2024 Fandom Survey: Answering Questions From Our Mailbag

Some final reflections on this year's data.

March 18, 2025 by Josiah Zoodsma in Analysis

Over this offseason, Ultiworld Disc Golf has published nine articles detailing key findings from the 2024 FAR/Ultiworld Disc Golf Fandom Survey. For our final article, we will dip into the mailbag to answer your questions.

First, we wanted to have some fun with PDGA ratings. This was spurred by a mailbag question from last year’s articles. “On average, are the fans of any particular player better (have a higher PDGA rating) than another?” – Brett K.

First, let’s look at the PDGA ratings of respondents of this year’s survey:

• The average rating of all respondents was 878, with the largest bin of respondents being rated between 900 and 909.

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Now we’re going to dive into which players, manufacturers, and podcasts have fans with the highest ratings! Note: we are highlighting this because (1) we can, and (2) it’s fun, but we also wanted to note that having fans with lower average PDGA ratings for a particular player, manufacturer, or podcast isn’t a bad thing. For instance, it could indicate that the group does a fantastic job catering to newer players (who typically have lower ratings). We only included players, manufacturers, and podcasts with sample sizes of at least 15 and used medians to reduce the effect of outliers on the results. Disclaimers aside, let’s get into it!

• Which MPO player has fans with the highest/lowest median PDGA rating?
  • Highest: Aaron Gossage (905)
  • Lowest: Paul Ulibarri (859)
• Which FPO player has fans with the highest/lowest median PDGA rating?
  • Highest: Juliana Korver (901)
  • Lowest: Holyn Handley (863)
• Which manufacturer has fans with the highest/lowest median PDGA rating?
  • Highest: Prodigy (912)
  • Lowest: Lone Star (850)
• Listeners of which podcast have the highest/lowest median PDGA rating?
  • Highest: Fish Golf Brah-dcast (891)
  • Lowest: Disc Golf Daily (865)

How about how far you throw?

• As expected, throwing distance directly correlates with player rating. Every increase in max distance, resulted in an increase in median PDGA rating.

Let’s look at ratings relative to when you started playing (since 2000?).

• This chart shows PDGA ratings for respondents who started playing disc golf each year since 2000. Based on this graph, ratings seem to increase dramatically in the first four years of playing, and then plateau.
• The dramatic increase in rating early on could suggest that players are competing in tournaments early in their playing career, improving their game over time. This likely indicates that during this period, experience is the predominant driving factor.
• The plateau around 895 following the first four years of competing is particularly interesting. It could be related to several factors, such as the ability to hone in their form or the possible waning of the time committed to improving their game after the first few years. What do you think is driving this?

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The article that was released in Dec. 2024 about the most popular discs inspired readers to send in a few interesting questions.

We reported the answers to the question, “What is your favorite disc?” and noted that across the 4210 responses, over 500 different molds were selected at least once. We also noted that over 200 of these molds had exactly one respondent indicating it was their favorite. An Ultiworld Discord member, april_lkd, asked which molds were selected only once, which we present as a list below. If you filled out the survey and saw your favorite disc on this list, you were the only person who wrote that disc in!

Discs	Speed
ABC Discs Bee Line	14
AGL Baobab	4
Alfa Apollo	5
Alfa Atlantis	9
Alfa Cosmic	8
Axiom Atom	3
Axiom Fireball	9
Axiom Panic	13
Axiom Paradox	5
Axiom Thrill	11
Ching Oracle	4
Clash Berry	5
Clash Honey	4
Clash Lotus	8
Clash Peppermint	4
Clash Salt	12
Daredevil Discs Woodchuck	2
DGA Hellfire	10
DGA Hurricane	12
DGA Rogue	11
DGA Sail	11
DGA Shockwave	4
DGA Tempest	13
Disc Golf UK Baron	4
Discmania Astronaut	12
Discmania Gremlin	5
Discmania MD	5
Discmania MD5	5
Discmania Method	5
Discmania Mutant	5
Discmania P1x	2
Discmania PD3	12
Discmania Splice	9
Discmania Vanguard	9
Discraft Archer	5
Discraft Avenger	10
Discraft Banger	2
Discraft BuzzzGT	5
Discraft BuzzzOS	5
Discraft Captains Raptor	9
Discraft ChallengerOS	2
Discraft Crank	13
Discraft Cyclone	7
Discraft Flick	12
Discraft Glide	6
Discraft Hornet	5
Discraft Impact	6
Discraft Machete	11
Discraft Magnet	2
Discraft Malta	5
Discraft NukeOS	13
Discraft Predator	9
Discraft Ringer	4
Discraft Roach	2
Discraft Venom	13
Discraft XS	8
Discraft ZoneOS	4
Divergent Discs Kraken	8
Divergent Discs Golem	4
Doomsday Landmine	2
Dynamic Discs Bounty	4
Dynamic Discs Captain	13
Dynamic Discs Criminal	10
Dynamic Discs Enforcer	12
Dynamic Discs Evidence	5
Dynamic Discs Freedom	14
Dynamic Discs Marshal	3
Dynamic Discs Warrant	2
Finish Line Supra	5
Full Turn Discs Drifter	9
Gateway ChiefOS	3
Gateway Journey	11.5
Gateway Prophecy	5
Gateway Spirit	12
Gateway Voodoo	2
Gateway Warlock	2
Infinite Discs Anubis	5
Infinite Discs Aztec	10
Infinite Discs Pharaoh	13
Infinite Discs Roman	10
Innova Archon	11
Innova Bullfrog	3
Innova Caiman	5.5
Innova Condor	3
Innova Cro	5
Innova Firefly	2
Innova Foxbat	5
Innova Goblin	3
Innova Gorgon	10
Innova Groove	13
Innova Juggernaut	12
Innova Kite	5
Innova Monster	10
Innova Panther	5
Innova Ram	6
Innova Rancho Roc	4
Innova RocX3	5
Innova Skeeter	5
Innova SL	10
Innova Super Stingray	4
Innova Vcobra	5
Innova Whippet	6
Innova Wolf	4
Innova XD	3
Kastaplast Älva	11
Kastaplast BergX	1
Kastaplast Rask	14
Kastaplast RekoX	3
Kastaplast Svea	5
Kastaplast Vass	12
Latitude 64 Culverin	9
Latitude 64 Faith	2
Latitude 64 Flow	11
Latitude 64 Fury	9
Latitude 64 Gobi	6
Latitude 64 Mercy	2
Latitude 64 Pearl	4
Latitude 64 Pioneer	9
Latitude 64 Spike	4
Latitude 64 SPZ3	9
Latitude 64 strive	13
Latitude 64 Vision	8
Latitude 64 XXX	7
Latitude 64 Zion	9
Legacy Bandit	9
Legacy Cannon	14
Legacy Mongoose	9
Legacy Rival	7
Loft Bohrium	14
Loft Hydrogen	1
Lone Star Dillo	1
Lone Star Frio	7
Lone Star Harrier	13
Lone star Lone wolf	5
Lone Star Penny Putter	3
Lone Star Tumbleweed	10
Lone Star Warbird	12
Meridian Discs Ravine	5
Millenium Omega Supersoft	2
Millennium Aurora MS	4
Millennium Falcon	13
Millennium Orion LS	9
Millennium Polaris	6
Millennium QJLS	7
Millennium QMS	4
Millennium SS Omega	2
Mint Freetail	10
Mint Grackle	7
Mint Lasso	3
Mint Mustang	5
Mint Phoenix	9
MVP Impulse	9
MVP Matrix	5
MVP Ohm	2
MVP Relativelty	14.5
MVP Spin	2.5
MVP Teleport	14.5
MVP Vector	4
Neptune Nautilus	5
Ocean Discs Sea Turtle	5
Plastic Addicts Habit	3
Prodigy A4	4
Prodigy D6	12
Prodigy Distortion	4
Prodigy F1	8
Prodigy Feedback	9
Prodigy FX3	9
Prodigy H3V2	10
Prodigy M2	5
Prodigy P Model S	6
Prodigy P Model US	4
Prodigy PA1	3
Prodigy PA4	3
Prodigy PA5	3
Prodiscus Troija	5
RPM Kiwi	10
RPM Pekapeka	9
RPM Piwakawaka	6
RPM Ruru	2
Sacred Discs Gnome	2
Streamline Runway	5
Streamline Stabilizer	3
ThoughtSpace Animus	11
ThoughtSpace Mana	5
Thoughtspace Synapse	12
Thoughtspace Temple	4
Vibram Arch	8
Vibram Vamp	7
Viking Discs Fenrir	10
Viking Discs valhala	12
Westside Adder	13
Westside Crown	3
Westside Fortress	10
Westside Giant	13
Westside Pine	5
Westside Queen	14
Westside Sling	5
Wild Discs Sea Otter	2
Wild Discs Tasmanian Devil	9
Wingman Havran	5
Yeet Street Petra	5
Yikun Fu	7
Yikun Gui	2

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On a recent episode of the Ultiworld disc golf podcast, The Upshot, Charlie and Josh discussed the potential breakdown of each manufacturer’s favorite discs by speed. For example, do some manufacturers have a lot of favorite discs that are drivers but no midranges?

Below is a chart that shows the same graph in the original article, grouping respondents’ favorite discs by manufacturer, but now we have overlaid the disc type.

• The two companies where putters were clearly their most popular product were Kastaplast (fueled by the popularity of the Berg) and Gateway (Wizard).
• For Discraft, we can see the sterling reputation of their midranges. The Buzzz and the Zone were the first and second most popular discs overall. Indeed, over half of all Discraft favorited discs were midranges.
• In contrast, Innova dominates in control and distance drivers. The Wraith, Destroyer, Firebird, and Teebird all were in the Top-10 molds. Drivers made up roughly 70% of the favored Innova discs.
• For reference, across all brands, 14% of favorite molds were putters, 34% were midranges, 31% were control drivers, and 21% were distance drivers.

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In response to a social media post on Reddit, user TomRiha inquired about the regionality of disc sales. For example, how do company and/or player sales differ between the United States and Europe?

Here are four comparisons between respondents from Europe and the United States:

1) Which manufacturers’ discs do you currently bag?

• Latitude 64 and Discmania were found in the bag of over 60% of European respondents, but only approximately 42% of respondents from the United States. On the flipside, Discraft and MVP were more likely to be found in the bag of American respondents.

2) Tour Series Discs: Which players sell the most tour/signature series discs just among European respondents?

• Kristin Lätt takes over the top spot from Simon Lizotte when just considering European respondents. Niklas Anttila cracks the Top 5, replacing Calvin Heimburg when comparing all respondents’ data.

3) Which players have the largest disparity in tour/signature series disc sales between American and European respondents?

• Significantly more tour/signature discs were purchased for Calvin Heimburg, Paige Pierce, and Missy Gannon by Americans than European respondents.
• In contrast, European fans were more likely to purchase tour/signature discs for Niklas Antilla, Kristin Lätt, and Väinö Mäkelä than Americans.

4) What is your favorite disc? Grouped by the manufacturer of favorite disc:

• European respondents were far more likely to have a favorite disc from Latitude 64 (+12.2%), Discmania (+9.9%), and Kastaplast (+4.0%) compared to American respondents.

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In 2023, we answered the mailbag question, “On the survey was a question about whether or not I felt transgender women should be able to compete in FPO. Are we going to see that data?”. We received several questions this year regarding this same topic. Here, we summarize the responses to the question, “What is your general opinion on the inclusion of trans women in the FPO division?”.

• Across the board, the majority of respondents did not feel that transgender women should be permitted to compete in FPO.
• We included separate bars to show how the opinion varied between all respondents, respondents who were PDGA members, respondents who were DGN subscribers, and respondents who indicated that they were either a man or a woman.
• Women respondents had the greatest deviation from the average, showing a greater agreement with the inclusion of trans women in the FPO division as compared to the average respondent.

Collectively, these data highlight the varied opinions regarding this topic in the sport. For further facts and discussion on this topic, I encourage you to read this Ultiworld Disc Golf article and the updated PDGA ruleset.

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Casey Pennington, a professional disc golfer and active Ultiworld Discord member, submitted the following set of questions about the methodology and interpretation of the survey results:

“What are your thoughts about the makeup of your respondent pool over time?
How much has it changed, and do you think year-over-year comparisons are valid?
How representative do you think your sample size is of the larger disc golf population?
From which demographics would you like to get more respondents in the future?
How much weight do you think various stakeholders (players, sponsors, media, PDGA, DGPT) should give this data?”

I, as well as the rest of the team at First Available Research, LOVE these types of questions and want to emphasize how integral thinking about these topics is to the proper design and interpretation of survey results. Thank you for asking them and giving us a forum for discussion here in this mailbag segment!

All interpretations of data in the Fandom Survey articles have to be looked at through the scope of who the survey respondents are. Highlighting how vital this point is, the first article we release annually always outlines who our survey respondents are and how they heard about the survey.

We recognize that our survey respondents are likely more involved in disc golf than the average member of the disc golf community. This is, in part, because they are simultaneously the easiest to get the survey to and the most motivated to take part. We always aim to sample a representative portion of the disc golf community. As the survey has grown in scope, our team has thought very intentionally about how we advertise and disseminate the survey to try to accomplish this.

What does this look like in practice?

• This year, for the first time, we partnered with the DGPT to help disseminate the Fandom Survey. We advertised the survey on both DGN and JomezPro so that fans of professional disc golf who watch live or post-produced coverage could have access to the survey.
• We also partnered with the PDGA to try to get the survey into the hands of disc golf community members who may not follow the professional side of the sport.
• We intentionally did NOT advertise through specific players or manufacturers. Given how many questions in the survey focus on the fandom of players and manufacturers, advertising through these means would likely skew the response rates in the survey to fans of specific groups. Instead, we promoted the survey through podcasts not directly associated with a particular professional player.

Partnering with the DGPT and PDGA has 100% made the 2024 Fandom Survey a better representation of the disc golf community compared to the 2023 and 2022 iterations. Casey is correct, though, in noting that this development of the survey could result in some inaccuracies in the year-over-year trends we report. We always try to leave room for this possibility. Here is a quote from the second article in the series,

“Changes in Fandom Score between 2023 and 2024 are likely a combination of (1) real changes in the fandom of disc golf fans and (2) differences in the survey population between the two years. Notably, in 2024, more survey respondents found the survey through watching live or post-produced disc golf, and fewer found it through social media sites. These factors may partially explain some of the increase in Fandom Score of successful touring players like Ricky Wysocki and Paul McBeth, and the decrease in players like Brodie Smith who are prolific in the disc golf social media scene.”

Did Brodie Smith become significantly less popular over the last year? Or did the 2023 Fandom Survey have a disproportionate amount of Brodie Smith fans relative to the broader disc golf community? It’s impossible for us to disentangle these two possibilities, so we try our best to state outright what could be going into these year-over-year changes.

We always seek a more representative sample of the disc golf community in our survey. The more representative the sample we collect, the less we expect the “difference in the survey population between years” to be a factor. We have exciting new advertising plans and potential partners for the 2025 Fandom Survey that will hopefully continue this trend toward collecting a more representative sample.

Two quick answers to two other questions from above:
1) “From which demographics would you like to get more respondents in the future?”

There are many groups currently underrepresented in the sport of disc golf. We at FAR, and our partners, all believe it is critical to understand more about members of underrepresented groups and how they intersect with the sport that we love. How did they find the sport? What are the barriers to their continued or increased involvement in the sport? These questions are important to better understand for ALL respondents but are especially important for members of groups who are underrepresented.

The classic example of an underrepresented group in disc golf is women, who make up under 10% of active PDGA members. We did additional, intentional work disseminating the Fandom Survey this year to increase the number of women respondents to have a larger sample to understand these questions. We hope to build on these numbers again in 2025! Additionally, disc golfers in emerging disc golf regions are groups that we would love to sample more. How do they consume professional disc golf and interact with the sport? Greater numbers of responses from these subgroups would allow for more thorough and detailed analysis, hopefully yielding a better holistic understanding to these questions for these populations.

2) “How much weight do you think various stakeholders (players, sponsors, media, PDGA, DGPT) should give this data?”

One strength of the Fandom Survey is being able to look at how different topics intersect. One great example is the work done in this article, looking at how respondents’ favorite disc golf manufacturer changes based on when they began playing the sport. Analyses of intersections like this are unlikely to be accessible to many professional disc golf stakeholder groups, which highlights the value of the Fandom Survey. We provide our partners, such as the PDGA, with this type of analysis which they can use along with their own data to better inform the decisions they make. If I were to answer this question in one sentence: “Survey data is never perfect, but it can be both useful and informative while occasionally being the only way to get certain data points.”

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We’ll finish off the Mailbag with an open-ended set of questions from Ultiworld Discord member BenM, who asks the following three questions:

1) “What is the most interesting thing each of you learned this year doing the survey?”

• I asked the creator of the Fandom Survey and co-writer on many of these pieces, Jesse Weisz, this question, and he responded, “The mold variety in the favorite disc question… that blew my mind!”. Jesse was referring to how we had over 500 molds selected for the “What is your favorite disc?” question totaling nearly a quarter of all molds ever created!
• The most interesting data we presented this year, to me, is the data in the “What Drives Fans to Root for Certain Players” article. For the first time, we were able to dig into the “Why?” question about player fandom. The unbiased screens linking specific players to reasons for fandom were some of my favorite analyses. My favorite takeaway from this article was how low “They are a winner” consistently finished in these questions, highlighting that winning itself isn’t enough, but rather it opens the door for players to get screen time to highlight their personality and show their playstyle, amongst other things!

2) “What is the most surprising data anecdote?”

When we first put together the article, “Which Pros Do We Root For (and Against)?”, we were shocked by how large of a jump Ricky Wysocki had in Fandom Score from last year – nearly twice that of any other player! We spent an entire evening digging into every possible cross-tabulation explanation for his bump in Fandom Score. Were respondents from a specific group big Ricky fans? Were there more respondents this year who were also fans of his sponsor? After a whole night of increasingly ludicrous ideas, I finally just came to terms (Jesse has not) with the fact that, across the board, everyone was just rooting for Ricky more!

3) “What things are you hoping to learn or get from next year’s survey?”

We are so excited for the 2025 Fandom Survey! We have already begun building it and are preparing for another great year. We look forward to sharing it with you this summer! The three things I am most excited about are: (1) getting year-over-year data on questions we introduced for the first time this year; (2) intentionally digging a little deeper into player fandom and understanding how respondents’ favorite players have changed over time; and (3) the addition of some more fun talking-point questions like, “What’s the ideal length of time for post-produced content?” and “Should we change step-putt rules in professional disc golf?”.

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For anyone who has made it this far in the article, and series, thank you so much for sticking with us until the end. We will be releasing the 2025 Fandom Survey this summer! With your help, we can further the goal of the Fandom Survey to better understand the disc golf community and help guide the sport we love forward in a data-driven way.

• If you are interested in learning more about the team and research goals at First Available Research, click here!
• If you want to be notified of the publication of future articles in this series and/or want to take future disc golf surveys from our group, click here!
• If you have any questions, comments or mailbag topics for future articles, submit them here!

Special thanks to Lauren Campbell, who was instrumental in developing our research plan and assisting with survey design. Also, thanks go out to the Fandom Survey’s editor, Karl Lamothe. Jesse Weisz also helped edit this piece.

Please see the full series of 2024 articles by following these links:

• • • The Survey Itself & Who Took It
    • Which Pros Do We Root For and Against
    • What Drives Fans to Root for Certain Players?
    • How Fans Feel about Disc Manufacturers
    • Fan Relation to Discs
    • How Fans Feel about Media and Commentators
  • • Which Courses on Tour are Fan Favorites?
    • Fans are Players Too
    • Predictions for the 2025 DGPT Season
    • Answering Questions From Our Mailbag

Links for the 2023 and 2022 Fandom Series articles can be found here.