Photo: Alyssa Van Lanen
2019 was a big year for Canada’s Thomas Gilbert starting with winning the A-tier Challenge at Goat Hill Park. His win over defending champion Seppo Paju, Kevin Jones and A.J. Risley was just BOOM!!!
While his drive for the 2019 Canadian National Win was not to be, his 3rd place finish is still to be marvelled as it took 5X World & 2X USDGC Champion Paul McBeth as well as 1X USDGC and defending 2018 Canadian National Champion Nate Sexton to keep him down.
He then rounded the year out with cashing-in at another A-tier Le Phé-NOMININGUE.
Starting the 2020 season at only 20 years of age we’re certain there are plenty more wins to come. So be a good fellow Canadian and buy his tour disc when you see one and help keep our boy on the Pro tour!
When and how did disc golf enter into your life?
I discovered disc golf through one of my school friends. He knew that I played Ultimate and enjoyed playing golf occasionally. So one day he brought me to the local disc golf course to play.
Did you take to it immediately or did your involvement with the sport grow over time?
I took to it immediately! I was very quickly playing everyday and doing field work during lunch on the school field and practicing putting at night in my basement. I also quickly found local groups and clubs that I joined.
Where did you play your first round of disc Golf?
My first round was at E.T. Seton Disc Golf Course located in the middle of Toronto.
Is this your home course?
This was my home course for a while until I found the Championship course on Toronto Island, however with currently being in University in Sudbury my local course is Lions Club of Sudbury along with the University’s indoor track.
When was the WOOHOO moment when you knew you wanted to go professional?
Probably when I quickly became the farthest throwing player in Canada, I already felt elite!
Where did you gain most of your knowledge about the sport? Friends? Books? Online? Instructors? Etc…
I would say that I gained most of my knowledge from online videos and regular disc golf coverage on YouTube. I did get lucky and was taught proper form from a local pro fairly early on as well.
Did you ever get frustrated with the game to the point of giving it up? If so, what kept you going?
Never, I have definitely gotten frustrated when I’m practicing something trying incredibly hard to learn a new skill with extremely slow progression. However, I always learned to push through it since it is an important stage of becoming that next level athlete.
Tell us about your first year touring full time? Was it about what you expected? Harder or easier?
It matched the dream of what I thought touring was! The toughest part is finding a way to travel from place to place and find a low cost place to stay while you’re staying there. So unless you are planning to spend a lot of money to travel and stay by yourself it’s important to make connections and friends on tour so you can help out each other.
Did someone take you under your wing to offer support?
I have been lucky to find such amazing friends who have helped support me on tour. Pros such as Martin & Sandi Hendel, Kevin Jones, A.J. Risley, and Nate Sexton have really helped me thrive in the tour scene.
How did you fellow Canadians support your efforts on the road?
Anyone who cheers for me or sends kind messages on social media, or purchased one of my tour discs, or has been friendly while coming up in the Ontario Disc Golf scene. All those things help me and my efforts while on the road.
What did your win at The Challenge at Goat Hill mean to you? Did anything in you change after that?
My win at The Challenge @ Goat Hill meant that I can do it. It meant that I could compete at the highest level against the highest level of players.
Watch the Central Coast Disc Golf footage of Thomas Gilbert blasting this disc 663ft to win the distance comp at the 2020 Las Vegas challenge presented by @innovadiscs
Do you agree that a short 9 Basket Par 3 course is better than no course at all?
Yes, absolutely! I think one basket in a park is great, it sparks curiosity and allows people to practice putting and upshots from anywhere around that basket.
Do you think shorter length, 9 hole courses still have the opportunity to solidify new long term players disc golf? If so why?
Yes, like I said, any kind of course can help you work on your disc golf game and help a player gain interest in the game up to the point where they may want to travel to more elite level 18 hole courses.
What is your main argument that every town should have at least one course even if it is a shorter 9 hole course?
I would argue that it is extremely inexpensive to put in a disc golf course in comparison to other sports facilities and equipment. Also the growth of the game needs more courses and have them spread out so some areas don’t have to travel 45+ minutes to get to the closest course.
You came in third at the 2019 Canadian Nationals. Obviously you would have preferred to take the #1 spot, but considering who held you back, do you take consolation knowing you are the best Disc Golfer in Canada?
It definitely still felt really good to compete that well at the 2019 Canadian Nationals, it was cool to see that I was the best performing Canadian that weekend. However, I still feel that I want to prove it to myself by taking the Canadian Nationals Title.
How do you feel Canada compares to the U.S. and other European countries where disc golf has exploded over the last ten years?
I feel that we still have some catching up to do before the disc golf scene in Canada can truly compare to that of the U.S. or Europe.
If something is lacking, what do you think we need to do to see growth at development at an improved/equal rate?
Mainly the number of players in Canada just doesn’t come close to matching the number of players in those countries. I think as the population of disc golf players increases in Canada this will help push the growth of the number of courses, number of tournaments, and level of the events that are run (more A-Tiers, DGPT possibilities)
How would you go about convincing anyone (of all ages) that Disc Golf is something worth becoming involved with? What do you think are the greatest benefits of the sport?
When I try to approach people in hopes to gain their involvement in the sport I will give a really simple idea of how the game is played, let them try it with some of my discs, and highlight a few of the things that are most enjoyable about the sport. The major benefits of the sport is that it is very cheap to get into, you are getting outdoors and enjoying nature, and it’s a fun sport to play with a group of family or friends.
Thomas Gilbert Tip: What is the one tip above all others you can give a beginner to help maintain their interest as well as improve their game?
Create fun ways to practice! If that means going and playing competitive rounds with your buddies or making a putting game when you practice putt, make it fun so you are alway looking forward to the next time you get to play disc golf.
JOHNNY DISC GOLF GETS THE LOWDOWN WITH THOMAS AFTER HIS DISTANCE WIN IN LAS VEGAS.
AND THEN HEAR WHAT NATE SEXTON THINKS THE FUTURE HOLDS FOR OUR THOMAS! 3:30 mark