Time for Dubs
I warned you this day was coming. This is the part where we reflect on the recent past only to move backward into the journey of how I got here, and then, fast forward back to the present again. I do have some links in this post. I hope that won't distract you too much, but you can always click those after reading so you can get a visual from my story.
The event itself is like most sports experiences, there's a community aspect, kids' clinic, local sponsors, plus the big names in the industry sponsoring, plus prizes and showing off some merchandise. The camaraderie is unrivaled in anything I have done to date. I've played in local golf events, adult soccer leagues, coached in youth softball and played in the city league, as well as sprint distance triathlons. By far, this was the most fun I have ever had. It was challenging, but a great time with great people.
As a bonus, the course was set in an unique location, downtown Cary. Parking lots and parking decks, sidewalks and side streets, courtyards and front yards were all part of the territory for playing tee box to basket during our round of disc golf. I really felt that I wasn't at such a disadvantage as a noob to the sport given that the course is temporary and not one that can be played any day of the week. You have to make shots in a place that can't be practiced continuously.
With a small donation, anyone can come play the course, from 8 until noon on that Saturday morning. James and I left from the Wilmington area in the darkness and arrived at 7:30, ready for some rain and some interesting tee pads. We had a nice practice round, met a couple of competitors, and got soaking wet. Completely drenched, but in a fun way, if that makes sense. I actually went live on Facebook for the first time after practice and you can see holes 3 through 7, although I shot them in reverse order. I have better videos from hole 7 later. Wait for iiiiiiiit...
Hole 16 and 17 are tough for me with the former requiring a laser or ginormous hyzer and the latter being 400 feet long. I have neither of those and knew my partner would carry the burden for both, although I did have a nice tee shot on 17, but James' shot was better.
Number 18 is an island green, from an elevated walkway, requiring a right-hand backhand anhyzer or delicate flick for me. My partner is a lefty, so we compliment each other pretty well. We both avoided the bricks and railings, again, he was closer, so we made our first of 6 birdies on the day.
One and two are not pedestrian, with a large mando tree on the first and a drop-off behind the hanging basket on 2. The experienced players make this look easy. We did make pars though. Then we were live on Facebook for holes 3 and 4 (not my best performance) and James carried us here with 2 birdies all by himself. A couple more pars on 5 and 6, we were 3-under at this point, 11 holes in. Then, came my moment...
Things got a bit crazy after that with some ups and downs, waiting for other groups and my partner trying to tombstone his Nuke like he did earlier...and then did it on 9. Then birdie on 10, par on 11.
On 12 and 13, I had my best tees shots of the day, both flicks. The first helped us make birdie (our 6th of the day and putting us at 5-under) and the second was nice, but I was losing a little focus and didn't help my partner, so we finished with a bogey.
There was a long backup again as we got to 14. My phone was dying and I plugged into my battery pack in my bag with my phone still clipped on my belt. Another player accused us of "juicing," so I helped us bogey that hole too for good measure.
Incidentally, there are numerous signs along the course to warn people about the danger of flying discs. After all, we're just out in public taking over what are normally streets near the downtown area of Cary. There are even precautions in place to protect players from other players (like myself.) However, I was able to thwart one safety measure...another unbelievable shot. I was so proud of myself for yelling, "Fore!" instead of "Oh, Crap!" like is customary for me. No one was injured. Thank God.
We finished our round on 15, a double-triple mando through a small patio-type area. I preceded to "graze" the building after the first mando, and careen through the second before landing in the grassy area beyond. Another outstanding feat to be sure and a par to complete our card for the day.
I just need to spend more time practicing my form until then. I've only been playing since August and I have so much to learn about my own game. Time to go throw some more flippin' discs!
Heading Downtown
It didn't take much convincing from a new friend, but I got into my first tournament, one tied to the PDGA (Professional Disc Golf Association.) This past weekend I participated in the DUO (Downtown Urban Open) in Cary, North Carolina during the doubles event on Saturday before the individual competition happened on Sunday.The event itself is like most sports experiences, there's a community aspect, kids' clinic, local sponsors, plus the big names in the industry sponsoring, plus prizes and showing off some merchandise. The camaraderie is unrivaled in anything I have done to date. I've played in local golf events, adult soccer leagues, coached in youth softball and played in the city league, as well as sprint distance triathlons. By far, this was the most fun I have ever had. It was challenging, but a great time with great people.
As a bonus, the course was set in an unique location, downtown Cary. Parking lots and parking decks, sidewalks and side streets, courtyards and front yards were all part of the territory for playing tee box to basket during our round of disc golf. I really felt that I wasn't at such a disadvantage as a noob to the sport given that the course is temporary and not one that can be played any day of the week. You have to make shots in a place that can't be practiced continuously.
With a small donation, anyone can come play the course, from 8 until noon on that Saturday morning. James and I left from the Wilmington area in the darkness and arrived at 7:30, ready for some rain and some interesting tee pads. We had a nice practice round, met a couple of competitors, and got soaking wet. Completely drenched, but in a fun way, if that makes sense. I actually went live on Facebook for the first time after practice and you can see holes 3 through 7, although I shot them in reverse order. I have better videos from hole 7 later. Wait for iiiiiiiit...
I'm ready?!
After lunch, we were ready to go. James and I tinkered with a few team names before he came up with the perfect one...Not Last?! Hmmm. Perhaps appropriate. At any rate, we were in. As with many of these regional events, it's a shotgun start, and sometimes in order to include more players, these formats are often 20 holes, like this one. As lesser prolific players, we were relegated to the long walk to begin our challenge, at hole 16. I won't tire you out with a full recount of every hole.Hole 16 and 17 are tough for me with the former requiring a laser or ginormous hyzer and the latter being 400 feet long. I have neither of those and knew my partner would carry the burden for both, although I did have a nice tee shot on 17, but James' shot was better.
Number 18 is an island green, from an elevated walkway, requiring a right-hand backhand anhyzer or delicate flick for me. My partner is a lefty, so we compliment each other pretty well. We both avoided the bricks and railings, again, he was closer, so we made our first of 6 birdies on the day.
One and two are not pedestrian, with a large mando tree on the first and a drop-off behind the hanging basket on 2. The experienced players make this look easy. We did make pars though. Then we were live on Facebook for holes 3 and 4 (not my best performance) and James carried us here with 2 birdies all by himself. A couple more pars on 5 and 6, we were 3-under at this point, 11 holes in. Then, came my moment...
One shining moment
Hole 7 is a 221 foot shot from the top of the parking deck, over the street toward a basket barely visible through the tree-lined road. I had watched video of a thumber played from this tee. I was not fully confident in this type of shot, but I didn't have the power or control to throw anything better, so I gave it a go. My partner shot video as well as another player watching as we were backed up with anywhere from 3 to 4 groups during our time at that location. I'm going to be hanging onto this memory for a long time. It was beautiful, and I'm not saying that just because it was mine...I'm saying that because it's just fact. I absolutely parked it. This is where my tee shot ended up.Things got a bit crazy after that with some ups and downs, waiting for other groups and my partner trying to tombstone his Nuke like he did earlier...and then did it on 9. Then birdie on 10, par on 11.
On 12 and 13, I had my best tees shots of the day, both flicks. The first helped us make birdie (our 6th of the day and putting us at 5-under) and the second was nice, but I was losing a little focus and didn't help my partner, so we finished with a bogey.
There was a long backup again as we got to 14. My phone was dying and I plugged into my battery pack in my bag with my phone still clipped on my belt. Another player accused us of "juicing," so I helped us bogey that hole too for good measure.
Incidentally, there are numerous signs along the course to warn people about the danger of flying discs. After all, we're just out in public taking over what are normally streets near the downtown area of Cary. There are even precautions in place to protect players from other players (like myself.) However, I was able to thwart one safety measure...another unbelievable shot. I was so proud of myself for yelling, "Fore!" instead of "Oh, Crap!" like is customary for me. No one was injured. Thank God.
We finished our round on 15, a double-triple mando through a small patio-type area. I preceded to "graze" the building after the first mando, and careen through the second before landing in the grassy area beyond. Another outstanding feat to be sure and a par to complete our card for the day.
Not Last?!
I'm not sure where we finished with 6 birdies and 3 bogeys for a 3-under round. We didn't win, but I'm pretty sure we we're last either. At any rate, I had a great time with my partner, my group and with everything about the event. If you want to see how great this course is you should check out this video from 2017. There's a course map at 11:38 and following of the lead card for the round. I hope to give it a go for the entire weekend next year.I just need to spend more time practicing my form until then. I've only been playing since August and I have so much to learn about my own game. Time to go throw some more flippin' discs!
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