Disc Golf Fun: Play the Social Game
Author: Max Warfield
A somber trend that shows no signs of slowing down is the loneliness epidemic. Social disconnection is a prevalent issue, a multi-dimensional issue worsened by the many stresses of today. It has a strong connection to depression, anxiety and substance abuse.
Loneliness has long been experienced by amputees due to compounding factors such as social isolation and stigma, and aging with a disability. There is a psychology to grieving a limb that can lead to loneliness. Decreased mobility can lead to reduced opportunities for social activity.
Suggested strategies to combat being lonely include support groups, peer mentorship, routines, creative endeavours and hobbies. Ah-ha… enter disc golf, an inclusive, inexpensive sport that is growing in popularity and combines all of these coping mechanisms.
If you can throw something, you can play disc golf. The motto of the sport is, “he or she who has the most fun, wins!”
Jeff MacKeigan and Cara Hovius, founders of Toronto’s ChainLink Disc Golf, design and install courses, run disc golf tournaments and events and are completely enamoured with the community spirit that this sport encourages. “We love the inclusive nature of disc golf,” says Hovius. “We focus on making spaces that anybody in the community can enjoy.”
Disc golf delivers a long list of accepted health benefits like improved flexibility, confidence, hand-eye coordination, endurance, independence and weight loss. And it’s an inexpensive hobby with most courses, and the sunshine and Vitamin D they provide, being free to play.
The physical payoffs are many, but the mental health gains are priceless. A common recommendation for loneliness, depression, anxiety management and stress relief, is to go for a walk in the park. Disc golf is that with a purpose. It inspires mindfulness, fosters mental clarity and reduces stress. The course is a sanctuary for rejuvenation filled with camaraderie and the social benefits of making new friends and being part of a community.
Suggested strategies to combat being lonely include support groups, peer mentorship, routines, creative endeavours and hobbies. Ah-ha… enter disc golf, an inclusive, inexpensive sport that is growing in popularity and combines all of these coping mechanisms.
If you can throw something, you can play disc golf. The motto of the sport is, “he or she who has the most fun, wins!”
Jeff MacKeigan and Cara Hovius, founders of Toronto’s ChainLink Disc Golf, design and install courses, run disc golf tournaments and events and are completely enamoured with the community spirit that this sport encourages. “We love the inclusive nature of disc golf,” says Hovius. “We focus on making spaces that anybody in the community can enjoy.”
Disc golf delivers a long list of accepted health benefits like improved flexibility, confidence, hand-eye coordination, endurance, independence and weight loss. And it’s an inexpensive hobby with most courses, and the sunshine and Vitamin D they provide, being free to play.
The physical payoffs are many, but the mental health gains are priceless. A common recommendation for loneliness, depression, anxiety management and stress relief, is to go for a walk in the park. Disc golf is that with a purpose. It inspires mindfulness, fosters mental clarity and reduces stress. The course is a sanctuary for rejuvenation filled with camaraderie and the social benefits of making new friends and being part of a community.
The Canadian Coalition for Seniors’ Mental Health CCSMH defines loneliness as a distressing subjective feeling “that accompanies the perception that one’s social needs are not being met by the quantity and quality of one’s social relationships.”
The CCSMH makes a distinction, referring to “social isolation” as “having few social relationships or infrequent social contact with others.” Due to a number of factors, the amputee community may bear this burden more sharply than the general population.
Disc golf is a wonderful response to this for people of any athletic ability, a trait that Jeff and Cara esteem greatly. “We quit our corporate jobs and started a disc golf business full-time,” said Jeff. “I also became a part-time professor, and we started a psychometrics business which works with corporations to improve self-awareness and emotional intelligence within workplace environments.
In 2026 ChainLink Disc Golf will launch its 37th course. “We are so busy with disc golf,” tells Jeff. “It will be the City of Toronto’s eighth disc golf course.” Since the 1980s, Toronto (the fourth largest city in North America) had only two disc golf courses. “It took thirty years for a third course to be put into the ground,” he explains. “We are so proud of our role in the growth. One of the things that we’ve found, from a psychometrics perspective, is that just getting outside and focusing on one throw at a time, can change participants’ outlook on life. That’s a very important thing. We’re very much caught up in a world where we are always competing against each other. Having fun as part of a community is what matters most.”
Disc golf is a wonderful response to this for people of any athletic ability, a trait that Jeff and Cara esteem greatly. “We quit our corporate jobs and started a disc golf business full-time,” said Jeff. “I also became a part-time professor, and we started a psychometrics business which works with corporations to improve self-awareness and emotional intelligence within workplace environments.
In 2026 ChainLink Disc Golf will launch its 37th course. “We are so busy with disc golf,” tells Jeff. “It will be the City of Toronto’s eighth disc golf course.” Since the 1980s, Toronto (the fourth largest city in North America) had only two disc golf courses. “It took thirty years for a third course to be put into the ground,” he explains. “We are so proud of our role in the growth. One of the things that we’ve found, from a psychometrics perspective, is that just getting outside and focusing on one throw at a time, can change participants’ outlook on life. That’s a very important thing. We’re very much caught up in a world where we are always competing against each other. Having fun as part of a community is what matters most.”
Traditional golfers and disc golf enthusiasts have plenty in common, often goals that are aligned without realizing it.
Explains Cara: “Park staff and conservation staff tell us that disc golf courses are ‘what they need’ to get people outside and back into nature. Disc golf is a fun way to use their spaces… places that provide a way for people to get their steps in.”
For those with mobility limitations and an interest in disc golf, the app Udisc tells you on your phone or laptop how long the course is, if it is steep or rugged, and even provides a course rating for mobility and current conditions.
“Every new course that we create is put on Udisc,” assures Jeff. The accessibility data is based on a three-tier system: not accessible, (such as forests and rocky), limited, or fully accessible. As designers we take differing needs and abilities into account. Are there paths? Benches? Curbs to be navigated?”
In Jeff’s opinion, the best part of their game is about personal growth. It’s not about beating your friend or somebody else. “More of that, I think, makes the world a better place.”
“We know that disc golf has the ability to change people’s lives,” adds Cara. “We’ve heard from many people who have shared their stories about hard times. They needed something to get through it and turned to disc golf as that thing. It became that thing that got them outside, and meeting new people. And then of course there’s the physical aspect of it too. And a mental break during hectic days… all wonderful things that can really help people with what they are going through. Disc golf has huge value. Give it a try.”
About the Author: Max Warfield, thrive magazine’s lead feature writer, author of numerous novels and an avid disc golf enthusiast. Always eager to dig deep into his assignments, he excels at exploring real-world problems and solutions and how they impact the amputee community.
For those with mobility limitations and an interest in disc golf, the app Udisc tells you on your phone or laptop how long the course is, if it is steep or rugged, and even provides a course rating for mobility and current conditions.
“Every new course that we create is put on Udisc,” assures Jeff. The accessibility data is based on a three-tier system: not accessible, (such as forests and rocky), limited, or fully accessible. As designers we take differing needs and abilities into account. Are there paths? Benches? Curbs to be navigated?”
In Jeff’s opinion, the best part of their game is about personal growth. It’s not about beating your friend or somebody else. “More of that, I think, makes the world a better place.”
“We know that disc golf has the ability to change people’s lives,” adds Cara. “We’ve heard from many people who have shared their stories about hard times. They needed something to get through it and turned to disc golf as that thing. It became that thing that got them outside, and meeting new people. And then of course there’s the physical aspect of it too. And a mental break during hectic days… all wonderful things that can really help people with what they are going through. Disc golf has huge value. Give it a try.”
About the Author: Max Warfield, thrive magazine’s lead feature writer, author of numerous novels and an avid disc golf enthusiast. Always eager to dig deep into his assignments, he excels at exploring real-world problems and solutions and how they impact the amputee community.
