North Vs. South preparations begin
For each of the past two years, the San Diego Aces have held a North vs. South challenge tournament. Players qualify for the respective teams and hold a match play competition at four different golf courses over one weekend. This year’s challenge will be held December 18 & 19.
South Team Captain Dan Lichtman will be holding tryouts for the South team this weekend – Sunday, October 10 at Sun Valley Golf Course. Check-in at 7:45am, play begins at 8:15am.
North Team Captain A.J. Risley has not yet announced details on the qualification process for the North Team. Contact him for details.
State Champions Crowned
Traditions from the past were renewed over the weekend in Escondido, CA as the 2010 California State Flying Disc Championships crowned state champions in disc golf and several other flying disc sports. Over 90 competitors were on hand, striving to take home that championship hardware, or possibly the keys to a new car. Tournament Directors Randy Wylot, Mark Verrochi and Peter Laubert provided the players and spectators alike with a fun and action-packed weekend, full of flying disc games, clanging chains and the fellowship of the Frisbee Family. Sponsored by the San Diego Aces Disc Golf Club and radio station KPRI, the tournament crowned state champions in seven disc golf divisions, as well as in the disc sports of Freestyle, Double Disc Court, Accuracy throwing and an Overall Flying Disc champion. And as an extra added bonus, the event raised over $1,000 that the Aces will put towards developing more disc golf courses in San Diego County.
Paul McBeth will carry the title of California State Disc Golf Champion for the next year, winning the Men’s Open division with a final score of 37 under par. Paul’s first round score of 44 on the short layout of the Kit Carson course was the lowest round on Saturday, and he never looked back. Veterans John Heaton (26-under) and Jeff Nichols (19-under) rounded out the top three. SoCal Disc Golf President Suzette Simons took the Women’s Open state title with a score of 3-over par, besting Emina Weaver and Allison Wylot. Men’s Advanced saw some great golf, as Max Nichols fired a score of 28-under, which would have taken second place in Open (and beaten his dad). It looked like Max would completely lap the field after Saturday’s rounds, but A.J. Risley made it a little interesting Sunday morning, shooting a 46 on the longer Kit Carson layout for the hot round of the day and making up eight strokes on Max to finish at 23-under.
In other divisions, Miker Ramos 29-under was the second-best score of the weekend, good enough to win Advanced Masters over his long-time fellow competitor Dan Shorkey (19-under). Ace Race Champion Dale Chambless (15-under) took the state title in Men’s Intermediate, besting Brian Newmark, “Cover-Boy” Jeff Bozigian and Armando Lopez, who played the entire tournament with a borrowed bag and discs. Amber Ivy had another strong tournament, winning Women’s Intermediate over Liz Silva, and Mike Henry won the Recreational State title over North County locals Brian Dowling and Kevin Christie (time to move up, bagger Mike!).
There was a competition within the competition, as a number of players participated in an Olympic-like “Quadathalon” of sorts, competing for the California State Overall Flying Disc championship in the disc-iplines of disc golf, freestyle, double disc court and accuracy throwing. Veteran Frisbee player Jim Herrick combined strong finishes in all four events to walk away with the state overall title. Cody Kirkland came in second place in the overall competiton after 1st place finishes in disc golf and DDC but no points from freestyle, with Deano Porter close on his heels in third.
In the individual disciplines, the team of Amy and Dave Schiller demonstrated their World Champion mixed pairs form in freestyle, taking first place over the father/son team of Dave and Zach Murphy. Cody and John Kirkland took the state DDC title, besting Jim Herrick and Ron Vingerelli in the finals. And Co-TD Mark Verrochi walked away as the state champion in Accuracy throwing, putting 17 of his 28 throws through the target, two more than Aces President Jeff Nichols.
The final event of the weekend was the hole-in-one throw for $25,000, with three competitiors taking aim at the 284-foot target. Jeff Nichols, Liz Silva and A.J. Risley had all earned the right to the big-money throw by aceing the preliminary 150-foot shot during the weekend. in the end no one made the $25,000 shot, but Jeff won a nice prize for ending up closest to the pin.
All-in-all it was a busy weekend, with disc golf clinics and Kan-Jam games and canine frisbee demonstrations mixed in between the competitive events. A strong showing of vendors, including DGA, Off-Axis Design, SDSF and Kan Jam and food supplied by Tina’s Deli and Dave’s du Jour made for a fun, festival-like atmosphere.
You Can be State Champion!
Time is winding down quickly before the California State Flying Disc Championships is held Sept. 25 and 26 at Kit Carson Park in Escondido. Disc golfers interested in this 2-day, 3-round PDGA and SoCal-sanctioned tournament can still enter by signing up at pdgasignup.com. At the same time that the disc golf championship is being contested, overall flying disc players will be descending upon the Kit Carson Park fields to contest championships in Freestyle and Double-Disc-Court, with an additional Overall Flying Disc title to be determined. (download poster here)
And if that isn’t enough, anyone who wants to can compete in the state championship for Accuracy throwing (for a $5 fee), or buy a few shots in the hole-in-one contest for a chance to win $25,000 that could be spent on a new Mini Cooper automobile from Brecht Mini.
The schedule for the weekend is packed (see it here). Along with the disc contests described above, there will be a wide array of vendor booths, food booths and even a Canine Frisbee demonstration for the spectators. This event will be great for competitors, but it is also designed for spectators. All day long both days there will be disc sport events taking place for spectators to watch, as well as demonstrations and clinics for new and interested players. Tune in to radio station KPRI-FM 102.1 for more information on the event. If you or your Company are interested in helping to sponsor this event by purchasing a tee sign or setting up a product booth please contact Randy Wylot @ 619‐709‐7927 or e‐mail wylot@sbcglobal.net for more information.
Another Year, Another Successful Ace Race
Last Sunday’s Ace Race at Montiel Park set a few records for the 3-year-old event. Most players: 85, more than double the 40 that played in 2009. Most aces by the winner: 2 for Dale Chambless, compared to one for previous winners Mike Allee and Jeremiah Price. Most aces by all competitors: 9, compared to one in 2009 and three in 2008.
Dale’s outstanding result of two aces and five metal hits over 36 holes won him the first place prize: a new Discraft golf bag and eight new discs. What makes this result that more amazing is that he got a late start, so all of his 36 holes were played in windy conditions. Unfortunately for Dale, he didn’t pay into the ace pot, so he walked away with no cash. The same couldn’t be said for second-place finisher A.J. Risley (1 ace, 4 metal hits), who bought ten shares of the ace pot and walked away with $60, along with a second place prize pack (shirt, towel, keychain) from Off-Axis Design. Other golfers with one ace and a single share ($6) payout from the pot included Taylor Mate, Allison Wylot, Truman Rubideau, Robert Henry and Josh U’ren. Liz Rousseau, Casey Richter and Ryan Layden also aced, but didn’t buy ace pot shares.
The 36 Ace Race holes can play pretty quickly, so additional side games are important to have to fill in the rest of the day. Austen Stringfield (2 metal hits) and Tommy Vincent (1 metal hit) made the most of the mini Ace Race, winning $21 and an Aces t-shirt, respectively. The final event of the day was Ace Race Doubles, with 18 doubles teams participating. Players were required to tee off on every hole with their Ace Race disc, but could use their own putter for putt and approach shots.
Next year’s Ace Race goal – 150 players. Run it!!!
Ace Race on Sunday – Last Chance to Sign Up!!!
This Sunday, Sept. 12th, is the date for the 3rd Annual San Marcos Ace Race. Held at Montiel Park in San Marcos, the Ace Race has turned out to be one of the most-fun disc golf days in San Diego County each year. The combination of cool discs and schwag, fun competition, good food, and great friends is tough to beat.
The original order of 70 player packs has been sold out, but a second box of goodies is now on the way from the Discraft folks back in Michigan. Based on the number of snail mail and e-mail entries that have come in in the past few days, these will not last very long, so sign up ASAP. For $25 you will receive 2 brand-new prototype Discraft discs (not yet released for public sale!), a Discraft Ace Race hat, a full-color mini-Ultra Star and new this year, a metal Ace Race bag tag. All of this comes out to be a $67 value.
We described how the Ace Race is played in an earlier post, so we won’t repeat it here. But here’s a rundown of what you can expect on Sunday:
- 36 holes of Ace Race play that can start at 10am (or whenever you want) but must finish by 3:45pm.
- An optional ace pot – $1 per share – the more shares you buy and aces you hit, the more you win.
- A “mini Ace Race” using the Ace Race mini discs on a course of mini baskets. $1 per round to play, play as many as you want, best Ace Race score splits the pot with the Aces.
- Kan Jam – learn how to play this cool disc game, kinda like horshoes but with a disc and slam-dunking. We’ll probably have a Kan-Jam tournament.
- The ever-popular San Diego Aces BBQ grill, thanks to Randy Wylot, featuring those great Costco hot dogs!
- Ace Race doubles! Anyone who has finished their 36 holes by 2pm can enter. Just you, your Ace Race disc and a putter – A/B random draw, $5
- And I’m sure the TD will come up with something else…
More info on the event, including registration details can be found here. Don’t wait until Sunday!!!!
State Championships Up for Grabs
Kit Carson Park in Escondido is the place to be on the last weekend in September, if you want to see excellence in disc golf and overall flying disc skills. Hosted by the San Diego Aces Disc Golf Club, the California State Overall Flying Disc Championships will be held at Kit Carson that weekend, bringing together the best disc golfers in the region along with the best in the world in the flying disc disciplines of Freestyle, Double Disc Court and Accuracy throwing.
Players can compete in one of four “tracks” in the competition: a “disc golf-only” track, consisting of three rounds of PDGA-Sanctioned disc golf on the Kit Carson course, Freestyle-only, Double Disc Court-only, or an “overall” track, where they will play two rounds of disc golf, compete in Double Disc Court and perform a Freestyle routine. Registration forms can be found here for the overall tournament or the Freestyle-only or DDC-only events . Disc golf-only sign-ups can be done on-line at pdgasign-up.com.
Along with these two weekend-long events, there will be additional flying disc competitions that anyone in the public can compete in. Participants can pay $5 to compete in an Accuracy contest, tossing catch-style discs at a target from several distances and angles. One of the highlights of the weekend will be a hole-in-one contest, sponsored by DGA (Disc Golf Association). Entrants pay $2 for three throws at a disc golf basket 150 feet away. Those who make the 150-ft. shot will go on to the finals, where an ace at 280 feet is good for a $25,000 first prize.
Adding to the festival atmosphere at the event will be a performance by Whydogsfly, a competitive canine flying disc team, disc golf clinics, several disc sports equipment and apparel vendors and a variety of food booths. Major sponsorship of the event is being provided by radio station KPRI, with additional sponsorship from Vibram, Discraft, Disc Golf Association, Kan Jam, SDSF, Off Axis Design, Ape Wear, Whirld Sports, Patagonia, Dave’s de Jour, Wolfpack Sign Group, San Diego Aces Disc Golf Club, Alacrity Media, with more sponsors signing up every day.
For additional information about the California State Flying Disc Championships, download this flyer.
New Tee Pads for Kit Carson Park!! (with your help, that is…)
The Escondido Rotary Club Disc Golf Course at Kit Carson Park in Escondido has provided a much-needed 18-hole pressure-release valve for disc golfers in San Diego County, particularly with the loss of disc golf at Emerald Isle earlier this year. The course has also gotten rave reviews from people who have played it, with one exception…the tees. Concrete tees were not possible at Kit Carson, as the course is in place on a trial basis for three years and the City of Escondido did not want to risk having 18 cement pads to remove in the future if the course didn’t work out. The course opened up with natural tee pads, with the expectation that rubber tee mats would be added when funds became available. And since then the ruts, holes and mud around the tee areas have become frequent excuses for less-than-stellar tee shots (I have to admit, I blame them all the time…). All that will begin to change this weekend.
The San Diego Aces have scheduled a tee pad work party for this Saturday, August 21st from 8am to 1pm, to install several tee pads and train members on how to properly install the remaining pads. The idea is that Saturday’s group will be will be able to finish a handful of pads and then have the knowledge and skills to come back over the next few weeks and complete the installations. The “new” pads have become possible as a result of more fundraising work by Aces Secretary (and KCP course designer) Ryan Meyer, and the fact that the Aces purchased the rubber tee pads formerly used at Emerald Isle golf course. Recent fundraising allowed the Aces to purchase the materials needed to add a proper sub-surface below the pads. The club is asking for as much participation as possible from local players this Saturday, and that workers coming this Saturday bring shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows, etc., that may be needed to do the work. If you play the course, you should see this as your chance to help make it better.
Because of the need for as much labor as possible, the weekly Saturday doubles league at Kit Carson will be cancelled this week, but will return in the future with better tee pads to play on. If you can make it on Saturday or if you have querstions, please contact Ryan Meyer at Ramskemeyer@gmail.com or 760-807-1657.
CSUSM Hole Closures This Week
Basket, basket, where's the basket?
Several holes of the CSUSM disc golf course will be closed this week as the campus hosts the Stone Brewing 14th Anniversary Celebration. Holes 10 through 14 will be closed Tuesday, 8/17 and reopened Monday, 8/23. We appreciate your cooperation with these closures – the Stone event is expected to raise over $200,000 this year for charities like the Boys & Girls Club of San Marcos, Palomar Family YMCA, Surfrider Foundation and Fight ALD.org, so it’s a very good cause (aside from the great beer).
Baskets 10 and 12 will be temporarily removed during the event (they’re right in the middle of some of the beer vendor booths) but a few other baskets may remain in place while the festivities are going on. They will be unplayable, however, as they are located inside the fenced-in beer garden. This could turn out to be some great exposure for the disc golf course, as several thousand beer connoisseurs will get to see that Cal State has a disc golf course on campus. We’re hoping that in future years there will be a way to incorporate the baskets into the Stone festivities. Thanks for your cooperation!
It’s Disc Golf Clinic Time!
Are you new to the sport of disc golf? Or do you know someone who is a new disc golfer and could use some help learning the game? Well, the San Diego Aces may have just what you (or your friend) need. Beginning this Saturday, August 21st, and once a month for the following three months, the Aces will be conducting disc golf clinics at Kit Carson Park, as part of the City of Escondido’s Community Services Department’s Recreation Classes program. Saturday’s class meets at the practice baskets near the park’s amphitheater and runs from 1pm to 4pm. The registration fee for the class is $25, and there is a $15 material fee that includes a San Diego Aces membership (which includes a club-stamped disc and a numbered bagtag). More details on the class and how to register can be found in the Escondido Recreation brochure – course details are on page 23 and registration information is on page 30. You can sign up 5 different ways: online, over the phone, online, by fax or in person at one of the city’s Recreation Centers.
The Classes will be led by Mark Verrochi, who serves as the Kit Carson Park Course Representative to the San Diego Aces. Mark is an experienced disc golf instructor and is also sponsored by the Disc Golf Association (DGA), the company that invented the disc golf basket target. Mark will be assisted by a rotating cast of San Diego Aces members. For more information about the classes, check out page 23 of the Recreation guide, or e-mail Mark at mtv@alum.wpi.edu.
California State Frisbee Championships? Coming to town!!
Disc golf has very quickly become a mainstay at Escondido’s Kit Carson Park since the Escondido Rotary Club course opened earlier this spring, but there will be other types of discs in the air besides golf discs this September. Kit Carson will be the location of the 2010 California State Frisbee Championships, an all-around disc sports event that will include disc golf, Frisbee freestyle, accuracy throwing, double disc court and a lucrative hole-in-one contest. Saturday and Sunday, September 25 & 26 are the dates scheduled for the renewal of this all-around tournament. The tournament will actually have two separate tracks – a PDGA-sanctioned 3-round disc golf tournament, and a separate all-around Frisbee tournament where players will compete in 36 holes of disc golf, double disc court and Frisbee freestyle. The player with the highest combined finishes in disc golf, DDC and freestyle will be crowned the California State Frisbee Champion.
Tournament Directors Randy Wylot and Peter Laubert have gone all out to organize an event that will be fun for dedicated disc golfers, all around Frisbee players, casual disc tossers and the spectating public. Discraft Discs and new manufacturer Vibram Disc Golf are supplying discs for the amateur player’s packs, while DGA, SDSF Pro Shop, Wicked Disc Golf and xxxx are providing merchandise prizes. Sunday should be a great day for spectators with this line-up of events: the finals of the disc golf tournament in the morning, semi-final and finals of double disc court early in the afternoon and the fantastic freestyle finals at the end of the day. At some point during the day the state disc accuracy champion will be crowned, and a few skillful throwers will try their hand at winning a new Lexus with a hole-in-one.
New Lexus you say? Yup, that’s right. Lexus Escondido has signed on to provide undoubtedly the best prize ever offered in San Diego for a disc golf event – a new Lexus automobile! Starting on Wednesday of tournament week, anyone, whether entered in the main tournament or not, can take three shots at a 150-ft. hole in one for $1. Players who get an ace at 150 ft. will qualify for the finals – one shot at a 278 ft. hole-in-one, with the new car in the balance. Only a hole-in-one at that distance can win the car, but there will still be a cash prize for closest to the pin if no one wins the grand prize.e publicizing
Local FM radio station KPRI will be publicizing the event throughout the month of September, which should lead to a great turnout of players and onlookers. The San Diego Aces are providing logistical support for the event, which will have a large number of merchandise and food vendors on hand for the weekend.
More information about the event will be available on the Aces web site over the next few weeks. Registration for the California State Frisbee Championships will be done on-line through PDGA.com and will be available in the next few weeks. Parties interested in vending at the tournament or joining the list of sponsors should contact Randy Wylot at wylot@sbcglobal.net.
San Diego Aces Disc Golf Club 
