Double Disc Court

 

Double Disc Court, commonly referred to as DDC, is a unique sport in that two discs are used in play at the same time. Following is a brief description of the game.

Basics

DDC is played on flat ground with well trimmed grass. Courts which are 13 meters square and 17 meters apart are marked with brightly colored rope on the grass. The game is played with two 110 gram Pro model discs. There are two teams consisting of two players each. Each team defends a court. Offensively there are two primary objectives:

   1.Throw the disc so that it lands and stays in your opponents court

   2.Throw the discs with timing that will cause the opponent(s) to be in contact with both discs simultaneously.

Defensively the two primary objectives are:

   1.Defend your court by catching discs that threaten to land in and stay in your court
   2.Avoid simultaneous contact with both discs by one or both players on a team.

Points are scored in three principal ways. Your opponent scores a point if:

   1.You drop a disc
   2.You throw a disc that touches outside the court
   3.You and/or your partner have simultaneous contact with both discs (2 POINTS or DOUBLE).

DDC is a rallying type game similar to volleyball or tennis. After the initial serve, discs are thrown back and forth until a disc touches out of the court or a disc stops inside the court. Fast action rallies continue as discs are caught and thrown in attempts to DOUBLE the opponent.

Strategy

A common strategy used to DOUBLE the opponent is to throw the first disc to the opponents court either very slowly or very high. While analyzing the flight of the first disc, the second disc is thrown with precise timing so that it arrives in the opponents court at the same time as the first disc in an attempt to DOUBLE the opponent.

Defensively, the opponent must deal with these two discs arriving at the same time. They must catch these two discs and throw them back at the opponents court, but they can't be in contact with both discs at the same time. If they fail to catch a disc and it stays in their court they will lose a point. They will lose two points if they both land in the court or if they both touch both discs at the same time.

In order to avoid losing any points, they must be successful in their attempt to ESCAPE the DOUBLE. As the two discs approach their court they must decide how to escape the double attempt. They can either catch and throw the first disc quickly before the other disc arrives or they can TIP a disc up in the air giving their partner enough time to catch and quickly throw the other disc. Then the tipped disc can be caught and thrown back at the opponent in a double attempt.

The continuing double attempts and escape attempts are what make the game exciting. Players are alternately placed in defensive and offensive roles within seconds. Many strategies involving types of throws and placement of the throws provide a variety of options for the players. The game is best played with opponents of equal skill levels but it is lots of fun at any skill level. Attributes of the top level players include agility, speed, power, timing, accuracy, catching ability and tipping ability. Precise communication between the partners is essential during the split second escape attempt.

Play

Although DDC is played throughout the world, it is played more often in Sweden and Southern California. In San Diego, DDC is played year around, every Thursday and Saturday. From April through July, Tuesday and Sunday are regular days also. In the Los Angeles and San Diego area there are regular tournaments scheduled from November through August promoted by the Southern California DDC League.

For more information about the game of DDC, contact the Double Disc Court Players Association. It is a non-profit organization which promotes DDC play around the world. The association can be reached by mail at:

        DDCPA
        P.O. Box 3132
        San Diego, CA 92163

This page was prepared by Sean Phillips on April 9th, 1998.