Jonathan Bellingham was supposed to be winding down. Third generation running Cacapon Springs and Farm Resort in Hampshire County — a place where the mineral waters have flowed through American history since the 1700s — he figured maybe he’d play some golf in retirement. He doesn’t like traditional golf, so he went and created the first flingolf PE curriculum in the country instead, licensed it into West Virginia middle and high schools, equipped all of the state parks with gear, and somewhere along the way became the first person to play flingolf on the Old Course at St. Andrews. Normal retirement stuff.
Flingolf is a crossbow-golf hybrid: one stick, same course, same par, same holes, different motion. The learning curve is about twenty minutes. Entry cost is one stick for around $150 — compare that to what it takes to get started in traditional golf. What Jonathan saw was an access and engagement problem, a sport that could get kids outside without the intimidation factor, that families could play together, that PE teachers could teach without a specialized background. He built the curriculum, created a club-to-tour pipeline, and is now taking it international, with a UK team coming stateside for a competition. For someone supposedly retired, he is keeping quite a pace.
Learn more about: FlinGolf / Cacapon Springs and Farm Resort / WV State Parks
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