Local farm boy takes 5th at PDGA Junior World Championships

Kaleb Skinner in Kansas playing a practice round during the tournament. He is getting prepared and deciding which disc he wants to use for his next throw. -Photo: Submitted by Kristy Skinner

By Tami Stevenson

Kaleb Skinner, a 15 year old, Suwannee County native, took 5th place in the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) Junior World Championships in Emporia, Kansas last month.

His uncle and cousin first got him involved with disc golf in September of 2017. Kaleb caught on to it and soon became addicted to the sport. He played his first non-sanctioned tournament/fundraiser in 2018 and began playing sanctioned tournaments in 2019. He would like to make a career out of disc golf and play professionally, traveling around the nation and even the world someday.

“I can tell you it is definitely the most fun sport I have ever played,” Kaleb told the Suwannee Valley Times.

Disc Golf is growing rapidly in popularity all over the world and in the U. S. It was reported that from 2019 to 2020, there was a 33 percent increase in games played. The sport is becoming so popular, in fact, many traditional golf courses are adding disc golf to the design of their courses. There are two disc golf courses in Live Oak, one at Heritage Park and Gardens and one at the Suwannee Music Park.

This was Kaleb’s first time at the Junior World Championships. He was supposed to go last year, but the event was canceled due to COVID. His cousin, Nolan Law, from DeFuniak Springs, Florida, also attended the Kansas event. Although he didn’t place, he established some bragging rights as he got a hole in one during the event.

During the tournament, Kaleb said he wasn’t really serious about winning, he was just there to enjoy the game. “I just had a blast playing,” he said. He was surprised when he took 5th but said he knew if he played consistent rounds that he would place pretty good, and that rang true for him.

Kaleb said he wanted to encourage anyone that has never played the game before to get on the internet and find out more about it. Disc golf offers physical exercise as well, and as many are finding out, the sport is just plain fun!

Kaleb’s next tournament is scheduled for October 2, 2021, at the National Peanut Festival Disc Golf Classic in Dothan, Alabama. On October 28, 2021, he will play his first tournament for cash prizes, at the NADGT - National Championships in Austin, Texas.

Kaleb has attended Suwannee Virtual School since the seventh grade. He loves it. “I’m a quiet person anyway, and it gives me more time to practice disc golf.”

According to a report from UDisc, 50 million rounds of disc golf were played worldwide last year, which averages to more than 140,000 disc golf rounds per day, or nearly 100 games every minute.