I recently bought 2 "Clash" DVDs from
www.clashdvd.com. This is a new series of DVDs featuring famous pro players in team play against each other.
Renny Gold: Three on three team play featuring: Ken Climo, Dave Feldberg, Nate Doss (The Untouchables) versus Barry Schultz, Brian Schweberger, Tim Gill (The Touchers). They play on the Renny Gold course in North Carolina.
Winthrop Gold: Doubles on steroids (2v2v2) featuring: (The Champs) Ken Climo & Nate Doss versus (Swedconsin) Barry Schultz & Markus Kallstrom versus (Team Oregon) David Feldberg & Avery Jenkins. They play on the Winthrop Gold course in North Caroline (course used in the USDGC tournament).
I ordered the DVDs and they arrived within 2 days. Excellent turn-around. Both DVDs were excellent. I really enjoyed watching the best players playing at the top of their game on notoriously hard courses. But the best thing was that because it was doubles (or triples) format, there was discussion on many of the holes between the players. Where to lay up, who should go for it, what they were thinking. Normally with disc golf DVDs you don't really get to hear what the golfers are thinking since they're all playing solo. With these, there is some real discussion about what they're trying to do. And amazingly they often do it.
Commentary on both discs was by Billy Crump, aka Nature Boy. He's a blast. Occasionally silly, but he has such earnest in his commentary. It really comes across about how much he loves the sport. I'm not usually a fan of commentary, but overall I thought it worked pretty good. There is also plenty of commentary from the man who led the design and creation of the Renny course, as they're playing it. At one point they Eagle a hole, and he's sort of in awe and says "They're not supposed to be able to do that." When you've got some of the world's best, where they don't have to lay up, you get some amazing shots.
The camera work is also pretty good. There's a PlayerCam that's basically Billy carrying a handheld as he walks around with the players. This picks up some good commentary, but the shakiness makes it difficult to watch. But the tripod camera work, sometimes behind the drive and sometimes behind the basket is rock solid. In these cases you can actually follow the flight of the disc and get a feel for what they're accomplishing.
There's still the occasional camera shot looking down a fairway where the disc is completely out of sight. Either the cameraman has lost track of it, or it has simply been lost amongst the trees. Most every disc golf DVD I've ever watched suffers from this. I sure wish we had the money to afford professional cameras that could zoom in from multiple locations on every hole. But, that would probably also bring (when/if it happens) $25 greens fees.
On the Renny DVD, they also have Michael Johanson (I'm sure I've spelled his name wrong) play through the entire Renny Original course after the tournament. He shoots -17, and on the one hole he pars (it is par 3 all the way for the original course) he's got sort of a stunned look on his face. He's an amazing player. He's played the course a lot (I think they said it was his home course) but he makes it look so incredibly easy. I don't think the course is that easy, I think he's just that good.
Anywho, both were excellent, both were close matches, and overall the two best disc golf DVDs I own. I'm intending to buy the following matches when they become available. The whole thing has me planning a disc golf vacation to N.C. to try to play these two courses next spring. But that's a topic for another thread.
I also thought the Marshall Street 2006 DVD was quite good. But I'll review that in another post.
