Intro to Disc Golf

"So what have you been up to?" a friend asks me over a beer and some backyard bar-b-que.

"Oh, not too much. Working, non-stop kid stuff... quite a bit of disc golf," I reply, "yeah, more than a bit of disc golf."

My friend glances at me looking confused, "Disco? You have been dancing to disco?"

Disco would probably make more sense to the typical pedestrian. Just today I was out in a field throwing discs and I was hailed down by two women walking by who wanted to know if I was practicing for a frisbee league. Their words, not mine.

Disc golf is still a pretty well hidden secret, but I do feel like word is spreading to some degree. Summer means that our public courses are getting more crowded, which actually surprised me after the last 6 months of rarely seeing anybody.

So now you're ready to join the fun, your buddies are telling you that you're missing out and you're ready to give it a go - but you want to know a few things so you don't look worse than you have to. Below are a few tips that would have helped me when I started; things that I learned the hard way.

  1. Buy a disc or two. Most sporting goods stores will sell a beginner pack for about $20-30 that'll have everything you need. If you want to buy individual discs, grab a putter and a mid-range. Leave drivers for later down the line, they're really hard to throw for beginners even if they look cool. Write your name and # on the bottom so that if you lose it, you'll have at least a chance of getting it back. I've gotten a handful of calls for discs I didn't even realize I'd left behind, and that's always a welcome surprise.
  2. Where do you go to play disc golf? Disc Golf Course Review. Pop your zip code in there and grab directions to a course near you. Trust me when I say STAY OUTTA THE FORUMS unless you want to see the depths of disc golf obsession in full bloom.
  3. Wear some comfortable walking shoes and bring some water or Gatorade, because courses can be a few miles long and might take a couple hours (especially when you are hunting for lost discs). Flip flops are a bad idea.
  4. You're at the course parking lot and now what? Quite often the layouts are confusing to the uninitiated - and the tee pads might not be marked too well. Hopefully there is a map on a board somewhere that'll show you the basic layout of the course. You might do some wandering around asking people where the next tee-box is, it's okay - we've all been lost before. If there's a map online at dgCourseReview - it's worth printing out to help keep your bearings. If all else fails, the tee-box's SHOULD be numbered so you can hopefully figure it out.
  5. Throw your disc and walk, repeating this until you toss it in the chains and start hunting for the next tee-box. In the beginning you don't need to worry about your score, you just want to enjoy yourself - don't get bent out of shape if the discs don't go where you want them to - sometimes you'll have great shots and some will be less than great.
  6. Watch your disc like a hawk. It's pretty crazy how you'll think you know where it landed and then you find that it's not actually where you would have testified in court that it landed. Try to pick out land marks or anything you can get a reference on - because hunting for lost discs is not the most fun aspect of the game. They roll, skip and bounce all over the place and will nestle under anything that allows for some nestling.
  7. If people are right behind you or waiting while you're hunting for a lost disc, it's polite to offer to let them play through. It's absolutely fine to take your time and stroll through the park enjoying the day with your friends - but holding up people who want to play at a faster pace is bad news. If somebody asks to play through, let them cruise on by and say hello. Disc golfers are almost always a friendly crew.
  8. Watch out for pedestrians, bikers and other disc golfers. If you think you might hit somebody - don't throw until it's clear. There was a story not long ago about a woman who lost an eye due to being hit in the face with a bad drive at a small disc golf course. The last thing you want to do is to ruin somebodies day or life by hitting them. If you realize too late that you might hit somebody you didn't see - yell FORE! really loud as soon as possible. Don't start throwing on a hole until the people in front of you have cleared out, just wait and that'll help you avoid any problems.
  9. Leave the course nicer than you found it. Picking up a a little trash goes a long way in the eyes of the disc golf gods. Keeping the disc golf gods happy will mean less lost discs, less missed putts and of course learning to drive 400' after a few rounds... trust me, it works!
  10. Finally, prepare for the addiction. It's fun and the learning curve is not as steep as it first appears. 

24 comments:

  1. I started playing late Nov. 2015...and I'm totally addicted, hooked!

    Trash, since I was a kid it hurt to see that people could just throw their trash on the ground! So for quite some time I've been a trash picker-upper. I bring along with me a couple of bags while out on the course. I'm astonished how much trash are out in our parks! It's just not the disc golfers though..it comes from people in & around the area who are using the various things around the disc golf parks.

    SO, please clean up if you see any trash, only takes a few seconds! Keep America beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I want to thank all of you that stop by my blog and peruse it. I know I haven't been posting much but I do keep up with the number of visitors I get and would love to get to know all of you! Feel free to drop a line at any time Female clothing line

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hardly any exercises will give the experience of circle golf. Players get the chance to work out, invest energy outside, and be with companions. The best part is that actually anybody can begin in plate golf for only a couple of dollars and a free evening.Best disc golf bags

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love playing both disk golf, and golf. However, I like regular golf way more. Something about hitting that ball really far is quite soothing. If you want to read a lesson in putting, be sure to check out my golf blog.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Magnificent delineated data. I thank you about that. Undoubtedly it will be exceptionally helpful for my future ventures. Might want to see some different posts on the same subject! golf swing basics

    ReplyDelete
  7. Nice Informative Blog having nice sharing.. Ubergolf

    ReplyDelete
  8. This makes them to be sought after in the market because of that they meet distinctive degree of necessities for explicit clients. Masters 2020 Golf Free Stream

    ReplyDelete
  9. So how do we provide the best sports experience for our youth in today's world? I would suggest that parents embrace a principle embodied in our past--balancing participation in organized sports with the other developmental opportunities that include direct parental involvement and separate, self-directed play by the children themselves.메이저사이트

    ReplyDelete
  10. Playing a 18 opening round of golf is equivalent to strolling 5 - 7 mile's.buy golf shoes

    ReplyDelete
  11. I first discovered Disc Golf last year (2019), my friend mentioned they had made a disc golf course from what used to be a pitch and putt golf course. They had an open day so we went along to see what it was all about and enjoyed it and played again at the following months open day which by that time I had already purchased a couple of discs. The weather prevented us playing again last year but I retired in January and have tried to play twice a week since our local Covid lockdown has been eased. Sadly as I am still struggling to throw my backhand I have picked up an injury, I am obviously strong arming and have not been able to throw past 188 feet. I have enjoyed looking at as many of your videos as possible and I hope at some point I 'get' what you are trying to put across so that I can play again without damaging my arm and at least get into the 200 to 300 foot distances. Thanks again. - John, Manchester, UK

    ReplyDelete
  12. There they can take out prints of cricket records for references.et20slamnet

    ReplyDelete
  13. The Breakers West Palm Beach golf course is notable golf course in Palm Beach. visit this review golf-hook

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ask yourself the question, People take up golf for various reasons. Looking at the sport with untrained eye, "Are Golf Lessons Worth The Price?" It really doesn't seem like it's all that difficult. The goal of the game is to get the little ball into the hole with as few attempts as possible. This seems like a relatively easy goal and something most people can achieve on their own. However, if you go out on the golf course unassisted you will find yourself spending more time searching for your ball in the rough or fishing it out of water hazards than you will actually playing a good game of golf Golf Buying Guides

    ReplyDelete
  15. Make the most of mainly premium substances - you will find him or her for: best women golf shoes

    ReplyDelete
  16. Gifts, as is known are matter of expressing intimacy and are exchanged without price. Golf gifts are no exception. Being a golfer when you think of gifting something to anyone the first thing which will come to your mind will surely be the golf gift. Golf Matsuyama

    ReplyDelete
  17. Modifying your own golf gear and embellishments is an incredible method to separate yourself from the remainder of the pack, however periodically one fundamental piece of golf hardware is ignored: the golf bag https://golfgeeky.com. Truth be told, many transitional players accept that any given golf bag is actually similar to another, and there is no significant contrast between a men's golf pack and a ladies' golf bag.

    ReplyDelete
  18. It's way past midnight and you are glued to the computer screen... eyes blaring red, blood pumping hard, veins jumping around, fingers frantically pushing at keys, headphones playing out an assortment of techno sounds interspersed with several intermittent blasts and jingles and cracklings... Sound familiar? Well, if that describes you, chances are you might be suffering from computer video game addiction. An increasing number of parents are reaching out to seek advice from professional consultations concerned about a child who doesn't like making friends, or spending time with the parents- the only pastime being computer games. This trend, however, isn't limited to just children alone. A lot of adults these days are getting hooked on to free online games as well and an increasing number of them end up being hooked on to them to the point of being addicted. https://kingboost.net/

    ReplyDelete
  19. This is a great inspiring article.I am pretty much pleased with your good work.You put really very helpful information. Keep it up. Keep blogging. Looking to reading your next post. putter mirror

    ReplyDelete
  20. I'm happy to see the considerable subtle element here!. Best Putting Books

    ReplyDelete
  21. The principal opening is very troublesome with a tight fairway and rocks to the sides of the fairway, which send your ball skipping high in to the sky, gone forever.Trusty golfers

    ReplyDelete
  22. If you're really into computer or video games, you'll want to check out these tips to stay informed of gaming industry news. This is practical advice you won't find elsewhere. Block Puzzle for Android

    ReplyDelete