Laos, where Ohn Scoggins is from, is a land of immense beauty.
It is a country steeped in rich culture, natural wonders, exotic animals, and lovely people.
What doesn’t naturally come to mind, however, when most of us think of Laos, is disc golf.
And to be fair, even to this day, Udisc lists exactly zero disc golf courses that can be found there.
How then, does Ohn Scoggins, who was born in Laos and lived there until she was nearly 30, go on to become one of the very best disc golfers in the world?
Destiny.
I don’t know how you could see it any other way…
A Little Back Story…
The question above, about how a person from Laos, where disc golf is NOT a common occurrence by any stretch of the imagination, could discover disc golf and then go on to be one of the very best FPO players in the world, was the driving question I had when I reached out to Ohn Scoggins.
She very graciously offered up her time and told me her disc golf origin story, and I have to say, it’s even better than I had hoped!
But to understand Ohn’s remarkable story, you need to also understand a bit about her husband.
Yes, this story of destiny, is also a love story.
The year was 2007. Justin Scoggins, Ohn’s beloved husband and, among other things, her caddie extraordinaire, had gotten his taste of the American 9 to 5 grind and decided to shake things up a little.
So, after his last paycheck cleared, he packed his giant backpack (An item he still wears when caddying for Ohn!) and went out into the world to see what else life had to offer.
For his trip, Justin didn’t have a preplanned itinerary, a guide, or much more than a sense of adventure and a curiosity for what else the world had in store for him.
He was willing to see where the wind took him.
What he wasn’t willing to do, was leave his beloved disc golf behind.
Yes, even though he had to manage weights and backpack space for a year’s worth of travel, he made sure to pack a disc.
Justin, PDGA member since 2003, as you can surely relate, was an avid disc golfer. He had a passion for it, and the idea of not bringing a disc never even crossed his mind.
This disc, coupled with Justin’s unadulterated passion for the game, was destined to find its way to Ohn Scoggins.
But first, he had to get on a flight and start his journey.
And what was Justin’s broad and general destination?
Justin was heading to Southeast Asia…
Extending his Stay in Laos
Like so many other people that decide to backpack through Southeast Asia, Justin made his way to Laos.
In Laos, there is a very popular path that backpackers follow that brings you to various cities and villages of the country and is very well-suited to accommodate a large number of tourists.
One such hot spot, is Vang Vieng. This is where Justin would so fatefully meet Ohn, in December of 2007, who was visiting for the weekend with her sister and her aunt from nearby Vientiane. Years prior Ohn had traveled from her home in a small rice farming village in search of work and landed in Vientiane.
This is where Justin, who was going where the wind took him, would put on his windbreaker and extend his stay in the name of love. And where Justin, after having known Ohn for only 2 weeks, would propose to her.
And yes, this is also where Justin, would fatefully place the first disc (A DGA GlowFly) in Ohn’s hand.
Ohn’s First Throw
You might expect, in a story of love and destiny such as this, that when Justin placed the Glowfly in Ohn’s hand that it pulsated and lit up.
Or, that her first throw was a patented Ohn flex forehand that swerved through the trees and landed in a lone patch of sunlight as an omen from above.
Not exactly.
But, as Ohn describes it, her first throw, on the banks of the Mekong River, was straight and on a good line. And she remembers that Justin was impressed.
“His eyes just [lit] up when he saw me throw.”
Justin, from his point of view, was actually very impressed!
“I was even more impressed that she could throw a GlowFly both forehand and backhand with good precision and good distance. Like 200 feet both sides.”
-Justin Scoggins
But really, counter to what you might imagine, that easily could have been the start and the end of Ohn’s disc golf experience.
The two would, after only having known each other for a few weeks (and with a brief stint apart to get their collective ducks in a row) do an intensive 5 months backpacking trip throughout other parts of Southeast Asia.
This is where their comfort with one another, which is so readily seen when you watch coverage, was formed and molded.
“That’s why we learned each other. Backpacking, 24/7, for 5 months together,” reports Ohn.
They would then eventually move to LA, two years later in 2009, and get married shortly after that. Upon her move, disc golf, in reality, couldn’t have been farther from her thoughts.
Ohn and Justin Move to LA
After all the red tape and paperwork had been cleared, Ohn and Justin finally settled in LA.
Undoubtedly, they had plenty to do to get their lives together underway.
And understandably, disc golf was not part of that equation. At least not for Ohn it wasn’t. Justin still played when he could, but Ohn, overwhelmed by all that LA had to offer, had to get adjusted to her new, vastly different life.
It wasn’t until a year or so later that Justin, after some ‘consistent persuading’, and as a way to give her something to do in a land so far from her home, finally got Ohn to come out with her to the courses again.
And still for Ohn, unlike when she met Justin, it wasn’t love at first sight with disc golf.
It took time out on the course for her passion to grow.
But as she continued and her game improved, that unmistakable fire that she now burns for disc golf, would be stoked.
And as that happened, her undeniable talents would unveil themselves as well…
Talent Mixes with Dedication
Once Ohn got the disc golf train rolling there was really no stopping her.
Writing this very post, I almost hesitated to use the word “destiny”. When using a word like that, it glosses over all the hard work and dedication that Ohn has put in.
Think about this. In 2010, Justin finally convinces her to join him on the disc golf course.
By 2014, she was on lead card in the final round, battling Paige Pierce, Catrina Allen and Ragna Bygde at Worlds! (Final Round, Back 9 video here.)
If that’s not a meteoric rise, I don’t know what is!
So, how’d she do it? Talent and athleticism for sure. But it was also dedication and hard freaking work!
“When I put my head and I go on something, I’m kind of serious and put a lot of hours and practice on it. When I decide to do something I go at it 105%…”
There’s no doubt, hard work and talent play a huge role in her ascension. But there is another aspect, Ohn references, as part of the equation as well…
Ohn’s Circle of Positivity
By now, we’ve all probably seen and witnessed Ohn Scoggins, the entertainer, on the course. Waving to the crowd as she runs down yet another circle 2 snipe. Joking with her card mates or the spectators. Applauding her competitors when they make a great shot.
And while that is completely, 100%, refreshingly genuine, it turns out it’s almost, in a way, strategic, as well.
Ohn knows that she performs best when she’s immersed in positivity. As such, she naturally creates that culture around her, and that’s when she plays at the top of her game.
If others on her card are having a bad round, and expressing frustration, she’ll block it out. “Your thing, my thing,” as she puts it. For her part, she keeps it positive.
“I try not let anything negative bother me. I’m getting older every year,” she adds. “There’s no time for me to keep bad stuff around me anymore.”
She seeks the same off the course as well.
Ohn cites her upbringing for why she seeks to create a positive environment. As a child in Laos, and being poor, she and her friends/family did not have much at all in the way of toys or luxuries. And yet, they were always having fun and enjoying life. This is what she brings to the course. She brings the comfort and joy of her upbringing and homeland which also helps her perform at her best.
“I don’t care about the number of friends I have,” she says. “I care about quality…. We don’t know how long we are going to be living on this world, better just keep the positive around you and keep the negative away. “
-Ohn Scoggins
But there is one place, it turns out, where Ohn is decidedly and strategically less positive…
Circle 1 and 2 Assassin!
For all this fluffy talk of positivity, there is one notable time when Ohn checks her positivity at the door.
When she’s putting.
By now, you’ve probably heard of her legendary training regimen of putting up 300-400 meaningful putts per day. With all the work, she doesn’t have to think about her form. By then, it just becomes mental.
So what mental tack does she take?
She get’s pissed off!
“I pretty much think that I’m kind of mad at it. Just putt like you’re mad, I tell myself. I have been putting so much and so I tell myself not to be scared. Be aggressive. I work so hard on it so why do I have to be scared of it? That’s why I get mad.”
-Ohn Scoggins
Originally, before speaking to her, my hope was to get concrete putting tips (toe pointed this way and this much thumb pressure, etc.) to pass along (She aims for a chain link in the center and a little high btw.). This mental edge, however, may be just as valuable, if not more.
If you’ve put in the work on the practice green and you step up to that pressure putt on the course, try getting pissed off in a “I dare you to not go in,” kind of way to your disc. It certainly works for Ohn!
Ohn, for many years running, finds herself atop the FPO rankings (as in #1) for putting in C1X and Circle 2.
If that person gives me advice, I know I’m trying it!
Completing The Many Circles of Ohn!
When you put it all together, you have to admit, that’s a pretty remarkable story. Was it all destiny? You can make a pretty compelling case…
Justin, her husband and caddie (and plenty more), sets out on a journey of discovery, and discovers his beloved wife and proposes to her within 2 weeks. In that process, Justin, an avid disc golfer places the first disc in Ohn’s hands in her home country of Laos, a country that still, to this day, does not have a registered disc golf course.
After traveling together intensively and helping to form the unbreakable bond they share on the course today, they move to LA two years later, in 2009.
In 2010, after some persistent cajoling, Justin finally convinces Ohn to come out to the courses with him.
By 2014, she’s on the lead card at Worlds! (I’m sorry, I just can’t emphasize enough the incredibility of that idea!).
In between, and not to be glossed over, is another marriage. A marriage of natural talent and athleticism combined with passion, dedication and hard unrelenting work.
Since that 2014 Worlds she has consistently performed in an increasingly competitive field, and reached the heights of being the #2 disc golfer in the world.
To achieve such heights, after getting such a late start on the sport (and not being known for her power), she had to become an excellent putter. How does #1 from Circle 1 and 2 for many years running sound?
Looking at it all, there are a lot of circles in Ohn’s story. Whether it’s a circular disc, circles 1 and 2 for her putting prowess, or even the circle of life, which, north of 40, she contemplates for her disc golf career and even her own life.
Being so introspective, and considering her roots, she has made it a point to create her own circle of positivity on the course as well (except from Circles 1 or 2 where she’s downright angry!).
Given her and Justin’s remarkable and almost mathematically impossible story, you could certainly make the case for a circle of destiny as well…
But as I was wrapping up the interview, and thanking her profusely for her time (Thank You Ohn!) I asked her if there was anything she wanted to plug.
Not surprisingly, she brought it back inside the circle that started it all. The circle of love.
“Just please mention my husband. He is my best friend and the love of my life… He is lovable, very supportive, and everything in my life. I’d be nothing without him, so please shout out to him.”
Circle complete.
Thank you all for reading and thank you to Ohn and Justin Scoggins for taking the time to share their remarkable story with me! I encourage you all to subscribe to my free newsletter. It’s no spam, infrequent (an email every few months or so) and automatically and permanently enters you in a raffle to win gift cards to Infinite Discs. Subscribe now!
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