Effective: May 28th 2020                                                     

All Australian disc golf competitions including local leagues and national tour events have been cancelled since March. However, as government restrictions on participation in recreation and sport are currently easing, it is now time to prepare for the resumption of competition.

Given that Disc Golf is a non-contact sport played outdoors using a player’s discs and that play occurs in small groups of 3-5 players per hole, these guidelines outline the steps needed to start leagues and tournaments again. As each state is easing restrictions at a different rate, the main requirement is that events are run in accordance with local government orders.

Sanctioning the event

ADG is considering application for event sanctioning in areas where restrictions have been eased to allow sport to resume. Sanctioning will not be approved until restrictions are lifted in the area the event is to be held. TDs wishing to run an event should follow the steps outlined in the Checklist for TDs in order to have their event sanctioned. Where sanctioning is provided for an event it is important to still be prepared to respond to changes in your area due to the need to manage a local outbreak. The event proceeding will depend on restrictions in place on the day of the event.  

Requirements for Participation

Players, officials and spectators must not attend an event if they:

• have a confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19
• have been in contact with a known or suspected case of COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
• have been told to self-isolate by a medical authority
• are unwell or had any flu-like symptoms in the last 14 days.

Participants must be:

• ADG members with up to date contact details recorded.
• willing to work with contact tracers should they be diagnosed with COVID-19 following the event.

Before attending the event, participants should assess their own risk considering their age, medical conditions, situation and contacts.

Strategies to minimise the risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19

The following strategies are to be followed by participants (players, officials and spectators) at the event. TDs can also download our social distancing rules for disc golf and distribute this to all participants prior to the event.

• Maintain group size below limits set by State Government directives. This includes before, during and after play.
• Take a “get in – play – get out” approach
• Practice social distancing of 1.5 m
• Wash or sanitise hands on arrival and departure from event.
• Keep a record of who you play with.
• Minimise physical contact with the Disc Golf Basket
• Avoid touching other participants equipment including but not limited to discs, minis, towels, drinks, food, stools, bags or prams (sorry, carts)
• Remove your disc from the basket prior to other players holing out.
• Ensure tee box is clear before entering.
• Follow hygiene measures- cover mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing with tissue or elbow, wash hands often with soap and water or use hand sanitizer, avoid touching your face, avoid touching others eg no high fives and avoid touching others things.
• Carry your own hand sanitiser, water and food. Public water fountains and shared water coolers should not be available.
• Check event website or facebook site to keep up to date on how the event will run
• Review PDGA COVID recommendations and best practices.

Running COVID-Safe event

Some changes are needed to the way events are run to ensure they are safe.

• TD to retain a record of names and contact details of all participants (players, officials and spectators), including player groupings eg via Disc golf metrix.
• TD to have hand sanitizer available for players to use when they arrive and prior to leaving.
• Use Tee-times, flex start or ‘go straight to your hole’ shotgun starts to avoid entrants gathering.
• Avoid gatherings of participants
  • Move players meetings to an online format (eg facebook live) where practicable.
  • Post tee times, hole assignments and scores online
  • Move award ceremony to an online format where practicable.
• Use electronic scoring systems.
• Collect payment and registrations online
• Consider using electronic vouchers as prizes and doing payouts by electronic transfer.
• Ensure any toilet facilities have soap or sanitizer available.
• Minimise spectator numbers
• Align with PDGA COVID recommendations and best practices, unless the State Government is more onerous.
• Communicate with players about how the event will run, using the event website, facebook page or mailing lists. TD’s may wish to use our social distancing rules of play to spread this message.

As a self-refereed sport disc golfers are experienced at knowing the rules and playing by them. We expect these new steps to be upheld in the same way in order to protect our diverse community.

Please contact us at secretary@australiandiscgolf.com if you have any questions.

All ADG sanctioned events are suspended from today until 18^th May 2020. This includes all A, B, C and X tier tournaments and leagues. ADG will be reviewing this situation and extending the suspension if needed.

Any government restrictions will supersede this statement.

The ADG tour events which are impacted by this suspension are:

• The Stony Creek Revival
• Baw Baw Alpine Disc Golf Classic
• Yeronga Memorial
• Sunshine Coast Open + WGE
• Victorian Disc Golf Open
• South Australian Open 2020

At the moment these events will not be rescheduled however this may be a possibility later in the year depending on how the situation progresses. We have placed the ADG tour on hold until we are better placed to make a decision about whether it can continue.

Our decision comes on the back of PDGA suspending sanctioned events worldwide https://www.pdga.com/announcements/covid-19-statement. AFDA have also suspended all on-field Flying Disc Activities until 18^th May 2020 https://www.afda.com/p/afda-coronavirus-statement-update-18-march-2020.

We appreciate your understanding in these uncertain times. We will do our best to communicate any updates as soon as possible. 

For most recent COVID-19 information, please refer to the Australian Government Department of Health link below

https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-cornoavirus-2019-ncov-health-alert

The 2019 Annual Report can be found here and on the ADG Documentation page.

The highlights from the report are as follows:

• The 2020 ADG Tour will now be calculated on a players top six events, up from four
• A-Tier Tournament Directors will be able to request up to $100 towards media coverage of their event
• The Australian Championships will have ADG funded flight costs for Director of Communications to attend and provide his services to the event
• The ADG Rules of Association were updated to reflect changes to the incorporation model set out by the WA Government

The Annual General Meeting of Australian Disc Golf (inc) will be held on

Thursday 31^st October 2019, 6:30pm at Mount Gambier Golf Club (235, Attamurra Rd), SA.

This is in conjunction with the awards night and players meeting being held at the same location. The agenda for the meeting and the financial statement can be seen by clicking the links.

At the meeting we will be electing the ADG Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, Director of competitions, Development officer, Communications officer and State representatives for the ensuing year. As per the ADG Rules of Association, written nominations for the above positions must be received by me, the Secretary of Australian Disc Golf (inc) by 5.00pm Wednesday 23^rd October at secretary@australiandiscgolf.com

A Special Resolution to adopt new Rules of Association will be tabled and voted on during the meeting. The new Rules of Association have been updated from the previous version to reflect changes to the incorporation model rules put out by the WA government (Associations Incorporation Act 2015). A summary of the major changes:

• “Oversee Australian Disc Golf tour” added as objective of the organisation
• Voting age set to 15
• A member can only be a proxy for up to 5 other members
• Specifies that we were not formed or carried on for the purpose of securing profit for our members from our transactions
• Sets out rules around forming subcommittees.

These changes will require a 75% majority to pass.

If you will not be attending the meeting you may vote by proxy. You can complete the proxy form online at proxy form

The AGM is a great opportunity to hear what has happened in disc golf around Australia in the past year and what is coming up in the year ahead. Following the official parts of the meeting the floor will be open for general discussion. You can bring items up at the meeting or send our board secretary Emilie Cameron an email with any agenda items you’d like added.

Australian Disc Golf received the very pleasing news last week that Michael Canci was to be the 2019 recipient of AFDA‘s Rob Hancock award. One of only a small number of disc golfers to do so. A long-standing selfless servant of flying disc sports who is currently applying his thoroughness to keeping the Perth Disc Golf Club administratively in line, Mick is just the sort of community minded individual who deserves such an award. Well done Mick.

You can about Mick’s flying disc life here.

Bids should be submitted to Paul Arden – paul.arden@australiandiscgolf.com by Friday October 18^th 2019.

A bid should include:

• Event Name
• Proposed Event Dates
• Event Location
• Event TD and Contact Details
• Other relevant information

In the event of conflicting A Tier bids (defined as two events falling within 20 calendar days of each other) the ADG Board will initially consult the bidders and attempt to reach a resolution and failing that, deciding by ADG committee vote. Note that preference will be given to state championships and events held in the same month that they were this year.

Once the schedule of A Tiers has been finalized, B and C Tier events can be added to the calendar. Please note that these events can be put in the schedule up to 30 days prior to the event.

An official announcement about the tour schedule will be made at ADGC in Mount Gambier, SA.

Do you have an idea to grow the sport of disc golf that just needs some funding to get it off the ground? Now in its 5th year, the ADG grants program can help you.

Submissions for the 2019 program are now open. To apply just fill out one of the forms below and email it to the ADG board at grants@australiandiscgolf.com by September 29th 2019.

You can download the forms here

PDF and Word

He was there right at the beginning and he remains the calm, wise voice on ADG Skype meetings every month. We spoke recently with the longest serving administrator in disc golf in Australia, about his time on the board and his ever-changing relationship with the sport.

1) Take us back to your first involvement with the organisation of disc golf in Australia. Before the ADG. How did you get involved?

When I started playing back in 2004, information wasn’t as easy to come by as it is today. It took months after I started playing before I even encountered another player on our local course (a now removed course that was installed on the Whittlesea Golf Course). Lucky for me, that player was Ian Whitehead, who was around for the first big wave of Disc Golf through Australia in the 80’s and 90’s. Speaking with Ian it became clear that Disc Golf had once been much bigger in Australia, there was an entire history I was not aware of having just discovered the sport.

Slowly I encountered more players and Ian started to spread word that people were starting to play again. This quickly led to a desire to play more regularly. Even though there was just a handful of us, it was clear very early that if we wanted to play, we needed to put in the work to organise things ourselves. After getting interested in playing a part in rebuilding the popularity Disc Golf in Australia I started to learn that other efforts were already underway.

There were some false starts and a few heated discussions about how things should be organised back then, and I started to become aware of the key players interstate who were facing similar issues to us in Victoria. There was a latent community out there that were all looking for each other. Of course, this is before Facebook was a thing.

Ian had frequently mentioned the name Chris Himing to me when we spoke while playing. To me he was a mysterious figure in a far-off land but one that came from the heyday of the sport in Australia and successfully made the transition to organising large scale Disc Golf events in the US. At the 2006 PDGA Am Worlds in Tulsa I finally meet Chris and we had a chance to chat about Disc Golf in Australia and the types of events he had been running over in the states. It was a whole other level, something to aspire to in the future.

Chris was coming back to Australia at the time of the World Ultimate Championships in Perth in 2006 and wanted to put on a small Disc Golf demonstration at the event. I got a flight over to Perth to be on hand to man the Disc Golf display and was able to spend a lot more time talking to Chris.

In the meantime, in the background I had met Harvey Yarnell, Richard Sampson, Albert Munoz, Tim Marchbank and Dave Bandy (and I am sure others I am not remembering) and we were all discussing how to bring together a national body to help promote and grow the sport; and of course, selfishly, to ensure there were new events we could all play at.

I wasn’t sure what my role would be in the organisation at the time. My recollection is that Chris was the first to take on the president role and we all then looked for some way to contribute on our own. I was most interested in events, getting more of them and having some structure to them, so I took on the Director of Competitions role which I still hold today.

Our first achievements seem mundane now but were fundamental in getting events running. Insurance for example, not the most exciting topic but it had to be sorted out to run events. Others focused on getting this up and running while we also started working on the concept of the ADG Tour which really kicked off in 2007. This is the point at which I would say I was now well and truly involved.

2) What drew you to helping with the organisation of the sport, as opposed to just playing?

Necessity. Back then, if you didn’t help with the organising of the sport, then nothing got organised. There was no one else to do it, you couldn’t show up to an event, play and leave, because if you didn’t run it, it didn’t happen.

My goals back then for being involved the organisational side were 100% selfish, I wanted to continue playing and not just socially, so there really wasn’t any choice but to pitch in. This only changed once we started to get results and we started to see we were actually making a difference.

3) What has kept you involved, when so many of the volunteers seem to burn out, what do you think has kept you involved as the longest continually serving board member?

I really don’t know to be honest. I must admit I feel a certain sense of obligation, I’ve made a lot of close friends playing disc golf and been fortunate to play at many events over the last decade. I want to ensure others have the same opportunity. I don’t think it’s a sport people do by halves. Usually you’re either obsessed or you stop playing. It still feels surreal to see baskets installed in public parks that were not there a few years ago. There is still lots to do.

4) Which aspect of the ADG, have you noticed, the disc golfers understand the least? People who aren’t close to the workings of the board form all sorts of impressions, which is the one they get wrong the most?

While I think in general there is some degree of taking the ADG for granted these days, I also think that is something of a good thing. The work we do well goes unnoticed, as it should be, players shouldn’t have to worry about anything other than playing in an ideal world.

Insurance is one thing I think people often undervalue. The arrangement that ADG has been able to secure with AFDA is essentially what has enabled Disc Golf events to be run on such a large scale in Australia. Without insurance events would be on precarious legal ground and many councils would simply refuse to allow the events to run.

I think TD’s also have the same problem as the ADG in that if you’re doing your job well people don’t see it. One thing we have tried to do as much of as possible is support TDs and make sure if they have questions there are people that can help them, particularly those who are running their first event. There is a lot to organise in an A-Tier event and we field a lot of questions from first time TDs.

Balancing the differing demands of the different states is also a continuing challenge. Different states always seem to have different issues at different times, so there are competing demands on ADG resources for attention and often and approach that works in one state doesn’t work in another. Each of the states are in various phases of growth with unique challenges.

I hope we are making a difference. While at times we are dealing with many issues and problems, I also have the benefit of being able to look back in my mind to a time when there were just a handful of us playing and even less organising. The numbers show that we are having an effect, not the least of which –  that there is actually someone around to measure those numbers so we know we are growing, even if the daily tribulations of running events and working through issues can sometimes make it feel otherwise.

5) How did you find the sport in the beginning?

My friend Ian Bycroft had heard about Disc Golf through the Victorian Flying Disc Association. They had a map for an object course in the Fitzroy Gardens in Melbourne to lamp posts to be played with Ultrastars. We grabbed some discs and went down and played. It was so cool we had to have more, so hunting around the Internet we found out there was a course installed in Whittlesea on a regular golf course. We decided to head up and check it out.

This was an eye-opening experience. The pro shop had a few discs for sale, and they were completely different to the Ultrastar style discs we had so we grabbed some. I think I just had the one disc, an Innova XD (which I still have) which I played the entire round with. I didn’t realise there was such a thing as a driver until we came back from the round so we grabbed some more discs from the pro shop and set out again. I was instantly hooked.

6) Any thoughts on what your long term involvement with the sport might be? As a player and an administrator?

If the community will have me then I have no plans to change my involvement and hope to continue to serve as Director of Competitions and PDGA Country Coordinator. I think having been around from the start of what I often refer to as the second wave of Disc Golf in Australia helps give me a little perspective on the issues that come up.

As a player I am much less active in competition these days, mainly as I don’t travel to as many events but I still play most of the local events and most ADGCs. I do miss the days where I would play every event in the country I could possibly get to, but looking at the calendar today, I can see even if I wanted to it would barely be possible. It’s such a nice problem to have after barely being able to fill the calendar in those first few years.

I suspect I may put my hand up as TD again for an even in the future but it’s been great to see so many new organizers getting involved with running events.

We aren’t too sure how Cassie Sweetten feels about us giving her the title ‘Queen of Aussie Disc Golf’ but we’ll run with it until advised otherwise. The six-times Aussie champ is heading overseas soon to compete in the United States Women’s Disc Golf Championships in Spotsylvania, Virginia, USA this September 19-22.

York Pennsylvaina. Saturday July 27. 3pm

Australian Disc Golf is, to a person, very proud to announce our first world champion today. Bruce McNaughton, playing in the MA65 division, won going away in the final nine of the world championships tournament, to triumph by 11 throws over Garry Hanley from Oregon, USA and 13 ahead of Buz Ryalls-Clephane from Florida, USA.

The amateur world championships is a grueling, week-long test of stamina, nerve and skill: with 6 preliminary rounds over 4 days, followed by an 18 hole semi final and a nine hole final for the top four. Bruce built a solid lead in the mid-week rounds and was never really headed, although a slight miss-step in the Saturday morning semi-final left him with only a 6-throw buffer over a fast-charging Ryallis-Clephane going into the final nine.

But our newly crowned champion was nerveless in the final nine holes, streaking away with birdie after birdie, dominating the final round and increasing his lead to 11 at the end.

Bruce knew he was in a good position mid-week as he’d built the early lead on the the shorter, more technical courses that suited the playing-style of his rivals. With longer courses to come later in the week, tracks suited his booming forehand drives , he knew he just had to stay consistent to be in with a chance. ‘I missed heaps of birdie and par putts though’ he said. Something that obviously didn’t trouble him in that brilliant final nine performance.

Well done Bruce. The rest of Aussie disc golf is celebrating with you this week. 

Story by Kingsley Flett