The 2015 “Steady” Ed Memorial Masters Cup begins this weekend on Friday May 15th, and as usual we couldn’t be more excited. Everything about this event is special: the DeLaveaga Disc Golf Course, the atmosphere, the always amazing tournament staff, and even the city of Santa Cruz itself. The Masters Cup is the third stop on the 2015 PDGA National Tour, meaning the top players from around the world will be on site, tackling the obstacles and elevation changes that DeLaveaga so famously provides.

One Last Hurrah

Before we get into the details of the tournament itself, we’d like to take a moment to talk about one of the key components that has made it so successful in recent years, TJ Goodwin #26305.

TJ was part of the crew that ran the enormously successful 2011 PDGA Pro Worlds in Santa Cruz and has been running the “Steady” Ed Masters Cup ever since. His dedication to the Santa Cruz disc golf scene spans far beyond the Masters Cup. He also created and/or runs several other area tournament, including the Good Neighbors Open, played on the DeLaveaga ball golf course, and the Felton Freeze, his version of an “ice bowl”.

Following in the footsteps of former Masters Cup Tournament Directors is no easy task. When you’re taking over for disc golf legends and hall of famers the likes of Marty Hapner #4033, Tom Schot #3033, and Dave “Daviar” Thomas #9597, expectations run high. Fortunately for the competitors that make their way to Santa Cruz, TJ was a perfect fit.

We’re sad to say that this is the final year that TJ will be running the event. In fact, he already moved to Washington state a few months back. In a true display of dedication, TJ flew down to run the Masters Cup Amateur event last weekend, returned to WA, and again made his way down this weekend for his final run as the TD.

“He's got such a great personality. He's really good at delegating, making decisions, and then owning them. Those are such important qualities to have as a TD”, said Scott Keasey #19655, General Manager of DGA (Disc Golf Association), the title sponsor of the Masters Cup.

We speak for all of Santa Cruz disc golfers when we say he will certainly be missed. At this year’s Felton Freeze, one of TJ's last events serving as TD before moving, Shasta Criss #28597 said a few words about him that left many holding back tears. TJ will be replaced in the years to come by Braden Coolidge #50095, and we certainly look forward to working with him in the future as much as we look forward to one last weekend with TJ.

DeLaveaga

“No Santa Cruz local has ever won the pro side of the Masters Cup, if that tells you anything”, said Nate Doss #11794 when asked about the difficulty of DeLaveaga. Nate grew up learning to play disc golf in Santa Cruz and although he did win one of his three world championships in Santa Cruz, he has yet to win the Masters Cup in the Open division.

It’s not the kind of course you can ever really get used to. There are just too many chances of a weird bounce off a root, a kick off a tree leaves you buried in the woods, knee deep in Poison Oak. “It’s what we call getting DeLa’d”, explained Shasta. “It’s like when you have a perfect drive up the hill and it picks up and rolls back down 100 feet. You can’t plan for it.”

The layout used at DeLaveaga for the Masters Cup consists of 24 holes that clock in at roughly 8000 feet with a par of 72. Several holes are so well-known that they have their own nicknames, e.g. the “I-5” or the “Top of the World”.    

Media Coverage

If you’ve been to DeLa in the last decade or so, you likely know the frustration of the lack of any sort of phone signal. We’re not talking 4G, or even 3G here, we’re talking about when the signal bars on your phone changes to the dreaded circle with a line through it, No-Smoking style. That being said, the live streaming coverage on the internet we’ve all become so used to seeing is a lost cause.

Don’t get too bummed out just yet! We’ve worked with the tournament staff and sponsors to make sure there are an abundance of coverage videos available for the fans to watch each morning. The Open division lead card will be covered by Terry “The Disc Golf Guy” Miller with multiple camera angles. Prodigy Disc will be following the Open Women’s lead card and the MPO chase card will be filmed by Central Coast Disc Golf, also with multiple camera angles.

We will as usual be bringing you live hole-by-hole scores with tweets (pics and videos when phone signal permits) on PDGALIVE.com. More info to come before the tournament begins tomorrow morning. Follow the PDGA on Twitter and Facebook for updates, scores, and links to all the different coverage videos.

Last but not least, we want to extend our thoughts and prayers to Russ Jacobson #18642 and his family. Russ recently lost his wife, Jessica, the mother of his children to a severe asthma attack. Russ is a beloved part of the DeLaveaga Disc Golf Club (DDGC) team, serving as the perennial starter of the Masters Cup, a Co-TD of the 2011 Pro Worlds, and a former DDGC President among many other things, and we wish him and family the best as they go through such difficult times.