Dynamic Duo

Best Disc Doubles. Everyone loves it: players, fans, sponsors. It gives all the competitors a welcome cushion from some of the harsher moments of disc. Your partner is there to mute the effect of your inexplicable lapse in concentration resulting in your disc hitting that enormous oak tree five feet in front of you. Or that five foot put you just casually bounced off the front of the basket. Instead of going into a blind rage, kicking or hurling your new disc bag across the landscape, spewing curses wantonly from frothing jowls, you just turn to your Partner and plead with doey eyes for him or her to not make the same dumb mistake. And usually they don't. Scores are lower overall, there is much less of a gap between first and last, and there is a welcome dirth of bogies of the double to quadruple variety. What's not to love?

And make no mistake, love is definitely in the air. In recent weeks, a certain doubles duo has been turning heads: The cozy pair of Saito and Mills. First, they crushed the threesome of Ben, Tomoko and Aisha at Tyler, shattering the course record by many strokes. Then, they defeated the veteran combo of Ben and Mickey again at Tyler (in Tournament layout) in a close match decided on the next-to-last hole. Sure Mickey has hurled plastic only once in the last three years or so and, as he would be quick to tell you, he is quite rusty. Nevertheless the Micker is still viewed as a pioneer of the sport....and the tour's new young whippersnappers seem to have thrown down the gauntlet against the old guard. Let the veterans of the tour take note: these lads are ready to rumble.

The Dynamic Duo (as they are now stylingg themselves) have a wonderful, close chemistry out on the course. It all starts several hours before the round where they coordinate bag composition over the phone. Each knows what discs will be in the other's bag. Next, at the course Saito gets in his first tongue lashing of Mike, just a mild berating delivered over some minor pretext: being late, wrong discs, outfit, etc, it doesn't really matter why - the point is to set the tone for the team. Mike needs to be handled, told what to do and what not to do while having the skill to get his assigned task done. Man-of-the-300-Discs for his part, is not just good at keeping Mills on a tight leash, he is also rather gifted at the delicate art of course management, responsible for steering the pair around the links, strategizing their shots. Mike particularly thrives under this arrangement, using his dead on approach and powerful forehand as his chief weapons. Saito in addition to the MikeManagement, contributes his ever improving drive and consistent putt, not to mention his sunny disposition. Both bring the swagger.

Who will rise up to this new challenge? How would the Dynamic Duo fare against Ben and Dave (a.k.a the mighty Dream Team) or some other formidable pairing. Stay tuned...