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Basket cases. McCall and Crossman put in crazy hours at our KDH course. Photo: Ryan Moser

OUT OF THE WOODS

Two local teens chase disc golf dreams.

Five years ago, it was still just a chunk

of woods at the base of Run Hill. Lots of trees, a few dunes — and a single wrecked car. Today, Kill Devil Hills’ Casey R. Logan Disc Golf Course is one of the most popular recreational outlets on the whole Outer Banks. A place where athletes of all ages come to stretch their legs and sink a few baskets — and probably clunk a few branches. Where two young teens, Beckett Crossman and Owen McCall, threw their first serious discs just a few years back and now send them soaring across courses all over the country.

“I didn’t know about disc golf until this course,” says KDH’s Owen McCall. “Now, this has the potential to be my future, my career — and I wouldn’t even have known if this course had never been put in here.”

Disc golf, which has been around since the 1970s, involves getting a flying disc from a tee box to a basket in the fewest number of throws. It shares terminology with “regular” golf — birdies and bogeys, putts and pars — but is more accessible to the masses. Anyone who has ever tossed around a Frisbee can pick up an inexpensive flying disc and give the game a try.

As a result, more than 8,000 municipalities have installed disc golf courses around the globe, leading to a recreational craze — and bonafide professional sport. In fact, the Professional Disc Golf Association currently boasts more than 120,000 members in 54 countries.

“The one thing that stood out at our last tournament was probably how big the sport is growing all over,” says Crossman, who traveled to Kansas this July for a national comp. “Almost all the stores in Emporia had signs welcoming the players, and restaurants throughout the town sold discs, as well.”

The appeal is easy to see. No greens fees. No carts. All you need is a disc, a couple of hours — and maybe some patience.

On a recent summer excursion, a handful of players — both first-time tourists and longtime locals — walk through Logan’s

shady woods, from one tee box to the next. Holes take three-to-four throws as players navigate doglegs left and right with different styles of forehand and backhand tosses. There are no water hazards, but novice players can expect to battle endless branches on their way to the basket.

Scratch that — even Crossman and McCall can experience plenty of “clunks” before hearing the satisfying “clang!” of a disc hitting the basket.

“People think [an Outer Banks] course must be all wide open and sandy,” says Crossman. “No. It’s wooded — and tough.”

At least there are no heavy clubs to haul. Instead, Crossman and McCall carry a special bag stuffed with roughly 20 discs, each with slightly different characteristics.

There are ‘drivers’ for distance. Midrangers. Putters for up close. Each costs between $8 and $20. But most of theirs come free thanks to sponsorships. McCall is part of Team Prodigy, and Crossman is with Team Discraft. Crossman is also sponsored by Teebox, a content creation and social media strategy outfit for disc golfers.

“That’s another thing that really made me think that I actually have a chance to make something out of this game,” says McCall, who has six tournament wins under his belt. “When you have a big company supporting you, it’s definitely a confidence thing, like, ‘They believe in me, so I must be doing all right.’”

They both are. At Kansas’s PDGA Junior Disc Golf World Championships, they took on a field of 251 players from all over the country. Crossman finished tied for seventh and McCall landed in 26th after six rounds against the nation’s best 18-and-under disc golfers. “It was an awesome experience and a super well-run tournament,” says Crossman.

The two generally travel together to cut expenses and are already earning a reputation as the “Outer Banks kids.” Back home, they stay sharp putting in countless hours of practice — especially during the pandemic — while also helping the Outer Banks Disc Golf Club with course maintenance and running tournaments.

Since Crossman has to finish high school, he’ll maintain his amateur status a while longer and see if he can add to the three wins on his resume. He wants to attend college to be a financial planner.

“Have a steady job, play disc golf on the side, and just see if it works out,” says Crossman.

McCall, meanwhile, shifted to the professional ranks after Kansas. The best disc golfer in the world, Paul McBeth, is a five-time world champion with 133 career wins, $554,000 in career earnings — and a recent $10 million sponsorship deal. McCall estimates that the top 50 players in the world are making a “nice living” off the sport, with the next 50 scrambling to live their dream and make ends meet.

But the sport continues to gain followers thanks to social media and other promotions. Famous PGA golfers — you know, the guys who hit balls — were sharing highlights from the recent disc golf world championships, and an amazing ace at a big tournament was the No. 1 play one night on the SportsCenter Top 10, generating huge interest from casual fans. And as long as there’s a shot, McCall says he’ll keep swinging — or soaring.

“I’m just gonna chase the dream, try to make a living off disc golf,” McCall says. “If it doesn’t work for two or three years, maybe I’ll try and find something else and just do this for fun on the weekends. But for right now, I’m young enough and I just want to go all-out. If I work hard now, it could pay off big-time later.” — Steve Hanf

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