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jb22384
08-19-2009, 04:15 PM
I have never played in a tournament before, but I've finally signed up for my first one. However, there is not a recreational division for the tournament, so I think I've been put into the amateur division. I had sort of always figured I should play in a recreational division. Have I set myself up to get dominated, or is amateur fairly close to recreational?
thepowerofpancakes
08-19-2009, 04:20 PM
What is the tournament? Is it a C-tier? Also, you may find that you are better than you think...if there is no Rec division it is probably because there are not enough players, so in that case you would want to play AM1 because it wouldnt be as much fun playing in a really small division. Or i might be wrong about that because the Masters seem to have fun in small divisions. Either way let us know how it turns out...good luck and have fun!
jb22384
08-19-2009, 04:53 PM
It's the Flying Eye Open, the Am weekend on October 10-11. It's an A-tier event.
thepowerofpancakes
08-19-2009, 04:57 PM
It's the Flying Eye Open, the Am weekend on October 10-11. It's an A-tier event.

Ok, i bet a lot more people will sign up and a lot of them will be Recs. So wait until they do and then call the TD and tell him you want to move down to Rec. There are 21 people already signed up so that is a good sign, that is a lot of people for a tournament that is still two months out....
TalbotTrojan
08-19-2009, 05:18 PM
What I have recently noticed is that most A-Tier events will only have one Am division, MA1 or Advanced. All of that to say that I just signed up for an A-Tier that has an MA2 or Int division. I am guessing that because it is an A-Tier that there will not be a Rec division which is what I usually play in but this will be my first A-Tier.
scarpfish
08-19-2009, 05:18 PM
They put you in intermediate because there likely won't be a recreational division offered which isn't that uncommon at an A-tier. Such tournaments are limited to PDGA members and a great deal of people who play in the recreational division around here are non-PDGA, so there probably isn't much demand for that division. PDGA players who usually play rec will often just play Intermediate instead.

This being your first tournament, I wouldn't be overtly concerned with cashing as I would learning the ropes of tournament golf.
thepowerofpancakes
08-19-2009, 05:23 PM
really?, thats wierd....I've seen A-tiers that didnt have Rec or Novice because there wasnt room. But this tournament does not have a Pro field, its the AM weekend. So you would think it would have all the AM divisions. Down here the Rec division is always the largest.
TalbotTrojan
08-19-2009, 05:26 PM
A-Tier events tend to bring out the best players from who knows where and TDs would rather have a larger Advanced Division than anything. Plus fewer divisions does mean less work for the TD. In the tourneys I have played in Rec is usually big, but like I said, I have never seen an A-Tier with a Rec division.
thepowerofpancakes
08-19-2009, 05:37 PM
A-Tier events tend to bring out the best players from who knows where and TDs would rather have a larger Advanced Division than anything. Plus fewer divisions does mean less work for the TD. In the tourneys I have played in Rec is usually big, but like I said, I have never seen an A-Tier with a Rec division.

Yep, looked over the schedule and it looks like your right about that. That flying eye open doesnt offer Rec when you try to Reg. so i guess homeboy will be playing Am1.
scarpfish
08-19-2009, 06:16 PM
so i guess homeboy will be playing Am1.
He's listed under Am2.
thepowerofpancakes
08-19-2009, 06:17 PM
He's listed under Am2.

my bad, thats what i meant to say
solomon.trenton
08-19-2009, 06:29 PM
whats the difference between the am divisions?
Midnightbiker
08-19-2009, 07:04 PM
I wouldn't worry two much about it. Last year I played in a Mini tournament that didn't offer Rec, so I had to play Intermediate. I ended up taking second place. I now play Intermediate in all my tournaments.
jb22384
08-19-2009, 10:00 PM
well, i would assume that youre probably better than me, which raises another question. i dont know if any of yall have used the handicapping thing on discgolfunited.com, but i was wondering if you found it to be accurate/useful, or just a waste of time?
DeafDiscGolfer
08-19-2009, 10:56 PM
Question: If you played in A-tier tournaments, are you required to be active PDGA member to play this tournament? Someone told me about that few years ago.

I know that B and C-tiers tournaments are not required to be active member but pay 10 bucks extra for being non-member.
DavidSauls
08-20-2009, 08:04 AM
Question: If you played in A-tier tournaments, are you required to be active PDGA member to play this tournament? Someone told me about that few years ago.

I know that B and C-tiers tournaments are not required to be active member but pay 10 bucks extra for being non-member.

Yes. Membership required at A-tier & above.
DavidSauls
08-20-2009, 08:11 AM
whats the difference between the am divisions?

The divisions attempt to sort players into groups of similar ability. From top-to-bottom, they are:

Advanced (MA1)
Intermediate (MA2)
Recreational (MA3)
Novice (MA4)

Each division has a range of player ratings; players can play in the division where their rating puts them, or in a higher division if they choose.

Tournaments don't have to offer all divisions, as long as they publish in advance which ones they will or won't offer.

(There are also separate divisions available for those over 40 years old, for each decade of age, and for kids).

Don't let the division names throw you. You don't have to be a new player to play Novice, nor to be terribly advanced to play Advanced.

At least around here, fees are frequently lower in the lower divisions.