QuadCityDiscGolf.com

QCDG.com: You started playing disc golf in 1993 when a college friend convinced you to give it a try and you’ve been playing ever since. At what moment did you realize you could be successful in this sport and did you ever expect to have had the level of success you’ve enjoyed?

Juliana: I never doubted that I could be successful in the sport although my idea of success was much more modest than my career ended up being. The second round of disc golf that I played was in a tournament and I found myself leading the advanced women’s division after that round. I ended up taking second in the event so I found a measure of success immediately. But a definite turning point for me was at the 1993 PDGA World Championships. I was there as a spectator and while watching the final 4 pro women putting prior to the final 9 something clicked for me. One minute I was really impressed with them and then the next I promised myself that I would one day be at that level. It took me a while to figure out how to reach that goal and what it might take to do so, but I never forgot that moment or that promise.

QCDG.com: Playing disc golf has enabled you to travel around the U.S. as well as to Europe, Japan, the Bahamas and New Zealand to name just a few. Along the way you have met people from all walks of life and cultures. What have those experiences meant to you and how have they affected your life?

Juliana: Those unbelievable opportunities, experiences and friendships mean more to me than my success in the sport. Disc golf has made the world a much smaller and very inviting place. We have stayed with incredible people in numerous countries. This has allowed us to see much more of a location than if we were simply tourists. But what I love the most is that I’ve gotten to share it with Shawn. When we are with friends weather they are disc golfers or not, we seem to end up talking about our experiences while traveling. Shawn and I typically tag-team the stories and I love that we have that together.

QCDG.com: From your point of view how has the sport of disc golf changed, both good and bad, since you first started playing to what it has become today?

Juliana: I’ve seen much less change in the sport than you might imagine. We are still a grass roots sport for the most part. There are of course, great things happening in the sport, but I still hear the same hopes and dreams from players that I did 16 years ago. As with most things, disc golf is cyclic. Back in the mid 90’s Women’s Nationals was held in Cedar Falls, IA. It was very well attended but then disappeared for a number of years. It is back now and seems to have plenty of momentum to keep it going. But we can’t take things for granted. We need to work and push to keep them going and to make them better. We all hope for disc golf to break out into the mainstream, but I don’t think many realize that Frisbee sports were in the limelight decades ago with the World Frisbee Championships held in the Rose Bowl and Pepsi as the main sponsor. The International Frisbee Association had over 100,000 members (you got a membership registration card with every Wham-O Frisbee). So I guess what I’m saying is that I would like to see people embrace our past as well as long for a great future.

QCDG.com: As you were getting started with disc golf did you have a role model or a mentor that you could emulate or turn to and if so, how did that person help you succeed?

Juliana: I started playing because a friend of mine, Jason Steffen of Cedar Falls, IA wanted to teach me how to play. He introduced me to the game and helped me with technique and disc selection to a point, but I can still remember how frustrated I was when he first stopped answering my questions. I would ask him which disc I should throw or where I should aim for a particular shot. He realized that I would have to know why I should throw something a particular way and that the best way for me to internalize it would be to figure it out on my own. This was a very valuable lesson. I didn’t really have a mentor, but I always looked up to Anni Kreml. However I very rarely had the opportunity to play with her as she mostly stayed in Northern California.

QCDG.com: What aspect of your game do you feel is your strongest and do you have any advice that would help others improve in that area as well?

Juliana: I think what set me apart was my work ethic. I took the sport very seriously and had a very lengthy training schedule that included cardio and weights as well as field work and putting. I wanted to be in good enough shape that I would never tire on the course. I wanted to throw so much that my muscles would never be sore during or after an event. I spent hours a day throwing and learning my discs. I knew how far each would go in different circumstances. I rarely played rounds. Instead I concentrated on getting in as many throws as possible. I was confident that if I knew what I could make my discs do that I could adapt to any throw that was required of me during a round.

QCDG.com: When playing a round during a tournament would you consider yourself an aggressive player or does a more conservative approach suit your game? Could you give an example of when you had to make that decision and most importantly tell us the thought process you went through in deciding to “go for it” or to “play it safe”?

Juliana: This varies greatly for me. In general, I’m a fairly conservative player, but I can think back to times where I knew I would make what might look like a touch shot and did. So, I guess in my past I have thrown shots that might have looked aggressive to an observer, but I knew my game well enough that I knew I was not gambling with the throw.

QCDG.com: What do you feel is the biggest mistake newer players make when first getting started in disc golf and what advice would you give to correct or prevent that problem?

Juliana: I’m not sure this is the biggest mistake, but here is a common one. I see beginners relying on their discs to make the shots instead of making their discs fly the way that they need them to. In other words, I don’t think it is necessary to have a bag with 30 discs so that you have one for every possible scenario. Rather you should be able to make a handful of discs do all that you need.

QCDG.com: You have taken on a leadership role as far as championing the growth of the women’s side of disc golf through your tournaments and clinics. Is that a position you feel comfortable in and what’s next for you in that capacity?

Juliana: I have felt great satisfaction from the clinics and especially La Vie en Rose, but no that is not a position that comes naturally to me. I am painfully shy and it takes considerable effort for me to be “in front” of people for a long time. I do believe that I have benefited immensely from being put in this position somewhat routinely and I definitely feel more comfortable there than in the past however it is still not my preferred role.

QCDG.com: You stated you feel the women’s market in disc golf has been largely untapped, and the statistics seem to back that up. You were quoted as saying: “15 years ago women made up only 7% of the PDGA and today it’s still the same percentage”. What needs to be done to help change those numbers both at the National level as well as at the local club/league level

Juliana: We need to introduce many more young girls to the sport of disc golf. Most women find the sport through their significant others. Some of those women are interested in the sport but many others play only to spend time with their mate. We need to capture this interest of the athletic girls and young women who aren’t afraid to get a little dirt under their fingernails. Now there is nothing new in what I’m saying. The trouble is figuring out how to get more girls and young women on the course. I’ve advocated women’s leagues. I’ve worked to get a disc golf badge for the girl scouts. I’ve worked to help educate TD’s on what it takes to impress the women playing in their events. I’ve created numerous web resources for women in disc golf, but unfortunately I have not seen an influx of new women to the sport. Obviously there is no simple solution and I am still trying to figure this one out.

QCDG.com: Among your career accomplishments are an Amateur Worlds Championship, five Pro World Championships, three Women’s Player of the Year awards, over 70 Super Tour wins, and in 2008 you were inducted into the Disc Golf Hall of Fame. You have donated your time to countless clinics as well as been involved in the design of disc golf courses such as Pickard Park in Indianola IA, among many others. When the day comes to put your discs away for the final time, how would you like people to remember your contribution to the sport?

Juliana: I am perhaps most proud of the fact that I was able to cash at the USDGC and still remain the only woman to cash in a Major while playing in the Open division. I hope that I have helped to show men and women alike that women are capable of playing this sport at a level close to if not equal to pro men. But more than my play, I want to be remembered as a nice person. That sounds a little cheesy, but I want to be known for my honesty, healthy lifestyle and friendliness.

QCDG.com: What's next for Juliana Korver?:

Juliana: Shawn and I are renovating a 100 year old Victorian house in Bowling Green, KY. This is time consuming, dirty, educational, rewarding, and usually fun. In the future we plan to build a cabin in Nederland, CO. I just recently started a new business with my mother who still lives in Iowa. It is called Jubon (jubon.biz) and was created to help small rural communities find a web presence. We are working on our “proof of concept” in Orange City, IA and hoping to expand to many more communities in the future. Shawn and I are training for a marathon. I would also love to get into triathlons, but don’t know if that will happen or not.

Thanks so much to Juliana for sharing her time with us at QuadCityDiscGolf.com!