Nikko LoCastro intimidating a PDGA official at European Open '22

[davetherocketguy]

Don't sweat it Dave, you might as well be debating a bot.

A bot that doesn't play disc golf apparently lol.

 

[Orioles_Lefty]

DGPT should be figuring out how to catch the slow players later in their turn instead of trying to change how players paying for a paycheck play their games. The only valid reason for any slow play rules is that a group is out of position on the course. if they are not out of position then who cares? i could care less if the video producers have a bit of down time while a player is giving it their all.

Also exceeding the time limit is not a violation in itself. It only becomes a violation after a specific series of events. Proper specific warning, position of group, difficulty level of a shot, outside distractions in play, order of play, all determine how fast a shot should be played. They did a study on the PGA Tour and the first player to tee off and the first player to hit an approach, all violated the time rule the majority of the time during the study. It took on average 15-20 seconds more for those shots to be hit, by fast and slow players alike. Most everyone here thinks this a vanilla and chocolate thing, "he was too slow so it is a penalty'. There are a whole host of other issues also in play other than just time. The ignorance towards these issues may have gone a long way towards having the situation develop like it did.

You're an absolute peach.

 

[glassila]

It's not about the 30 seconds. It's about the way Nikko reacted. The 30 seconds are meaningless

Yep, I think if someone had called him for a foot fault he would have reacted the same way.

 

[Streets]

I've always pulled for Nikko...dude's got passion, pulls incredible **** on the course, and has always had a stick it to the man attitude in terms of sponsorships.

Definitely rethinking this now...just depends on his attitude going forward and how he addresses this situation.

 

[Ess-dog]

I've always pulled for Nikko...dude's got passion, pulls incredible **** on the course, and has always had a stick it to the man attitude in terms of sponsorships.

Definitely rethinking this now...just depends on his attitude going forward and how he addresses this situation.

It's a lot harder for Nikko to not be Nikko than to be his true self. So, dont think you should hold out much hope for him to turn into an elder statesman of disc anytime soon. I dont mind him being who he is if it doesnt spiral like this moment. Be nice if he'd realize he had an avenue to protest the original manner of the violation call after the round without going full Nikko. Also not happening but'd be nice.

 

[ChrisWoj]

I think there are a few key differences here. When you have a sport where you have professional officials who are getting paid...athletes tend to get away with a bit more. This is a situation where you do not have professional officials, and in fact are expecting other players to call these violations and then be on the receiving end of Nikko's outbursts.

dmoore's response is the best I've read on this. The officials aren't paid. If we were throwing travel expenses, salary, etc. at our officials - and they were getting paid to deal with the characters on tour, it'd be very different. Still unacceptable, but I think it'd play into what kind of a penalty we apply. The official being a paid PDGA/DGPT official vs a volunteer or someone just being barely compensated for their time at some level below professional is the difference between suspending Nikko for an event or two and suspending him for a year or more.

 

[Meillo]

What I find problematic in Nikko's behavior is not the passion and emotions he shows on the course -- I can relate well to them --, but that he showed no respect for the tournament official staff. This alone should be the reason for some kind of disciplinary action. Because we cannot tolerate, that players are disrespectful and rude to officials. It does not matter what happened before (even if they were wrong), you must never be disrespectful or rude to officials.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

^ Bingo!

 

[Skervoy]

I think it is very different when än athlete is objecting and venting out their reasons, like "I did not tuch the ball..." compared to what Nikko did. He was more less looking for a fight. I would definietly suspend him the year out.

He didnt do anything pyhsically or run any really foul words so the judgement cant be super harsh and I also suspect he will take the biggest hittat sponsors

 

[foxdawg10]

I've always pulled for Nikko...dude's got passion, pulls incredible **** on the course, and has always had a stick it to the man attitude in terms of sponsorships.

Definitely rethinking this now...just depends on his attitude going forward and how he addresses this situation.

I've always given him he benefit of the doubt, but after this one I don't know. I truly believe this was a tipping point for him and there is no going back. Once he showed complete lack of respect for an official, I am not sure how he can go back.

Sure he apologized and I'm sure he was sincere, but I have lost trust in him and I am not sure how other players or officials will feel with this loose canon out on the course. It is not fair to other players to have to deal with this nonsense while they are trying to make a living. Imagine how he next guy will feel when Nikko goes over his 30 seconds, which he will again and again. It puts them in the position of either putting themselves in danger and calling Nikko on the violation, or swallowing it and dealing with his nonsense.

I have always given him the benefit of the doubt, but not this time.

 

[Tyler V]

Clash officially dropped Nikko.

 

[Three Putt]

Nikko has demons. He has always had demons; his behavior when he was little was out-of-control and he didn't really have the stability at home to get under control. He was able to covert to being a disc golfer full-time right out of H.S., which allowed him to avoid figuring out how to operate in the real world. Being able to play disc golf has been a blessing for him in that it has allowed him to make a living. The curse is that it has allowed him to avoid dealing with his demons.

Disc golf accidentally got big and now his demons are on full display to a larger audience. The disc golf bubble that allowed him to avoid his demons got too big to allow him to hide any longer.

Maybe now he will be forced to deal with his demons. Or not, it might be too late. He's going to get a huge suspension for this. The bubble that protected him from his behavior is going to push him out. He has depended on disc golf for his entire adult life; what he does without it is anybody's guess.

 

[Hampstead]

Back to being a pitchman for phone scams?

 

[gammaxgoblin]

Nikko has demons. He has always had demons; his behavior when he was little was out-of-control and he didn't really have the stability at home to get under control. He was able to covert to being a disc golfer full-time right out of H.S., which allowed him to avoid figuring out how to operate in the real world. Being able to play disc golf has been a blessing for him in that it has allowed him to make a living. The curse is that it has allowed him to avoid dealing with his demons.

Disc golf accidentally got big and now his demons are on full display to a larger audience. The disc golf bubble that allowed him to avoid his demons got too big to allow him to hide any longer.

Maybe now he will be forced to deal with his demons. Or not, it might be too late. He's going to get a huge suspension for this. The bubble that protected him from his behavior is going to push him out. He has depended on disc golf for his entire adult life; what he does without it is anybody's guess.

This is a great take. Gentlest reframe I could make is that this is what a traumatically conditioned response looks like. Dude's prefrontal cortex gets overruled by the fight, flight, freeze, fawn system (survival) because of unresolved prior trauma. This sort of thing, this type of antisocial behavior, usually has its roots in some type of childhood trauma. Professionals can help with this sort of thing.

 

[biscoe]

What I find problematic in Nikko's behavior is not the passion and emotions he shows on the course -- I can relate well to them --, but that he showed no respect for the tournament official staff. This alone should be the reason for some kind of disciplinary action. Because we cannot tolerate, that players are disrespectful and rude to officials. It does not matter what happened before (even if they were wrong), you must never be disrespectful or rude to officials.

This. I have run hundreds of events of all levels and seen a ton of bad behavior from players of all statures. The only times I have contacted a sponsor or complained to the PDGA about player behavior have been for abusing my volunteers/staff.

 

[Dingus]

Nikko has demons.

What kind of sheltered world do you live in where occasionally throwing a disc golf bag = having demons? You should see me when I stub my toe, you would recommend I seek therapy!

I have had more threatening encounters with business professionals in expensive suits negotiating business deals compared to Nikko stepping on that TD. Nikko was an idiot for doing what he did, but at the same time we have some extremely soft people in this thread.

 

[Monocacy]

This. I have run hundreds of events of all levels and seen a ton of bad behavior from players of all statures. The only times I have contacted a sponsor or complained to the PDGA about player behavior have been for abusing my volunteers/staff.

As it should be.

In water polo, "to refuse obedience to or show disrespect for a referee or official" is grounds for for the player to be ejected for the duration of the game. This rule is strictly applied, and makes a potentially rough game much more polite.

Seems reasonable for people throwing Frisbees to be held to a similar standard.

 

[ohtobediscing]

Occasionally? Someone should start a payout pool next tourney Nikko's at for what round and hole when he first throws his bag.

 

[Three Putt]

What kind of sheltered world do you live in where occasionally throwing a disc golf bag = having demons? You should see me when I stub my toe, you would recommend I seek therapy!

I have had more threatening encounters with business professionals in expensive suits negotiating business deals compared to Nikko stepping on that TD. Nikko was an idiot for doing what he did, but at the same time we have some extremely soft people in this thread.

The first time I met Nikko was around 1998; as I walked off the course finishing my round I noticed a little skinny kid whacking the crapola out of the front bumper of my car with a stick. When I went over and yelled at him someone went "Oh, that's Dave's nephew."

Skinny little kid wasn't around in St. Louis much a few years later; he turned up in my hometown 100 miles away living with other relatives. Between the people I knew in St. Louis and the people I knew in Rolla back then, I know a lot more about his childhood and his demons than I should. Personally, I cut the guy a lot of slack knowing what I know.

He's a 30+ year-old adult, though. He's got to take responsibility for his actions. I wouldn't excuse what he did and I think he needs to face consequences. But his demons are real.

 

[ohtobediscing]

As it should be.

In water polo, "to refuse obedience to or show disrespect for a referee or official" is grounds for for the player to be ejected for the duration of the game. This rule is strictly applied, and makes a potentially rough game much more polite.

Seems reasonable for people throwing Frisbees to be held to a similar standard.

Sadly, this rule isn't held to in a variety of professional sports ---baseball, basketball, soccer, to some extent football, and others. It's become so normalized that people think it's ok, and in our reality-driven world it's expected. I blame Jerry Springer for it all.