Pay to play disc golf

Should it be free or pay to play.

Read article here

[Kent]

I would gladly pay to play if that was an option. Around here, there is only one course within 30 miles of me, and that is a private course that can't be played anytime I would like, and the next nearest is 70 miles away.

[Donny Olow]

http://morleyfield.com/fee-and-course-rules/about-pay-to-play/

[Cody Wheelock]

I think both are needed. I'm in Lincoln, NE and we don't have any pay to play courses in the state. The closest thing we have to ptp is Treasure Cove in Council Bluff's, IA and even then they only ask for a $2 donation. There will always be the rec type players who are more concerned about smoking with friends than actually playing the game (not that every rec player does this), like many have said they will never pay to play DG. But it would be nice to have a bit nicer course that catered toward the people who are trying to prepare for tournaments and what not. I'd be willing to pay for that.

[Joe]

Up in northern Vermont they are installing a new course on private land and to offset the cost of the course installation, they are charging a fee for the first year. Checkout GMDGC.org

[Joe Strawder]

This is kind of weird but here in Ocala, the pay to play course is terrible (on an old ballgolf course, too wide open) and the free course is much more fun and challenging. Both courses are on public land, the old ball golf course is one of 2 municipal golf courses and the good one is on land that was supposed to be used for the Cross Florida Barge Canal (in the late 70's early 80's).

[Norm Cole]

So, reviving this thread as, if my job search goes the way I am hoping, I will be moving to Frostburg, Md. However, of the ten closest courses I have found to Frostburg, seven are pay to play. And the closest course costs 15.00 per round. Does that seem a bit high to anyone? I try to play 4 or more times a week. This is going to add up. But, thoughts on free versus pay to play? How much have you paid to play, not counting entering a tournament? Anyone successfully convinced your town to build a course? All thoughts welcome. 

[Jeff Nichols]

I think that Pay to Play courses will Definitely have a future in Disc Golf. I think how successful they are is really going to depend on course designs and how seriously people want to play a well designed, and maintained, course. I have never played a pay to play course, but I have a lot of Pay to play courses one my bucket list of "Must Play" courses. The course that really kinda sold me on the pay to play concept is Blue Ribbon Pines. Every video have have seen shot a Blue Ribbon makes that course look absolutely Amazing. The design is Awesome, it is Beautifully Manicured, and they are Constantly IMPROVING the course because they have the Funds to keep the course evolving. Timmy Gill, the Blue Ribbons course Designer (he has designed other courses also) has some Wonderful ideas about the future of pay to play courses and how it will really help the sport. 

[Jim Coonradt]

There is a pay to play course that isn't too far from here (Jellystone). I would like to get a chance to play it. I think that both types of courses have their places and their advantages. The main advantage of a pay to play should be the lack of utter drunken morons.

x

[Norm Cole]

I am certainly not anti pay to play. I would much rather be around disc golfers that are carrying 24 discs and 1 beverage than those that carry one disc and their 24 pack. But, going from a town where I have three pretty decent free places to play to an area where I have to drive 30 minutes to pay 15.00 to play one round is a huge change...

[David Sauls]

$15 per round is definitely on the high end of pay-to-play courses.  It's a rare course I'd pay that for, and I'd do it rarely.  (Is it perhaps on a ball golf course?)

[steve pease]

I think the $15 for one round is way out of line. They better have a caddie with an umbrella for that price.  At Highbride where they have 7 championship courses, it's only $10 for all day playing.

[Southpaw_517]

Should disc golf be free or pay to play? I say both!

There are 2 courses in our area that I frequent the most, one is pay to play, and one is not. The pay to play is a really nice full 18 course with sets of 2 tee pads and 2 baskets per hole. The landscaping is nice, they clear the pads during the winter, and they are putting in another 18 hole course this summer. It's never crowded, and the people who play there are usually very friendly. There is a hint of vandalism here and there, but it's not in your face all the time.  I payed 40 for an annual disc golf pass, and 30 for parking. Just have to go more than 10 times in a year for it to be free after the 10th time. I've probably gone about a dozen times already.

The other course is free and much more centralized. It's a public  park, so not only is it just plain busy on nice days, but the disc course gets SLAMMED. Not only does it get really crowded, but it's heavily populated by the casuals and the loudmouth beer drinkers. The middle of the course wraps around a sizable pond, so you can hear all kinds of conversations and commotion while traversing that corridor (holes 5 - 12). People litter all the time and break stuff. They play in huge groups and won't let smaller groups play through. I try to avoid it on a nice day if at all possible.

To me, paying a small fee to avoid unpleasantness is a no brainer.