Tree Love: Is it Rooted in Something Else?

[New013]

A lot of comes down to disc selection and the rotation you are putting on the disc and which side of the tree you are hitting.

If you're throwing a champ driver and it's spinning hard it's going to kick hard no matter where it goes if it's a glancing blow so chances are it's probably not going to land in the fairway. If you're throwing a pro putter it's not going to kick very far even if it goes straight towards the woods you'll probably not be in a totally bad place.

The theory also doesn't account for shots that go 6' in to the woods and then magically come barreling back out which is what I consider tree love more than anything. If you barely nick a tree right at the edge of a fairway that's not really what I could tree love.

 

[SteezeOG]

I carry some FLX discs just for good deflections in woods. All the rubber based or blended plastics I think perform better after tree impacts.

 

[ChainOut]

Life goes on.

can't...stop...laughing

 

[zenbot]

 

[brettricewku]

no one ever remembers the favorable kick they always focus on the unlucky kicks

Totally agree

 

[pauldst]

Nice example of tree love (2nd guy to tee):


Thrower has the best line of the 5, and the disc has good spin. Otoh, an inch or two left and the result is very different. But the 2nd kick, that was memorable. So best player on the card gets the tree love, but there certainly was "luck" involved.

 

[roggenb3]

Absolutely, I think better players get more tree love because they are missing lines by smaller margin.

That's not to say you never get an awful kick when missing by 2", or a great tree save even though you missed by 6', but generally speaking, the closer are you to the line, the more likely it is that you get tree love.

BRP hole 4 (or any tight tunnel hole) is a great example, I think. Someone who throws a nice, smooth, low line drive that juuust drifts a hair too far right and gets off the fairway at 300' will more often than not hit the left side of the first row of trees on the right, and kick back left into the fairway, or just off it to the left. While someone who throws a high shot that is off the fairway after 200' is more likely to get through a couple rows of trees, hit something, and fly who knows where.

We'd call the first tree love and the second tree hate when really they were just a good throw and a bad throw.

 

[discRabbit]

Still the question remains, is there really such a thing as "Tree Love"?

Shot selection is critical, if we're talking trees this means:
- Selecting the rotation (counter vs. clockwise) that is less likely to kick to the "bad" side of the fairway
- Choosing an angle of attack (L to R vs. R to L) that maximizes the window between two objects
- Choosing an angle of attack that minimizes the broad side of the disc (e.g., fairways 'look' bigger to rollers)

If we're talking roll-aways, this often means selecting the landing angle that minimizes the probability of the disc standing on edge.

If we're talking wind, this means choosing the correct fade direction (R to L vs. L to R). Usually with fade fighting against the wind for increased control.

Stokely's base 10 method captures the very basics of assessing probability. Then one has to compute permutations based on the specific situation. This type of complexity is what makes the game so interesting to me; in other words, "Tree Love" is not magical. Instead Tree Love is maximizing probabilities for success!

 

[air show]

The ones when you have a large tree trunk close to the tee pad and today there happens to be a small crowd gathered to watch you throw... a loud pop and flying bark then the disc roles back to the tee pad and parks. That's my favorite tree love when it happens to someone else.

 

[John M. Fretz]

I had a drive smack a tree, and bounce 90 degrees into the basket, for an ace. I also witnessed a friend's drive hit a cluster of fir branches, then drop straight down, into the basket. So, yes, they involved "tree love" and,yes, they were magical.

 

[Dingus]

BRP hole 4 (or any tight tunnel hole) is a great example, I think. Someone who throws a nice, smooth, low line drive that juuust drifts a hair too far right and gets off the fairway at 300' will more often than not hit the left side of the first row of trees on the right, and kick back left into the fairway, or just off it to the left. While someone who throws a high shot that is off the fairway after 200' is more likely to get through a couple rows of trees, hit something, and fly who knows where.

We'd call the first tree love and the second tree hate when really they were just a good throw and a bad throw.

But in reality on hole 4 the best shots are the terrible shots that kick all the way through the left side into the lane that borders OB. Those lucky SOB's get a clean forehand approach and are almost a sure 3.

 

[roggenb3]

But in reality on hole 4 the best shots are the terrible shots that kick all the way through the left side into the lane that borders OB. Those lucky SOB's get a clean forehand approach and are almost a sure 3.

Nah. The best shots stay in the fairway.

 

[Dingus]

Nah. The best shots stay in the fairway.

Well, the BEST shots land in the hole, I guess...

 

[Agricolae]

But in reality on hole 4 the best shots are the terrible shots that kick all the way through the left side into the lane that borders OB. Those lucky SOB's get a clean forehand approach and are almost a sure 3.

The shot that is so bad that it is good.

 

[Krusher]

I've found that more snap (or spin) can really help you in the woods. I have a lot of this and its either that i get a whole lot of love or a whole lot of hate from the trees. Its not usually in between.

I attribute it to spin also. I've been known to throw discs with more spin or harder than necessary for awhile now. I've also been playing for 12+ years. Where I encounter the most tree love is in a VERY wooded course, like those in the Upper Michigan, where most holes have 50-200 possible trees to hit. Not no 4 100-year-old oaks spread out in a park. I constantly get scolded on the tree love I receive! The more spin it has, the more likely it is to spin off the tree after making contact and keep going. Though playing for 12+ years means I have less horrid throws too.

Sorta related, anyone see those crazy gifs of run-away truck tires? So much momentum they hit the ground spinning, and just keep going jumping all over till they stop. Granted a disc>tree bark isn't as comparable to rubber>concrete, its the same principle. At least as I figured.