Par 3 or Par 4? That is the Question...

[Lewis]

There shouldnt be any such thing as Par 2. Three is as low as it should go.

Why?

 

[SoSauve13]

No all holes are going to be par three, but the concept just makes it easy. not only to not have to shift scales for people at different levels, but as well just to relate your scores for different courses and to compare your scores with friends and other players without having to wonder what kind of par they are using. either way youll naturally find out what courses are harder when your shooting consistant 8' or 9's on one course compared to another where you would shoot consistant -3's.
I can agree that I think official consistent pars would be nice, but using the par 3 method is simple and doesnt really affect anything if everyone is using it.

 

[WillA]

The notion that counting everything as a par three makes it easier to compare scores from different courses is completely backwards. A 59 at Idlewild is not the same as a 59 at Kereiakes. The only way to compare scores from different courses is to have pars that reflect the difficulty of each hole.

Okay this has already been said but I have to repeat it. The notion that counting everything as a three makes it easier to keep score is untenable. I can't explain this any better than Huff did so I will quote him

<<<<Say we step onto a course together and play a round. Lets say the 1st few holes look like this:

1: par 3
2: par 4
3: par 3
4: par 5


and lets say after 4 holes we've both thrown 14 strokes. Im 1 under (by actual par) and you're 3 over (by your par 3 method). The only counting in my head Ive had to do is subtract 1 from 0 (par) to keep my score in my head. Keeping your score in your head you've had to give yourself 3 over in your mind (wont even get into the potential mental effect on your game from 'being over') based on a 54 stroke round.

It just seems like its actually more effort to ignore a courses set par and play by the 54/par 3 system that to just keep track of how many you are over or under for the actual course.>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

[Matt aka N.G.S.P.]

i have played @ hornings hide out canyon course and there is one hole that is a par 4 as it bends to the left almost 90 deg and up hill towards to the basket it is rated as a par 4 but id like to play w/ someone that could do it in a 3. there is also a hole at my local course greenway that is listed as a par 4 according to the course signs and i have always played it as a par 3. and if i recall there is a par 5 hole at milo some odd 1080ft? and i play it as the par 5. i also feel that that lunchtime DGC has some rated par 3's that should be par fives.

i voted go w/ the pdga choice/selection but when i play personally i go by course rules/par suggestions.
-matt-

 

[_.-Dut-._]

Why?

Cause the idea that I have to hit a ace to get a birdie seems retarded.

There isnt any par 2's in existence, is there? I dont mind short holes, but knowing your stepping up to a "Must birdie hole" is fine. Par 2 just seems to cheapen the course.

 

[Olorin]

There shouldnt be any such thing as Par 2. Three is as low as it should go.

See "Should Par 2 be used more?"

 

[Olorin]

There isnt any par 2's in existence, is there?

According to Gold CR Par, a par 2 is any hole with an effective length of 100 ft or less. Here are some par 2s in NC:

(Sorry that the format is hard to read, but I can't figure out a way to include tables on this MB.)

Course-City-Hole #-Length
Ridgecrest-Black Mountain-6-51
Tolley-Elon-1-69
Cross Mill-Marion-7-~80
Ridgecrest-Black Mountain-7, 8-81
Cross Mill-Marion-2-~85
Steed-Richlands-11-87
Ridgecrest-Black Mountain-2-90
E. Wake MS-Knightdale-7 Alt-100
Tolley-Elon-9-100

This doesn't include anything from Lowe Warner Park that prob has a few too.

 

[Olorin]

Add Lowe Warner-Troy NC- Hole 6-88 ft-Yellow tee

There are also 5 more NC holes from 102-105 ft that I didn't include for purity to the numbers, but they sure play like par 2s. Even though I'm a short thrower, on holes under 150 ft. if I don't get a 2 I feel like I've really missed an opportunity. Although they may not officially qualify as par 2s, it adds interest to expect to get a 2 there.

 

[magictenor1]

I don't understand the idea that it's hard to keep up with your score if everything is not a 3. I played ball golf for years and we always kept score in relation to par. Golfers everywhere have no difficulty with this. Courses are different and comparing a score at one to a score at another will never really tell you anything since courses difficulty will vary greatly. All courses should not have the same difficulty (ball courses don't). When I first heard of the only par 3 mentality I was dumbfounded that it even existed. The first course I ever played (object around 1979) had par 4's and 1 par 5.

 

[DWill]

I understand the all Par 3 train of thought, and imo there was a time when it made alot of sense.

To me, if I go to a course and a hole has a sign telling me that the course designer intended a hole to be a par 4, then I score myself playing a par 4. If someone tells me they shot X under on a given course than I assume that its X under par for the course. Not x under an arbitrary # of 54 which has nothing to do with the course being discussed.

I've never put much stock into what the course signage said as that signage is often geared towards rec players. I've seen courses with wide open 325' holes listed as Par 5's.

Another problem I've experienced is I've played plenty of courses that don't have teesigns with distances or even pars identified. No maps or scorecards available either. So like many others, I play all holes as par 3 to keep the math simple.


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[ejvogie]

There shouldnt be any such thing as Par 2. Three is as low as it should go.

Why?

Because then we're on the same level as mini-golf. If you wanna set up an 18 hole par 2 mini course, I guess that'd be ok.

 

[_.-Dut-._]

According to Gold CR Par, a par 2 is any hole with an effective length of 100 ft or less. Here are some par 2s in NC:

Wow, I didnt think there was such a thing as a Par 2. A par 2 seems gimmicky, I dont know, I guess I just dont get it. I guess the next thing will be a Big windmill you have to throw the disc thru.

 

[cocopop]

I am from the old school thinkin that every hole is a par 3. The roots of that are simple, not every course lists pars for it's holes so, for the sake of having a # to shoot for we always played it the same for every hole on every course. I do agree, however, that some monster holes should be considered 4's and 5's.

In any event, par is just a fictitious # anyway. All you can do is go out and play it the way you can. The only #'s that really count are the #'s your buddys are throwin against you.

 

[dangitboy]

But I am usually playing with a buddy or two and we just try to beat each other, not the course.

Always always play the course, not the other guy. What if he is having a bad day?

 

[Lewis]

Cause the idea that I have to hit a ace to get a birdie seems retarded.

There isnt any par 2's in existence, is there? I dont mind short holes, but knowing your stepping up to a "Must birdie hole" is fine. Par 2 just seems to cheapen the course.

I don't think birdies should be easy or expected. I also think that, unless you're intentionally designing a pitch-and-putt course, you shouldn't design holes under 200' unless they're crazy-wicked-hard. So yeah, I don't like the idea of par 2 holes either, but sometimes that's what the layout gives you. Maybe I just have more of a "ball golf" attitude.

 

[Huff]

i voted go w/ the pdga choice/selection but when i play personally i go by course rules/par suggestions.

^^^This

 

[valkyriefb11]

Wow, I didnt think there was such a thing as a Par 2. A par 2 seems gimmicky, I dont know, I guess I just dont get it. I guess the next thing will be a Big windmill you have to throw the disc thru.

is it the par thats gimicky? or the hole?
a 64 ft par 3 is just stupid ... and yes I have played one that was that long and set as par 3 ...
I never really had an opinion on it, but after reading about teh gold CR it just seemed to make sense better than just playing par 3s etc. I dont know where the whole "everyhting is par 3" comes from but I just dont get that ... maybe because my background is ball golf Im just used to having different pars on different holes, the truth is not all holes are the same.

 

[Brokensaint]

The horse must not be dead yet. If you're playing by the skins method of +/- strokes to keep your score, count it however you like. Call 'em all par three. But at the end of the round, you still work the math against the set COURSE PAR. If it's a par 70 course, do your par three math "Hey, I'm 12 over..." which means you threw a 66. As you head to the bar, you can say "I shot four under that course" . Work your calculations however you like, but course par is how you did against the course.

 

[Brokensaint]

And one more note... The disparaging tone some people are taking with regard to pars and the "rec (rhymes with echk!) player" bothers me. That sounds a lot like elitism. Do you know what elitism does? It stunts growth. Just like royalty, if you don't welcome new blood into the pool, it's all just inbreeding.
So here's to not turning disc golf, which seems to be enjoying fantastic growth right now, into a one-eyed thalydimide baby because writing numbers on a score card is too much bother.
Thanks.

 

[discgolfne1]

Another problem I've experienced is I've played plenty of courses that don't have teesigns with distances or even pars identified. No maps or scorecards available either. So like many others, I play all holes as par 3 to keep the math simple.


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This is kinda my point. When I first started playing, most courses did not have tee signs, so the point of reference was your final number. Some courses had tee signs. I would ask how people shot on certain courses, and would get 2 different ideas as to this persons skill level.

I agree that assigning a par # to a hole will help clarify the difficulty of that course, and some people here pride themselves on having challenging courses.

I understand both trains of thought. There are so many courses that have no assigned pars. I've been to many courses with wide open 300ft. shots that have a par 4 assigned to them...huh!

Par 3 for scoring ease...assigned par for course difficulty level.