Smart disc golfers go for birdies when they present themselves

This might seem obvious …

But for the dumber amongst us, it’s not.

As an amateur disc golfer, I can’t even begin to tell you how frequently I attempt to play “hero golf” out on the course. Or, in other words, I try to right the ship on a hole, round or even an entire tournament in a SINGLE throw. And frequently, multiple times in the same outing.

There are a million different ways to do this …

Here’s one:

Let’s say I’m playing a heavily wooded, 425-foot par four. Yes, that’s a short par four, but the woods are brutal – keep that in mind. Capable of throwing 425 feet, I attempt to get close to the pin for a lengthy look at eagle or an easy birdie. Instead, I smash the first-available off the tee.

At this point, I can pull out my seasoned Champion Roc3, keep the disc in the fairway and have a fairly routine up-and-down for par. Like the idiot I am, however, I opt for the same 12-speed I originally threw off the tee to try and salvage a near-impossible birdie. From there, it’s “army golf” the rest of the way: left of the fairway, right of the fairway, left of the fairway, etc.

Double-bogey.

The provided example has me activating the hero-golf strategy with my second throw, but it can happen with just about anything: putting, approaching, lengthy fairway shots and even drives. The worst part of hero golf is that, when executed poorly, more is required to make up the difference. Subsequent shots must atone for previous errors – it’s a compounding issue.

Paul McBeth. Ricky Wysocki. Simon Lizotte. Calvin Heimburg.

THESE guys can manufacture birdies from nothing.

But you’re not them.

The setting doesn’t matter: tag round, casual round, league round, tournament round, etc. If you want to shoot a respectable round, go for birdies, but ONLY when they present themselves. And when they don’t, play for par – or whatever the best-case scenario might be for the situation.

Confused?

Here’s what birdies that “present themselves” might look like:

• You don’t need a once-in-a-lifetime throw to card one.
• Off the tee, the pin is relatively easy to reach – you’ve done it before.
• Blessed by the disc golf gods with a fortunate kick, you’d like to capitalize on it.
• Due to a natural backstop or favorable pin placement, running a putt is a fairly safe bet.

Simply put, if you don’t have to overexert yourself to lower your score …

Green light.

It should be mentioned, of course, that there ARE circumstances in which you should attempt to let out your inner “McBeast” during play. During a tournament, if doing so is required for the win, go for it. Perhaps you’re concerned about a podium finish or cash line – that’s big, too.

Still, 99% of the time, if you want to feel good about yourself at night before bed, pull a page from Nate Sexton’s book: Only go for birdies when they’re obviously up for the nabbing.

It’s a proven (and safe) strategy.

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