Nate Sexton, who won the United States Disc Golf Championship in 2017, plays a hole at Yokota Air Base, Japan, May 25, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — Frisbee fanatics honed their skills at a weekend clinic hosted by a former disc golf champion at this U.S. airlift hub in western Tokyo.
Nate Sexton, who won the United States Disc Golf Championship in 2017, is a familiar voice to fans of the sport who listen to his commentary of professional disc golf tournaments on YouTube.
“Mentally I think it’s similar to actual golf,” he told Stars and Stripes before Saturday’s clinic on Yokota’s Par 3 golf course, which incorporated disc baskets in January 2023. “I think golfers would be impressed by how close disc golfers can get their throws to the basket.”
About 25 service members and civilians watched Sexton demonstrate grips for forehand and backhand shots and perform throws such as “putting,” where a player attempts to toss a disc into a metal basket at relatively close range.
“There’s endless creativity when you play disc golf,” he said.
It’s possible to throw a disc held upside down, for example, and the rules allow discs to be rolled along the ground for a considerable distance.
Nate Sexton, who won the United States Disc Golf Championship in 2017, demonstrates his forehand technique at Yokota Air Base, Japan, May 25, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
Nate Sexton, who won the United States Disc Golf Championship in 2017, puts on a clinic at Yokota Air Base, Japan, May 25, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
UDisc, a phone application for disc golf scoring and course navigation, lists dozens of courses in Japan, up from only three 20 years ago.
“Japanese disc golf is certainly growing,” said amateur Take Nori, who helped translate for Sexton at Yokota’s clinic.
There’s momentum behind the idea of adding disc golf to the Olympics, said Sexton, who’s scored about 100 holes-in-one since turn pro in 2004.
“It’s some years off but we are taking early steps to position ourselves for that possibility,” he said.
One of the airmen at the clinic, Staff Sgt. Chris Hanson, a member of the U.S. Air Force Band of the Pacific-Asia, is a fan of Sexton’s disc golf commentary.
“He talks about the game in way that a player can learn from how the pros are doing it,” he said.
All you need to play is a disc that you can buy for about $30, said Hanson, who’s been playing the game seriously for about two years.
“Disc golf has a significantly lower barrier to entry than other sports,” he said.