Hot Day: Tournament Edition

After playing in one of the hottest tournaments I've ever experienced a few weeks ago, I thought it would be a good idea to speak on my experiences, and how important it is to focus on diet, hydration, and sleep before and during a tournament. Sometimes you lose sight of just how physically demanding a disc golf tournament can be until mother nature adds its two cents and leaves you laying in the grass. The fact that I'm not as young as most of the players out there anymore doesn't help matters, but I could tell the heat was affecting everyone involved.

The Knoxville Disc Golf Club hosted the Old City Open on July 22nd, and morning temperatures were surprisingly mild for July in Tennessee. I had eaten eggs and toast that morning, and hydrating on water and Gatorade since the night before. I must add that I'm 6'3" and 225 lbs, and don't have the best restraint when it comes to dietary choices. The OCO (Old City Open) was the most prepared I've ever been for a tournament, and it showed in the first round.

My mind was locked in. My extremities were loose and flexible. As the round continued, I seemingly couldn't miss a putt. I didn't play perfect by any means, but I definitely put myself in the mix with a fifty-one (rated 954); two off the lead in the Advanced division. After waiting for the other groups to come in, and realizing I had put myself in a good spot compared to my local friends and competitors, I went to Wendy's.

Now, I know what you're thinking, Wendy's... and you'd only be partially right. I ended up ordering a grilled chicken sandwich on a wheat bun, and got Powerade to drink. My only strike was in the french fries. I had many contributing factors to what happened in the afternoon round, and they're going to sound like excuses. My hope is that my excuses become slivers of lesson in a preparation pie for everyone reading.

Excuse one: Time.

My first round card was one of the first ones done. This happens quite a bit in the Advanced division. The Recreational and Intermediate divisions play slower, mostly due to having to take extra shots, look for lost discs, and having an overall casual mentality. As the skill level goes up, you start seeing people more focused on scoring and technique, and the speed of play increases as a result. Conversely, the Open division seems to slow down again, as they think shots through at an enhanced level and their routines are usually more extravagant. So as a result, my time between rounds has been increased to close to two hours (usually the layover is one hour from the last card being turned in). Usually this means my thirty-five year old self resting for longer than I should.

Excuse two: Luck.

Sometimes, you just have a round where you think the course is out to get you. My second round felt this way. My second hole I attempted a jump putt and missed left. My disc landed on the hill flat, yet somehow bounced into a rolling position, and rolled to forty feet. I was still in a good place mentally at this point, so I hit the jump putt for par, but the stage was set. By the fifth hole I had two spit outs, and my mind was starting to unravel a bit. I consider myself a very level-headed golfer, and never show my frustrations on the course. But this doesn't mean they don't exist. On my sixth hole, which was hole twelve for our card, I missed a twenty foot birdie putt that resulted in a 130' rollaway down the hill. I had started getting body fatigue a bit at this point, so instead of going back to my bag for the proper disc, I took what I had and went down the hill. This decision caused me to take a five on the hole, and after the luck I had to start the round, I was on a bit of a downward spiral.

Excuse three: Hydration.

The bag I was carrying usually stays in my Zuca cart, but I made a last second decision to carry it over pulling the cart due to the hills and terrain of Morningside Park. As a result, I wasn't used to carrying this particular bag. I tell you that to tell you this: I dropped my Gatorade somewhere on the course eight holes in. This wouldn't be that terrible if not for the rising heat. My watch showed ninety-six degrees by the fifth hole. Which just happens to be when I started melting into the earth.

Excuse four: Heat.

You know conditions are extreme when everything is wet. My birdie bag (rosin) was no match for the perspiration on my hands, and my towels had already called it quits. If not for the dirt rubbed on my hands before shots, I wouldn't have been able to grip the discs well at all. The physical effects weren't the main problem, though. When it's that hot, your brain starts overheating and you find it hard to focus. This was my ultimate problem. Normally I focus on one link of a basket when I'm putting, and I stare it down all the way through my putt. After my second round I can't remember doing that the entire back nine. It was just... so... hot.

The point of all this is to prepare people that are beginning to play tournaments, or that don't play tournaments at all. It's a different atmosphere completely, and seems to take twice as long as casual rounds with friends. It's not uncommon to spend 8-10 hours on the course on tournament day, and in the kinds of heat explained above, things can go from fun to grueling in a short amount of time. I think it goes without saying that I didn't do too well overall in the OCO, but I can add it to my list of experiences (if you know me, ask me about the Tommy Schumpert Open) for the future.

My recommendations for a hot tournament day are as follows:

• Hydrate continuously. This includes the day before, as well as after the tournament to guarantee your body has what it needs to keep your brain and muscles going. 
• Sleep. I shouldn't have to explain this. Lack of sleep equals lack of focus and tired muscles.
• Find shade whenever possible. The best times to take advantage of this is on the tee, waiting for backups, or when you're the last one to take your second shot. 
• Dry yourself as much as possible. Letting the sweat build on your skin results in the perspiration actually heating your skin more. 
• Sunglasses. This seems obvious, but I've seen quite a few people that don't like wearing eye protection on the course. This usually results in headaches, as your eyes are forced to work harder than they should. If you can't putt with sunglasses on, take them off when putting. Easy.
• Clean eating. Weighing your body down with fatty foods, carbs, and sugars have an impact on overall energy levels. I'm no dietitian, so I won't make recommendations on this, but you should, for the most part, know what's relatively good and bad for your body. 

Hopefully this will help someone, or at least refocus those of you that have been slipping for one reason or another. I am by no means an expert on this subject, but I do pay attention to things and feel as if I provide a little bit of insight on the sometimes overlooked aspects of tournament day. I myself will be working on bettering myself for future tournaments, so I can stop getting close to victory, and start actually winning. Good luck, and I'll see you all on the course!

-Jon