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Proper etiquette when finding discs?

stop losing your discs, dammit! like my huskers lost to colorado today! be responsible and mind your $hit, by golly!

I met Scott Frost once. He was standing outside an arcade that had a big neon sign flashing "all games: $1." Scott had this terrible frown on his face, so I asked him what was wrong. He said "I only ever have 3 quarters on me."
 
After reading through this thread I think I may have to go to confession some time in the near future.
 
Not to pile on to a topic that has been very well hashed over, but my thoughts on this matter are as follows...

1) You want your disc back? Put your phone number on it. If I find it, I will text/call it. Or an email address. Be reasonable with arrangements/expectations to get it back. I will be pretty darn flexible/reasonable with you to get it back to you. The only thing I expect as payment or whatever is that if you ever find a disc with my name and number on it, return the favor.

2) Don't make it difficult by putting just your pdga # on it. Yes, I know you can still be found. But for someone who's not on any popular social media platforms, it's very very difficult for me to track you down. I want to help you out, but help me help you.

3) unmarked discs or discs without name/number (pdga#) are going to be left at the course where they were found. Usually on top of the basket of the hole in which they were found.
 
2) Don't make it difficult by putting just your pdga # on it. Yes, I know you can still be found. But for someone who's not on any popular social media platforms, it's very very difficult for me to track you down. I want to help you out, but help me help you.

I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just trying to get some info out. Finding someone by pdga# on discgolfscene.com is very easy. You just type the number into a search bar. Than you can leave them a message.

You can also comment on the course page that you found a disc and if someone can identify it than you know it's theirs.

This is effective in my area, but I am led to believe that not all regions use this website. It's worth a try though.
 
I wonder if there are major differences in the attitudes of, if you didn't search till you found it then its you essentially are giving it away, vs feeling ok about jumping through a few hoops to return a disc based entirely on the types of courses one plays and how hard it is to lose a disc at some?

Many of the courses in my area, an early tree kick or a blind hole with huge amounts of brush the discs may end up in places there was no indication they were headed. DeLa is the course people are familiar with from coverage and a lot of the courses here are similar. Sometimes the disc is gone. You can look and look but if you are looking where you thought it went and thats in the wrong spot at some point you have to call off the search and cross your fingers.

DeLa is nice they have the shack there, and they do a lot to help reunite discs and owners especially after tournaments. Drop it on the way back to your car, same effort as leaving it there.

VS park like courses that even if you are out in the brush you saw where it went in, and the brush is just that. Its not blackberry vines and poison oak.
 
I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just trying to get some info out. Finding someone by pdga# on discgolfscene.com is very easy. You just type the number into a search bar. Than you can leave them a message.

You can also comment on the course page that you found a disc and if someone can identify it than you know it's theirs.

This is effective in my area, but I am led to believe that not all regions use this website. It's worth a try though.

I might still try, but I'd be pissed about it. I always have my phone on me at the course and it's easy to shoot a text. Besides, the majority of rec players have no idea what a PDGA number is and don't care.
 
I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just trying to get some info out. Finding someone by pdga# on discgolfscene.com is very easy. You just type the number into a search bar. Than you can leave them a message.

You can also comment on the course page that you found a disc and if someone can identify it than you know it's theirs.

This is effective in my area, but I am led to believe that not all regions use this website. It's worth a try though.

I understand that. However, I have never used that site before, and have really no reason to. And last I checked, a phone number is only a few more digits of ink than a pdga #. I'm just saying, as far as my personal rules of disc finding, I feel like I don't need to engage in a game of online hide and seek. If you want to be found, make it easy.

Not being combative or argumentative at all. Simply saying is all. If I find a disc with just a pdga #, I'm leaving it at the course.
 
Also, fun story to share, related to topic at hand. I know it's a 1 in a billion story, but it's a true one. The only disc I've lost so far was returned to me by a non disc golfer. He was walking his dog on a hiking trail about 100' off the fairway where I absolutely shanked my drive. He was a good dude and shot me a text saying he (or rather his lab) found my "fancy looking sports frisbee". I met up with him at the course the following weekend during my regular weekly round there and got it back. If it's a disc I really wanted back, do you think he'd have known what to do with #45790 written on the bottom? Just saying. Know it's a looooonnnnggggg shot this ever happens, but I personally know it does.
 
Perhaps we shouldn't be assumptive that because you find a disc with a PDGA number but no other contact information, that the person who lost it wants the finder to make an effort to return it, but wants to make a puzzle out of it. Maybe they just needed a means to mark their discs for tournaments since the PGDA requires it, and that's an easy way to deal with that matter. Maybe they don't care if that disc comes back or not. Maybe they just don't want strange people calling or texting them for a matter that isn't worth the time.
 
My local course has a Facebook page that discs get posted on, phone number or not. Works pretty well.
 
Also, fun story to share, related to topic at hand. I know it's a 1 in a billion story, but it's a true one. The only disc I've lost so far was returned to me by a non disc golfer. He was walking his dog on a hiking trail about 100' off the fairway where I absolutely shanked my drive. He was a good dude and shot me a text saying he (or rather his lab) found my "fancy looking sports frisbee". I met up with him at the course the following weekend during my regular weekly round there and got it back. If it's a disc I really wanted back, do you think he'd have known what to do with #45790 written on the bottom? Just saying. Know it's a looooonnnnggggg shot this ever happens, but I personally know it does.

Pretty sure I've had more discs returned to me from non-disc golfers than from disc golfers. It's a low number either way, but if memory serves I've had 3 discs returned by non-disc golfers compared with 2 by fellow frolfers.

Perhaps we shouldn't be assumptive that because you find a disc with a PDGA number but no other contact information, that the person who lost it wants the finder to make an effort to return it, but wants to make a puzzle out of it. Maybe they just needed a means to mark their discs for tournaments since the PGDA requires it, and that's an easy way to deal with that matter. Maybe they don't care if that disc comes back or not. Maybe they just don't want strange people calling or texting them for a matter that isn't worth the time.

Tucked into an overall sarcastic message, you may be on to something.
 
I returned a disc last week, the guy was still on the course. He was all like, no way! I literally just returned a disc to someone else!
 
1. Cross out any name/phone number info with magic marker.
2. Write your own name and number on the disc.
3. Place disc in bag.
 
^ not proper etiquette \/
1. find nearest body of water
2. chuck that sucker as far as you can into water
3. profit
;)
 
Noob confession time. Found a disc recently and didn't notice any ink, so I kept it and used it as a utility disc (too fast for a normal throw for me, but rolls well and is really overstable for tight tricky spots).

After a couple rounds with it in the bag, I noticed the faded ink on the rim, phone number certainly readable. Oops. Didn't check hard enough when I found it, and it hadn't occurred to me that people ink the rim rather than the bottom of the face.

I'm going to give it back, but when I do the person is just going to assume I had intended to keep it but got a guilty conscience. Which is true, but not quite in that way. lol. Anyway, sorry for putting your disc into some tree trunks!

No, it's mine, my precious! Keep the discs! Filthy, fat disc golfers! *golem*cough*golem*

This is a battle for my soul.
 
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