Disc Golf's rise from an obscure event in the 1920s to a fast growing mainstream sport in the 2020s.
A common hashtag used in disc golf social media is #GrowtheSport. Every excitable player and social media engaging disc golf business calls upon it, often.
To many in the sport, “grow the sport” is an aspirational motto that energizes the grassroots of the sport including the volunteers who make it great. You can find it in social posts about tournaments, new course press releases, any number of disc manufacturers, and volunteer efforts.
The hashtag can often be found in the promotional materials of private firms. #GrowtheSport appears in the bio of online retailer Dynamic Discs, and in the advertisements of disc golf apparel brands. They even invented “Grow Disc Golf Day” to celebrate the sport. Even top pro players like Ricky Wysocki use the hashtag in their social media branding.
Apparent in the myriad intended and unintended meanings of the hashtag are two different formulas for growing disc golf—one that relies on public engagement and on-the-ground efforts, and another that is driven by product development and commercial endeavors.
Over the last few years, We’ve been watching these two social pressures and we believe that the continued growth of the sport depends on whether it can increase the value of these five "resources": 1) Centralization, 2) Consistent Culture, 3) Cultural Identity, 4) Mass Popular Engagement, and 5) Legacy.
We contend that the future of Disc Golf depends on which side of the Grassroots vs Commercialization equation has the greatest influence on the development of the sport. We hope to engage the disc golf community in a symbiotic relationship that will inform us of better products and services, while also healthily supporting the volunteers and the courses they maintain as well as the livelihood of the sport as a whole.
Help Us #GrowtheSport
Reach out through our social media pages or this website's contact page to get involved in growing the sport in YOUR town!