The Birdie Bash

This season I have chosen to not renew my PDGA membership and take a break from the sanctioned tournament scene for monetary and family reasons for the moment. I loved attending tournaments my last two seasons and hope to pick it back up in the future. This post has prompted the thought of another facet to the great game of organized disc golf activities. Dubbed what I am calling "novelty tournaments" For example you may have heard of Discraft's Ace Race tournaments where players get two prototype discs and try to get as many aces or (hole-in-ones) as possible in two rounds of disc golf. Super fun if you have the right course and discs. Another mini tournament that I hope to play in some day is the new Trilogy Challenge. However the event that gives this post credence is known as The Birdie Bash presented by Vibram Discs.

Rules/How to Play

The rules are simple. Try to get as many birdies or better through two rounds of disc golf with two Vibram discs of choice. For each ace/eagle a player earns 5 points, birdie earns a player 3 points, metal hit anywhere equals 1 point. If no one hits metal or birdies the player who is closest to the pin earns 1 point. The overall player with the highest point total after two rounds win.

Players Pack

*You get two discs of your choice (driver/midrange & a putter)
*Vibram dri-fit shirt (Yet another grey disc golf dri-fit for me)
*Vibram Sticker
*Vibram rubber coaster

Disc Selection

I should mention that Vibram discs are not your typical disc golf discs in the traditional plastic sense because they are made of rubber. The Vibram website can fill you in on the specifics of why they make good disc golf discs. However, previous to this tournament I have only thrown one other Vibram disc the X-Link Ascent. A fairway driver that is super over-stable in my experience. So needless to say I was excited to try out some of their other discs and a controlled environment.

I chose the unLace (disc on the right in photo) for my driver. It is an under-stable disc which is a type of disc that I don't have a ton of experience throwing. I chose a lighter weight in this rubber.

My second disc I chose was the X-Link Ridge as my putter. I chose this disc because I was looking for a stable driving putter to add my bag. This putter is just that. I can throw it as hard as a want and it will stay on that line and power through the wind. Great grip as well.

Tournament Results

Well I will say that I didn't win the tournament. I didn't come in dead last either. I had a great time. Made some birdies and hit a few metals and also had quite a few CTPs. The wind the day of the tournament was that just a few miles short of needing an official wind advisory announcement. Not great for the use of an under-stable disc. Great choice MRK.

My second round was much better than the first round. A few more birdies, a few more metals, a few more CTPs. I ended up winning my card and scoring a round prize of a Vibram Birdie Bash sling back pack. It is super cool and I  use it for taking a few discs to the park when I go on walks. I also got very good a releasing my unLace with hyzer and having it flatten out and s-curve for huge drives even in the wind.

If you have a chance to play in a Vibram Birdie Bash. I would completely recommend it. It was a fun, competitive, yet emphasis on fun again environment. Everyone is on the same level to some extent. 

Until next post

MRK.