Dam Pyramids IV Supertour & USDGC Qualifier (Pros)

Hello disc golf community. I believe this is my first post to this page ever. On March 15 & 16, 2003, my cohort and Co-TD Joe "Lick Me" Proud and I will be running the very first PDGA A-Tier and USDGC Qualifier to be held in New England.

It will be four rounds over two days at two of Central Massachusetts' premier courses, Barre Falls in Barre, MA and Pyramids in Leicester, MA.

If you've never played at a New England tournament this is your chance. It is also an excellent opportunity to qualify for disc golf's most prestigious event, the United States Disc Golf Championships. Harold and Jonathan and staff have graciously included us in their qualifier schedule, and we have been granted 10 USDGC spots. These will go to the players with the best ten scores regardless of division (not including players who have already qualified), as all divisions will be playing the exact same courses.

We guarantee a pro purse of over $6,000, with all women's divisions receiving 200 percent of entry fees. The non-Open Men's divisions will receive 100 percent, and the extra cash will be put toward the Men's Pro Open division.

Another minor twist is that we're offering ALL pro PDGA divisions, regardless of number. This has already been approved by the PDGA.

We thank our 21 $100 hole sponsors (so far), as well as Innova for making us a qualifier and supporting New England disc golf in too many ways to mention here, and Discraft for donating two Chainstars -- the beginning of Barre Falls' second set of baskets.

For more information, check out our flyer at nefa.com's schedule.

What would be the best airport to fly into for this event? How friendly are the locals with sharing floor space for out of state players?
Whats the weather like in March in MA?

The weather, well.... hehehe.

I can answer those questions:

Probably Logan in Boston.

As far as floor space, I'd offer you mine if it weren't already full with staff and early reservers. If you pose this question on our discussion page at nefa.com you probably will find someone to put you up. If that fails I recommend the Spencer Country Inn, five miles from Pyramids and maybe 20 from Barre Falls. Their rooms are under $60 a night, and they have a great bar: 508 885 9036

New England in March? Now there's a tough question. Last year Dam Pyramids III, a B-tier held on the same weekend, was beautiful with no snow and dry ground, not too chilly. 87 people came. Two years ago we had three feet of snow, and 54 players braved the elements. I hired a guy to run his snowmobile around the course to make the walking easier, but you still broke through up to your hip now and then.

[jconnell]

Logan in Boston is the biggest, but it's a zoo and a nightmare to get in and out of, even with the new infrastructure opened up (the Big Dig).

Providence, RI and Bradley Int'l (Springfield/Hartford) are probably your best bets for getting a choice of flights/airlines without the hassle of dealing with the Big Dig. They are very easy-in/easy-out and no more than an hour from the tournament.

You can give Worcester a shot as well, but it's a very limited airport commercially. But the bonus if you do fly into Worcester is that you are literally a stone's throw from Sunday's course, Pyramids (the sig hole there overlooks the airport).

March typically means temps somewhere between 30 and 50 degrees, most likely the low to mid 40s. There's about 1.5 feet of snow on the ground at Barre Falls currently, probably less at Pyramids, but barring a major storm, it should be no more than a few inches by March. Although two years ago, we got hit by back-to-back storms a week before and this event was played in 2-3 feet of snow...believe it or not, the field was still pretty full.

Jason always puts on a great show, this isn't a tournament you'll regret attending.

--Josh

Thanks guys! I did check on flights, and it seems Providence may be easier than Boston.

Sounds like a wide range of potential weather.

I will also post on the board to see if anyone is willing to let me crash on the floor, otherwise I will check the hotels listed.

If any of you guys need a place to crash in NC just post on the boards. Im about 35 minutes from the Dogwood Crosstown Classic.

[dsglfnpool]

Before you book your flights, check Manchester NH. It is less than 1.5 hours from courses and it is a very easy airport.

MapQuest said Providence was about 45 miles away from Leicester, MA. Is this correct?

[jconnell]

Sounds right, Michael. And it is a rather simple route from there to Leicester.

Manchester is a good airport as well. I've flown in and out of all the local airports. Manchester, Providence, and Bradley are all excellent airports, you can't go wrong with any of them.

--Josh

[morgan]

Flying in and out of airports is only half the trouble. Flying in chains and out of tee pads is what really counts.

Michael, you will love Barre Falls, it's an amazing course. Fantastic. Never been to pyramids but I hear it's just as good. NE courses have all the trees to challange your accuracy, and they have good crush shots to test your arm.

Does Manchester have commercial airline service to it? Is it a samller plane only airport? All of the NC courses here (for the most part) are filled with trees and demand accuracy. Sounds like a blast!

Mike Watson,

I may go to this one and it may be possible for us to stay at my Mom's house. I will let you know.

Kirk

Kirk, That would be AWESOME! Let me know ASAP. I would like to attend this one. Good luck at the Big Show!!!

My wife is contemplating playing after I told her about the 200% payout. I hope this gets other women involved, too. My question is this...where is the other money going to come from?

[bruce_brakel]

200% payout retail probably equals 100% payout wholesale. The money will come from the women themselves. <FONT COLOR="ffffff">So where does your entry fee go?</FONT>
Your wife needs to join the PDGA to play in an A-tier.

From $100 hole sponsors.

Aside from Innova, New England's biggest sponsor and the outfit that chose us to be the first New England USDGC Qualifier, Lightning with $500 in merchandise, and Discraft with two Chainstars, the following 27 (so far individuals and organizations have donated $100 (Gateway $200 in discs), which will go directly to the payout:

Barre Falls Hole 1 – Rich Gunther
Barre Falls Hole 2 – Steve Dodge / Tripledisc
Barre Falls Hole 3 – Brent Sanderson
Barre Falls Hole 4 – Sean Franchi / Fly-by-Night discs (and now solar domes)
Barre Falls Hole 5 -- Josh Connell
Barre Falls Hole 6 – Gateway Discs
Barre Falls Hole 7 –Alex Pozzy / The Portland Ultimate League
Barre Falls Hole 8 – Dana Waterhouse
Barre Falls Hole 9 – Seamus Scanlon and Martha’s Vineyard Disc Golf
Barre Falls Hole 10
Barre Falls Hole 11 – Jason Southwick
Barre Falls Hole 12
Barre Falls Hole 13
Barre Falls Hole 14 –Dave Balkema / Shadows &amp; Lights
Barre Falls Hole 15 –Bob Enman / Dragan Field
Barre Falls Hole 16 – Dan Ouellet / Sea Of Green Lawn Care
Barre Falls Hole 17
Barre Falls Hole 18 – Bill MacWilliams

Pyramids Hole 1 – Rick Belhumeur
Pyramids Hole 2 – Joe “Lick Me” Proud
Pyramids Hole 3
Pyramids Hole 4 – Bradley Arnall / FIMHA Recreation
Pyramids Hole 5 – Bill Newman
Pyramids Hole 6 – Albert Southwick
Pyramids Hole 7 – Borderland Disc Golf Association
Pyramids Hole 8 --Kraig Steffen / Southwest Connecticut DDC
Pyramids Hole 9 – Kelley Southwick
Pyramids Hole 10 – NEFA (New England Fris…—okay “Flying disc” Association)
Pyramids Hole 11 – David Hogg &amp; James Lane
Pyramids Hole 12
Pyramids Hole 13 – Chuck Barbato and Team Nice (see article page 42 latest DGWN)
Pyramids Hole 14
Pyramids Hole 15 – Dr. Doug Ertman
Pyramids Hole 16 – Terry West
Pyramids Hole 17
Pyramids Hole 18 – Gregory “but I want to remain anonymous” Allpow

Individualized signs are being made for each hole sponsor, with artwork and company logo (if provided). These will be hung on the respective sign and presented to the sponsors at final awards.

The event is filling fast, particularly after I announced the pasta / night golf ridicufest at Pyramids headquarters (okay, our house, which took some wife wooing, but like I said our carpets were wrecked five tournaments ago) with Fly-by-Night Blinking solar domes on each basket, silly antics and silly people.

Many positive vibes coming (and hopefully pre-registrations) from beyond the fringe known as New England. Ever been to New England? I'm predicting a full field, and we'd really like to see some big names -- besides Brinster, Sonderfan and Ron Turner, who frequently venture to the Northeast already -- come and show us some game.

Only half the money will come from the women themselves. A Pyramids tournament is just one aspect of a Pyramids party, which is elaborate, (and usually ridiculous, though your kids can come without being scarred) and we take pride in spending more than we take in.

But only one woman has signed up so far, Lesli Demark.

[jconnell]

Bruce,

Careful what you comment on. If you read the thread completely (including the subject heading), you'd note that the tournament is pro-only. Can't mark up retail on cash.

Like Jason said, it'll come from sponsorship. And Jason is doing a hell of a job bringing those sponsors in.

And the party on Saturday alone is reason enough to participate in the event. /clipart/happy.gif

--Josh

[bruce_brakel]

Sorry. My mistake.

You can mark up cash but you'd have to move the tournament up north to Quebec!

For 200% I'd wear a dress. I think I can keep up with Lesli.

Thank for your prompt response Jason.

Bruce, thanks for trying. Although I had forgot about having to sign her up for the PDGA. That was a point well taken.

I hope Lesli doesn't have to play alone again this year.

[kcdiscgirl]

bring it on bruce... and I'll wear a dress too! peace. les

Good news. Several generous New England souls have offered their homes to touring pros who are making the trip. Craig Gangloff's request for floor space incited something of a catfight among NEFAites, with much bidding and shameless bribery. I think it came down to an arm-wrestling match being Daniel Marcus and Terry West to see who got to put Craig up in a five-star hotel. Something like that, or maybe it was the shed out back I can't remember. Little do they know that Craig, like the rest of these mythical beasts (no, that was not a plug for Innova) we can only read about in these backwoods of New England, snores like the chainsaw version of the Mormon Tabernacle.

Okay I'm exaggerrating a little but there is indeed a plentitude of couches and floorspace for those out-of-region players on a budget.

Much different from the tubleweeds rolling across the screen when Mitch, our fearful defending champ, inquired about New England hospitality. And in answer to your question, Mitch: No, that little chiffon number you wore to the prom won't get you into the junior girl's division, not without a DNA sample and until you shave that roadkill off your face.

In other news, the tourney is filling fast, with my pontification on real growth being built on utter humiliation and defeat inspiring a number of otherwise Advanced players to step up and take their licking.

Had my first TD-related anxiety dream. Instead of being panic-stricken for an entire semester about not being able to find biology class, this time it was five minutes to tee-off and I had forgotten the scoreport, the scoreport cards, the scorecards. Angry pros were telling me the tees stink and Hole 11 stinks and How could I? They morphed into a mob chasing me with torches like I'm the Frankenstein monster and all of a sudden I can't run for crap, waking in a puddle of cold sweat. At least I THINK it was sweat. Lordy be, just another day in the life.

Thanks to Discraft for donating over $1,000 worth of stuff, for Lightning for their $500 in merch, and to Gateway for sending us a box of their cool new plastic. Thanks to Innova for making this a USDGC qualifier. I love you all equally for making discs and courses and doing the thang, for making this great game of ours happen.

When you say filling up fast.....how fast? How many registered, spots left? I am really hope to make this event!!

-m

40 pre-registered so far, 50 spots left, about ten checks supposedly in the mail. I forgot to mention we will be giving all the donated merchandise away as CTP prizes, making 36 CTP prizes.

[dsglfnpool]

You know Jason, you can be kinda funny when you want to be.

Jason is a funny guy except about the tumbleweeds thing...Should i bring up the lickathon? Man you collapsed worse than i did down at Seneca, well, close to it...No one else i know could go from 2 out of second in a supertour after 2 rounds and not cash.
woo
but i will defend my title at this superb tournament

Wow, Mitch is bringin' the economy-sized can of whoopass already, and he's got the nozzle set to ... umm... set to ..... crap, I hate when I come up with only half of a cool analogy.

Sign you're doing well at Dam Pyramids:
- You're in the group that starts one hole ahead of the group that I'm in.

Sign you're not doing well:
- You're in my group.

[keithjohnson]

dan....stop using the ram as your only driver and putter and you might move up some /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

Keith, believe it or not I have made a conscious decision to do that. It's one of my new year's resolutions. Of course, so was quitting smoking and that one didn't last very long.

Phil Vilmorin throws a one-finger sidearm Ram shot that nearly took someone's head off at the recent Martha's Vineyard tournament. Goes about 350 feet and 100 miles an hour. Phil says he used to play third base and this throw shows it. Phil will also be at Dam Pyramids IV, and has been making some bold predictions, saying he'll put these "travelling pros" (he uses a little whiney voice when he says that) in their place. As for the defending champ, Phil says he'll spank his little Sonderfanny. Ha ha.

Okay I'm making up the smack talk, but I get such a kick out of myself I can't resist.

If Daniel actually goes ahead and enters the Masters divison there will be no more need for such flights of fancy, as the gleeful abuse will flow as freely as the keg on Saturday night. I'm so excited I feel like a candidate for spontaneous combustion.

[mattdisc]

Daniel tell me it's not true, I am sending in my entry today as an OPEN player. I thought I could acutually play a round with you again. What's the record for most snow on the ground for a Super Tour event??

[gang4010]

Don't worry about Daniel Matty - It's been ages since we got to play together - so play OPEN!!!!! /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

[mattdisc]

I sure will Craiger, bring your hand warmers and no white discs.

Just got a check from Daniel Marcus. It included an extra $100 for sponsorship of Hole 17 at Pyramids. Woohoo. He also signed up for Open, so I guess I'll have to go back to making things up...

An X-treme, a Whippet-X, and a Speed Demon walk into a bar and the bartender says, "Is this some kinda joke?"

Thanks Daniel.

[briangraham]

The Daniel Marcus from Augusta, GA ?
Note to self: Add Daniel Marcus to list of potential sponsors of the Hall of Fame Classic. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

What's up Matt!

Could have fooled me, I didn't know you were able to play masters. I wouldn't let ya /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

Hope I can make it Northeast next year! Take it easy brother

[mule1]

Thats "The Yankee Disc Golfer" formerly known as Daniel Marcus from Augusta, Ga. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

Here's how the tournament is shaping up. Wachusett Brewing Company is sponsoring the Pasta Party at Pyramids, and the Leicester High School Varsity Cheerleaders are serving lunch on Sunday. How many New England A-Tiers and USDGC Qualifiers can say that?

Here's the list:

Dam Pyramids IV Pre-Registration List
As of March 7, 2003


Pro Open
1. (Alex Pozzy #15062)
2. (Cameron Rauenhorst #13664)
3. (Jeff Cahill #20090)
4. Bard Soleng #19410
5. Bill Bureau #14482
6. Bob Graham #6341
7. Bob Honch #12491
8. Bradley Arnall #13886
9. Brent Sanderson #14530
10. Bryan Steffen #15478
11. Bryan Yondolino #17667
12. Craig Gangloff #4010
13. Dan Howard #19105
14. Dan Jaskot #21495
15. Dana Waterhouse #19399
16. Daniel Marcus #2439
17. Daryl Cormier #14678
18. David Hogg #17917
19. David James #15750
20. Dr. Doug Ertman #6399
21. Drew Smith #16073
22. Everett Evans #7452
23. Gregory Allpow #2186
24. Jack Nickel #11107
25. Jake Azato #12065
26. James Lane #17918
27. Jamey King #14662
28. Jason Johnson #20571
29. Jeff Tareila #16944
30. Jim Santoro #20138
31. Matt LaCourte #4218
32. Matt Stroika #14682
33. Matthew Buono #19987
34. Michael Dussault #9038
35. Mitch Sonderfan #17998
36. Patrick J. Sullivan #15220
37. Pete Johnson #9009
38. Phil Vilmorin #17287
39. Rick Belhumeur
40. Ron Turner #9030
41. Stephen Ditter #19796
42. Steve Brinster #10628
43. Steve Dodge #22042
44. Steven Heckathorne #18116
45. Ted Phillips #16585
46. Terry West #11677
47. Tim McCurry #1008
48. Tim Walsh #11047

Pro Masters
1. Bill MacWilliams #17427
2. Bill Newman #1603
3. Brian Shoff #17927
4. Dave Jones #2301
5. Davis Johnson #44
6. Doug Blighton #12164
7. Doug Corea #304
8. Fred McKinley #21153
9. Jim O’Hara #21868
10. Joe Lick Me Proud #2773
11. John Dickison #16288
12. Kraig Steffen #5404
13. Rich Fenton
14. Warren Fix #17350

Pro Grandmasters
1. (Phil Kennedy)

Pro Women
1. Heather Azato #20949
2. Lesli Demark #15638

Title sponsor: Discraft with over $1,000 in merchandise, including two Chainstars

Major sponsors: Lightning Discs, Wachusett Brewing Company, Discovering the World

Hole Sponsors:

Barre Falls Hole 1 – Rich Gunther
Barre Falls Hole 2 – Steve Dodge / Tripledisc ***
Barre Falls Hole 3 – Brent Sanderson
Barre Falls Hole 4 – (Sean Franchi / Fly-By-Night Discs) ***
Barre Falls Hole 5 -- Josh Connell ***
Barre Falls Hole 6 – Gateway Discs – H-Series Discs
Barre Falls Hole 7 – Alex Pozzy / The Portland Ultimate League***
Barre Falls Hole 8 – Dana Waterhouse
Barre Falls Hole 9 – Seamus Scanlon / Harry’s Deli ***
Barre Falls Hole 10 – Millenium Discs
Barre Falls Hole 11 – Jason Southwick / Pyramids ***
Barre Falls Hole 12
Barre Falls Hole 13
Barre Falls Hole 14 – (Dave Balkema)
Barre Falls Hole 15 – Bob Enman ***
Barre Falls Hole 16 – (Dan Ouellet) ***
Barre Falls Hole 17 – Discraft ***
Barre Falls Hole 18 – Bill MacWilliams

Pyramids Hole 1 – Rick Belhumeur
Pyramids Hole 2 – Joe “Lick Me” Proud ***
Pyramids Hole 3 – Lightning Discs ***
Pyramids Hole 4 – Bradley Arnall
Pyramids Hole 5 – Bill Newman ***
Pyramids Hole 6 – Albert Southwick ***
Pyramids Hole 7 – Borderland Disc Golf Association
Pyramids Hole 8 – Kraig Steffen ***
Pyramids Hole 9 – Kelley Southwick ***
Pyramids Hole 10 – NEFA
Pyramids Hole 11 – David Hogg &amp; James Lane
Pyramids Hole 12 – T.J. Barber
Pyramids Hole 13 – (Chuck Barbato / Team Nice)
Pyramids Hole 14 – Harold Duvall / Innova
Pyramids Hole 15 – Dr. Doug Ertman
Pyramids Hole 16 – Terry West
Pyramids Hole 17 – Daniel Marcus
Pyramids Hole 18 – Gregory Allpow

[jconnell]

To drag this back out since the tournament is 3 days away.

Still spots left, I believe. Here's some incentive that I don't think Jason has mentioned yet...

Some local am players (and friends) will be putting some non-disc skills to use by videotaping the whole she-bang and producing a DVD of the event. The final product will come complete with some throw-by-throw color commentary and what I'm sure will be a hilarious blooper-style reel at the end <FONT SIZE="-2">(Saturday-night party footage will be prominent in that, I'm sure)</FONT>.

I'm sure that the sales details will be made available once the DVD is complete.

Check out all the tournament details posted above or read the flyer at nefa.com (http://www.nefa.com/)

--Josh

The weather looks like it'll be decent! My guess is no more than a foot of snow anywhere, and temperatures will be over 40 degrees both days.

Jason, that ticker on the nefa.com page must be driving you NUTS! AAAAGGGGHHHH!! hehehe... It's just making me anxious.

The snow doesn't affect Daniel much, but all those white discs he has are easier to hide in the snow. Hey I gotta get strokes somehow...

With only 48 guys in Open, and a few already getting passes to the USDGC, that means I am only a few dozen Carl Spackler-style sliced hamstrings away from gaining a trip to Winthrop. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

On a more serious note, they are calling for some snow here in NY tomorrow, but last I heard was in the 3-6 inches range. Hopefully it won't hit Mass. too hard.

[jconnell]

Dan,

Last forecast I saw had the heavier stuff staying south of the courses. Probably going to be more of a mix of rain and snow. I'd guesstimate 2 inches of snow max. But then again, last week they said 2-4 inches and Pyramids got about 8.

Then Friday it's supposed to warm up and maybe rain overnight into Saturday. If the sun burns off the cloud cover on Saturday, they say temps could reach the 50s.

It's most likely going to be a slushy mess.

--Josh

So I was out there today in these sandals that Mitch left, catching some rays falling between snowflakes. I got my shades on and Jake and Heather Azato show up all bundled with mittens and four parkas and 12 boots. Jake looked a little scared, scared of BIG BAD New England and a little foot or so of crusty snow, and scared of me when I handed him the suntan lotion and said "Can you get my back?" You should have seen his face then, I'll tell ya.

We have a feeeeeeeew big names, and 67 or 69 or probably 68 people signed up. Three women. Brinster and Gangloff already qualified for the USDGC, so ten spots beyond those guys at the U..S...DGC. Yeah baybay. Full A-Tier payout of $6,000 plus. So get on a plane. We still have spots.

I'd like to thank my sponsors once again. All beautiful people you know who you are. I'd like to thank the many people who helped clear the tees. Here's the list of players so far:

Pro Open
1. (Jerel Davis)
2. Bard Soleng #19410
3. Bill Bureau #14482
4. Bob Graham #6341
5. Bob Honch #12491
6. Bradley Arnall #13886
7. Brent Sanderson #14530
8. Bryan Yondolino #17667
9. Craig Gangloff #4010
10. Dan Howard #19105
11. Dan Jaskot #21495
12. Dan Ouellet #13233
13. Dana Waterhouse #19399
14. Daniel Marcus #2439
15. Daryl Cormier #14678
16. David Hogg #17917
17. David James #15750
18. Dr. Doug Ertman #6399
19. Drew Smith #16073
20. Everett Evans #7452
21. Gregory Allpow #2186
22. Jack Nickel #11107
23. Jake Azato #12065
24. James Lane #17918
25. Jamey King #14662
26. Jason Johnson #20571
27. Jeff Cahill #20090
28. Jeff Tareila #16944
29. Jim Santoro #20138
30. Jon Flores
31. Matt LaCourte #4218
32. Matt Stroika #14682
33. Matthew Buono #19987
34. Michael Dussault #9038
35. Mitch Sonderfan #17998
36. Patrick J. Sullivan #15220
37. Pete Johnson #9009
38. Phil Vilmorin #17287
39. Ron Turner #9030
40. Scott Howard #17270
41. Stephen Ditter #19796
42. Steve Brinster #10628
43. Steve Dodge #22042
44. Steven Heckathorne #18116
45. Ted Phillips #16585
46. Terry West #11677
47. Tim McCurry #1008
48. Tim Walsh #11047


Pro Masters
1. Bill MacWilliams #17427
2. Bill Newman #1603
3. Brian Shoff #17927
4. Dave Jones #2301
5. Davis Johnson #44
6. Doug Blighton #12164
7. Doug Corea #304
8. Fred McKinley #21153
9. Jim O’Hara #21868
10. Joe Lick Me Proud #2773
11. John Dickison #16288
12. Kraig Steffen #5404
13. Rich Fenton
14. Rick Belhumeur
15. Warren Fix #17350

Pro Women
1. Heather Azato #20949
2. Jennifer Jensen #12081
3. Lesli Demark #15638

[paul]

http://www.ddg.homestead.com/gallery.html

Check out the picture on the top right for that scared guy!!

[jconnell]

Early results from Day 1 at Barre Falls

Jake Azato 51 53 104
Tim Walsh 54 51 105
Steve Brinster 54 52 106

Full results will follow later tonight when they've been entered (I'm just doing this much from memory).

Conditions were calm, partly cloudy, about 30 degrees as a high, and anywhere from 3-12 inches of sometimes crusty, sometimes sloppy snow on the ground.

--Josh

[jconnell]

Full Results from Day 1 (http://www.nefa.com/tourn03/dampyr4res.htm)

--Josh

[jconnell]

Preliminary final results:

Jake Azato
Tim Walsh
Dr. Doug Ertman

Masters:
Doug Blighton
Brent Sanderson

Women:
Lesli Demark
Jen Jensen
Heather Azato

Full results coming soon.

--Josh

[neonnoodle]

<FONT COLOR="ORANGE"><FONT SIZE=" 2">YEAH BABY!!!</FONT></FONT>
Way to go Jake! Congrats on your first Super Tour Win!!! Here's to many more Super Tour Victories King Pin!!!

I won the Sedgley Monthly Today! That's almost the same right?

Good to see Dr Doug's name on the score sheet again.

Looks like this was the place to be for easy USDGC qualifying. Who are half of these guys? Sux for the guys out here on the west coast who had to shoot light out to qualify at the other early year qualifiers.

[jconnell]

You know what, JeffM...I look at some of the names from West Coast tournaments and say "who are half these guys?" too. Works both ways.

There was some serious lights out play from people to get the qualifying spots this weekend (especially from Jake, you'll be happy to know, Nick). Every single player who got a spot EARNED it.

If it's so easy, why weren't you here?

BTW, the other USDGC qualifiers, in no particular order:

Matt LaCourte*, Mike Dussault*, Terry West*, Matt Stroika, Jason Johnson, Daryl Cormier*, Bob Graham (* = have attended previous USDGCs)

Plus Steve Brinster and Craig Gangloff who were already qualified but finished in the top 10 of the event.

--Josh

[morgan]

I knew Doug Blighton was gonna win masters. He's a freak.

(That's a good thing)

[Chris Hysell]

So a Virginia pro that went up to play in the easy qualifier didn't qualify. He must be blue, again.

Congratulations to Jake. I have admired him as a golfer since he took 2nd behind me in a tournament on some old ratty baskets. Jake played the best golf of anyone there, he just had many unfortunate cut-throughs and spit outs. Any other player would have gotten mad and complained but he had the "oh well, I need to learn to putt softer" mentality and went on to the next hole.

[neonnoodle]

For all you guys that think agressive wins events, I know that one of the biggest improvements in Jake's game this year has been to know when to just throw the disc under the basket for a drop in rather than sail by going for it. Steady wins the day, that's what King Pins say.

[jconnell]

What impressed me the most watching Jake all weekend was his demeanor. Nothing rattled the guy. He was cracking jokes and one-liners all weekend, mostly at his own expense.

Good example...last hole on Saturday at Barre Falls, tough par 4 hole 18. His second shot flirts with the OB on the left side, but lands in by 3 feet, leaving about a 20 footer for a birdie 3. Then he completely airballed the putt. Then bonked the comebacker off the front. Finally, he dropped in for his bogey five.

All of us watching from the road above the basket figured he'd be bumming, or at least a little frustrated. Had he gotten the birdie, he would have maintained his initial 3-stroke lead going into Sunday. Instead he was only up by a stroke. He came up the hill with a big grin like it was nothing. It was great to see contrasted against some of the frustration seen on other golfers' faces following a tough hole or round or day.

He'll be a star someday, that's for sure. He played to the cameras really well all weekend. Could be an entire segment of the DVD dedicated to just his self-commentary. /clipart/wink.gif

--Josh

[tiltedhalo]

I had a chance to meet jake and play some warm-up holes with he and a few other golfers on Thursday, and would like to add my congratuations--excellent golfer and seemed like an all-around good-guy. He made 30 foot putts look like they were drops ins.

Congrats to the other qualifiers--Tim and Mike and particular...we couldn't have better guys to represent MA at the USDGC.

[ronturner]

Chris--i played 3 really poor rounds. getting a 10 on a birdie/par hole doesn't help too much either. i drove up there after work on friday and then drove back last night after the tourney. i need to rest up for sherando next week and hopefully do a little better in my attempt to qualify down at the crosstown.

congrats jake and the other qualifiers.

very fun tournament. i'll definitely be back next year hopefully with some better rounds, no tens, and no snow.

[Moderator005]

JeffM,

Either you forgot to use a "winkey-smiley" to denote sarcasm or you are a major dillhole.

The competitors this weekend played four rounds of golf on two world-class courses, each covered with about 12"-18" feet of snow.

Who are half these guys? Only 6 previous USDGC competitors. Check out their player ratings and tournament results on the PDGA site.

Way to support your fellow golfers across the country.

-Jeff

[Moderator005]

Ronnie,

Throw a forehand roller on hole 14 next time and you won't go out-of-bounds. Or throw a Roc and just play for a 3 or a 4. Too many tin-cuppers going for the deuce there results in high scores - I think Mitch took a double circle 7 last year.

[ronturner]

tough to roll in a foot of snow /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

[jconnell]

Jeff,

Ronnie came back with a par on 14 in the second round. Not to mention banging a 70-75 footer for deuce on 15 immediately after taking the 10. The whoops of joy could be heard everywhere on the course.

The spotter on hole 14 said that the number of OB shots on 14 shrunk from 30-40 in round one to about 8 in round 2. I think the "tin-cuppers" learned their lesson. /clipart/happy.gif

And the snow cover ranged from 3-14 inches (not feet/clipart/wink.gif). Sunday's temps were in the mid 50s and it was muddy. Standing on the flypads was like standing on a waterbed in some spots. Yet there were some exceptional scores shot that would be tough to shoot in ideal conditions (Jake shot a 48 in round 1 and Tim shot a really quiet 48 in round two, making it closer than people realized).

--Josh

For all of you that missed it, this was an incredible tournament. Barre Falls is an amazing course (even if I still don't know the correct prounuciation of 'Barre'). Kinda like Prompton Dam in some ways (lots of elevation, beautiful views), but more challenging. I took a triple-circle 10 on hole 14 (and would still be there throwing discs into the ravine if not for some friendly advice from Dr. Doug) the first round, but came back with a 3 the second round. I can't wait to play that course with no snow on the ground, there is some great roller potential and I'm sure it's right purty in the fall.
The party at Pyramids on Sat. was great, with some delicious pasta and sauce courtesy of Jason and Kelley Southwick (2 of the coolest people you'd ever wanna meet). The Watchusett (I think I spelled that wrong, sorry) Blueberry Ale was awesome, and Jason hooked me up with a couple of sweet discs for my kids from his amazing collection of plastic.
The 2 rounds at Pyramids on Sunday featured the nicest weather we had in months and some smokin' hot scores (I think Tim Walsh shot a 48 second round!)
Thanks again to Jason and Kelley for their hospitality and for running a very very smooth tourney. Thanks as well the all the NEFA guys and especially the guys that I played with for being so DAM/PYRAMIDS cool!

P.S. To back up Jeff LaGrassa's words, I defy anyone to come play these courses in these conditions and say that it was 'easy'.

[bob]

Ha, funny one Jeff. Roller...Ha, In two feet of trodden snow.

Seriously though, TWO FEET OF SNOW! You would walk on top a few steps and punch through to your knees. Run-ups were almost impossible.
Temps were in the 40's and 50's so everything slowly got softer. Challenging conditions that brought on some competative play.

Bless the people who spent many hours in the weeks before the event, clearing off the tee pads.

Yeah, Fly 18!

I could type for days about how great the courses and the people of NEFA are. Get there and experience it for yourself.

Thanks, Mace. See you in Rock Hill!!!! WooHoo!!!

Well, thanks to all of you and thanks for your kind words. It was a pleasure to host such a classy bunch of people. We'll do it again next year, this time in late April with a full field and I hope once again as a USDGC qualifier.

Some of the ten guys getting their invites looked like they might cry they were so happy. Thanks to the many sponsors and volunteers and to everyone for coming!

[mattdisc]

Jason,

Thanks to Kelly and you for opening up your course and house for all the players and running a well organized and on time Super Tour event. I truly had a memorable experience my first trip to NEFA land and I assure you that the Tinicum Owls will return next year. Oh yeah, LICK ME is the king.

[jconnell]

Full Dam Pyramids IV results (http://www.nefa.com/tourn03/dampyr4res.htm)

--Josh

[morgan]

Two words on how to avoid the OB fence on hole 14.

1. Side
2. Arm

Thanks to jason and kelly for another amazing tournament! You too lick, you did more than your fare share, even with your Brave Bull /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif
Anyway, great people, great turnout, great cheerleaders...and great golf by jake, way to go buddy!

mitch

[neonnoodle]

Josh, the link doesn't seem to work...

[jconnell]

You're right Nick, it doesn't work. Having issues with the website at the moment, had to dump a bunch of files, including the results.

Should have it back up tonight.

--Josh