultimate Championships (CUC) is an annual Ultimate Frisbee tournament organised by Ultimate Canada and the player association of the city where the championships are held. Until 2016, all divisions were hosted in the same location. Beginning in 2016 the mixed divisions have been held as a separate event.
Ultimate Canada is a not-for-profit organization that serves as the governing body of the sport of Ultimate in Canada. It runs the Canadian Ultimate Championships (CUC) and Canadian University Ultimate Championship (CUUC) series.
Kenneth Ray Westerfield is a pioneering Frisbee disc player.
Modern disc golf started in the early 1960s, but there is debate over who came up with the idea first. The consensus is that multiple groups of people played independently throughout the 1960s. Students at Rice University in Houston, Texas, for example, held tournaments with trees as targets as early as 1964, and in the early 1960s, players in Pendleton King Park in Augusta, Georgia would toss Frisbees into 50-gallon barrel trash cans designated as targets. In 1968 Frisbee Golf was also played in Alameda Park in Santa Barbara, California by teenagers in the Anacapa and Sola street areas. Gazebos, water fountains, lamp posts, and trees were all part of the course. This took place for several years and an Alameda Park collectors edition disc still exists, though rare, as few were made. Clifford Towne from this group went on to hold a National Time Aloft record.
