Illinois Disc Golf Hall of Fame
Illinois has a long history with disc golf. Gilson Park in Wilmette was one of the earliest courses with baskets installed in 1977 (it is no longer in the ground today). West Park in Joliet has been in the ground since 1978. Illinois has hosted multiple major events and it is only fitting that we recognize some of the people that have helped establish Illinois on the disc golf map.
Inductees in the Illinois Disc Golf Hall of Fame must meet the following criteria:
- Have favorable standing and an honorable reputation within the disc golf community.
- Have made significant contributions to the sport of disc golf through development, promotion, leadership, and/or sportsmanship that merit our recognition and respect.
- Have given back to the sport with a passion that transcends personal gain
- Have dedicated at least 10 years of service to the disc golf community in Illinois.
To nominate a candidate for a future class for the hall of fame, contact the Illinois State Coordinator. New classes are inducted every 2-3 years.
2023 Class
Phil Corrigan (#1959)
Hall of Fame Class: 2023
PDGA #1959
Birth Year: 1959
Hometown: Batavia, IL
Phil “Wrongway” Corrigan was a fixture of the Joliet disc golf scene since 1981.
He could regularly be seen out picking up litter, branches, and debris every time he was out on the course. His regular presence, play, and work at West Park helped make the park a safer place to be, keeping vandals and litterers away. It was Corrigan’s unconventional play throwing Chicken Wings and thumb rollers that stood out and earned him the “Wrongway” nickname.
Corrigan often accompanied Gary Lewis when designing new courses. Based on his years of experience with the game, his input to Lewis’s designs was valuable in making those courses better.
Over the years he would mentor and instruct hundreds of park district youth. He not only taught them how to play the game, but also coach them on other aspects of the game including rules, the importance of etiquette, respect for the parks and tree, and consideration for others.
When Corrigan played in events, he always arrived early and stayed late to help out. As events grew in size, he would pitch in checking scores and posting them on the board. For 38 years he served as the official scorekeeper for the Illinois State Championships, being a key cog that helped the event run on time and smoothly.
Dale Haake (#2114)
Hall of Fame Class: 2023
PDGA: #2114
Birth Year: 1952
Hometown: Wauconda, IL
Dale Haake, PDGA #2114 is considered the godfather of disc golf in the Quad Cities. Encompassing both Illinois and Iowa, Dale was instrumental in getting the very first disc golf course with baskets installed in Lincoln Park in Rock Island Illinois. Now considered a hotbed of disc golf, it took Dale over 10 meetings with the park district commissioner, along with purchasing the baskets himself, along with a few friends before a course went into the ground. Through sheer will, Dale was able to get a course in the ground for all to enjoy.
In 1977 Dale began running the Mid-August Classic, the event ran annually for 10 years with Dale at the helm. It was a very popular event with players coming from as far as Peoria, Joliet, Indiana, and Missouri. The list of players is still a who’s who of Midwest disc golfers including Brian Cummings, Bob Ryan, Gary Lewis, Paul McCallister, David McCormack, and Jeff Harper.
Iowa disc golf hall of fame member Jeff Harper considers Dale his mentor, the disc golf tree in Iowa was planted by Dale. Along with running events and installing courses, Dale was a solid player in his own right. Dale attended three world disc golf championships, and has served as a disc golf ambassador, playing an event in Belgium in 1980. Dale was also the winner at one of the WXRT Frisbee Days, Dale is happy to point out that it was the year that John Connelly was unable to attend. The PDGA website shows Dale a winner of three events, but the record keeping in the early days was pretty shoddy, and Dale has a few more wins that have been lost in the memory of time.
Dale’s wife is from Spain, and when traveling to Spain, Dale still travels with multiple Frisbees to give away and to play catch with others. He continues to be an ambassador for disc golf and Frisbee in general.
Kent Schafer (#22662)
Hall of Fame Class: 2023
PDGA: #22662
Birth Year: 1978
Hometown: Tuscaloosa, Alabama
As a profoundly deaf individual who uses Sign Language as his first language, Dr. Kent Schafer started out playing disc golf in 1998 at Elver park in Madison Wisconsin. He hosted his very first deaf tournament in 2001 at Calvert Park Maryland as a fraternity fundraiser. Upon returning home from his undergrad years, he joined the PDGA in 2003. The very first sanctioned event that he played as a PDGA member was the National Deaf Disc Golf Championships in Wrightwood California. Schafer finished 21st in the MA1 division. Prior to the 2003 event, he attended two National Deaf Disc Golf Championships as a non PDGA member, along with other local disc golf events as a non PDGA member. In total Schafer has attended thirteen National Deaf Disc Golf Championships.
Along with attending National Deaf Disc Golf Championships Schafer has been the TD for two National Championships in Springfield Illinois in 2009 and 2013. The 2009 event is currently the largest attended event with 101 participants, with the average travel distance to the event 1099 miles. He will be hosting the 2024 National Deaf Disc Golf Championship in Madison Wisconsin.
Schafer has worked with the PDGA in a several capacities in promoting deaf disc golf. Regarding the national organization, Deaf Disc Golf Association, since 2001 he has held the following positions: Deaf Disc Golf Consultant, Deaf Disc Golf Historian, Deaf Disc Golf President, and Deaf Disc Golf Ambassador, sitting on the Board of Directors.
Along with the amount of work that Schafer has put in with the National Disc Golf Association, he was highly active and held many offices with the Springfield Disc Golf Club from 2002 to 2013. He was instrumental in getting several courses in the ground and earned a celebrity citizen award from the city for growing disc golf. In finding disc golf, Dr. Schafer believes that we will never lose. We either win or we learn.
Mike Krupicka (#28238)
Hall of Fame Class: 2023
PDGA: #28238
Birth Year: 1971
Hometown: Villa Park, IL
PDGA #28238, Mike Krupicka has made his mark on Illinois disc golf. He played his first sanctioned event in May of 2005 and ran his first sanctioned event in September of 2008. Since that time he has been the tournament director of over 140 sanctioned events, along with running numerous non sanctioned events including the Ice Bowl in Oswego and the Discontinuum Club Challenge which was originally a non-sanctioned event.
Along with running events, Krupicka has been the Illinois State Coordinator since 20212 responsible for scheduling and coordinating events in Illinois, making sure that events fit into a busy calendar. In 2023, between sanctioned leagues and events there are 219 events on the calendar that he helped fit on the schedule, working to keep all the tournament directors happy.
In 2016, Krupicka was honored with the Matt Lavasko Homie Award, the award honors the recipients for positively inspiring and contributing to the people of the sport of disc golf. In 2020, he was awarded the Volunteer of the Year Award by the PDGA for his work with as State Coordinator and with the PDGA Rules Committee. The recipient is an active PDGA member who has proven him or herself worthy of special recognition based upon volunteer work performed for the betterment of the association and the sport of disc golf.
Where Krupicka truly shines is behind the scenes, he is always available to help tournament directors with questions on running events. He is happy to share his wealth of knowledge on how to use the technical tools available to run events and in depth knowledge of the rule with many TDs and players.
Nate Heinold (#49340)
Hall of Fame Class: 2023
PDGA: #49340
Birth Year: 1986
Hometown: Washington, IL
Nate Heinold #49340 is not known for thinking small. While he has a number of Professional victories and cash finishes in his carreer, it is his drive as a promoter that has made a big impact on disc golf in Illinois and nationally as well. Heinold has made a name for himself running A-tiers, Disc Golf Pro Tour stops and multiple majors over his career. The Ledgestone Open is regulary one of the biggest events of the year both in terms of participants and size of the Pro purse. He has used this success to make large contributions to many charitable organizations most notably the St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. Heinold is also one of the founds of the Paul McBeth Foundation which provides disc golf experiences in underserved locations.
Heinold has invested heaviliy in disc golf courses in Central Illinios. He designed the challenging Euerka Temp course and is a co-designer of the Northwood Black course which is one of the most difficlut courses on tour. Not just an idea man, he has invested his time, sweat, and money to see these and other area courses get where they are today continuing the legacy that Central Illinois has on the national disc golf scene.
He currently sits on the PDGA Board of Directors.
2022 Class
Steve Matul (#8)
Hall of Fame Class: 2022
PDGA #8
Birth Year: 1953
Hometown: Lombard IL
Tom McManus (#1276)
Hall of Class: 2022
PDGA #1276
Birth Year: 1957
Hometown: Gurnee, IL
Tom McManus is all in with the sport of disc golf. To date he has played in nearly 450 sanctioned PDGA events, notching his 100th career win in February 2022. This insatiable will to compete has led to some of his fondest individual accomplishments, including shooting a 976-rated round at the Vibram Open Am Side in 2013 with a torn rotator cuff.
But McManus’s place in the world of disc sports predates his four-digit PDGA number (1276), assigned in 1980. Since 1978 he has won titles in Frisbee® Speed Flow (a game of trick throws and catches, transitioning from a catch to the next throw in one, quick and fluid motion), Maximum Time Aloft (MTA), and disc golf.
And McManus is not just a player – he participates in disc golf through multiple roles. Whether volunteering, scorekeeping, helping run a local sanctioned league or tournament, or contributing to the Flying Disc Museum website or PDGA’s DiscGolfer magazine, he gives back to the sport and community he loves with the same enthusiasm that he plays.
He introduced the beveled edge to disc throwers in Lake County, IL, selling several hundred Innova Aeros between 1983 and 1985. He would later benefit Lake County disc golfers by partnering with Brett Comincioli and Chuck Kennedy to help secure a complete redesign of Fairfield Park in Round Lake, IL.
The PDGA Advanced Grandmaster Points Leader in 2007, 2008 and 2009, McManus also won the title of Distance Champion at the 2007 PDGA Amateur World Championships in the Grandmaster division.
He currently sits on the Board of Directors of the Flying Disc Museum.
2021 Class
Wilbur Wallis (#6583)
Hall of Fame Class: 2021
PDGA #6583
Birth Year: 1963
Hometown: Peoria, IL
Wilbur Wallis has been competing in disc golf tournaments for over 35 years racking up over 40 wins as an amateur. But he is most noted for his impact as a promoter, course designer, tournament director, and volunteer.
Wilbur has been instrumental in promoting disc golf in central Illinois with credit for more than a dozen course designs in the central Illinois region along with consulting on many others. He served on the Peoria Frisbee Club’s board of directors for more than a decade and founded the Champaign County Disc Golf Club in 2014. He also served as the very first Illinois State Coordinator.
The Wallis family has been a fixture at many USWDGC events, and Wilbur is no exception. He has been on staff or Asst. TD for many events at the national level. Locally, he has run both sanctioned and unsanctioned events of all types from leagues to A tiers. The long list includes 19 Ice bowls raising funds for various non-profits in the Peoria and Champaign areas. Wilbur is also a familiar face at the Ledgestone Insurance Open tournament, typically as a course director.
Wilbur’s impact is not limited to high visibility events. He continues to regularly give disc golf demos for both kids and adults. He regularly can be found promoting disc golf in many different ways to draw new players into the sport.
Jesse Saenz, Jr. (#11260)
Hall of Fame Class: 2021
PDGA #11260
Birth Year: 1971
Hometown: Bolingbrook, IL
Jesse Saenz, Jr. started playing disc golf in 1989 and competed at all levels until 2004. Jesse’s character is evident when he shared that one of his most valued accomplishments was taking second place in the 1999 New Lenox Doubles with his 13-year-old son. His early accolades include winning the World’s Biggest Disc Golf Weekend Rolf Frei award five times. This award was given to the person who introduced the most new players each year.
In 2004, Jesse’s focus shifted from player to promoter. Jesse is a perennial fixture in the Joliet disc golf scene. In 1994 he started two different Joliet doubles leagues with Darrin Johnson. The J-Town Disc Golf doubles league continues to still be run by Jesse over 25 years later. This random draw doubles league has grown over the years and now regularly attracts over 80 players each week. Through this league, thousands of dollars have been raised for local tournaments and course improvements. In 2010, Jesse stepped in as the tournament director for the Illinois State Championships. Under his watch, this event has grown to be the biggest B-tier event in Illinois every year currently averaging well over 300 participants.
Jesse also shares his amazing Photoshop skills, using them on social media to highlight and promote local disc golf events in the Joliet/Lockport Illinois area.
In 2009, Jesse helped establish the annual Gary Lewis Achievement award to recognize ambassadors to the Joliet/Lockport area disc golf community. The players voted to award this honor to Jesse in 2011 for the impact his skills, talents, and labor has had on the Joliet disc golf community.
2020 Class
Paul McCallister #1124
Hall of Fame Class: 2020
PDGA #1124
Birth Year: 1952
Hometown: New Lenox, IL
Paul McCallister established the Joliet Frisbee Guild and West Park Flyers. Through these groups he was able to get permission to design and build West Park, the oldest course in Illinois still in the ground. This legacy laid the ground work for the some of the other course he helped establish and the large disc golf scene in Joliet. His work provided a template for others to approach local park districts to get courses installed. For each course, he would give lessons and introduction to disc golf events to help promote the sport to players in the area.
McCallister directed his first event in 1980 and has directed many tournaments over the years, including establishing the Illinois State Disc Golf Championship which he continues to assist even today. The Illinois State Championship trophy is named the McCallister trophy in his honor. The Joliet disc golf community has awarded him a lifetime achievement award in 2015.
Terry Batten #1738
Hall of Fame Class: 2020
PDGA #1738
Birth Year: 1954
Hometown: Sterling, IL
Terry Batten helped put Sterling on the map early disc golf. As a competitor, he played in many world championships and lays claim to six state championships. Batten designed some of the early courses in the state. At one of these, Sinnissippi Park in Sterling, Batten hosted the Sinnissippi Open tournament for two decades, drawing in a who’s who list of players from that era.
Marshall Hopkins #1765
Hall of Fame Class: 2020
PDGA #1765
Birth Year: 1955
Hometown: Peoria, IL
Marshall Hopkins was “Thee Man” of disc golf in Central Illinois in the 1980’s. Some refer to him as the Grandfather of Disc Golf in Peoria. He worked tirelessly to get courses installed, run tournaments and leagues, and promoting the sport that very few had heard of in those times. He spent many hours selling discs out of the trunk of his car to raise the funds needed to get courses installed. He started several tournaments that are still around today, including the Shot In The Dark glo tournament and the Peoria Open. Marshall was the Founder of the Peoria Frisbee Club Ltd. and served as the President 1980-1993. With help from many others, Marshall designed courses and did a lot of the “grunt work” at Bradley Park, Marquette Heights Park, Washington Park, Shore Acres Park and McNaughton Park. He ran clinics, wrote articles, and did many interviews to educate and teach others about the new sport of disc golf.
Barrett White #16737
Hall of Fame Class: 2020
PDGA #16737
Birth Year: 1968
Hometown: Forest Park, IL
Barrett White is known for her infectious fun-loving attitude raising the spirits of all around her. She started her disc sports career competing in Ultimate and was a founding member of Ultimate Chicago. In disc golf, White has focused her efforts on encouraging other ladies to play and compete in disc golf, often grabbing one of her discs bearing her sharpie artwork and passing it off to a new female player to get them started. She has run a number of clinics and taken the time to help other women develop their game. As a competitor she has won multiple championships at both the state, national, and world levels.
2019 Class
The inaugural class was inducted in 2019 at the Illinois State Disc Golf Championships in Joliet on June 29, 2019. A limited run of Commemorative Hall of Fame Discs are available. Use the contact link to request more information.
John Connelly #992
Hall of Fame Class:2019
PDGA #992
Birth Year: 1950
Hometown: Glenview, IL
John Connelly was one of the best all around disc players during the 1970s. He was a founding member of the Highland Avenue Aces that won three consecutive Guts Frisbee Championships. He won world titles in the Octad, Distance, and Disc golf and was a member of the 1983 Ultimate Frisbee National Championship team. John put on clinics with the Air Aces Frisbee demo team and designed disc golf courses with Ed Headrick. In 1977, John, along with Alan Blake and Ed Headrick, designed the first disc golf course with baskets in Illinois: Gilson Park, in Wilmette Illinois. John went on to design other courses in Illinois and the surrounding states. He also took time to mentor younger players including future PDGA hall of famer Don Wilcheck. John is a member of the International Frisbee Hall of Fame class of 1984.
Brian Cummings #1739
Hall of Fame Class: 2019
PDGA #1739
Birth Year: 1956
Hometown: Somerset, CA
Brian Cummings began playing disc golf in 1976 at Gilson Park in Wilmette, Illinois and played his first tournament in 1980 at West Park in Joliet. He has competed in PDGA events every year since and now has over 50 career wins to his name, including several Illinois State Championships. His promotion, design, and installation of disc golf courses over the years has given the Illinois disc golf community multiple courses, including Olympia Fields Disc Golf Course and the original West Park in Joliet. He has been a long-time tournament director and mentor to other tournament directors. Brian’s innovative spirit in tournament directing and encouragement of clubs and players has contributed greatly to disc golf in the state of Illinois. Brian is also a member of the PDGA Disc Golf Hall of Fame (2010) and the Indiana Disc Golf Hall of Fame (2008).
Gary Lewis #2234
Hall of Fame Class: 2019
PDGA #2234
Birth Year: 1950
Hometown: Joliet, IL
Gary Lewis is a 2002 PDGA Disc Golf Hall of Fame inductee whose name is synonymous with outstanding performances and extraordinary leadership. Friendly and energetic, Gary has worked diligently for over 35 years in expanding the scope and recognition of the sport of disc golf. A tireless pioneer, who through hard work and determination, has led the sport of disc golf into a positive direction. Gary has built a foundation that will provide generations of disc golfers opportunities to compete, grow, and learn, and has assured the strength of disc golf in Illinois for years to come. Gary has been recognized as the 1984 MDGC Player of the Year and the 1988 Course Pro of the Year. He has designed over 15 courses and directed more than 100 tournaments. In 2008 The Gary Lewis Achievement Award was created in his honor to recognize his achievements and accolades, years of service, valued contributions, and selfless dedication.
Old Man and Mom Wallis (#6580 and #11748)
Bill “Old Man” Wallis #6580
Hall of Fame Class: 2019
PDGA #6580
Birth Year: 1946
Hometown: Pekin, IL
Mary Ann “Mom” Wallis #11748
Hall of Fame Class: 2019
PDGA #11748
Birth Year: 1944
Hometown: Pekin, IL
Old Man Wallis was introduced to the sport by his son Wilbur (#6583) at Bradley Park in Peoria in 1986. He enjoyed being around the sport and other disc golfers. Shortly after that, he traveled to other out-of-town events to play, observe, and volunteer, learning the ropes from PDGA Hall of Famers: Gary Lewis, Brian Cummings and Duster Hoffman.
Old Man began running events himself for the Peoria Frisbee Club and in 1994 took over running the Greater Peoria Event. In 1998 this event became the first A-tier event in Illinois. Mom Wallis joined Old Man running these tournaments and became a favorite of many of the players. They were responsible for bringing the USWDGC to Peoria in 2002 (the first major in Illinois) and served as the TD until 2007.
For over 15 years, Mom and Old Man could be found volunteering or on staff for many Major events all over the country including the USWDGC (even after it moved from Peoria), Pro Worlds, Am Worlds, USDGC, the Tim Selinske Masters, and many others.
They have won the 2007 Brent Hambrick TD of the Year Award, the 2012 Volunteer of the Year Award, and in 2017 became the only recipients (other than Steady Ed) awarded an Eagle membership by the PDGA.