The game of Guts Frisbee was born in 1958 as the Healy family tossed a “Pluto Platter” around at a family gathering in their hometown of Eagle Harbor, MI. The offensive team throws the Frisbee at the receiving team 14 meters away to score. The receiving team defends by trying to catch the disc with one hand. The throwing team scores when the other team fails to catch the disc cleanly, while no point is awarded if the receiving team catches the disc. The teams alternately throw and receive, and the first team to 21 points wins!
As Guts spread across both Canada and the United States, more rules were implemented and the game became more official. Tournaments popped up from Rochester, NY to Vancouver, BC. The game became a spectacle and was even televised by ABC’s Wide World of Sports. Today, there are four major Guts tournaments in the United States, but the sport is slightly different than what it once was.
Since the rise of mainstream sports coverage in the 1970s, Guts Frisbee’s popularity has declined in the United States. The sport was introduced in Asia by Wham-O in the 1970s, and has since become more popular in Japan and Taiwan than in the U.S. On a global level, Guts Frisbee outlets have popped up across the world in Egypt, the United Kingdom and more. These teams compete at the World Ultimate and Guts Championships (WUGC) every four years.
