Sometimes you put a lot of pressure on yourself to perform well at whatever it is that you are doing. Often times if you enter a sporting event, anything less than first place is failure. The Silver Medal at the Olympics is the reminder that you were so close to winning but you didn't. When that passion and that desire hits you in your chosen area it is really a sign of two things. One, that you are doing what you should be doing. Two, that it is time for you to make a choice. The choice you have to make is wether or not you are going to be serious about what you are doing or wether you are going to step back and just let it be. Even on a beautiful Saturday this past weekend I think I faced the reality of this decision. Not that is hasn't been made several times before. This past weekend was the Deer Mountain Invitational. This was really my first chance to play a competitive round with some of the new discs that I had been using and a chance to play a very private course that is only open by special permission. I thought very little of how I should fare in the tournament. I mean I wanted to make the cut but the reality was that I was simply there to enjoy the game and enjoy the moment.
If you know nothing of Deer Mountain, there really isn't words to describe the challenge that it is. I know of no other disc golf course like it. Any description of words that I could type here would fail to capture the magnitude of what it is. I know there are some courses out there that have the lore about them as great courses or courses that are a true test of champions. I have had my opportunity to play some great courses. There is nothing like Deer Mountain. There are times when I am so captured by the beauty of the course that I feel completely at peace. There are times I am beyond fearful of the course itself, both from a disc golf standpoint as well as a physical standpoint. The best goal to have at Deer Mountain is to simply not loose a disc.
The invitational tournament itself is hosted by the owner of the property, Jim Canon. He charges nothing of the people who play. He provides a payout of over $1000. He finds people to feed us lunch. He finds people to run shuttles between certain holes (yes, it is very much needed). What does this man not do for this tournament is the real question. Everyone who ever gets the chance to play this course owes their experience to this man. He deserves more than he will ever get in return for what he does for this course and disc golf in general.
The format is simple. One round with the best 20 scores moving on to a finals on a super 9 layout. If the regular 22 hole layout wasn't enough to make ones arm fall off, the super 9 layout certainly will. Being it was my first time playing in this tournament, I was put on a card of people who mostly played in lower level, age protected divisions at your typical sanctioned tournaments. It simply meant that I knew I was likely to win my card if I played my game but would have no good sense what I might need to shoot in order tomake the cut. The round started off great with a birdie on my first hole. But the reality of the course soon sank in as just a few holes later I went bogey, bogey, double bogey. It was tiem to refocus and simply play my game and do what I could to simply be at par. There were moments of glory the rest of the round including carding one of only two known birdies on a hole called Razor's Edge and throwing a drive close to 500' on City Side for an easy par. At the end of the rounds I was 7 over par after a bogey on the last hole and a bogey two holes before while attempting to go for a long birdie putt. There were a couple of times when I had putts hit the band on top and one single chain basket decided that it didn't really like my disc all that much as it let it slide right through on a dead center putt. Some bad luck and some poor decisions.
After turning in my score card and watching as my parents, who had already been spotting, help get the scores figured out the dread of reality sat in as I quickly realized the cut would be made to include scores 6 over and better. While I was no where near winning, it felt just as bad as that Olympic Silver Medal. It was the you did great today but not good enough. I have kept asking myself why I decided to go for that putt or why I couldn't have had one of at least three unlucky bounces go the other way. But in the end, I can look back and say, you know I had an incredible time. I got to play with three guys who I have never played with and enjoy all of their company. I got to see and talk to some of my other best disc golf friends. I got to eat good food. I got to play a course that not many other people get to play. I didn't loose a single disc. There was no real stress in this event for me. I was relaxed and enjoyed the experience, more than I can remember recently. At the same time I now have the bug to do better the next time I see this course. And I will see this course again.
I am still in the middle of trying to figure out if I will be changing up my entire bag of discs. I have enjoyed throwing some new discs as of late and have scored quite well with them. I learned that sometimes a small change can make a big difference. I have learned that knowing the course and being smart is more important than one might think. I learned that knowing your discs is vitally important. I learned that my mental game is stronger than I realize if I allow myself the time to think. I learned that there is always risk but that if you never give yourself a chance, you are never going to make the right decision. Back to the world of PDGA sanctioned events in the coming weeks. Back to the next chance to make my breakthrough.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Outback Oh Joy
I think I am just a little over 24 hours out from the tournament and writting a blog post. I think this is by far the best I have done so far this season. I have a little bit more excitement than the past couple of tournamnets, but no where near as much as the Memorial post. There really is just nothing like competing at the top level in the best tournaments. Additionally, the speed of this post has just a little bit to do with my actual performance. Perhaps I am just killing time while I am waiting for my laundry in the dryer.
This past Saturday was the first Outback Open. The Outback DGC in Greeley, CO is really a spectacular course that has a great combination of tight and open holes. There are some really challenging holes and there are frankly some holes that are just too easy. But even those easy holes become a little bit less easy in a tournament. There is also a good variety in length with some very short hoels and some long holes and some in between. They local club worked hard to add a few new pin locations, all of which proved to be exceptionally difficult. But with good weather it was hard to complain about a fun day of disc golf.
In the first round, despite being in the open division I was asked to play on an Advanced card. Generally this is not something that most disc golfers would like simply because you generally want to know what at least some of the competition is doing so as to have a better idea of when to push and when to hold back. I did not have a big issue with this since I tend to play against myself and the course rather than the players around me. I cannot control them, only what I am doing. I had a very solid first round going with no bogies until the third to last hole where I ended up taking a double bogey. I had to get one more birdie after that to pull back to even for the round. Just a whole lot of not much to speak of in that round other than consistently getting my threes. Sure there were a few low putts and one or two high putts, but in general there was nothing to complain about. The one 5 that I did take was a tough hole that saw poor execution from me from start to finish. Oh well.
In the second round I was back playing with other open players and rather enjoying myself with this group as well. The round started off horribly with a 5 and included three fours before I was finally able to get my first birdie of the round. Then I went back to plus 5 before I took the last six holes to get three birdies to drop me back to just plus 2. Considering some recent meltdowns in the final holes of a tournament, this finish felt really good. Was it the best, by no means, but it did provide for a lot of fun and the chance to meet a few new faces. The new faces are becoming more rare as time goes on. Still it is a good reminder of just how big the local crowd of players is and how we really do work as a family to make things happen.
The one complaint from the tournament seemed to be a lack of speed in getting cards done between rounds and after the tournament was over. Checking numbers was sloww and ultimately there were not enough of or the right people there to make something happen. Kyle and the guys at Phenix did a great job of picking up what felt like slack. It is certainly not easy to be a TD, but if you do decide to take this task on, be sure taht you are ready with the information you need to complete this.
I learned taht I can battle back. I learned that taking some risk is more important then not making an effort at all. And I learned that disc selection is super important, especially when it is looking like the out of bounds will play a factor. Gettign back to the mental game and working towards success in that will be huge moving forward. Ultimately I expect that this tournaments ratings will be the bet by far. I think I need to focus more on playing the right shot with the right disc.
Next week is the Deer Mountain Invitational. Not a sanctioned event but one that I have been looking forward to.
This past Saturday was the first Outback Open. The Outback DGC in Greeley, CO is really a spectacular course that has a great combination of tight and open holes. There are some really challenging holes and there are frankly some holes that are just too easy. But even those easy holes become a little bit less easy in a tournament. There is also a good variety in length with some very short hoels and some long holes and some in between. They local club worked hard to add a few new pin locations, all of which proved to be exceptionally difficult. But with good weather it was hard to complain about a fun day of disc golf.
In the first round, despite being in the open division I was asked to play on an Advanced card. Generally this is not something that most disc golfers would like simply because you generally want to know what at least some of the competition is doing so as to have a better idea of when to push and when to hold back. I did not have a big issue with this since I tend to play against myself and the course rather than the players around me. I cannot control them, only what I am doing. I had a very solid first round going with no bogies until the third to last hole where I ended up taking a double bogey. I had to get one more birdie after that to pull back to even for the round. Just a whole lot of not much to speak of in that round other than consistently getting my threes. Sure there were a few low putts and one or two high putts, but in general there was nothing to complain about. The one 5 that I did take was a tough hole that saw poor execution from me from start to finish. Oh well.
In the second round I was back playing with other open players and rather enjoying myself with this group as well. The round started off horribly with a 5 and included three fours before I was finally able to get my first birdie of the round. Then I went back to plus 5 before I took the last six holes to get three birdies to drop me back to just plus 2. Considering some recent meltdowns in the final holes of a tournament, this finish felt really good. Was it the best, by no means, but it did provide for a lot of fun and the chance to meet a few new faces. The new faces are becoming more rare as time goes on. Still it is a good reminder of just how big the local crowd of players is and how we really do work as a family to make things happen.
The one complaint from the tournament seemed to be a lack of speed in getting cards done between rounds and after the tournament was over. Checking numbers was sloww and ultimately there were not enough of or the right people there to make something happen. Kyle and the guys at Phenix did a great job of picking up what felt like slack. It is certainly not easy to be a TD, but if you do decide to take this task on, be sure taht you are ready with the information you need to complete this.
I learned taht I can battle back. I learned that taking some risk is more important then not making an effort at all. And I learned that disc selection is super important, especially when it is looking like the out of bounds will play a factor. Gettign back to the mental game and working towards success in that will be huge moving forward. Ultimately I expect that this tournaments ratings will be the bet by far. I think I need to focus more on playing the right shot with the right disc.
Next week is the Deer Mountain Invitational. Not a sanctioned event but one that I have been looking forward to.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Is This Really Sping Fling?
After being so disappointed at PODS, you can say that I was a little anxious to get back out there and throw my discs in a competative setting again. Still over the past few weeks it has become clear that something is not the same in my disc golf game. Sure, my bag has changed a little bit from last season, but there is no reason I should be playing this poorly. There is no reason why the discs I am throwing should honestly make any difference at all. But, I have been thinking about drastic measures and have quite literally thought that it might be about time for a wholesale change of discs in my bag. But first, it was time to go out and help with the Am side of the local Spring Fling tournament.
This year Spring Fling was held at Jellystone DGC. I believe this is the first sanctioned tournament held at Jellystone, but certainly not the first time for Spring Fling. Spring Fling was the first tournament that I played in the state of Colorado. Spring is a glorious time of year for Colorado. It is almost like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get. Helping on the Am day was so much fun. I enjoyed watching people play and play quite well. I enjoyed not having the pressure to make the shot. I enjoyed being able to spend my time helping people in hopes that their day might be a little less stressful. The weather was perfect, I was in shorts and disc golf was happening. Hats off to my buddy Kyle who finished second in Advanced with two nice rounds.
Then came the Pro day. And being that I am now playing int he Open division for all events outside of Am Nats and Am Worlds, it was my turn. Could the weather be nice? Lets just say I was glad to have my snow tires on to get to and from the course. The morning was wet, but the snow didn't stick. The afternoon was super windy and saw the snow start to pile up. It was a joy to play with Joel in the first round. Joel is a guy I met playing out at La Mirada before I ever moved back to Colorado. He was out there for a funeral and we met eachother on the course and had a rather enjoyable round. Joel has always been a good friend and someone to say hello to me and offer me advice. I needed it in the middle of the first round as I was not playing as well as I had hoped. I was the only player on my card to shoot over par.
In the second round I wnjoyed playing with Jack. Jack is a kid you are going to want to remember. He is a very good player and if he keeps up with the game, he will be big. Then again I could say that about Eagle too, but Eagle hasn't begun to play in many big tournaments yet. Jack went to the Memorial this year as part of the large Colorado contingent and did quite well in advanced. I was one stroke worse in the second round but considering how the wind picked up, this was no real surprise.
This tournament did absolutely nothing to convince me that I am doing anything close to right just yet with my disc golf game this year. I feel like I have lost confidence and even my putting, which is normally strong, has let me down as of late. Thankfully I really didn't have a meltdown at the end of the last round as I have the last two tournaments. Mentally I stuck with it at the end of both rounds. I am very proud of myself for that. What I lack right now is simply confidence. I am not sure where it is going to come from but I am willing to try just about anything. The lesson learned is simply that confidence is important. I had a blast and cannot wait long to get back out there. The good news is that based on my schedule it will be not time at all and the tournaments just keep coming one after the next.
This year Spring Fling was held at Jellystone DGC. I believe this is the first sanctioned tournament held at Jellystone, but certainly not the first time for Spring Fling. Spring Fling was the first tournament that I played in the state of Colorado. Spring is a glorious time of year for Colorado. It is almost like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get. Helping on the Am day was so much fun. I enjoyed watching people play and play quite well. I enjoyed not having the pressure to make the shot. I enjoyed being able to spend my time helping people in hopes that their day might be a little less stressful. The weather was perfect, I was in shorts and disc golf was happening. Hats off to my buddy Kyle who finished second in Advanced with two nice rounds.
Then came the Pro day. And being that I am now playing int he Open division for all events outside of Am Nats and Am Worlds, it was my turn. Could the weather be nice? Lets just say I was glad to have my snow tires on to get to and from the course. The morning was wet, but the snow didn't stick. The afternoon was super windy and saw the snow start to pile up. It was a joy to play with Joel in the first round. Joel is a guy I met playing out at La Mirada before I ever moved back to Colorado. He was out there for a funeral and we met eachother on the course and had a rather enjoyable round. Joel has always been a good friend and someone to say hello to me and offer me advice. I needed it in the middle of the first round as I was not playing as well as I had hoped. I was the only player on my card to shoot over par.
In the second round I wnjoyed playing with Jack. Jack is a kid you are going to want to remember. He is a very good player and if he keeps up with the game, he will be big. Then again I could say that about Eagle too, but Eagle hasn't begun to play in many big tournaments yet. Jack went to the Memorial this year as part of the large Colorado contingent and did quite well in advanced. I was one stroke worse in the second round but considering how the wind picked up, this was no real surprise.
This tournament did absolutely nothing to convince me that I am doing anything close to right just yet with my disc golf game this year. I feel like I have lost confidence and even my putting, which is normally strong, has let me down as of late. Thankfully I really didn't have a meltdown at the end of the last round as I have the last two tournaments. Mentally I stuck with it at the end of both rounds. I am very proud of myself for that. What I lack right now is simply confidence. I am not sure where it is going to come from but I am willing to try just about anything. The lesson learned is simply that confidence is important. I had a blast and cannot wait long to get back out there. The good news is that based on my schedule it will be not time at all and the tournaments just keep coming one after the next.
Monday, April 7, 2014
Lost In A Quandry: The Tale Of PODS in April
I am not really sure what to say today. It is the day after the Phenix One Day Series 2014 Opener. This is not something I participated in last year because they were not sanctioned. But this year the guys at Phenix made the wise decision to sanction these events and now I have even more events to play. I am quite thankful for this. I am big fans of the guys at Phenix simply because they are working hard to make disc golf in Colorado better than it already is. They are working to put more events out there for the local players and to support the players who play in their events. I honestly had a blast playing in my first PODS event, but it has left me in a weird place where I am literally not sure what to think at the point.
The biggest news from this event is that I can no longer say that I will be able to accomplish all my goals this year. That is a sad reality with only three events under the belt for the year. I finished last in Open, 16th out of 16. The sad part is that the round did not feel that bad and at the same time, it was blah at best. The current projected round ratings make me feel like the days when I was playing in Intermediate hoping to move up to Advanced. I long suspected that the best scores would be rather low, but I had no idea that so many people would be able to shoot as low as they did.
We played two rounds at Badlands on the traditional 18 hole layout with fairly easy pin positions. In talking with the guys from Phenix running the tournament, layouts will get more difficult throughout the season at other PODS events. But for the first one they were trying to keep things simple for themselves and for everyone playing. It was almost too easy to the point where I had no idea what to do. My putting was off for the most part and I am not entirely sure my head was in the game. Still I shot my first tournament round under par for the year in the first round and proceeded to give my second away on the last hole in the second round (worst decision of the day and a serious lack of focus at the end). I only had three holes of 36 total that I took anything worse then a par. It also means that I had very few birdies, something that was needed on this layout.
What I learned is that my mental game is simply not working correctly at the end of tournaments. We are all well aware of the meltdown I had at the Meltdown a short while ago. While this was not nearly as bad, for the second straight time I finished with a three putt where I should have had a one putt. I also learned that I am not yet making the right decisions on disc selection. I am also not controlling all of my competative energy. As in the start of the Memorial, the last couple of holes in the first round proved to provide the same kind of nervous energy that made it tought to control distance. With so many tournaments in the upcoming weeks I need to buckle down and figure the mental thing out as well as figuring out how to make better decisions in general. More deep breaths and one more second before every throw.
The biggest news from this event is that I can no longer say that I will be able to accomplish all my goals this year. That is a sad reality with only three events under the belt for the year. I finished last in Open, 16th out of 16. The sad part is that the round did not feel that bad and at the same time, it was blah at best. The current projected round ratings make me feel like the days when I was playing in Intermediate hoping to move up to Advanced. I long suspected that the best scores would be rather low, but I had no idea that so many people would be able to shoot as low as they did.
We played two rounds at Badlands on the traditional 18 hole layout with fairly easy pin positions. In talking with the guys from Phenix running the tournament, layouts will get more difficult throughout the season at other PODS events. But for the first one they were trying to keep things simple for themselves and for everyone playing. It was almost too easy to the point where I had no idea what to do. My putting was off for the most part and I am not entirely sure my head was in the game. Still I shot my first tournament round under par for the year in the first round and proceeded to give my second away on the last hole in the second round (worst decision of the day and a serious lack of focus at the end). I only had three holes of 36 total that I took anything worse then a par. It also means that I had very few birdies, something that was needed on this layout.
What I learned is that my mental game is simply not working correctly at the end of tournaments. We are all well aware of the meltdown I had at the Meltdown a short while ago. While this was not nearly as bad, for the second straight time I finished with a three putt where I should have had a one putt. I also learned that I am not yet making the right decisions on disc selection. I am also not controlling all of my competative energy. As in the start of the Memorial, the last couple of holes in the first round proved to provide the same kind of nervous energy that made it tought to control distance. With so many tournaments in the upcoming weeks I need to buckle down and figure the mental thing out as well as figuring out how to make better decisions in general. More deep breaths and one more second before every throw.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Not So Lucky St. Patty
Once again I have put off writing about my last tournament. This time it is not because I am processing but simply because it was so blah it hurt. The 2014 St. Patty's Day Meltdown took place as per usual at Edora Park in Fort Collins, CO. This this the tournament that I won as a Rec player way back in the day and usually marks the start of the Colorado Disc Golf season. There have been many different TD's throughout the years, but it has always been a good time.
This year it was simple and straight forward. There was one added hole the first two rounds and an additional two added holes the final round. This was the first tournament of the year for me in Colorado and the first time I have played this tournament in the MPO division. One thing that you can count on for this event is some of the strangest conditions you have seen and this year was no different. Perhaps you have seen videos online of the Glass Blown Open in Emporia, KS? Great tournament but it almost always has wind. Well, the first two rounds were played on Saturday and the wind compared to, if not surpassed, the wind that has been seen at GBO. At one point I heard a rumor that the top MPO player and eventual winner was hoping the TD would move the second round to Sunday and have two rounds on Sunday just so that we could play in more reasonable conditions.
Honestly it wasn't that bad. And in the first round I actually played fairly well and ended up in the middle of the field tied with some of the better players and not that far behind the best scores from the first round in the wind. The second round felt a bit better but was not as good on the score card. This seems to be my game right now, play what feels like a good round only to see the score on the card be bad or not what was hoped for. Sunday brought nicer conditions and lower scores. I already had the knowledge that I would not finish last because someone had dropped out of the tournament the day before in the wind. I still found myself on the bottom card and honestly a little frustrated about that. Then most of the guys on my card started playing really well. I kept pace with them until the last 5 holes where I took four fours and a five. I even had some great shots in those holes only to squander opportunity after opportunity. It was the biggest collapse I have seen myself take in over a year. And of course, if not for our friend who dropped out, I would have been last.
There was so much to learn from this tournament, most of which included making mental adjustments based on conditions. Choosing the right disc and playing safe was way more valuable than you might think. Additionally, I learned that you really cannot beat yourself up mentally when you make a bad shot because ultimately you will mess up the next one as well. You need to pay more attention to the details in the conditions and make good choices based on that. So much of this game is mental and I think with two poor performances under my belt, now becomes the time to refocus on the mental preparation for tournaments. I have begun reading a book called Mind Games and look forward to what it might be able to offer in this realm.
Up next, Phenix Disc Golf is hosting a one day event at Badlands DGC. The schedule gets busier and busier from here on out and I only hope that I can turn things around. There has been promise in the practice rounds, and I have found a good way to practice putting at home but I still need to make sure I am taking the time to do that. It is not as easy now that I have a roommate.
This year it was simple and straight forward. There was one added hole the first two rounds and an additional two added holes the final round. This was the first tournament of the year for me in Colorado and the first time I have played this tournament in the MPO division. One thing that you can count on for this event is some of the strangest conditions you have seen and this year was no different. Perhaps you have seen videos online of the Glass Blown Open in Emporia, KS? Great tournament but it almost always has wind. Well, the first two rounds were played on Saturday and the wind compared to, if not surpassed, the wind that has been seen at GBO. At one point I heard a rumor that the top MPO player and eventual winner was hoping the TD would move the second round to Sunday and have two rounds on Sunday just so that we could play in more reasonable conditions.
Honestly it wasn't that bad. And in the first round I actually played fairly well and ended up in the middle of the field tied with some of the better players and not that far behind the best scores from the first round in the wind. The second round felt a bit better but was not as good on the score card. This seems to be my game right now, play what feels like a good round only to see the score on the card be bad or not what was hoped for. Sunday brought nicer conditions and lower scores. I already had the knowledge that I would not finish last because someone had dropped out of the tournament the day before in the wind. I still found myself on the bottom card and honestly a little frustrated about that. Then most of the guys on my card started playing really well. I kept pace with them until the last 5 holes where I took four fours and a five. I even had some great shots in those holes only to squander opportunity after opportunity. It was the biggest collapse I have seen myself take in over a year. And of course, if not for our friend who dropped out, I would have been last.
There was so much to learn from this tournament, most of which included making mental adjustments based on conditions. Choosing the right disc and playing safe was way more valuable than you might think. Additionally, I learned that you really cannot beat yourself up mentally when you make a bad shot because ultimately you will mess up the next one as well. You need to pay more attention to the details in the conditions and make good choices based on that. So much of this game is mental and I think with two poor performances under my belt, now becomes the time to refocus on the mental preparation for tournaments. I have begun reading a book called Mind Games and look forward to what it might be able to offer in this realm.
Up next, Phenix Disc Golf is hosting a one day event at Badlands DGC. The schedule gets busier and busier from here on out and I only hope that I can turn things around. There has been promise in the practice rounds, and I have found a good way to practice putting at home but I still need to make sure I am taking the time to do that. It is not as easy now that I have a roommate.
Friday, March 14, 2014
The Memorial Memory and Life in General
So this might be very late in coming, but I figured I needed to get something posted about the previous tournament before the next one gets here. This was the first tournament that I got to play in the Open division at a very high level. I did not get to play with any big names, even though they were all there. And to be honest, this tournament wasn't really about winning and loosing, it really was about the experience. If you take that into consideration, I am pretty sure I won. Well, maybe John E McCray would have beat me there but he finished second and seemed to have a grand time.
Speaking of Mr. McCray, I was fortunate enough to have emailed him well before the tournament after seeing his acceptance speach at a Florida tournament earlier this year. He clearly loved Jesus and as a fellow lover of Jesus I figured I would enjoy meeting him. In emails we talked about getting together before his first round to pray together. Even though he and his wife already did, he still let me pray for him before his first round. I am not saying it helped him beat many guys who were much younger than he, but it was really cool to have that connection with another player, who also took some time to watch part of one of my rounds later in the tournament.
The two courses, Vista and Fountain, in their layout for the Memorial were just incredible. Very punishing of bad shots, at least at times, and very fair to good shots. I found out more about the bad shots than the good shots to be perfectly honest. I wish I had more time to go down and explore the courses before the tournament. There were times that I thought I had an alright shot only to find out that despite the fact that I had kept the disc in bounds, I managed to put myself in a very awkward place that either resulted in a pitch out or a crazy shot that often resulted on going OB on the second shot. I feel with mroe time to study the courses things would have been drastically different. Then again simply having been able to play mroe rounds before this tournament would have been nice. Too bad the weather in Colorado did not cooperate with that idea.
So clearly I did not play well. I never shot a round above my current rating and I finished tied for third to last. I guess I kept from failing to accomplish my one goal for the year of never finishing last in a tournament. As I have said already, I could try to convince myself that it was all about the experience, but everyone wants to do well in a tournament and as such I was very disappoitned with my performance. There were many lessons to learn and many things that I can improve on, but it takes time and cooperation from the weather. The plan moving forward is to play as much as I can. It will likely mean cutting other things out of my life, but I have been meaning to do that since the first of the year. Sometimes you try to put too much in your life and end up leaving little room for certain things that you want to spend mroe time doing. Work is a necessity, My spiritual life and relationship with God comes first before anything else, but I do not have to be at church everyday. I honestly love disc golf and love the community that surrounds disc golf. I want to invest more time there.
That brings me to more of the amazing experience at the Memorial and all the incredible things that happened. Yes, I spent a lot of time following and watching the other players from Colrado that I knew, and yes I did spend time following Mr. McCray around. But I also got to meet other top pros as well and follow another local player who ended up tied for 4th even though he had the outright lead at one point. I was practicing my putting before rounds along with all the top female disc golfers in the world. I got to play with guys from Germany and Sweden. I got to caddy for Paige during her final round as she worked to get into the cash in FPO. Sorry you fell a couple throws shy of that Paige, I am sure it was my fault. There was something so different about the atmosphere around this tournament that just made it so much fun. I think the fact that even on the bottom cards in the Open division, playing with people who still took the rounds seriously was huge. And of course I also got to experience monsoon rain is the desert. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, it is crazy.
So far the conditions here in Colorado have not been favorable for playing more rounds, but there is hope that it improves. And of course I found a way to hurt my back, which doesn't help either. But I am looking forward to making more time to practice. I am looking forward to making sure I know where I want to place my shots. I am looking forward to really working on my accuracy on drives. I am looking forward to playing with the best and learning as much as I can. This year is a long ways from over and there is so much improvement to make.
Speaking of Mr. McCray, I was fortunate enough to have emailed him well before the tournament after seeing his acceptance speach at a Florida tournament earlier this year. He clearly loved Jesus and as a fellow lover of Jesus I figured I would enjoy meeting him. In emails we talked about getting together before his first round to pray together. Even though he and his wife already did, he still let me pray for him before his first round. I am not saying it helped him beat many guys who were much younger than he, but it was really cool to have that connection with another player, who also took some time to watch part of one of my rounds later in the tournament.
The two courses, Vista and Fountain, in their layout for the Memorial were just incredible. Very punishing of bad shots, at least at times, and very fair to good shots. I found out more about the bad shots than the good shots to be perfectly honest. I wish I had more time to go down and explore the courses before the tournament. There were times that I thought I had an alright shot only to find out that despite the fact that I had kept the disc in bounds, I managed to put myself in a very awkward place that either resulted in a pitch out or a crazy shot that often resulted on going OB on the second shot. I feel with mroe time to study the courses things would have been drastically different. Then again simply having been able to play mroe rounds before this tournament would have been nice. Too bad the weather in Colorado did not cooperate with that idea.
So clearly I did not play well. I never shot a round above my current rating and I finished tied for third to last. I guess I kept from failing to accomplish my one goal for the year of never finishing last in a tournament. As I have said already, I could try to convince myself that it was all about the experience, but everyone wants to do well in a tournament and as such I was very disappoitned with my performance. There were many lessons to learn and many things that I can improve on, but it takes time and cooperation from the weather. The plan moving forward is to play as much as I can. It will likely mean cutting other things out of my life, but I have been meaning to do that since the first of the year. Sometimes you try to put too much in your life and end up leaving little room for certain things that you want to spend mroe time doing. Work is a necessity, My spiritual life and relationship with God comes first before anything else, but I do not have to be at church everyday. I honestly love disc golf and love the community that surrounds disc golf. I want to invest more time there.
That brings me to more of the amazing experience at the Memorial and all the incredible things that happened. Yes, I spent a lot of time following and watching the other players from Colrado that I knew, and yes I did spend time following Mr. McCray around. But I also got to meet other top pros as well and follow another local player who ended up tied for 4th even though he had the outright lead at one point. I was practicing my putting before rounds along with all the top female disc golfers in the world. I got to play with guys from Germany and Sweden. I got to caddy for Paige during her final round as she worked to get into the cash in FPO. Sorry you fell a couple throws shy of that Paige, I am sure it was my fault. There was something so different about the atmosphere around this tournament that just made it so much fun. I think the fact that even on the bottom cards in the Open division, playing with people who still took the rounds seriously was huge. And of course I also got to experience monsoon rain is the desert. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, it is crazy.
So far the conditions here in Colorado have not been favorable for playing more rounds, but there is hope that it improves. And of course I found a way to hurt my back, which doesn't help either. But I am looking forward to making more time to practice. I am looking forward to making sure I know where I want to place my shots. I am looking forward to really working on my accuracy on drives. I am looking forward to playing with the best and learning as much as I can. This year is a long ways from over and there is so much improvement to make.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
The All Important 2014 Goals Post
I have been putting this post off for some time now. The reality is that I haven't put much thought into what goals I have for the year and I am not really sure what concrete goals I actually have. So rather than do this at a normal hour when I mgiht be thinking too much I have decided to write this post at an ungodly hour in the morning when I am tired and have probably been in and out of sleep already. But I have my glass of Ocean Spray 100% Juice next to me, my prints from Iansprinst.com hanging on the wall, my next Dynamic Discs Ranger bag full of Vibram, Discraft and Innova discs nearby, my new Addidas trail running shoes broken in and ready to go, a cabinet full of Sobe Life Water stocked, and plenty of tournament registrations already in. Too bad I don't have my Jamba Juice right now, but I doubt I will find one nearby that is open at this hour. Really I am less than two days away from flying to my first tournament of the season and if I do not do this now, who knows when I will get to it.
This is going to be an interesting year. I am going to make the effor to play in more bigger tournaments and do a bit more traveling to make that happen. I will sadly miss some of my favorite local tournaments to make this happen and will end up using all of my vacation/sick time at work for Disc Golf tournaments. My boss mentioned to me on Friday that she is finally realizing just how big disc golf is in my life. Then again, I have been getting comments like that from my friends around church like that for some time. On occasion it makes me feel like I put too much time and effort into this game and then I think of all the great people I have met playing disc golf and all the places I have been that I would not have gotten to otherwise. There is part of me that wishes someone would pay me to travel and play disc golf. How fortunate I am to be able to play as much as I do.
This is also the year when I will be playing in the Open division as a default. After getting my win last year up in Wyoming I feel I am really done with Advanced. Well, minus playing in two Advanced majors this year. This thought is slightly intimidating and as I look at the caddy book for my first tournament I am begining to think that this year could be frustrating. If I take the time to really think about why it might be frustrating, it is really because I am not always going to be finishing near the top as I did last year playing Advanced. At the same time, this is how I am going to become a better player. Play with the best and learn from the best, become more and more like the best, at least in terms of quality and consistency of game.
Now that I have procrastinated as much as possible on the actual goals, here they are.
1. To Be Myself - The one thing that I have learned from disc golf is that I play better when I am not trying to be someone else. Sure I can learn a new line that I have not thought of before by watching someone else, but if that shot is not me, it is pointless for me to try it. This also includes not worrying about what other people are doing around me at tournaments. The only score I can control is my own and if I am thinking about what other people are doing I become someone that I am not. I kind of like who I am and how I play this game. I hold myself to high standards, but I become a hypocrite if I let this game and others around me change who I am. God made me to be me and no one else, and I kind of think he did a good job with me because I certainly would not have done as good of a job.
2. To Be A Learner At All Times - It is so tempting to take pride in your own abilities but at the end of the day it is all vanity. This life really isn't about me and I need to be humble enough to know that I do not know everything. Especially now that I will be playing more tournaments at a higher level I know that I will have plenty of opportunity to be around people who can teach me more about this great game of disc golf.
3. To Qualify For Pro Worlds in 2015 - With the number of tournaments that I plan on playing in I do not expect this to be much of an issue. But the hope is that after playing in my last two Advanced majors this year I will be completely done with playing Advanced tournaments. At the same time I have come to rather enjoy playing in Worlds every year. It really is more of a disc golf convention. Saying it like that makes me sound like a complete nerd.
4. To Finish In The Top 25% at Am Nats and Am Worlds - Maybe 25% is being overly generous for how I would really like to do in these two tournaments, but I think this is the realistic goal. I feel like this would make for a good farewell to the Advanced ranks.
5. To Not Finish Last - While I think the chances of accomplishing this goal may be more difficult than I realize, I really want to play my best in every tournament that I enter. I feel like my best should beat at least one person in every tournament that I play. Okay, that was a really selfish statement. The truth is that I have yet to finish last in any tournament that I have played, even since I was playing in the Rec division. I know that moving up like I am lends it self to the possibility of finishing last and I would very much like not to do that.
6. To See My Rating Improve To At Least 960 - That seems like a meager jump in my rating and honestly I am not putting 975 out of the question. Sitting at 946 right now means that I need at 14, or 29, point jump over the season. The good news is that by mid July, I should loose most of my really low rated rounds from this past year. The bad news is that by the end of the year my three 1000 rated rounds from last year are gone. If I can keep my bad rounds this year about 900, I think this goal is entirely possible.
7. To Design A Course That Gets Played - I have been thinking about this one for a while and I have had some goal in years past that general speaks to this. But this is the giving back to the game goal that I specifically want to accomplish this year. I have played enough courses to know that I would be a good designer. I have talked to my local parks department already and I know they are on board to with disc golf. I know there are at least two tournaments that would like to use a temporary course. Additionally I am sure there will be other opportunities to design a course.
8. To Make At Least One Disc Golf Video - To state something that is true about me that not many people know, I have a minor in Cinema/Television from the #1 Film school in the world. I have yet to make a video related to disc golf and I would very much like to make that happen. I have one idea that I would very much like to make happen, but am currently short on funds to make that happen. This means actually putting in the legwork to make that happen.
Well, I think I should bring this to an end before I get overly ambitious and then realize I lack the time to make everything happen. I would like to post my schedule for the season right now, but things are always changing and you never know what tournaments pop up at the last second. So, here is what I do know at this point for at least the big tournaments that I am traveling to. I hope to add to this list but I fear it will only be with local tournaments.
The Memorial
Great Lakes Open
Am Nats
Minnesota Majestic
Am Worlds
The End.
This is going to be an interesting year. I am going to make the effor to play in more bigger tournaments and do a bit more traveling to make that happen. I will sadly miss some of my favorite local tournaments to make this happen and will end up using all of my vacation/sick time at work for Disc Golf tournaments. My boss mentioned to me on Friday that she is finally realizing just how big disc golf is in my life. Then again, I have been getting comments like that from my friends around church like that for some time. On occasion it makes me feel like I put too much time and effort into this game and then I think of all the great people I have met playing disc golf and all the places I have been that I would not have gotten to otherwise. There is part of me that wishes someone would pay me to travel and play disc golf. How fortunate I am to be able to play as much as I do.
This is also the year when I will be playing in the Open division as a default. After getting my win last year up in Wyoming I feel I am really done with Advanced. Well, minus playing in two Advanced majors this year. This thought is slightly intimidating and as I look at the caddy book for my first tournament I am begining to think that this year could be frustrating. If I take the time to really think about why it might be frustrating, it is really because I am not always going to be finishing near the top as I did last year playing Advanced. At the same time, this is how I am going to become a better player. Play with the best and learn from the best, become more and more like the best, at least in terms of quality and consistency of game.
Now that I have procrastinated as much as possible on the actual goals, here they are.
1. To Be Myself - The one thing that I have learned from disc golf is that I play better when I am not trying to be someone else. Sure I can learn a new line that I have not thought of before by watching someone else, but if that shot is not me, it is pointless for me to try it. This also includes not worrying about what other people are doing around me at tournaments. The only score I can control is my own and if I am thinking about what other people are doing I become someone that I am not. I kind of like who I am and how I play this game. I hold myself to high standards, but I become a hypocrite if I let this game and others around me change who I am. God made me to be me and no one else, and I kind of think he did a good job with me because I certainly would not have done as good of a job.
2. To Be A Learner At All Times - It is so tempting to take pride in your own abilities but at the end of the day it is all vanity. This life really isn't about me and I need to be humble enough to know that I do not know everything. Especially now that I will be playing more tournaments at a higher level I know that I will have plenty of opportunity to be around people who can teach me more about this great game of disc golf.
3. To Qualify For Pro Worlds in 2015 - With the number of tournaments that I plan on playing in I do not expect this to be much of an issue. But the hope is that after playing in my last two Advanced majors this year I will be completely done with playing Advanced tournaments. At the same time I have come to rather enjoy playing in Worlds every year. It really is more of a disc golf convention. Saying it like that makes me sound like a complete nerd.
4. To Finish In The Top 25% at Am Nats and Am Worlds - Maybe 25% is being overly generous for how I would really like to do in these two tournaments, but I think this is the realistic goal. I feel like this would make for a good farewell to the Advanced ranks.
5. To Not Finish Last - While I think the chances of accomplishing this goal may be more difficult than I realize, I really want to play my best in every tournament that I enter. I feel like my best should beat at least one person in every tournament that I play. Okay, that was a really selfish statement. The truth is that I have yet to finish last in any tournament that I have played, even since I was playing in the Rec division. I know that moving up like I am lends it self to the possibility of finishing last and I would very much like not to do that.
6. To See My Rating Improve To At Least 960 - That seems like a meager jump in my rating and honestly I am not putting 975 out of the question. Sitting at 946 right now means that I need at 14, or 29, point jump over the season. The good news is that by mid July, I should loose most of my really low rated rounds from this past year. The bad news is that by the end of the year my three 1000 rated rounds from last year are gone. If I can keep my bad rounds this year about 900, I think this goal is entirely possible.
7. To Design A Course That Gets Played - I have been thinking about this one for a while and I have had some goal in years past that general speaks to this. But this is the giving back to the game goal that I specifically want to accomplish this year. I have played enough courses to know that I would be a good designer. I have talked to my local parks department already and I know they are on board to with disc golf. I know there are at least two tournaments that would like to use a temporary course. Additionally I am sure there will be other opportunities to design a course.
8. To Make At Least One Disc Golf Video - To state something that is true about me that not many people know, I have a minor in Cinema/Television from the #1 Film school in the world. I have yet to make a video related to disc golf and I would very much like to make that happen. I have one idea that I would very much like to make happen, but am currently short on funds to make that happen. This means actually putting in the legwork to make that happen.
Well, I think I should bring this to an end before I get overly ambitious and then realize I lack the time to make everything happen. I would like to post my schedule for the season right now, but things are always changing and you never know what tournaments pop up at the last second. So, here is what I do know at this point for at least the big tournaments that I am traveling to. I hope to add to this list but I fear it will only be with local tournaments.
The Memorial
Great Lakes Open
Am Nats
Minnesota Majestic
Am Worlds
The End.
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