History Of Disc Golf
By Jim Palmeri & Steve Lambert

1940's — Yale and Dartmouth students fling pie tins, from the Frisbie Pie Company, as a recreational activity. In 1949, Californian inventor, Fred Morrison realizes that plastics technology can be used to make a disc shaped flying toy. That year, his first flying disc, the Pipco Flying Saucer hit the market.

Early 1950's — On the east coast, Bill Robs markets the Space Saucer in college campus book stores. In 1954, the first "Frisby match" was held at Dartmouth College. Morrison improves his invention with a second disc, the Pluto Platter, with the now famous "Play catch—invent games" engraved on the back. Was disc golf one of these games?

Late 1950's — Wham-O begins marketing Morrison's Pluto Platter in 1957 using the name "Wham-O Frisbee." In 1958, the first international Frisbee Tournament was held in Eagle Harbor, MI.

1960— Copar Company of Chicago markets a disc called "Sky Saucer" that included a rule book for the game of "Sky Golf."

1964— Wham-O introduces the "Official Pro Model" to be used for sports.

1970's— Disc enthusiasts introduce the concept of disc golf to other parts of the country. "Object Courses" using anything from lamp poles to fire hydrants as targets begin to crop up in the Midwest and East Coast.

1971 — The first "Frisbee Club" is formed in Rochester, NY; disc golf played on a regular basis.

1973 — Flying Disc World becomes the first magazine for disc sports.

1975 — Installation of the first permanent disc golf course in Oak Grove Park, La Canada, California. Wham-O introduces the World Class 119g disc, a marked improvement in discs for competitive sports.

1976 — Ed Headrick patents the chain-style disc golf target and organizes the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA)

1977 — The first PDGA tournaments are held in Mobile, Alabama and northern New Jersey; the modern era of disc golf competition begins.

1982 — The PDGA becomes a player-run organization to schedule tournaments and formalize the rules of play. Harold Duvall wins the first PDGA World Disc Golf Championship.

1983 — Dave Dunipace of INNOVA-Champion Discs invents the modern golf disc, a plastic flying disc with a beveled edge rim for greater distance and accuracy.

1984 — Disc Golf World News begins publication; the first magazine of disc golf.

1985 — The World Flying Disc Federation organizes the first "World Championships" held outside of the United States, in Helsingborg, Sweden. Players from 21 countries attend. Around the world, players continue to lobby park departments and college campuses for more disc golf courses. By the end of the decade, permanent disc golf courses are installed in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, and Japan.

1990 through 1998 — Ken Climo of Clearwater, Florida wins an unprecedented, nine world championships establishing himself as the greatest disc golfer to have ever lived.

1993 — Lavonne Wolfe establishes the PDGA Hall of Fame. The PDGA begins to chronicle the history of disc golf.

2000 - The number of permanent disc golf courses in the United States surpasses 1000.

2001 - Disc Golf becomes a featured sport in the World Games in Akita, Japan.

DISC GOLF continues to grow with more courses, more tournaments, more players and more fun!