Even though Debbie & I have been playing disc golf for a
very long time and had competed in many local leagues, neither
of us had participated in a PDGA sanctioned tournament before
so this was a big deal for us. I had heard about how great this
course was and the timeframe was right for us to participate in
this one, so we registered and went down to Chapin, SC a month
before the tournament to get a feel for the course. We liked the
course and did rather well on it despite it being a tougher-than-average
course to par.
In some ways, the tournament turned out to be a bit of a disaster...
Debbie didn't play nearly as well as she was capable of, we got
absolutely soaked in a downpour that killed both of our cellphones
and nearly destroyed our camera, I injured my back so badly that
it took weeks to recover, and Debbie ended up placing last in
her division (which was actually the wrong division for her at
the time, but because we didn't know better and because there
weren't any intermediate ladies playing, we went with it).
In other ways, the tournament was a wonderful experience... we
met many wonderful players that are still friends today, we had
a great time being "away from it all" for a couple days,
Debbie won the overall CTP prize for the ladies, and we both got
invaluable tournament experience from some of the best advanced
female and male grandmaster players around.
Typing this 7 months later, it seems like this tournament happened
many years ago, but I believe we both look back at it fondly as
an overall great experience that we will always remember.
This was my first PDGA tournament. Wow, what an experience! I
got to play with Tabitha Simon, Sara Nicolson, Vanessa Chambers,
Heidi Shaffner & Hannah Bright. This was Hannah’s first
tournament too, but we were playing with some seasoned vets. These
ladies were great. I learned a lot from them – scoring,
etiquette on the course while playing a tournament. It was awesome.
The course itself was challenging and new. Bob and I went down
to check it out earlier in the month. I think I did better during
practice than I did during the tournament.
I was in last place for the final two rounds, so I got to play
with the male grandmasters. They were awesome! I so enjoyed playing
with them. I hate that I came in last, but it was a great learning
experience.
I did however win the CTP for the ladies division twice. I got
a nice mako stamped with the tournament logo on it and a certificate
for ice cream at a local shop.
We did have a torrential downpour at the end of the round on
the first day. We lost both phones and nearly destroyed the camera
(which later died at another tournament). I was ready to go home
after this tournament!
