returning marked discs

[nose down]

I end up in the woods a lot it seems, and tend to have better luck finding other people's discs than my own. Most of the discs I have found have marker covering the entire backside. I'm still trying different discs to see what I like so I will usually throw the found discs a couple times just to test them out. After that I just toss them in the practice basket for the owner to pick up. Here's the problem. I know for a fact that I had put 3-4 discs of a guy's in that basket because I met him on the course a couple days ago and have played a couple rounds with him. He never got any of them. I didn't really think people would steal property from another person because of morals. I also didn't think I was being naive either because I thought that even a shady person could not throw the disc with someone else's name covering the disc and wouldn't be able to sell it so why steal it? Is this a problem everywhere? What is the purpose of stealing someone's disc with marker covering it? I am hesitant to call the numbers now and meet up with people that frankly I don't know, and now feel might be thiefs. I know not everyone is, but it seems like it may be a problem. Do I have any other options? Maybe just send a text saying where I put their disc and hide it?

 

[JedV]

Happened at my home course today. Guy lost his disc in the woods. Someone found it and left I for him out in the open on the picnic table at teepad 1. Disc was inked. Some casual players must have taken it, because it wasn't there when the guy went to grab it 30 mins later.

People are jerks. Calling/texting is worth it if you actually care about getting the disc back to the owner. Stash it somewhere safe for them if you cant/don't want to meet up with them.

 

[Putt for D'oh]

It doesn't take many *******s to ruin a situation and there are a lot of *******s out there. I'm about 50% on getting discs back that have my name number on them. It just is that some people see a lost disc they've found as automatically their new disc. Keep doing the right thing, keep looking for the owner of the disc... oh and make sure that if you call or text someone about a found disc DON"T THROW IT... or if you try it wait until after you throw it and didn't lose it before you call/text. I spent a horrendous 45 minutes in a thistle patch after texting a guy about what turned out to be a very sentimental special disc that I then shanked into a friggen minefield. Better policy might be don't throw found discs really, or at least on holes that have OB near them.

 

[THUGNIFICENT763]

I went with a buddy to Bryant Lake to pick up his trusty C PD2 that a guy had found, he called my buddy and told us to meet him there. We call him to let him know we are there. No answer. We try again. No answer. We waited about a half hr before saying "F it" and leaving. Pretty sure the guy started throwing it and liked it or something. Jerks are everywhere. I don't even ink my discs. I just accept the fact that if I can't find one of mine, it is gone. But me losing one is rare, as I am a stubborn Minnesotan who fears no water hazard, no matter how foul or dangerous it may be.

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

I put my info on my disc because SOME people do return discs. If they choose to not make the call, oh well.

I try to not get too attached to a round piece of plastic.

 

[sisyphus]

In my area / experience, I've gotten a call on about 20% of the discs I've lost, even though they're inked with name & number. I try to focus on the fact that those are the good guys, and reward them (I've always got some decent, unthrown tourney plastic available & insist they take one as a reward for their effort).

 

[roggenb3]

Maybe just send a text saying where I put their disc and hide it?

People around here do this all the time, and it works well. Under a garbage can is the most common spot.

 

[esc1]

I've run into people of the mindset that they don't get calls on their discs so they don't bother to call or text others. I just find that disgusting. And no you can't trust people to leave a disc in the practice basket that doesn't belong to them. They will just think they hit the jackpot. Returning discs is good karma and just the right thing to do. Half the time people will tell you to keep it anyways but sometimes the disc is really important to a player and it's nice to get it back to that person that enjoys it so much.

 

[Tripper]

If there is a phone number on a disc I will call it and try to return it to the owner. Every time. If it only has a name I will ask everyone I see on the course that day. Beyond that it becomes mine. Leaving a disc in the practice basket is gift wrapping it for a a noob (or jerk) that does know/care any better.
A few months ago I found a disc called the number, told the guy i was still at th course and would be for a couple hours if he wanted to meet me to get it. He said he had moved to CA from NC and had given the hid buddy still in NC. He called his buddy told him the disc had been found told him my name and number so he could get up with me to get it back. Turned out the new owner is a friend of mine that I play with from time to time. So i had to jump through some hoops but in the end my buddy got his disc back so it was worth it.

 

[Moose33]

I have gotten one call on anny lost discs and the guy didn't call right away. And the. Took it with him 40 miles away. So I let him keep it.

I've returned probably 15+ discs. Some in person but more often send a text and then Hide it somewhere for them to get in the next few hours. The younger kids think it's great fun to look in hiding spots.

If your course has a pro shop or place to pay etc those are good drop spots.

I found a few at Rollin Ridge and Kensington etc and the folks that keep the shop always offer to hold them for the owners.

 

[reposado]

hiding it works fine for me. i usually never make meeting arrangements because i play a lot on the road and unless the players is still on the course, odds of being on a course as the same time are near nil. call and tell him where you are hiding it. if you leave it in the open, odds are the next person just keeps it

 

[danhyzer]

Wanna good laugh on me.A couple weeks ago I was playing Disc Golf at the new Aurora Gold disc golf course @ Sunny Lake in Aurora, Ohio. I threw my upshot (a pink stratus disc) in the pond on hole # 10. tried several times unsuccessfully to retrieve with my retriever. So thinking because it was so close to shore and the water didn't look that deep and that I had gore tex boots on. I walked in to get my disc, only to trip on some reeds and fall chest deep in the cold water. I got the disc, but it wasn't mine. So I had to walk back to the car from one of the furthest points of the course from the parking lot in cold wet clothes and drove home in only wet underwear with a blanket wrapped around my waist. LMAO!! PS. Shane Lemley I have your star 166 gram orange (thought it was pink) Wraith disc------------ - + I called him up the following day and we met at Sam's club in between where he and I lived. I gave him his disc and he said thanks. And that was good enough for me. The last couple of years I've had people make sure i get my disc back, even though they found it out of state or at Play it again sports. I've also had someone cal me up and laugh at me, tell me that they have my disc and hang up. so I'd like to think there's more better people playing DG than not.

 

[Nova P]

I return every disc which has identifying information on it. At the minimum, I'll drop it in the disc return bin if the course has one that is actively maintained, or I'll arrange to meet them nearby or at the course to hand it over. For friends, friends of friends, pillars of the community, or old-timers who were playing way back in the day, I'll go across town to deliver, or even mail it to them without asking for postage.

I'm not saying everyone should do this, but it would be a pretty cool world if we all did.

There's an interesting difference in where I lose a disc and how likely I am to see it again. I've lost a few at a course with an actively managed return bin, and I've got almost all of them back. I've lost a few on a university campus course with no bin and lots of student players, and I've got not one of them back. I threw one into the lake at Jones West (#18) at the GBO this weekend, and in under 24 hours I had multiple notifications that it had been dredged up and was waiting at the TD's table. I think the difference may be how tightly-knit the community of players at that course is.

 

[DougCrawford]

Put a girls name on the disc with your number. You increase your chances of getting a call back

 

[Nova P]

Put a girls name on the disc with your number. You increase your chances of getting a call back

My spouse and I have about the same return rate as the guys we know. :\

 

[b-mart]

I usually just send a text and then add it to the stack of found discs I have at home. If I don't hear back and nobody I know wants it (which is usually the case), I'll donate it. One local course has a drop box and they donate unclaimed discs to Zambia or some other random country overseas that doesn't have discs. Someone may as well enjoy that X Nuke and spraypainted Boss that I would never throw in a million years.

 

[nose down]

I've run into people of the mindset that they don't get calls on their discs so they don't bother to call or text others. I just find that disgusting. And no you can't trust people to leave a disc in the practice basket that doesn't belong to them. They will just think they hit the jackpot. Returning discs is good karma and just the right thing to do. Half the time people will tell you to keep it anyways but sometimes the disc is really important to a player and it's nice to get it back to that person that enjoys it so much.

I completely understand where you are coming from. The only thing that doesn't make sense to me is why someone would leave a really important disc if people just steal them anyway even with writing on them. I don't write on my discs, but I will search until I deem it's not worth my effort to find it. Maybe I haven't played enough to get attached to a disc, but I don't think I could too much.

 

[captain jack]

Leaving discs in the practice basket is a bad idea.
Of course, most disc golfers, like you and I, would always just walk by and never even consider grabbing discs out of it for ourselves.
Some people consider anything left out in the open, and not nailed down, to be free for the picking.

I always hide discs. Wait until no one is looking, then put the disc under a trash can, or behind a tree.

I found a disc the other day, called the number. The guy told me to drop it off at the local bar, which was on my way home anyways. When I told the waitress, she said thanks, then pulled me a free cold pint of beer. :hfive:

 

[ranger]

I've been playing 15 or 16 years and I've had four phone calls for a found disc. FOUR. And one of those calls was from a non golfer walking his dog.


I had two calls last week but both were from out of state (discs I sold in the marketplace). Guess I just love in a sh***y area for coolness.

 

[armiller]

In my area / experience, I've gotten a call on about 20% of the discs I've lost, even though they're inked with name & number. I try to focus on the fact that those are the good guys, and reward them (I've always got some decent, unthrown tourney plastic available & insist they take one as a reward for their effort).

I wanna find one of your discs! I pretty much call or text everyone, but it's pretty clear that I'm one of the few. It does become a bit of a burden, however. I currently have two discs that I'm holding onto before the owners get them back. I generally am willing to give out my home address so they can come pick it up. It's easier than meeting up at courses, although I've done that before as well. Another good way to return discs is to look for more dependable course regulars or league guys. They often know people by name and will run into them more frequently to make the handoff. Sometimes I've done this after texting the owner, and then letting them know who has it.

For me, I've only got one disc returned to me. I didn't get called, but I met up with some league guys and they recognized my name. That was nice. I've only lost 5 or 6 in spots where I might expect a call, but no such luck. In the Oklahoma City area, my impression is that the "resale" market for found discs has improved in the last 10 years. This means there are more people diving for discs, etc.

I agree that leaving discs in a practice basket is a bad plan. There are just too many people that wouldn't even think twice before walking off with them.