RUIDOSO: NEW MEXICO’S DISC GOLF HUB

Dynamic Discs New Mexico – Ruidoso, NM

An outdoor playground in southern New Mexico, Ruidoso is known for the sun-baked skiing, the shady forest land, the hiking trails. Oh, and disc golf. Wait, what’s that? Yup, disc golf is quickly becoming a booming draw as two local entrepreneurs work tirelessly to promote the sport that has been growing at a rapid pace.

“In 2019, I took my life savings and financed a six-foot by twelve-foot box trailer. I bought as many Frisbees as I could and traveled all around New Mexico, from Ruidoso to everywhere else, selling Frisbees and discs,” said Everett Brophy, a professional disc golf player and co-owner of Dynamic Discs New Mexico. “I promoted disc sports by running and hosting games. As interest grew, we started hosting more tournaments, selling more discs, and creating our own brand. Then, in 2023, we opened a brick-and-mortar store.”

Riding the wave of popularity brought about by COVID restrictions, disc golf was a perfect way for a stifled public to get out, release tension, and still be socially distanced. So it just made sense to see just how far it could go, said the other owner, Connor Bryan. “Everett had reached out to me, and he’s like, ‘Man, we need to get something going.’ Everett had been selling discs out of a trailer for five years. And he said, ‘Dude, we need to. We’re at a point where we need to grow or kind of put this thing on ice.’ And I said, ‘Let’s do it.’ And so we opened this physical store.”

While the origins of the sport are rather murky, what is known is that the first national event, the American Flying Disc Open, happened in 1975 in Rochester, New York, and the first official disc golf course opened at Oak Grove Park in Pasadena, California, the same year.

But it’s only in the past decade or so that the sport has truly taken flight. “This sport has grown exponentially over time and doubling every 10 years since it was started about 40 years ago,” Bryan pointed out. “But COVID saw a doubling, all on its own. And so it gave like a 10-year jumpstart from where we naturally would have been. Now we’re riding that 10-year exponential growth back to the normal rate. But we think during COVID we saw it grow so much because so much was closed, but the parks stayed open. Even the most stringent of states, like New Mexico, let people go to parks.”

And the courses were just there, waiting for people to discover and enjoy the sport. “The disc golf baskets were already there at the parks, and as people saw them and looked for discs, interest grew a lot,” Bryan said. “Once you throw a Frisbee, you’re hooked because you see the way it flies through the air, how it interacts with the environment. There’s something really magical about that — to know it’s not just a ball that goes up and over and down, but you can make it go left to right or right to left. That’s really special.”

THE HEART OF IT ALL

What’s more, there’s the grandeur of the sport, especially in places like Ruidoso, where the courses are laid out through forests and up and down rolling vistas. As a matter of fact, with five courses in and around the town, Ruidoso can lay claim to being New Mexico’s center of disc golf, with the most courses per capita in the state. And nearby Carrizozo, as well as Cloudcroft, each also have courses, making Lincoln County a disc golf destination.

So much so that in 2025, the first-ever national tournament in New Mexico, the Tim Selinske U.S. Masters Championships, will be on tap in the area.

“Which is an extremely prestigious event,” Brophy said. “In the world of disc golf, there are only 11 majors held every year. It’s really going to put us on the map. The Professional Disc Golf Association told me they had already sent scouts out to Ruidoso. Our little community is literally built for this. We can handle that influx of people on any given day without any warning. When we knock this out of the park, which they and we truly believe we will, we will be part of the disc golf major tour at least every other year for the next 10 years, if not every year, hosting a major here in Ruidoso.”

That means bringing in some 1,000 disc golf enthusiasts for close to a week, a decided economic boost for the area.

“This is on film, featuring the biggest promoters, players, and manufacturers,” Brophy said. “It’s hard to find something to compare it to because when you go to an MLB or NFL game, you go to the stadium, and that’s the deal. When you host a Disc Golf tour event, all those resources are brought to the community. There will be film crews, giant canopies, tents, feather flags, and all these amazing things assembled and built before the event, creating an incredible experience for both players and viewers.”

BUT WHY DISC GOLF

“Honestly, it started as something to do on a Friday afternoon after work to get outside and decompress,” Brophy said. “You know, relax after the week of work and be in nature. It began recreationally, as something inexpensive to do outside, a good way to laugh, joke, and hang out. Then I started getting good at it, and it turned into a passion for improving outdoor recreation in our community. I wanted to compete, put New Mexico on the disc golf map, create courses, leagues, and tournaments, promote our local community, and engage with the youth and others who needed something to do outside. It’s a great sport for the youth — low cost, it gets kids outside, playing, moving their bodies, and away from the computer screen.”

The simple act of tossing a disc in the air and watching it float or soar or glide on the whims of the wind provides a refreshingly relaxing time in the sun. So getting hooked on the sport came pretty easy.

“A friend of mine called me one Friday and said, ‘Hey man, let’s go disc golfing.’ I asked, ‘What is that? What is this hippie sport? Is this golf? Like, what do you mean go throw Frisbees in the woods?’ He said, ‘Don’t knock it till you try it.’ So we went out, and honestly, from that day forward, I was hooked. I loved it—just watching the disc fly, trying to get a lower score every time. There was nothing magical about how I found it; it just took one person being a good ambassador for the sport and saying, ‘Hey man, come on, let’s go play disc golf,’ and me having no idea what he was even talking about.”

For Bryan, he got into the sport in 2006 when he was working at a church camp near Ruidoso and was tasked with helping design a small course for the campers to use. But in so doing, he got caught up in the sport, and it quickly turned into a regular part of his routine. Besides being fun, he said, disc golf is the perfect sport because it’s not just easy to play, but anybody can do it no matter their socio-economic situation.

“There are many of us who are passionate daily players, but we also get people bringing their grandkids out for their first round ever,” Bryan said. “They have one Frisbee between them, and after a round, they say, ‘Oh, man, now we all need one. And now we all need three.’ Because it’s so fun. Wingfield Park, just 100 yards up the hill, has holes that are 200 feet or less, maybe 180 feet to throw. So the kids can play at the playground while others play disc golf, making it very accessible. At worst, it’s a walk in the park. Once you have your Frisbees, you’re out there throwing because there are no green fees.”

BRICK AND MORTAR

“We have grown tremendously as a store,” Brophy said. “We host about 15 tournaments a year now statewide, including the largest tournament in the state of New Mexico.”

Set on a small side street just off the main drag in Ruidoso, Dynamic Discs New Mexico is squeezed into a 750-square-foot shop that has room to grow. It is the hub of disc golf not just in Ruidoso, but likely in New Mexico. Here, hundreds of discs from all the major brands, creating a kaleidoscope of colors, await the golfer. Specialty items, like custom-decorated, swirled, tie-dye discs, are available. Transportable hole cages are for sale. Disc golf carrying bags offer the perfect complement for the budding enthusiast. Advice, tips, and hints are offered free of charge. As a matter of fact, on any given afternoon, the window shopper may just find an old-time barbershop feel to the store as disc golfers of all ages hang out and discuss their latest round, new courses, or great shots.

“I felt like we had worked hard enough to deserve a permanent location where players and people could feel accepted and be part of a family,” Brophy said. “Some players, especially the youth, may not have a great environment at home. But now they have a disc golf store, a place where they can hang out and talk about the sport they love. It’s a safe, family-friendly environment full of people who share the same passion. Adults, kids — everyone. Even if they don’t buy a disc, they come to the shop and hang out. It’s like a permanent cornerstone in their lives now. One of the main motivating factors was that every time I set up the trailer, buddies would come and hang out, not to buy a disc, but to talk about the discs, their game, and new courses they had played. At that point, I felt we were ready to make Dynamic Discs New Mexico a permanent fixture in our community, and the only way to do that was to open a brick-and-mortar store.”

STATEWIDE OUTREACH

And that has become the backbone for a statewide push for disc golf.

“We have grown tremendously. We now sponsor 25 players throughout New Mexico who represent our brand and ideals, doing the same thing we did when we started: engaging the community,” Brophy said. “We’re launching community outreach programs by being ambassadors of the sport. We have players in almost every county in New Mexico now, and we’re always looking for more communities that want us to be involved. If you want these guys to come to your community, send them an email or give them a call. We would love to engage in local community events, programs, school systems, Parks and Rec — anything that gives us a chance to promote disc golf.”

Getting schools and students involved has been a major part of the effort, trying to get it added to the school’s physical education programs and as a way to encourage youngsters to get outside more.

“In 2020, we started going to different schools and talking with principals, superintendents, and PE teachers. We managed to get our foot in the door, engaging with all the classes and youth in gym class to show them the sport of disc golf,” Brophy said. “Of course, some of the troubled youth had a harder time. While everyone was excited about the new activity, the underserved youth were more reserved. However, they are the ones who seemed to find their way to us after those programs or went home and told their parents.”

And those are the youngsters that Brophy, Bryan, and the Dynamic Discs New Mexico team are focusing on reaching.

“At the end of the day, I hate to see people wasting their lives inside. I’m not saying that computers or video games are bad, but just get outside and play,” Brophy pointed out. “Get outside and get active, even if it’s for just an hour a day. Enjoy being outside. It’s a lot of hard work on many days, for no money, but it is by far one of the most fulfilling things I have ever done in my life. So with that said, Connor and I have the passion, and we’re chasing the dream.”

Photos by Roberto E. Rosales Photography Editorial by Glen Rosales

Dynamic Discs New Mexico – Ruidoso, NM