Usually insidious Niklas Anttila exuded devotion when he became the first Finnish man to secure a hard-level Disc Golf Pro Tour (DGPT) event victory in Texas, USA, on Sunday.
Anttila has been aiming for first place on the tour for a couple of years now. A week earlier, Anttila finished second in the DGPT competition with one throw. He has two runner-up finishes in prestigious tournaments in recent years.
– It does feel very good. This has been a long-term goal that I haven’t even dared to say out loud. I’ve kept it to myself a bit. A long time has been worked towards this, says Anttila.
The rest of the Finnish team also celebrated after Anttila’s victory was decided. According to Anttila, the Finnish victory on the men’s tour has been the common goal of Finnish frisbee golf. The first Finnish winner of the DGPT tour is Eveliina Salonen.
– This has probably been a dream for at least 4-5 years and now it’s true.
Finns like to throw objects
As a relatively new sport, Frisbeegolf has only rarely been in the headlines of the Finnish media. Anttila hopes that the visibility brought by her victory will increase the appreciation and recognition of frisbee golf in Finland.
– I believe that quite a lot of people have noticed that frisbee golf is no longer just a sport for fun. This is played very seriously and as a profession, and you can make a good living from the sport, says Anttila.
– I hope that this victory shows and proves, especially to the Finnish juniors, that we can win anywhere, even though we play in Finland and we have long and cold winters, that is not an obstacle.
Anttila paid $10,000 for his first place. The 22-year-old thrower from Kuopio has become the first Finnish professional frisbee golfer to earn more than $100,000 in his career.
The Frisbee star sees that the easily addictive sport has many potential enthusiasts and followers in Finland.
– Finns like to throw things and watch when something flies. This combines quite a lot of things that I at least value myself.
Although the United States is the clear number one country for frisbee golf, the sport is also clearly overshadowed by, for example, American football, baseball and basketball.
– There is no way you can compare them and you can hardly ever replace them, but the sport is growing here all the time, and this is where the world’s biggest tour is played. However, the United States is the powerhouse of the sport and the DGPT tour could be compared to hockey’s NHL.
Holari didn’t hesitate
Anttila’s winning score on Sunday was -27 before coming in second Kyle Klein (-26). Calvin Heimburg was third (-25).
The Finn started the final round from the top spot, but Klein, who played the top round -12, made the race tight. Klein waited at the finish line when Anttila was required to putt more than ten meters on the last two fairways, which he succeeded in.
The final day was exceptional, as the game was suspended for a long time due to thunder. In the end, the final round was shortened by three fairways. Anttilan says that playing the race to the end was unclear for a long time.
– I just tried to keep my mind in the competition and maintain such an attitude that today we will play the whole round. I did not give power to the thought that this would be here, and the victory would be mine that way.
Anttila had a handsome hole-in-one on the 10th fairway of the first round, which the Finn didn’t feel too bad about, because he had received a time warning, so a couple of shots had to be taken care of faster than usual. The double bogey that happened earlier also curbed the festive spirit.
– There would be quite a lot of luck on the way, if the truth be told. Without a basket, the throw would probably have gone out of the playing area, and there would have been a penalty throw. Glad it went to the basket.
There have now been three rounds of the season’s DGPT tour. Second in the men’s overall race, 10.5 points away Gannon of Buhr Anttila says that his goal for the rest of the season is to play for wins.
– Now there are still more than 20 races to be played. I want to keep in good shape so that every weekend there is a chance to play for a win. That’s what I want to do and that’s why I do this job. I like to play to win and enjoy the sport.