Any national championship in disc golf is worth celebrating, but there are a few national titles that are a bit more notable than others. One of those is certainly the Finnish National Championship. The grueling tournament pits some of the best disc golfers against each other in one of the best countries for disc golf. The competition is hard to beat.
Team Discmania has seen their fair share of Finnish Championships over the years and 2020 marked a new milestone for one of our upcoming stars. 18-year-old Niklas Anttila has taken his game to the next level this season and walked away with the 2020 Finnish National Championship on the first playoff hole of the final round.
While the teenager has a bright future in disc golf ahead of him, he actually hasn’t been playing for that many years.
“I remember dreaming about becoming Finnish champion right after I got hooked on disc golf in 2016,” Anttila says. “After winning couple pro tour events this year I knew winning the Finnish Championship was possible.
With confidence on his side, and just a few weeks removed from a win on the Finnish Pro Tour, Anttila found himself very focused throughout the tournament.
Anttila said the tournament left little room for error and the leaderboard was tight, but he knew what he had to do, “It was weird. I wasn’t feeling any positive or negative feelings after good or bad shots. I had only one goal and it was to win. I wanted it so bad.”
Throughout the tournament Anttila says he was primarily reaching for the PD, MD3, and Tactic. When putting, he was using the trusty Discmania P1 to find the chains.
In different sports throughout the world, you often find athletes finding a hot streak or really in the groove. Without a doubt Anttila has found that groove.
“I just feel this is how it was meant to be,” Anttila says. “I’m feeling my game right now.”
As for what’s next, Anttila had a very easy answer, “I want to tour the United States some day. My goal is to challenge worlds best.”
At just 18-years-old, it’s safe to say we’ll be hearing Anttila’s name for years to come.
In The Bag
Prior to the 2020 Finnish Championships, Anttila sat down and filmed an In The Bag video to showcase what would eventually become a national championship winning lineup of discs.