A win on Sunday would put Päivänsalo right at the forefront of Finnish frisbee golf history.
When the corona pandemic brought people to frisbee golf courses, a lot of sport content was uploaded to the video service YouTube.
One of the novice tube players was an elementary school student Oiva Päivänsalo From Kirkkonummi. The young boy’s open-minded attitude and tireless publishing pace gradually made him a well-known and respected part of the frisbee golf community.
– Frisbeegolf was just a hobby at first. For a couple of years, I have been training with a goal in mind. Training motivation remains when people follow your journey, Päivänsalo told STT.
On Saturday, 16-year-old Päivänsalo threw the round of his life (8 under par) in the DGPT Elite Series competition in Turku. His two-day combined score of -14 qualifies Estonia Mauri Villmann’s (-18) back to second place in the open class before Sunday’s final.
– It seems quite incomprehensible. I haven’t been anywhere near the top in any competition like this.
Even better could have been offered, as he hit putts from within ten meters with only 64 percent accuracy. The superstar also suffered from putting problems Niklas Anttila (-13), whose same percentage also did not inoculate the ranking, as he continues from third place.
An exceptional opportunity
Päivänsalo has only one win in the open class, that too from 2022 in Hanko’s small event. The best ranking from an international competition is 28th from the Stockholm leg of last summer’s European tour.
A win on Sunday would put Päivänsalo right at the forefront of Finnish frisbee golf history, because only Anttila, Jesse Nieminen and Eveliina Salonen have been able to take first place in a full-scale DGPT competition.
According to the Frisbee golf cliché, the cameras dull the blade when someone plays for the first time in a big tournament. Päivänsalo’s background allows for an exception.
– Even in this round, I already got a taste of how the cameras move. At least it didn’t have a negative effect either, when the audience came to watch at the end.
The women’s series is completely dominated by Finns at the Turku Open. Silva Saarinen leads with a combined score of 13 under par, and the nearest foreign challenger shares fifth place 17 shots away.