Christian Got his start in disc golf at a company event
He says “ I still remember my first real throw. It went 90 degrees to the right and almost hit a co-worker. “
That event lit spark, because fours years later he and his brothers took a trip to Järva (in Stockholm, Sweden) to play a professional level course, something he never expected to do for any sport.
Name: Christian Niku
Country: Finland
Home Course: Loviisa DGC
Follow on Instagram
How did you get into disc golf and how long have you been playing?
I started playing disc golf a bit more than 4 years ago. My dad and brothers had started playing a few months earlier. They asked, if I wanted to join, but I wasn’t interested at first. It didn’t seem like my thing.
Then a few months later we had a company beginner event where we got to try out disc golf. I was terrible at throwing the disc and had no background from any form of sport.
I still remember my first real throw. It went 90 degrees to the right and almost hit a co-worker.
During the beginner event I got more and more excited as the throws went further. I laughed at the instructors disc golf nerdy jokes. I was hooked. The next spring I took a week off from work to play disc golf.
What is your dominant hand?
Right
Are you Backhand or forehand dominate?
I currently throw both for drives and approach shots. During my first two years of disc golf I only threw backhand shots.
Last year I started practising my forehand since I couldn’t get any good consistency with my anhyzers. Still haven’t gotten the hang of throwing them well.
What was the first disc you threw and where is it now?
The first disc I threw on a course was an understable mid-range with a Donald Duck stamp on it. Never learned what disc it was.
The first disc of my own that I threw was a red Innova Star Leopard. I loved that disc. It still feels bad that I never got it back.
I lost it on a windy day, throwing a forehand drive downhill at Finland’s oldest disc golf course in Meilahti, Helsinki.
I have a new red Star Leopard. But it doesn’t feel the same.
You’re on the first hole at your local course, what disc do you reach for?
My home course where I have played maybe 80 rounds is a 100 kilometers away. So I don’t play there weekly anymore.
There the first fairway is a 127m par 4. It is kind of a dogleg shaped fairway with a 90 degree turn to a steep uphill where the basket is placed.
I usually throw a Leopard 3… trying to turn it over and finish on the fairway. From there I can throw a forehand hyzer shot up the hill to the basket.
If I am feeling lucky, I might try a Roadrunner for the drive.
On the local courses in Helsinki I usually go with a Buzzz or Leopard 3. Especially the courses in the city area, have pretty short fairways.
What is your favourite course and why?
My favourite course is the one in Loviisa near my hometown. It is a 18 basket forest course built in an old sandpit. It is one of the most balanced and most variety offering courses I have played. You have advantage, if you can throw both back and forehand.
Some of the fairways are tight, technical and have a lot of trees to hit. Others are open and offer a chance to crush the disc as far as you can.
I also like the elevation that makes you practice throwing up- and downhill.
Still the biggest reason I love the course is the feeling of it.
It is usually quiet and peaceful. It is a place were you feel happy and free. There is no stress or sorrows. Only disc golf in beautiful nature.
Even if you hit the trees… all you can do is smile on both the in and outside.
Your disc golf bag catches on fire. You can only save 3 discs, What are those discs and why?
Innova Champion Rhyno, Innova Star Eagle and Innova Star Leopard 3.
The Rhyno is one of the few discs left that I have had with me from the beginning of my disc golf journey. I still throw it almost every round. It is my something old and blue.
The Star Eagle is newest of the three. I got it as a Christmas present last December from my parents and it reminds me where I come from. It is also a disc that I currently like a lot. It has scored me the most birdies this year.
The Star Leopard 3 is also a special disc for me. It is a disc I bought a few years back right after I did my first training session with a professional disc golfer. When I started there was no one around who really knew how to throw the disc. The Leopard 3 was the disc that felt comfortable, when I started to learn how to actually throw a disc golf disc.
What is your favourite disc and why?
Innova Star Eagle. It is a really great disc that has scored me a lot of birdies lately. I will never forget the first birdies(!) I threw on a pro level track with the help of my Eagle at the Järva course in Stockholm last weekend. It just keeps giving and it is also a suitable disc for my arm speed.
What is your favourite throw to play during a round of disc golf?
I think there is something magical about throwing far in a straight line. You can see the disc hold its line. You (almost) hold your breath… hoping it not to turn.. don’t turn too soon you scream in your thoughts.
You can see the threes and OB areas lurking. And your disc just keeps going and going. Then it drops close to the basket or in the middle of the fairway. You still cannot believe it happened.
Well… to be honest it usually doesn’t happen. That is not my favorite throw. It is amazing when it works out, but so hard to do. If I see a nicely turning fairway surrounded with trees, I am excited! I know what disc to choose and how to throw it. It’s usually a tight shot, but a really fun one! No matter which way it turns, I know I can do it (8/10 times).
Are you part of a league, if so what is your handicap?
No, I am not.
How many times a week do you get to play or do field work?
Unfortunately it varies a lot depending on how busy I am at work and what time of the year it is. Last year I played something like 2 rounds a week on an average.
This year it has been a bit less. And since I live in Finland… there are less rounds in the winter, if it’s cold and snowy. Last winter disc golf was mostly about training my core muscles at the gym. Getting ready for the new season.
Last summer I also started to do putting training regularly. In the summer, I usually set up my travel basket and throw putts every day no matter where I am. And I also use a rubber band to train my arm speed. Haven’t still found out if it makes a difference or not.
The discs that you regularly bag are they all one manufacturer or a mix bag?
I mostly throw Innova. Below listed what I currently have in my bag.
Innova Champion Rhyno
Discmania X-line P2 (x2)
Innova Star AviarX3
Discraft Buzzz FLX
Innova Champion Roc3
Innova Star Mako3
Innova Whippet
Innova Star Rat
Innova Champion Shark3
Innova Star Teebird
Innova Star “Jeremy Koling” Thunderbird
Innova Star Valkyrie
Innova Champion Roadrunner
Innova Star Leopard
Innova Star Leopard3
Innova Star Eagle
Innova Star Sidewinder
MVP Proton Tesla
Innova Champion Archon
Innova Star Archon
Innova Star Destroyer (x2)
Discmania S-line PD
Do you have any superstitions or quirks when on the course. Such as like flipping your disc 3 times or special hat?
Not really 🙂
What do you love about disc golf?
I feel it is a combination of 4 things for me.
1) Mastery. You get better and you can see your progress relatively fast.
2) I like to watch the disc fly. It is beautiful. Some good days even magical.
3) Nature. I love spending time outside, especially in peaceful forest landscapes. I like hiking too, but it takes a bit too much time to do often.
4) People. Life would be boring and empty without sharing it with your family and friends. It is the same thing with disc golf. Shared experiences give you so much more.
Playing disc golf you can be in a surrounding you feel one with and do something you love with the people that are important to you. Sometimes you also make great new friendships.
What part of disc golf do you find the most challenging?
From time to time you end up having a bad run. It can be a few weeks or maybe even a month. Somehow you cannot seem to manage to do what you know you can.
Then you usually end up trying too hard. Your confidence drops. You start to feel that the disc just doesn’t go into the basket. Putts fall out. It feels like you hit every tree there is. You feel you have lost it. You end up going back to your old mistakes.
Making your game even worse. You feel that this isn’t a game for you. You threaten to quit. You get frustrated because what you love doesn’t make you feel that great.
But somehow you continue. And once you have stopped expecting too much of yourself things start to work out again. You get a few good putts. You get a few great tree kicks. You start remembering why you love disc golf.
You know you never were serious about quitting. You remember that you love every part of it. Also the bad days, when you end up scrambling half the round.
What has been your greatest achievement to date in disc golf?
Don’t really know how to answer this question. For me it is the small things. Playing a game that makes me feel happy. And for the first time in my life I am happy to list a sport as my hobby.
This year I did a trip to Järva (in Stockholm, Sweden) with my brothers. I never thought I would travel abroad to play a professional level course or something similar in any sport.
It was the second professional level course I have played and I scored 3 birdies on the first round and one on the second. It felt great to push my limits and spend time with my brothers. It is great to connect in something we all love.
If you could change anything about disc golf what would it be?
I absolutely love how friendly, polite and helpful the disc golf community is. There is not much to change or improve.
What I had hoped when I started, would be better information on what courses are good for your current level of play. It takes out a bit of the fun, when you end up on a course that is simply way too difficult for you.
In Finland there is a lot of courses for amateur, tournament and professional players. I think it would be great, if there were more beginner level courses.
If given the chance how would you grow the sport of disc golf?
I think we all have a chance to grow the sport of disc golf. Personally I have held a few introduction courses to small groups and private beginner lessons for people who have been excited to try disc golf (free of charge).
It is much easier to try it out when you can borrow discs and learn a few basic things from someone who has an idea of what they are talking about. If you just watch YouTube, you might learn a lot of things that don’t help your game (at all). Something I know from personal experience.
If you could play any course in the world, what would that course be and who are the other three players on your card?
I would like to play Idlewild in Burlington, Kentucky, in the US. On the card I would pick my two brothers and Nate Sexton.
What’s your embarrassing disc golf story?
Nothing that juicy really. One embarrassing moment I remember was when we were playing in Loviisa. There was a group of teenagers in front of us on the course. They weren’t shouting FORE, when their disc landed a few meters from us a couple times.
I told them it would be great, if they gave us a warning the next time.
So, for my next shot I walked up to the teepad feeling good about myself. The teenagers were on the next tee, number ten.
My drive got way too long. I didn’t really see the flight path. It landed a few meters from the group of teenagers. Now it was their turn to remind me about shouting FORE!
I think we all learned our lesson.
What advice would you give to a new player starting out?
1. Don’t buy more than 3 discs. Consider buying an Innova Leopard as your first driver.
2. I know you will buy a big driver too soon. We all make that mistake. We are all allowed to (and need to) make our own mistakes.
3. During your first 6 months enter a beginners course or get basic instructions from someone who actually know what they are talking about. I played something like 1,5 years before I learned good basic technique. There was a lot of things to unlearn, and it was hard.
4. Don’t try to learn too much at a time. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Disc golf is about having fun!
5. Don’t compare yourself to others (in the beginning). When I started, I threw 15 meter drives. Now I can sometimes throw close to a 100 meters, if everything goes better than expected.
6. Pay attention to your body. If some part of it starts to hurt, you are probably doing something wrong. Others are happy to help you with your form and technique.
7. Disc golf is mostly about form, speed and accuracy. Don’t try to throw as hard as you can with power when you start. It will give you some extra meters for sure, but it will also make your arms hurt… and it usually doesn’t help you get better either.
8. Pay attention to what feels good for you. Everyone is an individual, but keep in mind that there are things that work for a few of us, and some things that work for most of us.
9. Don’t think too much. Give it a try!