Why Disc Golf needs consistent par standards:

1.) So that players can judge their progress by comparison to a consistent standard for what a first class player can expect to score on a hole. Note that this is a player of the same level that the course was designed for. For example, on a Red level course this is a Red level player. This acknowledges the reality of par 4 and par 5 holes.

2.) The reality of disc golf being a golf type game is that the terms “par”, “under par”, “bogey” and “birdie” naturally accompany the sport. It would be strange to have a sport with the word “golf” in it that doesn’t use these terms. If we’re going to use the term “par” then it should have a standard method of determining it.

2.1. One of the first questions that most new players ask is “What is par on this hole?” We should be able to give them a consistent and universally accepted answer.

3.) In tournaments when a player is late you need the par for a hole to know what penalty score to give that player. (The penalty is par + 4 for missed holes.)

4.) For tournaments a consistent standard allows over/under scoring for spectators and the potential TV audience. Only when par is consistently established can you compare golfers on different holes. Climo is shooting -7 and Schultz -6 but Climo has played 2 more holes is easier (especially to TV viewers) than saying Climo is at 43 after 17 holes while Shultz is at 37 after 15

5.) In tournaments such as Worlds with multiple courses you need par to be able to compare players in different pools playing different courses.

6.) Par is a key factor for comparing the difficulty of different courses. Otherwise there is an insurmountable “portability error”. A very useful Difficulty Factor is Level Scoring average minus Level Par. This will only be useful if there are consistent, universal standards for par, though.

7.) Expectations of par affect your mental outlook and your performance. This especially comes into play when you play a new course. If Renaissance Gold is a par 54 then it's insanely hard, but if it's par 70 then shooting a 70 is a decent round. If you think you should take a 3 on a 1000 ft. hole then you will try way too hard and be frustrated, but if you accept that it is a par 5 you can relax and pace yourself.

8.) If the term “par” is defined in a multitude of ways by many different people then the term loses its meaning, so it becomes worthless along with the related terms such as “birdie, bogie…”.

9.) It is easier to keep track of scores in relation to par than by the total numerical value. This is why most players report their score as “6 down” rather than “48”.

10.) To be able to determine handicaps.