Ok so here is the entire chain of events.

We (Lafayette) ordered CFR discs for next year's SNDC and soon after received a call from a guy named Adrian who is the webmaster/developer for Disc Golf United.

He associated our order with the SN and made contact to find out a little more about what the SN is and how best to proceed with a proposal to partner with the series to provide us with some of their services. I told him that we (Lafayette) are just one city among many that host SN sanctioned events and while I do not speak for the series, I would contact the people that do - the SN BOD - and see if they want to find out more. I corresponded with the board members via email and it was decided to pursue this to the point of getting a clear picture of what DGU proposes to offer.

They are a division of Innova and their site extends Innova's online presence into tools for organizing the sport. Things like league play, scoring, course location and what I think is most interesting to the SN - online registration for tournaments.

Please check out the DGU site - Disc Golf United - if you aren't familiar with them.

Doug, and others including me, has had online tournament registration on their SN wish list for a while now. My primary reason for wanting it is that it enables me as a TD to organize the highest quality event possible for the players, plain and simple.

I used a website called "ettend.com" to collect RSVPs for the last two major events in Lafayette and I was about 50% satisfied with their product. It has since gone out of business along with almost all of the other sites that offered event registration services for little or no cost.

Where I see DGU being superior to a generic registration site is that it is built specifically for Disc Golf. Most other sites use the same format no matter what you are having people sign up for so the look and feel is the same for Disc Golf, church retreats, business luncheons, etc.. They serve the purpose of collecting names and information but have none of the sport specific amenities that DGU appears to offer.

I also like the fact that it is connected to Innova, making it less likely to be a "fly by night" operation.

I will say that I can't see their service being needed or appropriate for every SN event.

Also, there is nothing stopping SN tournament directors from using their service now but I haven't seen many do so on their own (me included).

Rather than re-type the proposal that they submitted, I linked it here... SN proposal from DGU

Please take time to look at it and share your thoughts.

In my conversations with Adrian thus far, I did not get the feeling this offer is a "take it or leave it" deal and there are a few things I think we should propose changing before the SN gets on board with this.

Jacques-
Great job on your efforts. Big step in the right direction. My main goal for people in SN Land to recognize is the money that could be earned from having its own Online Sign-ups. If SN could have its own percentage fee to use towards something good. Like: paying for hosting a new website.......TD's and Players might not have a problem giving a little to SN instead of an outside company taking 6%.
Just a thought

Doug, the contact with DGU really came out of the blue.

They came looking for us (the SN), not the other way around and it progressed from there.

One of the things that should be negotiated, in my opinion, is the amount that you reference. I fell like a flat fee per registrant in the $1-$2 per head range is not unreasonable since it is pretty well in line with what other "pay to use" event registration sites charge.

Our own website - one that includes online tournament registration/management - is absolutely the best scenario. This has been discussed and it doesn't look like it has gotten anywhere. I am not knocking anybody's efforts here. It may have been found to be cost prohibitive and possibly someone who has knowledge of what was learned when it was investigated can comment and fill us in.

If a website belonging to the series isn't feasible at this point, then the proposal from DGU makes sense in that it fills in one of the "holes" that this site has.

It already exists, so there is nothing to invent on our part and it is already administered and maintained so it wouldn't burden any of our volunteers with more work & headache.

Of course, just one reply in 24 hours on the SN Forum may mean that this is something most players and TDs aren't interested in. LOL

I think it is a good idea foe the championships. They used DGU for registration for the SNAC in New Orleans in 2011. That is when I found out about DGU. I have been using it to keep up with my handicap since then.

New Orleans is always about 2 years ahead of the rest of the SN :)

Was NOTeam & Don satisfied with the service provided by DGU?

I have been using DGU for all my events for a few yers - great service, and the data options are excellent. I can download full spreadsheets of info, download only info needed for reporting, or just list hole sponsors or etc for an event.
The 6% is the best I found for smaller entrie fees (rather than $ + %), so for my $20 entry fee rec players they spend $1.20 for the online option.

Also, I can have DGU send refunds for players who need to drop out up untill the last minute - a great option for a TD to give players.

I do use it for the 640 player BG AMs, works well there.

HB

Another option to consider would be discgolfscene.com. Seems pretty user friendly, finances routed through paypal. At least something to compare and contrast, I'm sure there are a few other options out there as well.

Joe

You can use this service to Pre Register for the 16th Annual Tishomingo Spring Tourney. Even pay for your ace pot, bunkhouse, shirts & CFR Disc. May even add lunch both days to the mix.

It seems to be a pretty slick way and you can customize most of it to fit your needs.

Win win I say!

Dg Guy - Disc GOlf Plaques & Awards
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