A few days ago, I asked Stephanie if she would do me a HUUUUUUUGE favor and let me stop and play a small disc golf course, any disc golf course, while we made our way over to the conference. “Pretty, PRETTY PLEASE?!“ She said that would be okay…ESPECIALLY if it might mean that I’ll have more of my own discs to donate to our community’s annual disc golf tournament during our July Jubilee celebration (if I keep DGA happy with my playing more courses, meeting more people and sharing more stories). So we agreed that I would get to play ONE course. Ha!

As we looked on UDisc for the closest unplayed disc golf course to our conference location, it looked as though Central Oregon Community College (Cascade Forest) would be the winner. Nine holes, and less than five miles from our conference hotel while not being out of the way. So we made our way to the course, after I told Stephanie thank you several more times for the favor.

When we arrived at the course, I told Stephanie: “Twenty minutes…tops!” I don’t think she believed me, but when I’m playing alone and there aren’t a lot of other players on a course? I can average two minutes per hole when I need to. Of course, walking to the Hole 1 tee, there was a foursome who was just in the process of teeing off. I looked at them, probably half out of breath from my half-running to them, then they asked: “Do you want to play through?!” YES! I thanked them as I got to the tee box, exhaled, then let my tee shot fly. Thanking them again as I hustled down the fairway. “You don’t need to hurry,” they said, as I speed-walked to my disc. I shouted back: “I’ll be out of your way as quickly as I can,” then by the time I teed off on Hole 3, they were just walking to the Hole 2 tee. I’m HURRYING, Stephanie!

I was playing fast, BORING disc golf! Safe tee shot to a good spot for my second, park the approach, drop in for par. I did that through the first five holes. But then when I got to Holes 6 and 7, I slowed down just a little bit. Partially to see if I could get a few deuces, partially to catch my breath! I did get my deuces on Holes 6 and 7, but then I thought about Stephanie back in the car and my twenty-minute promise, so I decided to race through Holes 8 and 9 with more boring golf. Also known as easy par threes. I got my last two threes, finishing with a -2 (25) for an estimated round rating of 983. Then I jogged back to the car.

Stephanie was surprised, saying: “You’re back already?!” Yes ma’am. I keep my promises! And then we were off to our conference.

Magic Number = -77 (2,077 Courses Played)

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

But while the conference will be a good chance to connect with colleagues? I ALSO selfishly was looking forward to getting to play two of the last courses on the Oregon Coast that I had yet to play. With everything West of where I live “OB wet” (ha), and no new courses within two hours (drive time) in any direction? It is rare that I have the opportunity to find new courses within sight of the beautiful Pacific Ocean.

My first opportunity to play a new course was in Newport, Oregon: Twisted Pine. I had the opportunity to play it once before, but reluctantly passed on the opportunity as a result of heavy rain. The weather today was better, although it was still raining. But it wasn’t raining hard, and I had the opportunity to play the round with my friend from the Lane SBDC: Dan Collins. Dan is one of the nicest men you will ever meet! A former pastor and missionary from South America, he has played a fair amount of disc golf (and has been asking when we could play a round together). I selfishly hoped he wasn’t “sandbagging” and would proceed to kick my behind all-around the course! He was a lot better than he let on, but I think I still got him by a couple shots by the end of the round. [whew]

Twisted Pine was a lot of fun, made even more fun by sharing the fairways with one of my favorite colleagues in Oregon. I didn’t know what to expect before playing the course, but it was different than I would have expected. It was more open than I thought it would be! But there were still enough wooded holes. Still enough variety in flight paths required off the tee to make it interesting.

I liked the fact that there were challenging tee shots as you made your way around the course, yet it was (very) unlikely to lose any discs. I like that as a course collector. I ESPECIALLY appreciated that because Dan and I didn’t have a lot of time to spare in order to make it up to our conference at Salishan on time. I took a disappointing bogey 4 on Hole 3, but then had seven deuces over the last fifteen holes to finish with a -6 (48) and an estimated round rating of 950.

After our afternoon conference activities, we had dinner on our own. But we still had enough daylight for me to race up to Lincoln City and check out the six-hole course at Taft High School. A course in progress, there were 1-2 fun shots. But I don’t think it would be a course I would stop and play again. It just didn’t have “it.” It’s hard to put into words? There were 1-2 really fun holes out there! But the rest was just a chance to add another +1 to my courses played collection.

As you’ll see in the above photo, I thought Hole 4 was a fun hole. Challenging as a RHBH or a LHBH player, with the chance for a whole lot of trouble if you don’t hit your lines. But the tee surface was slippery. I had to be really careful not to wind up sliding off the front of the tee and hurting myself. Even worrying about my footwork on my release, I threw a beautiful tee shot and got one of my three deuces on the round. A -3 (15), which was only good enough for an estimated round rating of 899.

I’ve played better. But you can’t wipe the smile off my face tonight. Adding two more courses to my courses played collection. It had been too long…

Magic Number = -76 (2,076 Courses Played)

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Gregg is a legend in disc golf circles. He has 142 career sanctioned event wins to his name, including:

1987 World Champion
2008 & 2010 Grandmasters World Champion
2009-2012 Grandmasters US Champion
1995 Masters 150 class World Champion

Gregg was also a PDGA Hall of Fame Inductee in 1998. And specific to disc golf course collecting? Gregg was tied for the first player in the history of the sport of disc golf to reach 1,000 unique courses played (along with Ben Calhoun, son of PDGA legend Terry Calhoun). Gregg operates World Champion Disc Golf Design, his course design company based in Orlando.

As luck would have it, Gregg had time to show me around Bill Frederick Park – Turkey Lake, and Bill Frederick Park – T2: The Turkeynator, this morning! I had played both courses on a previous trip to Orlando. But I never had the chance to play the course with a disc golf Hall of Famer, as well as the designer of “The Turkeynator.” Picking Gregg’s brain a bit as a course designer, as well as helping with a bit of course maintenance. Pulling dozens of invasive plants as we made our way around the courses.

We started our morning on “T2.” Gregg is a professional entertainer, in addition to being a very talented disc golfer and course designer. Here he is on David Letterman back in the day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jW_I0Rt06uo So he couldn’t resist trying out a bit of material on me. I was trying to give a little humor back, but I’m an amateur. You know…like my disc golf playing ability. Thank you, folks…I’ll be here all week!

It was Gregg, his series of health issues, and a full complement of Innova discs versus me, my series of health issues, no world titles, and two DGA ProLine Squalls. Naturally, I had the competitive advantage with those Squalls…LOL! But somehow, Gregg managed to beat me by a total of seven shots?! I know, I know…everyone reading this is as surprised as I am. I blame it on “operator error.” And 90-degree heat along with tropical humidity. And “the sun being in my eyes.” And excuses I haven’t even thought of yet. And…

In all seriousness? I never expected to be close to Gregg on the scorecard. Playing a world champ on one of his home courses, with two of my favorite midrange discs? Although I did manage to shoot a respectable -8 (52). And if I wouldn’t have hit a tree and kicked OB wet on Hole 16? I might have had a chance at turning a putt for bogey into a deuce try. Thank goodness I wasn’t dragged into the lake by an alligator, getting my disc back.

What a fun morning, and a special memory! Gregg and I played a total of 27 holes before he needed to run me back to my conference hotel (we threw nine more holes on Bill Frederick Park – Turkey Lake too). Thanks for taking part of your morning to help me cross an item off my disc golf bucket list, Gregg! Playing with a legend. A player who started all this craziness that is called disc golf course collecting.

Magic Number = -74 (2,074 Courses Played)

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

It was HOT! We were both exhausted. And it was WINDY! But we both knew that it might be the last chance for us to share some fairways for the next year or two. So we did our best to gut it out and do the best we could. It wasn’t pretty…I think both of us were less than happy with our performance. But when you’re course collecting? It isn’t about your score, as much as comradery. Also known as “the player who has the most fun wins.” Copyright: Steady Ed Headrick. And it is also about the “+1,” since whether you shoot seven or eight under par, or whether you put eights on the card for every single hole? Your course collector “rating” always improves by +1.

I limped back to Mike’s car posting a pitiful -2 (25) for an estimated round rating of 772. I’m not sure I’ve gone sub-800 in years! But again, after an exhausting week, being down probably 20+ hours from my usual sleep, not being able to breathe (I think I’m allergic to not living next to the Pacific Ocean now…ha), and playing in temps 25 degrees warmer than I am used to? Well, 772 still SUCKS! But my courses played rating still went up by one (which is all that matters). And I had nine last fairways to share with Mike before needing to start my all-nighter at the Milwaukee airport.

Thank you SO much to Mike Harrington for being my friend and for being my “chauffeur” for the past several days! I literally couldn’t have done the past week without you (since I’m not supposed to drive outside of our local area). Thanks also to Cristina and Paul Carlstrom for taking care of arrangements for getting the Disc Golf Foundation traveling museum to/from Manitowoc, as well as arranging our AirBnB. It will be a memorable trip, in a lot of different ways.

Magic Number = -74 (2,074 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

One of the interesting things about disc golf course collectors that many of you might not know is that a lot of us have different definitions of what is considered a course. Mike Harrington? Counts temporary tournament courses (courses that might only exist for a day or two), as well as object courses and “mini” courses. Avery Jenkins? Avery will count temporary tournament courses, but does not count any object courses (you must be playing at a place with baskets…although I don’t know if he would then count “mini” courses as a course in his total course count or not). Derek Tonn? I’ve always said that anything that DGCourseReview.com says is a course is a course in my book! Old school object courses count! But temporary tournament courses? “Mini” courses? No…I won’t count them as a part of my courses played count.

It might be a shame that I don’t count “mini” courses…at least for today, since I was lucky enough to ace Hole 5 on the course. What could have been Ace #24 in my life, as well as course #2073 played. But no! I told Mike that I was sticking to my guns…not counting it as a course played. I still got to enjoy a bit of bragging rights though, since the tournament organizers said that it was only the second known ace thrown on the “mini” course. At least as of the time I am writing and publishing this post.

After completing our long shift of “shaking hands and kissing babies” at the traveling museum, I half-asked, half-begged Mike if we could play a new course I could count in my courses played collection. The weather was looking ominous (Pla-Mor photos are “borrowed” off the DGCR website, since we were in a rush to play and got very wet), but I eventually convinced him to try and get a nine-holer a little northwest of Manitowoc added to both of our collections.

Pla-Mor DGC had some interesting shots. But Holes 3 and 9 had some major upkeep issues, particularly in Circle-1. And the more holes we played, the more ominous the weather became. Mike teased and said that his rule was that if he has taken even one shot on a course, he needs to finish! I agreed, as I didn’t want to leave this +1 (to my course collection) unplayed. But the deeper we got into the round, the wetter we became. And by Holes 8 and 9, we started hearing claps of thunder and seeing a flash or two of lightning. A stupid potential way to die…adding one more course to our course collections! But hey, if I’ve played in the remnants of a tropical storm in Asheville, North Carolina? What’s a garden variety thunderstorm in the Midwest?

Playing at the end in the driving rain, thunder and a bit of lightning (fully acknowledging the potential “stupid way to die”), I carded an even par 27. Only good enough for an estimated round rating of 860. But the important thing was the +1 in my courses played collection. As well as making it back to our AirBnB with Mike, alive.

Magic Number = -73 (2,073 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Mike and I, along with Cristina and Paul Carlstrom, are in Wisconsin for the next several days, representing the Disc Golf Foundation and staffing our traveling museum that is on display during the United States Women’s Disc Golf Championships in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. And of course, we all love to play disc golf as well. So after about four and a half hours of sleep (I’m getting too old for that…ha)? We made our way to Picnic Hill Park in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, to chip some of the rust off our games.

It is always fun playing with Mike, Cristina and Paul, as we all play to about the same ability. Mike is also an avid course collector, having played more than 1,600 disc golf courses in his lifetime. So we promised him that we wouldn’t just look for places that Cristina, Paul and I hadn’t played during this trip (since Mike has played most of the courses on the eastern side of Wisconsin, living a little west of Milwaukee).

It was rough, being sleep-deprived and still more than a little frustrated about my experience getting from Denver to Milwaukee. But after a few holes, I settled down and was able to keep pace. The fifteen-hole course had a series of terrible reviews on UDisc, saying it was a mess…a waste of time. But what we found was an enjoyable place to play. A couple of the holes (i.e. Hole 15) were a little hard to find. But for the most part, it was fun, easy to play, and easy to navigate.

It was neck and neck the entire round, but in the end, Mike (44) beat me by a stroke (45). I’ve gotta up my game in order to grab the lead away from him on the week!

After getting a bit of rest, along with setting up our traveling museum and grabbing dinner with the players at the USWDGC players meeting, Cristina, Paul and I headed out to play the Lakeside holes before dark. Cristina REALLY wanted to see and get those holes played before her round tomorrow, and Paul and I were happy to oblige.

We had to play really fast, as we didn’t want to risk losing any discs in the dark at the end of our round. But we wanted to fully enjoy the famous Lighthouse Hole on the Lakeside portion of the course. I played the hole perfectly for my ability, and was able to drop in for a solid birdie. That made me feel good! Although “mad respect” to that hole, as if someone made a mistake and/or the wind was howling when they are playing that hole? It would be easy to go OB…maybe even lose a disc in Lake Michigan.

Playing the holes that were set up for Cristina’s division at USWDGC, I managed to shoot a -7. Since the tees weren’t always the same as the tees people play during typical rounds out there, I have no idea if a -7 was a good score from where we played. But I felt pretty good with that round. Particularly for how fast we were playing, and how we could barely see our hands in front of our faces on the final hole or two.

I did also want to quickly share how I thought it was fun to find occasional “touches of whimsy” around the Lakeshore holes, such as the “guard” shown above. I love it when courses have little fun surprises here and there that you will stumble across while you play. Silver Creek is every bit as good as advertised, and I think it is a must play for anyone who happens to find themselves along the western shore of Lake Michigan in the future.

Magic Number = -72 (2,072 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

My first new course I was able to visit was Sams Valley Elementary School near Central Point, Oregon. Both UDisc and Disc Golf Course Review said this course is available to play outside of school hours. But when I arrived, all I was met with was locked gates. Thinking that I might have driven all that way for nothing, I went around to the southern side of the school to see if I might have better luck. The same thing. Although I did see one closed fence entrance that didn’t appear to have a lock on it, so I thought I would give it a try. It opened! Although the whole time I was there, I was wondering if I would get a visit from the local police…asking me why I was trespassing on school grounds. Still, I thought I had a good alibi (course accessibility messages on UDisc and DGCR, and when I got to the Hole 1 tee, the same message appeared (course available outside of school hours), so I thought I was safe to play without getting a mug shot and a criminal record.

The course wasn’t anything particularly special, and one of the baskets was missing (though you could throw to the base of where it used to be, as an “object target”). It also was a very short, easy course (two of the holes were less than 100 feet in length). So I shot a -9 (19), with an estimated round rating of 982. My only three on the round came on the 390-foot Hole 2…where I had to throw through an active irrigation system. What did I say about starting my round with wet feet yesterday? Ha!

My next stop on the evening was at the Southern Oregon VA in White City. It was the tale of two courses. The first three holes were terrible. Serious safety issues and/or lack of course maintenance. The last six holes? Well cared for and fun to play. Holes 1 and 2 could have people walking or recreating near the fairways be seriously hurt by flying discs! And Hole 3 (shown above) looked like no one had cared for the area immediately by the tee in at least a few years.

So after “holding my nose” and/or throwing shorter safeties for two holes, then throwing a beautiful second shot to pull out my par three on Hole 3, I got to have a lot more fun. I took two bogey-fours on Holes 1 and 2 (not wanting to send anyone to the hospital…sigh), then shot -1 over the final seven holes. The +1 (28) was only good for an estimated round rating of 913, but it got me another +1 in my “Courses Played Rating.” We’ll just say I lived to fight another day.

I didn’t know if it could get much worse than Holes 1-3 at the Southern Oregon VA! But then I made my way to Gold Hill Sports Park. “UGH” would be the Minnesota Nice way of saying that Gold Hill was one of the worst disc golf experiences I have had in my lifetime. And having played over two thousands courses since the 1980s? That is quite an “honor.” All but one of the tee markers for the course are gone. Only Hole 9’s sign (shown above) remains. And only one of the tonal targets (Hole 1) remains. So I needed to use UDisc to guide me to each tee location, then throw at the nearest post/tree/??? I could find to where the tonal targets were supposed to be. I also had what looked to be a “tweaker” skateboarder unleash an angry set of profanity at me for daring to try and play disc golf within a couple hundred feet of where he was riding his skateboard. “I’m sorry for being alive…using YOUR park,” whatever your name was.

My bad experience in the park was made infinitely worse, encountering some type of plant that filled my shoes and socks (and a few in my shorts) with hundreds of natural “needles” which HURT every time I took a step. By the time I limped back to our car and started trying to remove all of those “needles?” My wife said I could be at it for the next twelve hours and still not finish…so her advice to me was to throw them away. The shoes were ready to be thrown anyway, with holes starting to be worn through the soles. But the socks were a good pair of socks, so I hated to toss them in the trash.

Doing my best to throw from unmarked tees and targets, using UDisc as my guide and wincing in pain with every step? I managed to shoot an even par (27), for an estimated round rating of 945. But I’m not sure I would call Gold Hill a disc golf course anymore. I’m counting it, since I had a map telling me how to play it…along with the pain and suffering I needed to endure (ha). But if I were the brass at UDisc and DGCourseReview? I would remove that listing from the active course records on their sites ASAP. If for no other reason than to keep other players from ruining shoes, socks and experiencing pain for 30-45+ minutes. All while having an angry skateboarder make them wonder if they would get back to their car and still find it in one piece.

Magic Number = -70 (2,070 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

My first stop on the day was at Wolf Creek Park in Wolf Creek, Oregon. It was actually harder to navigate the course than I expected, even with the course map available in UDisc. It also provided an unpleasant surprise right out of the car: The fact that Hole 1 played over a creek/stream that had no bridge across it. Wet feet to start my day…terrific. But a course collector’s gotta do what a course collector’s gotta do. Holes 2 and 3 played on the other side of the water, then Hole 4? You guessed it: another throw over the water with no way to cross it without getting ankle/calf deep in water, again.

Not the most fun I’ve had. But it has been a LONG time since I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to play some new courses, so I tried to keep a positive attitude and enjoy the ride. I also laughed when I got to Hole 9, as I found a disc with the words “KICK ASS!” written on it. Now I’m not sure I would have said my experience at Wolf Creek “kicked ass.” But ending the round with a smile on my face was a positive. I also managed to shoot a -6 (21) on my round with lots of rust on every available body part. So an estimated round rating of 948 was alright.

My next stop was at Indian Mary Park near Merlin, situated along the banks of the Rogue River. The park had been on my list to check out for a while now, given its beautiful setting, and while I was disappointed by the $5 pay-to-play fee (I’m a cheapskate…ha)? The nice woman manning the pay station said that the fee would get me into both Indian Mary Park and Tom Pearce Park in Grants Pass, my next destination on the day.

Indian Mary Park is a nine-hole course that has short and long tees labeled as Holes 1-18, so I actually played two rounds on the course. I shot a -4 (23) on the shorts, for an estimated rating of 886 (oof), as well as a -5 (22) off the longs, for an estimated rating of 952. Mid-900s is about right for my game, so that 886 left a mark. I guess I needed my first throw at the park to stick for a deuce to crack 900…since my tee shot skipped, danced on the edge of the basket while hitting several chains, then fell to the ground. Oh well! It was another +1 on my “Courses Played Rating.”

After a fun visit to Indian Mary Park, I made my way to the main event on the day: Tom Pearce Park. I’ve been through Grants Pass a couple of times in the past. Never with an opportunity to check out this twenty-hole course. Either it was my traveling companions, or the time of day, or the weather, or SOMETHING which prevented me from being able to play there! But I figured that it must be fate, having the day pass that also got me into Indian Mary Park earlier in the day. Today was the day I was “meant to play” the course.

Tom Pearce has quite a bit of variety from hole to hole. Some chances to lose discs if you are careless, but mostly opportunities to struggle to make par. At least off the long tees, which I had to play while I was here. As you approach the holes nearer to the concrete structure covered in graffiti (the cover photo for this post), the course also becomes harder to navigate. The course used to be an eighteen-hole course, but has since had two more holes added. Some of the tee signs clearly reflect their new hole numbers! But others can be a bit confusing to figure out…particularly as a non-local who might only ever get to play this course once.

The graffitied concrete structure is beautiful to look at! But there are also other “touches of whimsy” along the second half of the course, such as the metal object painted to look like Bender from the TV Show Futurama. It made the round more fun! I thought I was struggling, limping back to the car with a +4 (59) after recording eighteen of my twenty holes played (Disc Golf Course Review didn’t have a scorecard option for all twenty holes). But it said that was good enough for an estimated round rating of 952, so I’ll take it.

Three new courses played on the day…so I’ll take it! I have several other courses in the area I might be able to play tomorrow evening or Saturday too, but we’ll see…

Magic Number = -67 (2,067 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

I’ve been open about the fact that I was diagnosed with epilepsy in 2019, and have been dealing with a venous angioma between the two hemispheres of my brain that had been causing daily migraines. However, since Mayo Clinic identified the fact that I had been having as many as four to six seizures per day, and placed me on medication to prevent the seizures (as well as the headaches), my quality of life improved.

Toward the end of 2024, I was starting to have those pounding, daily migraines again. My neurologist told me that if I ever got even one of those headaches in the future (despite the strong anti-headache meds they had placed me on), I needed to immediately go to the ER…not wait for an appointment. But what do you do when you have those headaches, every day?! Am I supposed to sell my house and sleep on a cot at the hospital for the rest of my life?

Pity party aside, not feeling good (every day) has made it more difficult to get out and enjoy more courses. Even if work wasn’t oppressive related to workload? Most days, all I feel like doing is lying around and binge-watching Netflix. I power through it, go to work, then get my 5+ miles of walking in. But driving hundreds of miles to disc golf on top of it all? It’s been a struggle.

That being said, I needed to head up to Portland this weekend to wish my youngest daughter a belated 19th birthday. My wife did the driving, since neurology doesn’t want me driving much until they can get to the bottom of these daily migraines. But Becky knows I’ve been struggling, physically and mentally, so she encouraged me to bring my discs along to knock a couple of new courses off my “To Play” map in UDisc.

My first opportunity to play this morning came at Tigard High School. This was a new nine-hole course that opened in 2024, and hadn’t yet been added to the DGCourseReview.com website. I love the opportunity to make UDisc or DGCR more accurate for all the disc golfers out there who are looking for new places to play! So I was able to add all the information about the course to DGCR, along with photos from every tee.

With three MONTHS of rust on my game? I expected to be pretty terrible in my round. But from my very first tee shot, my ProLine Squalls were putting me well inside of Circle One off the tee. I didn’t get all my putts, but I did manage six deuces on the round, for a -6 (21) and an estimated round rating of 1005. Not too shabby!

Later in the day, on our way to Eugene, Oregon for a bit more fun with our two daughters, Becky suggested I sneak in one more nine-hole recreational course on the way. So we headed about sixteen miles out of our way, to have me play a course I couldn’t play the last time I was in town (due to it being located on school grounds, and only being playable when classes are not in session): Philomath Middle School DGC. The course has been in the ground since 2004, and it doesn’t look like much has changed since. The course is showing its age, with a missing basket on Hole 2 and 2-3 damaged tee signs. But a new course is still a +1 in my Courses Played Collection, so I happily threw another quick round.

I didn’t play Philomath well at all, struggling to a -3 (24) and an estimated round rating of 931. But the highlight of my round was putting a VERY difficult tee shot on Hole 6 within 8-9 feet of a funky custom basket. I had to take a photo (above), to help me remember the tee shot and the unique basket.

It felt SO good, getting back out and playing a few new courses again! Here’s to hoping I can get more played before I need to head for Cleveland (Ohio) for work in April…

Magic Number = -64 (2,064 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

My first stop on the day was at Mary’s River Park in Philomath, Oregon. I must say, what a pleasant surprise! A beautiful, well-kept nine-hole course that had quite a bit of shot variety. I was impressed. My play on the course was solid, not stellar, to the tune of a -2 (25). But in the pouring rain? I thought an estimated round rating of 954 was pretty darned good. I left at LEAST another deuce out on that course! Although for how wet my discs and I were, I was surprised I got to -2 on the round.

My second stop on the day was at Toledo Red Dog in Toledo, Oregon. A course I’ve been looking forward to playing, since it is one of the first courses on the planet that I ever helped DGA create tee signs for! But when I got to the Hole 1 tee? What I found was a very dangerous nine-hole course. The rain made it even worse. But even under dry conditions, those “fairways” adjacent to steep drop-offs, and slick paths up/down to tees and baskets made me wonder how many injuries have occurred on that course in the past decade? There are a few fun shots out there, such as Hole 6! But a couple fun shots, surrounded by chances for players to be dialing 9-1-1, made me think that that nine-holer might be better being pulled. I escaped with my life, “health” and a -2 (25), for an estimated round rating of 866! But that was a scary, scary place to play. One of the librarians in the adjacent library even commented: “You are BRAVE to be playing that course!”

After shaking off my disappointment from Toledo, I made my way to the star of the show today: Wilder DGC in Newport, Oregon. I didn’t think I would get to play it, as I hadn’t heard back on my request for a permit before we left the Oregon Garden Resort. But while we were in the car driving, my email with my permit arrived. Hooray!

My round at Wilder got off to a rocky start, as after throwing my tee shot on Hole 2, I could NOT locate my ProLine Tempest. I looked and looked (and LOOKED) for that bright yellow disc! I must have walked around the area I was sure that disc had landed at least six times, including a few adjacent areas I was sure the disc hadn’t rolled to, “just in case.” But it was hiding. And knowing my wife would be wondering if I was laying out on the course somewhere if I didn’t finish my round in a timely manner? I reluctantly needed to leave it behind. [sigh] Lost disc number two on this trip. When someone finds it, I hope they have fun with it.

After losing my second disc on this trip, I tightened up. Trying to be extra careful not to lose any more discs. That often meant throwing a ProLine Squall on tee shots where I should have thrown a ProLine Tempest! But I did not want to go home with an even lighter bag. Although beginning with my parked tee shot on Hole 7 (photo above), I was able to run off three deuces in a row. I played things ultra-conservative after that, however. Shooting par the remaining ten holes to finish at a -2 (58) and an estimated round rating of 974. A little heavy, in my estimation! More like a round in the 940s-950s. But I played solid, considering I was underthrowing all of my tee shots by 30-40+ feet on purpose.

Wilder became my eighth and final course played on this trip! I was also hoping to play Twisted Pine DGC in Newport. But being dizzy, having a throbbing headache, and shivering uncontrollably after being soaking wet for the previous few hours? I decided to live to fight another day.

Magic Number = -62 (2,062 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

The first course I decided to play today was a relatively new eighteen-hole course at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon. I honestly knew very little about this course prior to playing it, but I came away very impressed. A beautiful piece of property! Great tee pads. Nice signage! About the only thing that was missing was “scoring spread.” More specifically, what I mean is that just about every hole was extremely difficult for all but the very best players to have a chance to deuce. Yet while twos were incredibly hard for the vast majority of players to reach? Par threes were WAY too easy for most players with modest to “good” skills to get.

Since deuces were all but impossible to achieve? You simply throw your tee shot out there to somewhere safe. Somewhere you know you will have an easy approach shot to the basket, so you won’t need to sweat your putt. So that’s what I did, every hole except the two “must deuce” holes (Holes 10 and 14, which I deuced).

My only mistake on the road was a bit of grip lock on the Hole 17 tee, which caused me to limp to the barn with a bogey-four. Other than that? It was a round on auto-pilot or cruise control. Just take it easy, don’t take stupid chances, and card your 52 or 53. I got a 53 (see: mistake on 17), which Disc Golf Course Review said is good for an estimated round rating of 972. But I would say it was a round in the 930s-940s, based on previous experience.

After finishing up at Chemeketa, I went over to a little three-hole course at Brush College Park that had popped up on my UDisc map of unplayed courses a while ago. As I thought it might be, it wasn’t much of a course (or much of a course to remember). Hole 1 has you throwing over an entire parking lot, while Hole 3 has LHBH players essentially throwing at/through the Hole 2 basket on your way to your Hole 3 basket! Hole 2 was a cool shot (which I deuced). But there would otherwise be no other reason to ever return to this course.

Another +2 to my Courses Played Collection! Now for a good night’s sleep, then trying to knock out a few more new courses on my way home tomorrow.

Magic Number = -59 (2,059 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

When I arrived, I was met with a closed main gate. Darnit! But just because I am stubborn, I drove a little further down the road and found what must have been an employee’s entrance. So I drove into the camp, found the camp office, then rang the buzzer to speak with staff. I had trouble with the intercom, but while I was struggling, a nice man named Youngblood came by to check me out. I said who I was and what I was doing there (writing for DGA and this blog) , then asked if he would mind if I played a round. He said that would be okay. And then when I asked how I pay my $5 (pay to play), he said: “Don’t worry about it…you’re good.”

Youngblood told me that when the course was designed twenty years ago, “someone from DGA” was the designer. I have since not been able to track down who that designer might have been. But I have to say I was very surprised to see Holes 1 and 2 (pictured above) playing parallel to hazards (road, fence) for quite a long way! An easy opportunity to hit a car or throw your disc on to private property (where the neighbor might not be happy to see you after having a hundred disc golfers walking around in their yard previously). I am on a mission to figure out who designed this course on Camp Dakota’s behalf!

The course was pretty short, but it was “sneaky tough,” with some tight (unfair?) out-of-bounds areas and some tight turns and/or elevation changes. Judging the course before playing, simply by seeing how short the holes are, would be a mistake. I think it plays at least 3-4 strokes tougher than one thinks it should. Even more, factoring in how some of the holes on the back nine need more maintenance.

It broke my heart on Hole 10, as I was screwing around a bit…throwing an extra shot with one of my Squalls, attempting a fun ace run. My second disc caught an unlucky break…dribbling into the pond in the photo above. I thought it should have been within three feet of shore! But I looked for that Squall for a solid ten to fifteen minutes, to no avail. It SUCKS, losing one of my favorite discs on a short, easy hole like that! But that’s the way it goes sometimes.

After making my way around the entire 3,995-foot course, I managed to shoot a -5 (49). DGCR says that is good enough for an estimated round rating of 962. I think that is VERY generous…as I would have put my round more in the 920s-930s. But it’s all a +1 in my Courses Played Collection, so we’ll take it.

Magic Number = -57 (2,057 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

I did have a shorter nine-hole course on my way to two private camps: Linn Benton Community College. Disc Golf Course Review said that the course was an eighteen-holer, while UDisc said the course had nine holes. But after arriving at the course and only finding nine baskets (with no marked tee areas)? I am going to say it is a nine-hole course.

Thank goodness for a course map on UDisc! I would have had no idea where to tee off from on each hole without it. And my tee shots on each of those holes left something to be desired…as I was dealing with about an inch of rust on my game! I did at least manage to shoot a -2 (25), getting a 272-foot deuce right in front of my wife (so she could ooh and aah, LOL). But the rest of my round wasn’t pretty.

After that quick warm-up round, I made my way to the highlight of my day: Camp Taloali, a little East of Stayton (Oregon). Camp Taloali is a camp for deaf and hard of hearing youth, with a VERY good disc golf course that hosted a major disc golf event for deaf players in 2023. The course has recently had a number of dead trees cut to the ground, so there are piles of wood/brush everywhere! But that didn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying my round on the property.

I managed to shoot four under par after eleven holes, but I was playing TIGHT! I’ve been dealing with back, neck and shoulder injuries for weeks now, and have mentally been having a bit of a “pity party.” Instead of focusing on what I can do, I’ve been thinking more about what I can’t. But after seeing that stone and smiling? I told myself: “Yes you CAN do it!”

So I opened up my game and ran some bigger lines than I had been so far today, to shoot an additional five under par over the last seven holes. DGCR estimated my -9 (48) at a 1074 round rating! Although I would put the round more around a “human” 960s-970s.

I had planned to try and get a third course played today (Camp Dakota). But the skies opened up as we made our way toward where my conference was being held (the Oregon Garden Resort), and I REALLY didn’t want to spend the extra time not knowing if I would be allowed to play…and/or getting (more) soaking wet, so we called it an afternoon. Live to fight another day!

Magic Number = -56 (2,056 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Caddyman and I texted back and forth a couple of days before my visit, since the last time I tried to play this course, I couldn’t find anyone around to ask how to navigate it (the course can be a little confusing to figure out where to go in several places without guidance). And when I pulled into the property, J.D., the owner of the property, was there to greet me and help me figure out the first 5-6 holes. He even offered to spot for me, which helped as I threw my big (TOO big) bomb down from the “top of the world” tee on Hole 6.

I was teasing J.D. that I cannot putt to save my life as he watched me play the first seven holes. But I put on a rare putting display, sinking long putts for deuces on Holes 2 and 3. I almost sunk long putts on Holes 4 and 5 too, so I think J.D. was thinking I was a sandbagger…ha! But then on Hole 6, I showed off my amateur skills, throwing my tee shot WAY too high and right of the satellite dish that had been turned into a large basket at the bottom of the hill. I was pin high off the tee, but I was a good 80-90 feet right of the basket.

After carding my three on Hole 6, I decided to display Rec skills instead of Amateur skills off the Hole 7 tee, flipping my tee shot WAY left and out of bounds…deep into a large 8-9 foot tall Himalayan blackberry patch. Being the great guy that he is, J.D. climbed right into the thick of that blackberry patch with me, collecting scratches and getting thorns stuck in his hands/arms/legs/back like I was. I think he thought my chances of finding my ProLine Squall were zero. But ten minutes and about twenty scratches/thorns later? I found that Squall…darnit (leave no disc behind). Of course, it took me at least five minutes to make it the 8-10 feet forward to reach it without a machete! But I finally got that disc back in my bag…even handing J.D. a second disc that someone had lost in that same blackberry patch.

After carding my circle-4 on Hole 7, I got back to playing Derek Tonn disc golf! Amateur level play, but rock solid amateur level play. I deuced Hole 8, birdied Hole 10, then ran a 70-foot deuce putt on Hole 13. Winding up my round with a -4 (51). The course plays a lot tougher than the hole distances make it appear! If I were spot-on my game? I should have shot around -6 or -7. But I was satisfied with a -4. I was especially satisfied adding a +1 to my Courses Played Collection.

Richard and J.D. were really nice guys. Made me feel welcome on the property. So if any of you reading this are ever looking for a fun round on a private course in Oregon? Bear Creek DGC, the Bear Creek DGC near Eugene, will be a fun place to throw a quick eighteen holes.

Magic Number = -54 (2,054 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Anytime I play at a golf course, it tends to not be a favorite…as it is essentially a wide-open, “throw it as far as you can” set of holes. Bear Creek wasn’t much different, with four holes over 400 feet in length, and one 800+ foot monster. And only having a 177+ gram mid-range disc made me feel as though I was going to dislocate my shoulder trying to get the disc far enough off the tee to not be playing for bogey (or worse) on most of the holes. But it wasn’t about my score! It was about a +1 being added to my Courses Played Collection.

The course actually had a couple of fun shots off the tee, and even one hole that my old, broken body could reach and get my deuce. Nobody was going to be asking why I hadn’t yet joined the pro tour after seeing my performance: 3 3 5 3 2 3 3 4 4 (that four on Hole 9 was a bit embarrassing, but I just didn’t get my drive off the tee far enough down the fairway to get my par three). But considering I was throwing a “manhole cover” on a course that was more about length than it was about technical precision? I thought the +1 (31) and an estimated round rating of 949 wasn’t terrible.

I’m glad to have been able to play the course, as when I get to the Medford area in the future, there will be no guarantee I will be able to book a tee time when I want to. So that should make cleaning up my unplayed courses map in UDisc a little easier in the future.

Magic Number = -53 (2,053 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

After completing our whirlwind trip for work, I asked my traveling companion if I could PLEASE (pretty please?) visit five 8×11 tee signs that I had designed with DGA several years ago, at a tiny neighborhood course (Hubbard’s Handful at Jan LaFollette Park in Hubbard, Oregon) that I hadn’t yet played in Oregon. I told her it would take me ten minutes, tops, to play those five holes! She said: “Fine…ten minutes.” Then she settled in with her book, expecting to see me 30-40 minutes later. So when I was back at the car 10-12 minutes later? She had barely made it a couple of pages into her book, almost wanting to ask me to play another round (so she could get a few more pages read).

Hubbard’s Handful was truly a handful! It’s a short course, and based upon the hole distances alone? It is a course that one with reasonable skills should shoot no worse than a -3 (12). But Holes 1 and 4, in particular, come with ample opportunities to lose discs. Either that, or waste 15-20 minutes looking in rough taller than you are, losing a pint of blood in Himalayan blackberry plants (an invasive species in Oregon) or taking your chances hopping a neighbor’s fence chasing an errant tee shot. Because of that? I played the course incredibly conservatively. Playing for bogey-4 on Hole 1, and par-3s on Holes 3 and 4. I missed my deuce putt on Hole 2 (darnit), then got my deuce on Hole 5. So I shot an underwhelming even par (15) on the course. But I kept my promise about a ten-minute round. AND I came back to the car with all my discs still in my backpack.

The photo of the Hole 4 tee is a good example of just how easy the course would be to lose a disc (and/or create problems with a neighboring private property owner). MANY right-handed players would likely start their tee shots out over that fence. And if they miss their release angle even a little bit? The disc will land on private property, difficult/impossible to retrieve. And for us lefties who primarily throw back-handed? That is a TOUGH, fussy shot. I kept the height of my tee shot below the top of that fence, and curled an anhyzer safely down that bit of a hill. But Holy Hard, Batman! If I were in charge of that course design and course maintenance? I would trim that growth between bushes/trees and fence, back at LEAST 3-4 feet more to the left. Give less-skilled lefties and right-hand forehand players a chance…while making it less tempting for right-hand backhand players to start their tee shots out over the fence.

I must say too that I was very happy to see how good those tee signs still look, several years after we created them. It’s always fun seeing the tee sign designs I create out “in the wild.” Sometimes people tag them with graffiti. Other times, they get hit by lawnmowers or ??? But most of the time? They look great for many years. Which feels good, every time I see them out there, helping players have one less thing to worry about (a lack of information) when enjoying their rounds.

Magic Number = -52 (2,052 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

When we got to the course, I wasn’t one hundred percent sure that it was okay to be out here playing as a visitor on Sunday. But there was no signage which indicated otherwise, and everything I could find on DGCourseReview.com and UDisc seemed to indicate that it was open to the public. So I decided I would play as fast a round of disc golf as I could. And I think from start to finish, I completed my round in just under seventeen minutes.

The course was relatively open and straightforward. Not a lot of complexity or challenge to the holes, apart from finding all nine tees (I would have struggled without having the course map in UDisc to guide me).

I played my worst round of the trip, struggling to manage a -2 (25) for an estimated round rating of 866. And that was only after dialing in and taking extra care that I was making good shots off the tee on Holes 8 and 9. I should be able to manage at LEAST a -5 (22) on a course like that! Ideally closer to a -7 (20). But I wasn’t there to break any course records! I was there to add a +1 to my courses played collection. I’m just embarrassed that I couldn’t perform better on my scorecard. But I own my scores, the good, bad AND ugly! And this was one of my uglier rounds in a while.

Okay, NOW that’ll be my last round of disc golf in this trip. Seven new courses, and eight rounds of disc golf played, in eight days. Not too bad.

Magic Number = -51 (2,051 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

My first stop on the day was at The Ponds DGC in Marshall, Minnesota. This one has been on my To Play List since the day I heard it existed…since I had been talking with members of that community since a few years before I moved to Oregon. Saying how this park would be a prime location for a “destination” disc golf course in southwestern Minnesota. Someone actually designed and built a course here, and it’s pretty good! It needs better tees, tee signage, and a few other tweaks here and there. But I think this can/will be one of the better courses in the region when they finish.

I actually played very, very well at The Ponds (scorecard above), shooting an estimated round rating of 965 in sloppy conditions. Footing on the course wasn’t good, and the course is yet to have tee pads installed. so to shoot a sub-50 round was pretty good in my book!

After playing at The Ponds, my luck dodging flooding ran out in Alvord, Iowa. I had tried to sneak down to check out a newer nine-hole course at Alvord City Park, but as you can see from the above photo? That course was going to be underwater for at LEAST the next several days.

I decided to try my luck a little further South, visiting Rock Valley Rotary Park in Rock Valley, Iowa. Hole 1 was actually playable! But Holes 2 through 9, as you can see above? Not so much. I did stubbornly play Holes 1 and 2 in Rock Valley! But I could not in good conscious count it as a course played. So my quick trip into Iowa ended up being a complete waste of time, apart from enjoying a nice picnic lunch in the part of the park that wasn’t underwater.

Still stinging from striking out in Iowa, I decided to try and sneak in one more course in South Dakota before throwing in the towel: Wall Lake DGC. This was another course where I had designed the tee signs for them via DGA, so I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to see them “in the wild” while I was in the neighborhood! And when we arrived at the park, there wasn’t a single flooded river in sight! Whew.

The signs at the course look great! But the signs are installed on nearby trees…which can be 20-30+ feet from the tee areas themselves. Kind of peculiar, and hard to photograph when looking from the tee areas to the baskets! But I had a good, fun round…managing a -5 (23) and an estimated round rating of 1004.

That might be it for my course collecting on this trip! But getting another seven new courses played, not knowing if I would manage any in the midst of family obligations, rain, mud and flooding is okay.

Magic Number = -50 (2,050 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

I didn’t even want to drive past the school, the park, or our old house in town, and our two daughters couldn’t get out of town fast enough. It’s hard. Having a community we built our home and family in for nearly two decades, now being a place where we don’t even want to visit. But we try and look forward, not backward, in our lives. And we’ve landed in a wonderful new community along the Pacific Ocean in Oregon.

Before our brief visit to Springfield, my wife needed to do a bit of work for her employer in the neighboring town of Sleepy Eye. A new nine-hole disc golf course called Allison Chains had opened in that community since we moved, so it was a golden opportunity to get Course #2048 played while we waited.

I actually had the opportunity to design the tee signs for this course. One of the hundreds of sets of tee signs I have designed for courses around North America and Europe via DGA! So it was fun seeing the artwork I created for their signs installed and in use around the park. I wasn’t a huge fan of how close the signs and sign posts were installed to the tee areas themselves! But the signs look great, and seem to be holding up very well.

I played fast, dodging raindrops and mosquitoes. I got all of my deuces except for Hole 6, where I missed a 16-17 foot putt. Annoyed by that missed putt, and knowing my wife wouldn’t be ready for me to pick her up for another ~45 minutes, I decided to give the course one more try. This time, I got my deuce on Hole 6! But I missed a 16-17 foot putt for deuce on Hole 1. I guess the disc golf gods didn’t want me to hold the course record for what would have been one of the closest courses to where I used to live…shooting an eighteen or MAYBE the occasional seventeen if someone aced one of the holes?

Tomorrow, it’ll be on toward Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to get together with inlaws. With me hopefully getting a couple of courses played along the way.

Magic Number = -48 (2,048 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Columbia Heights, or as I jokingly like to refer to it: “The Heights,” is the last community I lived in before I got married. I think about how much the world has changed these past twenty-seven years since then. How much the sport of disc golf has absolutely EXPLODED in popularity during those nearly three decades. How our nation’s (our planet’s) landscape has been permanently altered as a result of the thousands of new courses installed on many dozens of thousands of acres of land. How much more land has been opened to recreational uses that had not been used for recreation prior to that time.

After that quick warm-up, I headed down I-35W to Burnsville, to check out Buck Hill. Upon my arrival, I found it was a lot more complicated to pay my $6 to play the course than I had hoped. Scan a QR code, fill out a bunch of fields of information, signing a bunch of waivers, et al. But after surviving that gauntlet of legalese and forms that they hopefully won’t use to spam me in the future (or have a data breach and have my information acquired by bad actors)? It was time to play the course.

A threesome was at the Hole 1 tee with their packs of 20-25+ discs, bands for exercising their upper bodies, and lots of other gear. They were nice guys, but I’m sure they saw me with my sunburn and three discs and thought I was some “hayseed” who didn’t know what he is doing. They said I should tee off first, since I was doing a solo round, so then I needed to prove I know what I am doing with a disc in my hands. So I proceeded to leave my DGA ProLine Squall about six feet left of the basket for my first of eight deuces/birdies on the round.

I really played well at Buck Hill! My best shot on the day came on the Hole 10 tee. A right-to-left-to-right 465-foot tee shot for us LHBH players, I landed my tee shot 7-8 feet left of the basket, pin high, for the easy deuce. Of course, I had to let out a little yell and do a little “flex” when I tapped in after that excellent tee shot…ha! Although the more holes I played? The more (over-)confident I became. Which led me to make a stupid mistake on Hole 14 which cost me a stroke.

Hole 14 was a 529-foot downhill par 3. After thirteen strong holes, including my nearly parking Hole 10? I decided to throw caution to the wind and go for circle one and a deuce. With OB to the right and my not (NEARLY) having a big enough arm to throw an anhyzer 529 feet, my only chance of getting there was to throw a “flattened” right-to-left-to-right laser that flirted with those threes well down the hill, left of the basket. I threw a solid shot off the tee! But I flew a little too close to the sun, hit those trees left of the fairway, and kicked left. To the point where I had NO chance of getting even a decent look at a par three. So an easy three turned into a regret-filled four.

I forgot the Cardinal Rule of disc golf for us oldies: “Boring golf wins.” Instead of mailing in a three? I took a four, and turned a 48 at Buck Hill into a 49. Chasing a 3-4% chance at getting the highlight reel deuce and 47. I’m usually smarter than that! But my tee shot on Hole 10 made me feel as though it might just be my lucky day. And if I got the highlight reel deuce on 14? I might have headed right to a place selling lottery tickets after my round…ha!

Magic Number = -47 (2,047 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

This afternoon was my first opportunity to play a new course on this trip, and it was a doozy! Waseca County Courthouse Park near Waseca, Minnesota. An intimidating 9,877 feet of wooded bliss over eighteen holes, which is an average of 549 feet per hole. And if that weren’t difficult enough? The course is currently a swampy, muddy mess. As most of Southern Minnesota has been dealing with well over one foot of rain the past few weeks. And given the fact that I was able to pack all of one pair of shoes and three DGA discs in my one piece of luggage? I needed to be extremely careful in how I approached each of those shots.

This course was an absolute BEAST! Legitimite par 4s and par 5s all across the property. And with lots of casual water and muddy areas 3-4+ inches deep? It took me over ninety minutes to play. My most positive observation about the course would be that the sheer length and difficulty of the course makes it unique across the region! There are other courses that might have 1-2 similar holes (of similar length) over eighteen holes. But eighteen of them? CRAZY hard!

If I had any mild complaints about the course (besides playing in a swamp…although record rainfalls are certainly not the course designer’s fault), it would be that players are essentially playing eighteen of the same hole. Sure, there are some holes that are over twice as long, while there are other baskets that can be reached off the tee. But it is a lot of the same shots. The same lines thrown off the tee. And given the HEAVILY-wooded property, it is going to take hundreds (and hundreds) of hours of upkeep annually to keep that course playable. Without a big volunteer crew and/or a big budget in the county parks department to maintain? This is going to be a course that will be difficult to play and enjoy via needed maintenance (that isn’t getting done).

I cannot remember the last time it took me 76 shots to complete eighteen holes of disc golf! But I felt good about the round, particularly due to the lack of footing and needing to shoot over/around downed trees. DGCourseReview estimated my round as having a 949 rating, which I thought was about right. I made a couple of mistakes, but I also got a couple of lucky breaks. And since I average around a ~955 most of the time I’m playing? A 76 is about what I would have expected.

Tomorrow, if I’m lucky, I should get to cross one of Cale Leiviska‘s designs off my To Play List. Wish me luck!

Magic Number = -45 (2,045 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

The definition of serene, according to Dictionary.com, is “calm, peaceful, or tranquil.” And as I made my way around the property, which was a combination of open acres, wooded acres, a pond, a small stream and a river, I must say that I was feeling serene.

I’m not sure what I was expecting before playing the course, but whatever I had been expecting? The course was not it. The course was SO much better than I had expected before I arrived! Quite a bit of variety from hole to hole, excellent tees, and thousands of hours of improvements and upkeep to the land. The owner of the property, James Morse, has obviously poured his heart and soul into the course. And he has been recognized for all of his hard work, having Camp Serene rated #77 on UDisc’s list of the Best 100 Disc Golf Courses in the World in 2024.

What I always enjoy at disc golf courses is unexpected “touches of whimsy” and fun. I smiled when I stumbled upon the “guard gnomes” on the Hole 4 fairway. I also smiled and said: “Don’t nice me, bro” when I saw the NICE sign as I approached the Hole 14 tee. It makes a round just a little more fun. Plus if you haven’t played at a course before, it makes you look around every corner, wondering what you might stumble across next.

What also surprised me about Camp Serene was how lefty-friendly the course was! Numerous holes with a left-to-right flight path off the tee, or where throwing a LHBH S-Curve (right-to-left-to-right) was the optimal path from the tee to the basket. I played the course a bit tentative, since I didn’t have the time to spend searching for lots of temporarily lost discs, so my score -3 (52), for an estimated 998 rating, wasn’t as good as it could or should have been. But now that I know where the water OB is on a few of the fairways? Now that I know where a few of the baskets are on the tee from some of the longer holes? That is a course where I could make some noise. IF I were competitive…ha!

James also took time to chat me up after my round. Showing me his pro shop and taking the time to tell me the history of the course and how it has evolved over time, as well as sending me home with a few stickers to brag-up the course on my car. We also talked about UDisc and how it had been a number of years since the course record had been updated on DGCourseReview.com. Not to mention my asking if his pro shop might carry more DGA plastic in the future. What kind of DGA Ambassador would I be if I didn’t ask that question?!

I promised to add photos from every tee to DGCR, as well as provide a well-deserved rave about his wonderful course at discgolf.com, less than two hours Northeast of Coos Bay.

Magic Number = -44 (2,044 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

I would always tell people that with all my health issues, my life is a very delicate ecosystem. If I don’t balance the “right” amount of work, with the “right” amount of sleep, the “right” amount of time with family and friends, the “right” amount of exercise? My life winds up looking more like a hazmat site. When I moved to Oregon in the Spring of 2022, it lifted my mood being able to see/hear/smell the Pacific Ocean pretty much whenever I wanted to! Our bank balances also went from “snug“ to healthy. I still cannot believe that moving to a place with as high a cost of living as the Oregon Coast has resulted in us going from “tight” to “comfortable” financially! But my exercise routine has been obliterated since moving here.

Averaging 5+ miles per day walked in Minnesota, along with the ability to play a couple hundred rounds of disc golf per year and keeping my cholesterol levels around 200 has turned into struggling to walk ten miles per week, being lucky to sneak in a round or two of disc golf per month, and a cholesterol level of 300. My health is a ticking timebomb…along with the pressure of needing to afford two daughters starting college (without tuition remission) in the Fall of 2024.

I still look longingly at my UDisc app almost every day, looking for all of the new places within at least reasonable driving distance that I can play! It is hard to find the time to get there, but this week, planets aligned as I needed to head up to Portland on a little business, and a little family business (seeing where our youngest daughter will be attending college in the Fall). Two new nine-hole courses had popped up on my UDisc unplayed courses map in the past year or so…and even though it was muddy and wet, I wasn’t going to miss my chance to play.

My first stop on the afternoon was at Fernhill Flats in Portland, Oregon. The course was incredibly muddy, and even though it was only sprinkling, I found the footing difficult to contend with. That, along with the fact that I hadn’t been able to play disc golf in a while, led to me shoot an underwhelming -4 (23) on a course where shooting in the teens should definitely be possible.

I think that course could be a fun rec round under better conditions! It isn’t more than your “average” nine-holer, in an “average” park. But if you needed a place to practice with your trusty DGA Steady putter or your DGA ProLine Squall? You could have some fun working on ace runs there.

After finishing up at Fernhill, we made our way East of town to Troutdale, to check out Donald Robertson Park. I have to say how impressed I was! Good tee surfaces, excellent signage! The only thing about this course was the long walks between a few of the holes, along with the long walk back from Hole 9 to the Hole 1 tee. Sometimes that just cannot be helped! But it took what would make for an otherwise outstanding little nine-hole recreational course and made it a little less than outstanding.

With better footing (on the tee surfaces, in particular), I shot much better on this short course…shooting a -7 (20) for an estimated round rating of 965. I REALLY wanted to shoot in the teens! But Holes 6 and 8 got me, darnit. Still, a fun quick round. And if I lived in the area, that would be another fun place to work my Steady and Squall.

I am working hard to try and get my exercise routine back, walking over fifteen miles each weekend over the past few weeks. Getting more rounds of disc golf played is part of taking control of my physical health and getting back on track. Positive yardage…

Magic Number = -43 (2,043 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Media Ambassador Mitch Phillips and co-host Zach Harrison sit down with DGA Icon team member Shasta Criss to chat with the guys about traveling in Thailand, his win at the Samui Swine Classic, and the importance of mindfulness in disc golf as well as the 2024 DGA RePlay award recipient Jeff Carson of the Greater Rochester Disc Golf Club.

• Last hole you Parked 2:06
• What are ya sippin on? 5:08
• News, All-Stars recap 7:50
• Jeff Carson, Replay winner interview 20:42
• Shasta Criss Interview 34:11
• Udisc growth Report 1:24:30
• Chess.com predictions 1:30:48

Check out more info on the DGA Replay program here

The Greater Rochester Flying Disc Golf Club

DGA Store

Parked Podcast on Instagram

Mitch Phillips

Zach Harrison

Udisc Course Growth Report

For audio only, check out Parked on Anchor.

Grab the Podcast here:

• Spotify
• Apple Podcast

DGA Disc Golf

The Parked crew is joined today by Team DGA ProLine Team member Macie Velediaz. She talks about this interesting time in her career, joining Team DGA and becoming a mom! Follow Macie @macie__velediaz
and help support baby Layla at her registry link: Macie’s Amazon.com Baby Registry

Intro’s
What are ya sippin on 3:29
News, player signings 6:30
Macie Velediaz Interview 23:12
Events 53:09

For audio only, check out Parked on Anchor
Spotify.com
Podcasts.Apple.com

DGA Disc Golf

DGA GIFT CARDS

Not sure what to get for your favorite disc golfer this Holiday season? Pick up a DGA gift card, it’s always the perfect gift!

Introducing our Holiday gift guide! Elevate your disc golf game with amazing gifts for yourself or someone special. Our guide features the latest DGA gear, from limited edition discs to stylish apparel and some of the best training baskets in the game.
Now through 1/1/24.

Get 20% OFF select DGA apparel, including some of our latest and most popular designs!  Hats, Shirts, Hoodies and more are all on sale.

Get $30 OFF plus FREE shipping on DGA training baskets.

Get 25% OFF Stock and Limited Edition Discs, and 20% off disc sets.

Get 25% OFF the TRVRS LT Bag, DisClaimer and other accessories.

Everything on CATRINAALLEN.COM is 20% off through 12/31/23. While supplies last, don’t miss out on exclusive Catrina Allen discs and apparel!

DGA Disc Golf

The DGA Holiday Sale has arrived at DISCGOLF.COM! Our most sought-after discs, baskets, apparel, and accessories are now available at incredible discounts that you won’t want to miss. Find the right gifts and get ready for a holiday season filled with the joy of disc golf!

Introducing our Holiday gift guide! Elevate your disc golf game with amazing gifts for yourself or someone special. Our guide features the latest DGA gear, from limited edition discs to stylish apparel and some of the best training baskets in the game.
Now through 1/1/24.

Get 20% OFF select DGA apparel, including some of our latest and most popular designs!  Hats, Shirts, Hoodies and more are all on sale.

Get $30 OFF plus FREE shipping on DGA training baskets.

Get 25% OFF Stock and Limited Edition Discs, and 20% off disc sets.

Get 25% OFF the TRVRS LT Bag, DisClaimer and other accessories.

While supplies last only, sale ends 1/1/24.

DGA Disc Golf

My first stop on the morning was at White River in Auburn. A 5,306-foot course over eighteen holes, I had a lot of fun! It was my kind of course, with lots of trees to keep you honest on the tee. But it also had a TON of leaves on the ground. And since most of my favorite discs to throw tend to be orange? I needed to dial it back a bit and switch to back-ups in different colors. My sky blue DGA ProLine Squalls, in particular.

Even throwing the same molds, in the same plastic, at the same weights, I swear the psychological differences of knowing you aren’t throwing your same (favorite) discs can mess with your head a bit! I did fine throwing those blue Squalls! But it was a little different than throwing my trusty orange plastic! And “fine” is different than “good” or “great.” So I left a few deuces out on the course that I probably should have captured, had I thrown better tee shots.

By the time I had made it to Hole 18’s basket, I had accomplished Mission #1: Keeping a full backpack of discs! But I ended up shooting an underwhelming +1 (55), for an estimated round rating of 930. I felt as though I should shoot at LEAST a -3 or -4 on that course…so to post an over par score on a course where I should excel was a disappointment.

After White River, it was on to Lake Fenwick in Kent, Washington. And it was at Lake Fenwick where my fears were realized.

The leaves at Lake Fenwick were THICK! I thought the leaves on the ground at Rotary Riverside Park (yesterday) and White River were thick, but they paled in comparison to Lake Fenwick. And on the Hole 3 tee, I threw my tee shot with my blue ProLine Squall a little right of the fairway, on a hill that sloped down and to the right. And I could not find my disc.

I looked EVERYWHERE, through ankle-deep leaves, for at least 10-15 minutes. No disc. I played Hole 4 (above), then went back to Hole 3 to search again (after two people behind me offered to help me look). No disc. Seven hours from home, I was faced with the prospect of leaving a disc behind that should have been within 20-25 feet of the fairway and 40-45 feet of the basket. If I threw a disc into water or made a terrible shot, that would be different. But to make an okay/good shot and lose a disc is one of the most frustrating things that I think can happen on a disc golf course.

After a solid 20-25 minutes (that I barely had to spare) of searching for my sky-blue ProLine Squall? I needed to abandon my search, call the disc lost, and quickly finish my round. So I made my way around the rest of the course, being even MORE careful on the tees than I had already been, finishing with a +1 (55) and an estimated round rating of 951. But as I made my way back to the car, I asked Becky: “Can I give it ONE MORE SEARCH?!“

We were tight on time, but she said to hurry and look. And after another 6-7 minutes of searching? I caught a ~2×2″ flash of blue to my right on the hill. My Squall! Thank you, “disc golf gods,” for allowing me to return to Oregon with a full backpack of discs!

Obviously, it is “just” a $20 piece of plastic. But it is MY $20 piece of plastic. That over hundreds/thousands of throws, becomes a trusted friend on the disc golf course. And the prospect of leaving that piece of plastic behind, PARTICULARLY so close to the basket (a potential deuce putt), wasn’t an option if I could avoid that outcome in any way, shape or form.

Becky and I rolled into the DoubleTree where WIBC was being held, parked, then stood in line to enter the performance, and sat down with about two minutes to spare. I appreciate her being patient with me. My spending probably almost a half-hour looking for a $20 piece of plastic. Although she might have left me in Kent if I had caused us to miss a second of Eleanor’s performance.

Magic Number = -41 (2,041 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

My first stop on the afternoon was at Cowlitz Riverside Park in Kelso, Washington. A new course that had opened in the past year (since the last time I had driven through the area), it was a quick, fun nine holes. There were a few safety hazards present (Holes 2 and 9, in particular). But in the rain, I mostly had the course to myself.

I didn’t realize how tough it was going to be to throw discs again, as I’ve been added to two new medications since the last time I’ve played…and one of the side effects of one of the meds is all-over body aches. I think I’ve lost about fifty feet off my driving distance on the tee, not to mention at LEAST 2-3 “points” off the speed of my release. It hurt to get my drives out there more than 300 feet, but I did my best. And as I tried to knock all of the rust off my game, I limped my way to a -4 (24) on this 2,604-foot course, for an estimated round rating of 955. Not the worst round in the world! But it felt/looked bad. Particularly on the tee.

That bit of a blow to whatever little ego I might have with a disc in my hands (ha)? It was onward, North toward Seattle! But before we got there, we had a break in the rain right around the time we were passing through Centralia, Washington. Where there was another nine-hole course I had yet to play: Rotary Riverside Park. When we pulled into the parking lot and I walked toward the Hole 1 tee, we even got a brief bit of sunshine (the beautiful cover photo for this post)! The sunshine was short-lived, however, as I spent most of the round in the rain. But I had fun. And I met a nice local who was trying to see if I might be a new player he could recruit to local leagues. He said he moved up to Centralia from Newport, Oregon in the recent past.

Before playing the round, I had forgotten how hard it can be to play disc golf in the Fall on courses with a lot of trees! Two or three inches of leaves on the ground made trying to find discs a challenge. I switched from my favorite orange ProLine Squall to a sky-blue ProLine Squall for the round. But even having a bright blue disc on a canvas of brown and orange proved difficult to find my shots off the tee. Thankfully I didn’t lose any discs, carding a -4 (23) for an estimated round rating of 994 on this 2,342-foot course. Well, more like a “924-rated” round…but DGCourseReview.com telling me it was closer to a 994 rated round was good in recovering a bit of that tiny ego I had lost back in Centralia.

Tonight Becky and I are calling it a night in Federal Way, Washington, then tomorrow we’ll see what kind of time I have to sneak in another course or two before Eleanor’s WIBC performance.

Magic Number = -39 (2,039 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

I took a Southerly route home, so I could get the one Central Oregon course (South of Bend) that I hadn’t yet played: Odell Lake Resort and Lodge. I’ve looked at this course on two previous trips in the area, but had never been able to stop and throw a round. And given the perfect weather conditions, it seemed to be the ideal opportunity to add that “+1” to my courses played collection.

A man named Rick, one of the staff at the Lodge, was teasing me when I arrived…asking me if I was prepared for a seven-mile hike through the bush to try and find all eighteen holes! They also warned me (about 2-3 times) how easy it would be for me to become lost. I teased that I didn’t have a flare with me if I needed help (only to seriously add that I don’t have any flares, since folks around Oregon don’t like to joke about stuff like that during the dry (fire) season). But after finding my way to the Hole 1 tee (above) and then searching for the Hole 2 basket, I heard a UTV approaching. It was Rick, wanting to help me have at least a general idea of the flow/layout of the full eighteen-hole course.

After catching a ride around the entire course area, Rick brought me back to Hole 2 and wished me luck. I still had trouble locating a few of the tee areas and baskets (as we didn’t find a few of them while riding around in the UTV). But his helping me made it a LOT easier to navigate the course. I even found a few tees and baskets that he and I missed while riding around the course area! And I took pictures from every tee area I could confidently verify…uploading them on to the course record at DGCourseReview.com.

That property has an amazing amount of potential! It makes me want to spend weeks on-site, putting on my course designer’s hat and helping them turn a rough-around-the-edges existing course into one of the better courses in Southern Oregon! Not only that, but seeing them installing eighteen new DGA Mach VIIs or Mach Xs at the property. [/DGA Ambassador]

Navigating the course as best I could, as well as using a couple of “nearest trees” as targets (where baskets were either missing or severely damaged), I managed to shoot a -4 (50), for an estimated round rating of 931. My lowest estimated round rating of the trip, but that didn’t matter. I got to see a BEAUTIFUL piece of property adjacent to a beautiful lake…while giving my DGA ProLine Squall a workout.

Magic Number = -37 (2,037 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

After the conference ended, I noticed in UDisc that there was one small nine-hole course roughly a mile down the road from me. So after saying a few goodbyes, and before having dinner with friends, I decided I would go over to check and see if I was allowed on the property. There were mixed messages on several of the resources I reviewed. Some saying the course was only available to members of the homeowners association in the community. Others saying that the course is available to the public and/or guests of the homeowners association. But in the end, I decided to play the course, after our State SBDC Network had just finished spending a pretty penny for us to meet in the community (literally the nicest hotel room I have ever stayed in….and I have spent years of my life crisscrossing the planet staying in hotels).

Sunriver SHARC DGC was a super short (1,185 feet over nine holes), super fun nine holes! Obviously several ace runs (no aces for me…sigh)! But a surprising amount of challenge for a course as short as it is. I was hoping to shoot no worse than an eighteen over nine holes, but Hole 7 (a right-to-left 125-foot right angle around a hill) got me. After missing my ~20-foot putt, I needed to settle for a -8 (19) and an estimated round rating of 935. Can you see me? Shaking my fist at the sky for not getting my deuce/two on Hole 7, when I only have myself and my suspect putting ability to blame?

Tonight I’ll be spending one last night in paradise (did I mention a two-story room, with a full kitchen, two bathrooms, a living/dining room, giant fireplace and back deck overlooking a golf course?), before heading back for home tomorrow.

Magic Number = -36 (2,036 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

I thought that today should be the day to play the highest-rated disc golf course in Oregon that I hadn’t yet seen: Waterloo DGC in Waterloo, Oregon. I had perfect weather to play a lot of disc golf, and the course did not disappoint! It is my type of course design, with lots of fussy/narrow lines off the tees that must be hit in order to post a good score on the card. Lots of trees, and smaller bits of elevation change around the fairways and baskets.

By the time I made it to Hole 14, I caught up to two players in front of me who were searching for a lost disc near the fairway. They asked if I wanted to play through, but I told them I wasn’t in a hurry and would be happy to help them find the disc…which ended up being under a plant in the fairway. We then got to talking, and we played the last few holes of the course as a threesome.

One of the guys I played with was named Jeff Hemmerling. Jeff said he is a bit of a course collector, having played more than one hundred courses around the region. I used the opportunity to sing the praises of DGA, as well as tell him about my role on their team. He then teased me, faking a little bow and saying: “I’m not worthy” (a la Wayne’s World), LOL. His buddy playing with him was named Jared, who originally came out to Oregon from Nebraska. So at the risk of sounding a little immodest, I also told Jared that the last time I had checked? I had played more disc golf courses in Nebraska (106) than anyone else in the sport. After I said it, I worried that he might think I was a little full of myself. But I only mentioned it to let him know that I had seen/played most of the courses on his home turf. Which we both thought was pretty cool! Two guys from Minnesota and Nebraska, comparing course notes on courses in the Midwest in Oregon. I ended up shooting a -4 (50) at Waterloo, for an estimated round rating of 1029. A pretty awesome experience, all-around.

After finishing up at Waterloo, I headed over to the VERY private, VERY beautiful Camp Tadmor. I had reached out to Camp staff days earlier, since the course description said that players are not allowed to simply show up, looking to play a round. Erik Tuneberg, the Camp’s Director of Guest Services, said that if I could come after 1:00pm today, they would let me play…as they had some groups on the property until that time. I happily agreed.

After getting through the entry gate via instructions Erik had provided to me, I made my way to the parking area near the Hole 1 tee. Then as I started my round, Erik came over to talk with me. Making sure I am “good people.” We had a good conversation, and I told him how much I appreciated the opportunity to check out the property. Some of the eighteen-hole course had become a little overgrown, but there were still a lot of fun shots to be had! Hole 18 was definitely my favorite. Erik said the only rule for playing the course was that if I threw my tee shot on 18 into the water, there was NO SWIMMING ALLOWED. After finishing my round, I told him that I got my deuce on 18 to wind up shooting a -3 (51). Or a -21, if you use the posted pars. But either way, DGCourseReview.com said it was good enough for an estimated round rating of 990.

Finishing up at Camp Tadmor, I decided it was time to get greedy and try to sneak in two more courses over by Sisters and Bend before having dinner with a colleague. The first course was the nine-hole Black Butte Ranch DGC in Black Butte Ranch, Oregon. A VERY “swanky” (is that a word?) private community where people seem to have one heck of a lot more money than I do. I wasn’t one hundred percent certain I was allowed to be there. But there were no signs formally saying that I couldn’t be at that park, so I decided to take my chances. I ended up shooting a -2 (25), for an estimated round rating of 1019. The course was okay. Nothing great, nothing terrible. Just your typical nine-hole recreational course. But I was mostly happy for the opportunity to get another +1 in my Courses Played Collection.

My final, hurried round on the day was at Hyzer Pines at S.O.A.R. in Sisters, Oregon. I never did find out what S.O.A.R. stands for. If anyone reading this knows, I would love a comment to clue me in! I was too busy making my way around the course as quickly as possible, trying to make it to dinner in Sunriver. I had fun, as it is another very technical course design that suits my playing ability well. I ended up shooting a -2 (52), for an estimated round rating of 971.

All told, I managed sixty-three holes of disc golf at four new courses on my way to Sunriver. I am tired tonight, but I am happy. Since moving to the Oregon Coast, finding time (and quite honestly, new courses to play) has been MUCH more difficult than it used to be. Plus I’ve wanted to check out all four courses for more than a year, so being able to finally cross those courses off of my Oregon disc golf bucket list feels great. Dinner and conversation was great too! But now it is time for sleep…so I can get some good work done at the conference tomorrow.

Magic Number = -35 (2,035 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

Fortunately for me, there was a great eighteen-hole course that I hadn’t yet played, a few miles from my conference hotel: Two Rivers Park. A course that reminded me a little bit of the first disc golf course I had ever played with baskets (Riverside Park in St. Cloud, Minnesota), it took a little more than two miles (one-way) to walk there. But I had about four hours this morning before my opening pre-conference session, so I decided to walk over to the course with my DGA ProLine Tempest and DGA ProLine Squall, the only two discs I had room for in my carry-on, to see what I could do.

I have to say, I REALLY liked this course! Just a bit under 6,000 feet over eighteen holes, the course had a nice mix of elevation changes, along with just enough trees to force you to shape your shots (in order to have any chance at getting your deuces). I started out shooting five threes and a four (-1, with posted pars), but then after shaking the rust off, I started to play really well. Surgical strikes off the tee, and only one missed putt on the round.

After deucing Holes 7, 10, 14, 15 and 17, I was standing on the Hole 18 tee (above) needing a deuce to break into the 40s for my round. And on that 307-foot hole, I landed my tee shot about ten feet right of the basket…pin high. I thought shooting a 49 on that course was a VERY strong round. Particularly considering that I had a few mile, sweaty walk to the course and only two discs to my name. DGCourseReview seemed to agree with me, estimating my rating for the round to be 987.

I would love to play a couple more courses while I am here in Tennessee! But I’m not here to disc golf, I am here for work. And without a car? This was the only course I am able to reach on foot in the time I have allowed. So we’ll need to consider a +1 in my course collection to be good enough for this trip. My 30th course I have played in Tennessee over my lifetime.

Magic Number = -31 (2,031 Courses Played)

ABOUT DEREK

Derek Tonn is a member of the DGA’s Ambassador Team. His company, Mapformation, LLC, has been DGA’s partner in the development of disc golf tee signage since 2012. The longer our two companies have worked together, and the more Derek has gotten to know all the great folks at DGA, the more he has wanted to formally sing the company’s praises. The more he has realized that “Steady” Ed’s (the father of disc golf and the modern-day Frisbee) vision for the sport and his company perfectly describes his own interests and priorities related to disc golf, and the more Derek has recently been encouraged to share his story.

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf

DGA Disc Golf