Stranger in a Strange Land
The DGPT is in full swing, and there are already some amazing storylines developing this season. On the FPO side, Kristen Tattar has already won 4 titles, including the first Major of the year. Isaac Robinson just solidified his place as an elite player with his dominant win in Georgia. We have rising stars like Holyn Handley and Caroline Henderson. We have legends like Catrina Allen and Ohn Scoggins staying relevant. There’s Simon, Calvin, Eagle, and so many more big headlines that keep us thirsting for more disc golf every day. But what about the lesser-known pros out there on tour? There are several players out there just fighting to survive to get to the next event. And there is a massive influx of European players hopping the pond to play all year round. To that end, I was able to catch up to Tony Ferro who has an amazing story to share with the world, so let’s jump into it!
Tony has been living in Switzerland since 2008 and is 39 years young. His journey discovering disc golf was a bit unorthodox. Tony recalls, “I knew of disc golf when I was a teenager, but I played Ice Hockey then and found disc golf to be a bit boring. When I was attending college in 2006 (23 years old), a classmate did a report on Disc Golf and took us all out to the local course to try it out. I started going with him after that and was hooked!” Sure, hockey is exciting, but once you feel what it’s like to make a disc fly the way it’s supposed to, it’s hard to beat it. Tony knew that disc golf was going to be part of the rest of his life.
It was right smack in the middle of the pandemic when Tony and his wife decided to invest and open their own Disc Golf Company, MotivaDiscs based out of Switzerland. Tony says, “It kind of took over our lives. We were so busy with helping other companies and disc golf clubs get started with discs, materials, organizing baskets for new courses, designing, and installing new courses, we even started a new local disc golf tour in 2022 geared toward amateur players called the Discovery Tour with 17 PDGA events. I did not get too much time to play and was really missing the sport.” Anybody who has run an event, much less a tournament series, knows just how much time and resources it takes to run these events successfully. Tony had no idea that his disc golf fix was getting a massive upgrade. Shortly after the tour began, “My wife decided to give me the present of a lifetime and sent me out to the USA for an entire season on the DGPT!”, Tony says. “It is a huge effort to coordinate everything with 2 younger kids still in school, not to mention the house and all that comes with its upkeep. The tour itself was not the only hurdle we needed to jump through to make this dream come true.” I imagine how exponentially difficult it must be to plan and execute a trip of this magnitude all the way from Switzerland. But he was able to pull it off, and now he’s here in the States.
I asked if he had any goals coming into this 2023 Tour Season. Tony says, “I am trying to keep an open mind on the Pro Tour this year. I just want to enjoy every event and experience all these new courses that I get to play, and I know that I can do well, but I am trying not to add unnecessary pressure on myself.” Wise words indeed. He’s already winning just being here and being able to travel the country playing with the best golfers in the world. Tony is fortunate enough to sponsor himself via MotivaDiscs, plus he’s partnered up with Black Zombie Disc Golf for this season. “I really enjoy using their putter, the Chainsaw, I have been using it since 2016 and find it to be one of the best putters ever made,” Tony says. But the financial side of the tour is being done through his own company.
Regarding transportation, Tony had some assistance there as well. He says, “My mother lives in Arizona and was kind enough to loan me her 23ft. motorhome for the season. I have never travelled in a motorhome like this before, so that alone is quite the experience.” Seems like the best way to experience the tour. But it does have its drawbacks. “I am a father of 2 young boys (8 and 10 years old) and normally take care of them full-time. Being away from my family for so long is something I have never experienced before and has proven to be a bit difficult for me. We have organized a few visits during the season so we can all see each other, which really seems to help keep me motivated to continue,” Tony says.
With so many amazing courses on the tour, is there anything Tony is looking forward to? He says, “I am really looking forward to getting into the woods and the more technical side of disc golf. The open ball golf courses I find kind of boring and do not really play to my game.” I think disc golf is best when played in the woods, and Tony will have plenty of opportunity as the tour unfolds. “I do love all the courses that are in the USA. Disc Golf is so established out here. Everywhere you travel to, there are so many courses to play. The DGPT really does a great job of increasing the difficulty of the courses as well. I love the challenges on the Pro Tour Disc Golf courses.”
A stranger in a strange land, Tony speaks to the strangeness of being here. “It is quite different being a “foreigner” on tour. The financial side of it is quite different from most American players, just getting out here costs a lot, then organizing a vehicle and places to stay. I do have dual citizenship, so the athletic permit is something that I don’t need to have that all other Europeans need to acquire if they wish to play the entire tour,” Tony says. As we all know, our community is very friendly and welcoming, so I expect Tony is feeling that hospitality in each city he visits.
But it’s not all coming up roses, as Tony has experienced some negativity. Specifically, he says, “Some things that I dislike on the tour is the course etiquette of some players. During these initial events, I have never had so many discs thrown at me while I am in the middle of the fairway practicing the course. It has proven to be quite dangerous, and I have often needed to address it. Something I would expect from beginners on local courses, but never from professionals.” It’s understandable that during practice rounds these courses are crowded, but let’s all show some restraint when other players are still on the fairways.
In the same way that Tony has had dreams to come to America to play disc golf, many of us have dreams of going to Europe to play. I asked about the scene where Tony is from. “Disc Golf in Switzerland is still very unestablished,” Tony says. “We only have a couple hundred active players in the country and almost all of them are at the amateur level. Now, there are only a handful of players at or near the 1000 rated level in the country. Developing courses is also quite difficult because most of the land is protected by the government in some way. This is one of the main reasons my wife and I started our company, we are trying to help develop Disc Golf in Switzerland by providing insight on course design and getting proper materials to the players and companies.” Perhaps it’s time for MotivaDiscs and the Paul McBeth Foundation to join up? We shall see.
In closing, Tony wanted to sing our praises, so I can’t say no to that! He says, “I really enjoy watching all the coverage that you produce, the commentary is especially entertaining. I am also involved with European disc golf commentary from More Disc Golf and take you guys as inspiration for when I am behind the mic!” Thank you Tony, and good luck on your dream tour this year!
