At last week's Glow League in Penticton, Darren Hogg just flung his neon saucer towards a laser basket during a game of disc golf.

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There’s a park in Penticton where flying saucers begin to glow once the sun goes down on Wednesdays.

That’s when the Glow League lights up the Marina View Disc Golf Course, where players aim to glide their their neon discs into illuminated metal baskets.

“It’s a very different game at night,” said Elaine Dickers. “Your perception is totally different. It’s way more relaxed, and seeing all the glowing discs fly at night is pretty fun.”

Players make their glow-in-the-dark discs extra bright by charging them up with flashlights.

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Dickers is an ultimate frisbee veteran which made disc golf even easier to learn.

But the rules are much more similar to golf – try and get the frisbee into the basket in as few throws as possible. Another similarity is that players don’t have to be athletic to be good at it.

Many of the players at the Glow League last Wednesday joined over the past two years, as disc golf was one of the few activities that could be played while COVID-related restrictions were in place.

The league has been experiencing significant growth since 2019, when there were just 46 members. That number grew to 92 in 2020, and last year there were 122 members.

The Marina View Disc Golf Course in Penticton.

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Dylan Warrington is one of the members who joined the league towards the start of the pandemic. He played about 10 years ago in high school.

“I just wanted to get outside so I decided to come out here and give it a whirl again. It was nice to get out of the house too in early 2020.”

Warrington says it’s a fun, casual sport, and there is always room for more people.

“Everybody will be welcoming and having fun,” he said. “It’s great fun to be out here to have some fun with the boys.”

The Glow League is part of the Penticton Disc Golf Club, which is organized by Sean Cochran.

“You can learn disc golf in a day but never master it in a lifetime,” he said.

The game is embraced by players of all skill levels, and in the age range of 3 to 85.

READ MORE: New Okanagan disc golf course lands in Vernon

Cochran said Marina View is one of the best courses for beginners because the holes aren’t too far apart and it only has a few trees and obstacles to worry about.

It’s a good time of year for the Glow League, as temperatures are warming up and the sky is still pretty dark by 7 p.m.

“It’s pretty cool when there’s nothing else to see but pitch black and your glowing disc flying through the air.”

Anybody interested in playing can drop in with a group or as a single. Games start on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. and there is a $2 drop-in fee. 

“There are always groups that are willing to take new players,” he said. “That’s the nice thing about the disc golf community is everyone’s willing to help everyone else because we all started somewhere.”

Cochran recommends bringing a bottle of water, running shoes, and to dress for weather.

He said the gear, including starter sets, can be found at SmartShopper on Main Street, or through his website Just4fun.

Wayne Cartwright is all smiles as he gets ready to hurl his disc during Glow League golf in Penticton.

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Although the end of pandemic restrictions seems to be near, Cochran said the sport continues to “explode.”

Work is underway to build courses in Oliver and Keremeos and Cochran has plans for more after that. Currently the only other course in the Penticton area is at 3 Blind Mice.

Cochran is also the admin of the SmartShopper Disc Golf group.

READ MORE: McArthur Island Park getting 18-hole disc golf course

Up north at the Kamloops Disc Golf Club, members have organized the Tournament Capital Open, which offers a prize pool of $5,000 and has nearly reached its maximum number of registrations of 360. It runs from May 27 to 29.

The club in Kamloops has also seen substantial growth over the past two years. Last year, there were more than 200 members compared to fewer than 100 in 2019.

And “2022 is already on its way to breaking another membership record,” according to their Facebook page.

When disc golfers like Christine Tevlin come within a few meters of the basket, it is then considered putting.

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