Disc Golf Takes Flight

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Disc Golf Tournament on campus was the fist interscholastic event of its kind.

A bright pink disc soars over the lotus pond and crashes into the chains of a basket located under an oak tree on central campus. A group of eight students and teachers cheer in excitement. It is the first time anyone has eagled hole seven—two under par is worthy of celebration.

Over the past three years, Disc Golf has soared in popularity around the country. Second only to Pickle Ball, it is the fastest growing outdoor sport in America. Disc Golf is played much like traditional golf. Instead of hitting a ball into a hole, players throw a disc into a supported metal basket. The goal is the same, to complete the course in the fewest number of shots. A golf disc is thrown from a tee area created for each basket, which is the "hole." The trees, shrubs, and terrain provide challenging obstacles for the golfer.

Disc Golf coach and course designer, John Macdonald, remarked: “Disc Golf is a fun, user-friendly, and low-entry game that gets lots of people outside, hanging out and engaging in strategy. It’s as much a physical game as a mental one, with the need to balance long drives with precision shot shaping and angle control as you move about the course.”

During the pandemic, John Macdonald and Devin Crosby teamed up and began designing courses on MSA’s 1,600-acre campus. Over the past three years, students have helped redesign the original 9-hole course (Lotus) located on central campus and built an amazing 18-hole course (Creekside) by the creek area near the lake.

Disc golf coach and course designer Devin Crosby remarked: "Disc golf makes you forget that anything else matters. It's all about being outside in beautiful surroundings and enjoying the complexities of the game. Miller offers so much natural beauty, and it was fun designing and crafting a course around unique features in underutilized areas.”

In 2022, Macdonald and Crosby spearheaded the first Interscholastic Disc Golf tournament. Open to elementary, middle, and high school students, the King of the Hill Disc Golf Tournament was an instant success. Nearly fifty athletes participated each weekend in the three events. This year, it will be part of the Virginia Junior Disc Golf Series (VJDGS) which is the largest junior series in the state. MSA is the third stop on the Virginia Junior Disc Golf Series and will be hosting on April 23rd. The team expects 70 juniors to participate from over a dozen schools from at least three states. 

Over the past three years, Macdonald and Crosby have spent thousands of hours planning courses and building a community around a sport that has added meaningfully to the MSA and surrounding community.

Recognizing that many MSA students were becoming serious about the sport and training regularly, Mr. Macdonald created a new athletic offering at MSA. The Disc Golf Team competes in the fall and spring seasons both in the new interscholastic tournament as well as PDGA Tournaments around the state. Devin Crosby spearheaded a team at Seven Rivers Country Day School that competes in many of the same events. Additionally, Crosby organized the MSA Disc Golf Club to engage more students and faculty in the sport. Thanks to their combined efforts, Disc Golf is now a primary sport for a number of students and an enjoyable outdoor activity for a large number of the MSA community. Remarkably, two MSA athletes are already playing at a national level. Abigail Macdonald and Fin Harrison have been invited and will be competing in Junior Worlds this summer in Peoria, Illinois. In 2024, the PDGA Disc Golf World Championship will be hosted in Lynchburg, VA, and the team is already preparing to represent in Virginia on the international stage.

The addition of a Disc Golf course on campus has provided another wonderful opportunity for students to explore MSA’s stunning campus. It utilizes MSA’s wooded acres with a low-impact activity that is open to all students and staff. Whether it is the competitive Disc Golf Team or a group of teachers and students playing on the weekend, the sound of a disc hitting the chains in the woods signals joy and fun.