In a long overdue post Flickline has some great people we want to celebrate! Without further ado let’s welcome the Flickline Touring Team!
A big part of the core values we hold is our commitment to investing in our community. Today's announcement centers on our investment in players. This year Flickline is doing our best to make a significant contribution to four players as they pursue their goals of being the best version of themselves they can be. We would like to tell a story about each of these wonderful people:
Antoni Richard - One of two teenagers on the team and someone we have loved since the first day we met him. Antoni found disc golf at the start of the pandemic and took to it right away. He is a young man now, well on his way to carving out his own place in the world. He is a multisport athlete, excelling as a power forward in basketball as well as being a competitive player in the MPO division in the maritimes. Of his 12 career wins there are at least 3 that are really striking. Antoni won his first A tier title as a mixed jr in the 2021 Nat Sat event in PEI as well as his first tour championship in the same division later that year. Quite possibly his biggest ever win was the 2023 Discmania Open in the MA1 division. He played an incredible weekend to hold off some fierce competition on route to this title. It was a major stepping stone in his career and one that secured the division to move up and play Open. There is another event that should be noted that really speaks to Antonis character, the 2022 World Championship where he played as a Jr. Although his 13th place finish might not catch your eye at first it was the final round of the week that cemented his place in the disc golf world. Antoni shot one off the hot round in the semi-finals of Worlds, with drive after drive of near perfection and a final putt that had all of team Flickline giddy with excitement. It was a glimps into just how high his ceiling could be and something every single member of his cheerleading squad will remember forever. Antoni has been a fixture on team Flickline and is someone we are thrilled to have on the touring team!
Karen Martel - is a long time friend of team Flickline. Going back so long that we’re not even sure when the friendship started. Karen has been instrumental in the growth of disc golf in Quebec and has done more than her fair share of elevating the female side of the game across our country. Last year Karen represented team Canada and will once again have that honour in 2024. She is a wonderful competitor with 18 wins under her belt, including an impressive 7 B tiers in FPO. Last year she had the honor of playing on lead card in the FPO division for the Discmania Open DGPT silver series event. Her hot round on day 1 kept her in that lead card all weekend and her 3 days on camera hopefully got her closer to being a household name for female competitors in Canada.
Dylan Goudey - Is the second of the Flickline teenagers. His impressive 17 career wins look even better when you consider he has only played in 31 events. Dylan has a unique story which we have shared before but is worth a quick recap. Dylan found the game during covid, like a lot of people, but the biggest difference was that Dylan did not have a local course to play on, so he practiced. During the first few months Dylan was encouraged by his dad to build his own baskets to play on, so he did (or more accurately his dad did with Dylans instructions), and he practiced some more. By the time this young 14 year old stepped up to play his first event, which he won by 15 strokes in MA2, he had already put in countless hours of practice and video time. He is the living example of what can happen when you spend more time on reps than playing rounds. This philosophy is not easy but it can have great results. By his own standard 2023 didn’t live up to his expectations but that is what’s fun about sports, you play the game and see what happens. Thanks to back to back Flickline Tour Championships Dylan is only a few days away from opening his own private (open to the public) course in Deerfield NS. This will be his training grounds for this now 17 year old as he works closer every day towards becoming the best professional disc golfer he can be. We here at Flickline are happy to be along for the ride.
Darrell Chipp - Is the 2024 Team Captain for the Flickline Touring Team! Since meeting Darrell on opening day of Newfoundland's first ever public course we knew Darrell had that special something that is hard to quantify. He is driven, self motivated, and understands how to practice. Last year he finished 56th in the world in the global masters series in MP55 averaging 979 rated disc golf. That stat is made even more incredible when you consider that he has been playing for roughly 3 full seasons. As is the theme for all Flickline Touring players, it’s not just his commitment to being a great player that makes him such a great fit. Darrell has done more than his fair share to make his hometown of Stephenville Newfoundland a disc golf destination. He has helped create one of the toughest courses in Canada with the addition of the Whaleback DGC and he has his sights set on cracking the top 50 in the world in his division this year. Everyday disc golf in Newfoundland is better because Darrell is doing his part and we could not be happier that he is a central part of team Flickline.
We are honored to be in a position to help each one of these players become the best versions of themselves they can be. Here's to hoping 2024 is their best season yet!
