Glass Blown Open Traditions

By Courtney Elder

2019 GBO Champions, Paul McBeth & Catrina Allen

The Glass Blown Open. To those who aren’t involved in disc golf those four words hold very little weight, but to thousands of people across the world, they signify an event that you just can’t miss. Hosted each year in Emporia, Kansas, some might liken the GBO to a red carpet event, as it’s complete with multiple days of competitive play between the sport’s top players, block parties that rival the best backyard gettogether you’ve ever seen, and events that keep friends, family, and visitors engaged.

Within the disc golf community, The Glass Blown Open is known as a prestigious event that’s run with the highest level of professionalism out there. Months of work behind the scenes goes into the tournament each year, and as soon as it’s over the team at Dynamic Discs is already working hard on the next one. But beyond the family-friendly atmosphere and the amazing courses that are part of the competition, there’s something more that really sets the GBO apart from other tournaments.

Any event that’s been run year after year likely has a rich history in itself, but in Emporia, there are a few things we do a little bit differently here. Some might say that these are the reasons they make the trek to the middle of the United States each year, while others describe our traditions as the icing on the cake. Whatever words you choose to place behind them, these elements set us apart from the crowd. Have you figured out what they are yet? Keep reading to learn about the history of the tee-off songs at the Glass Blown Open, gain some insight into the beautiful trophies we present each year, and find out who those guys are on the mike when you step up to take your first shot of the event.

Bust A Move

Even if you don’t go to concerts all the time and have a terrible singing voice, one thing is for certain - you probably like music. It’s an incredible thing that tends to bond people and has become a significant part of the tee-offs at each year’s GBO. While the assumption that players choose their own songs is completely accurate, what’s not always as clear is just how interesting some of these song selections tend to be.

During registration each year, GBO players are given the option to request a tee-off song of their choosing. Given that this tournament is a family friendly event, lyrics must not contain any profanities and for the most part, the tunes chosen are ones that are upbeat and put players in a pumped up state of mind. For our 2019 event, we saw a few favorites come in across multiple divisions with a pretty infamous melody being requested 18 times. What could it be? None other than “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor. A close second, with 16 requests, is “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC, proving that the classics never die.

Some may find that these choices are cliché, but you can’t overestimate the mental effect that tee-off songs have. Here’s a perfect example from 2011 FPO Champion Valarie Jenkins:

“If anyone has ever played in my group, they know that I am always humming a song that’s stuck in my head. Most of the time, I’m not sure where the song came from but sometimes it’s a song I just heard, so picking the right tee-off song is more crucial than one might think.

Since they only play the first 30 seconds of a song, you have to make sure you like the first 30 seconds. In 2015, I chose the Taylor Swift song “Shake It Off” and when my name was called and the song was cued up… I listened to those words ‘got nothing in my brain.’ Needless to say, I didn’t play well in those first couple of rounds of the tournament.

When it came to the final round, somehow they had lost the list of songs and asked what I’d like to play. I said ‘pick anything.’ This time, when my name was called and the song played it was ‘Eye of the Tiger.’ I ended up shooting a 1011-rated round as well as the hottest round of the day for FPO.”

Subliminal Messaging

As Val’s story illustrates, the words in one’s tee-off selection can play a major role in the rest of the day’s round. With that in mind, it’s intriguing to look for patterns between song requests and the game of disc golf itself. Want to head out and score a ton of birdies? Simply listening to a song with “bird” in the title like Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds” or “Blackbird” by the Beatles could help you to play well, but wouldn’t an eagle be better? Both “Comfort Eagle” by Cake as well as “Fly Like An Eagle” by The Steve Miller Band are popular picks.

Plenty of players opt for lyrics that include the word “win” or “winning”, both obvious choices when gearing up to tackle a tough course, but there seem to be mixed feelings about just how important the song’s message truly is. While Jenkins and others find their selection to be critical, others don’t necessarily feel the same. 2012 and 2013 MPO winner Will Schusterick said he simply chooses whatever song is on his mind at the time of the event. It seems that Simon Lizotte, MPO winner in 2014, also doesn’t put much stock into his choice:

“I honestly don’t really remember the songs I’ve chosen. I don’t even remember what song I chose this year. If I had to guess, I picked a song I liked at the time. I didn’t really put much thought into that. I try to not get affected by anything when I start playing. I think there could be any song playing in the background and I wouldn’t even notice.”

GBO’s Tee-Off Origins

Erran Harter & Scott Hayes

Whether you love the idea of a tee-off song or not, there’s a good reason for it, and it stems back from the early years of involvement from tournament announcers Scott Hayes and Erren Harter. Both work at KVOE, a news, talk, and sports radio station in Emporia, and they’ve been partnering with Dynamic Discs since the beginning. Back in the day when Jeremy Rusco outgrew operations in the basement of his home, he rented space at a property managed by Erren. The two struck up a friendship and soon after Scott also became acquainted with the original DD crew.

Harter and Hayes have been volunteering at the Glass Blown Open for years, and initially their duties included helping with a poker tournament and announcing each player as they stepped up to tee. The player’s name and hometown were the only things said into the microphone at the time, with filler music playing in between cards. In 2013, however, things started to get a little more interesting as the pair tried to personalize each player’s experience by asking them if they’d like to hear a song during their shot instead of silence.

The next year, selecting a song became a more standardized practice, although it still took another year before this information showed up on the player registration form. As each individual would approach the tee, Scott and Erren would ask what song they wanted to play, wildly search for it, and hoped that it was clean enough to put on for an all-ages crowd. “People were really into it. Even though a lot of the people who come to play are pretty serious, even the AMs can be serious, but still like to have fun. Having that song playing like that - it became a special little extra thing that the Glass Blown Open had,” Scott explained.

Seeing Positive Results

Not only did the players react well to the idea of tee-off songs, but both Erren and Scott noticed a huge difference in the mood of the crowd as a whole. Scott described what people can expect when watching players tee in person:

“Anytime you have an announcer it’s a cue to fans around that something’s about to happen. Music is playing and then they cut to me announcing a welcome, and that’s when Erren is getting the song ready. Everybody quiets down and starts to pay attention. It has become a really great way of letting the fans know when something’s about to happen, and helps to build excitement - you can feel it build as we get close to the lead cards and the music’s feeding into that. People can go down the hill so they can watch players tee off. It’s added to it as a spectator sport, at least here in Emporia.”

One might consider Erren to be the man behind the scenes as he’s usually trying to get songs organized in a timely fashion, but he too gets to be a spectator in his own right. “It starts their round off on a good note,” he stated about how it affects the players. “A disc can go out of bounds but they can turn around and play air guitar.”

Working Through Challenges

It’s not all rainbows and unicorns however, as the duo has run into some concerns in past years. If they personally aren’t familiar with a song’s lyrics, they’ll look them up to make sure it’s appropriate. Several times a few choice words have been dropped without their knowledge, and while they are incredibly diligent about keeping things clean, they also can’t really preview 1500 songs before the event either.

Some artists aren’t on Spotify as well, and since it’s the platform that Hayes and Harter use during GBO, it has left them needing to find other options. “Richard Cheese is a Vegas lounge singer [with Lounge Against the Machine] - he covers everything. We use him when we can’t find music,” said Scott. And what about if someone doesn’t pick a song or says they don’t care? That’s right, they’re getting “MMMBop,” “Barbie Girl,” or something from New Kids On The Block.

Like most of the people that work to put on the Glass Blown Open, both Scott and Erren volunteer their time because they love what disc golf brings to the community. Rather than feeling like celebrities, they take a humble approach to their skills, although not everyone sees it that way. In the summer of 2017, Scott accompanied DD team members to the Disc Golf Experience in Nashville, and that’s when it really hit him that he’s making a difference:

“After the event was over players were coming up and having me sign their discs. I thought ‘people are asking for my autograph when there’s professionals standing around?’ That’s when I realized that it’s valued and it’s pretty cool.”

Diving Into A Passion

Depending on how you look at it, one might describe that Scott and Erren’s involvement with the Glass Blown Open was simply fate, and while they struck up a close relationship with many on the Dynamic Discs team, you don’t have to be acquainted for years to make a huge difference. Such is the story with Brice Turnbull, an artist who currently lives and works in Colorado. If you don’t recognize his name, you’re surely familiar with his handiwork, as he’s the man who makes the gorgeous trophies for GBO each year.

Brice used to live in Emporia and had been in the area for about four years when the original creator of the trophies, Hal Berger, passed away at the age of 54. An accomplished glass blower in the area, Brice had studied under Hal and took note when Dynamic Discs put out a call for new artists to create their trophies. “I worked on some ideas then went and talked with Eric McCabe and Jeremy Rusco. They seemed really friendly and I showed them the ideas. They decided to go with mine, which was great - I’ve been doing them for 12 years,” Turnbull said.

While the method of crafting the trophies is similar to their original design, Brice did come up with new ideas right off the bat and explained his thought process behind some of the pieces that we’ve come to know and love:

“[Hal’s] were kind of a teardrop, and the idea was that I wanted to do something colorful for the first generation. Right now they have sort of a stardust inside but at the beginning, they had just multicolored brush strokes. I wanted a globe [shape] because I wanted something round - it was either a globe or a disc, and I thought for a trophy a globe was easier to hold. After a while, they asked if I had any other ideas. We went with the one [design] for four to five years, then I came up with a few variations. My favorite is the one we’re using now.”

If you’d like to see behind the scenes footage of him creating these special pieces, make sure to visit his Instagram @briceturnbull.

Disc Golf From A Different Perspective

Despite living in Emporia and partnering with Dynamic Discs for over a decade, Brice isn’t an avid disc golf player, saying “I’ve dinked around a little bit” when it comes to the sport. He’s visited the Glass Blown Open several times since moving to Colorado and is amazed at how big the event has become. “Part of the fun for me has been meeting some of the people who have won trophies that I’ve made and to meet some of the players on the circuit,” he said.

Beyond just making trophies, however, Turnbull has really gotten to see how disc golf as a whole can shape people’s lives in the most amazing ways. He shared a story about someone he knows who played in the Glass Blown Open that was truly touching:

“One of my friends in the Rotary Club was going to meet up with his son and play in the GBO. He was hopeful that they might win a trophy! My friend is about 68 or so - he and his son weren’t close growing up but disc golf is the main way that they reconnect. They get together and travel together and get to be around a bunch of positive people. It gives them a chance to do something and not just talk on the phone but get outdoors, get in the sunshine, get physical, and not have to articulate what everything is only in words all the time.”

Working Selflessly

The fact that someone who isn’t immersed in the disc golf community day in and day out can see this family dynamic and how disc golf has brought them together in such a positive way clearly demonstrates just how incredible the sport is. Brice isn’t making these trophies for a huge payday, but instead really enjoys how his artistic talents can be an added bonus within the overall player experience:

“I enjoy the group and I enjoy what it represents. The really cool thing about making awards is that you’re helping someone celebrate something they’ve worked really hard for - I get to be a part of that day. I really feel like in life we don’t celebrate positive accomplishments often enough, and I think it’s really cool that I get to help people mark that part of their lives.”

Players also see the value in Turnbull’s creations, as 2017 FPO Champion Hannah Leatherman explains, “I love the Glass Blown trophies. For me, it’s my favorite trophy I’ve gotten, and probably the best one I will ever get.” Val Jenkins mirrors that statement with her experience,  “The GBO glass trophies are beautiful. Through the years, I have had the honor of collecting quite a few trophies from all the tournaments I’ve played and my favorite ones to display are the works of art. I have boxes full of wooden plaques, but the unique glass trophies are displayed proudly in our home.”

Continuing The Traditions

Jeremy Rusco & Brice Turnbull

Anyone who has visited a Glass Blown Open event will proudly tell others that they have to attend and that it’s a trip worth making at least once in a lifetime. Even if you’re not competing, simply being around thousands of other disc golfers in a town that welcomes everyone so wholeheartedly will certainly shift your perspective about the sport in general. The traditions we share here work to make the event that much more special.

As the years go on, the team at Dynamic Discs hopes to continue our current practices of tee-off songs, block parties, beautiful trophies, and so much more. Being able to partner with others around the nation who have the same heart for the sport is what makes the long nights of planning all worth it, and who knows - perhaps we’ll begin to establish some new traditions in years to come.

Whether you’re a new player to the sport who is excited to become more involved in tournaments or you feel like Emporia has become your second home, the unique details of the Glass Blown Open truly make this an event to put on your bucket list. If you’re playing in 2020, start thinking about your tee-off song now, and perhaps if it’s inspiring enough, you can win one of Brice’s incredible trophies!

When is the right time to tour?

By Courtney Elder

4x Professional World Champion Valarie Jenkins

Pursuing disc golf professionally looks quite different now than it did when the sport was first becoming popular. Until recently, the typical story of a disc golf player looked something like the following: grow up playing other sports, go to college, discover disc golf sometime in your adult life, and from there decide if you’re going to turn it into a career or not. While there are certainly variations to this narrative, it was more often the case than not.

However, with such a push to grow the sport and get kids involved from a young age, the role of disc golf in one’s life is now very different. Some of the sport’s top players were seen on the course decades ago in their early youth, and upon turning 18, many of them faced a difficult crossroads: to go on tour full-time or to pursue a college education.

Depending on one’s priorities, sometimes that decision can be pretty clear, and there are definitely multiple ways to look at the question. On one hand, college will always be there, and there’s nothing wrong with hitting the road first and then studying for a degree in your late 20’s or early 30’s. Yet many might argue that actually “making it” as a professional disc golfer is like finding a needle in a haystack and that a more practical approach to one’s career should be considered instead of briefly cashing in on youthful energy and talent.

It’s an interesting enough quandary that we thought it was worth diving into just a bit deeper, so we talked with four of the sport’s well-known players to get their take on the matter. Along with learning more about them, we asked the all-important question - to tour or not to tour? Keep reading, because their answers may surprise you.

When The Road Calls

There are certainly some players that haven’t even given college a second thought, much less a first, knowing that disc golf is their true path in life. Touring the country with gusto, they are confident that they can ride the wave of their talents and make something of themselves without having to go to school. However, others opt for a more traditional post-high school route only to realize that may not have been the right move for them after all.

One player who did just that is our current World Champion Paige Bjerkaas. After high school, she attended college for Elementary Education with the hopes of someday being a teacher. As she progressed through school and cultivated her disc golf skills, it became clear to her that things just weren’t adding up. When asked why she decided to leave for the open road, she mentioned a number of aspects:

2018 Professional World Champion Paige Bjerkaas

“There were a few factors that went into my decision to do so. First was how well I was playing disc golf. I had been touring since May and I had been getting better and better each weekend. So I figured if I kept going, I was bound to win something. Second was how much fun I was having. I started to make good friends and was enjoying the tour life that didn’t have to do with disc golf: the exploring, the traveling, the new sites, new food, etc. And third was my loss of passion for what I was studying. The further along in school I got, the less I really wanted to teach. I knew I wouldn’t be happy staying in school working toward something I wasn’t sure I wanted to do. So ultimately, all those things led to my decision to stay on the road.”

Before simply throwing in the college towel, Paige did consider taking online courses in order to fulfill both of her objectives, but she was simply too far along in her degree to make it work. Along with the support of her friends and Dynamic Discs family, the decision to go on the road became an easier one as time went on. Who knows - if she had been focused on schoolwork, maybe she wouldn’t have come out on top at Worlds! While leaving school was clearly the right move for her, Bjerkaas does offer some advice for those who aren’t quite sure which path to take. Other than making sure to think about all aspects of both tour and college in the long run, making sure to stay committed to your decision is key. If you still can’t choose, she offers a wise suggestion:

“My advice for people who are on the fence about touring and college is to tour! Looking back on my experience, I regret not hitting the road ASAP. I definitely enjoyed college and made some lifetime friends, but now I have college debt for something I didn’t even end up wanting to do. However, if you are really passionate about a certain field and you do want to go to college, I would suggest summer tours. Save up money and during the summer you can tour for about three months, then get back to the grind in the fall. Plus, all the best events are during summertime in my opinion, except GBO. Also, if you do go to school, go somewhere where there are disc golf courses and other people who play.”

Multitasking To The Max

Paige’s suggestion to try out both college and touring certainly is a tall order to fill, but if you are passionate about getting an education while playing disc golf, it’s definitely possible - just look at Valarie Jenkins. A major player in the sport, Valarie has certainly seen an immense amount of success within her disc golf career. But did you know that she also has a degree and worked exceptionally hard to earn it?

Jenkins initially took a year off after high school to travel and figure out what life had in store for her, and then was enticed to go to college with the option of being roommates with five of her best friends. Although this year was quite memorable, she found herself really missing out on all of the tournaments across the world. While Valarie was able to take down win after win after rejoining her fellow players, she saw that the sport needed much more from a business perspective and it really got her wheels turning about how she could contribute:

“I wanted to learn more about the business and marketing world and I realized that taking some college classes might help. At that time, University of Phoenix was the only reputable online college out there. I filled out a form online and I think within that day someone called me. I started chatting and instantly realized that this could be a really great option for me. So I went for it. The advisors that I talked to at the school were very helpful and supportive. They checked in with me every now and then and helped me create a program that would work for my travel schedule and keep me on track to get my degree.”

While completing her BA in Marketing online, Valarie and husband Nate Doss traveled the world playing disc golf. Sometimes they had to get very creative in order for her to complete her schoolwork, especially when they camped across Australia for two months. “I always remember many moments where everyone would be celebrating the tournament weekend, and I’d have my computer out writing a paper or responding to the discussion forums,” she explained. “One great memory is when Nate helped me with some math homework after my 2009 Worlds win! I did what I had to do to complete the courses regardless of where I was in the world, or what tournaments I just played. It was my responsibility that I signed on for, and I knew that it would better me in the long run.”

For Valarie, she saw that playing competitively and going to college weren’t mutually exclusive, and in 2011 she finished her coursework and received her degree. Not only does her BA prove that you can truly put your mind to anything that you want to accomplish, but it’s given her a jumpstart in the business world as it relates to the sport. She’s gone on to start DiscGolf4Women, used her skills as the Chairwoman of the PDGA Women’s Committee, and so much more.

If you’re unsure about what to do after high school, Jenkins offers some great advice: “As we all know, being a professional athlete as a career can end in a split second with injuries. Having a backup plan and continuing to build on your passion through higher education is a great idea. If you decide to go back to school, make sure you’re willing to put in the time and energy regardless of what happens. I’d highly recommend to anyone who is on the fence to take some online classes. You’ll not only better yourself, but you could use that education to help grow the sport we all love.”

Going In Order

Both Paige and Valarie bring great points to the table when it comes to college and touring. While they both saw that hitting the road sooner rather than later was invaluable, others have taken a very different approach. Making a huge name for himself as of late on the professional circuit is Calvin Heimburg, a player who brings a lot more to the table than just a great game. Many may not know that he graduated from University of Florida in 2017 with a chemical engineering degree, and his thought process in doing so before touring certainly makes sense.

2019 National Tour Points Champion Calvin Heimburg

While he began enjoying disc golf around 2008 after receiving a starter pack for his birthday, Calvin only played infrequently with his dad. After discovering that a close friend was also involved in the sport, his interested grew quickly and at the end of 2010, he competed in his first sanctioned event. By 2014, he was playing in Open and knew that disc golf was in his life to stay.

Although he’s now a proud degree holder, Heimburg isn’t quite sure what he wants to do with his career, which is in part why he’s on the road now. While that uncertainty may now be present, he was always steadfast in his plans:

“I can't really say that I ever thought about ditching college for the road. There was always a plethora of tournaments in the Southeast to play throughout the year that I could travel to for the weekend. Getting my degree was always the primary objective and the decision process on whether or not to hit the road didn't start until after I had already graduated. I am sure that there were some classes that I could have taken online. However, it is definitely easier to keep up with schoolwork when that is what you are focused on doing.”

Not everyone can be as sure as Calvin was when it comes to touring or not, but he does suggest that if people are unclear, they should attempt a mix of both until it becomes apparent which path will be right for them. Again as we heard from Valarie, sticking with your decision seems to be key. “If you decide to tour full time, you have to make sure that you have a good support structure behind you because living expenses on the road add up quickly,” Calvin explained. “Both options have their pros and their cons. You just have to choose the lifestyle that you think is better for you and commit to it.”

School, Then Disc Golf, Then More School?

There is no right way to go about one’s career path, and what may seem like a firm decision in a certain direction can absolutely change at a moment’s notice. For Madison Walker, that became apparent in 2014. Holding a degree in Marine Biology with a minor in Chemistry, she worked for roughly three years post-college with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response as an onsite biologist and natural resource advisor. After getting laid off and waiting tables to make ends meet, she realized that playing disc golf could be a viable career option.

Madison played local events in Florida and Georgia, and although she was in the process of applying to graduate school, she decided to attend 2014 Worlds in Portland, Oregon. There she reunited with Paige Pierce whom she’d met at a tournament earlier in the year. Together the two of them embarked upon the 2015 season with intensity, and it was in many ways a crash course for Madison into what “tour life” is all about:

“I figured I could get a [Master’s] degree at any point in my life, but getting the opportunity to be Paige Pierce's wingman wasn't going to come around again later in life. I had a decent savings account and was sponsored during my first touring year, but funds ran out quickly and I found myself broke and one stroke out of cash pretty quickly. That's where Paige came in - she was my biggest supporter financially. She liked to call it ‘mentoring.’

No matter what it's called, I am so thankful she took me under her wing and helped me get through the most financially unsuccessful year of my life. She encouraged me to stick with it for another year at least, and my unwillingness to back down from a challenge has kept me on the road ever since. And a challenge it has been!”

Touring Professional Madison Walker

Although Walker has become one of disc golf’s more notable female players in the last few years and she truly loves the sport with all of her heart, touring full-time may not be in the cards for her in the coming years. She shared that natural sciences are her true passion and she will be returning to them soon. As far as what that looks like is anyone’s guess at this point, but flexibility in today’s workforce may allow her to mold both disc golf and her career into something unique that works for her.

“You can literally do anything you set your mind to if you're willing to work hard, and maybe have a bit of natural talent to boot,” she said. “I think the decision is situational, but I am very happy I decided to stick with college, as having a solid back-up plan while grinding away on tour makes the risky lifestyle a little easier to accept.” Madison is right in that touring is certainly a risk, but isn’t going to college equally as ambitious?

Doing What’s Right For You

We’ve learned just a little bit from some of disc golf’s more notable players and without question, each competitor on tour likely has their own similar story to share. Whether it’s an injury that will sideline someone and encourage them to go back to school or it’s a pure and natural talent that simply has to be expressed on the road right away, there’s no one right way to handle this major decision. Even with the best-made plans, anything can happen, and having a backup option is always smart no matter what road you choose to travel down. As these pros have shared, what’s most important is to follow your heart, because if your decision brings you true happiness, then in a sense, you’ve already won.