First of all, this is my opinion and mine only. I know that others feel this way but I won't drag them into this unless they want to. :D Come on guys, it will be fun.

1. I enjoyed the Tishomingo tournament. It's always fun with some great players to play with. New course design was good. Played with some great players that were very friendly.

2. The "plaques" were a joke. If this is the direction that the Southern National's are headed, I think they need to turn around and take a look at themselves. The "plaques" for all divisions were a home printed flyer stuck in a $.39 plastic picture frame from Freds. You know the ones...go to Perkins restraunt sometime and you will see a Southern National Plaque advertising the food of the week on each table. I mean is the only reason everyone plays in a tournament there to win a few more frisbees? In ball golf, does everyone play to win a few more golf balls? In bowling, is everyone there to win a few more bowling balls? I can see a bunch of dart players running to the next tournament to win a few darts...every single tournament. So basically it has degraded from a First Place Plaque for the first place guy and some discs...to discs for everyone else who places...to now the First Place guy getting a cheap picture frame and a pat on the back and yes some more discs.

Show a little imagination. It's not like you dont know about these tournaments MONTHS in advance. I have NEVER seen a tournament give away Plaques to say the first 3 to 5 places. There are a lot of people out there, who would rather have a 4th place plaque or trophey than a bunch of discs he is never going to use.

PLEASE don't give me the speech about...well why don't YOU run a tournament.....Why are you complaining..why don't YOU do something about it...blah blah. I have heard it too many times. People have the right to "complain" as much as they have the right to say how wonderfull things went and how much we appreciate people running tournaments. YES I am glad people take the time to run tournaments. It's a THANKLESS job. Its HARD work. But that DOESN'T mean there isn't room for Improvement.

Someone answer me, is it legal to give Gift Certificates to people who win AM divisions? Does that keep you as an AM?

I don't have the time nor the inclination to run a tournament, but I @#$%& well know that my local tournament is not going to have some weak @#$%& prizes for everyone. I am defintely going to see to that.

Ok got to go. Have a softball game to play. I am so excited. The prizes are a Perkins Menu and some more softballs. ;D

BRAD disc golfer

brad,

reading your post made me sick to my stomache. It wasn't the complaining part, it was the way you sounded when you complained. Yes I do agree that the plaques given out sucks.

Your right, i have never seen a 4th place plaque or trophey, and that's the way it should be. I have also never seen 4th place given a plaque in the olympics. This is the way it is and should be.

but having a printed flyer stuck in a picture frame isn't right at all.

Why shouldn't everyone who places receive discs. Your right, ball golfer's don't play to win golf balls, they play to win money. Bowler's don't play to win more bowling balls. And no people don't play dart's to win more darts. They also don't play to win a trophy. They play to win cash. Or a new vehicle. In disc golf, pros don't play for the plaques, they play for the cash. I have never heard of a player being upset because he came in fourth and couldn't get the third place plaque. But i hear he is upset because he couldn't get the third place $$.

Ams don't play for cash, so they must get prizes instead. I don't play only to win some wood. A plaque is very nice to have(especially if they are nice plaques), but so are nice discs. I also agree with you that winning some discs that you won't ever use is no good either. Gift certificates are a very good alternative. So are bags, baskets(at larger tryns), shirts, etc.

I am mostly agreeing with you, i just think(in my opinion) the way it was said was a little rude.

Sorry you were disappointed. Bill and I took over this tournament about three weeks before the date because of Jim O's health. The lady who does our usually unique plaques wanted to charge us extra this time because of the short notice, so we declined! If you have some suggestions for Trophies that will please everyone, I am open for my Spring Tourney in March 2003. I also think I saw a whole lot more stuff for prizes than just a few discs.

In many other sports they award NO prizes to AMs and they win a plaque only and maybe get a shirt when they sign up. (i am not saying i agree with that, but it is fact)

Not all sports though-- there are no "rules" that mandate what must or should be awarded to an Amateur.

In DG, it boils down to what the TD decides upon. In my opinion the TD's are doing the best they can and do not have a money tree in most cases and usually very little volunteer help.

Nice plaques are expensive. They will absorb a good percentage of entry fees (if that is where the budget for plaques is obtained) and can kill payout in their own way-- due to their expense.

I have heard AMS say both... "I'd rather win a nice plaque" as well as "To heck with plaques, GIMMIE SOME CANDY!!"

Opinions vary, from what I've seen concerning what a payout should be for AMs...

Perhaps you guys could start a local fundraiser to purchase stuff that you feel is important to your local events for next year? (plaques, shirts, trips to Jamaica, Lear Jets, whatever)

So am I right, that its possible to give out Gift Certificates to AMs as prizes and they are still considered AMs?

Zinger, sorry if my post seemed rude. I admit it was a bit flamboyant. As I said, the tournament was fun and I appreciate anyone who actually runs a tournament because there are a lot of trouble in a lot of ways, including people who complain.

The prizes for AMs have always given me heartburn, not just with this tournament. I am at the very least going to attempt to get better prizes at our local tournaments.

( Even though Bud Hill has always been known to give away stacks and stacks of discs and other merchandise to tons of places. I have been to a lot of tournaments, Bud Hill seems to give out more than I have seen. Of course I haven’t been to all the tournaments. I probably won’t be able to do it for November, but I am going to attempt to get more of a variety for next year. )

Didn’t mean for you to get sick at your stomach. Talk about being sick at your stomach, we camped out at Tish and ate nothing but Brauts, Hamburgers, Chips and Dip, Halloween Candy, Cookies, Mello Yellows and a certain drink that made me dizzy...for breakfast lunch and dinner all weekend.
Hah!
Brad

lol,,,sounds pretty rough Brad. Hey but at leat it wasn't Taco Bell. I did that for lunch once. Won't ever do that again....

Brad,

Every year Academy Sports gives one of the local TD's a 25$ gift certificate.

(Academy sells discs, so it is a good prize)

AMS have won that (I think) and no one has lost AM status due to a gift certificate that I know of...

but then the gift certificates were CTP's... (again, I think-- from what I remember)

Good question, though...

Don't you guys be foolish. Competition amongst your peers is the key. I want to beat the @#$%& off the guy who beat me last weekend, etc., etc. etc. I may be an Am, but I still play hard to win(Ive simply come to the conclusion that 65th out of 66 means--I'm no pro!!) Kudos for those that run the tourneys..we really do appreciate all of you!!! However, I also agree that we DO in fact play for the plaques--nothing better to chap your competitions' @#$%& than a huge case full of trophies!!!)

Everybody keep smiling and Brad, practice your putt!!

P.S. my "picture frame" looks great on the "wall of Slaw", where's yours??? But I did take my new discs and placed them eloquently into my new bag!!!

all in good fun and for all the good times, Thanks again!!

Brad,

I am glad that you enjoyed the event, we enjoyed having you. As Mac said above, it was a very short lead-time to prepare, but even he was not aware of the poor quality of what our plaque vendor wanted to provide, the price was not really an issue. I did not like them either, but it was better that some I have seen!

As far as "gift certificates", the difference between Pro and Am is Cash/prizes. The certificates are not cash, but are an exchange for a "prize" whether a disc, bag, or a meal a Perkins or Taco Bell! Sure, you COULD "sell" your "certificate" for cash, but for all intents and purposes, it was awarded as a PRIZE. What is done with it from there has no relevance to the tournament or amateur status of the player it was given to.

To the best of my knowledge, this system has not been abused by anyone.

Iuka is a small town, we don't have those "big city" restaurants. . . but Mac & I thought that if you came over and "placed" in either our Ice bowl or Spring Tourney, we would like to award you a gift certificate to Homer's, or El Picante, those are about the only things we have except Ellies Snack bar and the usual Hardees, Jacks, & Pizza Hut.

Constructive criticism is a good thing, keeps you on you toes and improves things. . .hopefully.

Look forward to Bud Hill. .. see you there!

Bill

heh heh.....that was pretty funny Bill.

Don't bad mouth Pizza Hut though. That's what we had to eat on the way home after the tournament.

Mmmmmmmmm................Buuuufffffeeeettttt

Brad

p.s. Keep a hold of that "picture frame plaque" Griff. You can place my picture in it......posing after I beat you in the next tournament like a new born kitten. Wait.....you arent supposed to beat new born kittens are you....Ok then....new born puppy.

fool

Giving out Prizes is one of the hardest things to do running a tourney! Certificates don't work most of the time, because most of the people are from out of town so that reduces where We can get them (Wal-mart, Denny's, stripe club chains...) and keep everyone happy!!! Nice Trophies are very pricey and will take ALL the $ from that division so there would be NO Prizes; an option would be to increase the entry fee, Bad Option!!!
You should Play for Fun and to Beat the next Guy Or Gal!!!
Jack #3444

Play for fun!! Are you kidding??? I live to try to beat the brains out of people like Griff and Coady and Fair and Kenny.......etc etc.

Then if I win a plaque, I take a picture with it and mail it to their houses or blow it up and put it in their yards.

Problem is.......I still can't get First Place!!

Brad

p.s. The problem isn't entry fee's nor pricey trophies. The problem is weak sponsership. I am doing my best to address this starting this coming year. Sponser money should at the least be $500 a tourney in my opinion. That might be a bit much for the more out of the way tournies but shouldn't be a problem in Memphis, Mobile, Baton Rouge, Hattisburg, etc.

an excellent way to raise funds for a tourney is hole sponsors...

18 holes X 25$ sponsors = 450$

it is alot easier to find 18 folks that'll pitch in 25$ than it is one that will give a 500$ sponsorship...

Brad,
Don't want to put you on the spot, but we want you to give a comparison of the tourney at Wall Doxey to Tishimingo. Our comparison goes like this. You had tournament directors that did it for the first time at Wall Doxey. We started about three months in advance of the tourney trying to get sponsors like Hooter's of Southaven, Fitzgerald's Casino, Horseshoe Casino, Wal-Mart, etc... . None were willing to donate because they had never heard of the sport. You have to remember for the state of Mississippi. Disc golf is only four years old. The State parks are the main housing area for the courses. Our local communities provide our main support for special events on the parks. So it becomes very hard to ask them for anything else. We made our on plaques to keep the cost down so we would have better prizes to give in place of not having as much in sponsorship. In defense of the Tishimingo tourney, we know they basically function the same way. Not knocking the guys at memphis because they have helped for so long, but think of it this way. They have two major courses not more than ten minutes from each other. Memphis population is about five times larger than Holly Springs and Iuka put together. Memphis has a lot of club members that own their own businesses and work at higher paying jobs inside of a major city. So Memphis is able to present better prizes for larger draws. We are very happy to see forty players at our tourneys. So, think about this. We looked at the results and saw about 25 players not at the Tourney at Wall Doxey. If we get these players to all of the tourneys in North Mississippi. Donations may follow. better prizes . Innova Plaques and trophies given away. Cruises given away. Let's don't be a complainer lets be a solution to the problem. If you think that you will get better donations at Hattisburg, just remember last year the head coach of University of southern mississippi put in the paper that he would coach the ballgame in speedos if they would fill the stadium against Alabama. They couldn't even fill half of the stadium but good luck on your adventure in hattisburg. I fill if we could start teaching the sport to the high School students and get it as new sport in schools that donations would come easier just look at cross country track in the past eight years. So remember that our small town sponsors give all they can to our special events and don't consider disc golf to be those events, But now ask them about cross country track teams.

Hey, hey, you better watch what you say about those Golden Eagles. And by the way we don't play Alabama at home. That is always an away game. But our football attendance is looking a lot better this year. It seems to improve a little bit each year. But any time ya'll north Mississippi schools (Ole Miss, MSU) want a butt kickin', we'll be more than glad to give you one. Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime!

Hey jellystoneranger! ( Nice name by the way. ) I count Holly Springs as one of those out of the way places I mentioned. Like you said, its tough for a small population to come up with some good sponsorship money pile.

I am actually excited about the direction that Holly Springs is going. I personally think that the Club down there and the Rangers do a wonderfull job with the course that you have. I have made some good friends there. Larry H. Kenny C. and Zack being 3 off the top of my head.

I think you should keep trying on those sponsers that you mentioned. That was a pretty impressive list of people that someday might actually respond. It never hurts to ask!

Also, I dont think I could compare the Holly Springs Tourney to the Tishomingo Tourney. My only "complaint" about the Tishomingo Tourney was the plaques. Most everything else went very smooth and I had a great time. They have a great course down there that everyone needs to play. All the people and Rangers are very nice. My "complaint" about AM prizes was a general one about disc golf. Not about Tishomingo or any other specific Tourney. Heck even though Memphis gives away tons of discs, its still discs. I am in the process of trying to come up with a different variety of things. Hopefully for the Nov. Tourney but might end up being the May one.

Also, please don't lump the Memphis golfers and people in with me. All of this is my own opinion. ( Which some people say I express too much. Hah! )

In any case, I say if you know a Tourney is coming to your town next year, you should be working on Sponsers now. Why wait? I know that's what I will be doing for our local one.

Brad!

i would like to thank bill and mac for doing that tournament , i really enjoy the tishomingo tournaments , the cabins is what i was looking forward to,my wife laura was looking forward to it also.sometimes things do not go well and you try not to let them happen again ,i bet they want either and everyoneone is glad you spoke up . i have done a few things i thought was a good ideal only to find out players were not happy about it , so i did not do it again , if you went home and just said nothing that would be the worst thing , i have change the way i do things all the time it is a learning adventure, hope to see everyone soon ,jim

I came across this thread while looking for some old Tishomingo Ice Bowl results (still got 'em, Bill?). I must have missed it the first time.

I remember those "plaques" and wondered about them myself. Almost won one, too. But Bill and Mac's excuses sounded good to me and I'm sure they did the best they could in short notice. Both of these guys work hard to make sure everyone has a good time at Tish events.

About prices, I think a nice first place plaque is great. Better than a trophy unless its a disc sports-specific trophy, which are expensive. Traditionally Memphis has had awsome plaques, courtesy of Michael Blackburn. My wife has one and it's probably the nicest one we have (other than my space shuttle trophy from Huntsville).

I also like to receive discs. I'd much rather receive cash, but that will likely not happen for a while, so I'll continue to haunt the advance masters division.

I think giving discs to ams is perfectly acceptable. You can also add shirts, towels, minis, stickers, bags, etc. (which Bill and Mac did), but you can also go further, if you can afford it, to add coolers, folding chairs, or other inexpensive items that a golfer could use, especially golfers that camp!

It all depends on sponsorship and Brad is right about that. I need to do a better job with that myself here in Florence.

But as far as I'm concerned, right now I'm playing to win first place, regardless of what the plaque looks like and the plastic is just a perk that I hope remains a part of SNDG events. RUSS C