Tournament?

[Torg]

OK, I have been playing for a very long time (~15 years) but I have never had any inclination to play a tounament. This year I made it a goal to play in at least one just to see what it is like. I'm over 40 and shoot par or better on a normal day. I assume for my first tounament I will own the trees like nobodys business and shoot 18 over par but the questions are...


1. What division do I register for? I assume Intermediate since it is my first time but is that the right choice.

2. I'm in Minnesota and the tourney this weekend is the state championship. I don't particularly like the Hyland course but I do fine on it, is it a good choice to play that one?

3. Is preregistering necessary?

4. Are there any rules that are likely to trip me up? Ya, I know I will accidently pick up my driver before I make the next shot at some point on the course. I do have minis but have literally never used them.

5 How long can I expect to be there? It really doesn't matter, but I will get hungry if I am there for more than 5 hours.

6. How do groups work? Do you get grouped with people at random or are you put with people of similar skill level.

7. Would it be smart to bring a friend who wants to try a tourney also? I figure the chance of seeing him is almost nil after things start.

8. Do you have to wear anything in particular or is no shirt ok?

That should get me started, thanks in advance for any answers.

[krusen]

1. I think intermediate should be OK. If you shoot par at Hyland you shold do well.

2. That is your choice. The Bryant Lake open is next weekend if you happen to like that course better. Check out http://www.mfaonline.org/calendar.php for more tournaments.

3. I reccomend pre-registering. Nothing like showing up the day of, and finding that all the spots are filled.

4. You should have a decent grasp on the rules...mostly for OB shots. It's C teir tourney and at the intermediate level, nobody is going to be a real prick about the rules. Ask questions if you're not sure.

5. I just started playing tournaments this year and was surprised how long they last. At least 3 hours per 18. Lunch or at least a break is provided between rounds. Bring a powerbar or something with you on the course tho.

6. Depends on the tourney. 2nd round is always grouped by similar scores.

7. You could get lunch together. Would probably help you both feel more at ease having a friend to talk to before/in between rounds.

8. Probably need to have a shirt on. Collars are not necessary at C-teirs.

[Thatdirtykid]

is 40 not old enough to play advanced master?

[krusen]

is 40 not old enough to play advanced master?

Whoa. Missed that info.
Torg, I would do that if I was you. Similar scores to intermediate, and you won't have 16 year olds in your group.
**UPDATE**
Just found out that the tourney is full. If you haven't registered, you need to hope for a no show.

[Torg]

Bleh, just went there to play the course. Haven't been there in a year and shot one over par. Looks like I'll try something later in the year.

[discmonkey42]

1. Advanced master definiteley
2. Play a course you like. I have a blast at tournaments (I don't do that well, but that's another thread), so play on a course that is fun for you.
3. Preregistration is important. Just check to see the cancellation/refund policy so you know what your restrictions are.
4. Play a couple of practice rounds with the mini. Most tournaments require their use.
5. Tournaments with 2 rounds in a day will break for lunch usually.
6. Most likely random sorted by division for first round and by score the second.
7. Friend or not, you'll meet a lot of great people. This is one of my favorite things about tournaments, I've met A LOT of people. I see them now at every course I go to and always have someone to play with.
8. I've heard rumors of having to have a collared shirt at some tournaments, but I've never seen it enforced.

Again, most important is fun. Good luck.

[Mr. Merchant]

Bleh, just went there to play the course. Haven't been there in a year and shot one over par. Looks like I'll try something later in the year.

check the scores for the sundog tournament series at the sundog site for hyland ssa. troy iverson won the last one there in advanced masters with a +1. at the tournament better scores will probably be turned in, but if you were +1 last round you might be capable of better. the front 9 got harder recently due to new pin placements. I say go for it.

one thing I can say about hyland, hole 14 sucks. 540 ft straight uphill, i would be happy with a 4.

[Blake_T]

i would say to play intermediate in your first tournament ahead of advanced masters.

reasons:
1) in the age divisions here you will find it's very clique-ish, mainly loaded with long-time players that won't be as forgiving on rules things, etc.
2) you are more apt to find a greater array of talent in the intermediate divisions. e.g. guys with adv skill peaks but no consistency, people with 1 giant gaping hole but a solid other game (great drive, bad putt, etc. or great sidearm, terrible backhand). in the adv masters division you will find more lifetime 250' throwers since anyone with a lot of ability is playing pro masters.
3) intermediate is cheaper.

once you have your feet wet, it's a tougher call.

[Torg]

Well, I went to the tournament to see if I could get in as a walk on and did! I decided to go the Advanced master route since there were only a few guys in that class and I figured I would get to be grouped with them the 2nd round.

Let me start by saying I played 2 of my worst rounds ever by a long shot on the course. Maybe it was nerves or maybe it was just the 95 and humid temps but I just couldn't drive to save my ass.

Overall I had a very good time. The first round I was grouped with a bunch of very good players. I immediatly noticed the advantage of playing in tourneys. They played some lines that I would never have played in a million years. On 2 of the 5 holes that they played different lines than I did I will try the one they used in the future. On 2 of the others I simply could not make their line work for me, it isn't a shot I do. On the other 1 I think my method was better, not that they will use it. I had a good time with them overall but noticed they didn't like to talk while they played.

The second round I was grouped with 2 guys in my class. One was noticibly better than me and one played a little better than me because I was sucking. That being said I had a great time with them. Very nice guys, chatty, and nice to see where my game should be. If my driving had been hitting I just need to work (lots) on my 30-50 foot putts. I know, shocking.

I have done tounaments in many different sports and been pretty darn good in some of those sports. Right now disc golf compares pretty well to many of those sports as far as tournaments organization. It reminded me alot of how mountain bike racing was in the 80s. I didn't see any spectators but I suspect that is due to how hot and humid it was. People were friendly even if they had never met you before and the tournament director was accessible. I will play more tournaments in the future as time permits due to the initial good experience.

Now to work on that putting some more.

[presidio hills]

the 5 tourneys i've played in so far i've played way below my potential. it's all me trying to play the best i can = too much pressure on myself. i've slowly improved the mental aspect, though, the more i play in them. the putting become especially hard too when you think 'i must make this'.
thanks for sharing your experience. i must say, i have learned a lot by playing in a few tourneys... i think they help you get better. plus they keep you in touch with your local DG community.

[redspexxx]

how do you guys prepare for a weekend long event? i'm playing a tourny in september and its 4 courses that i've never played before, and at most i will have 1 full day to pratice these courses. i've played in some small events before, but i'd like to get some input for you guys who have been doing this a lot longer than me

[Thatdirtykid]

I would say walk the courses and throw some discs, but dont try to practice them too hard, some of my best rounds at alot of courses were the first or second time I played the course.

[jgarcia9102]

i agree with that. Make sure you know the layout well, maybey try a few different discs/lines on the toughest holes, but dont over do it. for some reason, the 2nd/3rd time i play a new course, i do much worse than the 1st. Im not sure why, but it always seems to happen. of course you begin to learn the course and feel more comfortable after a while, but you dont have time for that anyways.

[Fritz]

Also you dont' want to play too many holes, a lot of times the layouts change. Example this weekend I was in the Denver Classic. I went the night before played the entire course which was set up in the longest positions, So I was totally geared and mind set on those positions. 1st round everythign was moved short, then second round it was mixed up. I ended up playing good still, but I had to rethink my shots that I had planned.

Walking the course, looking for all the pin placements and throwing a few holes is the best way.

[Thatdirtykid]

or checking the signs although the new ones at paco dont show alot of trees and such