Course Strategy

Managing a Blow-Up Hole

Stop one bad shot from becoming three.

Why it matters

Big numbers come from sequences, not from single shots. One throw into trouble is a bogey at worst; it becomes a double or a triple when the next decision is made in frustration rather than in arithmetic. Breaking that sequence is probably the largest single scoring gain available to an average player.

How to do it

Recognise the moment. The throw after a bad one is the dangerous one, and knowing that is most of the defence.
Stop and take a breath before choosing anything. Thirty seconds is enough to get the decision out of the emotion.
Decide what score you will accept on this hole now, and play the shots that guarantee it.
Take the safest route back to a clean lie, however unambitious.
Treat the next throw as its own shot with its own plan, rather than as part of a rescue.

Common mistakes

Throwing immediately after the bad shot while still annoyed.Wait. The urge to put it right at once is exactly what turns one mistake into three.

Trying to get the stroke back on this hole.It is gone. The only question left is whether you lose one more or three more.

Escalating the risk as the hole gets worse.Each throw should be the SAFEST sensible one, and more so as the number climbs. The usual instinct runs the opposite way.

Key points

Reset after the mistake — next shot only.
Take the safe route back to the fairway.
Accept bogey and move on.

The drill

Drill · The next shot rule — 1 round pausing 30 seconds after every bad shot. For one round, after any throw you are unhappy with, stop and count thirty seconds before you even choose a disc. Note at the end how many holes could have become big numbers and did not. The pause is the whole technique and it costs nothing but the time.

Watch: Pro Tips-Nate Perkins Teaches How to Overcome Blow Up Holes | Disc Golf Tips and Tutorials — Robbie C Discgolf