Making the Call
Knowing and abiding by the rules makes Disc Golf a fair game for everyone playing. Unfortunately, there are no referees so we are the ones to enforce the rules on the course, even in the heat of the competition. It is always a difficult situation for me, and I assume for other players out there, to acknowledge the problem without it ruining the friendly competition. So, I asked the ladies on our Facebook Group how they handle it when someone in their group is not playing by the rules. Read below for their suggestions and experiences…
“I had to do it recently. “I know we all just want to be better players at this game, so I wanted to let you know about this rule in case you didn’t know: (insert rule awareness here).” Anytime I’ve had to bring something up, the person honestly didn’t know.”
“Before the round, I always go over my pet peeves on the course, also on longer courses for us Amateurs it seems holes throw people off or bad shots, I always suggest after a 4 start counting out loud, that way your group knows and there’s no issues with strokes, did you get a 7 or was it an 8 ;)”
“A girl kept standing past her disc/ mini at a tournament the other day, and I brought it up with ” we won’t call u on THAT but there are people who will” She responded with a smile and said thanks for letting her know. “
“I guess it depends on the situation and person. If it’s a rec player, I’ll politely tell them the rule after the hole so they are not embarrassed. However, If it’s a seasoned player I would call them out immediately. Not in nasty way, just a ‘hey watch your feet’ or ‘ I think that was a 6 not a 5.’ if they disagree I say ‘Let’s walk through your throws’.”
“Being that women’s divisions are small, it’s not uncommon for unseasoned players to play up divisions. I made this call to a women playing Open at a team invitational. Another good starter line is “it’s not easy to bring this up, but it is important that you know…” because it’s just the truth, making a call is uncomfortable because you don’t want to come off like your trying to get ahead by tagging points. And YES, AFTER the hole is important so you’re not in their head. I let her foot foul two putts in a row to finish the hole and then proceed. It also shows that it wasn’t a fluke, it’s a mistake.”
“I like to call out rules that are in the player’s favor. For example, letting players know about the meter of relief or how they get 11 and 3/4 inches behind their disc. Even though I’m competing against them, I still want them to play well.”
“If the player is continually rude and out of line, I am not very nice back. At worlds one year, a girl on our card asked one of us to mark our disc because it was distracting her (even though it was 10+ feet away). At that point, we just asked her to show us where in the rulebook it said we were required to do that. Haha! Had she not been so rude the whole round, we probably would have just marked it.”
“I had the unfortunate task of giving an ‘official warning’ to a player in a group in March. It was not fun and very uncomfortable. It was a group of 5 (including myself). It was the 2nd round and I had never played with any of these gals. We were already warning the ‘culprit’ after only 3 holes into the match (talking loudly and singing while we were throwing, yet blocking us out with her head phones when she threw, not paying attention and holding up the whole round!). We each gave her a light/casual warning and then after another 3 holes, we couldn’t take it anymore. We decided that someone needed to say something, ended up being me. We waited until the hole was finished and stopped before we started the next. She did not take it very well and it made the next couple holes VERY UNCOMFORTABLE. At one point the ‘culprit’ came very close to me and I thought it might escalate to something worse. Well, she was drunk…hmm..actually wasted. She kept arguing with us about her warning and then intentionally kept doing it while I was throwing, to upset me further. I had a caddy, so at that point I asked my caddy to go get the TD and ask him to walk along for a couple holes to observe. Before the TD could even arrive, she walked off (still debating the general consensus of 4 other people). It was a horrible experience but we were supported by the male TD and female TD, also by the fact that the ‘culprit’ walked off and quit. I had not played with any of these gals before and I feel like our round together was ruined by one. It’s hard having to warn another player but it just had to be done. It was a learning experience for me and I’m sure for the other gals. I hope that I never have to play with this gal again, ever.”
“I try to be real nice but it is hard to be nice and still get your point across to someone who is not quite so receptive. Even if I know the fault, I politely ask them to help me to clarify the issue. Kinda like voicing your concerns in a positive manner. Try and be gentle when you approach so they do not throw up a barrier!”
