A few weeks ago I wrote about how the Halex Disc Golf set was the worst set of discs I had ever thrown.
Well, that didn’t last long.
Introducing the ESP Disc Golf Set!!!!
ESP or Emsco Sports Productions makes a variety of outdoor and home products. They are located in Girard, Pennsylvania and clearly the production golf discs is not their focus. Supposedly these discs are made in the USA, which is definitely a slap in the face for US manufacturing standards.
On the positives, the ESP disc golf set came in a fairly nice package set box. They were shipped to me from Walmart.com in an oversize box with lots of packing peanuts. I’m not sure why they went to such drastic measures to protect items that would just end up in the garbage…..
ESP Discs are NOT Discraft ESP Plastic
For those familiar with disc golf, the name of these discs is pretty deceiving. One of Discrafts premium plastic blends is called ESP plastic, which is a softer blend with great grip and excellent durability. Discraft ESP is definitely one of my favorite disc golf plastics. Unfortunately, ESP brand discs are pretty much the opposite of Discraft ESP plastic. It was a huge let down.
The plastic used in ESP discs is incredibly slippery and as hard as a rock. These discs are so hard and so stiff that I have no idea how they could possibly have passed the PDGA flexibility requirements (well actually I do, there is a good chance that previous runs were softer more flexible versions). The fact that these discs are PDGA approved, really means nothing. It was a complete waste of funds by Emsco Sports because nobody in the history of the world will ever try using these discs in a PDGA sanctioned tournament.
Not only is the plastic so hard and stiff that you can hear the clanking like a bongo drum, but the overall manufacturing of the inferior plastic is just poor. Along the parting line between the top and bottom mold pieces the disc is just sharp where the plastic spilled out between the molds. With as hard as the plastic is, there is a good likelihood you will simply slice your hand right open while gripping the disc.
ESP Disc Flight
The good news for ESP discs, (if you can grip the discs without cutting your hand open and can actually throw them) is that their flight is not quite as bad as the Halex or Franklin disc golf midranges and drivers. With that said, these discs are way too understable for any moderately athletic beginner and are still well below average. Notice my 13 year old son completely turn over the driver on a 200 foot shot.
The slippery plastic and ultra domey flight plate of these discs definitely does not help with accuracy. All three discs in the ESP set are incredibly domey and substantially taller than any mainstream disc golf disc. The Driver has a height of 2.5cm which is about half a centimeter taller than most putters! The midrange is just as tall, and the putter with a height of 2.7 cm is the tallest disc golf disc I have ever seen.
With the plastic being soooo hard, I figured the plastic of these discs might at least be durable.
Boy was I wrong. I wasn’t even completely close to accurate on this assessment. After hitting a wall, (these discs are really hard to control okay) the driver became completely warped beyond repair.
The only reason that ESP golf discs may ever last long for anyone is because they are so bad that you will never want to throw them. Discs that don’t ever get thrown rarely wear quickly.
All in all, the ESP discs are complete junk. I wouldn’t even want to give them away to a little homeless kid because he’d probably end up hurting a friend (or his hand) by the hard uncontrollable plastic.
The only time you’ll ever find ESP discs on the disc golf course is if your course happens to be built on a landfill. No matter the cost, do not waste your money on this disc golf set. For a recommendation on quality disc golf sets, ones that you should actually consider buying, check out this post: 10 Best Disc Golf Sets on the Internet
