



Is the 2-meter rule in effect?

By Justin Weilacher



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I recently played a round with a couple really good friends of mine, Miller and Armando, and one of us got a disc in a tree. It happens a lot less than one would think with all the trees on most disc golf courses. Unlike most rounds we play, we did not impose the 2-meter rule, one-stroke penalty. I'm still not quite sure why.

INDUSTRY PULSE Should the 2-meter rule be adopted universally? 1. Yes

2. No





After reading the rule book thoroughly, I discovered it is not a rule, it's more like a suggestion. I came to understand it was like the windmill hole on a putt-putt course, the windmill might be on or it might be off. So why do we call it a rule? And why do we play it universally on the West Coast but, as I understand from Internet conversation, almost never on the East Coast?



The best reason for the existence of the rule was expressed really well on a Reddit thread and went something like, "Without the rule, all you have to do is hang your disc in a tree near the basket, mark your lie under it and have an easy putt for birdie. Without the rule, a player can substitute a far larger target, the tree, for the competition-level basket target."

A look down a heavily treed fairway in Truckee, Calif.

I've read lots of opinions on the rule that state East Coast courses are more heavily treed than West Coast courses and that is why the rule is not applied. I've played golf in two eastern states and two western states and don't see any difference in the possibility of trees on a course.



It is exactly this kind of inconsistency we need to avoid if we are to become a more popular and respected professional sport. What other sport has rules that may or may not be in effect? Not a single one I can think of. Sure an out-of-bounds line might exist on a course or not; but if it does, it is not played differently in Ohio than it is in Oregon. And trust me, there are plenty of heavily treed courses in California, Oregon and Washington.



The only thing that really matters is all the competitors play the course the same. Theoretically, we could choose to institute the rule universally or not have it at all, and it would make equal sense. I personally think the rule should stay.



We can always choose what rules we want to enforce during a casual round — my personal rules are a penalty stroke if my disc is surrounded by water or higher than 2 meters in a tree. I usually don't play O.B. lines unless there is a clearly marked line. I choose to play casual rounds as close as possible to the way I play competition rounds. But during an event, the rule should be used all the time.



The 2-meter rule isn't going to make more discs land in trees. The lie is played the same way whether a stroke penalty is applied or not, so it is not maintaining speed of play. How many competitive golfers are regularly getting their discs stuck in trees anyway?



We can choose to play a rule that rewards the better, more consistent, skillful shot or choose to allow golfers to huck it at the trees and hope. Do what you want during your casual round, but let's standardize competition disc golf the world around. The challenge is more fun and we will be better respected for it.



Justin Weilacher played a few rounds of disc golf at the University of Florida but then lost touch. He earned a bachelor's degree in English literature, started managing bookstores, got married and moved to Arizona before finding disc golf again five years ago. Justin now lives in California, writes on his blog, DB Free Disc Golf, to grow the sport he loves, and fits disc golf into all the free spaces of his life. The 2-meter rule is by far the oddest rule in disc golf. I really got into the game in Flagstaff, Ariz., and we always played the 2-meter rule. The rule was so ubiquitous that I thought it was a hard-and-fast rule of the game. I was frequently annoyed by the guy at events who invariably yelled out at the players meeting, "Is the 2-meter rule in effect?" I didn't understand. How can you just disregard a rule?After reading the rule book thoroughly, I discovered it is not a rule, it's more like a suggestion. I came to understand it was like the windmill hole on a putt-putt course, the windmill might be on or it might be off. So why do we call it a rule? And why do we play it universally on the West Coast but, as I understand from Internet conversation, almost never on the East Coast?The best reason for the existence of the rule was expressed really well on a Reddit thread and went something like, "Without the rule, all you have to do is hang your disc in a tree near the basket, mark your lie under it and have an easy putt for birdie. Without the rule, a player can substitute a far larger target, the tree, for the competition-level basket target."I've read lots of opinions on the rule that state East Coast courses are more heavily treed than West Coast courses and that is why the rule is not applied. I've played golf in two eastern states and two western states and don't see any difference in the possibility of trees on a course.It is exactly this kind of inconsistency we need to avoid if we are to become a more popular and respected professional sport. What other sport has rules that may or may not be in effect? Not a single one I can think of. Sure an out-of-bounds line might exist on a course or not; but if it does, it is not played differently in Ohio than it is in Oregon. And trust me, there are plenty of heavily treed courses in California, Oregon and Washington.The only thing that really matters is all the competitors play the course the same. Theoretically, we could choose to institute the rule universally or not have it at all, and it would make equal sense. I personally think the rule should stay.We can always choose what rules we want to enforce during a casual round — my personal rules are a penalty stroke if my disc is surrounded by water or higher than 2 meters in a tree. I usually don't play O.B. lines unless there is a clearly marked line. I choose to play casual rounds as close as possible to the way I play competition rounds. But during an event, the rule should be used all the time.The 2-meter rule isn't going to make more discs land in trees. The lie is played the same way whether a stroke penalty is applied or not, so it is not maintaining speed of play. How many competitive golfers are regularly getting their discs stuck in trees anyway?We can choose to play a rule that rewards the better, more consistent, skillful shot or choose to allow golfers to huck it at the trees and hope. Do what you want during your casual round, but let's standardize competition disc golf the world around. The challenge is more fun and we will be better respected for it.



