I recently wrote about “brown aces.”
Click here for that.
I didn’t only define the term, but wrote about the rarity of them, as well. It was halfway through the writing of that post I got to thinking about this post. I’m no statistician or actuarial scientist, but years of disc golf fanhood and amateur-level play have me somewhat certain of the below:
- Aces are rare.
- Black aces are more rare.
- And brown aces are the rarest.
And in that order.
But perhaps the LEAST common of the lot?
Leaners.
To put it simply, “leaners” are drives off the tee that are SO parked, they curl up under the basket, pop up at precisely the right moment and lean effortlessly against the pole of the pin below.
* Note: Assuming there’s a number plate, a leaner could also take place atop a basket, too.
Parking drives happens – even if you’re not that good. The improbability of the leaner comes from a circular piece of plastic flipping onto its edge and pivoting against something smooth. Nine times out of 10, the disc hits and sticks, leans and falls or worst of all, pops and rolls.
Pulled straight from the Disc Golf Network archives, the most recent example of a leaner that comes to mind can be attributed to Matt Orum at the 2022 Green Mountain Championship. Watch as the hand of God appears to place Matty-O’s driver in just the right place …
Matt Orum's disc tried to climb into the basket on this one… what a shot! pic.twitter.com/TrWN9z4XIS
— Disc Golf Pro Tour (@DiscGolfProTour) September 20, 2022
That guy’s good.
Incredibly, in the flesh, one of the few times I’ve witnessed a leaner for myself was on a closest-to-pin (CTP) hole at a C-Tier in Salt Lake City. From the tee, my card and I could see the CTP flag was close, but we couldn’t see exactly how close it was. And while I don’t have a picture of the actual shot in my phone, I’ve done my best to recreate the miracle below:
I wish I could take credit for it …
But it was a cardmate who nabbed the CTP cash.
In disc golf, the fanfare surrounding a hole-in-one is big – and understandable: Pictures, Sharpie signatures all over the metal-seeking disc and a few well-timed shouts of “Let’s go!” from the card. But given the raw improbability, from the tee, a leaner deserves plenty of praise, too.
Spread the word.
Have anything to add? Take to Twitter to let us know – we’ll actually (for real) get back to you.
Editor’s Suggestions:
- Remember: There are lots of good people in disc golf
- 3 signs you’ve reached ‘fanboy’ status with a disc manufacturer
- Gripe No. 30: The allergies that accompany springtime disc golf
Real quick, if you happen to buy something through a link in this article, there’s a chance we’ll get a small share of the sale. It’s how we keep the lights on. To learn more, click here.
