A Return to the Familiar... & the Cold

Family business had me in the Cities this last weekend. Unfortunate business of the short notice variety. Sunday afternoon, however, allowed some time to reconnect with Twin Cities discing, a sorely missed commodity. I was able to meet up with the MRK (and a special thanks to Mrs. MRK for allowing such a short notice excursion!) at Bassett Creek in Crystal.

While not the most difficult of courses, I will say that it is adequate, especially for this point in the year. And by this point in the year, I mean that we were playing two days after a 4" downfall of snow. It was fairly cold. Bummer to live in Minny, I guess!

Anyway, MRK displayed his usual command of the mid-range game. I provided my customary erratic drives, complete with an insufferable short game (another post for another time). MRK counted himself the victor at Bassett Creek yet one more time. But truth be told, it was absolutely wonderful to get out with the King. As he mentioned in his previous post, there's just something about playing with someone who will push you that will truly bring development, and with it, a sense of satisfaction. I have disced with all of you on several occassions. We've shared aces; we've shared lost plastic; we've cold lamped together. I greatly miss playing with my Minny brethren. In Sunday's round, I found a small amount of resolution in my discing soul.

I can't wait to play with you all at Highbridge this summer. 'Til then, work those hyzers, add a shot or two to the bag, and for goodness sakes! Practice your putting! I'll catch ya'll on the flip side!

~Diggs

For the Love of the Creek...and the thrill of the fade.

This last week I had the opportunity to play a course that I really don’t give enough credit for being a good course to practice on, Crystal, Minnesota’s very own Bassett Creek Park. I tended to avoid this park because it only offered 12 holes to play and while in college we simply wouldn’t want to drive all the way to Crystal only to play 12 holes. Nowadays it’s really not that big of deal since I live relatively closer to the course.




Bassett Creek Park offers a variety of different holes in which to practice all types of shots. I really like the mix of open holes with the occasional shot that causes a person to wonder why they even play this crazy game. It makes you really plan out your shots and where you need to place your discs on the course. I also like this course because it a fairly quiet park and allows for a steady pace to play your round.


Ok, to the point of my post: I was planning on doing my usual routine that I follow when I play by myself. Throw the i-pod play list (maybe a post on the play list later) on and play like I’m in a tournament. However, today (Tuesday) was different. I actually was invited to play a round with a guy named Chris who was a great partner to play with. I would say that he had more refined skills than I but they weren’t so advanced that I felt out of my league.


I hear on sportscenter all the time that teams will usually play up to the potential of the team they are playing. Well I did that when I played with Chris. Originally he wanted to challenge me for a bag tag but since I didn’t have one he just asked to play with him. I definitely stepped up to the plate and made some great shots. My drives were consistent and in great spots on the fairway. Great second shots and results were close par putts. My putting was still shaky but luckily I didn’t need to use it much since I am the MRK after all. One bright spotlight that I’d love to share with everyone is that on hole eight I had about a 70 foot approach shot with a slight wind at my back. I decided to just go for the chains and see what happens. Well it paid off. I threw my aviar with a slight hyzer and let the wind do the rest. “Chained out?” Is that the proper term? I know they say “holed out” in ball golf. Oh well. the disc hit the chains and didn’t come out of the basket. I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Ordinarily I would have probably jumped and hollered but I kept it professional (for the kids). Just a classy Tiger Woods fist pump instead.


Small triumphs bring great rewards. I ended the round back on earth carding a fricken 6 on hole 11. I strongly dislike that hole. But overall, it was great to play a round with a partner and the unofficial competition and competitive nature to be unleashed. Chris was a great partner we talked about the disc’s we liked to use and compared notes on the shots we were taking. So Chris I know you won’t read this but Good Luck at The Valley Open this weekend and the Doubles tourney as well.


For the rest of us: Play well, have fun, and when in doubt. Just go for the chains..you might get lucky.