How sustainable is the post-Covid boom?

[ray1970]

Tournaments here seem to still be filling up rather quickly. If you don't sign up as soon as registration opens then you'll likely have to get on a wait list. Tournaments that are multiple days and require an hour drive to get to seem to be easy to get in but I think the higher gas prices have kept people from signing up as quickly. Getting into any tournament off the waitlist is very doable though so apparently even if they fill up in minutes a good number of people who signed up don't end up participating.

 

[hanger129]

I'm a COVID disc golfer and am likely to be a lifer. I played ultimate frisbee in high school and a little in college, and come from a family of golf enthusiasts so disc golf has been a match made in heaven for me. I had played a handful of times before COVID but for some reason, it really stuck in 2020 and my passion for the game has not waned.

I can't personally speak to what course traffic was like in Charleston, SC before COVID, but to hear the long-time players talk about it, it's doubled, if not tripled in size. Our weekly random draw doubles league draws a minimum of 50 players and averages closer to 70. Many of the regulars that now make up the club are COVID disc golfers. All that to say, it seems many of the COVID players are here to stay. We've even seen Charleston's first disc golf shop come into existence in the last 2 months, so signs point to some strong growth here even though I would say our courses are average at best (minus Trophy Lakes).

Even if a lot of the COVID golfers around the world don't become lifers, I think the experience has legitimized disc golf (or at least made the sport known) with a lot of people which will be an overall boost.

 

[BillFleming]

I don't think it will stay at a high level, but I also don't believe it will drop back down to where it was....somewhere in the middle is where it will stay.

Disc golf is addictive. It can be played by people of any age. Covid just brought it into the 'public's eye'. Basketball courts, tennis courts, playgrounds, etc. were all shut down. The people who used those saw disc golfers and joined them. Plus it got into the news more. As Covid restrictions lifted, some went back to their other activities and some have done both (previous activities and disc golf).

Courses will fluctuate between crowded and hardly anyone playing. The more serious players will learn which courses are more available and what days/times.

Equipment manufacturers will stick around as long as they can keep up the quality. In today's disc golf world there are many players that are looking for manufacturers that aren't the big ones (call it anti-Innova/Discraft/whatever). The players that are brand loyal will mainly be those sponsored by the brand (although there will be a few that are loyal because they really like the plastic/flights/whatever).

So, bottom line...I don't think it is sustainable at the Covid level, but it's not going back to pre-Covid.

 

[@CD-]

Players

• still a steady flow of casual players trying out the game
• may take a little while to filter casual players up to competition through non-sanctioned/leagues/flex c-tiers
• parity among pro tour players means no one is a big selling name that moves more plastic anymore and I bet sponsorship dollars will stall out (Wysocki/Panis/Tattar cashed in at a good time)

Manufacturers/Retailers

• special/limited/commemorative/tour support discs over supplied for many players
• more manufacturers/brands have filled demand but I'm unsure if they have staying power
• discs still on store shelves/sites I saw months ago so turnover isn't as fast in stores + more local stores opened since 2020 in the area as well

Competition

• more no frills flex start/c-tiers without added cash or big player packs
• bigger tiers with higher entry fees not filling
• travel expenses are higher so less players getting around to all the different leagues/tournaments in the area
• local calendar pretty well filled so supply has caught up to demand
• leagues drawing more players to try out competition
• outside sponsors still showing interest by backing bigger tier events

Viewership

• less people willing to sit inside for live coverage during middle of tour
• in person paid viewership is up
• lack of viral shots/ESPN coverage in 2022 apart from 10k GK Pro skins ace

Courses

• additions/modifications being made to many courses in town (new baskets/pin locations/holes)
• more attention/funding from parks & rec for maintenance
• new courses being installed (1-2 a year in KC region)

Still a pretty low cost of entry to get out and try the sport and more familiarity/acceptance from outsiders. Inflation seems to have stalled a bit of the growth in my region.

 

[Rastnav]

DG has been a niche sport/activity. Only a small percentage of people before COVID were actually exposed to it in any meaningful way. Even now the most likely interaction I have on a course or somewhere I'm doing fieldwork is someone asking "What's that?" It's still niche. When people are exposed to playing it, some percentage get "the bug" and then stick with it.

I don't think there is any particular reason to think that the people exposed to DG during COVID differ in likelihood to get the bug as compared to the population that was exposed to it before. I guess you could argue that people who started during COVID were less likely to have friends that already play DG. But conversely, the people who started during COVID are more likely to be the kind of people who are comfortable going out and playing by themselves. Does that wash out? I don't know.

Regardless, I would think the huge bump in simple exposure has to result in a significant long term bump in people who stick with the game.

 

[discNDav]

When I travel mostly solo these days I plan my DG stops on weekdays instead of weekends to avoid the crowds on the courses. Never used to have to consider this years ago.

 

[lee76007]

The Virginia Beach to Williamsburg, Virginia corridor seems to be a mixed bag. I started playing 3 years ago next month before COVID.

Courses:

Bayville DGC in Virginia Beach seems to be a little less busy this summer than before COVID and the two COVID summers, but there seems to be a flip in the type of player from mostly men, to where I see a lot of families playing. Munden Point my home course 15 miles out of the city is in pristine condition playing my 3rd summer and far busier than three years ago and the last two COVID summers, and again families playing together not seen three years ago. Courses elsewhere including the two championship courses in Williamsburg New Quarter and Waller Mill have the same flow when I started playing them on a regular basis 2 1/2 to three years ago.

Virginia Beach is adding a course already on the books, and there's discussion for 2 more. Two older courses in the area mid-90's, one just completed a badly makeover, Newport News Park finally installed new baskets and more work to come, and a course that opened up last year as a 9-holer has just completed their extension to 18-holes.

Disc Shops:

There is three PIAS in the area, two courses with shops, and a player owner that has inventory in his game shop. 2 1/2 years ago, little inventory for all, now they can't keep them on the shelves and all three PIAS had expanded their shelves. Two of the stores have players working in them, and they do a good job with ordering, my local store nobody plays, and they have a hard time keeping up with demand. The past 4 months I've been switching my 27-disc bag from primarily Innova to MVP, and just about every time I shop, I still find something to pick up.

Tournaments:

As much as I would like to play tournaments, I'm not able to this time in my life, I don't have the 8-10 hours to play two rounds in one day. But I've followed MA50 and MP50 just shortly after I started playing, and the participation rate has stayed the same the usual 1/2 dozen guys are so. A little bit of a bump in some divisions, and a few tournaments added. There has been one talent emerge from COVID who started playing two years ago in my area, and this kid can boom it in the rafters at Bayville as in canopy, I played the Pro tees with him, and he was parking baskets with mid ranges on a 7K plus course, that I didn't think was possible to park. He has better talent than the few Pros I've played with from the same tees, but still needs to smooth his game out. He plays in tournaments up and down the Southeast Coast and its possible he'll be heard from in a few years.

So, what does this all mean for my local Disc Golf scene post-covid. One thing I've noticed is the local facebook page as less chatter than it did the past two years, some of newer players seem to have drifted away.
IMO the big telltale sign will come from the Bayville course, there's a lot of other things to do in my area during the summer months such as the oceanfront, Busch Gardens etc. Bayville tends to be slower in the summer months, where Munden Point is busier, it's a beautiful course, nice country drive. Bayville is busier in the winter months when everything else outdoors shuts down, its in the city and easy to get too. The two past covid winters were busier than 2019-2020 with indoor entertainment shut down, I think the answer for my disc golf scene will come this winter, will Bayville stay just as busy as the past two winters, and will the local PIAS stores feel the need to keep the shelves stocked or too much inventory. We'll find out in a few months, and I think it's going to slack some.

 

[Orioles_Lefty]

Course volume seems to be down 20-30% or so here from peak pandemic, where the courses now certainly have healthy crowds at the times you would expect them to be but are not bursting at the seams. The off peak times have sometimes been much closer this summer to pre-pandemic levels.

We are coming to the end of the second summer post-2020 where people have access to all the other non-DG options they did not have in 2020, so the people who have chosen to continue to work DG into their schedules are likely to stick around at this point I would think.. An overall decrease in, say, total rounds is a result of some people not playing anymore and others decreasing total rounds played because of the other social/life options available.

I think what will be interesting over the next 5 years will be to see where new players come from. Has the investment in youth access to DG been sizeable enough to foster real growth?

It's really hard to drastically expand a hobby to a new level and to keep that hobby at that level or above in a sustained manner. Fads are much more common. Don't think there's a good sense of what to make of pandemic-fueled fads except to say the growth was clearly unsustainable and the retention of pandemic joiners is still unclear.

I have been able to just go online and mostly order the exact discs I want over the last few months, so that's been nice. I didn't order much of anything from mid 2021 to mid 2022. Too much missing inventory to search for product unsuccessfully again and again.

 

[Shallows]

I'm curious to see if some of the COVID boomers, a couple years in, begin to try their hand at Tournament Directing. There's certainly appetite for more tournaments everywhere I've played in the past couple of years. New TDs would hopefully bring new community connections, creative ideas, and contribute to the existing communities while learning from what's working.

 

[Billipo]

"All that shimmers in this world is sure to fade
Away again." - Fuel

History seems to repeat. When I see a new player show up in a flash, living and breathing disc golf they usually soon disappear.

New players with a healthy enthusiasm usually stick around.

I think Covid just created a larger pool of players to sort out their true disc golf enthusiasm.

 

[ru4por]

Players

• still a steady flow of casual players trying out the game
• may take a little while to filter casual players up to competition through non-sanctioned/leagues/flex c-tiers
• parity among pro tour players means no one is a big selling name that moves more plastic anymore and I bet sponsorship dollars will stall out (Wysocki/Panis/Tattar cashed in at a good time)

Manufacturers/Retailers

• special/limited/commemorative/tour support discs over supplied for many players
• more manufacturers/brands have filled demand but I'm unsure if they have staying power
• discs still on store shelves/sites I saw months ago so turnover isn't as fast in stores + more local stores opened since 2020 in the area as well

Competition

• more no frills flex start/c-tiers without added cash or big player packs
• bigger tiers with higher entry fees not filling
• travel expenses are higher so less players getting around to all the different leagues/tournaments in the area
• local calendar pretty well filled so supply has caught up to demand
• leagues drawing more players to try out competition
• outside sponsors still showing interest by backing bigger tier events

Viewership

• less people willing to sit inside for live coverage during middle of tour
• in person paid viewership is up
• lack of viral shots/ESPN coverage in 2022 apart from 10k GK Pro skins ace

Courses

• additions/modifications being made to many courses in town (new baskets/pin locations/holes)
• more attention/funding from parks & rec for maintenance
• new courses being installed (1-2 a year in KC region)

Still a pretty low cost of entry to get out and try the sport and more familiarity/acceptance from outsiders. Inflation seems to have stalled a bit of the growth in my region.

Shallow hit on this a bit. All the bolded are currently sitting on the shoulders of the volunteer base, that the game was built upon. I have little to NO interest from younger and newer player to become involved in this model, in my area. There are some attempts to find a niche to make money, but those seem to be built on a TON of hard work or tapping the same volunteers.

Players seem to be more demanding, of what they want out of their tournament/league experience (perhaps too much pro coverage viewing?), but demonstrate little appreciation or understanding of where that experience comes from.

I ultimately don't think the entire model itself, is sustainable. In my area, older golfers are walking away from leadership positions in clubs. TD no longer have interest in providing an essentially free service. It will be interesting to see where "growing the sport" leads us.

 

[GMcAtee]

Course volume seems to be down 20-30% or so here from peak pandemic, where the courses now certainly have healthy crowds at the times you would expect them to be but are not bursting at the seams. The off peak times have sometimes been much closer this summer to pre-pandemic levels.

We are coming to the end of the second summer post-2020 where people have access to all the other non-DG options they did not have in 2020, so the people who have chosen to continue to work DG into their schedules are likely to stick around at this point I would think.. An overall decrease in, say, total rounds is a result of some people not playing anymore and others decreasing total rounds played because of the other social/life options available.

I think what will be interesting over the next 5 years will be to see where new players come from. Has the investment in youth access to DG been sizeable enough to foster real growth?

It's really hard to drastically expand a hobby to a new level and to keep that hobby at that level or above in a sustained manner. Fads are much more common. Don't think there's a good sense of what to make of pandemic-fueled fads except to say the growth was clearly unsustainable and the retention of pandemic joiners is still unclear.

I have been able to just go online and mostly order the exact discs I want over the last few months, so that's been nice. I didn't order much of anything from mid 2021 to mid 2022. Too much missing inventory to search for product unsuccessfully again and again.

I did the same thing not buying discs for a couple of years. Traffic has dropped considerably at the state park course I frequent (pay for play). Not sure about the other courses as I try to play them at sunup to avoid crowds. I have noticed local tournaments are not filling up immediately (if at all).

 

[HyooMac]

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I think the sport will continue to grow - if nothing else, through the momentum of new members telling other people how they're spending their recreation time.

But there are two factors that will reduce the speed of growth compared to COVID:


1) People are going back to doing what they did with their time before COVID, before disc golf was one of the few activities available. There's a tremendous pull back to those things you enjoyed: maybe they were team activities, maybe they were indoor, etc.


2) For those who were fortunate enough to work remotely during COVID and are now returning to the workplace, they're operating at a "time deficit" every day they commute. Let's say you have a 30 minute commute each way: that's an hour (or more) of the day that your employer now has influence over that used to be pretty much at your discretion.


And as other have noted above, more courses and more leagues are the fuel of growth. More places to play means more "civilians" coming across the game; more leagues means more social bonding, which plays a big part in making recreational activities "sticky."

 

[BogeyNoMore]

old timers will know this well, but new-comers may not be familiar with the sport's history of growth. For a good three decades or so prior to Covid, disc golf had been growing steadily.

Your choices used to be: Innova. Discraft, Gateway, Lightening, and maybe a few more limited brands. The sport's steady growth allowed companies like DGA, Millenium Lat 64, MVP, Westside, Dynamic, Discmania,
to launch and flourish, before anyone ever heard of covid.

My point is that I do t think continued griwth is much of an issue. No reason that trend wouldn't have continued regardless of covid. Covid just created a sharp spike in demand.

Obviously things will calm down a bit as some who got in it either leave it altogether, or slow their pace as they get back to their "regularly scheduled lives."

But even after things level off a bit,I think overall, sales and everything else associated with tge #of people playing, will see greater #'s going forward than where they would have been had the pandemic never occurred.

TL/DR: I think covid just pulled a lot of the potential future growth ahead, concentrating it into a two year period.

 

[GMcAtee]

Shallow hit on this a bit. All the bolded are currently sitting on the shoulders of the volunteer base, that the game was built upon. I have little to NO interest from younger and newer player to become involved in this model, in my area. There are some attempts to find a niche to make money, but those seem to be built on a TON of hard work or tapping the same volunteers.

Players seem to be more demanding, of what they want out of their tournament/league experience (perhaps too much pro coverage viewing?), but demonstrate little appreciation or understanding of where that experience comes from.

I ultimately don't think the entire model itself, is sustainable. In my area, older golfers are walking away from leadership positions in clubs. TD no longer have interest in providing an essentially free service. It will be interesting to see where "growing the sport" leads us.

I agree the current model is not sustainable, and can not blame people from walking away from leadership positions.

 

[jupiterboy]

I'm a new, old disc golfer who came back during covid. I sort of can't believe the state of things, honestly. That said, organizing and volunteering, ANYWHERE has always been a crap shoot.

I'm not a gambler so my first league night was super strange with people shuffling money around for pots for this and that as if the money was the central issue. OK. Like I often do, I try and put what skills I have to work in some "volunteer" fashion, but typically volunteerism is a prime opportunity for being taken advantage of, which is partly a function of having to deal with people who really have zero clue about how to utilize a particular skill set. Then you add layers of hierarchy in the various scenes and the chaotic power struggles and flat idiosyncratic weirdness, well, it's kinda messy.

I'm guessing there's a big shakeout coming where the deeper pockets will be what is left, but the experimentation and chaos will likely bring more refinement for good and bad.

I've had interaction with both of my local groups and can tell you I have zero interest in being involved, but me and any sort of hierarchy is pretty much like oil and water. I think the best I can do is to buy from local shops that are running lost disc returns and supporting the community.

Stuff like watching Worlds' and seeing that island OB situation—somebody thought that was a really cool idea and fought for it. What a joke. The thing about groups of people is that they defer to "power" and can't collectively think through things so they wind up in the most contorted and confused situations simply because everyone got tired of the discussion.

 

[Billipo]

I do think that the covid boom has allowed TDs to be lazy since events fill in minutes.

I know TDs are volunteers and it becomes a nice break to not have to work hard to have a largely attended event especially with eager MA3 and lesser skilled groups.

I think it is time to start making events special again.

 

[ru4por]

I do think that the covid boom has allowed TDs to be lazy since events fill in minutes.

I know TDs are volunteers and it becomes a nice break to not have to work hard to have a largely attended event especially with eager MA3 and lesser skilled groups.

I think it is time to start making events special again.

Time to join a club and learn that tournaments, leagues, course installation, course maintenance, player packs, payouts, stats/scores and your experience is not magic. Perhaps you poorly represented your take above, but it comes off as incredibly naive and entitled.

 

[Billipo]

Time to join a club and learn that tournaments, leagues, course installation, course maintenance, player packs, payouts, stats/scores and your experience is not magic. Perhaps you poorly represented your take above, but it comes off as incredibly naive and entitled.

Not naive maybe entitled. Dunno. But have been involved in most aspects of the sport except maybe playing real well.

I have just noticed that many regional clubs are not placing the efforts into making events as special as they used to. I think it is the fact that with fast filling events there may be temporary need not to put in the effort. I just hope the skill, enthusiasm, and passion isn't lost permanently.

No doubt Covid has changed the game. Didn't Heroclitus once say " Nothing is permanent but change"?

Just my opinion. Maybe I remember the good old days or I'm just getting senile.

 

[biscoe]

I do think that the covid boom has allowed TDs to be lazy since events fill in minutes.

How so?