how do pros typically practice a course?

[ru4por]

lol what pros are you practicing with and where? what tournaments are you running/working at the top level where you're seeing this regularly? this is quite a pessimistic view of our sport and the people who play it. there are a lot of players out there spending their lives trying to figure out how to attack these courses in the best way possible (and then doing it).

maybe your own anecdotes don't represent the sport as a whole? maybe the voices online spreading dissent and feedback on the course are skewing your perspective?

Shrug....I don't see a couple hundred players as ANY sort of representation of "our sport".

 

[Skamanda]

I asked Natalie Ryan about her training regimen for the article I wrote, so here's one pro's first hand accounts of how she practices:

"My weekly regimen usually started out with a Monday rest day since the tournament had just wrapped up. On Tuesday I would always hit the course early to play a round in the conditions that we would compete in (8-9am start time, round typically lasts 3ish hours) during this round I would typically throw 5ish shots a hole so that I could try as many angles and shapes as possible to learn the course quickly. After that I would typically head to lunch, rest for an hour or so, then head to a field for 2 hours to get some throws in to either learn something or fix something that wasn't working from the previous event. For Wednesday I would again start with a round at 8-9 am following the same sort of plan from the first day but I would throw the line that I felt was the best for the hole with several discs to learn which is best for the hole. After that I would eat and rest an hour like usual then I would head to the gym and get 45min-1hr of cardio in then head to the fields again to keep pushing my skills to their limit for another hour or 2. Thursday was usually the day before the event but I would still play a practice round to really finalize my game plan for the event, throwing max two shots a hole to keep my arm a bit fresher. After lunch and a quick rest I would hit the fields again for a couple of hours then rest for the event for the remainder of the day. Friday is tournament round early but after that I would evaluate what I did well and what I didn't and after lunch I would hit a field to try and correct what I was doing wrong, typically these field work sessions were shorter to save my arm for the following day. Saturday and Sunday were the same as Friday. then rinse repeat for the year. on off weeks when I didn't have a tournament coming up i typically did alternating rest and heavy field work days(6+ hours)"

 

[foxdawg10]

It was Simon Lizotte.

Kyle Klein wasn't into the shenanigans either, he was just there to practice, lol.

 

[foxdawg10]

Ryan, it's not shooting distances that makes the difference when walking or evaluating the holes from basket/green to tee or basket/green to landing zone(s) to tee; it's what you SEE. You'd be surprised at how different and appealing/unappealing lines look like from the angle you get when viewing the hole backwards. Again I'm talking about a course your playing blind or nearly blind when this applies. Because on a course you know well your experience will give you those views of "this looked so good from the tee, then I executed exactly as I thought, yet this next shot is not what I thought I'd have." Where to land when 10 feet may make the difference between having an EASY approach vs challenging approach, the good side of a tight fairway, that branch/overhang that looks "in play" from one view is not from the other (and vice versa), etc., are just a few examples you can find on a nearly blind situation by walking each hole backwards.

I appreciate the question. If you need even more proof of this I can show you on a video.

I agree. A years ago I played a tourney on a heavily wooded course blind. The overall pace of play was so slow, that I had time to walk down each fairway and check things out. Going halfway down, looking at then basket, then looking at the tee gave me great perspective on where the lines where and where the landing zones were.

Playing blind, I ended up 1 stroke off the hot round.

 

[Skervoy]

One of my local holes is a good example, fairly short, uphill and bows to the right. From the tee you cant see the basket so it invites an anny shot of some kind.

However to score an easy birdie I realised I could just throw a straight shot at a three just left of the basket. So now I dont have to put any ceiling into play or almost and left to right movement.

Looking backwards can definietly help visualize the lines diffrently and what is needed

 

[drk_evns]

And its outright sad.

The people who travel and make their living doing this have a right to be critical about course design. They're the ones who should have the strongest opinion on it. I've also heard McBeth specifically talk about designing harder courses, and I think that's been reflected in all of the recent tracks he's designed.

Your anecdotes and the conclusions you've come to based on your volunteer work in disc golf seem really pessimistic to me.

I honestly don't even give that many ****s if anyone believes me or not at this point. Cause the main purpose of most people is to argue anymore vs listening. And I work so **** hard to try and listen to others, but when you can clearly see most people are more interested in telling you how wrong you are, or just not even serving any level of respect back to you in the discussions.
Its just not worth my effort to give a ****.

Maybe just take a bit of your own advice?

 

[Sheep]

The people who travel and make their living doing this have a right to be critical about course design. They're the ones who should have the strongest opinion on it. I've also heard McBeth specifically talk about designing harder courses, and I think that's been reflected in all of the recent tracks he's designed.

Your anecdotes and the conclusions you've come to based on your volunteer work in disc golf seem really pessimistic to me.

Like... 2021 when McBeth was here talking mad **** about courses for the National Tour finale. And how bad Cedar Hill was and all this other crap? Instead of coming to the staff member onsite, me, he jumped online and just talked mad **** about how bad the course was and that it was a joke and to easy. Then proceeded to absolutely eat **** the first day on the course.

The difference between my opinion and yours is mine is honed with multiple years of working with pro players at elite level events. Your banging away at the keyboard in a negative fashion because you don't particularly like me because I am willing to say my strong opinions, a lot of which are based on actual experience.

The pro's have almost no effing clue about course design. They want easy to play holes that dont require much thought. They dont want to hit tight lines that local advanced players can hit, but its a "poke and hope" to them, cause they have to try harder.

I'm not a "volunteer" spotting in the field dude. I'm one of the people running the event. I get to hear things that you and volunteers never will hear.


So, yeah. I'm telling the dark side of things. Cause people were asking. It was more of a joke that was serious from the start, but people wanna just all go full keyboard commando cause someone didn't just bring out flowers and candy about what goes on.

I mean.
Honestly.
Suck less. Do something.

I play practice rounds with pro players before events.
What are you doing?

Oh yeah, on DGCR trying to tell me that I'm an idiot.=)

 

[drk_evns]

I'm an idiot.=)

I'm not going to get in a pissing match with you about who is closest to what pros. I have plenty of my own experience to work with, but I'm also not claiming all the pros are wussies and that I know course design better than them all. McBeth's designs in particular have been really great to play and widely acclaimed... one is already a future world's course. I don't think the top players in the sport want mindless ****ty disc golf, and I don't think they're afraid of "lines local advanced players can hit."

The fact that you are offended that people are sharing opinions on course design publicly instead of coming directly to you says a lot. Which high-level courses have you designed?

I just don't agree with the conclusions you've come to, and I think you've got a dreary outlook on pros and what they know about course design. I didn't ever call you an idiot or tell you to suck less—that was you. I'll resist responding to you in the future if I disagree with what you're saying. Happy throwing!

 

[biscoe]

I have run/helped run a bunch of big events including a Silver Series and a Major. My experience with the pros is pretty much the same as my experience with people in general. The vast majority are fine and appreciative of what is done for them. A small number of them are not and can suck it. It is the nature of the world that the negative stuff tends to float to the top more than the positive- social media has made that worse.