OB: Reverse Island

[Doofenshmirtz]

This thought hit me while playing a local course that is under construction. My thought was to have a reverse island during a tournament. That is, the island is OB off the tee box on a fairly short hole. My thought was to have a bit of risk/reward for trying to get withing putting distance. Get too close and a penalty stroke and drop zone. But get close enough without a lie on the island might give you a reasonable birdie putt. It was also inspired by this hole that does basically the same thing but with a safe landing area around the basket.

Is there any reason that a "reverse island" cannot be done under the rules?

 

[Cgkdisc]

I think the basket can be located in OB. However, calling the island a Hazard would also be legal. I'm thinking the best idea would be to make the island a Relief Area where a player landing on it must go to a drop zone maybe on the edge of the grass, with no penalty, and have to make a longish putt.

 

[Sethamphetamine]

Dubs league calls it lava. Inside the line is out, take your shot where it was last in

 

[Doofenshmirtz]

I think the basket can be located in OB. However, calling the island a Hazard would also be legal. I'm thinking the best idea would be to make the island a Relief Area where a player landing on it must go to a drop zone maybe on the edge of the grass, with no penalty, and have to make a longish putt.

That was kind of my thought, except to make the drop zone a very longish putt and keep the penalty. I.e., try to spread the scores between 4s and 2s. Lay up perfectly and have a good chance at a 2. Land too close and have a really high chance of a 4.

 

[ThrowaEnvy]

Played that way up at my place a while back.. It was fun, I should have made the island bigger, and the drop zone further back. Played it doubles with no penalty. Thats one of the reasons for the drop zone but no-one needed it, or took a penalty, or a three haha. Not exactly as I planned.

 

[Cgkdisc]

That was kind of my thought, except to make the drop zone a very longish putt and keep the penalty. I.e., try to spread the scores between 4s and 2s. Lay up perfectly and have a good chance at a 2. Land too close and have a really high chance of a 4.

Not sure anyone should get the equivalent of a two shot penalty for such a minor error. In addition, you take away the fun of going for it with too much of a penalty for landing on the island. Why would anyone want to try and make the putt from the DZ with the possibility of taking the equivalent of another 2-shot penalty if they miss?

 

[biscoe]

Someone has been watching a little too much USDGC video...

 

[Doofenshmirtz]

Not sure anyone should get the equivalent of a two shot penalty for such a minor error. In addition, you take away the fun of going for it with too much of a penalty for landing on the island. Why would anyone want to try and make the putt from the DZ with the possibility of taking the equivalent of another 2-shot penalty if they miss?

No OB from the drop zone. A player who lands in OB would have a longish putt at par. If there were no penalty, the person who landed OB would have a longish putt at birdie. I know you don't like penalties and that we cannot even agree on what a penalty is, but there's little purpose in making the island OB without the penalty.

 

[biscoe]

Is this some featureless wide open land that needs contrived elements for making holes interesting?

 

[Motorpro]

So if you get an ace you lose?"........forget the gimmicks and play the the game

 

[Steve West]

I'm not sure I understand what you want. It seems natural to make all the road unplayable. Cars drive there, it's a bad place to be. If you land there, get off the road.

Your example of a road that is playable place (if that's what you are asking) could be copied by others in places and times where players would be in danger.

Also, I would make the little island safe. Isn't the goal of disc golf to land close?

Make players who land in the road go back to where it went in. If you force players to actually land on the island, make the road Relief Area. Many players will take many attempts to land on that tiny island. Raking up throws one at a time is bad enough, raking them up two at a time would give this hole more power over the final results than it deserves.

If you try to make the place that looks safe OB, and the place that looks like OB safe, you'll get a lot of groups playing it wrong.

 

[Doofenshmirtz]

I'm not sure I understand what you want. It seems natural to make all the road unplayable. Cars drive there, it's a bad place to be. If you land there, get off the road.

Your example of a road that is playable place (if that's what you are asking) could be copied by others in places and times where players would be in danger.

Also, I would make the little island safe. Isn't the goal of disc golf to land close?

Make players who land in the road go back to where it went in. If you force players to actually land on the island, make the road Relief Area. Many players will take many attempts to land on that tiny island. Raking up throws one at a time is bad enough, raking them up two at a time would give this hole more power over the final results than it deserves.

If you try to make the place that looks safe OB, and the place that looks like OB safe, you'll get a lot of groups playing it wrong.

Reading is easy; understanding is hard; pictures distract and ever so shall it be.

 

[uncle pennybags]

That's basically a moat right? I've played courses with an island surrounded by a moat that is only filled with drainage water about 30% of the time. When its not full it's declared ob with paint lines..

 

[IHearChains]

Fun putting at this one!

 

[Putt for D'oh]

A local course that has weeklies there is a hole we play island or reverse island depending on a coin flip.

There is a very tiny gap in trees and play short or long tee which is only about 8' difference but the gap to hit is small enough that the long tee seems a lot harder.

There is old landscaping coping that winds around the right side of the basket. Normal it's and island and if you don't make it onto the island or through the gap a drop zone with a good possibility of going OB on an aggressive putt.
Reverse is as you describe a reverse island. There are places to layup to, which happens to be the exact location you might go OB from the normal drop zone, that is a gimme putt. Not making the gap is still in bounds but a pretty difficult shot to get to a good putt. Distance.

I don't think this has any place in a real tournament but weeklies and semi casual games it can be fun. And a pretty mental obstacle for a lot of people

Normal a lot of separation with 2's and 4's.
Reverse good shots go for 3's and some 6's and above possible.

 

[Doofenshmirtz]

Not sure anyone should get the equivalent of a two shot penalty for such a minor error.

It's a one shot penalty for going out of bounds. 1 is not the equivalent of 2 and never will be.

In addition, you take away the fun of going for it with too much of a penalty for landing on the island. Why would anyone want to try and make the putt from the DZ with the possibility of taking the equivalent of another 2-shot penalty if they miss?

Ah, I see you were also distracted and confused by the photograph of the hole that sort of inspired my idea. My idea (which is apparently nothing new) is simply an island that is OB with the basket in the middle. There is no safe landing area on the island (except a hole out I suppose). There is no "going for it" with respect to landing on the island. The island is only OB on the tee shot. If you land on the island, you go to a drop zone and the island is no longer OB.

 

[Cgkdisc]

Ah, I see you were also distracted and confused by the photograph of the hole that sort of inspired my idea. My idea (which is apparently nothing new) is simply an island that is OB with the basket in the middle. There is no safe landing area on the island (except a hole out I suppose). There is no "going for it" with respect to landing on the island. The island is only OB on the tee shot. If you land on the island, you go to a drop zone and the island is no longer OB.

I see now. It wasn't clear that you were using temporal OB rules, i.e., the status of an area changes based on the player's shot count.

 

[keepitfun]

I have been involved with more OB design than anyone in disc golf and in this instance I can vouch that from personal experience...it really does not play well.....lot's of lay ups and boring disc golf instead of long runs at the basket.....also brings spit outs and unfortunate knob rejections and center pole rejections etc. into 2 stroke penalties instead of just one stroke for equipment error......I used to like these outside the box concepts as they brought a new rush to the game but when they become over punitive as there is no safe way to play...it becomes a bit more tortuous than strategy

I actually think the original hole as pictured above is way more interesting albeit probably yields a lot of OB strokes that most player's despise lol

 

[Casey 1988]

Someone has been watching a little too much USDGC video...

Or GBO video.

 

[Casey 1988]

~

Is this some featureless wide open land that needs contrived elements for making holes interesting?

No it sounds like the particular hole is too easy for most beyond a first month player if nothing is OB. Now it is just off the tee the island is ob, then after that no. The Idea is to avoid people from placing discs on the Island. An easier way for people to stop from running unless the hole is ~200 feet or under is to make the stuff around the Island OB period as the island is so small, would even have putts hard to make.