With the most recent events I have been very weighed down with a lot of extra work. Some of you may know I am going on tour for Discmania. This is a tour that will help us promote the brand and hopefully get the best discs into many different players hands. This is going to be a long stretch as it will see me out until the end of October. I will have the opportunity to meet many new people and play many new courses. I couldn't be more thankful to Discmania for the opportunity and I hope it stretches into bigger things next year.
My play has been so up and down. I have confidence but lack execution. I feel comfortable but lack the result. Maybe I am holding myself to a standard that is too high. Maybe I need to look at many of the players who are better than me and take notice of where my play has been lacking and put forth the effort to make a change. Finding out the little problems I have in my competitive rounds has been a big step in getting better but I tend to have short term memory loss and continue to make similar mistakes. My biggest problems comes from over throwing when I am looking to maximize distance. I realize how much I lose when I go into a shot jerky and out of control. I need more control/distance field work, working on maximizing distance but not sacrificing control. I think something that needs to happen is a look back at my form, and come the off season this will be my main focus. Gaining more distance and fixing some flaws in my form. One of the next things I have to put forth some quality time into is my short game, both on the approach and putting. I have missed countless putts inside the circle over the past two weekends and they really are starting to drag. I missed a handful of putts because I had to straddle. This is something I thought I had down and didn't need much practice with but everything has been coming up short. When it comes to being on the approach my judgement of distance has seemed off I am either blowing by the basket or leaving it way short. This I feel is where I can cut down a handful of strokes a round if I simply fix these minor mistakes.
Coming into the last two tournaments I felt like I was going to have a good showing and came up short... WAY SHORT! Being a sponsored player doesn't mean I am going to finish in the cash every time I play, it only means I am representing a brand every time I play. I have to remember how hard I have worked in the past and I have to continue that trend if I want to cash at every tournament. I have to be humble and understand that if I want to continue to climb in the world of Disc Golf, I have to work every day at it. When I am tired and having to drive all day, when I have played a bad round, when I have played a good round, when I just don't feel up for it, I have to continue to work no matter what is going on.
Seeing the caliber of players on my team if I really want to continue on with them I have to push my game farther and higher. They have made me humble and I will not stop until I am on their level and we can all be looking for top finishes at every tournament we play.
Make sure to follow me as I drive the "Maniac" around. http://www.discmania.net/2015/08/12/discmania-us-tour-fall-2015/
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. I hope you enjoyed it. Have the #mostfun and make sure those #putterpants are fitting nicely. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0a2nXwXLXZo
Enjoy
Sunset
Monday, August 24, 2015
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Patriot Classic and #MostFun
So a few weeks ago I was able to participate in the Patriot Classic in American Fork, Utah. This is played on a course that is very tight and technical and can bite you hard if you choose the wrong times to attack it. Something about this course that hurt is the fact that even in the amateur divisions the scores will not vary too much from the top pro scores. 20 out of the 21 holes were reachable from the tee. This meant if you had some good fortune and kept your drives clean you were looking at a birdie often. But there were plenty of places where you could find yourself inside the circle but having no putt at all. I have mixed feelings on courses like this for tournaments considering it can hurt the Open Players ratings, but I love these courses for the skill set it forces me to have. Alright I am done sounding like a downer, now to the fun and the heart of what happened during the tournament. I was very fortunate to have one of my best friends come out and caddy for me all weekend long. Little did I know he was going to show up decked out with a personalized caddy top with my last name on the back and a big Discmania Logo on the front! It was such a cool motivator and helped me stay positive the entire tournament.
Throughout the tournament I felt myself working through different ups and downs, but would shoot a decent round and continued to leave myself in contention after each round. I battled to be on the lead card both for the 2nd and 3rd round. This is a great feeling especially knowing when you aren't shooting your best you are still in contention. I would be going into the final round in 3rd place... but after that round I fell to finish 8th place. I looked back at the final round I played it wasn't really anything I could've done differently. I found myself inside the circle a lot but the types of putts I had to navigate were always awkward. Either from a knee with trees in my face, big wide lunging straddles around thick trees and bushes, to being completely buried in a bush with no option but to lay up. I would end up 2 birdies and 2 bogeys. The bogeys came from the double mando hole, where I missed like a champ, and on one of the holes they considered a par 4, so those didn't bother me much. But the fact that I couldn't string together many birdies is where my round hurt. Either way I was still having fun and enjoying the round.
The biggest highlight of the tournament was on the longest hole I would card a birdie 3 in each round. I found myself very confident on that hole and it might have fit the stronger parts of my game but I felt accomplished in executing 3 rounds in a row. The hole played from a tight tunnel into and open fairway that would finish to a tight green. The hole really required a good placement drive to a good upshot. Throughout the weekend I saw that hole eat up a lot of very good players including the player who won the tournament took a 6 in the second round. I found myself feeling nervous in the final round playing that hole, but right before I through the disc I started singing before I threw to settle my nerves. The disc I was using is a Maroon First Run PD2 who I have referred to as 'Adam Levine'. So I sang "This Love" by Maroon 5 and pumped my drive out in the fairway and cleaned up for an easy 3. Little things like this has helped my game improve every round. Keeping things light and fun has been key and this is one small way I have chosen to enjoy my time playing disc golf, even in the more serious moments it can still be fun.
With any tournament you will find holes that will back you up. We pulled up to the final hole of the final round and were waiting for another group to wrap up and there was some discussion of a playground near by... I went running and decided to play a bit while we waited. I figured why not? This is supposed to be fun, remembering that the reason we play this sport is because it is fun. Maybe I went too far but it was fun and gave me a lasting memory that I will use in more rounds to come.
After finishing in the tournament I had a lot to take from the tournament and I love that I am continuing to learn more and more about my own game. I think being able to constantly learn I will continue to improve and push my game to another level.
Remember whenever you are on the course to keep things light, keep things fun and really enjoy yourself. It could be on the first hole of a casual round or the final hole of a tournament round, you are playing disc golf and that is such an awesome thing. Each round, each throw, and each putt should be looked at as something fun. I know it can be taxing to keep that attitude all the time but the more you do it, the more you will find yourself shooting better scores and walking off the course much happier even when it didn't go your way.
I will be throwing up another blog soon, most likely a disc review. So let me know what you guys want me to review next.
Thanks for reading. Remember to keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPpTgCho5ZA
Enjoy
Throughout the tournament I felt myself working through different ups and downs, but would shoot a decent round and continued to leave myself in contention after each round. I battled to be on the lead card both for the 2nd and 3rd round. This is a great feeling especially knowing when you aren't shooting your best you are still in contention. I would be going into the final round in 3rd place... but after that round I fell to finish 8th place. I looked back at the final round I played it wasn't really anything I could've done differently. I found myself inside the circle a lot but the types of putts I had to navigate were always awkward. Either from a knee with trees in my face, big wide lunging straddles around thick trees and bushes, to being completely buried in a bush with no option but to lay up. I would end up 2 birdies and 2 bogeys. The bogeys came from the double mando hole, where I missed like a champ, and on one of the holes they considered a par 4, so those didn't bother me much. But the fact that I couldn't string together many birdies is where my round hurt. Either way I was still having fun and enjoying the round.
The biggest highlight of the tournament was on the longest hole I would card a birdie 3 in each round. I found myself very confident on that hole and it might have fit the stronger parts of my game but I felt accomplished in executing 3 rounds in a row. The hole played from a tight tunnel into and open fairway that would finish to a tight green. The hole really required a good placement drive to a good upshot. Throughout the weekend I saw that hole eat up a lot of very good players including the player who won the tournament took a 6 in the second round. I found myself feeling nervous in the final round playing that hole, but right before I through the disc I started singing before I threw to settle my nerves. The disc I was using is a Maroon First Run PD2 who I have referred to as 'Adam Levine'. So I sang "This Love" by Maroon 5 and pumped my drive out in the fairway and cleaned up for an easy 3. Little things like this has helped my game improve every round. Keeping things light and fun has been key and this is one small way I have chosen to enjoy my time playing disc golf, even in the more serious moments it can still be fun.
With any tournament you will find holes that will back you up. We pulled up to the final hole of the final round and were waiting for another group to wrap up and there was some discussion of a playground near by... I went running and decided to play a bit while we waited. I figured why not? This is supposed to be fun, remembering that the reason we play this sport is because it is fun. Maybe I went too far but it was fun and gave me a lasting memory that I will use in more rounds to come.
After finishing in the tournament I had a lot to take from the tournament and I love that I am continuing to learn more and more about my own game. I think being able to constantly learn I will continue to improve and push my game to another level.
Remember whenever you are on the course to keep things light, keep things fun and really enjoy yourself. It could be on the first hole of a casual round or the final hole of a tournament round, you are playing disc golf and that is such an awesome thing. Each round, each throw, and each putt should be looked at as something fun. I know it can be taxing to keep that attitude all the time but the more you do it, the more you will find yourself shooting better scores and walking off the course much happier even when it didn't go your way.
I will be throwing up another blog soon, most likely a disc review. So let me know what you guys want me to review next.
Thanks for reading. Remember to keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPpTgCho5ZA
Enjoy
Friday, June 26, 2015
Discmania P2 and a Bonus FD3 Review
There is something to say about a week or two of no tournaments. Ton's of field work and casual rounds with buddies. It is always really nice to dive back in and remember the small things that make this sport so great. I have recently got my younger step brothers into playing and seeing them sometimes crush one out is even awesome for me. I have equipped them up with some super lightweight plastic and they are completely hooked, everyday asking if we can go play. This is what the sport does to so many players, the constant want to go and throw. I really hope they can follow suit and become some awesome golfers in time.
To the good stuff. I have really wanted to do a P2 review considering it's easily my favorite disc ever. Some people may think I am a 'Psycho'.... HAHA! But it's the truth, the disc is something I trust on any hole at any time. The P2 has been my go to putter for putting, approaches, and drives.
C-Line: I will start with the C-Line version of the P2. Recently released, I was very excited to see what they could do. Hearing about how stable they were, I quickly picked up a batch and took them to the field. They are very stable, easily the most stable version. They are also very reliable in the wind for a putter. To me they had the least amount of glide, this is where my dislike for the C-Line started. There are a lot of positives for the C-Line, they are great in the wind, you can rip on them as hard as you want, and they like to skip when working towards the bucket. Where the dislikes range for me range from, less glide than other versions, poor grip in most situations, and awkward feeling in my hand. Out of all the P2s the grip on the C-Line is the least, along with an awkward feel in the hand really pushed me away from throwing these. Plus it wasn't good enough to take the spot of my S-Line P2 and that was the disc it was challenging with.
S-Line: The S-Line P2 has enough praise already being thrown by the top two players in the world, Simon Lizotte and Paul McBeth. There is a reason you see the top players bagging this disc. The consistency and stability you get, along with a long shelf life, make the S-Line P2 hard to beat. For me these are my go to stable thrower and approach putter. I can trust this disc to work left quite a bit. The beauty of the S-Line P2 is how much you can really get behind one while still having it finish. These have a slightly more grippy feel than the S-Line giving me confidence in more conditions. For these to lose their stability you have to a number on them, this allows you to continue throwing one and feel it out. I tend to throw these with a power grip unless I am using it on the approach, where I will fan out my fingers. These can handle a good amount of wind as well. They aren't going to crush into big winds but on a breezy day you can trust that the disc will continue to work. These compliment my D-Line P2s perfectly giving me an artillery of putters to tackle any course. If you are looking for a stable putter that can handle some power then don't hesitate and grab a S-Line P2.
D-Line: The D-Line P2 was one of the first Discmania discs I purchased and it has been my putting putter ever since. I have also worked them in to being my favorite disc to throw off the tee. Keeping these in different stages of wear is key. I tend to keep 2-3 in my bag as throwers only, keeping one newish, beat in stable (I know that seems weird, but some will still finish after being thrashed), and beat in straight to understable. The D-Line P2 seems to gain glide as it beats in. They love being in the air so if you can get enough behind them they will go a long ways and not deviate far from their original line. If I am ever in doubt of what to throw I will pull one of these out lace it down the fairway and move on. These cover shots from 175'-350', I have thrown a P2 400' a few times but it is rarely a shot I will need on the course. Now as a putting putter the D-Line P2 is a great putter. Being deeper I feel there is more disc to catch the chains. The D-Line plastic offers great grip and always gives a smooth release. The D-Line P2 is the best putter on the market, it handles the box and the circle incredibly, get your hands on one and don't look back.
P-Line and Color Glow: These are the versions I have the least work with. I tried out the Proto KC material P2s for a while but always worked back to using a D-Line. The KC/P line P2 are not as great off the box and the stiff plastic made for a lot of putts spitting out. They ultimately were just not the putter I was looking for. The Color Glow P2 is something I have heard good things about and a lot of players say they are quality. While I don't doubt that but having thrown the C-Line P2, I am hesitant to try the Color Glow in fear of the same issues.
Basically the P2 is a catch all kind of putter. I don't know what I would do without a P2 in my bag. Remember to work on throwing your putters more often, get good with them off the box and when you are attacking the basket, not only when you need to put it in the basket. Utilize the reliability a putter gives you. Keep those #putterpants on!
FD3: So I recently received an awesome package from Discmania containing the soon to be released FD3. When I saw the numbers I knew this could be a disc to fill a slot that is hard to fill. Having never getting myself into the PD much until lately, I was not fortunate enough to have a stack of First Run PDs so I was missing a good stable control disc for my bag. I recently stopped bagging Firebirds to put more work into flicking PD2s. In doing so I have added great distance to my sidearm game and have learned to control the PD2 in the right situation. Enough about all of that, the FD3 is an awesome disc and will fill a hole in your bag, I almost guarantee it! This is a very controllable disc, it has a good flight with a good dump at the end. It remind me of a slower dumpier PD, or a super beat in flat Firebird, or a faster more stable FD2. All comparisons come together to make a great disc. With my testing I have been throwing them consistently to feel out what they can handle. With a good hyzer they will hold and work hard left, thrown flat the will carry for a long way before dumping, and thrown on an anhyzer they will drift and always finish but not as hard. When testing the FD3 on a sidearm it took some time for me to really feel it out. They don't like a lot of torque and snap but if you try and control it more and let the disc work this disc is great on a sidearm. This has added a different element to my sidearm game. I think everyone should be pumped about this disc being released. It is an awesome disc for Discmania and will help all 'Reinvent your game'.
If you have any questions or want more details about the discs I reviewed please don't hesitate to message me at any time.
Not sure what I will blog about next, but be sure to stay tuned for something awesome.
Thanks for reading. Remember to keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MIaaP23qxY
Enjoy
To the good stuff. I have really wanted to do a P2 review considering it's easily my favorite disc ever. Some people may think I am a 'Psycho'.... HAHA! But it's the truth, the disc is something I trust on any hole at any time. The P2 has been my go to putter for putting, approaches, and drives.
C-Line: I will start with the C-Line version of the P2. Recently released, I was very excited to see what they could do. Hearing about how stable they were, I quickly picked up a batch and took them to the field. They are very stable, easily the most stable version. They are also very reliable in the wind for a putter. To me they had the least amount of glide, this is where my dislike for the C-Line started. There are a lot of positives for the C-Line, they are great in the wind, you can rip on them as hard as you want, and they like to skip when working towards the bucket. Where the dislikes range for me range from, less glide than other versions, poor grip in most situations, and awkward feeling in my hand. Out of all the P2s the grip on the C-Line is the least, along with an awkward feel in the hand really pushed me away from throwing these. Plus it wasn't good enough to take the spot of my S-Line P2 and that was the disc it was challenging with.
S-Line: The S-Line P2 has enough praise already being thrown by the top two players in the world, Simon Lizotte and Paul McBeth. There is a reason you see the top players bagging this disc. The consistency and stability you get, along with a long shelf life, make the S-Line P2 hard to beat. For me these are my go to stable thrower and approach putter. I can trust this disc to work left quite a bit. The beauty of the S-Line P2 is how much you can really get behind one while still having it finish. These have a slightly more grippy feel than the S-Line giving me confidence in more conditions. For these to lose their stability you have to a number on them, this allows you to continue throwing one and feel it out. I tend to throw these with a power grip unless I am using it on the approach, where I will fan out my fingers. These can handle a good amount of wind as well. They aren't going to crush into big winds but on a breezy day you can trust that the disc will continue to work. These compliment my D-Line P2s perfectly giving me an artillery of putters to tackle any course. If you are looking for a stable putter that can handle some power then don't hesitate and grab a S-Line P2.
D-Line: The D-Line P2 was one of the first Discmania discs I purchased and it has been my putting putter ever since. I have also worked them in to being my favorite disc to throw off the tee. Keeping these in different stages of wear is key. I tend to keep 2-3 in my bag as throwers only, keeping one newish, beat in stable (I know that seems weird, but some will still finish after being thrashed), and beat in straight to understable. The D-Line P2 seems to gain glide as it beats in. They love being in the air so if you can get enough behind them they will go a long ways and not deviate far from their original line. If I am ever in doubt of what to throw I will pull one of these out lace it down the fairway and move on. These cover shots from 175'-350', I have thrown a P2 400' a few times but it is rarely a shot I will need on the course. Now as a putting putter the D-Line P2 is a great putter. Being deeper I feel there is more disc to catch the chains. The D-Line plastic offers great grip and always gives a smooth release. The D-Line P2 is the best putter on the market, it handles the box and the circle incredibly, get your hands on one and don't look back.
P-Line and Color Glow: These are the versions I have the least work with. I tried out the Proto KC material P2s for a while but always worked back to using a D-Line. The KC/P line P2 are not as great off the box and the stiff plastic made for a lot of putts spitting out. They ultimately were just not the putter I was looking for. The Color Glow P2 is something I have heard good things about and a lot of players say they are quality. While I don't doubt that but having thrown the C-Line P2, I am hesitant to try the Color Glow in fear of the same issues.
Basically the P2 is a catch all kind of putter. I don't know what I would do without a P2 in my bag. Remember to work on throwing your putters more often, get good with them off the box and when you are attacking the basket, not only when you need to put it in the basket. Utilize the reliability a putter gives you. Keep those #putterpants on!
FD3: So I recently received an awesome package from Discmania containing the soon to be released FD3. When I saw the numbers I knew this could be a disc to fill a slot that is hard to fill. Having never getting myself into the PD much until lately, I was not fortunate enough to have a stack of First Run PDs so I was missing a good stable control disc for my bag. I recently stopped bagging Firebirds to put more work into flicking PD2s. In doing so I have added great distance to my sidearm game and have learned to control the PD2 in the right situation. Enough about all of that, the FD3 is an awesome disc and will fill a hole in your bag, I almost guarantee it! This is a very controllable disc, it has a good flight with a good dump at the end. It remind me of a slower dumpier PD, or a super beat in flat Firebird, or a faster more stable FD2. All comparisons come together to make a great disc. With my testing I have been throwing them consistently to feel out what they can handle. With a good hyzer they will hold and work hard left, thrown flat the will carry for a long way before dumping, and thrown on an anhyzer they will drift and always finish but not as hard. When testing the FD3 on a sidearm it took some time for me to really feel it out. They don't like a lot of torque and snap but if you try and control it more and let the disc work this disc is great on a sidearm. This has added a different element to my sidearm game. I think everyone should be pumped about this disc being released. It is an awesome disc for Discmania and will help all 'Reinvent your game'.
If you have any questions or want more details about the discs I reviewed please don't hesitate to message me at any time.
Not sure what I will blog about next, but be sure to stay tuned for something awesome.
Thanks for reading. Remember to keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MIaaP23qxY
Enjoy
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Team Discmania, RPO and Having the Most Fun
A couple weeks ago there was a big announcement that was probably one of the biggest moments in my life, I was announced as being added to Discmania as a sponsored player. This is something I have been working towards years and reaching this step is amazing. I am now even more hungry to accomplish my goals and continue to move onward and upward in the disc golf world. I have to give a big thanks to Discmania for giving me the opportunity. I would also like to thank all of the players/people who helped me get to where I am today. This is only a small step and I plan on continuing going forward.... TEAM DISCMANIA!!!! AHHHHH!!!!! SO PUMPED!!!!... I couldn't help it. Ha!
http://www.discmania.net/2015/06/05/new-additions-to-discmanias-us-promotion-team/
Check out the article!
Check out the article!
RPO Hole 15, Sick screen shot I know! Ha!
So after seeing a couple of players find trouble on either side of the fairway, looking to have some fun, and to find some redemption from the day before, I grabbed my trusty C-Line FD and pumped a straight shot that turned over slightly before finding its way in to the opening and scooted about 15-20' long of the basket. I was the only player looking at a 2 on that hole while the other players were having to scramble to find 3s,4s, or 5s after some OB strokes. Before that hole I came to find out after, that I was behind and that hole really opened up an opportunity for me to fight back into contention. After everyone played close to the basket I stepped up to my lie, which was directly in a bundle of trees and bushes, I went to a knee to give me self a better line to the basket and canned my putt. There was a decent gallery and heard some awesome cheers and that the shot was near perfect on the hole. This was such a great feeling, it's hard not to be boastful when you tackle a difficult hole, but I must say if it hadn't been for Chris, Brandon and Casey in the preparations before and during the tournament I wouldn't have been confident executing that shot, so a big thanks to those guys for the boost in my confidence.
Where the people are standing is the opening to the basket. Photo Credit Casey Lee
After finishing up the round I was able to finish tied for 4th place and pretty stoked about the finish. Even with being tied for 2nd, I was the only non-local guy on the final card and I battled all weekend long to a strong solid finish. The tournament was run great so big props to everyone who was involved in running RPO, they really made it an awesome time. After the tournament they were going to have a raffle for a Skins Safari Doubles match, with the top 3 finishing Open players, the top Masters player and the top Female player from the tournament. With my finish I didn't qualify but I wasn't discouraged because I had just played a lot of fun golf and was happy walking away satisfied with what I had achieved. Brodey had purchased some tickets and unbeknownst to me had planned on if he won twice he was going to give me the other winning ticket. Brodey went on ahead an won twice and I was lucky enough to participate in an awesome skins match where 10 of us were competing for $780! On a side note, THANK YOU BRODEY! You're the man and I look forward to playing with you again, I have a PD waiting for you! This was another opportunity to play and have some fun. As the safari match got going I was paired up with Karina Nowels the top finishing Female player from the tournament and an exceptional golfer, I was confident we could take a shot at bringing home some cash. After playing 5 of the 6 safari holes we wen't into the final hole with all skins pushed. All of us were itching to try and pick up the final hole. We had previously discussed if we pushed all holes we would split the pot, so either way we all were walking out winners. The final hole was hole 18 to the practice basket, This was a long shot and would take a total crush to get there for a two and steal the skins. Brock Shepard and his partner TJ Smith both crushed their drives and were looking good. When it came down to my turn to throw I stepped up and said to myself 'have fun and just throw.' I crushed my Maroon Early Run PD2, nicknamed 'Adam Levine', finding a silly gap and skipped off a path way and finished pin high but 50' right of the basket. Karina and I had the closest look after all the drives were said and done. Brock stepped up and jump putted his off the front pan and gave the crowd quite a roar but it wasn't meant to be. Karina took a look from our putt but finished a touch short. Having the last putt of the Safari Doubles Skin Match was a pretty cool feeling knowing that there was a lot on the line but no matter what I still had the feeling that it was just great being there and being able to play. I settled in and sent my P2... it finished and caught the front pan. The crowd roared but it wasn't meant to be. We pushed the skins and in the end it was an awesome addition to a great weekend. This is an event I won't miss next year and hopefully will come back and represent again. I had a lot of awesome feelings going into the weekend, especially after being announced to Team Discmania. Again I am super thankful for to them for the opportunity and am so excited what the future may hold.
I constantly post about having the Most Fun, I hashtag it, I tell people all the time to remember to have the most fun, I try and live it every time I am on the course. This is something that resonates with me and gives me confidence just like #putterpants does. No matter what this game is about fun and the competition side should be all about fun. Even on the worst of rounds or days you can still find the enjoyment that you are out playing disc golf. I played a round yesterday where I missed almost every putt it felt like but I still had a blast playing. Remember why you started playing the game, if you are like me it's because disc golf gives you an awesome feeling and it shouldn't be ruined only enhanced, and we do that by enjoying every moment.
Next post will be a Discmania P2 review! Going to review C-Line, S-Line and D-Line. I will add some small things about the P-Line, but I don't have any work with the Color Glow P2 so will leave that up to someone else. Stay tuned!
Thanks for reading. Keep those #putterpants on and remember to have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z97lQTLFShU
Enjoy
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Having a 'Go To Disc'
It was great to hear some of the feedback I received from my 'In The Bag' video I posted recently. My buddy, Chris Tellesbo, mentioned that he could see that I cared about a lot of the discs I was throwing, as if I had a connection with a disc. I never thought about it like that, but it was completely true. I enjoy pulling out a disc from my bag and having complete and total confidence in what the disc is capable of doing. This has been tested quite a bit recently having lost quite a bit of quality plastic. Whether it has been a perfectly seasoned disc or a specific run of a disc. I have been forced to break in a number of discs quickly and efficiently. I am putting in countless reps with certain discs to make sure I have the best feeling before I decide to bag them for a round. This is where putting in a lot of field work has been crucial. I am getting to the point where all I want to do is work on field work, fine tune my mechanics and fixing anything that feels wrong. I have worked myself into having a good conservative run up when I need to be more focused and am picking a landing area and I can still get aggressive when I have room to work and need a little bit extra behind the disc. All of this has been from throwing brand new discs and getting comfortable again. I am now getting to the feeling that I want to get away from having a 'Go To Disc' and really want to be able to trust whatever is in my hands as long as I have an idea how it will fly. This turns me to relying more on my own capabilities and skill set rather than trusting a disc to do something specific. Granted I still have a 'Go To Disc' in my bag whenever I feel uncertain or worried I can trust pulling out my beat in D-Line P2. My favorite thing to do is take on longer holes and only throw my P2 just to see how it would differ. In doing this it allows me to tackle a hole with a more cautious approach and can always resort to playing smart. Plus who doesn't like attacking a 1000ft par 5 with only a putter?
I have a few tournaments coming up and am just super pumped to be out and playing. My PutterPants competition was great because it showed me that a lot of people care about having fun playing and enjoy being on the course. Getting back to the foundation of why we all play is great.
Thanks for reading. Keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5VQV8jTl5Q
Enjoy
I have a few tournaments coming up and am just super pumped to be out and playing. My PutterPants competition was great because it showed me that a lot of people care about having fun playing and enjoy being on the course. Getting back to the foundation of why we all play is great.
Thanks for reading. Keep those #putterpants on and have the #mostfun. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5VQV8jTl5Q
Enjoy
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Discmania FD Review and a PutterPants Giveaway!
S-Line FD, Yellow 2nd Run FD, Pink 3rd Run FD, Glow FD
So this week I am going to just jam you guys up with an in depth review of my favorite disc, the Discmania FD. I want this to be as informative as possible. I will cover multiple plastics, but keep in mind I have only thrown C-Line and S-Line so that is where my focus will stay. I will also talk about some of the different runs of C-Line plastics, but also this is an area I only have most of my work with 2nd, 3rd and Glow run. With all of that out of the way I will do my best to inform you guys the best I can so you can hopefully go out and pick up one yourself and enjoy the best fairway on the market. Read all the way to the end and I will give you a little insight about the #PUTTERPANTS Giveaway that should be going live at the end of this weekend.I will begin with the S-Line FD or the Jackal. This was the first Discmania disc I bought about 4-5 years ago along with a D-Line P2 and even now still has a place in my bag. The S-Line FD has an incredible amount of glide out of the box and a very neutral flight. There are a lot of benefits to this disc. It is not only a top disc for beginners to get extra controlled distance when starting out but has the versatility for the top level pros to use them as turnover fairways and even rollers. In most cases I will pull mine out when I either need to throw a roller or a big turnover. The S-Line FD has a very comfortable rim that should have a good feeling in most players hands. The S-Line plastic tends to be a bit more flexible allowing for a solid grip in all conditions. Something to keep in mind when considering the S-Line FD is that it will not be a wind fighter but where you can see this disc shine is in calm conditions to a tailwind. No matter what kind of course you are playing, from a tight wooded course to a open range course, you will find plenty of instances of where you can use this disc. This is a disc I will suggest to players of all ages and skill level. The S-Line is much more beginner friendly than the C-Line. Something to note about the S-Line FD is most of the runs have stayed very consistent so you can trust what you get. It's the biggest reason why Discmania is pushing the level of the game is not only giving you consistent molds but if there is any change the will give you much needed insight on what has changed and how the disc will fly. So if you are looking for a long neutral disc that will get better with age and become a great turnover/roller disc that can tackle any course, I highly suggest picking up an S-Line FD.
As I was writing this post the Discmania store released the 5th Run Firm Jolly Launcher FD which I have yet to test out, but I do intend on snagging a few up and really testing them out. With the C-Line FD you have to understand that there are different runs that will offer you different flight characteristics. Like I said about Discmania they will have incredible consistency in whichever run but if its different by the next run, all of the information you need about how it might be different is offered so you have a better understanding of what you are getting. When it comes to C-Line FDs I have the most work with the 2nd, 3rd and Glow run versions. I did not have a good chance to test out the First Runs as much. I had one but decided to ship it off to my buddy Aron, seemed like a good home for the disc. I will lead in with the 2nd run. These are the most stable run of the FD, they tend to be very stiff and very flat. If your FD is stiff and flat, check the rim for bubbles, if you see bubbles then you have a 2nd run FD.
Bubbles in the rim.
For how stable these are they still have a great amount of glide and can bomb like any other FD, but at the tail end of the flight you will see this disc work harder and finish left. This disc gets pulled out in situations for longer glidey hyzer shots, pumped straight shots, and just about any other fairway shot. With the stability this disc has it reminds me of a glidey beat in Firebird that takes less effort to keep in the air. With that kind of consistency the 2nd Run FD is a staple for my bag, I recently didn't have these but have come into a few and I really enjoy throwing this disc. This version I wouldn't totally suggest for beginners considering how beefy it can be, but would highly suggest this disc to players with a bit more power. This version is the best at battling the heavy winds you sometimes see on the course. These are now very hard to come by in anything over 170g but from my understanding these at the lower weights are still very stable and a very great thrower. Moving on to the 3rd run FD, these can be seen as the slightly firm (not firm like the 2nd run) with swirls in the rim.
Swirls in the rim.
Jamie Thomas has referred to them as the good FDs, which is completely spot on. This version of the FD is easily one of the straightest versions with a slight hint of stability. This allows for players to really get behind this disc and trust that it will have a good straight finish. If you really get behind them you will get a significant amount of turn before the disc will work back to straight. These are great for long glidey hyzers, turnover shots, long flex shots, and tunnel shots. This is a disc you can completely rely on, but I wouldn't go and throw it into a monster head wind. This version is the FD I pull out the most for its consistent flight. This version also has a long shelf life so if you decide to keep it in your bag you shouldn't worry too much about the flight changing all that much. This really goes for all of the C-Line FDs, and really all C-Line discs, that you can get a long life with a consistent flight right out of the box. The last of the three I have worked with in the C-Line plastic are the Glow FDs, these have been talked about by Jussi Meresmaa and other top Discmania players as a solid addition to the FD line up. I have found that these have a tremendous amount of glide and are very similar to the good 3rd run FD. These tend to beat in a little bit quicker which will add to the neutral flight and even present some reliable high speed turn. These I feel actually have the most glide out of the C-Line lineup. This is a disc I tend to pull out for longer drives with poor footing or little run up space, or long straight tunnels and basically anything the 3rd run can do. Why carry both a 3rd Run and a Glow? Most of the time I will just settle with having a 3rd run in my bag but when the weather gets bad or the course I am playing has some tricky fairways and awkward footing I will toss in the Glow to have the extra glide for when I am not throwing as hard. Plus the Jolly Launcher plastic I feel adds to the durability where the Glow does beat in faster, but only in the comparison to the JL plastic otherwise it takes a while to really beat in.If you have any more in depth questions about any of the FDs I have mentioned feel free to comment here or message me on facebook.
I have been mentioning on Instagram and Facebook about #Putterpants and a Putterpants giveaway. I had been chatting with my buddies about what would be the best way to run this competition since not many people maybe understand what #Putterpants stands for. For me #Putterpants is a reminder to have fun and enjoy myself on the course, along with remembering to putt with confidence. My buddies and I used to say after hitting a long putt for 2 "Putterpants Party of 2" and it caught fire among us. So anytime I wouldn't be putting well I would crack a joke about how I needed to put my Putterpants on. Now it even works when I throw my putters off the tee. Having the confidence on the course is key and this is my constant reminder. So here is how the contest will work...
1. Use the #PUTTERPANTS on Facebook or Instagram.
2. Follow me on Instagram (@theericoakley), or add me on Facebook.
3. Give a brief explanation of how you might view putterpants helping you on the course.
4. Post a Rad Picture of you with some Discmania disc or canning an awesome putt for those of you who don't have any Discmania discs.
Thanks for reading. I am a Discmaniac! Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUv2zaj9mPs
Enjoy
Monday, May 4, 2015
Forgetting the Bad and Embracing the Good
With my recent performances, I am having to learn how to forget the bad quickly. When I play I feel as if I am plateauing, so I must figure out a way to push different parts of my game to make for a continual increase in my game. I let shots stick around for too long. When they are bad, it takes a few holes to really recover from it. When they are great, I tend to ride the good feelings and enjoy my shots. This game is so mental and having the right attitude and mindset can make or break any shot. Every shot counts in a round but letting one shot make or break a round seems silly when looking at it from the outside. I can't tell you how many times I have missed a 20 footer and wanted to stop playing right then and there. When it happens in a tournament round that feeling of disappointment lingers and bogs me down. I have tried keeping a great attitude and joking off my bad shots and that works to some extent, but finding the right way to build the mindset that even when it goes poorly that it won't matter considering all the shots that are left to throw. I have a tattoo on my left arm that reads "Fino alla fine..." which in Italian means "to the end..." So with those words I must remember to not give up and finding a way to battle and move on and forward until the end. Whether that is the round, tournament, or even that individual hole I am playing, I should battle and keep staying positive no matter what the outcome.
Recently I have had a lot of different things happen lately and it has stalled my getting the time for a review along with putting out the #putterpants giveaway. Hopefully this week I will have the review up and the giveaway so I can get back on the right foot. So please keep an eye out for these things. I am going to do a review of the FD and follow up with a review of the PD2, DD2, P2 and maybe a few other molds.
This week will be a good week of practice with the Utah Open looming at the weekend. There will be a lot of top pros who will be in attendance, so it will be a great opportunity to learn and to prove myself as a player. Lots to work on this week, especially my short game.
Looking forward to an awesome week. Thanks for reading. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ter0p_iyIxk
Enjoy
Recently I have had a lot of different things happen lately and it has stalled my getting the time for a review along with putting out the #putterpants giveaway. Hopefully this week I will have the review up and the giveaway so I can get back on the right foot. So please keep an eye out for these things. I am going to do a review of the FD and follow up with a review of the PD2, DD2, P2 and maybe a few other molds.
This week will be a good week of practice with the Utah Open looming at the weekend. There will be a lot of top pros who will be in attendance, so it will be a great opportunity to learn and to prove myself as a player. Lots to work on this week, especially my short game.
Looking forward to an awesome week. Thanks for reading. I am a Discmaniac. Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ter0p_iyIxk
Enjoy
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Going Big In Texas Part 2
After some quick practice rounds on Friday, the Nick Hyde Memorial was ready to start. I didn't realize how much I could have used a day off before the tournament, but with losing my go to PD2 a couple of days before and needing to see the lines at Audubon and Harry Myers, it just wasn't going to happen. I felt the majority of my fatigue when it came to my putting. I left myself never really having a chance to make any putts. I wasn't committing to making the putt, I was merely hoping it would go in. I was still able to throw some great drives but never got anything going and tacked on a lot of unnecessary strokes. I was really bummed with how my first round turned out, but the beauty of bigger tournaments you have multiple rounds so you can't let one round bring you down. So after finishing up at Harry Myers we would head to play Audubon. Audubon is a course that gives me a ton of great memories. It is one of my favorite courses in the DFW area and highly suggest people to make it out if they get the opportunity. I grabbed my first ace at Audubon, won my first double tournament there, and have played with a ton of great people. After the frustrating first round I knew I just had to try and piece something together and get myself back into a good place. I started off very slow and picking up a bogey on the hole I aced years ago. I knew there were a ton of holes left to get and I had to keep battling. After erasing my bogeys quickly I would find a way to get on a run and would crush the first 9 holes of the course shooting a solid -7 through holes 1 through 9. I would shoot my third thousand rated round so that was something super positive out of the weekend. I was pumped but I knew Harry Myers was around the corner and I have yet to put up a good round out there and that course would get me again on the final day. I would throw 100 points lower than I did at Audubon, which has made me rethink how I approach the game a bit. What was different between the two rounds? Aside from the course, I noticed that in all of the better rounds I have shot in tournaments I have found myself not thinking about the score or about anything else but throwing and having the most fun in my group. Even when a tree kicks me into the thick, I laugh it off and joke about it and move on. In my first and third round my group consisted of some players who may not have realized how their actions played on other people. I am not blaming them for my performance at all because I was the one throwing the discs and ending up in trouble, but I felt I composed myself in a better manner even when things were going poorly. Maybe it is just how they play and how they find a way to get passed things but I definitely feel things can be taken a lot easier. We are just playing a game and it should be fun. The competitive aspect of it shouldn't bring out the bad it should incite the good and bring a level of enjoyment to all. I have had to look at this myself and is something I am still working on, these past two tournaments were some of the most fun I have had playing because I made them fun and my attitude was right even when I was taking a 7 or a 6 on a hole, it didn't matter because I knew I was playing disc golf and that is a true joy for me. Overall I need to find a way to be more consistent with my rounds. Both tournaments I played in I would shoot one to two great rounds but the other rounds were very poor and would cost me the opportunity of a higher finish. The best thing about playing over the past week and a half I was constantly learning more and more about myself and from others on how to approach the game and what I do best in the game. I am super thankful for the learning experiences I had and will only use them to help build my confidence and skills moving forward. I look forward to when I can be writing one of these posts and I am telling you about more lead cards, cashing, and hopefully soon winning tournaments, but for now I love expressing my thoughts and getting things out. So thank you for anyone who takes the time to read and take in what I have to say.
I asked you guys in my last blog on which Discmania disc you would like me to review and I had 3 responses so I am going to give it another couple of days to see if we can get some more input on what to review. I will however review all the discs people want me to review but I would like to go in order of which is most sought after first. Right now the PD2 has 2 votes, PD and FD both with 1 vote. Comment back what you want me to review! Thanks all you Maniacs who responded.
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHvoz_oXOXA
Enjoy
I asked you guys in my last blog on which Discmania disc you would like me to review and I had 3 responses so I am going to give it another couple of days to see if we can get some more input on what to review. I will however review all the discs people want me to review but I would like to go in order of which is most sought after first. Right now the PD2 has 2 votes, PD and FD both with 1 vote. Comment back what you want me to review! Thanks all you Maniacs who responded.
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHvoz_oXOXA
Enjoy
Friday, April 10, 2015
Going Big in Texas Part 1
Well I have had such a crazy and eventful week of disc golf, I feel there is so much to share and yet I have a whole other expierence coming up this weekend which will have other challenges and eventful moments. I flew into DFW on Thursday the day before The Texas Open, knowing I would only have one day to practice and be ready before the tournament. This is something I didn't totally like but had to deal with considering the situation. I got a good solid round at Gateway Gold and felt comfortable that I could put up a decent round. I knew the course was going to play tough for everyone. Gateway is a course that really punishes you for not staying in the fairway. Tight lines and unforgiving roughs mean if you stay in the fairway you will see some solid scores. This course is truly one of my favorites, the first time I played it I got eaten alive and shot poorly but it made me want to come back for more. The lowest I shot out there before this weekend was a 58, from all concrete pads, and I was totally stoked on that round. With a few additional tee pads added and playing an additional longer tee pad, I knew Gateway Gold was going to be a challenging course but I was ready to play smart and attack when I could. During the first round I found myself just talking and having a great time no matter what was going on. Whether it was my disc getting stuck in a tree and me having to take a two-meter stroke or if it was me throwing my putter through some tight tunnels and tapping in for birdie, my mindset didn't change. I was happy to be there and happy to be playing disc golf. By the end of the round I felt as I was putting together a solid round and would be happy either way of the result. I came in with the hot round of 54 (1029 rated round), and had a 3 stroke lead over the other competetors, including Simon Lizotte and Scott Stokely. Those two in particular are players I am totally stoked I met over the weekend and I learned a ton from them. I received a lot of messages and other things over the internet about how well I had shot, I was trying to stay as humble as possible. I felt hearing all these great things was a sign of me doing something good, but I knew I had to show up for another two days for it to be something real. Either way it is a step in a good direction for me and I hope I can find myself on the top card and leading another tournament again soon. The following day would consist of two rounds, one at Northpark a course that is very easy to shoot low but you must hit your lines and get your birdies and a round from Gateway shorts (Only 4-5 holes were different). I would start off the round by trying a roller which I had done in practice and it had worked out very well, this was a good line since there was a chain link fence than ran down the entire right side of the fairway and lead towards the basket. In a few spots the fence had been messed with and lifted up for casual golfers to retrieve their discs... Do you see where I am going with this?... My disc found one of these holes and I walked up and found my disc sitting on the other side of the fence, I took my mark, confirmed that I was out of bounds with my card and perceded to throw and clipped a tree and had to settle for a double bogey to start the second round. Afterwards I had told some competetors about what happened and they were told that if you roll under the fence you are not out of bounds. For me I didn't even argue or think about it but just had to make sure, so the lesson to be learned is if something looks slightly off always throw a provisional... Always! Throughout the round at North Park I just couldn't get anything going. I talked it out witha buddy of mine and it was a simple fact of I was trying to over throw my shots, forcing me to turn stuff over or release things early and I found myself getting into trouble. I put up a really poor round but kept a positive attitude and kept pushing forward, with two more rounds at Gateway I felt I still had time to make things up. I still found myself on the chase card for the thrid round. The third round started out with a lot of the same from the earlier round at North Park. I found myself tense and over throwing and by hole three my buddy Paul King who was caddying for me told me to slow down and just focus on a smooth release. He was completely right, after that I managed to start throwing some better shots and battling back to a decent score. But I felt that things just never really got going and they never really did the rest of the tournament. No matter what I was throwing, I was finding trouble with awkward footing or having to straddle or different things. I was still positive and confident going into the final round that I could muster up something good. I would be wrong but I really wanted to have a positive outlook no matter what happened. I started out finding a small groove but it felt a lot of the same from the day before nothing really got going and I had to scramble a lot, and if you are scrambling at Gateway you're going to have a bad time. I had a couple putts chain out when I didn't putt it in the heart and shook my confidence early. I would also lose a disc into the Trinity River when I glanced a tree and saw it sail into oblivion. I let out a painful "Noooooooooo!" as I saw it glance the tree and keep flying. RIP Purple Firebird you will be missed. A few holes later on one of the more difficult holes on the course I chose to re-tee after my drive kicked and found itself stuck behind a lot of thick stuff. I discussed it with Paul and we both felt there was no guarantee I would get out of there clean or at all in a couple of throws, so I trotted back and tossed again. Those things happened in every round this weekend including my first round, it is a part of disc golf that I actually enjoy because it can happen to anyone at any time, and you can't let it get to you or beat you up, you have to walk to your next shot and take it in stride and keep pushing for that low score. I would miss out on the cash by a couple of strokes because my last round did me no favors. I felt bummed that I didn't take full advantage of the opportunity but it has become another thing that will make me more hungry for the next time I find myself in this situation. I am happy to realize a few things about my game and what works best for me. When I stay positive and happy and enjoy my round I shoot well and it helps the people around me continue to play their game and enjoy their game. I need to remember to take a breath and relax and just throw while not over throwing and over thinking any shot. I had a lot of positive support throughout the round and I found out there are people who showed even when things were going bad they were behind me and others who dropped me like a hot rock, but no matter what it was awesome having such a great support and following that I hope to take it home next time and give everyone something even better to talk about. I did my best to not dwell on what had happened, I wanted it to hurt and I wanted it to sting, so I could remember that I never want to have that feeling again, and only I could make sure that it didn't happen again.
I remembered something good about my golf game over the weekened, I know what my best disc is. It's a disc that I trust throwing at any moment to get me out of trouble. It's a disc that I have the most confidence in and if I had to it could be the only disc in my bag. My Discmania D-Line P2 was working all weekend long. It got me the majority of the birdies I had over the weekend. I can throw them on shots from 100-350ft. There were a few really tight tunnels that I was able to hit and it gave me confidence time and time again. My buddy Chris Tellesbo has said that he doesn't understand why I throw any other disc. I am going to use that as something to build on and make it a part of my game that is alwyas around. Throwing putters can help me only get better and continue to elevate my game.
After a long grueling weekend, we decided we would go support Simon Lizotte and Jamie Thomas at the Discmania Flying Circus. This would be a great idea since we would be able to relax and recover and just enjoy some disc golf fun. Getting to chat with Simon and Jamie over the weekend realy showed me how great this sport can be. They are two guys who want the absolute best for each and every person in the sport. They want to see people throwing appropriate discs that will elevate their game. Discmania and these two are really pushing the level of the sport by offering the best discs for people to throw and making sure that people are using the right discs as well. I have been throwing Discmania for close to 4 years now and I couldn't see myself throwing anything else. The quality of the discs can't be beat. Now back to mroe about the Flying Circus, Simon does a lot for players and understanding and breaking down how they throw and what they can improve on. I would be very impressed to see what he could do with a player if he had more than a small segment to work with them. I will definitely be using some of the things I learned from watching Simon teach in my Summer Disc Golf camp that my work is putting on. I can't wait to grow the sport more and use all of the things I've learned to hopefully get more people hooked. I am super thankful to have met and chatted it up with Simon and Jamie, I will be following them and supporting them throughout their tour this year. If you get a chance to catch the Flying Circus, do it! You will not be dissapointed.
Over the next few days it turned into total practice and catching a few Texas courses that I had been missing since I moved to Utah. We headed out to Trophy Club to catch the course out there which is a great course to throw if you haven't yet. It forces you to throw all of your shots. I am a huge fan of this course and was able to throw down a really good round. I played seventeen good holes and one bad hole which was great, on the bad hole I tried to go big and got punished, but when you are feeling good about your shots, I said why not? It was an awesome day out there and I really enjoyed playing that course and will definitely look at coming back to playing a tournament at that course in the future. The next day we would head out to two courses that I have put a lot of rounds at and I truly enjoy playing, Turner Park and Veterans. Both courses are challenging but a ton of fun to play. At Turner I didn't play particularly well but threw some great shots and had a blast. I was able to tackle the +800ft hole 18 with just my putter, I could have made it in 4 but I sawed off my up shot and had to lay up for a 5 but that is a hole that taking a 5 on is not a bad score. I felt it was a fun challenge and somehting I will try more in the future. After that round we headed over to Veterans and I had the intention on practicing most of the Gold Tees out there, because I plan on trying to play in the Veterans Park Open later this year. On hole one its a long throw down a field that heads towards the road then it tucks left into some trees. I didn't read the wind right and my disc hyzered out and landed near the road but still in the fairway. As I walked down my disc was gone! A women was in a car near where my disc landed and she said a guy picked up an orange disc and walked away. The funny thing is none of the people nor myself saw someone grab my disc. We all assumed it was still there. This was a particularly large blow since that was a driver that I had put a lot of work into seasoning and it was my go to driver. So if you happen to be in the Arlington area and you see an Orange C-Line PD2 with a black/silver stamp please get it back to me. This turned the round into lets just play and move on rather than into VPO practice. I was so deflated after losing that disc, losing my purple Firebird, and slumping at the weekend, that it was tough for me to want to have a serious round anymore. Some people just have no respect for the game and do dumb things, that is something I can't control but can only try and educate newer players to keep the integrity of the sport and to always have respect. I had a blast throwing with some guys who wanted to meet us out there and it still turned out to be a great day to throw so I looked on the bright side and was happy to just be playing disc golf. The next day was supposed to be a day off and some time for me to relax but it turned into going out and throwing some PD2s to ty and work in a replacement for the weekend. I knew that it wasn't going to happen in one day but I had some other PD2s that I could throw and get a good feel for before the weekend so I would be confident enough to throw them in a tournament round. I got to hang out with some of my buddies from Granbury and I had a blast throwing with them. I put in a lot of work throwing my PD2s and I feel that I am ready for the weekend and am excited to see what I can do.
With the Nick Hyde Memorial happening this weekend, I find myself motivated and completely ready to have another eventful weekend. I am going to give myself every opportunity to get better and perform well. I am going to use what I learned last weekend and continue to throw and have a postive mindset no matter what is going on. I am super pumped and I can't wait to throw Saturday morning.
So I asked all of you Maniacs what is your favorite shot to throw and what Discmania disc do you use to throw that shot?
For me there are two, yes that's cheating but it is my blog so suck it, I really enjoy throwing my P2s off the box down a tunnel and letting the disc float and fly in a super straight line that feels effortless. My other favorite shot is throwing a FD on a longer gentle hyzer, letting the disc glide out and hyzer towards the basket is just wonderful to watch. I have thrown both the pearly 3rd runs and a 2nd run FD and they are wonderful at throwing long glidey hyzers, check them out if you get a chance.
To test out who all totally reads my blog I am going to ask for you guys to have me review a Discmania disc for my next installment. So choose a disc you want me to review and whichever has the most I will be together a solid Discmania review.
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FK-bloEb5NI
Enjoy
I remembered something good about my golf game over the weekened, I know what my best disc is. It's a disc that I trust throwing at any moment to get me out of trouble. It's a disc that I have the most confidence in and if I had to it could be the only disc in my bag. My Discmania D-Line P2 was working all weekend long. It got me the majority of the birdies I had over the weekend. I can throw them on shots from 100-350ft. There were a few really tight tunnels that I was able to hit and it gave me confidence time and time again. My buddy Chris Tellesbo has said that he doesn't understand why I throw any other disc. I am going to use that as something to build on and make it a part of my game that is alwyas around. Throwing putters can help me only get better and continue to elevate my game.
After a long grueling weekend, we decided we would go support Simon Lizotte and Jamie Thomas at the Discmania Flying Circus. This would be a great idea since we would be able to relax and recover and just enjoy some disc golf fun. Getting to chat with Simon and Jamie over the weekend realy showed me how great this sport can be. They are two guys who want the absolute best for each and every person in the sport. They want to see people throwing appropriate discs that will elevate their game. Discmania and these two are really pushing the level of the sport by offering the best discs for people to throw and making sure that people are using the right discs as well. I have been throwing Discmania for close to 4 years now and I couldn't see myself throwing anything else. The quality of the discs can't be beat. Now back to mroe about the Flying Circus, Simon does a lot for players and understanding and breaking down how they throw and what they can improve on. I would be very impressed to see what he could do with a player if he had more than a small segment to work with them. I will definitely be using some of the things I learned from watching Simon teach in my Summer Disc Golf camp that my work is putting on. I can't wait to grow the sport more and use all of the things I've learned to hopefully get more people hooked. I am super thankful to have met and chatted it up with Simon and Jamie, I will be following them and supporting them throughout their tour this year. If you get a chance to catch the Flying Circus, do it! You will not be dissapointed.
Over the next few days it turned into total practice and catching a few Texas courses that I had been missing since I moved to Utah. We headed out to Trophy Club to catch the course out there which is a great course to throw if you haven't yet. It forces you to throw all of your shots. I am a huge fan of this course and was able to throw down a really good round. I played seventeen good holes and one bad hole which was great, on the bad hole I tried to go big and got punished, but when you are feeling good about your shots, I said why not? It was an awesome day out there and I really enjoyed playing that course and will definitely look at coming back to playing a tournament at that course in the future. The next day we would head out to two courses that I have put a lot of rounds at and I truly enjoy playing, Turner Park and Veterans. Both courses are challenging but a ton of fun to play. At Turner I didn't play particularly well but threw some great shots and had a blast. I was able to tackle the +800ft hole 18 with just my putter, I could have made it in 4 but I sawed off my up shot and had to lay up for a 5 but that is a hole that taking a 5 on is not a bad score. I felt it was a fun challenge and somehting I will try more in the future. After that round we headed over to Veterans and I had the intention on practicing most of the Gold Tees out there, because I plan on trying to play in the Veterans Park Open later this year. On hole one its a long throw down a field that heads towards the road then it tucks left into some trees. I didn't read the wind right and my disc hyzered out and landed near the road but still in the fairway. As I walked down my disc was gone! A women was in a car near where my disc landed and she said a guy picked up an orange disc and walked away. The funny thing is none of the people nor myself saw someone grab my disc. We all assumed it was still there. This was a particularly large blow since that was a driver that I had put a lot of work into seasoning and it was my go to driver. So if you happen to be in the Arlington area and you see an Orange C-Line PD2 with a black/silver stamp please get it back to me. This turned the round into lets just play and move on rather than into VPO practice. I was so deflated after losing that disc, losing my purple Firebird, and slumping at the weekend, that it was tough for me to want to have a serious round anymore. Some people just have no respect for the game and do dumb things, that is something I can't control but can only try and educate newer players to keep the integrity of the sport and to always have respect. I had a blast throwing with some guys who wanted to meet us out there and it still turned out to be a great day to throw so I looked on the bright side and was happy to just be playing disc golf. The next day was supposed to be a day off and some time for me to relax but it turned into going out and throwing some PD2s to ty and work in a replacement for the weekend. I knew that it wasn't going to happen in one day but I had some other PD2s that I could throw and get a good feel for before the weekend so I would be confident enough to throw them in a tournament round. I got to hang out with some of my buddies from Granbury and I had a blast throwing with them. I put in a lot of work throwing my PD2s and I feel that I am ready for the weekend and am excited to see what I can do.
With the Nick Hyde Memorial happening this weekend, I find myself motivated and completely ready to have another eventful weekend. I am going to give myself every opportunity to get better and perform well. I am going to use what I learned last weekend and continue to throw and have a postive mindset no matter what is going on. I am super pumped and I can't wait to throw Saturday morning.
So I asked all of you Maniacs what is your favorite shot to throw and what Discmania disc do you use to throw that shot?
For me there are two, yes that's cheating but it is my blog so suck it, I really enjoy throwing my P2s off the box down a tunnel and letting the disc float and fly in a super straight line that feels effortless. My other favorite shot is throwing a FD on a longer gentle hyzer, letting the disc glide out and hyzer towards the basket is just wonderful to watch. I have thrown both the pearly 3rd runs and a 2nd run FD and they are wonderful at throwing long glidey hyzers, check them out if you get a chance.
To test out who all totally reads my blog I am going to ask for you guys to have me review a Discmania disc for my next installment. So choose a disc you want me to review and whichever has the most I will be together a solid Discmania review.
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FK-bloEb5NI
Enjoy
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Gearing Up For A Big Week
I have a ton of excitement leading up to the next 12 days or so. I am heading back to Texas for the first time in a long time, I will get to see some of my family and friends, and I will be competing in two disc golf tournaments along with getting to play a ton of courses I truly miss since moving to Utah. I have been starting my preparations with a ton of putting practice, I am really trying to make my putting effortless. I have bounced back and forth a lot on how my putting style should be, this I know is bad to do but when something just doesn't feel right and it causes me frustration a change needs to be made. What I have found in my putting was adjusting where my hand is on the disc was the biggest factor in giving me a more consistent putt. I was forcing my wrist to have too much action causing me to pull my putts wide. After adjusting my hand by about an inch I found myself not only having putts go in but I was making more putts. The reason I try and add the difference was from listening to Simon Lizotte and Paul McBeth commentate on the last round at The Memorial they brought up the point of making putts rather than the putt going in. I think this is something that more players need to realize and utilize in their practice routines. With all my practice putting I haven't really played any specific games or had any routines I just get to a spot throw a putt move to adjust the angle and throw another. I usually take anywhere from 6-10 putters to practice with. I really enjoy making 6-10 in a row before I branch out and move farther back. I will only exceed 45ft or so towards the end just to have some good long putt practice and some jump putt practice. But I feel putting in the effort inside the circle will give me a greater benefit over multiple rounds.
As I was throwing this week I could tell that my timing was off on my drives and my body was getting ahead of itself and I could tell I was losing a ton of distance. I had to put a lot of work in with my footwork to find out what was causing the problem. I was trying to over throw every shot, I needed to slow down and trust the disc to fly and focus on my follow through rather than trying to murder the disc. Hopefully I can continue this trend of good footwork and let the discs fly in Texas.
I am going to be playing in the Texas Open in Fort Worth. The two courses where it is being held are two great courses that I really look forward to getting back to. They represent great challenges but if you stay in bounds or in the fairway you can really tear up the course. This for me is a scary thought since most of the courses near me in Utah are a bit more open, where at Gateway and North Park in Forth Worth they have places where you can find a lot of trouble with tight OB lines or thick foliage on the sides. So playing smart and hitting my lines will be huge. The following weekend I am stoked to be playing in another huge tournament this year at the Nick Hyde Memorial in Dallas. The two courses are among some of my favorite of all time. They represent great challenges and force you to use all of the shots in your bag. Auduban park was the place where I bagged my first ace so it always feels special playing there. Harry Myers from either tees forces you to play your shots with precision and really pick up the gimme holes. Either way I am totally pumped to be playing and competing. I want to continue to get better and this will be an awesome opportunity to prove myself and enjoy playing disc golf even more.
I will definitely be posting my thoughts after the first tournament, and do a total wrap up of the entire week soon. So be on the lookout for that next week.
To all my Discmanaics, I posted a question last week: If you have been throwing S-Line P2s but have recently tried the C-Line P2, what are your thoughts?
I will start with the C-Line P2 has some great qualities to it. It is incredibly stable but with that comes a less glidey disc which can be great but also not so great. The C-Line plastic does not have a lot of grip which is my biggest factor for moving away from this disc. If you don't have problems with grip and need a stable putter this disc is great. I can see myself holding on to a couple for special tournaments or very windy situations but for now it will be pushed aside.
The S-Line P2 has already been given such a great appeal for all players, I mean when Paul McBeth and Simon Lizotte throw them... why shouldn't you? For me I chose to throw this disc as it was my go to stable approach putter from the moment I picked up a Discmania disc. The S-Line plastic is slick but has more grip than the C-Line, giving me more control and more confidence whether its off the tee or on the approach. They break in incredibly well and I recommend them to anyone who needs a good stable putter.
I'm always up for another question so here it goes. What is your favorite shot to throw? And what Discmania disc do you use to execute that shot?
Be sure to check out my instagram @theericoakley
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers
Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09TF-lpwwGo
As I was throwing this week I could tell that my timing was off on my drives and my body was getting ahead of itself and I could tell I was losing a ton of distance. I had to put a lot of work in with my footwork to find out what was causing the problem. I was trying to over throw every shot, I needed to slow down and trust the disc to fly and focus on my follow through rather than trying to murder the disc. Hopefully I can continue this trend of good footwork and let the discs fly in Texas.
I am going to be playing in the Texas Open in Fort Worth. The two courses where it is being held are two great courses that I really look forward to getting back to. They represent great challenges but if you stay in bounds or in the fairway you can really tear up the course. This for me is a scary thought since most of the courses near me in Utah are a bit more open, where at Gateway and North Park in Forth Worth they have places where you can find a lot of trouble with tight OB lines or thick foliage on the sides. So playing smart and hitting my lines will be huge. The following weekend I am stoked to be playing in another huge tournament this year at the Nick Hyde Memorial in Dallas. The two courses are among some of my favorite of all time. They represent great challenges and force you to use all of the shots in your bag. Auduban park was the place where I bagged my first ace so it always feels special playing there. Harry Myers from either tees forces you to play your shots with precision and really pick up the gimme holes. Either way I am totally pumped to be playing and competing. I want to continue to get better and this will be an awesome opportunity to prove myself and enjoy playing disc golf even more.
I will definitely be posting my thoughts after the first tournament, and do a total wrap up of the entire week soon. So be on the lookout for that next week.
To all my Discmanaics, I posted a question last week: If you have been throwing S-Line P2s but have recently tried the C-Line P2, what are your thoughts?
I will start with the C-Line P2 has some great qualities to it. It is incredibly stable but with that comes a less glidey disc which can be great but also not so great. The C-Line plastic does not have a lot of grip which is my biggest factor for moving away from this disc. If you don't have problems with grip and need a stable putter this disc is great. I can see myself holding on to a couple for special tournaments or very windy situations but for now it will be pushed aside.
The S-Line P2 has already been given such a great appeal for all players, I mean when Paul McBeth and Simon Lizotte throw them... why shouldn't you? For me I chose to throw this disc as it was my go to stable approach putter from the moment I picked up a Discmania disc. The S-Line plastic is slick but has more grip than the C-Line, giving me more control and more confidence whether its off the tee or on the approach. They break in incredibly well and I recommend them to anyone who needs a good stable putter.
I'm always up for another question so here it goes. What is your favorite shot to throw? And what Discmania disc do you use to execute that shot?
Be sure to check out my instagram @theericoakley
I am a Discmaniac! Cheers
Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09TF-lpwwGo
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Recovery and Working on my Sidearm
I came to the realization this week that my body was due for some rest. I had been putting in 30-45 mins of putting a day, 2-3 rounds a day, and even close to an hour of field work. Not all of those happened everyday but 2 out of 3 were happening and I found myself losing consistency and distance. I thought it was only going to get me better, but it was doing the opposite. I started to create some bad habits especially with my putting. I was no longer putting with authority, I was floating things to the basket and was having more chain outs. So after taking a couple of days off, I returned to the course and felt better on my feet and crushing a disc in the air. I am planning on tuning down a little bit or finding the right way to actively recover after rounds. I feel stretching before and after each round or practice seems like a no brainer.
Next week I will post my thoughts on the two.
I am a Discmanic! Cheers
Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRqWVEeDS_g
I talked with my buddy Chris Tellesbo who has one of the best sidearms in Utah. He helped me come to the understanding that I can actually work my beat in Discmania PD2s as a distance sidearm disc. This is a part of my game that has always been great in shorter distances but never for longer distances. Adding this will only help me in the long run. I spent hours throwing Firebirds and PD2s up and down the driving range. This is will continue to be a work in progress but bumping my sidearms up from 325 to 375-400 is a big deal but my consistency needs even more work.
So I hope that people actually take the time to read this blog entirely. This post is really short and to the point since I have had a pretty great week of golf but had to recognize a few things that needed to be looked at hopefully it helps people understand the importance of rest and recovery.
Last thing for all the Discmaniacs out there.... If you have been throwing S-Line P2s but have recently tried the C-Line P2, what are your thoughts?
So I hope that people actually take the time to read this blog entirely. This post is really short and to the point since I have had a pretty great week of golf but had to recognize a few things that needed to be looked at hopefully it helps people understand the importance of rest and recovery.
Last thing for all the Discmaniacs out there.... If you have been throwing S-Line P2s but have recently tried the C-Line P2, what are your thoughts?
Next week I will post my thoughts on the two.
I am a Discmanic! Cheers
Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRqWVEeDS_g
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
CD2 Review, Putting Practice, and More
I am going to jump to the 'More' part now because I feel like I need to bring up something that I love and hate about discs. How can we continue to have different feelings in the same molds of a disc? I love finding a specific run of a disc that plays to my style, but at the same time I hate having to hunt down a specific color, mold, run, stamp, plastic, or whatever else to continue to have the same feeling. The easiest example for me to talk about is the Innova Firebird. Anyone who throws this disc may have a preference of which version they like the most. I am a fan of the 12x Flat and Stiff version. I feel they resemble the 11x that costs a fortune to pick up and generally you can find the 12x at a cheaper price. Ever since Innova introduced the Jolly Launcher plastic, the Champion Firebird mold seemed to have changed to being less flat and less stiff. Every Firebird thrower I have talked to only talks about their 'FAF' Firebirds, never have I heard someone go on about a domey Firebird. So looking at player feedback why doesn't Innova continue to run the Flat versions? Maybe I don't know enough about what is going on in the factory and they may be doing just that but from what I see in going to stores and seeing vendors the Firebird has had either a bad run or has changed. I would imagine Innova looks at these things and makes good adjustments to not only benefit their touring pros but also the average consumer. I know I can't be the only one running into this problem, and the Firebird isn't the only disc I have run into this problem with. All in all if this is the biggest problem I have with discs, it is an okay problem to have, it makes me enjoy receiving discs more and makes me smarter when throwing certain shots. I could also go down the line of not caring so much about the discs I throw and if they go lost then it's not the end of the world. But I connect with my discs and enjoy learning how they throw and continue to learn how they throw after they take a knock here and a scratch there. For now I will continue to stockpile my favorite throwers in bins and boxes for the eventual use, it's just getting a little tight on space in my room.
"How you practice is how you will play!" I have heard this so many times and feel that it stands true. But when it comes to Putting, I can't seem to Putt like I do in practice. Something changes and I am not sure what it is. Maybe it's the fear of missing, because in practice you see no real consequence of missing. So how can I replicate that fear? Having a punishment for every missed putt in practice? That could work, but I feel conditioning myself to not miss seems a bit extreme. Maybe the anger of a shot before adds to the pressure. I need to learn to let go of shots better and find a more relaxed place and just let the game continue to flow. I feel like I am going down the dark side with my putting with Fear and Anger. I have changed styles, changed plastic but still find the worst part of my game to be putting. I have settled into a style of putting, I have picked out a set routine that I replicate with every single putt, I try and hold my putters in the same place each and every time, and with all of these things I still find inconsistency in my putting. Maybe something is completely wrong with my mechanics and I need to film myself putting and remember which ones felt good and try and see what was good in my motion to better understand. I try to not play too many games with putting since I get really bored of them quickly and prefer to constantly move after each putt, since I won't get multiple tries from the same place in a round. Right now my best way of getting in good practice is having 6 Discmania P2s and walking out to bout 15-20ft and make all 6 before I step back to 20-25ft and continue back until I am putting from about 40-50ft. After a couple of rounds I just start over again, making sure I am just not trying to can 6 in a row from 50ft to be finished. I prefer to end with 20-25ft since this is a range I should be able to find most often with drives and upshots. I will find the light side of my putting soon enough. I am going to be more confident with every putt. I think the best start is staying positive and making the most of every putt.
I hope you enjoyed the review and my ranting on about discs and putting. Cheers
I am a Discmaniac!
Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILzlo5QpuUo
Monday, March 2, 2015
The Memorial Roller Coaster
I want to start off by apologizing for not posting in awhile, disc golf has still been heavy on my mind and have been meaning to get a solid post in.
I have been putting in ample rounds and practice but something has seemed off, I really started to worry as February continued to creep up on me. I switched things up with my putting and it really threw me off and couldn't hit anything outside of 18ft. It was quite embarrassing but I still found ways to be competitive and put up some okay scores in local mini's. I went back to what was working but can't understand why I would've changed it in the first place. After taking some steps backwards to fix the problem I found out what really works for me and stuck to it. I was just stoked to figure it out before the biggest competition of my disc golf career, The Memorial Championship.
After arriving late in Phoenix on Saturday, my focus immediately shifted to total Disc Golf and understanding that this week would be an opportunity to show, mostly to myself, that I am capable of competing and being a solid disc golfer. We started off with a round at Fountain Hills. This course is not as scary as I imagined, It can tack on a lot of strokes really quick, but if you get after the course it totally gives back. Figuring that out would help me Day 1. We then shifted over to Vista Del Camino, having never played most of the XL layout I felt there was a lot more learning at this course to be done. The only hole that I could not figure out was hole 12, on the two practice days I saw this hole the wind was cross-headwind and was making the hole play, for me at least, very difficult. My turnovers were coming up short and hitting the damn, my flicks were stalling out into the water, and the only shot that seemed good was to lay up on the side and pitch up. Other than that hole I felt I had a good grasp of the course and wasn't worried. Of to the new course, going in all that we had heard was how poor it was. To me this course was cool, nothing special but cool. No hole really represents any worries but you really have to attack and get your birdies.
The best thing I did in my preparation for the weekend was to take notes on what to throw and how to approach every hole. I discussed every shot with the guys I had been practicing with, we talked about wind variants, advantages of different lines, when to attack and when to be safe, figuring out what plays to our strengths. This helped me visualize each shot and how I wanted to play. I also had something to look back at if I was feeling concerned about a shot. I stuck to my game plan on almost every hole.
Day 1 Fountain Hills
After taking an OB 4 on hole 1 after putting my PD2 next to Hole 2s tee, I felt like I had settled my nerves and fired back with taking a good 3 on hole 2 and grabbing another birdie on hole 3. The best part about the rest of the strokes I would pick up for the remainder of the round, would be that they all came from scooting out of bounds right next to the basket. After the long discussion with my friends about the courses, I knew after hole 9 that it was time to start picking up the aggressive play and going for every birdie left. I would pick up 5 of 7 and would play 18 too passive and snagged the only bad play of the round and pick up a 4 to finish the round. In total I would shoot a 51, which on the day left me feeling pretty good. I finished above a lot of big names and other players after the first round. I received a lot of praise and support from friends who were keeping track of the scores.
Day 2 Vista Del Camino
I knew that this was going to be a day about how strong do you start and how strong you finish. I started off very strong and didn't pick up a 4 until hole 10 and was shooting strong golf and was oozing with confidence. I would have some nice wind and play hole 12 nice and easy and take a good par so at this point I felt as if I was going to be coming in with a solid round. With a couple of long hold ups and the long walk back to hole 13, I feel like I had too much time with my thoughts and found myself being distracted and missed my lines on the next 5 holes to finish out struggling, including a double OB 6 on hole 14. This is where the story of my week went from being tons of fun to a total bummer real quick. After totaling up my scores and double checking them and asking others to check them, I turned in my scorecard. The person doing scores calls me over to tell me I made a mistake, my heart sank and I knew what was coming. I picked up an extra two strokes because I was too casual about my scorecard. I honestly can't tell if other players were casual as well when totaling it up but I would really hope that after multiple eyes land on the card that someone would've caught the mistake. I was really determined to not let it take my weekend down but it really would come back to haunt me in the end.
Day 3 Fiesta
I continued to try and not let what happened the day before have any impact on the round at Fiesta. This turned into me having to play aggressive golf for 18 holes and not look back. After 9 holes I had picked up two 5s and a 4 but had also strung together 5 birdies. But would get cold and not be able to do much with the remainder of my round. I would finish with a 55 and would quadruple check along with 3 other eyes check my card before turning it in. I then turned to my phone to just watch and endlessly count the standings out to see if I would make the cut. I figured that the top 90 players would get in. I followed around the top two cards, as I continued to refresh my phone hoping for the best. I chose to follow Simon Lizotte over the lead card and that portion totally paid off. He was on a tear. It was great to see someone of his level tear up a course and continue to execute shots. This was a big lesson of what kind of practice I need to put into my own game.
Later that night as standings finally posted I would finish tied for 94th, and would miss the cut by 1 stroke. I feel it is very easy to say had I added my score up correctly I would've made the cut, but there was so much more than just that. Over 54 holes I found OB 10 times, and missed 6 putts inside the circle. Those account for 16 strokes essentially that I unnecessarily took over 3 rounds of golf. This is the biggest thing that I am going to focus on when moving forward. Working on throw smart and executing my shots better. I plan on putting more field work and rounds over the next month as I prepare for the next couple of tournaments heading my way.
I decided to go hit another round before heading to watch the final round. We swung by Vista to see the XL layout another time before next year. I would shoot a pretty great round with some crazy bounces to let me lose a PD2 on 13 after hitting a tree in the middle of the fairway and role about 50-60ft into the water but no dice on this one. I would then pick up an ace on Hole 17 with a Discmania P2, my buddy called it the moment it left my hand. Within two minutes I would then throw in my trusty Firebird after hitting a sign in the middle of the fairway. I would be lucky enough to get that one back. It was crazy because that was such a great way to finish out the week, big ups and downs it was just great to be playing disc golf.
This tournament has taking me up and down, but has left me with a couple of key things to think about.
1. I am hungrier than ever to push my level of play.
2. Every shot counts, so mean it. (Meat Shot) HA!
3. No matter how bad some rounds get, its better than not playing.
4. Trust yourself
5. Have the most fun every round. This is the biggest thing I learned about my game, if I am serious I don't play well, but when I talk and joke and have fun I get after it and kill it.
6. I learned what I want in my bag and what discs I need to learn and utilize more.
7. Keep looking forward.
8. Count your scorecard correctly. I am glad I learned this now and won't let it ever happen again!
I plan on keeping this going and posting once a week on the things I did as far as practicing goes and any hot rounds I played, along with some Discmania disc reviews (First off CD2), so please look out for more posts and spread the word.
Check out my Instagram as well
https://instagram.com/theericoakley/
Fino alla fine...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROJQIcYOLok
Enjoy
I have been putting in ample rounds and practice but something has seemed off, I really started to worry as February continued to creep up on me. I switched things up with my putting and it really threw me off and couldn't hit anything outside of 18ft. It was quite embarrassing but I still found ways to be competitive and put up some okay scores in local mini's. I went back to what was working but can't understand why I would've changed it in the first place. After taking some steps backwards to fix the problem I found out what really works for me and stuck to it. I was just stoked to figure it out before the biggest competition of my disc golf career, The Memorial Championship.
After arriving late in Phoenix on Saturday, my focus immediately shifted to total Disc Golf and understanding that this week would be an opportunity to show, mostly to myself, that I am capable of competing and being a solid disc golfer. We started off with a round at Fountain Hills. This course is not as scary as I imagined, It can tack on a lot of strokes really quick, but if you get after the course it totally gives back. Figuring that out would help me Day 1. We then shifted over to Vista Del Camino, having never played most of the XL layout I felt there was a lot more learning at this course to be done. The only hole that I could not figure out was hole 12, on the two practice days I saw this hole the wind was cross-headwind and was making the hole play, for me at least, very difficult. My turnovers were coming up short and hitting the damn, my flicks were stalling out into the water, and the only shot that seemed good was to lay up on the side and pitch up. Other than that hole I felt I had a good grasp of the course and wasn't worried. Of to the new course, going in all that we had heard was how poor it was. To me this course was cool, nothing special but cool. No hole really represents any worries but you really have to attack and get your birdies.
The best thing I did in my preparation for the weekend was to take notes on what to throw and how to approach every hole. I discussed every shot with the guys I had been practicing with, we talked about wind variants, advantages of different lines, when to attack and when to be safe, figuring out what plays to our strengths. This helped me visualize each shot and how I wanted to play. I also had something to look back at if I was feeling concerned about a shot. I stuck to my game plan on almost every hole.
Day 1 Fountain Hills
After taking an OB 4 on hole 1 after putting my PD2 next to Hole 2s tee, I felt like I had settled my nerves and fired back with taking a good 3 on hole 2 and grabbing another birdie on hole 3. The best part about the rest of the strokes I would pick up for the remainder of the round, would be that they all came from scooting out of bounds right next to the basket. After the long discussion with my friends about the courses, I knew after hole 9 that it was time to start picking up the aggressive play and going for every birdie left. I would pick up 5 of 7 and would play 18 too passive and snagged the only bad play of the round and pick up a 4 to finish the round. In total I would shoot a 51, which on the day left me feeling pretty good. I finished above a lot of big names and other players after the first round. I received a lot of praise and support from friends who were keeping track of the scores.
Day 2 Vista Del Camino
I knew that this was going to be a day about how strong do you start and how strong you finish. I started off very strong and didn't pick up a 4 until hole 10 and was shooting strong golf and was oozing with confidence. I would have some nice wind and play hole 12 nice and easy and take a good par so at this point I felt as if I was going to be coming in with a solid round. With a couple of long hold ups and the long walk back to hole 13, I feel like I had too much time with my thoughts and found myself being distracted and missed my lines on the next 5 holes to finish out struggling, including a double OB 6 on hole 14. This is where the story of my week went from being tons of fun to a total bummer real quick. After totaling up my scores and double checking them and asking others to check them, I turned in my scorecard. The person doing scores calls me over to tell me I made a mistake, my heart sank and I knew what was coming. I picked up an extra two strokes because I was too casual about my scorecard. I honestly can't tell if other players were casual as well when totaling it up but I would really hope that after multiple eyes land on the card that someone would've caught the mistake. I was really determined to not let it take my weekend down but it really would come back to haunt me in the end.
Day 3 Fiesta
I continued to try and not let what happened the day before have any impact on the round at Fiesta. This turned into me having to play aggressive golf for 18 holes and not look back. After 9 holes I had picked up two 5s and a 4 but had also strung together 5 birdies. But would get cold and not be able to do much with the remainder of my round. I would finish with a 55 and would quadruple check along with 3 other eyes check my card before turning it in. I then turned to my phone to just watch and endlessly count the standings out to see if I would make the cut. I figured that the top 90 players would get in. I followed around the top two cards, as I continued to refresh my phone hoping for the best. I chose to follow Simon Lizotte over the lead card and that portion totally paid off. He was on a tear. It was great to see someone of his level tear up a course and continue to execute shots. This was a big lesson of what kind of practice I need to put into my own game.
Later that night as standings finally posted I would finish tied for 94th, and would miss the cut by 1 stroke. I feel it is very easy to say had I added my score up correctly I would've made the cut, but there was so much more than just that. Over 54 holes I found OB 10 times, and missed 6 putts inside the circle. Those account for 16 strokes essentially that I unnecessarily took over 3 rounds of golf. This is the biggest thing that I am going to focus on when moving forward. Working on throw smart and executing my shots better. I plan on putting more field work and rounds over the next month as I prepare for the next couple of tournaments heading my way.
I decided to go hit another round before heading to watch the final round. We swung by Vista to see the XL layout another time before next year. I would shoot a pretty great round with some crazy bounces to let me lose a PD2 on 13 after hitting a tree in the middle of the fairway and role about 50-60ft into the water but no dice on this one. I would then pick up an ace on Hole 17 with a Discmania P2, my buddy called it the moment it left my hand. Within two minutes I would then throw in my trusty Firebird after hitting a sign in the middle of the fairway. I would be lucky enough to get that one back. It was crazy because that was such a great way to finish out the week, big ups and downs it was just great to be playing disc golf.
This tournament has taking me up and down, but has left me with a couple of key things to think about.
1. I am hungrier than ever to push my level of play.
2. Every shot counts, so mean it. (Meat Shot) HA!
3. No matter how bad some rounds get, its better than not playing.
4. Trust yourself
5. Have the most fun every round. This is the biggest thing I learned about my game, if I am serious I don't play well, but when I talk and joke and have fun I get after it and kill it.
6. I learned what I want in my bag and what discs I need to learn and utilize more.
7. Keep looking forward.
8. Count your scorecard correctly. I am glad I learned this now and won't let it ever happen again!
I plan on keeping this going and posting once a week on the things I did as far as practicing goes and any hot rounds I played, along with some Discmania disc reviews (First off CD2), so please look out for more posts and spread the word.
Check out my Instagram as well
https://instagram.com/theericoakley/
Fino alla fine...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROJQIcYOLok
Enjoy
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