How the acorn grows to be a mighty oak?

[garublador]

As a player who has played 13, 14, 15 years or so, I did enjoy the initial poster's read, but your response is greatly appreciated, because it simplified things for me. I just began playing leagues at Blue Ribbon Pines. I am playing in the middle division, so, intermediate, advanced, whatever you want to call it. Week one, I had 8 birdies, so did another person in my group. The difference between our scores was 14 strokes. 14! He bogied two holes, I had bogey's and doubles throughout the round. He finished first in pro (open) division. I placed 2nd in intermediate.

Consistency (or lack thereof) is the reason why I started in the middle division, and why I now spend almost as much time and effort practicing as I do playing. I want to get better. Thank you both for the great information!

That story is awesome.

A buddy and I played in a worst shot/best shot tournament here a couple times. He's way worse than I am but I make him play intermediate and we've been dead last both times we played. The first time we entered we ended up behind the pro card (it's just a local, non sanctioned tournament so they weren't all that special) and the first thing I noticed is that their drives weren't any better than what I could do. They spent just as much time looking for discs and hitting trees as we did. I'm fairly certain I could out drive most, if not all of them. Then I noticed that they all hit all of their putts inside of 25' and that's why they scored so much better than us (my putting was bad at the time). I wouldn't be surprised if we gave up 10-12 strokes to them in just putts. None of their putts were spectacular long ones, they just really consistently hit short ones.

 

[chain-addicted]

Well done SlowRoll....

 

[AirMcNair]

Slow that was awesome. Way to put it into words and to explain how it should be. Way to put it out there.

 

[esdubya]

A+ post, nice read, thanks

 

[Ace D]

oh. to answer your question, roots spring out from the acorn to find water. the plant grows inside the seed until the seed bursts open and can begin photosynthesis. this plant, if it receives enough sunlight and water, will grow into an oak tree. i hope this helps.

 

[medicinalfunk]

Then I noticed that they all hit all of their putts inside of 25' and that's why they scored so much better than us (my putting was bad at the time). I wouldn't be surprised if we gave up 10-12 strokes to them in just putts. None of their putts were spectacular long ones, they just really consistently hit short ones.

shhh stop telling everyone The Secret

 

[Triflusal]

shhh stop telling everyone The Secret

why is the 'The Secret' capitalized? brand name?

 

[eegor]

The 50% putting number comes straight from our multi-time state champ. I believe that is his way of telling younger players to place emphasis upon this particular skill, because it is the one that will help them the most and the quickest. I also agree whole-heartedly with "least mistakes wins". No one gets wowed from my play, but I consistently cash each year because I am steady eddy and get up and down for my pars more often than not. Good points, and thanks again for your insight garublador.

Most of the good players I know, and I (still not good, yet) have a practice basket in the back yard. If I'm in the yard, I putt a few (no matter the weather).

 

[slowRoll]

:clap:

I plan on re-reading this periodically to help remind me to stay grounded. Thanks for posting this slowRoll.

Well done SlowRoll....

Slow that was awesome. Way to put it into words and to explain how it should be. Way to put it out there.

I really appreciate it guys. I always want to contribute to this site, but most times just don't know how. I just felt motivated this morning to try and get something out there and it really means alot to me that you all enjoyed it.
:hfive:

 

[Dthunderchicken]

Very well done. Thank you. Principle five is excellent. If you'll indulge me a bit of furtherance on principle six. Just like in shooting pool, your leave is important. Try to choose where you want to throw your next shot from.

 

[imoser_me]

I liked the read tons. It described my quick run to Intermediate and now I am making the climb into Advanced.

I would also have to disagree with the 50% with putts. One third putting should be more of a reasonable amount. Yes, driving and putting seem like the biggest parts of the game with all of the par three holes in disc golf, but those approach shots that are needed for longer holes or errant drives need practice, too.

I have noticed that even when the pro players get into bad situations or have bad drives, they always recover well. I even had a funk late last year where if I didn't get within 75 feet of the basket, I was going to take a bogey because my approaches were that bad. I had to spend extra time just throwing 100-150 foot approaches to take those strokes off my game.

 

[notBOB]

there can be endless interpretation to this game as everyone is different, but this thread is helpful in honing down on the basic elements that can make us ALL reach our full potential... vitamin C disc golf right here.

 

[notBOB]

those approach shots that are needed for longer holes or errant drives need practice, too.

completely true, this is the cohesion in my game, or any successful disc game...being able to get yourself to that putt you know you could make when you need to. a huge part of my game is approach and putts. if i could set myself up routinely and steal a few putts a round, my game is workin'

as a rising advanced player i dont have any problems playing anywhere and scoring well. The problems i run into are imperfections in my game for that round that keep me just under that 'remarkable' level. i can throw 400 consistent, and can jump putt my bag off, but its normal for me to falter at one part of my game and let the other parts pick up the slack...

 

[slowRoll]

Very well done. Thank you. Principle five is excellent. If you'll indulge me a bit of furtherance on principle six. Just like in shooting pool, your leave is important. Try to choose where you want to throw your next shot from.

Yes sir. Glad to at least try and expand on it for you. If you have spent enough time working on the 3 primary shots with all of your discs you are better equipped to understand how shot selection/disc selection really relates to shaping the shots we need to throw. It really seems strange to imagine that going with a Leopard thrown with extreme hyzer on an uphill right to left 330' hole is the call until you spend the time working that disc on your own. Someone that hasn't spent the time working the 3 primary shots with that dics will instead try to throw a more overstable disc because they see a left turn. They view their Leopard as a turnover disc and would never think that it would turn left because they have focused solely on the arrow.

The reality is that in our example a more overstable disc...say a new Teebird... will stable out too soon and will leave the average player well short of the 330' needed to get up that hill. A Leopard thrown well with hyzer will instead make the turn, fight itself up to flat and will glide much further giving us the desired result. I know this is long winded, and this is why I tried not to get into too many specifics in my original post.

More than likely, someone will now chime in on the Leopard vs. Teebird because that is what some people are prone to do. They focus on just our words and miss the message that is behind them. In my original beginner section I was going to recommend that beginners start with a Roc, a Leopard, and a Teebird but went back and deleted that part because someone would then turn this into a Roc vs. Buzzz thread or something of that sort. I wanted the message to be generic and something we all could relate to.

There are hundreds if not thousands of these scenarios and I have barely scratched the surface. I hope that this one simple example helps explain a small part of why we have to master shot selection/disc selection before we can hope to reach the top level Dthunderchicken. Thanks for reading.

 

[Rol6566]

I wish i had the attention span to read the whole thing

I just read the whole thing and i must say it is a good read and lots of quality info.

 

[Dthunderchicken]

It really seems strange to imagine that going with a Leopard thrown with extreme hyzer on an uphill right to left 330' hole is the call until you spend the time working that disc on your own. Someone that hasn't spent the time working the 3 primary shots with that dics will instead try to throw a more overstable disc because they see a left turn.

I completely agree. And I've found the best way to discover such things is on a deserted course, alone.

 

[slowRoll]

I just read the whole thing and i must say it is a good read and lots of quality info.

:hfive:

 

[kingwo]

As a Rec player competing in tourney's for the past 1-1/2 years this is great read. I really appreciate the overall perspective as I often get lost in the enthusiasm of DG. My problem has been experimenting with all the molds and trying to chase the perfect one that'll make me a better player. Lately it's been the Archon, Pig, Whippet, Gator, Roadrunner, Teerex, SL, Starfire, etc... I'd say my favorite BH is Valkyrie or Wraith and FH is Orc. How can I stop the urge to keep experimenting with all these discs to choose from?

I'll also make questionable disc selections. For instance, last tourney during a hole 325' downhill shot, trees protecting right side of basket but open on the left with left side having road OB 40' from basket. During practice I BH'ed a Destroyer and crashed into tree for par. During rnd one I FH'ed an Orc and came up a bit short but still pared. Last round I decided to go for "birdie" and strong-armed a FH Teerex that never faded back in for OB and bogey. I get "bored" with same/safe shots and tend to go for the hero shot. How do I get out of this mindset? Searching for that rush of a great shot but in reality bogey's are bogus.

Thanks for the article will be trying to absorb the sage knowledge.

 

[Garrett76zt]

I'll also make questionable disc selections. For instance, last tourney during a hole 325' downhill shot, trees protecting right side of basket but open on the left with left side having road OB 40' from basket. During practice I BH'ed a Destroyer and crashed into tree for par. During rnd one I FH'ed an Orc and came up a bit short but still pared. Last round I decided to go for "birdie" and strong-armed a FH Teerex that never faded back in for OB and bogey. I get "bored" with same/safe shots and tend to go for the hero shot. How do I get out of this mindset? Searching for that rush of a great shot but in reality bogey's are bogus.

Quit searching for the rush of the hero shot and start searching for the rush of winning your first tournament, haha. So much of this game is about making good decisions. If I was you I would think through each hole of a course and make up your mind about what you're trying to accomplish from the teepad. Can you deuce consistently on this hole or is it best to take the 3? Avoid bogies at all costs (however boring it may be), the deuces will come. . .

 

[slowRoll]

If you have been in Rec for 18 months, you just need to work on Principles number 2 and 3. You obviously love the game after sticking with it for that long, you just need to strengthen your fundamentals.

...I'd say my favorite BH is Valkyrie or Wraith and FH is Orc. How can I stop the urge to keep experimenting with all these discs to choose from?

The time to try out all new plastic is while working on Principle 3 all on your own, not during a round. Get in a field or on an open hole all by yourself and throw everything. Throw it hyzer, throw it flat, and throw it anhyzer…then do it again, and again… You will learn it, but it's not magic. It's simply you making an investment in your own game. You are doing this for yourself because you want to improve. No one else can do it for you.

... Last round I decided to go for "birdie" and strong-armed a FH Teerex that never faded back in for OB and bogey. I get "bored" with same/safe shots and tend to go for the hero shot. How do I get out of this mindset?

Some people are built like this. There are aggressive players just like there are conservative ones. As you spend more time on your own working on your putting and doing field work, you will find your own sweet spot. For me it is at about 80% power. At 80%, I don't feel like I'm trying hard, I don't get fatigued, and I have much more control over my drives and upshots. This game we play places a huge emphasis upon the 2nd shot. Either you are cashing it in for the deuce or you are trying to get up and down for the 3. Par is never boring. Think of it like this... "Par is good, under par is better".

I think the answer to your questions is waiting for you all by yourself for an hour or so each day after work/school this week. Good luck kingwo.