Participation is disc golf is still on the rise. Even though we are still early into the season, we are seeing more and more of these interest pieces running in smaller publications across the country.

The stories are all similar. Only the cities change. It's nice to see more and more coverage for our sport. Now, if only ESPN would take notice and supplant Sunday afternoon competitive eating with a championship round of disc golf...

Oh well, happy reading.

PDGA Rules! is an attempt at educating existing players on obscure rules of tournament play as well as making competitive play less intimidating for beginners.

Let's discuss grippage.

The question today is whether or not the PDGA rules prohibit the use of any products that aid in a better grip of the disc.

Examples of grip additives are dirt, orange juice, rosin bags, talc, sawdust, gorilla grip, pine tar or Pow'r-tac.

It is the stance of the PDGA ruling committee that grip enhancers should be allowed during play because they also help to increase safety. The committee considers grip additives a generally accepted part of competitive sports.

There you have it. Grip away...

I love reading about disc golf when I'm stuck at my desk and it's a fairly calm 71 degrees outside. At least the we've finally reset our clocks and evening rounds are now a viable option.

This is a read from last year, but it's pretty entertaining. It runs the gamut from caddies to Steady Ed himself. It discusses the possible entry of corporate sponsorship into the sport of disc golf, a prospect that makes many nervous I'm sure, and the counterculture stigma that still follows disc throwers.

In any event, I'm already planning my trip to Augusta (and maybe a disc golf painting or rock sculpture).

PDGA Rules! is an attempt at educating existing players on obscure rules of tournament play as well as making competitive play less intimidating for beginners.

We'll start today by clearing up a popular misconception among players that you cannot borrow discs from other players during a round.

The original question was asked, "what are your options if you lose all your discs during a tournament round?"

Your options are to a) retrieve a disc from your car (if parked nearby), b) buy a disc from an on-site vendor or c) borrow a disc from another player in your group.

It is a popular misconception that players cannot exchange discs during a round. There actually is no rule banning this practice. The rules only indicate that the disc must clearly be marked.

We hope you find this series of posts useful. Check back often as we'll add PDGA Rules! posts frequently.

A few weeks ago, I found myself chasing Coda Hatfield around one of our local parks to see how a real round of disc golf is played by a pro. I got to see everything I wanted and then some. The "some" to which I am referring is the smokin' hot game of Devan Owens, who has exploded recently.

Owens excelled in the less-than-desirable conditions that a February tournament can present to run away with the second leg of the tournament. He was focused, making few errors, and it showed on the leader board.

Running away with a leg of the Tulsa City Championship is one thing, but Owens is now testing his game against the best in the sport in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Tulsa Disc Golf community should be proud to see one of its own competing at the highest level and holding his own.

Leader Board
Live Scoring

With the new Wii remote due out this Spring, the much-anticipated Wii Disc Golf game has almost arrived. The game, which will be available as a download via WiiWare, has evolved greatly since the rumors first broke two years ago. Autonomous Productions, makers of the game, has withheld many of the details surrounding the game. Rumors have spanned from the inclusion of existing courses to the ability to design your own course.

The new gyroscope feature on the Wii controllers will greatly improve player control and make for a much more sensitive touch. Hopefully, this technology will translate over into the disc golf game design. The game designers have been in contact with the PDGA and players to get feedback, and I expect to have a good selection of discs and shots. Hopefully, Innova or Discraft can get involved on a sponsorship deal.

The game will be titled PDGA presents disc golf. If there is enough interest when the game comes out, perhaps we'll see an upgrade to include real online play. There are a lot of great possibilities for the game.

I love Spring temperatures in February! I have been out on the course everyday of this week so far and I don't know how I could possibly pass up today's 75 degree weather. The only thing that gets me down is the drop to the 40's that seems inevitable for the weekend. You just have to make the most with what you get.

Yesterday I was out playing with a group of friends and one of my friends was making the most of it. I was shocked to see his girl strapped to his chest but at the same time kind of in awe. Rest assured that at no time was little London ever at risk to injury. He was extremely cautious and made sure that she wasn't getting jarred about. I actually think she was having a great time with the guys. She was all smiles and I didn't hear her cry once. One of my fears of parenthood was erased by the end of the round.

Let this be a lesson to us all; Baby sitting duty does not mean you can't hit your favorite park and enjoy a round of your favorite sport. You may want to leave the beer at home, but you can still enjoy a round with your friends! Visit Sink-o.com

I am very fortunate to live in a city with a perennial top dozen or so player in the national PDGA rankings. As small as Tulsa is, it is great to be able to go out on most weekends and see one of the top current players competing against the field. This weekend, I got the chance to follow Coda Hatfield around during the final round of the Hunter Park leg of the Tulsa City Championship.

Aside from playing a round with a pro, watching a round in tournament play is probably the best way measure your own game and see what areas need the most improvement. When you aren't playing with them, you also get the chance to study proper approach and focus. In some areas, I was surprised to see the top players making some of the same mistakes that I do. On the other hand, I was able to see how my approach differs and should be corrected in order to achieve more consistency in scoring.

One thing cannot be disputed. These guys can throw long and do it with accuracy. I saw tight shots that sailed almost 400 feet. I remember thinking that, while I have hit some of these shots on this same course, I can't do so consistently and under pressure.

You'd be surprised just how many good players probably live close enough to regularly compete in local tournaments. 1000rated.com lists regularly updated rankings with location and your local disc golf association will post tournament dates and locations. If you're interested in elevating your game, you should consider leaving the discs in the car and walking a round behind some pros. Just remember to be quiet and stay behind the players. I was surprised to be thanked by one of the players in the top group as I walked back to my car after the round. Believe me, the feeling was mutual.

Congratulations to Devan Owens (ranked #146) for pulling off the upset and running away with the tournament in the final holes.

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to watch some disc hurling in the Tulsa City Championship Series #2. Everyone was there bright and early on a cold Sunday morning to put their best disc forward and hit a few birds. The turn out was good and everyone seemed to be in high spirits, I was anyhow!

I am new to the tournament scene and wanted to see how things went down. I am what you would call a "casual" player and never really thought too much about competing. After Sunday though, my opinion of playing in a tournament has changed. I am anxious to get out there and test my skills against others. The tournament participants were all friendly and eager to talk to you about disc golf. The attitude seemed to be the same at the tourney as it is when I am out throwing at my favorite park. Well, maybe they were a little more serious, but for the most part everyone was out there to have fun.

I would advise anyone that has not been out to a tournament to do so. It is not intimidating at all. I felt like everyone was on an equal playing field. The players competed in classes, ranging from recreation to professional. I would also advise getting a PDGA membership to save some cash in tourney fees and more importantly to support the sport that we love!

This is a (sometimes) fun video that outlines the basics of disc golf. It is (somewhat) humorous (at times). They probably could have had a little more fun with it, but the quality is pretty fantastic.

It would be pretty nice if we could get this quality for some shot tutorials. It's getting tiresome watching videos about how to throw thumbers where the quality is so bad that you can't even see the disc leave the hand.

Well done Eric Tippett, well done indeed.

Rain, wind and cold has me down again. The warm and sunny days seem to be falling on Tuesdays this month, and Saturdays are cold and miserable.

I think instead of watching Robot Chicken reruns, I'll get crafty. Probably not as elaborate as this guy, though. I think I'll stick with a trash can and a bottle cap, unless my friends are coming over and we're putting money on it. Then, we'll get official.

The YouTube clip is too choppy to get the technique, but you can hyzer and anhyzer a bottle cap. The jury is still out on the Thumber and Scoober. Probably best not to try out the Tomahawk. I'd bet a roller is pretty effective. Sure beats throwing cards in a hat!

Ben Calhoun, who easily played more rounds of disc golf than anyone else in the country last year, sat down with 1000rated.com to talk about his journey. You can read the interview here.

I could only imagine the planning and funding ($17k!) that went into a trip like that.

"A good disc golf lesson would be to practice, and force yourself to forget your current throwing style and find the right one even if it has been what ‘works’ for you for a long time, it might not be right and you might be stuck at a plateau." - Calhoun

Great advice from a guy who knows his stuff.

Stealing time? How can you not when it's 70 degrees, sunny and windless and you're stuck behind a desk?

When nature isn't cooperating with your work schedule, Disc Golf '03 is here to save you.

Even though it's only 9 holes and lacking in an online scoreboard, it's pretty addictive.

I am sitting here in Denver International and I can’t help but think of all the things I would rather be doing. As you may have guessed, throwing some discs is high on my list, but above that I wish I was with my wife. Lucky for me, Mrs. Birdman loves to throw discs too! Unfortunately though, I am stuck here for the next couple of hours before I fly back to Tulsa and all I have is my laptop to keep me occupied.

I have been in Denver for the last couple of days and I was not able to get out and throw. This really saddens me. I was hoping to play a course or two but I never got the chance. Today would have been perfect, but it just had to snow! I know, you can play in the snow, but my problem was my outerwear. I was ill prepared for the snow. Nice and cold with nothing but my rain jacket. I will just have to take it as a lesson learned and you should probably do the same.

Oh, I forgot to mention all the lovely souls I am observing as I type! People watching has always been a favorite pastime of mine and airports are a Mecca. Now they are no competition for the State Fair but they are up there in the people watching hierarchy. I just enjoy checking out all the different kind of folks that share this planet with me. Young, old, fat, and thin we are all brothers and sisters. Crying babies is always an attention grabber. It is funny how some parents do everything to comfort their child, while others just seem to care less if their offspring is giving everyone a head ache. I always see myself in the little boy running to the restroom. I don’t know what it is with us males, but we always wait to the last possible second to pee. I like watching the couple in their 70’s helping each other. I just get a kick out of it. All in all we are a good nation. We respect each other and most of us are quick to lend a hand. Sink-o.com

Any press is good press, right? I'm beginning to doubt that controversial staple of public relations.

An anonymous city planner in Austin and an Associated Press scanner (likely an intern) at the Wall Street Journal have inadvertently linked up to tarnish the good (and civic) name of disc golf.

It seems that Austin published a list of projects it is requesting federal stimulus money to complete. On the list is a request for $800,000 to build a 36-hole pay course in the city.

Of course, the Wall Street Journal chose to incriminate disc golf in the title, even though the actual story barely mentions the course and offers little information about the specifics. This has caused talk radio across the country to key in on the sport as if disc golfers are responsible for the country's economic demise.

It's good to know that the list is now considered outdated so that the media can take our sport down from the "Cross of Unethical Spending Pork". I just hate to think that millions of people who know nothing about the sport will now have negative connotations popping into their minds when they see a basket at a park or a disc on the shelf instead of focusing on the tons of community projects and fundraisers that are managed and powered by disc golfers across the country.

There is a petition for everything these days. I really mean that.

No doubt you've seen the petition making the rounds to get disc golf into the Olympics. Noble cause. I support it.

I ran across this petition randomly today. Not less noble. Just perhaps a little less thought out.

I don't live in a big city, by any means, but there isn't much money being thrown around in terms of advertising dollars for disc golf around here. I'm not sure that a puff piece on disc golf (which I know has already happened) will open the flood gates of ad revenue.

"The channel that decides to cover Disc Golf is going to open up millions of dollars of new advertising possibilities for their respective station. It will be a win win for everyone. So please consider covering Disc Golf in your local sports news reports."

God bless all seven of you who signed this petition. Even drops in the bucket can add up.

(HINT: Write your local Representative and encourage him or her to add disc golf to your state's elementary education physical education curriculum.)

Disc golf participation is surging, just as ball golf is losing membership. Of course, disc golf won't be taking over the mountain from ball golf any time soon, but it's encouraging the more people are learning about and participating in the sport. No doubt that the new emphasis on "green" living has a great deal to do with this transition.

Treehugger points out that disc golf is much more economical, less time consuming and has much (MUCH!) less of an impact on our environment than ball golf. Disc golfers all surely know this, but it's great to see it in print for those who are unfamiliar with the sport.

In the "comments" section, one reader even points out that the baskets and tee pads (and even defined courses) aren't needed to enjoy a round. Many of us started off playing in open fields throwing at trash cans, trees and street signs with friends.

Disc golf may very well be the ultimate eco-friendly sport in that it doesn't require much maintenance and provides the opportunity for "building dwellers" to get out and reclaim their harmonious balance with nature that toiling inside a box of brick and mortar can steal from you.

Yum. Who wouldn't eat a french fried corn dog on a stick? Pass the ketchup, please.

I couldn't imagine creating one of these on the course with a bag of charcoal and match, but meat on a stick should be a staple of course cuisine. It is one of the more efficient ways to consume once the meat-on-bread routines grows tiresome (the purists gasp!).

Anyway, get to the point, right?

Here is the recipe for Stupid Drunken Chicken. Best of all, it uses only five ingredients. You will impress your buddies (and the ladies) with this one, even though it falls under the realm of juice running down fingers and chin. You only live once, though.

3 1/2-4 lbs chicken
1 can beer (your choice, but light beer won't add much flavor)
salt and pepper
sage
garlic granules, to taste

1. Preheat barbecue.
2. Carefully place chicken onto to open beer can (you may cut the top off the can of beer if you wish).
3. Rub the salt, pepper, sage and garlic onto the outside of chicken.
4. For those who like extra garlic, either half or quarter some cloves of garlic; using a knife, slice some little holes all over the bird and stuff the garlic into those holes.
5. Carefully place your chicken with the beer can in its cavity onto the grill.
6. To help balance it, pull the legs of the chicken slightly forward to rest on the grill.
7. Cook the chicken on low-medium heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until skin is crisp and the juices run clear.
8. Remove with tongs and let the chicken sit for about 10-15 minutes until the chicken and beer can is cool enough to handle.
9. Once chicken is cooled, remove from beer can (discard beer can and any left over contents) and slice up bird as you ordinarily would.

DO NOT DRINK THE USED BEER and also wash your hands after touching the bird.

It only took a 30-minute game of catch between friends with my trusty putter last weekend to remind me just how tough it is to be a disc golf player living in the Great Plains during the waning months of winter.

The first half of winter isn't too problematic. You're still living off the memories of another season come and gone. Occasionally, Mother Nature will throw you a bone in the form of a mid-November day that is particularly humid and warm. However, opportunity dries up as the dark months carry on.

As I perform my weekly ritual of checking the weather forecast and trying to sync my pursuit of the perfect round with what nature has in store for my region, there is one truth on which I can count: If it's going to be warm, it's going to be windy. There's only one way that my area gets warm in January, and it takes a deep breath of wind carrying warmer temperatures up from Texas.

This can be particularly problematic if you are bad as I am in the wind. I think that "non-commital" and "untrusting of one's ability" are excellent phrases to describe me when the breeze kicks up. I can be a serviceable (and, at times, even competitive) when faced with a calm and temperate day.

My favorite time of year to play is coming, though. If I'm in the dark valley of disc golf course conditions, I can rest assured that I'll be delivered soon. I can't think of anything better than catching a round of action just before the storm hits. I even sometimes find myself watching the clouds during rounds in anticipation of a front coming through. There is truly no better time to slice the heavy air with a disc than when a storm is moving in. The lack of wind is unparalleled.

So, while you're packing up the grill, I'll be on the back nine. Just don't run me over on your way down the hill.

Those with a discerning eye will recognize a DeLorean when it is a mere speck in the rearview mirror.

Your heart races. You grip the plastic in the back seat and tear off the next exit to the nearest disc golf course: The season has arrived!

When your local DeLorean aficionado feels safe enough to don his member's only jacket, rhinestone-studded driving gloves and vintage hot pink sunglasses as he takes his relic for an afternoon spin, the disc golf community takes notice.

Much like the running of the bulls or the return of our avian friends from the south, a DeLorean tearing through rush-hour traffic is the universal sign that awakens the tossers of plastic from winter slumber.

One can be sure that I made my way out to my favorite discing hot spot the very next day (as did EVERYONE else). The DeLorean did not disappoint, as I posted a very acceptable +1 in my first round of the new year.

I would advise you not to snap a photo with your cell phone at 75 mph in 5 o' clock traffic on that day when you're driving home and the DeLorean makes his way north to your city.

"If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits eighty-eight miles per hour... you're gonna see some serious shit."
- Dr. Emmett Brown