1. Game Description. Paddleboard Disc Golf distracts from the terror of drowning with aggravation, disappointment, and physical exhaustion. These rules are designed to increase safety and fair play. Players may deviate from these rules any time adherence is unsafe or threatens damage to property, wildlife, or nature. Even with all precautions, however, Paddleboard Disc Golf is an extreme sport with inherent risks. Please carefully review the Warning at ¶ 13.
a. Standard Paddleboard disc golf consists of throwing a disc at a number of pre-agreed targets while mounted on a paddleboard. Order of finish is determined by the number of throws needed to complete the course by hitting every target on the course. The player who completes the course with the fewest number of throws wins the game.
b. Speed paddleboard disc golf consists of throwing a disc at a number of pre-agreed targets while mounted on a paddleboard. Order of finish is determined by the amount of time required to complete the course by hitting every target on the course. The player who completes the course in the shortest period of time wins the game.
c. Combination paddleboard disc golf combines Standard and Speed paddleboard disc golf. Order of finish is determined by the number of throws needed to complete the course added to the number of minutes needed to complete the course. The player who has the lowest completion time, once throws are added to the number of minutes, wins the game.
d. Examples:
e. Cutthroat Paddleboard Disc Golf suspends all rules concerning interference (¶ 10), except the rule against striking with the paddle (¶ 10.g) and holding onto an opponent’s disc for more than five seconds (¶ 10.h). The first player to hit the target wins the round. The number of rounds and targets is agreed upon before play begins. Order of finish is determined by the number of rounds won.
2. Equipment. All players must:
a. properly wear a personal flotation device (PFD);
b. use a paddleboard no more than 2 times the height of the player plus 2 feet (e.g., (6’ + 2’) x 2 = 16’ max length for a 6’ person) and no more than 3 feet wide;
c. use a paddle that may not be adjusted in length once play begins without permission from the opponent(s);
d. use a disc that floats in water;
e. wear sunscreen;
f. if playing Cutthroat Paddleboard Disc Golf, wear a helmet and mouthpiece.
All equipment must be approved by the Paddleboard Disc Golf Organization. Use of unapproved equipment results in disqualification from the match.
3. Divisions. All matches have two divisions, the stand-up division and the open division. Any player who does not stand the entire match absent permission from the opponent(s) is relegated to the open division and can no longer compete in that match’s stand-up division. Once a player is relegated to the open division, the player can position on the board in any way during play, e.g., stand, sit, kneel, lie, etc. A stand-up division player is eligible to win both the stand-up and open division. An open division player can only win the open division. An opponent shall not unreasonably withhold permission not to stand. Withholding permission not to stand that jeopardizes a player’s safety or interferes with the speed of play results in disqualification from the match.
4. Throw. Any release of a disc held in the hand counts as a throw, including accidentally dropping it.
5. Target. Any floating or above water object that is agreed upon as something to throw a disc at as part of a match is a “target”. Once a player’s disc comes into contact with a target (a “hit”), that player shall begin throwing at the next target on the course, playing the disc from where it floats after hitting the target. A player’s board, body, or paddle may strike the target but if as a result the target is pushed into the disc, that does not count as a hit and the player must attempt to hit the target on the next throw.
a. The best targets are legally affixed buoys away from shorelines, dangerously shallow water, or other hazards.
b. Players may not use targets that result in pollution or create hazards for vessels, people, wildlife, or the environment.
6. Catch. Lifting the disc out of the water with the paddle is called the “catch”. If the disc falls back into the water during the catch, that does not count as a throw, but the player must stop advancing toward the target before attempting another catch.
7. Hold. During and after the catch, but prior to the throw, the player may hold the disc even if the player is advancing toward the target due to momentum, wind, current, or any other force not created by the player after the catch.
a. During the hold, a player may not paddle or use other human-generated means to advance toward the target.
b. During the hold, a player may reposition on the board, including moving closer to the target.
c. During the hold, an opponent may initiate a 10-second count by announcing the count to the player, in which case the player must throw the disc before the ten second count ends. Holding the disc after the 10-second count is deemed a “throw”. An opponent who uses the ten-second count in any situation that would potentially jeopardize the player’s safety is disqualified from the match.
8. Float. After the throw but prior to the catch, the disc will be floating in water. The “float” is considered part of the throw. If the disc contacts the target during the float, it is the same as if the disc hit the target while in the air.
a. During the float, a player may not use human-generated means to advance the disc toward the target. This includes running over the disc with the paddleboard. If the player runs over the disc with the paddleboard, the player must paddle away from the target until the disc comes out from under the paddleboard. Upon catching the disc that had been run over, the player must make every effort not to advance the paddleboard toward the target prior to the throw.
b. During the float, an opponent may initiate a 10-second count, in which case the player must catch the disc before the 10-second count ends. Catching the disc after the 10-second count is deemed a “throw”. An opponent may not use the ten-second count immediately after a distance throw, where a disc is difficult to retrieve, or in any situation that would potentially jeopardize the player’s safety.
9. Hazards. Any agreed-upon object can be a hazard.
a. During the float, a player may not use human-generated means to advance the disc toward the target. This includes running over the disc with the paddleboard. If the player runs over the disc with the paddleboard, the player must paddle away from the target until the disc comes out from under the paddleboard. Upon catching the disc that had been run over, the player must make every effort not to advance the paddleboard toward the target prior to the throw.
b. During the float, an opponent may initiate a 10-second count, in which case the player must catch the disc before the 10-second count ends. Catching the disc after the 10-second count is deemed a “throw”. An opponent may not use the ten-second count immediately after a distance throw, where a disc is difficult to retrieve, or in any situation that would potentially jeopardize the player’s safety.
10. Interference.
a. A player’s disc that is interfered with by an opponent in a manner that changes its trajectory away from the target is deemed to have hit the target unless the disc hits the opponent or the opponent’s equipment at a time when the opponent was not facing the player, in which case the disc is played from the spot of the float once the interference ends.
b. A disc that is deemed to have hit a target due to player interference is played from the target for the next throw.
c. A disc that is interfered with by a nonplayer is played from the float once the interference ends. A player may not direct someone who interfered to throw the disc toward the target. A player may ask someone who interfered to throw the disc back to the player without being charged with the nonplayer’s throw only if the disc is further from the target than it would have been absent the interference.
d. A player must push any opponent’s disc that lands on the player’s board into the water toward the target.
e. A player may not intentionally block an opponent’s path to a target or float.
f. A player may not touch an opponent’s person or equipment except when both players are occupied with the catch or hold and the boards are on a collision course. Players are obligated to avoid the collision and rules about paddling, standing, and other board movement are suspended without consequence until the danger is past. Players then shall make their throws from approximately the same distance to the target near the point of expected collision.
g. A player’s paddle shall not touch an opponent or an opponent’s equipment. A player who violates this rule is withdrawn from the match. Knocking away the paddle of an opponent trying to make a catch violates this rule unless the contact is incidental to both players trying to catch the same disc.
h. In the event a player gets possession of an opponent’s disc, the player may not hold onto the opponent’s disc for more than 5 seconds.
11. Errors.
a. If a player hits a target out of order, the player must hit the target again in the proper order, and the prior throws are counted in pursuit of the correct target.
b. If an opponent throws a player’s disc in the direction of the target (“erroneous throw”), the player plays the disc at the float after the erroneous throw, and the erroneous throw is not counted in the player’s score. The player has the option of throwing the opponent’s disc in any direction as a penalty (the “penalty throw”). The opponent must play the disc from the float after the penalty throw. The penalty throw is not counted in the score of any player.
c. If a player who completed a match has failed to hit one or more targets, that player is withdrawn from the match.
12. Purpose. These rules are to be interpreted in the spirit of fun, fair play, and safety. Anyone who jeopardizes a player’s safety or enjoyment of the game may be banned from competition.
13. Warning. Paddleboard Disc Golf is an extreme sport that can result in death or serious bodily injury. All players should wear an approved personal floatation device (PFD), utilize equipment in good working condition, and obey all safety regulations. Even with full precautions, however, Paddleboard Disc Golf has inherent risks, including the risk of death or serious bodily injury.
Paddleboard Disc Golf Organization © 2022.
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