My brother and I played the course near his home on Thursday. A switch in plans made necessary by a babysitter glitch. It turned out to be a very surprising day. This is the only course we played last year and the first course that we played this year, near the end of June. Now, near the end of August, we don't look like the same players from two months ago. We don't keep actual score, which is unfortunate. Instead we just keep track of where we are in relationship to the other guy. If I had to take a guess, I would say that I have taken at least 9 strokes off my game for this course. I'm going to tell you, as best as I can, how that happened and then, as a bonus, I'll relate it all to life for my readers that don't give a rat's ass about disc golf.
1. I changed my discs. I bought a bunch of different kinds of discs, took them to a football field, and chucked them over and over to see how they all flew. If you have friends that are discers, you could borrow discs to reduce the price of the learning curve. I just read about different discs and tried the ones that I thought would help me out. Some did. Some didn't. Some are in my bag. Some are collecting dust on my shelf. If anyone wants a 175g Innova Champion Groove or a 171 g Innova Star Monster or Discraft Xpress (unknown weight), let me know and I'll send you the one you want.
2. My favorite driving disc (a 166g Innova Viking), I ended up with on accident. I threw my 175g Innova Star Destroyer on a really crappy drive. I threw what I thought was the same disc for my second shot and it was a much better throw. When I picked up the disc for the third shot, I realized that it wasn't mine. I hiked back and found my disc to finish the basket. When I started practicing on the football, I found that the Viking flew the best for my style of throwing. And yes Mark, had the owner put his info on the Viking, I would have gotten it back to him.
3. I changed my grip. I didn't want to change my grip but if I was going to compete with my brother, I had to give up the familiar and try a disc golf grip. I tried several and ended up with a two finger grip. I still use my fan grip when I'm closer and want to take better aim but my driving is all done with my new grip and it has probably added a minimum of 50 feet to my drives and sometimes a lot more (usually when I don't want a lot more).
4. I played several different course this summer. New courses, new looks, new challenges. Trees, elevation, water, 100 degree weather, blisters, and lots of very nice people. By playing different courses, I was forced to try different kinds of shots. I've thrown hyzers, anhyzers, tomahawks, skip shots, forehands (some that were incredibly crappy), and whole bunch of weird positions like kneeling, splits, and just about facing the wrong direction. Most of the weird shots weren't very good but some were surprising and all of them were a great experience.
5. I played against my brother, which was equal parts fun and challenging. This last time out, he still won 2 out of 3 rounds but they are always close. If he wasn't better at driving than I was at the beginning of this season, I wouldn't have felt compelled to get better. Now we are talking about entering tournaments so we can find people better than us to play against, while still having fun.
6. Having nothing to do with the game itself but just a bit of trivia for you that I found out after our last series. If you drink copious amounts of Blueberry-Pomegranate G2 Gatorade, the next day your poop will be an alien-esqe neon green that pretty much glows in the dark. Try it and see.
All of these things added up to a much improved game and provide lessons that can be used in any area in life:
1. Try different tools. Read different books. Get a different perspective. Find objects that truly make you better and more efficient and get rid of the rest. It's not about having the most discs in your bag, it's about having the right discs in your bag. Don't be afraid to try something new and give it away if it doesn't work out for you.
2. Some of the best things that happen in life happen by "accident". I don't believe in accidents but some great things can happen without conscious planning. Be aware of those opportunities and don't be afraid to try something new that happens across your path. It may be just what you needed.
3. Try different approaches. Read books, watch videos, read magazines, talk to people. Learn different ways of doing what you're doing and see if a new way feels more right for you. Don't get locked into a pattern out of ego or complacency. You lose nothing by giving a new approach a shot. The old way will still be there to fall back on if nothing works out but my guess is that you'll find something that at least tweaks the old way to be a little bit better.
4. Go to new places. Get out of your comfort zone once in a while. New experiences create more experience. You don't have to do great at it. You just have to try something new. It's about fun, learning, adventure, and breaking out of patterns. You may find that your comfort zone is more interesting when you return and you may find yourself returning there less often.
5. Travel the path with people that will make the journey fun and watch for people that will challenge you to be a better person. Fill your life with both kinds. In some things, they may be the same people. In other things, you may have fun people for some activities and challenging people for others. They make the journey worthwhile.
6. You're bound to see some weird shit from time to time.
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