Joy
Putting the
in Portland's
DISC GOLF SCENE Story & photos by NOELLE AUGER Enjoying a craft brew after a tough game.
On a balmy evening in early spring, Mainers emerge from their dens and flock toward their favorite local breweries to quench their thirst for outdoor patio life. At Rising Tide, one of Portland’s more popular spots, the air is filled with notes of sun-soaked laughter, clinking glasses overflowing with IPAs, and something else—the reverberating sounds of discs hitting chains. Though much of this crowd consists of regulars, there is someone new in town: The JoySwich Putting League. JoySwich, a newly crafted business founded by Adam McHugh and Mae Holmes, is a brand that merges outdoor recreation and adventure with a specific focus on the sport of disc golf. When McHugh and Holmes struggled to find a property that could house the JoySwich disc course of their dreams, they shifted their plans and decided to
A pint and a disc pair well together.
16 Summer/Fall 2022
bring the sport to Portland. The Putting League, which commenced in April and ended in late May, was born out of a dream to make disc golf accessible, enjoyable, and inclusive for all Mainers. Its main focus is to practice one of the more difficult and technical aspects of disc golf known as “putting,” when players throw the discs from shorter distances, usually 30 feet or less. “We started this as an avenue into a beloved part of the much broader outdoor community,” said co-founder, Adam McHugh. “We want to enable that by offering not only the venues but also the equipment as well, so folks can try different types of discs without having to buy them or knowing how they perform. We also want people to make connections with others to have an enriched pool of discing friends. We are hoping mostly to extend the beauty of the game to newcomers and expand
JoySwich founders, Adam McHugh and Mae Holmes.
access for more women specifically to get interested and involved in the game.” Putting League takes place every Monday evening from 6 to 8. The league rules are similar to that of a bowling league: Two teams play head-to-head in a match consisting of three games with teams composed of at least four (up to six) recurring players. The games consist of 10 total frames and players rotate, throwing five discs per frame. The discs are thrown from distances of 20, 25, and 30 feet. At the end of each week, stats are collected and published on JoySwich’s website so players can keep track of their progress. There is even a weekly prize for the one who sinks the most discs each game. “When I heard Adam and Mae were starting a putting league, I wanted to join right away—they are good friends I met when they hired me to design
Putting a disc.
