I often play disc golf with friends. Most people do. And that’s great! Disc Golf is a great game to play and have fun with a group of people, but I often hit the course on my own. I wanted to write this post to answer this question and encourage you to get out there and play even if you don’t have anyone to play with.
So, can you play disc golf alone? Yes, you can play disc golf alone. In fact, playing on your own is a great way to get in some practice throwing your discs. It’s also a great stress reliever or just a nice thing to do if you want to spend some time by yourself outdoors.
There’s actually many great reasons to play on your own, and many benefits too.
Exercise
The first reason is exercise. There are many reasons to exercise, but we always seem to find better reasons not to. I’m too busy. It’s too hard. I don’t enjoy it! (That’s my favorite).
Often times, getting outside and getting some exercise in just isn’t very fun, especially when you’re by yourself. Unless you love to run/jog, or bike, there aren’t a lot of great exercise options for those who exercise alone.
Disc golf is a great for of solo exercise given the range of motion that you get over and over as you throw.
Also, you can get a solid 2 to 3 miles of walking done in the average disc golf game. For the average 180 pound person, that ends up being between 200 and 300 calories burned! Not to mention that walking is great for cardiovascular health.
Stress Relief
According to the American Institute of Stress, depression, anxiety, heart attacks, stroke, and hypertension are just some of the emotional and physical disorders linked to stress.
One of the most common ways to relieve stress is exercise. We already covered in the paragraphs above that disc golf is a great form of exercise.
Another stress reliever is meditation or simply just getting away from the world for a while. Again, playing disc gold solo shines in this area, allowing you to get outdoors, get some fresh air, and spend some time away from your life and whatever troubles that may be the cause of your stress.
Practice
When you play disc golf with a group of friends or in a tournament, one of the best feelings is the feeling you get when you play well. You’re friends think well of you. You’re proud of yourself for doing well. It’s just a great feeling in general.
When you play poorly on the other hand, it can most certainly ruin your day. It’s happened to me plenty of times, and it’s happened to my friends as well. Quite often, I’ll get mad at myself for playing poorly and it can ruin the mood, not just for myself, but for the whole group as well.
When you play on your own, there’s no one there to see how well, or how poorly you do. Feel free to be happy with yourself for throwing well, but if you don’t, it doesn’t matter, because no one is there to see.
Playing solo gives you the time and space to practice and play terribly without feeling terrible about how poorly you throw. You can practice new types of throws without fear of well meaning friends laughing or joking about it.
And wouldn’t it be great to show up to a group game with a brand new sidearm throw that no-one has seen yet and impress all of your friends?? I’ve done just that, and let me tell you, it’s a great feeling.
Great for Introverts
I, like many others, am an introvert. I’m quite happy not talking to anyone for days on end. If I could, I would spend the majority of my time alone, in a dark room covered in blankets!
Sometimes though, it’s nice, even for us introverts to get outside and get some sun and exercise. Playing disc golf solo is great activity for introverts who want to get outdoors but would rather leave out the social part of playing the game.
It’s said that Paul McBeth, arguably the best disc golfer in the world, started playing the game because he wasn’t interested in being social, and disc golf was something he could do alone.
My Hero.
Much better than other alone time activities that you could be doing
As a society, we spend more and more time connected to our devices. How often do you see people glued to their smart phone or iPad. How much time do you spend in front of the TV or on your computer. At this very minute, I’m staring down at my computer screen and although I’m doing something I like to do, it would be much better for my health to be doing something outdoors.
Too much screen time has been linked with:
- Obesity
- Lack of sleep
- Problems in school or work
- Neck and eye pain
- Many others
Playing disc golf solo is a great alternative to some of the other things you could be doing in your alone time. Instead of turning on the TV, grab your discs and head to the course.
The average adult spends 3 hours and 35 minutes on their phones every single day! What if you took some of that time, put the phone down and got outside instead.
Playing a game of disc golf solo takes around 1.5 – 2 hours, and if you have 3 hours to spend on your phone, you definitely have 1.5 – 2 hours doing something that much healthier for your mind and body.
Versatility of playing alone
Playing disc golf as a group is great. It’s a fun thing to do while bonding with friends or family. The problem is that friends and family are often busy and aren’t always available to play.
The great thing about disc golf is that most courses are free to the public and open all year round. This is great, because it allows you to drop in and play whenever you like
Here are some great opportunities to play disc golf alone:
- Before work
- During your lunch hour
- After work when traffic on the freeway is heavy
- When your friends aren’t available
- Anytime you turn on the TV – Get outdoors instead!
My favorite of those options is after work when the freeway is too busy. If you’re a commuter and you hate being stuck in traffic, instead of heading to the freeway after work, head to the disc golf course instead.
By the time you’re done, there will be much less traffic on the freeway and instead of spending all that useless time driving, you spent your time doing a fun activity that relieves stress, and gets you some exercise in the process.
