How do we get Disc Golf into the big time?

[Three Putt]

I get Google Alerts about news of disc golf on the Internet. The last one I got was at 7:47 pm last night, well after World's was complete. There was one story about World's from that Google search.

Stradtman in Semifinals at Disc Golf World Championships

In other worlds...several hours after the World Championships were over, the only story on the Internet about it was about some kid from Texas A & M making the semis in Advanced Am (he finished tied for 27th, BTW). All of the info that was out there was blogs, Twitter and message boards like this one buzzing about what was going on. The actual "media" doesn't even know disc golf exists. We are so far away from being "big-time" that it's actually funny to be talking about it.

When I started playing PDGA numbers were in the 6000, and there were less than 500 courses in the World. There were seven or eight course in the entire state of Missouri. Things have come a long, long way since then. Things have an even longer way still to go before disc golf is ever "big-time." It may never get there. The flip side is that the slow build-up of the sport help establish a solid foundation for it. It's not a fad that everyone is going to abandon. It's a sport that is getting established all across the country. Will it ever get on TV? I don't think so. Will it ever go bust like a fad does with eventually no one playing it? I don't think that will happen, either. It's a small sport, but it's a small sport that has carved out it's place in the sporting landscape and is here to stay. That's a very, very good thing.

 

[wtafro]

We just need a disc golfer like Happy Gilmore. DG would be on TV then.

 

[yes s1rr]

Better question. Why do we want it to go big time?

so we can make big time money

 

[yes s1rr]

The sport definitely has to grow. The key is just to keep playing as you get older and introducing the game to new players. Personally, I am completely dumbfounded by people who don't want the course to grow... What does growth of the sport mean? More courses, higher quality courses, media coverage, and most importantly...more people making money. Now I know there are a lot of people on here who are better players than me, would you consider yourself the equivalent, in skill, to say a golf pro? There are tens of thousands of excellent golfers in this country not named Tiger Woods making a very nice living being golf pros....Not that we'll reach the level of golf that quick, but wouldn't it be nice to make some good money playing disc?
Also, more players means more disc companies which means more competition, better technology and lower priced goods....
I don't know, I can understand the hippies who play barefoot and like to spend half of their day smoking bowls on the 7th tee would like to keep it underground...and also all of the teenagers and frat boys whose only chance to drink beer is on the disc golf course would want to keep it underground....but if you're really a fan of the sport, you should want to see it grow and be recognized as the awesome game it is!
The bottom line is that growth for the sport equals more money generated by disc golf for disc golf players and more, higher quality courses.

good call

 

[Marty McFly]

so we can make big time money

Money will be the evil of the sport. People will come to cash in and lower the fun level forsure.

 

[scarpfish]

so we can make big time money

What makes you think the money of the "big time" is going to fall into everyone's hands? I would see the windfall from the supposed blowup only going to a select few. The rest of us would only be rewarded with structured tee times, higher costs, and a bunch of crap product being peddled.

I don't really think folks who have these dreams of getting DG into the same state of public consciousness that the "big time" sports have really thought how those sports got to where they are, and how long it took them to get there, or have a slightest clue on how such scenario would play out for our sport. I'm not saying that it won't happen, but its going to take years for it to happen. Even compared to other sports that aren't "big time", we're a drop in the bucket. The PDGA has about 12,000 current members. The United States Bowling Congress by comparison has 2.6 million.

Things have an even longer way still to go before disc golf is ever "big-time." It may never get there. The flip side is that the slow build-up of the sport help establish a solid foundation for it. It's not a fad that everyone is going to abandon.

The slow build up which we have been growing at will serve us well in the long run. I don't ever want to see DG go through a fad phase like what happened with poker, or ball golf where we have a lot of posers and carpetbaggers coming in just to make a buck.

 

[yes s1rr]

there is no evil in the sport except poison ivy

 

[STSgoalie]

there is no evil in the sport except poison ivy

and when your lie is in the middle of a thorn bush. lol

 

[solomon.trenton]

there is no evil in the sport except poison ivy

or invisible mosquitos

 

[XxInnovaxX]

I agree with you, if the money is going toward course maintenance and things like adding pin placements to the course, I'm perfectly happy to pay a couple bucks to play the course. Most of the pay to play courses I've been to have been well worth it, and generally have fewer people who are completely ignorant of course etiquette around, so you don't have to worry so much about getting stuck behind groups of 10, or being thrown on from behind.

thats what club membership and mini tournament money goes to, i guess everything is different up north....down here course maintance is done by the city and club members, with gives a lot of us more respect for our home courses bc we have helped to get them looking they way they do...and most city dept dont know anything about dg, so its always good that we make the decisions on what direction the course goes...that way when we do have new pin placements ideas everyone can have their input....

and i would hate to have to get a tee time....that would just be wrong ....i feel we dont need stray away from the things that have made this game great

 

[Despare]

thats what club membership and mini tournament money goes to, i guess everything is different up north....down here course maintance is done by the city and club members, with gives a lot of us more respect for our home courses bc we have helped to get them looking they way they do...and most city dept dont know anything about dg, so its always good that we make the decisions on what direction the course goes...that way when we do have new pin placements ideas everyone can have their input....

and i would hate to have to get a tee time....that would just be wrong ....i feel we dont need stray away from the things that have made this game great

PDGA already requires a dress code don't they? I hope it doesn't get too much like ball golf but I think we can all agree that we would love to have the sport grow (as long as it doesn't hurt our wallets).

 

[Tiggertooth]

I would love to pay to play if it meant better courses and tee times. The parts of disc golf that I don't want are the carts, the stuffy shirts, the formality of the whole thing. I played ball golf quite seriously for years and eventually just couldn't take it anymore. But, the ability to say "hey I want to play at 2pm" and actually have a reasonable flow at 2pm with people who know what they're doing--that for me is worth paying for.

I find the worst part of disc golf for me are large crowds slowing down the entire course and poorly maintained courses. I live near a ball golf course and every day I look out and wish I could be throwing discs out there. Immaculately maintained, gorgeous, and never a crowd. It's perfect. But, no, I have to go to an overcrowded park with trash all around and the weeds a foot high.

I guess when I started I was very thankful for all the public parks. I don't want to get rid of that. And there are some amazing fantastic courses that are public. That's terrific. I just wish there were more pay-to-play opportunities for people who have the money and desire to do so.

That's my 2 cents.

 

[Technohic]

I would love to pay to play if it meant better courses and tee times. The parts of disc golf that I don't want are the carts, the stuffy shirts, the formality of the whole thing. I played ball golf quite seriously for years and eventually just couldn't take it anymore. But, the ability to say "hey I want to play at 2pm" and actually have a reasonable flow at 2pm with people who know what they're doing--that for me is worth paying for.

I find the worst part of disc golf for me are large crowds slowing down the entire course and poorly maintained courses. I live near a ball golf course and every day I look out and wish I could be throwing discs out there. Immaculately maintained, gorgeous, and never a crowd. It's perfect. But, no, I have to go to an overcrowded park with trash all around and the weeds a foot high.

I guess when I started I was very thankful for all the public parks. I don't want to get rid of that. And there are some amazing fantastic courses that are public. That's terrific. I just wish there were more pay-to-play opportunities for people who have the money and desire to do so.

That's my 2 cents.

I have never had any interest of playing disc golf on a ball golf course. I mean, if the course isnt a little rough; more trees, tight lines, hazardous thorn bushes; I dont think it would be as fun. I know that you want them to be at least maintained and the hazards intentional and not just from lack of grooming, but thats just good and bad courses.

The pay for tee-time thing; seeing that DG is so small still, it would have a hard time making it I would think if there was a good free course nearby. I guess I am just more for the relaxed atmosphere that depends on people trying to remain courteuous.

 

[innova]

Well you already have a theme song picked out.


:^/

Disc golf may never get to the big time, whatever that means. I do not see it as a bad thing if the sport would remain obscure and under the radar. Be careful what you ask for.

Most event directors could not handle huge events. Some can, sure... that is proven, but with exposure comes issues, often times.

Any of you have to get permits from your local city Gov? Sound permits? Portolets?
Police (paid off duty) as well as insurance? etc, ad nauseum.

If events become bigtime YOU WILL have to deal with increased logistics. Bank on it. That is not a bad thing, but again, be careful for what you ask.

When I worked for a Festival in Austin we had to appear before the city council about that public event. Not fun. Small can be a wonderful thing... some folks just can't see the forest for the trees.

 

[scarpfish]

There is a potential bad scenario with pay-4-play that would worry me a bit. If such a facility were monetarily successful, but time consuming for that entity to handle, they might contract out the duties to be in charge of granting admission (and possibly selling discs) to a private party. Now if that contract ended up with the local DG club, that would be fine, but I would assume in such a circumstance, the city might be legally obliged to keep that contract open to anybody who wanted to bid on it.

Then some carpetbagging individual, with deep pockets, who sees the successful pay for play DG course and the number of people handing their money over, who otherwise has no interest in disc golf, outbids the club and is awarded the contract. Then you have a public facility essentially in a private party's hands who has no interest in advancing the sport. Completely opposite of what I think most of us would want.

If you subscribe to Google news alerts, you might have heard about the gentleman who ran a DG pro shop at La Mirada, and lost his lease when he got outbid for a contract there.

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ci_12765164

So yeah folks, be careful what you wish for.

 

[waynewf]

There is a potential bad scenario with pay-4-play that would worry me a bit. If such a facility were monetarily successful, but time consuming for that entity to handle, they might contract out the duties to be in charge of granting admission (and possibly selling discs) to a private party. Now if that contract ended up with the local DG club, that would be fine, but I would assume in such a circumstance, the city might be legally obliged to keep that contract open to anybody who wanted to bid on it.

Then some carpetbagging individual, with deep pockets, who sees the successful pay for play DG course and the number of people handing their money over, who otherwise has no interest in disc golf, outbids the club and is awarded the contract. Then you have a public facility essentially in a private party's hands who has no interest in advancing the sport. Completely opposite of what I think most of us would want.

If you subscribe to Google news alerts, you might have heard about the gentleman who ran a DG pro shop at La Mirada, and lost his lease when he got outbid for a contract there.

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ci_12765164

So yeah folks, be careful what you wish for.

Honestly, who cares whether or not the business people running pro shops or courses are avid disc golf lovers? If someone has deep pockets, they probably aren't interested in just throwing their money away and will put some real business know-how into the course a pro shop and grow it more than someone with a love of the sport but without the necessary resources...
In "those with money" vs. "those without money", those with the money tend to win.
The fact of the matter is that nothing good stays free forever.

 

[waynewf]

thats what club membership and mini tournament money goes to, i guess everything is different up north....down here course maintance is done by the city and club members, with gives a lot of us more respect for our home courses bc we have helped to get them looking they way they do...and most city dept dont know anything about dg, so its always good that we make the decisions on what direction the course goes...that way when we do have new pin placements ideas everyone can have their input....

and i would hate to have to get a tee time....that would just be wrong ....i feel we dont need stray away from the things that have made this game great

What's so wrong about tee times? If you have a really popular course and a ton of people are always trying to play, what's wrong with a little bit of organization?
And it's not as though you have to make a tee time to play ball golf every time you play at aevery course ni the country. I've played tons of courses where you just walk up, sign in , pay your fee, and are given a tee time based on the order of people arriving. Stray singles and twosomes are often paired with others to complete foursomes and overall make the course flow much better.
I think it's simply the game itself, which makes it great...it's certainly not groups of 10 playing ahead of me

 

[solomon.trenton]

What's so wrong about tee times? If you have a really popular course and a ton of people are always trying to play, what's wrong with a little bit of organization?
And it's not as though you have to make a tee time to play ball golf every time you play at aevery course ni the country. I've played tons of courses where you just walk up, sign in , pay your fee, and are given a tee time based on the order of people arriving. Stray singles and twosomes are often paired with others to complete foursomes and overall make the course flow much better.
I think it's simply the game itself, which makes it great...it's certainly not groups of 10 playing ahead of me

that would only work if its a private course. otherwise you would have way too many outsiders.

 

[waynewf]

Another thought is that if we want it to catch someone's eye, it's got to be on the radar of a major media market. I know it's popular in Californai, but I'm not sure how easy it is to play if you live in L.A. I've only been a few times, but I know that traffic can make traveling long distances challenging to say the least.
I lived in NYC for almost 5 years and DG has almost no presence there at all, despite a few quality courses in NJ. I think that if there was sort of annual event in or around NYC that could draw some media attention, that would help the sport a ton. Maybe some sort of annual fundraiser tourney for a good cause with a mix of pro players and if you could nab a few celebs from the Yanks/Mets/Giants/Jets/Knicks/Nets/Rangers you could bring a ton of fans out. It may have to be in Long Island or Brooklyn...but proximity to the city is key.
I know there's a guy that plays an object course in Brooklyn's Prospect Park, but if it could be xposed to the NYC media...that could go a long way...
And what about Chicago??? Chicago area players, what are your big events courses that might be able to draw some exposure.
See, we need to focus on the biig cities....if we're talking about the media, nobody is going to cover anything that's happening in Whateversville, Missouri or Middle-of-Nowhere, WI.....

 

[mashnut]

Worlds next year is happening at Lemon Lake right near Chicago, and there's at least one big event every year at La Mirada in L.A. I agree that major market exposure would be great, but even when things are going on in big cities, the media outlets just aren't that interested in covering a niche sport unfortunately.