The Otago University Disc Golf Club (OUDGC) has gained rapid traction in the student body, and has received a $1,400 OUSA grant to buy new equipment. Critic sat down with Matt Watson, the President and Founder of OUDGC, to find out why people enjoy throwing plastic into metal so goddamn much that they started a club for it.
Frisbee Golf, AKA frolf, is a sport similar to regular golf, if we can call either of those activities a sport. Similar to the way my ex described me, Matt says frolf is “quick, cheap, and easy”. He said it’s just a good way to meet new people who maybe aren't into the physical intensity of some of the other outdoor clubs. He said that it was more of “a cool way to get outside and forget about how shitty and stressful Uni can be”. He then went on to claim that frolf is an “alpha sport”, but we couldn’t verify that.
The OUDGC is new this year, with an inaugural membership of 120. This high rate of interest has netted the new club some OUSA cash, which they’ve used to kit out the team. So far, the club has spent that money on discs for members to borrow, a metal basket for putting practice, and then even more discs because the original 30 wasn’t enough.
Their Vice-President also invested in disc bags, “so we can look like steezy professionals.” It is worth noting that you can fit a surprising amount of beer in an upturned standard Frisbee disc (about four cans). These standard discs aren’t the ones used in disc golf, but it’s still good to know.
Professional disc golf is a thing, and it’s quickly growing here in Aotearoa. Dunedin adults have their own Dunedin Disc Golf Club, who meet weekly to practice putting at a local brewery. The adult team has worked with the DCC, Sport Otago, and Sport New Zealand to get another course up and running in Brockville Park for the low, low price of $20,000 DCC dollars. Where is Brockville Park, you may ask? Way out past the shadowlands some call Kaikorai Valley, which may finally give students a reason to go there.
The club has high hopes for the future, and is welcoming new members with open arms. Their recent trip to the Wanaka and Queenstown courses was a “ripper of a time”. Club exec members expressed their shock and gratitude for receiving the OUSA cash. They assured Critic that it would be “well spent”.