2026 Coleman Challenge
Rain, Pain, and Realization (“Gain” Perhaps?)
This post mortem took a while to write, as there are a few other time-sensitive issues that managed to get in the way. As such, the details are starting to get a little fuzzy, especially since most of them are pretty disappointing. There were a few bright spots, but between the rain, the poor play, and a few "outside of disc golf" concerns that were running around in my head, those spots were few and far between.
Ah, Coleman Memorial Park, how I love thee…” except when you do me dirty! Here is a course that fits with my preferred style of play; Wooded fairways that make my lack of driving distance less of an issue, guarded greens that make putting a challenge for everyone, and an environment that encourages EVERYONE’S scramble game, not just my own! I’ve put many hours into making the Coleman Park DGC one of my local favorites. You could say that I’ve “wined her and dined her”, given her gifts (lost a few discs), and expounded to everyone who would listen about her many virtues.
So for her to turn around and kick me in the … er … “minis”, rain on my parade (literally!), and visit various and sundry indignities upon my game was, at the very least, a betrayal of the highest order!
Maybe she was miffed because I said that I liked the Lake Marshall “Lair” course better than her…?"
Video Clips
With the constant rain, I really didn’t want the added frustration of trying to maintain the camera, worry about the position of the cart, and keep the rain from messing with the microphones. I stowed the camera for this event — thinking that, perhaps, I could focus more on the event and less on the video, and that might help my game.
I was sorely mistaken.
But at least I didn’t have a permanent record of the debacle. I guess I should be thankful for the little things…
Scores for the Tournament
Both rounds were played in constant rain, making grip and footing even more of a concern than normal. Usually, I enjoy the challenge of the “less-than-optimal” weather, but in this case it just made shot planning more difficult and shot execution less consistent.
Just what I needed to recover from my disappointing showing at Lake Marshall.
(Hopefully, you all caught the sarcasm in that statement.)
| Hole | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | ||
| Par | Score | Par | Score | |
| 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| 6 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| 7 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| 8 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| 9 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 11 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 12 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 13 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| 14 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| 15 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 16 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 17 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| 18 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Score | 57 | +11 (68) | 69 | +14 (83) |
| Rating | 874 | 931 | ||
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Par | Score | |
| Rd 1 | Par | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 57 | |
| Score | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | +11 | 68 | |
| Rd 2 | Par | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 69 | |
| Score | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | +14 | 88 | |
Tournament “Post Mortem”
It’s been a “hot minute” since this tournament left it’s mark (and bruises) on my psyche, but I’ll do my best to record what memories that I haven’t suppressed. Re-living this one is going to be a bit… er… well, let’s just say that it isn’t going to be pleasant.
The first round was set on the shorter, “Yellow” course. We started near the beginning of the course, around hole 3 or 4. I recall that my drives on the first hole or two were clean, but soon after that my consistency simply disappeared and I started hitting trees on this heavily wooded course with horrifying frequency. I do remember that the backhand drive on hole 6 was an early release which hit one of the first available left-side trees and shot well into the left rough, forcing a pitch-out second shot, then an approach that stayed wide left followed by a two-putt from 20 feet. Hole 7 also saw the initial drive release early into the left rough, and it took TWO attempts to get back to the fairway, followed by a poor approach and another two-putt. That triple bogie, combined with the previous hole’s double bogie, completely destroyed any confidence that I had and started a frustration spiral that would least through the rest of the round. Holes 12, 13, and 14, normally simple and straightforward pars, were all turned into frustration fueling bogies. Hole 17 was the worst, where another early release required a pitchout for recovery, then a good approach was negated by a two-putt from 15 feet.
In the end, on a course where my average score was 3-over (60), the 11-over par 68 was scored 30 points below my rating. I was wet, frustrated, and so disappointed in my play to that point that I seriously considered abandoning the second round. My focus wasn’t where it needed to be to play well, as there were non-disc-golf-related playing on my mind. However, if nothing else, I am stubborn, and I hate to admin when I’ve been bested by real estate!
(Plus, one of my card mates was the one-and-only J. Gobrecht, and I’ll NEVER pass up the opportunity to compete with, and learn from, a man with multiple world championships on his trophy shelf!)
The second round was played on the longer, and much more difficult, “Red” layout. Again we started out near the front of the course, and again I slogged through the course. I never felt comfortable with any part of my game, with early released drives, poor distance control on approaches, and MULTIPLE two and tree putt finishes contributing to a round that spun quickly out of control. I believe that I may have had 4 or 5 clean drives during the entirety of the round (one leading to my sole birdie of the day on hole 7), and perhaps a half dozen circle-1 putts that were not followed by a second (or third) come-back putt. In the end, a dismal score of 14-over-par (83), rated at 931, was so far under my average of (+4) that it increased my average more than an entire point!
Takeaways
I didn’t give up after the first round. ( This may seem like a given, but that first round was mentally crushing! )
After some initial “frustration fog” I was able to keep my head (mostly) focused on the shot at hand.
Preparation. I had enough dry clothes, and more than enough towels, to make it through two rainy rounds.
Positives
Consistency. Drives were both early- and late-released, approaches were all over the place (mostly not enough angle and distance), and putts missed left, right, and low.
Correction. It’s hard to fix mechanics when there’s no consistency to the mistakes, but I could have picked SOMETHING to change.
Focus. Too many things on the mind leads to not enough focus on the course. If you can’t pay full attention to the game, you shouldn’t play.
Negatives
I’ll be taking some time to deal with some personal issues. The next time I’ll be in competition will be at the Crawdad Cooker in Camp Hill, PA, on June 19th
So, until I see you out on the course...
Go Smash Some Chains!
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