Who are you watching?
At the top level of disc golf, an interesting phenomenon is happening. Our top players save up some initial gas money and go on tour. After a couple years "touring", there is less money in the savings account than when they started. These players scrape by, but the road is a hard and unforgiving mistress. A minor injury, which knocks them out of the cash for a few weeks, knocks them off the tour. If disc golf is lucky, they save up some money and give it another try.
Top players are unable to make touring their career, which means that the players that I want to root for - the ones that toured for a couple years and I am starting to know and like - are no longer on the tour. We constantly talk about the youth movement in our sport and how the younger players are winning more and more championships. The reason this is the case is because there are not dozens of seasoned players for them to be competing against.
When Andre Agassi won his first championship, no one knew who he was. He had to establish himself, grow his name, and get some fans. Imagine tuning in to a tennis match against two players that you have never heard of. You would not do it unless you were a hardcore fan. That is where disc golf is. We've got the hardcore fans watching, but for casual players, it is tough to root for someone you've never heard of. We need our top pros to be able to have a realistic expectation of making a career out of playing disc golf on tour so that we, and the casual fans, will have a reason to tune in and watch.
Top players are unable to make touring their career, which means that the players that I want to root for - the ones that toured for a couple years and I am starting to know and like - are no longer on the tour. We constantly talk about the youth movement in our sport and how the younger players are winning more and more championships. The reason this is the case is because there are not dozens of seasoned players for them to be competing against.
When Andre Agassi won his first championship, no one knew who he was. He had to establish himself, grow his name, and get some fans. Imagine tuning in to a tennis match against two players that you have never heard of. You would not do it unless you were a hardcore fan. That is where disc golf is. We've got the hardcore fans watching, but for casual players, it is tough to root for someone you've never heard of. We need our top pros to be able to have a realistic expectation of making a career out of playing disc golf on tour so that we, and the casual fans, will have a reason to tune in and watch.
Watch. And grow the sport.
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The numbers of people playing disc golf continue to grow at a 10-to-20% rate. The sport is experiencing tremendous grassroots growth and I expect, at this point, it is an engine that will not stop. Vibram Disc Golf will continue our support of the myriad of grassroots promoters. The engine that drives the top end of the sport, however, has been languishing over the past five years or so. The solution to this is eyeballs. People ask why disc golf is not on ESPN. The answer is eyeballs, or lack thereof.
If we want to kaboom the sport, we need people to watch. If we want people to watch the sport, we need to have the sport's best playing at our top events week in and week out, for many years. In order for our best players to compete at the premier events, they need to be able to earn a decent living doing so. It is expensive to travel for 20 to 30 weeks playing disc golf and we can't expect someone to leave their job to play disc golf, no matter how good they are. I am reminded of Nate Doss, AFTER winning the World Championship, needing to take some time to determine if he wanted to play disc golf professionally. That should speak volumes to us. In order to get eyeballs, we need to have our best players on the course, week in and week out. In order to do this, we need at least ten events with a flattened payout of $50,000 AND these events need to have only two divisions: MPO and FPO. There are three numbers in that sentence which I would like to explain.
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With a flat deep payout, more players earn more money. With a capped field of 120 MPO players and 50 cashing, this gives an incentive to compete because regional pros and top Ams have a real shot.
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Since the season is not complete, 2012 is an estimate.
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Why have we stagnated?
The growth of professional disc golf has stagnated. This has happened, for the most part, because of the creation of unsustainable models.
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Even with these pull backs, the pro tour side of the sport is still not shrinking and may be growing, albeit slowly.
- DiscGolfPlanet.TV is building a model to bring the sport to tens of thousands of viewers. As their viewership continues to rise, more and more advertisers who are currently outside of the sport will take notice. Over time, these advertising dollars will find their way to the events and the purses will go up. This is the long play that will bring disc golf to the next level.
- Vibram Disc Golf is consistently moving the Vibram Open forward, garnering more spectators, more players and a larger payout ($38K in 2008 to $51K in 2012). For comparison, the USDGC had fewer spectators, players and payout from 2008 to 2012.
- Vibram has also stepped up to be the presenting sponsor of the PDGA National Tour and they reincarnated the Players Cup as The World Match Play Championship. We are putting a significant percentage of our marketing money into creating spectator friendly events that can capture the attention of the advertising dollars that are currently outside our sport.
- The number of manufacturers of golf discs has risen from a half dozen in 2000 to more than 25 in 2012. They are here because they see a future in this sport. I agree with them.
Is the USDGC good for the sport?
The USDGC model is clearly not sustainable and, if the goal is to grow the sport, is an ineffective expenditure of the money. Having said that, it is Innova's money and they can spend it however they want, just don't let them say it is for the growth of the sport when it is actually just about them. Over the last decade, imagine if this money had been invested differently, could we be on TV already?
Five Top Events, sorted by Total Payout
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Budget: Unknown
Payout: $97,000 MPO>$1K: 10 |
Budget: $62K
Payout: $51,000 MPO>$1K: 15 |
Budget: $250K
Payout: $50,300 MPO>$1K: 24 |
Budget: Unknown
Payout: $47,000 MPO>$1K: 9 |
Budget: $28K
Payout: $23,000 MPO>$1K: 4 |
Look at the numbers above. The USDGC spends $250,000 and in one short week, they've blown their wad. Let's pretend the USDGC was actually four $50,000 payout events (this assumes a similar budget as The Vibram Open, which has a $62K budget and a $51K payout to the players). With four mini-USDGCs, Worlds, the Vibram Open, and the Memorial, we are already up to seven $50,000 events. The Beaver State Fling ($33K) and Steady Ed Memorial ($29K) with a little growth, would make nine and The Players Cup ($23K payout with no payin) is a nice completion to the season. This would make a great foundation on which to build a pro tour. Anyone want to call Innova?
But this is not where we are and my guess is the USDGC is not going to be paired down so three additional premier events can be born, but hindsight is 20/20 and we have the advantage of looking at the last 10 years knowing the sport could have grown more.
Let's instead concentrate on looking forward. I would like to ask each disc golf manufacturer to commit to growing one or two events into premier events with a $50,000 payout. If we can get a dozen manufacturers, who are in the sport and will benefit from its growth, to make this commitment, then the sport will gain the eyeballs it needs to attract outside sponsorship and we will be able to watch DiscGolfPlanet.TV many more weekends out of the year. Furthermore, these events need to work together to schedule a cohesive tour around and across North America. It is too late for this to happen in 2013, but if you would like to commit to a 2014 event with a $50,000 payout and will work with the tour on scheduling, shoot me an e-mail.
I look forward to sitting in my armchair and watching the best in the world compete and when they come to a town near me, I'll go out and watch them play in person. Until then, Vibram Disc Golf will continue to push the envelope through our support of the Vibram Open, the Players Cup, the PDGA National Tour and the myriad of regional grass roots events that we sponsor.
Watch. And grow the sport. One man's thoughts on the future of disc golf.
Sincerely,
Steven Dodge
Vibram Disc Golf
Update: I have had four companies contact me about being involved and making this happen for 2014. Anyone else in?
But this is not where we are and my guess is the USDGC is not going to be paired down so three additional premier events can be born, but hindsight is 20/20 and we have the advantage of looking at the last 10 years knowing the sport could have grown more.
Let's instead concentrate on looking forward. I would like to ask each disc golf manufacturer to commit to growing one or two events into premier events with a $50,000 payout. If we can get a dozen manufacturers, who are in the sport and will benefit from its growth, to make this commitment, then the sport will gain the eyeballs it needs to attract outside sponsorship and we will be able to watch DiscGolfPlanet.TV many more weekends out of the year. Furthermore, these events need to work together to schedule a cohesive tour around and across North America. It is too late for this to happen in 2013, but if you would like to commit to a 2014 event with a $50,000 payout and will work with the tour on scheduling, shoot me an e-mail.
I look forward to sitting in my armchair and watching the best in the world compete and when they come to a town near me, I'll go out and watch them play in person. Until then, Vibram Disc Golf will continue to push the envelope through our support of the Vibram Open, the Players Cup, the PDGA National Tour and the myriad of regional grass roots events that we sponsor.
Watch. And grow the sport. One man's thoughts on the future of disc golf.
Sincerely,
Steven Dodge
Vibram Disc Golf
Update: I have had four companies contact me about being involved and making this happen for 2014. Anyone else in?
How YOU can help grow the sport.
Get a new player to the course.
We all have friends that don't play. Some are "too busy", some hate being outside, some are perhaps not good at going outside their comfort zone and trying something new. When you invite a new player to the course, make sure to do some warm-up throws, don't over criticize (after a few throws, give them one or two things to think about at most), make sure to laugh and have fun - especially when the discs don't go exactly where they are supposed to. And above all, remember that you are walking around outside, with a friend, throwing golf discs. Have fun!
Talk about disc golf.
I know that some of our better halves may shudder just thinking about us talking about disc golf even more, but if we casually mention our favorite sport at church, boy scouts, school/college, then those people may just ask where we play. This is a perfect time to invite them to play. And this invitation is the number one way an individual can grow the sport.
Put select discs on your wall and/or hang a disc golf calendar at the office.
They serve as a conversation starter. You get to talk about disc golf, and you didn't even start the conversation. If the person seems interested, invite them to join you the next time you play. Be vague and non-pushy. Let them digest the idea and then in a week or two tell them that you and a buddy or two are going to play. Do they want to come along?
Put a mini basket on your desk with a handful of minis.
During lunch or a "thinking break" (I have a lot of these! :-D), throw some minis into the basket. You won't even need to invite others to join in. Without being overbearing, tell them about the sport. If they're interested, tell them they should come out to the course someday. Next time you plan a trip to the course, invite them along. You've just grown the sport.
Wear a disc golf shirt and hat.
It seems that everywhere I go these days, I'm wearing a disc golf shirt and/or hat (and maybe even socks!) Invariably, fellow discers will make a comment like, "do you play?" or "what's your home course?" This has, in turn, gotten other folks in line to be interested and ask, "are those what the deer feeders in the park are for!" or "my son would be interested in that!" Wear your shirt, you never know who you could help introduce to the sport. With a quick, casual reference, Kevin Tiernan got me hooked.
Teach disc golf at school, church, scouts.
If you are (or you know) a teacher, a church-goer and/or a scout/scout-leader, teach the sport to the kids. You can have them throw to baskets, trees, or trash cans. As part of your curriculum, show a video of pros driving, putting and
approaching. Let them see what the real game is all about and give
them cards that tell them where they can get some discs and give it a
try. Join forces with your local store, they'll love you for it.
Take a portable basket to a public park and practice putting.
Invite others to give it a try. Talk with them about where you play and, if they are interested, demo a few drives and play catch. You'll be amazed what it will do for you as a person and for the growth of the game. Share the love.
Hold a putting contest at a mall or fair.
Hit a putt, win a prize. Yes, it's that simple. And while people are putting, show a video of pros driving, putting and approaching. Let people see what the real game is all about and give them cards that tell them where they can get some discs and give it a try. Join forces with your local store, they'll love you for it.
Bumper stickers.
The comments I received ranged from "litter your car with stickers" to "tastefully place one or two disc golf stickers on your car". Whatever works best for you, works best for disc golf. If you need the stickers to hold the rust spots together, the more the merrier. If your beamer can't swallow more than one tasteful disc golf sticker, then one will do. These serve three purposes. One, those of us that play the sport will probably give you a wave on the highway along with a quick throwing motion. Two, those folks who have played just once or twice will see that there are others that play, reminding them that they should go and play again. Three, those who have never heard of the sport will eventually recognize that they have heard of it.
Add a disc golf comment to your email signature.
Let everyone that you email know that you play disc golf. If they don't care, they can ignore it. But it will work in the same way that the bumper stickers on your car will work. Heck, you may even get some new disc golf buddies out of it that you didn't know also played.
Submit Disc Golf Live to your local TV station.
Submit Disc Golf Live video magazine for broadcast at your local community access station. (Copies of the show are free, stations are usually free to join.) There are hundreds of stations across the country, with viewing audiences ranging from hundreds to millions of potential viewers.
Facebook or Tweet when you are going to play DG.
Just a friendly, "I'm headed out to Smith Park to play disc golf at 2:00 today. It is gorgeous outside, come join me! i've got spare discs if you need some."
We had over a hundred suggestions (thank you) and not all of them were things that an individual can do. So you know, I've added two significant TODOs to my list over the next year and hopefully we'll be ready to make some exciting announcement in 2012 thanks to all of this input. A pleasant, and unexpected, side bonus from getting input on this.
Basically what it comes down to is, let people know about the sport, tell people you play and how much fun it is, and then invite them to the course. Once you are at the course, enjoy the time. Have fun. And the sport will grow.
Basically what it comes down to is, let people know about the sport, tell people you play and how much fun it is, and then invite them to the course. Once you are at the course, enjoy the time. Have fun. And the sport will grow.
