Do I even need distance drivers in NC?

[ray1970]

Going to be making a trip to North Carolina for a little disc golf.

Checking out a bunch of courses on Udisc it seems a majority of the courses call for hitting lines and shaping shots but the hole lengths aren't generally very long.

As I will be flying I'm going to limit myself to a small number of discs.

From what I can tell, leaving out the drivers shouldn't hurt my game?

 

[lee76007]

Where are you playing? I've bagged all of the 18-holers on a line from Rocky Mount to the Outer Banks and north. All of those courses were a mixed bag.

 

[ray1970]

Not sure. Charlotte is going to be the home base but may venture out in any direction.

 

[PMantle]

Charlotte is going to be the home base but may venture out in any direction.

I leave tomorrow for there, so I am watching closely. Trying to decide if to pack the Rebel or the Shift.

 

[DavidSauls]

I can't help you. With what's left of my arm, every course needs drivers, including some elementary schools.

Besides, the real danger in playing without drivers isn't that it will hurt your score, but that it won't. You don't want to cause a rift between yourself, and your beloved drivers, do you?

All kidding aside, you'll find plenty of places where you still want to throw long -- not wide open, but wide enough and long enough. Maybe a driver or two, just for that.

 

[BillFleming]

I don't know your throwing habits/ability, so here's my thoughts....

Either leave out all distance drivers and make do with what you do take.....or take just one and that one needs to be your 'go-to' distance drive that you can count on to do whatever you need it to do. Ask yourself, if a million dollars was on the line and you could only throw one distance driver, which would it be?

 

[ray1970]

Thanks. Guess I should have specified but I'm not planning on going putters and mids only. I will be bringing some fairway drivers. I can push an Escape almost as far as my distance stuff anyways so I won't be giving up much distance without the speed 12-13 stuff.

 

[Rastnav]

NC disc golf is dominated by wooded courses that require you to hit lines, that is for sure. Which isn't to say that there aren't courses that are more wide open, some of the oldest in the state, even. But, those aren't really the typical Carolina experience.

Whether you will want a speed 12 disc really depends on a myriad of factors. How far you actually throw, what courses you'll play, what tee pads, whether you'd always rather play for birdie than par, etc. It's really hard to make a blanket statement.

 

[ray1970]

Either leave out all distance drivers and make do with what you do take.....or take just one and that one needs to be your 'go-to' distance drive that you can count on to do whatever you need it to do. Ask yourself, if a million dollars was on the line and you could only throw one distance driver, which would it be?

Ha. Not sure I really have a go-to distance driver. I generally only bag them when I know the course I will be playing needs a few big distance tee shots. Not knowing the courses in North Carolina I don't know if I'm handicapping myself by sacrificing fifty feet or so of distance by not bringing them.

As far as my game, any hole under 300' I will probably be throwing a mid or a putter. I can't quite get them to 300' but a controlled 275-290' shot usually leaves me a putt.

Father Time hasn't quite caught up with me yet so I prefer to mash on a slower disc as opposed to powering down a faster disc.

 

[ray1970]

NC disc golf is dominated by wooded courses that require you to hit lines, that is for sure. Which isn't to say that there aren't courses that are more wide open, some of the oldest in the state, even. But, those aren't really the typical Carolina experience.

Thus my quandary. The courses I was browsing didn't look like anything where I would be committing to max distance off the tee anyways.

My wife will be playing with me and she has bad knees so we're probably going to limit ourselves to courses in the 5000-6000' range. I typically don't bag my distance drivers on those types of courses anyways so I guess maybe that should be what I base my decision on.

 

[Rastnav]

A few examples:

I think you will likely try and play Angry Beaver and Hornets Nest if you are staying in Charlotte. You can watch last year's DGPT championships to see how Hornets Nest plays. Paul Ulibarri has videos on his channel of him playing Angry Beaver, I'm pretty sure. Or you can go to Michael Holt's channel. Whether you need a distance driver? Depends on your goals.

If you were traveling farther within the state, and were trying to hit historic courses, you might go to Horizons Park or Cedarock Park. Both of those are much more open. Cedarock might require a distance driver if you were thinking you wanted the chance at an eagle, or wanted to make the approach for some birdies easier. Horizons is open and quite short, but extremely pretty.

ETA: if you went to Cedarock, you'd want to do the 36 hole figure-8 with the other course in the park.

 

[BillFleming]

One other option and it depends on how many courses/rounds you are planning on playing......leave your distance drivers at home and if you decide you need one, buy one at a local disc store - used or new. Then you can always take it home, donate it, or sell it if the disc store takes used plastic (Play It Again Sports buys used discs - at least the ones around here).

 

[ru4por]

I just played most of Charlotte and feel comfortable saying you will need drivers. The courses all have a similar, heavily wooded vibe, but they are not short. Ripping a 275 to 300 foot rope, on a specific line, is a very common need. If you can push out a Buzzz that far, leave the drivers at home. Charlotte is a terrific place to go play disc golf. Don't miss Renny Gold, Angry Beaver, Nevin, nor Hornets Nest. Their courses are almost all housed within terrific parks and are well appointed with benches, cans, bathrooms, dual tee pads and solid upkeep.

 

[ru4por]

One other option and it depends on how many courses/rounds you are planning on playing......leave your distance drivers at home and if you decide you need one, buy one at a local disc store - used or new. Then you can always take it home, donate it, or sell it if the disc store takes used plastic (Play It Again Sports buys used discs - at least the ones around here).

Another Round is a cool disc store with a bar. On a hot day that we knocked out two courses, we stopped by for a break in the air conditioning and had a couple cold microbrews.

 

[ru4por]

Thus my quandary. The courses I was browsing didn't look like anything where I would be committing to max distance off the tee anyways.

My wife will be playing with me and she has bad knees so we're probably going to limit ourselves to courses in the 5000-6000' range. I typically don't bag my distance drivers on those types of courses anyways so I guess maybe that should be what I base my decision on.

Sorry for the triple posting. Charlotte does not feature a ton of elevation and I used a cart on all courses. Even those 6000 foot courses have plenty of shots for drivers. Being so wooded, you don't get much air space. Low, screaming drives that need to penetrate down the fairway is the shot you will need over and over.

 

[JuanA]

Keep in mind you're going to need more stable versions of what you're currently carrying in Denver.

I'd be more concerned with that, than leaving a driver at home.

 

[jupiterboy]

Grab something that you can burn low and get a nice flare skip. That shot comes up pretty often in wooded courses around here.

 

[discerdoo]

Distance drivers would probably be the first thing I'd drop if I had to limit my number of discs. Especially if I was playing new, somewhat technical courses.

How much distance are you actually giving up with a 9 speed vs 12 speed?

 

[elmexdela]

I just played most of Charlotte and feel comfortable saying you will need drivers. The courses all have a similar, heavily wooded vibe, but they are not short. Ripping a 275 to 300 foot rope, on a specific line, is a very common need. If you can push out a Buzzz that far, leave the drivers at home. Charlotte is a terrific place to go play disc golf. Don't miss Renny Gold, Angry Beaver, Nevin, nor Hornets Nest. Their courses are almost all housed within terrific parks and are well appointed with benches, cans, bathrooms, dual tee pads and solid upkeep.

renny gold is an eroded chithole

i think people could miss it

 

[ru4por]

renny gold is an eroded chithole

i think people could miss it

Shrug. It was in pretty nice shape a few weeks ago. Some of the areas only elevation, a handful of wonderful holes and a chance to air out some shots in the Charlotte area. My only real complaint was navigation was a challenge.