Infinite Discs Blog

Introducing Clash Discs

March 4, 2022 Ted Hegemann 8 comments

Clash Discs

Tucked between the countries of Sweden and Russia to the east and west, and Norway and the Baltic Sea to the north and south is the country of Finland. It is home to professional disc golfers Eveliina Salonen, Henna Blomroos, and Seppo Paju. On the south end of the country lies Helsinki, the capitol of Finland. Further north and east from Helsinki you’ll find the municipality of Kontiolahti, which has over 20% of its area covered by water. It is about 50 miles from the border of Russia, and it is home to Clash Discs.

Filling a Need

Like many ventures, Clash Discs was born out of a need. Clash founder, Timo Nuutinen, discovered that his oldest son had borrowed then lost, one of his other son’s favorite discs. The disc was out of stock everywhere and became impossible to replace. That was Timo’s light bulb moment. He figured that the solution was to make his own discs. And a new discs golf company was born.

Clash Discs started in early 2021 and saw its first prototypes by summer of that year. Those prototypes were putt/approach discs. After receiving positive feedback about the molds and plastic from those who tested the discs, the company began selling discs locally by late 2021.

Signing a Pro

For such a young company, Clash Discs made a big splash in disc golf when they announced the signing of touring pro Nikko Locastro with a six-figure contract. The contract stipulates that Nikko can throw an ‘open bag’, which allows him to throw other brands besides Clash Discs. Even so, Nikko said that some of the Clash molds immediately made their way into his bag.

“(Their) plastic feels high performance and flies true. Several discs made my lineup from the very first box I opened. Looking forward to progressing with this company by working together,” said Nikko.

The plastic that Nikko is referring to is called Steady Plastic. It is the plastic type used to make their first few releases. It has some good grip to it, and both looks and feels amazing! Just like a premium plastic. It is also durable. Another plastic that will be available soon is Hardy Plastic. It is sturdier, more durable plastic that will give discs an even longer life. Clash also has plans for a Glow plastic.

Clash Molds

The first four Clash molds to be PDGA approved were the Berry, Mango, Mint, and Popcorn. Three of the four Clash Discs are currently available for sale and the Mango will be available soon.

Seeing the names of their discs, it becomes apparent that they have a specific naming convention. Clash Discs’ believes that their molds each have a different flavor, so Design Department head Ilkka Kosunen chose the names to reflect the unique flights of each of their discs.

The Mint is Clash’s overstable putt/approach disc. It was the first mold released by them. The Mint is a beadless putter, similar to the Zone or Harp. It will fight a headwind and deliver a reliably hard fade at the end.

The Berry is a straight-flying midrange that would be comparable in flight to a Buzzz or Truth. It is a shapeable mold that gives you control over its flight. It comes in weights ranging from 160’s to 180g and is currently available in Steady Plastic.

The Popcorn is a beadless, straight putter that still has a fade to its flight. It’s like a beadless Tomb, but with a slightly deeper rim. The fairly neutral flight means it can be shaped for approaches.

The Mango is among the few discs already planned for release. It is an overstable midrange disc. The Ginger and Pepper were approved this year and will be released this spring. The Ginger is an understable fairway driver and the Pepper an overstable distance driver. Some of these molds will be available in the Hardy Plastic, and some in the Glow. There will also be Nikko Locastro signature series discs, but no word yet which molds they will be.

Growing the Brand

Clash Discs has plans to announce additional team members later in the year. They say that their team members will represent disc golf in several different countries and continents. As for now, Nikko will be the only touring pro representing Clash Discs.

Even though signing a well-known pro was a big step for such a young company, Clash says that they wanted to come out swinging. Their plan was to create premium plastics and make those available on plenty of different molds, representing a variety of disc types. They want players to be able to have a complete bag of Clash Discs.

“The first year was spent making molds and test castings. The goal was to find good premium plastic and there were almost 100 test-driven plastic grades, ” said Markku Pyykkönen, CEO of Clash Discs. “We got about ten different molds designed and tested so we could hit the market with the whole product family. And our product development continues to be very high quality, fast and flexible.”

The Clash Future

Clash Discs has faith that they will grow as a company as disc golf continues to grow. They recognize the popularity of the sport and how disc golf can be played by such a variety of demographics. And they want to contribute to the growth and popularity. Speaking about the future of Clash Discs, Markuu said, “In the future, we will invest in actively getting more and more premium quality molds. And our product development continues to be very high quality, fast and flexible.”

Based on what we’ve seen so far, it’s safe to say they are off to great start and are headed in the right direction. They are passionate about disc golf, they have some great molds, and they have impressive plastic. Check out the the latest news and information about Clash Discs on their website (HERE).

Which Mold Would You Chose?

Be sure to check out Infinite Discs current selection of Clash Discs (HERE). Then comment below to let us know which of their current or future molds would have the best chance of making it into YOUR bag. We’ll randomly select three commenters and send them a Clash Disc! If you’ve thrown a Clash disc, let us know which mold(s) you’ve thrown and what you think about the disc and the plastic.

Focus Friday – Legacy Recluse

March 4, 2022 Keith Barker Leave a comment

Happy Friday! I’m super stoked for this weekend, I’m not entirely sure as to why though. . . It’s not that I have something epic planned. Hopefully, you do, or there is something that you’re looking forward to this weekend.

This Focus Friday is quite unique, as there will be two codes that you may use to save you some money! Last week’s code, FOCUSLEDGESTONE, is still active. This saves you 5% off all of Ledgestone wave 2 discs. Check out that article to see which molds those are by clicking here. This discount code will be active until March 12, 2022.

Today’s code is revolving around the Legacy Recluse! So use the promo code: FOCUSRECLUSE to save 20% off all Legacy Recluses! This discount code is active until Monday. In addition to providing this discount code, we are also adding some uniquely stamped Recluses online. So, go and check these out and grab yourself one today.

Legacy’s Recluse

The Recluse is an overstable midrange disc. This thing is on par with the Justice in the amount of beef it provides. When compared to other similar discs, the Recluse stands out in its amount of glide. People enjoy this disc over others as it is reliably overstable, but it will fly a little bit better before it begins to fade. Instead of dumping out of the sky, this will push straight for just a tad longer then fade into its finish.

Overall, I’m impressed with this mold. It’s a well designed disc. And of the people who have left a review, they all love it. In addition to this 20% off code, we are adding some specially stamped Recluses as well! These are pretty sweet, as no other Recluse has this stamp on it.

Save a couple bucks this weekend by using the provided promo code. And you get to try out a new disc mold. Or simply increase your spare discs, so that you’ll always have this trusty disc no matter what.

The Discount Code

You can select your disc by clicking here. Simply add as many Recluse Molds to your shopping cart as you want, then BEFORE you click to checkout, look below the shopping cart. Right below the shopping cart is a box for Discount Codes. Click there and paste the code, FOCUSRECLUSE, into the box. Then proceed to checkout and you’ll get the discount.

Here is a screenshot to help you out, though it doesn’t necessarily show a Recluse in the cart – it’s just a generic visual to help you find the discount code box:

We hope that you love throwing the Recluse. If you’ve thrown the disc, feel free to share what you think of this midrange.

On a side note

The Recluse (talking about the actual spider now) is a genus of spider. These spiders have a venom that sometimes results in loxoscelism (don’t click the link if you don’t like gross skin images). This basically means that the venom causes premature cellular death. Which makes your skin look like it is actively decomposing, it can get pretty nasty looking. As I was reading about this I got real self-conscious about a hidden recluse lurking around waiting to pounce. Fortunately, these spiders are not aggressive.

STAY TUNED for our next Focus Friday for another chance to try a featured disc at a nice discounted price!

New Disc Golf Disc Releases

March 3, 2022 Keith Barker Leave a comment

Disc Golf is an enjoyable sport that is always offering new equipment to try out. It seems that there almost every week there are new molds approved for tournament play by the PDGA. The disc golf disc approved list is ever growing, and it is exciting!

There are a handful of these new molds that we’ve received and we’re excited to get them to you. Some of the molds in this post have release dates in the near future, while others will release as soon as we get them online.

In addition to these new molds, there are a few signature discs that are coming out as well. Read on below to see what is in the pipeline.

Releasing Now

This list of discs is a little bit smaller than what is to come. These discs don’t have a specific release date attached to them. Which gives us the liberty of releasing them as soon as we get them online. In fact we have our team working to get them online right now. So within the next few hours, or day or so, you should see these molds available for purchase!

Uplay Disc Golf’s Zeal

For those who are unfamiliar, Uplay is a foundation that is ran by Zoe Andyke. This foundation has the goal to teach and inform children in schools and physical education programs about disc golf. They do a lot to grow the sport.

The Zeal is beadless putter that is quite stiff. The plastic is a base plastic, that offers good grip. With a well rounded shoulder, it is comfortable to grip. This disc is really easy to throw. I found it easy to get some turnover approach shots, and incredibly easy to throw for push putts. Anyone could find room in your bag regardless of skill level. The Zeal makes a great utility putter, driving putter, or putting putter.

At the moment it is only available in firm plastic, however, there are plans to release it in a soft plastic. You can pick this disc up for $7.99.

The ZEAL is a putter released by Uplay Disc Golf Foundation to be an easy-to-throw, comfortable putter for players of all levels and abilities. It is a beadless putter with a rounded rim for maximum comfort when using it to throw on approach or as a putter. Its understable flight helps it to hold a very straight flight path, resisting an unwanted fade whether thrown long or short.

Every Uplay disc sold, including the ZEAL putter, helps to raise funds for the Uplay Disc Golf Foundation’s mission of growing the sport of disc golf in communities. They teach instructors and students in physical education programs, in elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools everywhere.

Lone Star Discs Armadillo

The first time I picked up the Armadillo I thought, “This is a Burg/Rhyno disc.” Looking at the flight numbers of the Burg and the Rhyno the Armadillo is a mix of the two. It really flies quite similar to the two as well. This is a pretty reliable approach disc, almost always flies the same regardless of the what the weather is doing. It flies very straight with a gentle fade at the end. Because of these attributes, this is a good disc and reliable approach disc. This disc starts at $17.99.

The Armadillo is a low speed and low glide disc. This disc is meant to be accurate and offer great control It has a thumbtrack on the disc for comfort. It is an easy disc to control, and will fly consistently to provide good accuracy. Lone Star says, “Our newest Putt and Approach disc holds true to its namesake with its Blunt Nosed Rim and Thumbtracked Shoulder that forces this disc to fly straight as an arrow with a reliable fade to its intended target.”

Eric Oakley’s Lucid Justice

The Justice is such a classic beefy midrange. I remember when I first started playing that I thought this disc was too much. Why would you need a disc that doesn’t fly? Now that I am much more experienced, this is almost a must have. The ability to resist wind, always fade, and just so consistent is incredible. Because of this, the Justice has saved me from so many bad lies and has been able to hit so many different lines, that its worth is immeasurable! I love the Justice.

I think it is pretty awesome that Dynamic and Eric worked together to make this signature disc a possibility. This signature disc is available now.

Strong winds will make the most experienced player look like a novice. They have forced us back into the laboratory to solve the midrange question. Our tests have led us here. The Justice is served. The Justice by Dynamic Discs is going to become your new utility disc. It will not turn over. Throw the Justice one time and you will not need to reach for anything else for a short distance, over-stable answer. No longer will you throw a good shot into a headwind only to see your disc flip over. Let the Justice get you what you deserve.

NOTE: Since the initial release, Dynamic Discs has changed the stamp on the disc to indicate “Glide 1” though the mold itself has not changed.

Lone Star Discs Jack Rabbit

The Jack Rabbit is a utility approach disc. It is not quite as beefy as I had anticipated. The flight numbers indicate that it should fly like a zone, but I found that it is not as stable. Overall, it provides some good lines, and is quite reliable in its ability to fly and fade as expected. I enjoy the lines that this disc provides.

The Jack Rabbit is a comfortable disc to grip. The bead is a medium sized bead, it isn’t obtrusive nor unnoticeable. And with the rounded rim/shoulder, I think it is more comfortable in a backhand grip than a forehand though. Overall, its a comfortable disc to grip. You’ll be able to grab yourself one for $16.99.

The Jack Rabbit from Lone Star Discs is a putter with a wide bead, flat top, and a well rounded rim. This is a stable to overstable putt & approach disc. This disc will work well has a headwind putter or a driving putter. It can handle power. This will provide good hyzer lines, spike hyzers, and even some good flex lines.

Releasing in the Future

Elevation Disc Golf Binx

This new fairway driver from Elevation Disc golf surprised me. I’m not a huge fan of the Elevation rubber, as it is too floppy for my comfort, and I feel like it inhibits its flight consistency. However, the rubber feels a little different this time around. Maybe its because the rim is thicker than a midrange or putter?

Throwing the Binx, I found that it is pretty accurate to the flight numbers provided. It is a do-it all kind of disc. Which makes it quite usable, especially in this floppy rubber blend. I found that it worked well on anhyzers, hyzers, and flat shots. It was pretty easy to throw, and a little more reliable. I didn’t feel like the disc wouldn’t catch air and just fly into the sky like the other molds. However, I do find that it is still the Elevation Rubber, and that the characteristics are still there. Despite that, the Binx is still a pretty good fairway driver, and the no-ground-play is incredible! This disc is set to release March 3, at 9-o-clock MST, you’ll be able to snag one for yourself for $19.99.

The Elevation Disc Golf Binx is a straight flying fairway driver that is useful for everyone. Its flight characteristics allow for easy control and consistent flight paths. The Binx can hold most any line you need, proving to be a good go-to driver.

The unique rubber blend is designed to limit ground play when the disc lands. Ensuring accuracy and consistency on those upshots that have OB or other hazards around the landing zone.

Eric Oakley’s P-Blend Glow Alpaca

The Alpaca is a well loved putter, and for good reason. This mold is versatile, working well as a driver, approach disc, or putter. The stability provides enough beef that it gives a consistent fade. In softer plastics, this can be beaten into submission. Allowing for straight flights and some shot shaping. Eric Oakley really enjoys using the Alpaca for these reasons among many. As one of his signature discs we are releasing the Alpaca in a P-Blend Glow plastic. This plastic offers some good grip and a little more longevity than the D-Blend. Keep your eye out of this release on March 10, 2022, you can grab yours for $15.49.

The Alpaca is the quintessential beadless putter. While the Infinite Discs Cohort has a somewhat low profile rim, the Alpaca presents a deeper rim for more of a traditional putter feel. Whether thrown at the basket or lofted high for approaches and drives, the Alpaca will carry your workload with ease.

Divergent Discs Golem

Divergent Discs is working hard to provide discs for all of the amateurs. The Golem is within their StayPut rubber blend. Designed to hit the ground and and stick, limiting the ground play. This disc is overstable, it is very much in the same playing field as a Zone, Harp, or Pig. And it really does limit the ground play, it hits and stops. Its a pretty cool disc. On March 10, 2022 this disc will release and be available for purchase. This will be available for $16.99.

The Golem is an overstable putt & approach disc. It has a flat top and a comfortable grip for both backhand and forehand throws. As an overstable putter it will provide a straight flight with no turn and a consistent fade. The Golem can also handle most windy conditions without drastically changing its flight path.

Thought Space Athletics’ Synapse

The TSA Synapse is a solid distance driver. The rim is on the large side, for me. It doesn’t feel all that much different from a 12 speed disc. My first throw surprised me with how easy the disc felt to throw. I found that I got a little bit of turn before it faded. So to me, I think there is a little less turn than what was advertised. Regardless of this though, I was still pleased with the flight path and the distance achieved upon throwing this new disc. The Thought Space Athletics Synapse will release on March 11, 2022.

The Thought Space Athletics Synapse is a professional level distance driver for maximum distance and performance.

Striking a harmonious balance between distance and accuracy, the Synapse is the flagship entry into the true “pro” distance driver slot for Thought Space Athletics. It is stable enough to handle big arm speed or a stiff headwind, with just a hint of high-speed turn. The Synapse finds its equilibrium as the reliably stable long-bomber in your bag.

Finish Line’s Era

Drew Gibson tore it up last weekend at Las Vegas Challenge. Gannon Buhr definitely tore it up as well, it was such a good competition to watch. If you were watching carefully, you would have noticed that Drew threw this disc on a few holes. I’m fairly certain that LVC was the first tournament that the Era was thrown in. Which makes it a great debut to the world.

The Era is a stable, 10-speed distance driver. And it is a comfortable disc to throw, and achieve good distance. Its stability makes it more available to people to throw and achieve good distance. All the while providing a disc that is controllable for a lot of different throws.

Infinite Discs is still accepting pre-orders for this mold. Though they are much more limited than before. Rumor has it that the pre-orders will start to ship out soon, and that the stock release is close behind that as well. It seems that they’re targeting a release for the end of March.

The Era is the first disc in Drew Gibson’s Finish Line. This disc is designed to be the all purpose control driver for players of all skill level.

With a flat top and neutral flight path the Era works well for both backhand and forehand throws. It is understable enough to work for newer players, but has enough stability that it can handle the power of Drew Gibson. The Era has enough speed and glide to go as far as many distance drivers, but has minimal fade for the straight flight of a fairway.

Finish Line Discs are designed and manufactured in the USA.

Wing It Disc Golf’s Stratosphere

Wing It Disc Golf is a new manufacturer who looks to be using a new manufacturer (new to Disc Golf that is). As such, this company is working entirely from scratch, and it is cool to see the journey that they’re taking. If you would like, check out their website to see their experience in creating a disc. On the website they’ve detailed the entire process in a blog, which is entertaining to read.

The Stratosphere is their first mold, and Infinite Discs VIP members got to try out the first run of these discs. They are incredibly pretty discs, with such a variety of swirls. And, the disc is rather enjoyable to throw as well. Additionally, it provides a consistent flight, and is a stable disc. This fairway driver can make for a great staple in anyone’s bag. At the moment, Run 2 of the Stratosphere is scheduled to release to the public in Spring 2022.

Other Ways to See New Discs

As always, every day we are adding new discs online. It can be fun to watch the “Newly Added Discs” page on our site. It is a great way to see what is new for the day. And sometimes you’ll see some sweet gems. However, we do sometimes turn this page off on big releases though, this is to provide a quick web page load time for you.

As always, thanks for reading, and I hope that you’re as excited for these new releases as we are!

Infinite Discs Restock

March 2, 2022 Keith Barker 2 comments

Here at Infinite despite all of the complications that the Pandemic has caused. We are working hard to restock all that we can. In case you haven’t noticed, here is a handful of the Infinite molds that have been restocked:

Pharaoh in Swirly S-Blend

In this most recent run of Pharaohs has a lot of great swirls in the plastic. The aesthetic of this plastic is superb! As someone who doesn’t throw the Pharaohs, these discs make me want to grab one and throw it. That’s how good these discs look. Grab your beautiful Pharaoh for $16.99.

The Pharaoh is the quintessential distance driver, built for a high speed release and maximum distance. The fade is not overpowering, making this a distance driver that will work wonders even for intermediate players. Throw the Pharaoh off the tee when you need to cover as much territory as possible. Rule your local disc golf course with the Pharaoh!

Cohort in D-Blend and R-Blend

This mold is a well loved. It makes for an excellent putter, whether your putting or using it for approach shots. This thing flies straight. For approach shots, this disc is definitely a favorite. You can get this now in D-Blend for $8.29 or in R-Blend for $11.99.

The Cohort is a unique putt-and-approach disc that is a great, beadless option for mid-range and approach shots with a comfortable rim for either backhand or forehand players. The revolution toward smaller-diameter discs for mid-range shots continues and the Cohort is stable enough to hold the line when thrown with confidence.

Scarab in D-Blend

The Scarab is a pretty solid disc. It is a stable putter that allows for some great throws or powerful putts. With its bead, it provides a comfortable resting spot for your forefinger. This is an enjoyable disc to throw. This is restocked in the D-Blend plastic, only for $8.29.

The Scarab is a beaded putter that has a similar rim configuration to the Infinite Discs Myth, but with a different flight plate that provides a longer glide for longer putts and approaches. If you love throwing putters for distance, or you’re seeking pinpoint accuracy with your putting game, the Scarab will earn a spot in your disc bag.

Centurion in D-Blend Glow

This fairway driver is a really easy disc to throw. It offers great control and decent distance. The Centurion makes for an excellent disc to use on the longer upshots, or if you’re looking for some needed control. We’ve restocked this disc in D-Blend Glow, it is available now for $11.99, perfect for those glow rounds. Especially now that it is warming up again.

The Centurion is a workable fairway driver. It is a straight-flying, precision driver that will fit into the bags of both novice and professional players. All players can count on the Centurion to hold whichever line they put it on with only a slight end fade. It is a workhorse control driver for precise placement on the fairway.

Dynasty in I-Blend

This control driver is a new release, just as of last week. It is a pretty awesome disc, it is on the verge of a distance driver. To me this 9 speed driver provides a very comfortable grip. I also find that it is quite controllable and offers just enough stability to put power behind it and work to get the distance that I’m looking for. While also able to control it, I really like this disc. For now, it is available in I-Blend, grab yours for $12.99.

The Dynasty is a stable fairway driver. This control driver offers enough stability to provide a consistent “S-curve” flight. Also, it can still fly most any line you would want. Making this into a highly controllable disc. All the while it can achieve good distance for beginner and advanced players alike.

Alpaca in Gummy C-Blend

The Alpaca is an awesome putter. I’ve enjoyed this disc for my putter, as well as a driver. Now, we will make this disc available in Gummy C-Blend Plastic. I really enjoy a flexible plastic, and that is what this blend is, flexible. It is pretty awesome! You should definitely give this putter a try, as it is consistent and floaty. A very versatile putter. You’ll be able to get this disc for $15.49, and it will release tonight at midnight.

The Alpaca is the quintessential beadless putter. While the Infinite Discs Cohort has a somewhat low profile rim, the Alpaca presents a deeper rim for more of a traditional putter feel. Whether thrown at the basket or lofted high for approaches and drives, the Alpaca will carry your workload with ease.

In Conclusion

These are the new Infinite Molds that we have added in these past weeks. We are constantly working to restock all molds, and there are always new discs added. You can check out the newly added discs by clicking here.

State of Disc Golf: Skill Level

March 2, 2022 Ted Hegemann Leave a comment

When we start out playing disc golf in a club, we are frequently confronted with the decision of which division is right for us. At a club league, it’s pretty easy to determine whether or not we are playing in the division for our skill level. If we are regularly crushing the competitors in our division, it would be time to move up to the next division. If we are the ones getting beat by significant margins, maybe a lower division would give us more competition.

When we step up to sanctioned tournaments, we have to reevaluate our skill level to determine the best division for us. A local tournament will attract a different skill level for a particular division, versus a national event. Our PDGA rating can help us find the best fit, and sometimes restrict our decisions. Having our rating and seeing how we perform at tournaments and during league can help us overcome the Dunning-Kruger effect (overestimating our skill level).

While the subject of tournaments is something that we will discuss when we analyze the results of that part of the survey, today we will cover how we view our skill level. We will look at the breakdown of skill levels based on other demographics, such as age and gender. Finally, we will look at how those numbers have changed from previous surveys.

Our Skill Level

Let’s start out by looking at how we answered the question, “How would you rate your skill level as a disc golfer?” As discussed above, how we rate ourselves can be based on a variety of things. Even those who chose, ‘Professional’ may have done so for a variety of reasons. Are they playing in the pro division for the competition, despite having a PDGA rating that would qualify them to play in an Amateur division? Here is the breakdown of how we self-identify our skill level.

With half of us identifying as having intermediate skills and more than ¾ of us identifying as a beginner or intermediate player, my first thought explaining those numbers is the rapid growth we’ve seen in disc golf the past couple of years. We could conclude that since there were a lot of people who just started playing, they wouldn’t have progressed past the Intermediate level by now. We can look at other data in the survey to see if that hypothesis is correct. First, let’s see how those numbers have changed since earlier surveys.

Checking out the survey results from 2015, we see a higher percentage of players identifying as being in the Advanced or Professional divisions than this year’s survey.

Skill vs Time Playing

Let’s compare the skill levels when they are sorted by the year the player started playing disc golf. That should show us how the pandemic affected our skill levels as a group. Here is the chart:

We can see that around 30% of all survey respondents started playing in 2020 or sooner, and identify as a beginner or intermediate player. That certainly accounts for the larger number of total players in those divisions, as compared with the survey results from seven years ago. It will be interesting to see how fast people move up skill levels in future surveys.

Now let’s take another look at our skill levels and organize them by gender and age. We’ll start by looking at data from last week, our numbers when sorted by gender. Although the number of women taking the survey was up over 2015, the percent of women dropped a bit this year compared to the earlier data. Here is the chart showing the numbers for 2015 and 2022:

Here is how the number of each skill level look, when sorted by gender:

As we can see, the skill level representing the largest number of men is intermediate. It represents 48% of all respondents, and over half of all the men who responded. For the women, the beginner/recreational division is the largest. Nearly half of all women who took the survey are in this skill level.

Sorting By Age

If we were to look at our skill level according to our age group, what would we expect to find? More pros in the prime ages? More beginners in the younger groups? We can find out by sorting age groups into skill levels. We’ll start by looking at the raw numbers, then we’ll sort them by skill level and the percentage in that age group. Here is the raw data:

I think it is more interesting to see how each age group is divided according to skill level. In other words, it is more interesting to look at the age group that you play in, for example, and compare it to the same age group in 2015. First, let’s take a look at the results for the most recent survey.

That tells us that the group with the highest number of pros is the 51-60 age group, which has about 5% of its members that are pros. The group with the highest percentage of beginners is the 71+ age group (not counting the under 12 age group). Interestingly, the 12-17 age group has the highest percentage of intermediates AND advanced players.

We can now compare those numbers to the ones in 2015.

The 2015 graph shows that the 61-79 age group had the highest percentage of pros, with nearly one in five members of the age group identifying as a professional. The 51-60 group took the top honors for the percentage of the most beginners, although the group barely beat the 30-35 and 41-50 age groups. The 71+ age group was the intermediate leader and the 12-17 was the advanced leader, both groups holding on to the titles for 2015 and 2022.

It’s interesting to see the change in how many people consider themselves ‘advanced’ players. There were more advanced players than any other skill level in all but one age group in 2015. But in 2022, the advanced division wasn’t the largest in any group. Instead, the intermediate division was the most popular in every division.

Check back next week when we will continue to look at more survey results.

State of Disc Golf: Demographics

February 23, 2022 Ted Hegemann One comment

2022 State Of Disc Golf

We’re back for another look at the State of Disc Golf as we start the tournament season for 2022. Just like last year, our world and our sport is being affected by the global pandemic. While it appears society is looking more ‘pre-pandemic’ than last year, we are still dealing with its effects on the supply chain. Many molds and products are still not available. But, while we can’t control what is available to sell, we can still look at the world of disc golf and analyze the data to see how disc golf looks this year, and how it has changed over the years that Infinite has been running the survey.

Age, State, and Gender

This year we had over 7650 people take the survey. We’ll take a look at a variety of answers every week for the next couple of months to learn more about our sport and the people who play it. We’ll start with some basic demographics, looking at our age, where we live, and our gender. Let’s start with our ages.

Aging Divisions

One thing that I’m always curious to see when looking at the results of the survey is how the numbers compare to what I see in the disc golfers in our region. Our local club is small and it seems like the demographics are pretty close to how it looked when I started playing regularly about 10 years ago. But, we see other clubs at tournaments so it is still possible to get a large sample size.

What I see happening in the tournament scene is that the 40-plus divisions are getting bigger. That is encouraging to see because it means more people are continuing to play as they age. We are still getting young players take up the sport, which is great for the future of disc golf. But, the older divisions are growing. Let’s see how that compares to the survey results.

Below is a graph of the results of the question, ‘How old are you?’

We’ve seen the basic shape of the graph in previous surveys. The 30-35-year-old group is the largest, then a drop in the 36-40 group, followed by a spike in the 41-50 group. The 41-50 group is the first group that includes 10 years. In looking at previous years’ results, however, we see a sharper drop after the 30-35 group. We’ll look at a couple different years, and to compare them equally we will look at the percentage of respondents in each group, rather than the total number. Here are the graphs from previous surveys.

It’s good to see the growing size of the older groups. We’ll look at other survey questions to find out more about them and their disc golf world.

Where We Are From

The sport of disc golf is played in countries all around the world. We have seen non-US players battle it out with the top US pros on top-tier tournaments, and pick up wins. Recently, Estonian FPO player Kristin Tattar make headlines with her lucrative contract with Latitude 64. There is no doubt that disc golf is a global sport. There is also no doubt that the United States still has the largest number of disc golfers, and the survey showed that. Not surprisingly, the largest number of disc golfers are in the states with the biggest population. The states in the top ten will exchange positions from year to year. But it’s tough to find more disc golfers if your home state doesn’t boast the sheer number of people in other states. Here is the leader board for this year.

I was curious to see the ratio of disc golfers were in every state, so I got the population numbers from World Population Review website to find out. I divided the number of survey participants for each state into the population of that state. Here are the results:

State	# Survey Participants	2022 population	DG Density 1:x
Vermont	43	622,882	14,486
Utah	230	3,363,182	14,623
Oregon	209	4,325,290	20,695
Maine	62	1,359,677	21,930
Kansas	127	2,919,179	22,986
Colorado	256	5,961,083	23,285
Minnesota	228	5,739,781	25,174
Delaware	38	998,619	26,279
Idaho	71	1,896,652	26,713
Michigan	348	9,995,212	28,722
Missouri	206	6,184,843	30,024
Wisconsin	188	5,867,518	31,210
Indiana	204	6,842,385	33,541
Iowa	93	3,174,426	34,134
Washington	225	7,887,965	35,058
Ohio	331	11,727,377	35,430
North Carolina	291	10,807,491	37,139
Tennessee	182	7,001,803	38,471
Pennsylvania	331	12,805,190	38,686
South Dakota	23	902,542	39,241
Kentucky	113	4,487,233	39,710
Nebraska	48	1,960,790	40,850
Illinois	304	12,518,071	41,178
Alabama	117	4,949,697	42,305
New Hampshire	32	1,378,449	43,077
South Carolina	124	5,342,388	43,084
Montana	25	1,093,117	43,725
Connecticut	81	3,546,588	43,785
Virginia	194	8,638,218	44,527
North Dakota	17	774,008	45,530
Alaska	15	720,763	48,051
Oklahoma	83	4,007,179	48,279
Arkansas	63	3,042,017	48,286
West Virginia	35	1,755,715	50,163
Georgia	201	10,936,299	54,409
Texas	552	30,097,526	54,525
Maryland	107	6,075,314	56,779
Arizona	132	7,640,796	57,885
Massachusetts	118	6,922,107	58,662
Mississippi	49	2,961,536	60,440
New Mexico	31	2,109,093	68,035
California	529	39,664,128	74,979
Rhode Island	14	1,062,583	75,899
Hawaii	18	1,401,709	77,873
Florida	269	22,177,997	82,446
New York	214	19,223,191	89,828
Nevada	36	3,238,601	89,961
Louisiana	48	4,616,106	96,169
Wyoming	6	582,233	97,039
District of Columbia	6	718,355	119,726
New Jersey	68	8,870,685	130,451

The state of Vermont has one disc golfer who took the survey for every 14.4k people. Utah is in second place, but that likely has a lot to do with Infinite’s headquarters being in Utah. California, which routinely has among the highest number of people who take the survey, is near the bottom of this list.

Infinite has customers around the world and many of them participate in the survey every year. For Canada, we broke the numbers down by province. For the rest of the world, we had participants select the region of the world they live in. Here are the results:

Gender

When it comes to the part of the survey that asks about gender, there is never really a question of which gender will have the highest number. But I am always interested to see if there is growth in the number of women taking the survey. Presumably that would mean a growth in the number of women in our sport. With so many of the top women disc golfers signing contracts that they are excited about, and with so much exposure in terms of tournament coverage, we certainly seems poised to grow the women’s side of disc golf. Things like last year’s FPO World Championship, which was every bit as exciting as the MPO Championship, should add a little more fuel to the fire of growth.

We’ll look at the results from past surveys and compare those to the most recent survey.

Although the data shows a slight drop in the percentage of women vs men taking the survey, the raw numbers are slightly up. In 2014, 286 women took the survey. In 2020, there were 330 women who took the survey. I would hope that the percentages would at lease stay the same as the number of disc golfers rises.

The PDGA shows fairly steady ratios between men and women between 2014 and 2020. Considering the explosion of growth in disc golf, that means that at least the number of women disc golfers who take the sport seriously enough to join the PDGA is rising. As we explore the rest of the SoDG survey, we might find data that will shed more light on the subject of women in disc golf.

In the previous two surveys mentioned in the charts above, we only had two choices for gender. That is why in this year’s survey there is the third option. We wanted to have an option for those who don’t identify with the binary choices.

Focus Friday Minotaur

February 18, 2022 Keith Barker Leave a comment

The Infinite Discs’ discount code for this Focus Friday will revolve around the Minotaur by Divergent Discs. Using the promo code FOCUSMINOTAUR you’ll save 25% on all Minotaurs on Infinite Discs’ website.

Greek Mythology offers a lot of epic tales, and enjoyable stories. It also has some really weird and messed up ones. How the Minotaur came to be is one of those weird messed up stories. Something to do with Poseidon, Pasiphaë, and a Snow-White Bull that was meant for sacrifice. The Minotaur was a ferocious beast that devoured humans, and was eventually placed into a labyrinth. And because a son of Minos was killed by some Athenians, Minos forced the Athenians to send 7 young men and 7 young women into the maze as tribute on a regular basis, just like the Hunger Games. That is until Theseus and Ariadne killed the Minotaur, ending the tribute.

So what is a Minotaur when it comes to Disc Golf?

Divergent Discs is a relatively new disc golf manufacturer. They are focus on creating discs that are easy to throw, that aren’t meant to handle the power of a professional disc golfer. Meaning, they make discs for the casual player.

The Minotaur is a 8 speed fairway driver that is overstable. This disc is not quite like the other Divergent Discs molds, most of the other Divergent molds are pretty understable, and can be quite flippy. While this one can handle power. It is still easy to throw, and will still offer some good distance regardless of your arm speed. This disc is enjoyable to throw, and is extremely reliable. This will provide some good solid straight lines with a healthy fade, or some good flex lines. Overall, the Minotaur is a great overstable fairway driver.

In addition to this promo code that we are offering, we have released some special stamped Minotaurs. Check out the swagger bear! There weren’t many Minotaurs stamped with this bear, only about 20. Go and check it out on our site, read some reviews, and get yours today. What better time to try it out than now when you can get one at a 25% discount. All you need to do is use the discount code: FOCUSMINOTAUR before you proceed past the cart screen.

Infinite Discs’ Discount Code for Focus Friday

You can select your disc by clicking here. Simply add as many Minotaur Molds to your shopping cart as you want, then BEFORE you click to checkout, look below the shopping cart. Right below the shopping cart is a box for Discount Codes. Click there and paste the code, FOCUSMINOTAUR, into the box. Then proceed to checkout and you’ll get the discount.

Here is a screenshot to help you out, though it doesn’t necessarily show a Minotaur in the cart – it’s just a generic visual to help you find the discount code box:

We hope that you love throwing the Minotaur. If you’ve thrown the disc, feel free to share what you think of this Driver. Thanks!

STAY TUNED for our next Focus Friday for another chance to try a featured disc at a nice discounted price!

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