A new national report shows that disc golf popularity has increased tremendously in Connecticut over the last 10 years. The recently released 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report revealed the number of disc golf courses in the state has tripled to 67 courses.
The total number of rounds played in Connecticut has also increased by five times since pandemic play. In 2019, there were 24,801 rounds played in the state. During the pandemic, those numbers exploded to 81,262 in 2020, 115,551 in 2021, 122,702 in 2022, a peak of 145,474 in 2023, 135,639 in 2024 and 126,006 in 2025.
The numbers were compiled by UDisc, a disc golf app that helps players find courses and course information in their area or nationwide.
“We started with the app, but now we’re more of a disc golf advocacy group,” UDisc co-founder and CEO Josh Lichti said. “We’re really promoting the growth of disc golf and are using the app to measure the growth. Then working with people all over the world to tell the story of disc golf, the impact that it’s making to people’s local communities and to help work with people in those communities or local governments to make the case for disc golf and get courses built in the ground.”
Lichti, a Portland, Maine resident, co-founded the app with Matt Krueger. The first version of the app was in 2012, and the company was officially formed in 2017 with just two friends. After the explosion of the sport around the country, UDisc has expanded to a 23-person staff that is fully remote.
“We are fully bootstrapped and mission-driven so we don’t have outside investors or anything. Everyone that works for UDisc loves disc golf and wants to promote it,” Lichti said.
Lichti said the first disc golf course was built 51 years ago in Southern California.
“It started as a cultural, hippie sport,” Lichti said. “The pandemic was a big driver. A lot of it was people wanting to get outside and do something safe, and disc golf really checked those boxes when so many other activities had been canceled.
“People that used to play ultimate frisbee (on) big teams couldn’t do that, and so they turned to disc golf,” he added. “People that played baseball or other team sports turned to disc golf because you could do it in a pretty safe outdoor way. That kind of turned into people requesting more courses. So every year since 2020, we’ve had over 1,000 new disc golf courses built (nationwide). There’s just so many advantages to this disc golf including affordable, accessible, relatively available outdoor recreation.”
Courtesy of Matt Bunko
The disc golf course at Panthorn Park in Southington is the busiest course in the state. There are currently 67 disc golf courses in Connecticut. (Courtesy of Matt Bunko)
Lichti said Connecticut’s density puts the state at a disadvantage for building courses because there isn’t as much available land compared to other states. “That’s maybe what makes it even more impressive to see that the number of courses that tripled,” Lichti said. “The big advantage that Connecticut and a lot of New England has is just incredible forested land. The courses in Connecticut are beautiful.
“It gives people a really nice recreation option that they can fit into their day and stay healthy, stay active,” he added. “We set a goal to see a billion rounds of disc golf played. That’s 50 times more than we have right now, and I do think that’s achievable. It’s what’s happening in some places around the world.”
The busiest disc golf course in Connecticut by a wide margin is the 18-hole Panthorn Park course in Southington with 10,186 rounds played last year.
The other most popular disc golf courses in the state in 2025 included Dragonfly Disc Golf at Dean’s Mill Farm in Stonington (6,076 rounds), Cedar Swamp in Old Saybrook (5,763), Tower Ridge Disc Golf in Simsbury (5,408), The Flying Ace at Lufbery Park in Wallingford (5,383), High Plains in Orange (5264), Veterans Memorial Park in Bridgeport (4,837), Cross Farms in Tolland (4,303), Mohegan Park in Norwich (4,254), Wickham Park in Manchester (3,941), Norbrook Farm in Colebrook (3,864) and Ecker Hill Disc Golf Course in Vernon (3,712).
Southington’s Matt Bunko has been involved in disc golf since 2016 and has volunteered at the Panthorn Park course since 2019. The course was originally built in 2005.
“UDisc has been really helpful in regard to statistics and reporting,” Bunko said. “We’re able to track how many rounds have been played over the years, and we have had more than 10,000 rounds for three years in a row now. That data is helpful to show departments and boards in town that the disc golf courses are seeing these numbers these days.”
Bunko said that the disc golf course has been well supported by the town, and it made it easier for the Panthorn Park disc golf club to make improvements to the course. He added that the accessibility of the sport makes it a good “outdoorsy type of hobby.”
“You don’t have to spend a ton of money with this sport compared to other sports,” Bunko said. “You can go to a local sporting goods store and get a couple of golf discs and just go see if you like the sport. It’s appealing to a lot of people. I think it’s a perfect activity for folks who are looking for something physical to do and get out of the house. That has brought a lot of growth to the sport.”
Courtesy of Matt Bunko
A photo from a previous disc golf tournament held at Panthorn Park in Southington. (Courtesy of Matt Bunko)
Bunko said the Southington spot has flourished because it is centrally located. He also noted that the bulk of players are from Southington, Meriden and Bristol. Panthorn Posts hosts leagues on Fridays and Saturdays. The season is expected to begin sometime next month. Panthorn also hosts organized tournaments.
Bunko said he expects the sport to continue to grow in the state and for more courses to “pop up.”
“A municipality doesn’t have to do a lot to add a disc golf to underutilized land in a park that they already have. A lot of disc golf courses are happy to utilize that land. Parts of courses, like wetlands, where it’s really not suitable for any other type of development or recreational use can be used for disc golf. Those types of land are actually great for disc golf courses. And I think it makes it a lot easier for groups or a community to bring that forward to a land use board or to their recreation board if a town is looking for something to add to a park. It’s not a huge budget item for taxpayers. It’s a comparatively cheap sport compared to others,” Bunko said.
Lichti said the app is helpful to all disc golf players and suggests that beginners should use it to find courses that are intended for beginners.
“For new players, you can filter almost like a ski hill, you can sort through difficulty levels,” Lichti said.
Lichti said another positive trend for disc golf he’s seeing that a lot more people are playing casually and not just in leagues. He noted that 85% of Connecticut’s 67 courses have no cost to play.
“The hardcore people would be out there playing disc golf three, four days a week, so we have seen essentially more courses put in but fewer rounds on a lot of the courses, which is the good trend because if you wanted to try to play disc golf in 2021, you might be waiting forever,” he said.
Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant
Max Tomaiuolo of Glastonbury throws his disc toward the basket on the third hole while playing the 9-hole course with his friend Nick Traver at the Center Springs Park Disc Golf Course in Manchester on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. The two took advantage of the comfortable weather for a round of disc golf. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)
The UDisc app also shows where people are traveling from to play disc golf. Lichti singled out the Norbrook Farm Brewery disc golf course in Colebrook, which was ranked as the best brewery course in the world.
“People from all over the world have come to play it. People have come from 48 states and 13 different countries to play in Connecticut in 2025,” Lichti said. “Destinations like Norbrook Farm in Colebrook bring people in. I’ve met people who have traveled to Connecticut to play at that course.”
Norbrook Farm Brewery owner John Auclair said he was flattered by the praise from UDisc’s rating. He said the disc golf course attracts players from throughout Connecticut as well as from Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island and New York.
“Everybody raves about it. There must be something there,” Auclair said.
Auclair owns the brewery with his brother Randy and owns the 500 acre property with his wife Debbie. Auclair said it was a friend who suggested that they should build a disc golf course.
“Word of mouth has spread and people wanted to come try it,” Auclair said. “We are in a remote area, and we chose to have the recreation component. We have a brewery and we also offer hiking and mountain biking. We have 11 or 12 miles of mountain bike trails and that attracts a different crowd.”
Auclair said the most common feedback from disc golf players on his course are “peace and serenity.”
“When you get to some holes, there are some spectacular views and several water shots,” Auclair said. “You take your shot and then you get a wonderful view. That’s part of the allure.”