Lost Disc - Your opinion

[DiscGolfCraig]

I've honestly never found a disc with a number on it but if I did I'd call just for peace of mind. I'll pose another scenario: At Cliff Stevens park there are these kids they call "squids" who essentially dive for discs in the numerous water hazards, then sell them. If they find one in the water with a number would they be obligated to call?

In a situation like that, I think it's realistic for them to charge a small fee ($3 - $5) if someone wants their disc back. If people are going to go through all the effort/work to retrieve a disc from a lake, they should get compensated for their time and effort.

 

[blang]

You're not a thief if you find a disc that someone has given up on. You're a moron. Someone obvs didn't care enough to keep looking for it. When I lose a disc I think to myself "someone is gonna find this and get just as much use out of it as I just did."

If you found a puppy with a collar would you return it, or think that "Someone obvs didn't care enough to keep looking for it".

Some times you can look for hours and still not find you disc. That does not mean it was just left because it was not retrieved. Also, often times discs are left out by a player out of courtesy for not holding up other players and looking as long as they would if they were playing solo. If I lost a disc with a group, You will often hear the words, I do not want to hold you guys up, so I guess it is lost.

I went diving for one of my discs for an hour and did not find mine but found another players disc. I returned it to him even though it took effort to find. The bad thing is the disc that I lost ended up in some other hands with their name written over mine. I do not think anyone would think this as cool.

 

[Huff]

I think its pretty shitty to keep someones disc. I have 1 disc that I have kept, and it was completely unmarked and found on a course with no lost n found to turn it into. Other than that I've found probably 20 discs. All marked with a phone # get a call from me right then and there (gives them the opportunity to meet me on the course and pick it up that day if they want). No # and just a name or markings, or completely unmarked I turn into the pro shop/lost n found (if they have one, otherwise I usually will just leave it where it is to hopefully be found by the owner).

I also have NO problem calling people out who are playing with a stolen disc.

 

[ZMan44]

Not trying to open another can of worms here but how about this situation. In my area of the country, we have a chain of stores called "Play It Again Sports" and they sell new and used discs if there are courses in the vicinity. When I go and thumb through the used bins, I see a lot of discs with names that I recognize. I have had a friend who was nearly attacked for a disc that he bought at Play It Again Sports. The disc had been lost and whoever found it sold it to the store and it was resold. We have a lot of people around here who find discs and immediately sell them back to the store. But then if someone else rightfully purchases the disc, are they supposed to return it? For the record, if I find one, I call if there is a phone number on it no matter what. If I see a disc belonging to someone who I know well in the "used" bin, I usually call and tell them its there.

On a side note, if you want the disc back, please put your phone number on the disc. There is a guy that plays at my home course, and all he puts on his disc is his PDGA number. No name. No phone number. He expects you to go online, type in his number and look him up, and if you don't he will eat you or attack you in parking lots. And you had better have internet on your cell phone because if you leave the course with his property, then fire will rain down on your head.

 

[nygfaninva]

Not trying to open another can of worms here but how about this situation. In my area of the country, we have a chain of stores called "Play It Again Sports" and they sell new and used discs if there are courses in the vicinity. When I go and thumb through the used bins, I see a lot of discs with names that I recognize. I have had a friend who was nearly attacked for a disc that he bought at Play It Again Sports. The disc had been lost and whoever found it sold it to the store and it was resold. We have a lot of people around here who find discs and immediately sell them back to the store. But then if someone else rightfully purchases the disc, are they supposed to return it? For the record, if I find one, I call if there is a phone number on it no matter what. If I see a disc belonging to someone who I know well in the "used" bin, I usually call and tell them its there.

On a side note, if you want the disc back, please put your phone number on the disc. There is a guy that plays at my home course, and all he puts on his disc is his PDGA number. No name. No phone number. He expects you to go online, type in his number and look him up, and if you don't he will eat you or attack you in parking lots. And you had better have internet on your cell phone because if you leave the course with his property, then fire will rain down on your head.

I agree with this statement. I mean if it was bought at Play it Again Sports (I buy many discs there as well) then its yours. Hopefully it was found and any attempt to locate the original owner failed and THEN it was turned into the store for resale. At least I hope so. If I find a disc with a number on it I will call and hope the person meets me in the park while I play. Once a guy couldn't make it and asked me to hide it under a tree on a certain hole, he took his chances that it would still be there. With no number I feel its fair game. I usually give ones I find with no number or no answer to new people I'm introducing to the sport or kids in my youth group that are just beginning to play the sport with me and my sons. I have a bag of discs I use and like a lot. They are all marked with a simple NYG. This is just so if I'm playing on a crowded day and my disc gets crossed with another players disc that happens to be the same brand and color we'll know which one is mine. I personally feel if I lose a disc its fair game. Of course, many local players know me and my love of the G-Men and I have had a time when someone found one of my NYG discs and kept it in his bag until he ran into me again. That was a very cool thing to do, but I don't expect that of everyone. Thats up to them.

 

[DiscGolfCraig]

Not trying to open another can of worms here but how about this situation. In my area of the country, we have a chain of stores called "Play It Again Sports" and they sell new and used discs if there are courses in the vicinity. When I go and thumb through the used bins, I see a lot of discs with names that I recognize. I have had a friend who was nearly attacked for a disc that he bought at Play It Again Sports. The disc had been lost and whoever found it sold it to the store and it was resold. We have a lot of people around here who find discs and immediately sell them back to the store. But then if someone else rightfully purchases the disc, are they supposed to return it? For the record, if I find one, I call if there is a phone number on it no matter what. If I see a disc belonging to someone who I know well in the "used" bin, I usually call and tell them its there.

I'd think most of the people buying the used discs are either newbies or very casual players. You can't fault them for an honest transaction. A much easier solution would be for the stores not to purchase discs that have personal info on it, unless the seller shows ID, proving the discs are theirs.

 

[High Flyer]

Next question: If you find someone who has your disc, is it reasonable to be angry with them?

All you have to say is, "I believe you have my disc." If you're trying to teach them a lesson, my opinion is they'll probably feel worse if you just calmly approach them. If you "attack" them, then you're the jerk, and once their wounds have healed they still hate you.

Personally, if I saw someone with one of my champion discs with 2 phone numbers on it (one being a local number), and it was one that just fell out of my bag or I just forgot to pick up, I'd be a little irrate, but I'd try to restrain myself from being too confrontational. If they had to climb 50 feet up a tree, or go diving for it, I'd be a lot more understanding, and would probably just tell them to keep it, they earned it.

All in all, I've found more discs without contact numbers than I've lost, so I suppose I don't have much to complain about.

 

[Nickwells]

A puppy is a completely different situation for two reasons. One being that a dog costs a HELL of a lot more than $10 plastic. Two; a dog has four legs and can use them. A dog can be in a completely different area code in an hour. A disc is gonna be where you throw it. If you don't find it by the time someone gets to it then maybe you should've looked a lil harder. If you're afraid that you're gonna hold people up playing behind you then have them go ahead while you look. If you're afraid your friends are gonna be pissed 'cause you're holding them up then they're not real good friends. They should help you find it. The bigger group looking for a disc has a better chance. I don't understand why everyone gets so upset if someone doesn't return a disc. Yeah, it sucks that you spent $8-$20 on it... but you had fun with it. If someone else finds it they're gonna have just as much fun with it. It might even jump start someones disc golf career. Someone might have came there borrowing a friends disc and left with his very first disc. When a disc goes missing; think positive. Don't get all bent over it.

If you found a puppy with a collar would you return it, or think that "Someone obvs didn't care enough to keep looking for it".

Some times you can look for hours and still not find you disc. That does not mean it was just left because it was not retrieved. Also, often times discs are left out by a player out of courtesy for not holding up other players and looking as long as they would if they were playing solo. If I lost a disc with a group, You will often hear the words, I do not want to hold you guys up, so I guess it is lost.

I went diving for one of my discs for an hour and did not find mine but found another players disc. I returned it to him even though it took effort to find. The bad thing is the disc that I lost ended up in some other hands with their name written over mine. I do not think anyone would think this as cool.

 

[Marv Vega]

.

On a side note, if you want the disc back, please put your phone number on the disc. There is a guy that plays at my home course, and all he puts on his disc is his PDGA number. No name. No phone number. He expects you to go online, type in his number and look him up, and if you don't he will eat you or attack you in parking lots. And you had better have internet on your cell phone because if you leave the course with his property, then fire will rain down on your head.

I agree, it should be as convenient as possible for someone to contact another about a lost disc. Each disc should have a phone number and name, to just put a PDGA # on a disc and expect someone else to do all the work of tracking you down is just rude.

 

[Huff]

A puppy is a completely different situation for two reasons. One being that a dog costs a HELL of a lot more than $10 plastic. Two; a dog has four legs and can use them. A dog can be in a completely different area code in an hour. A disc is gonna be where you throw it. If you don't find it by the time someone gets to it then maybe you should've looked a lil harder. If you're afraid that you're gonna hold people up playing behind you then have them go ahead while you look. If you're afraid your friends are gonna be pissed 'cause you're holding them up then they're not real good friends. They should help you find it. The bigger group looking for a disc has a better chance. I don't understand why everyone gets so upset if someone doesn't return a disc. Yeah, it sucks that you spent $8-$20 on it... but you had fun with it. If someone else finds it they're gonna have just as much fun with it. It might even jump start someones disc golf career. Someone might have came there borrowing a friends disc and left with his very first disc. When a disc goes missing; think positive. Don't get all bent over it.

the 'you shouldnt have stopped looking for it' argument is just a nice way to justify simple theft. I have had to abandon searches for discs before due to loss of light and then have gone back the next day and ended up finding it. So if you had come along before me that morning and found my disc and stolen it then its my fault for not having spent the night sitting in the woods till it got light enough to search again?

just because discs are prone to getting lost doesnt mean they're no longer the property of their owner. Hence, if someone makes the effort to mark thier disc so that i can be returned to them, its certainly not your place to decide that that person should care about their property and its better off in your bag or with 'a new player'. We were all new players at one point and had to get our own discs, they can do the same.

Do you also keep found wallets? Even though theres ID in them... hell... when the owner lost it they probably should have 'looked a lil harder', eh?

 

[Huff]

I agree, it should be as convenient as possible for someone to contact another about a lost disc. Each disc should have a phone number and name, to just put a PDGA # on a disc and expect someone else to do all the work of tracking you down is just rude.

agreed. a PDGA # is fine additional info.


All of my discs have my name and # on them. Some have an email address as well. and most say something like 'Instant Karma for returned discs' or 'Please call if found'.

 

[Huff]

When a disc goes missing; think positive. Don't get all bent over it.

Its not missing its temporarily misplaced. I know approximately where it is, I just haven't found it yet. Its not missing until someone who thinks like you makes it missing by stealing it.

 

[Donovan]

I will return all discs with name and number on it,
unless it is a really good disc then you can all kiss my butt!

Seriously, it is the right thing to do. . .just return it.

 

[DiscGolfCraig]

the 'you shouldnt have stopped looking for it' argument is just a nice way to justify simple theft. I have had to abandon searches for discs before due to loss of light and then have gone back the next day and ended up finding it. So if you had come along before me that morning and found my disc and stolen it then its my fault for not having spent the night sitting in the woods till it got light enough to search again?

just because discs are prone to getting lost doesnt mean they're no longer the property of their owner. Hence, if someone makes the effort to mark thier disc so that i can be returned to them, its certainly not your place to decide that that person should care about their property and its better off in your bag or with 'a new player'. We were all new players at one point and had to get our own discs, they can do the same.

Do you also keep found wallets? Even though theres ID in them... hell... when the owner lost it they probably should have 'looked a lil harder', eh?

I'm having flashbacks to Billy Madison talking about the lost puppy book with this analogy.

Technically, a lost disc is either at a park, which is public property or at a private course. So if you leave the disc behind you really can't expect to have it returned. Even with all the time searching for a disc, at some point you have to except that a disc is lost and move on. I just hope we don't have our first case of lost-disc rage anytime soon.

 

[Huff]

ah, lets add the public vs private course element.

Not sure how you guys playing in parks n such deal with it, but since all of our courses on on private land there is usually a lost n found option too. How do you justify going on to person A's property, finding property that person B left there, and thinking that you as person C have some claim to ownership there?

we even have courses around here that have divers come in once or twice a year and do massive disc recovery dives and all marked dics get back to the owners.

 

[DiscGolfCraig]

ah, lets add the public vs private course element.

Not sure how you guys playing in parks n such deal with it, but since all of our courses on on private land there is usually a lost n found option too. How do you justify going on to person A's property, finding property that person B left there, and thinking that you as person C have some claim to ownership there?

we even have courses around here that have divers come in once or twice a year and do massive disc recovery dives and all marked dics get back to the owners.

The owners of the private course can claim ownerships of lost discs themselves. Unless a disc has special value to you, you've got to realize that once you give up searching, you're probably never going to see it again. That way if someone actually does call you back, it's a gift.

 

[Huff]

The owners of the private course can claim ownerships of lost discs themselves. Unless a disc has special value to you, you've got to realize that once you give up searching, you're probably never going to see it again. That way if someone actually does call you back, it's a gift.

you've missed my point. There's nothing wrong with my perception. When I lose a disc I do consider it gone and am very pleasantly surprised and pleased when they are found and then returned to me. Around here discs get returned pretty often. Maybe its just more in Yankee nature to do the right thing?

What I take issue with is the people saying 'hey if I find it its mine cause you stopped looking'. No. Its still not your property. If someone loses a marked disc and someone else finds it and keeps it without trying to contact the discs owner then they are stealing.

Ive been involved in sports my whole life and have accidentally left various pieces of gear/equipment behind on plenty of occasions. If every time that had happened someone else in the sport had stolen my crap and decided they deserved to keep it, I'd have been pretty turned off from the sport.

 

[ERicJ]

A disc is gonna be where you throw it. If you don't find it by the time someone gets to it then maybe you should've looked a lil harder. If you're afraid that you're gonna hold people up playing behind you then have them go ahead while you look. If you're afraid your friends are gonna be pissed 'cause you're holding them up then they're not real good friends. They should help you find it. The bigger group looking for a disc has a better chance.

Playing in a tournament you only get three minutes to look for a disc before you are required to give up:

PDGA rule [FONT=verdana,arial]803.11[/FONT].A [FONT=verdana,arial]Lost Disc[/FONT][FONT=verdana,arial]
A disc shall be declared lost if the player cannot locate it within three minutes after arriving at the spot where it was last seen by the group or an official. Two players or an official must note when the timing of three minutes begins. All players of the group must, upon request, assist in searching for the disc for the full three minutes before the disc is declared lost. The disc is considered lost immediately upon the expiration of the three minute time limit.
[/FONT]

I don't understand why everyone gets so upset if someone doesn't return a disc. Yeah, it sucks that you spent $8-$20 on it...

I'm more "bent" that you took it in the first place with no intent to return it. How do you know the owner isn't coming back for it? If you're not going to return it, then don't take it. Consciously claiming something that doesn't belong to you, which is clearly marked as owned by someone else, is just plain wrong.

Rationalizing that it's okay to keep just because it's a low cost item to you doesn't hold water; that's just a sign of guilt. If you finished your round, walked off the course and a car that wasn't yours was sitting in the parking lot with the keys in the ignition and noone else was around would you take that? It's the same right or wrong, regardless of the cost of the item.

ERic

 

[blang]

Based on the current results of the poll (Return it, 87.80%) and the percentage of lost discs that have been returned to me(about 33%), It seems like the longer one plays the more likely they would be to return a disc to its owner. I am basing this on the presumption that if you are posting on this site you are more likely to take Disc Golf seriously, or at least more seriously than a REC player.

As an Intermediate player I feel as if my bag is fleshed out and I would not be able to use a random disc for a shot that I already have selected the best disc and weight for my use. (even if I wanted to keep another persons disc)
Also, if I lost a disc it would be of minimal value to another intermediate to Pro player unless it just happened to match exactly what they had in their bag already.

I am wondering if you agree that veteran players are more likely to return a disc than a beginning player?

 

[Rbuzz9]

i know the spirit of the sport is to return discs etc - hence writing names on them etc - this probably works well for local courses where the same people play - and probably evolved from the days when discs were much more rare and expensive.

I'd think of it as a bonus if I got a disc back - afterall you I did throw a shitty shot - and I couldnt find it. Since i dont think i care that much about losing a disc (it sucks - but i can walk away not being all pissed off) i probably [incorrectly] assume others dont care as much as i - or they would have found it.

I'm more of a minimal effort guy. More likely to leave discs at the courses on tee boxes. Calling the # and leaving at the course.

if i find 3 discs in a round I dont want to all of a sudden become burdened to return them all. i'd be annoyed if i had to.

I think its obnoxious to expect all of your lost discs will be returned. Some people are definitely better than others and return anything & they are awesome, no doubt better for the game.

At the end of the day these are cheap items and can be replaced quite easily for cheaper than some of the effort. not worth getting panties all in a bunch over plastic - but if this was the 80's and the only DG store you knew of was 2000 miles away and there was no internet i'd be pissed if i lost a disc