What do Louis-José Houde, Dumas, Jean-Michel Anctil, Adib Alkhalidey, Guillaume Pineault, Simon Delisle and Étienne Dano have in common? These artists were all introduced to disc golf in recent years by Karl Tremblay. The singer had developed a passion for the sport during the pandemic and even took part in the opening of a field near his home, in L’Assomption.
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When the pandemic hit in 2020, Karl Tremblay, like many people, was looking for an activity to keep moving and see his friends. There he learned about disc golf, a very affordable sport that combines golf and Frisbee. It was love at first sight. Karl Tremblay soon became the unofficial ambassador of disc golf.
“In the end, this sport is not as bad as Karl: it is a sport that is simple and unifying. “The word that best described him was that he unified everything he did,” says Simon Tremblay, one of the three founders of Mission Disc Golf. “Karl was the unofficial fourth member,” says Simon.
Tired of always having to travel to the south coast, Boucherville, to play his new favorite sport, Karl Tremblay decided to find a new land to practice disc golf near his home in L’Assomption. After several unsuccessful visits, he found the perfect country in October 2021.
“It was right next to a piece of land that Karl had just bought with his fellow Cowboys to build a sugar shack,” says Simon Tremblay. He immediately recognized the opportunity.”
Karl Tremblay played disc golf year-round. Courtesy of FB Mission Disc Golf
His oasis of peace
After several months of obstacles, the Phoenix opened its doors to the public last August. “Karl saw it as his little oasis of peace, his place where he could play with his friends,” says Simon Tremblay. Unfortunately, due to his health, he was unable to enjoy it as much as he would have liked.
Despite illness, Karl Tremblay continued to promote this little-known sport. Since he met several musicians and comedians every week while playing poker, the singer invited them to play disc golf. In August 2022, he notably played a round with Dumas and Louis-José Houde. Adib Alkhalidey also often went to the Phoenix.
“It spread like wildfire and we all started to love it,” says comedian Étienne Dano. All comedians, we act because of Karl.”
A round in his honor
During one of the recent Cowboys Fringants concerts at the Bell Center on November 25, 2021, Karl Tremblay invited several friends from the disc golf community. “At the end of the show he said on stage: To all my disc golf friends, we are coming out of the shadows!” mentions Simon Tremblay.
On Thursday, Étienne Dano and Simon Tremblay, along with some other friends, played a round of disc golf at the Phoenix in honor of Karl Tremblay. “I didn’t feel like working,” says Étienne. I was just waiting for a sign from heaven to do something different today. And Karl put so much effort into the shadows. Without him I wouldn’t be playing.”