Flippin' Discs

Well, it's over. I somehow can't get the image out of my mind of Ty Webb saying, "Don't sell yourself short. You're a tremendous slouch." We did have a couple of "Noonan!" episodes as well, so all in all, it was a very Caddyshack-like event. Yeah, we had some fun. Scoring was at a premium. And by that, I mean that I took a lot of shots...A laahht of shots. Over the four rounds played (3 short tees and one long,) I accumulated 269 shots -- 33 more than the winner in my Rec Division. I finished 8 out of 10, falling a few back of the 6th place I was in after day one. While the the King's Cup 14 as an event would garner a stupendous Yelp score, I rate my personal performance a solid...Eh. Party of Five Disc Golf shares similarities with it's round ball half-brother, but foursomes tend to not be one of them. Fivesomes with a shotgun start on 18 holes saw me start on hole 18. The last group. However, the structure of the event meant that I w...

I got really caught up during the holidays and swept up in the whirlwind of my excitement for this new sport that I have taken on. I continue to scour the Internet for tips, tricks, techniques that will help me advance my understanding of the game. But, I need to take a deep breath here and reflect for a moment about what has drawn me in...and how my enthusiasm can #growthesport, so that others may experience the joy of disc golf as well. Hey, I just got here Growing up in South Jersey, with parents that lived their entire lives in that same relative area, I developed a love for Philly's sports teams early on. My Eagles finally came through last year, the Phils have had Championships during my lifetime, it's been awhile for the Flyers and Sixers, but I still pull for my hometown teams. While I respected the players, it was always about the team's successes (or disappointments) which would illicit my passionate rooting. I didn't cheer for Randall when he went to Min...

Just to recap When 2018 began, I was concerned about how my Philadelphia Eagles would fare in the playoffs. That worked out well for me. I made an insane 1000-mile round trip and got to attend the first Super Bowl victory parade in Philadelphia, on my birthday, with a few million of my favorite people. I had no idea about disc golf. I lead a sheltered life. Five months later, I was back in Pennsylvania again. This time, visiting my brother for his birthday. He had played a little disc golf and suggested we try a course near him in Bethlehem...South Mountain. I had a great time. Even shot a little live video for Facebook. When I got back to North Carolina I was starting to feel the addiction creep into me. I had a couple of used discs that my brother gave me and one store-bought new, all dropped into a string backpack. This was not going to work. Over the next few weeks, I ordered a couple of weekender bags for my son and I. Hit the local hot spots to check out some discs, in...

The first time I played Disc Golf, I really had no idea what I was doing. I had the most basic understanding...very basic. My brother, son and I were headed across the parking lot toward the first tee pad as I feverishly tried to download an app for a scorecard, taunted by my fickle cell signal on South Mountain in Bethlehem, PA. It was crap. The signal, and the first app that finished in time for the round to begin. The other four apps I selected finished downloading somewhere amidst the glorious wilderness as I tracked my way to an outstanding 27-over par. We went live on Facebook on hole 9 , in an embarrassing display of amateurism. But we were having fun. And I became interested in the sport of disc golf. About a month later, I was ready to jump in, and I decided to find a more complete app for my adventures. I had no idea how vital this would be for my game. I opened UDisc for the very first time and have enjoyed every moment since. So, this post is going to brag on my favor...

It's still hard to believe that the first time I picked up a disc was about 5 months ago. Borrowed a couple and bought one. It would be another month or so before I got a few more used discs and went out to play again. I knew I wanted to play more after the first time out. Once I played again, I was hooked. I really didn't know much about the game...there's still a long way to go. Every day I get more enthusiastic about throwing discs, and I would have to say that the most influential part of the experience, is the people I have met. Without all of them, I wouldn't be enjoying this game so much. It's not like other sports I'd been more of an organizational guy. Set times to show up for softball games in the city league. Sundays for adult league soccer, 11, 1, or 3. Early morning sign-ins for a triathlon or a tee time to meet a few people at the course. Shelling out bucks for gear, registration and greens fees, with no real practice time, yet every one of th...

In the early going I found time to sneak out quietly by myself to a few of the disc golf courses in the area. I was still a little skittish about playing with other people. In time, I found a guy that can go out and have fun, but still be looking at improving parts of his game and mine. I am still not good at practicing, but I have found a way to get out there and practice, while I play, with a little game I like to call, "Be Like Mike." It's a little play on the competitiveness of Jordan, as well as the number 23. Participation trophies are crap and I rarely play where I don't keep score. It's my fatal flaw. But this game helps me get some extra work in, and track my progress. Here's how it basically works: A game within a game I play my first shot from each tee as I normally would. The approach can range from a conservative, "this is the disc that I can get into play," to "throwing this disc like I know I can will be the perfect shot....

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. 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...