The Zen of Disc Golf or Playing In The Zone

"Playing in the zone" is a saying you hear quite often. It usually refers to extraordinary play or performance. Artists probably consider being "in touch with their Muse" the same as "being in the Zone." In Disc golf, as in other sports and areas of life, being in the zone can be elusive or difficult to accomplish for an extended period of time. And, that period of time can be of any length of time, too!

Being in the zone or the Zen of anything, to me, refers to being one with whatever I'm trying to accomplish whether it be drawing, playing music, or throwing a golf disc well. It's that feeling of total immersion where I lose my self. It's selflessness. It is a constant quest and challenge.

One other way of thinking of playing in the zone is playing in a vacuum or, as expressed in Zen, empty mind. "This refers to playing disc golf with a single objective that exists in complete isolation in the mind of a disc golfer: planning and executing the flight path of a flying disc." This quoted statement is at the heart of The School of Disc Golf's philosophical concept at the center their teachings on the mental approach to the game of disc golf.

Further thoughts presented on Playing In a Vacuum by The School of Disc Golf are as follows:

■ When playing Disc Golf in a Vacuum, there is no score, no round, no tournaments . . . there aren’t even holes. There is no last throw or next throw, at least in the conscious mind. There is only the present moment, and the challenge with which one is presented. In the present. In a total and complete vacuum.

■ When playing Disc Golf in a Vacuum, results are gauged and gratification earned by achieving the desired flight path. The context of golf is a unit of measurement to be applied at the end of the round.

■ Paradoxically, by learning to play Disc Golf in a Vacuum we free our minds of performance anxiety and can shoot our best scoring rounds of golf.

■ Most importantly, playing Disc Golf in a Vacuum produces a more substantial and lasting kind of enjoyment and gratification. It is practically impossible to not have fun! Controlling the disc is its own reward, and falling short of that objective presents the opportunity to learn and grow.

Stay tuned tomorrow for Disc Golf in a Vacuum, The Epiphany Parts 1 & 2.