Disc golf has gone from a backyard pastime to one of the fastest growing outdoor sports in the world, and the numbers tell the story better than any anecdote. This 2026 roundup pulls together the most useful, verifiable figures on the sport: how many courses exist, how fast new ones are being built, who is playing, and how much money now moves through the professional and equipment sides of the game. Every statistic below is attributed to its original source so you can trace and reuse it.
Quick answer
There are 17,287 disc golf courses worldwide in 2026 across 99 countries, according to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report. The same report finds annual participation has grown 86 percent since 2020, with three new courses opening per day in 2025. The United States holds 11,165 of those courses.
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Courses and global footprint
The single best measure of disc golf's reach is the number of installed courses. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, there are 17,287 disc golf courses worldwide, of which 11,165 are in the United States. The same report counts 99 countries with at least one disc golf course.
The sport is also remarkably accessible by geography. The UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report estimates that roughly 500 million people now live within 10 km (about 6.2 mi) of a disc golf course, putting a target within an easy drive for a large share of the population in covered regions.
Course distribution is still concentrated in two regions. According to the UDisc blog post Every Country With A Disc Golf Course, about 97 percent of the world's courses sit in North America and Europe, and the United States alone accounts for just under 65 percent of every course on the planet. Outside the United States, Finland leads with 1,118 courses and Canada follows with 958, per the same UDisc blog post.
How the sport is growing
Growth has been steep and steady. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, annual disc golf participation has risen 86 percent since 2020, and in 2025 new courses opened at a rate of three per day. The same report notes that 2026 marks the sixth consecutive year in which more than 1,100 new courses were built annually.
The course-count trend lines back this up. The UDisc 2021 Disc Golf Growth Report recorded 11,566 courses worldwide as of 2020. The UDisc 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report put the figure at 15,205 in 2024. By the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, the worldwide total had reached 17,287, an increase of nearly 50 percent in roughly six years.
Membership in the sport's main sanctioning body grew even faster at its inflection point. According to Innova Discs in The Disc Golf Boom, citing PDGA Demographics and Growth Reports, it took the PDGA 41 years to reach 100,000 members in 2017, but under 4 more years to add the next 100,000, hitting 200,000 members by December 24, 2021.
Participation and play
App data offers a window into how much disc golf is actually being played. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, more than 2 million disc golfers now use the UDisc app, up from 1.4 million in 2023 as reported in the UDisc 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report.
Rounds tracked tell a similar story of scale. The UDisc 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report logged 21.9 million rounds scored in 2023, and the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report recorded 21.2 million rounds in 2025, both far above the 11.7 million rounds the UDisc 2021 Disc Golf Growth Report counted in 2020.
Beyond the apps, broad participation estimates keep climbing. According to Innova Discs in The Disc Golf Boom, citing PDGA Demographics and Growth Reports, at least 4,000,000 people play disc golf globally. Disc golf is also newly on the radar of mainstream sports research: the Sports and Fitness Industry Association 2026 Topline Participation Report, which counts 250 million active Americans, began tracking disc golf among its 126 activities in 2026.
Who plays and how much time they spend
Disc golfers spend serious time on course. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, players logged 32.8 million hours on disc golf courses as tracked by the app, down from the 42.4 million hours the UDisc 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report recorded for 2023.
Women remain a minority of the sport but a growing one. According to the UDisc 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report, female participation grew 15 percent year over year in 2023. The UDisc blog post Women In Disc Golf, citing PDGA figures as of March 1, 2022, reported 5,356 female members out of 76,292 active PDGA members, or about 14 percent. At the elite level, the same UDisc blog reported, using UDisc Live data, that women made up 20 percent of registrants across 80 elite international tour events.
If you are part of that growth and just getting started, a simple three-disc kit such as the Innova Disc Golf Set (Leopard, Shark, Aviar) is the standard on-ramp for new players before they specialize.
The money: prizes, equipment, and economic impact
Disc golf is cheap to play but increasingly lucrative at the top. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, 89 percent of disc golf courses are free to play, a beginner disc costs $15 or less, and installing a 9-hole course typically runs $9,000 to $18,000.
Professional payouts have climbed sharply. According to Innova Discs in The Disc Golf Boom, the average MPO first-place tournament payout across Elite Series events and Majors rose from $4,548 in 2019 to $12,058 in 2022, a 165 percent increase, while the average FPO first-place payout rose from $2,082 to $7,903 over the same period, a 280 percent increase. The same source notes that the 2022 DGPT Championship carried a $302,000 total purse, the largest in disc golf history at the time.
Major events now move real money through their host cities. According to Innova Discs in Economic Impact of Disc Golf's Biggest Tournaments, the 2024 US Disc Golf Championship in Rock Hill, South Carolina produced an economic impact exceeding $3 million, including over $2 million in direct business sales and roughly 5,000 attendees, and the 2024 College Disc Golf National Championship in the same city generated over $1.5 million while supporting more than 330 jobs and 3,500-plus hotel room nights.
The equipment market is scaling alongside the sport. According to a Future Data Stats disc golf market report, the global disc golf equipment market was valued at USD 425 million in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 950 million by 2032, a roughly 10 percent compound annual growth rate.
Sources
UDisc, 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report (2026), the primary source for worldwide and US course counts, country coverage, app users, free-to-play share, course install cost, beginner disc cost, hours on course, rounds recorded, the 10 km access figure, and growth metrics including the 86 percent participation increase and three-new-courses-per-day rate.
UDisc, blog post Every Country With A Disc Golf Course (2026), the source for the North America and Europe share of about 97 percent, the US share of just under 65 percent, and the Finland (1,118) and Canada (958) course counts.
UDisc, 2024 Disc Golf Growth Report (2023 to 2024 data), the source for the 15,205 worldwide course count, 21.9 million rounds, 1.4 million app users, 15 percent female participation growth, 42.4 million hours, and Texas leading US states with 686 courses.
UDisc, 2021 Disc Golf Growth Report (2020 data), the source for the 11,566 worldwide course baseline, 11.7 million rounds baseline, and the US holding about 70 percent of global courses in 2020.
UDisc, blog post Women In Disc Golf (2021 to 2022 data, citing PDGA and UDisc Live), the source for the 5,356 of 76,292 female PDGA membership figure and the 20 percent women's share at 80 elite international tour events.
Innova Discs, The Disc Golf Boom (2022, citing PDGA Demographics and Growth Reports), the source for the PDGA membership milestone timeline, the at least 4,000,000 global players estimate, the MPO and FPO payout growth, and the $302,000 2022 DGPT Championship purse.
Innova Discs, Economic Impact of Disc Golf's Biggest Tournaments (2024), the source for the 2024 US Disc Golf Championship and College Disc Golf National Championship economic impact figures.
Future Data Stats, disc golf market report (2024), the source for the USD 425 million 2024 equipment market value and the USD 950 million by 2032 projection at a 10 percent CAGR.
Sports and Fitness Industry Association, 2026 Topline Participation Report (2025 data), the source for the 250 million active Americans figure and disc golf's inclusion among 126 tracked activities in 2026.
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How many disc golf courses are there in the world?+
There are 17,287 disc golf courses worldwide in 2026, according to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report. The United States holds 11,165 of them, and 99 countries have at least one course. Outside the United States, Finland leads with 1,118 courses and Canada follows with 958.
Is disc golf growing?+
Yes. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, annual participation has grown 86 percent since 2020, three new courses opened per day in 2025, and 2026 was the sixth straight year with more than 1,100 new courses built. The worldwide course count rose from 11,566 in 2020 to 17,287 in 2026.
How many people play disc golf?+
Innova Discs, citing PDGA Demographics and Growth Reports, estimates at least 4,000,000 people play disc golf globally. More than 2 million disc golfers use the UDisc app as of the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, up from 1.4 million in 2023.
What percentage of disc golfers are women?+
According to the UDisc blog post Women In Disc Golf, citing PDGA figures from March 2022, women made up 5,356 of 76,292 active PDGA members, or about 14 percent. The same blog reported that women were 20 percent of registrants across 80 elite international tour events, and the UDisc 2024 report noted 15 percent year-over-year growth in female participation in 2023.
How big is the disc golf equipment market?+
According to a Future Data Stats disc golf market report, the global disc golf equipment market was valued at USD 425 million in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 950 million by 2032, a compound annual growth rate of about 10 percent.
How much does it cost to start playing disc golf?+
Very little. According to the UDisc 2026 Disc Golf Growth Report, a beginner disc costs $15 or less and 89 percent of disc golf courses are free to play. Installing a 9-hole course typically costs a community $9,000 to $18,000.