I’ve met a lot of disc golfers in my relative short time playing this game.
Some jam as many discs in their bag as they can. It’s a virtual rainbow in there, with colors, brands and anything one can think about having.
You have the types who are very loyal to certain brands and will try and carry only that brand of discs — and even a bag by said company.
No matter if you fit one of these types or something else, people tend to be loyal to certain things. Whether it’s the willingness to try anything out there or the loyalty to stick with one single manufacturer, the choices for a disc golfer are endless.
So we want to see where you stand when it comes to brand — but we’ll get to that poll shortly.
First, let’s check out last weeks poll when we were wondering how many aces you guys have.
The results were pretty interesting.
Of the 192 people who cast a vote, 58 (30 percent) said they had no aces. I, unfortunately, am in that bunch, too!
That was followed by 2-5 aces, which received 56 votes (29 percent). One ace tied with 6-10 with 20 votes (10 percent), followed by 11-25 (20 votes/10 percent), 26-50 (7 votes/4 percent); more than 100 (7 votes/4 percent) and 51-100 (4 votes/3 percent).
Some of those numbers are crazy!
If I have one ace during my days of playing disc golf, I’ll jump for joy. But having somewhere upwards of 50 or 100? Holy smokes! I wonder what the feeling is like compared between the first and the 100th? Does that excitement ever calm a bit, or is always wild?
Before getting back to this week’s poll, let’s see what some readers had to say about aces.
Christopher said:
I’ve come darn close many times, even a few “metals” but still haven’t made that magical ace yet. It’s close. I can feel it.
I’ve clanged metal a few times on some short holes. I figure it’s the Disc Golf Gods telling me my time in not up yet.
Jeremy G notes:
I just hit my 24th ace last week, but I’m the first to admit the course I got almost all of them at is a short, technical course (Twincreek in Germantown, Ohio). My longest is only a 200-footer and that was in an open-field course (Hole 2, Turtlecreek). I don’t get as excited about them as I use to, but it’s hard to not get excited about a “1? on your score card!
To me, it doesn’t matter where it is or how long the hole is — an ace is an ace. Would it feel better to sink a 500-foot ace over a 200-foot ace? Sure. But does it take away from the aces you have? Not at all. Congrats on hitting your 24th!
Jeff Hoot said:
With all the “almosts” I’ve had, I’d think that eventually one would get in, even if by accident!
I think you have people who will fully agree with you there!
Nyles J notes:
I really just want one ace. I’ve been playing just over 2 years and hope to get one soon. The problem lately for me is it gets in my head. I step up to a hole that with the perfect shot, I’ll get that elusive ace, and that’s all I can think about. I’m thinking I’ll get one if I can just not think about it so much.
That’s an interesting point. I know I’m not the greatest disc golfer out there, but when I get to a hole that seems to have a perfect line and be within my throwing distance, I find myself wondering if I could give it a run. And then it hits three trees and bounces 100 feet in another direction. It is an interesting though about how much that might play a roll.
Dave said:
Two at Oak Grove. The first was on basket No. 2 that skipped in, unfortunately I lost the disc later that day. The second was on the final basket where I got some arbor love, my disc bounced off a tree by the basket & went in. Both were with Innova Vulcans.
A skip in and one off trees. Now that is way cool!
Tim J said:
Zip. Nada. Never even sniffed one. But my nephew got one, and when I told a friend I play with about it, he immediately purchased the exact weight disc that my nephew used for his ace (a 174g Vibram Sole), which is now my friend’s go-to putter! One ace (not even one’s own) can change a man.
It will be an even more interesting story if your friend gets an ace with said disc!
Some of the ace stories out there really are quite interesting and fun. In ball golf and disc golf, that ace is pretty amazing. I’ve clanged a couple baskets (never chained out on an ace attempt) in my days and when I used to play ball golf, I came close a few times. The closest was one that hit the pin, dropped and stopped an inch from the hole. We watched for a few minutes hoping for a major gust of wind, but it wasn’t to be.
I might be one of those people destined to go life without an ace — and I’m OK with it. I’ll just enjoy living vicariously through the stories of others hitting their aces!
And now back to this week’s poll.
Brand loyalty is in all parts of life. It could be picking Pepsi over Coke or vice versa. Maybe it’s the brand of shoes you wear. Or bread you eat. Or computers and other electronics.
And, as you can note in movies, television and pop culture, brand placement is a very strategic item.
Disc golf isn’t much different. Some people are very loyal to their brand of choice. Some aren’t as loyal.
But what if you had no choice?
If you had to choose one brand to play with for the rest of all time, what would it be? I’ve tried to include as many manufacturers as possible on this poll, but I’ve also added an “other” selection in case I missed somebody.
So give a vote and drop a comment telling us why you’d choose said brand. It will be interesting to see some of the responses, I’m sure.
[poll id=”38″]
If you have any comments, questions, thoughts, ideas or anything else, feel free to e-mail me and the crew at: pj@rattlingchains.com. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook!
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When I started playing I had no idea about brands or anything, I had mostly Innova and one Discraft. Then I started playing a lot and realized my initial purchase was not well researched and not a great purchase after all. So then I did some research and knew I wanted a Buzz and a Roc, as they were toated as the best, I also wanted a challenger and an Aviar P&A… and so it went, I would buy an equal share of both Innova and Discraft, but then I realized I wasnt learning what each disc could do, so I decided I would choose one brand, learn about how a few discs flew, then add to it as I gained more experience. Due to brand advertisement, website design and training videos, and proabably the most crucial tipping point was the Buzzz, I chose Discraft. Most people I play with throw Innova, so I liked being in the minority… but over time I really have come to love the brand and their discs. I do have to say, I am tempted from time to time to branch out to Innova, Lat 64, and Discmania for their Blizzard type plastic, brilliant innovation! And I just threw the MVP Volt, what a sweet experience! I love the smaller companies like MVP and Vibram whose designs are unique. But in the end I like to stay with the one brand because of the simplicity of knowing one system, but whose to say if I don’t branch out one day…
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I’m an Innova guy, not by choice though… I just started throwing in January and I am lucky enough to have a stepfather who’s been playing for years, he has plastic stacked up (floor to ceiling), most of which is Innova. Most of them are part of entry or prize packages with tourney, sponsor or club stamps on them. I don’t like the stamps much because when people see them they think I was part of said stamp’s events, so I either remove the stamp and leave it blank or do a custom dye.
Of the discs I’ve purchased though, I just go into Disc Nation, tell them about my playing style and what I’m trying to accomplish and take their advice and have purchased a Discmania Jackal and Discraft Meteor. Both are great discs that get regular use during my rounds.
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I’ve always thrown Innova. I’ve tried a few disccraft but never connected with them. Using only one brand is great for finding new discs though since I can just look at the new disc ratings and have a great idea how it will throw for me. This saves me money. Which is always a good thing.
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I carry 4 brands in my bag now, but Innova seems to have the best disc rating system out of all the brands. It’s the most comprehensive, and very easy to understand. Because of that, I’d stick with Innova if I was forced to play with only one brand.
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I like Innovas rating system though some of their discs do not display those rated characteristics during flight and those characteristics(but not the stated ratings) also vary, sometimes dramatically, between runs and plastics Example : Pro Katanas with a bubble top vs Champion flat top Katanas. They are not even remotely the same disc as far as flight is concerned.
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I have thrown almost every Innova disc a big handful of discraft and some odds and ends of Latitude, Vibram, Gateway, Discmania, Millenium and MVP. I have liked many disc from all of these companies. Disc cost money and I usually buy one of any new model I try out. I buy 5 or more of a disc I plan to throw long term. It cost a lot to try out new disc and like them and decided to go with something different from my normal selections. Putters are pretty much the only disc that you may see a big change in my bag example I have owned 12 Vibram putters at one point and they have all been sold or given away. I have owned 20 Super Soft Omegas….all given away. If i lke a disc and truly feel it matches my game I embrace that disc and buy that I spend lots of money. I currently use Discraft putters/ mids and Innova drivers. I do not plan on changing the mids or drivers other than different plastics. Putters I’m always looking for a good putter and I currently use Discraft Cryztal FLX Challengers though they cost too much for my to stack up on them and i have recently given Gateway a shot and would possibly look at switching if I started to lose those Z FLX discs or if they stopped making them. To sum it up it’s just too pricy to try out and embrace new discs and i will stick with what I know works for me and what discs I know will work with me no matter how much my skill goes up or down.
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I throw Innova, Discraft, and Gateway, in nearly even numbers. It would be miserable to give up my Wizards, but it’s got to be discraft for two reasons:
1) the buzzz is unparalleled.
2) my 150g flick is the most versatile utility disc, period. I mystify people with what it can do.
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Innova was the only company I knew existed when I got started disc golfing. I still like them, and primarily use their discs, based on familiarity.
Now that I’ve used discs from just about every manufacturer, Latitude 64 makes some of the best discs, especially drivers. If I had to choose just one brand, I’d probably choose Latitude. The good news is that I don’t have to choose just one brand, so might as well take the best discs from all the manufacturers. My Loyalty is towards the discs that will perform best.
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I have about 30 discs that I have acquired over the past year and half of playing the game. The vast majority are Innova and I think that is because of their easy flight rating system. However, I only carry 8-9 in a round. I have found my game improved when I started leaving all those extra discs at home. Even in my limited set I have mostly Innova, then 1 Lat 64 and 1 MVP disc. And I would not want to give up either of them.
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I voted for Discmania, but this was a tough decision. I have ‘historically’ played almost all Discraft discs. Give me an XL, a buzz, and a challenger and I am good to go. But this year I discovered Discmania and love them. My bag is almost all Discmania, except for an XL. My only hesitation was because I have only one year of experience with Discmania versus over ten years with Discraft. Also, I think that there are some gaps in the Discmania lineup, like a more stable fairway driver, but they are a young company and I am confident that they will fill these gaps.
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I voted Discraft because I do not think I could play without at least 1 Buzzz, but I love having multiple brands in my bad. My ION putter almost caused me to vote for MVP, and maybe after I throw the Volt my vote would change…
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I started playing this summer and as a beginner Innova was all that was available at the store where I bought my first discs. I was very confused about all the ratings systems at first. At this point I think the Marshall Street Flight Guide ( http://www.marshallstreetdiscgolf.com/media/flightguide.html ) has helped me the most with figuring out how all discs fly. Innova takes the cake though. Of the 8 discs in my bag I only have one Discraft disc. I put with a magnet. But I would like to add a buzz to my bag.
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