Tom Monroe, PDGA# 033, passed away after a yearlong battle with cancer on February 10, 2024. He was one of the most important pioneers of all flying disc sports and was known as “The Johnny Appleseed of Disc Golf.” His Frisbee story began when he was a student at the University of North Alabama in Florence. In the summer of 1973, Tom happened to be in Atlanta when there was a Wham-O-sponsored “Great Frisbee Fly In” and he decided to go. Hundreds of people competed in distance and accuracy; Tom won both events.
The flying disc world lost a legend this weekend in PDGA #9 Dr. Stancil Johnson. Photo: PDGA
Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.
It's an often-used adage and a fitting one for the trailblazers and titans of their respective fields.
This past weekend, disc golf, as well as the Frisbee world, lost a legend in Dr. Stancil E.D. Johnson, PDGA #009 and a member of the Disc Golf Hall of Fame.
He coined, among many, a phrase that so countless have heard: "When a ball dreams, it dreams it's a Frisbee."
The Disc Golf Hall Of Fame is an independent organization dedicated to the promotion of disc golf, its premier pioneers, and players. Photo: PDGA Media
Induction into the Disc Golf Hall of Fame is an honor reserved for only a very few of those who will ever pick up a disc. It is beyond a world record or championship title. It transcends celebrity and commercial success. It cannot be bought; it must be earned as much by character as by skill. It must be earned, most of all, through the respect of one’s peers.
The role, which is freelance in nature, will have King contributing a feature article or interview for each of the publication’s quarterly installments beginning with the upcoming Winter 2021 Issue.
