Mars Springs presented by Enigma Stars is a two-day tournament that will be played in Varaždinske Toplice on March 9 and 10 2024. This tournament will be the first round of the Croatian Disc Golf League in the 2024 season.
The organizer of the tournament is Lagoda Disc Golf, and the title sponsor is the company Enigma Stars from Čakovec, a manufacturer of top quality underwear and clothing.
 |
This will be the 8th edition of the tournament, and the first one was held on March 21st 2015 with the participation of 18 players from Croatia and Hungary.
The last seventh edition of the tournament was held on March 4th 2023 with the participation of 43 players from Croatia and Slovenia.
Registration
The event will be played in the following divisions:
• MPO (open to male and female players)
• FPO (open female)
• Red (players of both genders PDGA rated up to 900)
• Green (players of both genders PDGA rated up to 850)
• Purple (players of both genders PDGA rated up to 800).
The number of participants is limited to 72, that is, the competition will be played in a maximum of 18 groups of 4 players.
The registration fee for the MPO, FPO, Red and Green division is €20, and the registration fee for the Purple division is €10.
Players who are not PDGA members and do not have personal rating can play the Purple division only if they have not played PDGA tournaments so far, or have played PDGA tournaments and the last 6 rounds (or less if they have not played 6 rounds) are not worth more than 800 rating points on average. If those rounds are worth more than 800 then they can play the Green, Red or MPO / FPO division. A player who has no rating and the last 6 rounds (or less if 6 rounds have not been played) is worth more than 850 rating points cannot play the Green division but can play Red or MPO / FPO.
The registration fee includes the organization of the tournament, a fee to the Croatian Flying Disc Federation, a small trophy and small prize for the winner in each division, small prizes for players ranked 2nd and 3rd in the MPO and FPO divisions, Overachiever prize, CTP prize and raffle prizes.
In the Red, Green and Purple categories, only the winner receives a trophy and a small prize.
Registration fee should be paid to the Lagoda bank account before the event. When making the transaction use the following data:
Lagoda j.d.o.o., Varaždin, HR6323400091110550349
If you do not pay the registration fee in advance, it will be possible to pay in cash at the tournament.
| To sign up for the event open the REGISTRATION PAGE. |
The list of registered players will be updated to the PDGA event page.
| Tournament schedule: Saturday 9.3. | |
|---|---|
| - gathering at the course, practice | |
| 11:30 | Players meeting, by the tee 1 |
| 12:00 | start of the 1st round (duration approximately 120 minutes) |
| - 60-minute break (WC, refreshment) | |
| 15:00 | start of the 2nd round |
| 17:30 | optional dinner, with additional payment |
| - small congress hall, hotel Minerva | |
| 18:00 | Croatian FD Federation Assembly session |
| Sunday 10.3. | |
| 9:00 - 9:30 | mandatory check-in, at tee 1 |
| 10:00 | start of the 3rd round |
| 12:30 | Winners ceremony with a banquet |
| - foyer of the congress hall, hotel Minerva | |
In case of bad weather during the 2nd round, there is a possibility to extend the break between the two rounds by about 30 minutes so that all players can arrive at one of the nearby bars to stay dry and warm.
Communication with participants
All registered participants will be contacted via e-mail no later than 5 days before the tournament with basic information and news related to the upcoming competition.
For communication during the event, a WhatsApp group will be created in which all news will be published throughout the duration of the tournament, and through it the participants themselves can communicate with each other (and, for example, arrange to meet up for a practice, going out for a dinner or similar)
Official accommodation
We have provided the possibility of accommodation in the Minerva Hotel for the participants.
| Motel Minerva | |
|---|---|
| Room type | Price for 1 night |
| Single room, 1 person - night stay, breakfast | 48 € |
| Double room, 2 persons - night stay, breakfast | 72 € (36€ per person) |
A one-time guest registration of €2.0 is added to the accommodation price, as well as €1.5 tourist tax and €0.1 insurance for each day of stay.
Hotel guests can use the indoor recreational pool for free, and Minerva Medica wellness center services (massages) for an additional fee.
To book accommodation, contact us by e-mail (Dinko or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Arrival at the hotel and check-in is from 8:00, while check-out is until 11:00.
Breakfast is served from the buffet table from 7:30 to 9:30.
Meals during the tournament
On Saturday, a group dinner is organized at the Minerva Hotel starting after the 1st round of the competition, around 17:00.
All registered players will be contacted by e-mail about the option to order dinner.
Concept of Play
The competition will take place in the following format:
Round 1 - groups will be formed with mixed divisions and according to strength groups determined by the PDGA rating. We will try not to put players from the same clubs/countries in the same groups in the first round, so that through the game they can socialize with players they don't see regularly.
Round 2 - groups formed by result, mixed division
Round 3 - groups formed by result, separated divisions.
In the first round, all groups are expected to have a maximum of 4 players. In the 2nd and 3rd rounds, it is possible for some groups to contain 5 players, some 4, and some 3, in order to even out the pace of the play and to make the round last about the same time for all players.
Course
The 18-hole is set up in an old park forest, and consists of shorter holes that combine uphill and downhill throws.
You can download the course map on this page in PDF format.
The baskets on the course are Lagoda Baskets from 2014, and some of them have damage and are not in excellent condition.
The tees are marked on the ground and there are no artificial grass carpets (but we hope to install them for the tournament).
A similar course was played every year, but due to the change of one track, the same layout was played only in twice at PDGA tournaments (Mars Springs 2020 and 2023).
The currently valid course records are 46 (-9, rated 1.005) held by Dinko Šimenc for men, and 54 (-1, rated 902) held by Danica Pajtak for women.
Find the list of the 10 best results on the course in the PDF document on this page.
Parking
There are is no parking area next to the course, so for tournament participants we use the Minerva hotel parking lot (google maps location) and the Vila Toplissa restaurant parking lot (google maps location 1 or location 2).
It takes 4-5 minutes to walk from the parking lot next to the Vila Toplissa restaurant to the course.
Toilet
As there is no toilet on the course we recommend that you use facilities of one of the nearby cafes located next to the park - for example, Nimfa pastry shop (google maps location).
Restaurant Vila Toplissa is only open from 11:00 on Saturday and Sunday, so you can only use their toilet after opening hour.
Weather
You can follow the weather forecast for Varaždinske Toplice on the Yr.no page. In case of bad weather, you can follow the lightning radar or the precipitation radar display.
Given that the course is mostly located in an old forest, in the event of a strong wind (stronger than 10 m/s), the competition may be postponed (or moved to another location) for the safety of the competitors.
Photos and social networks
All the photos we take at the tournament will be added to the Google Photos Album at the end of each day and you can download them and use them for social networks.
When posting on Instagram, please use #marssprings #discgolfvztoplice #varazdinsketoplice @lagoda_disc_golf @volim.toplice
Ace Pool game
All players who wish to do so can pay €1 in cash, which is placed in a special piggy bank.
The player who hits an ace in the tournament becomes the winner of the entire prize fund of the Ace pool. If two or more players hit an ace in the same tournament, they share the ace pool. If no player hits an ace, the ace pool is carried over to the next Lagoda tournament, and so on until the ace pool is paid out in one tournament.
A player who wants to participate in the Ace pool must pay €1 before the start of the first round. If a player hits an ace and has not paid in the ace pool before the start of the first round, then he is not entitled to the prize.
CTP Game – Closest to the pin
On hole 6 there will be an additional competition in "who threw the disc closest to the basket" during the play in the 1st and 2nd round. There will be a tape meter next to the basket post, and the player whose disc comes to rest near the basket can measure the distance from the post to the disc. The player whose disc has the smallest distance from the basket after the completion of the second round of the competition wins the prize.
For the result to be valid, the disc must be 5m or less from the basket, and you should send a photo from the distance shown on the meter to the official tournament WhatsApp group and indicate the distance in centimeters to the basket.
Overachiever Award
The award is given to the player who played the tournament on average the most above his rating (according to the current ratings on the PDGA website). All tournament participants who have a PDGA number and an active membership participate in this competition, but they need to have at least 20 rated rounds included in their rating.
Prizes and Tournament respect raffle
At the tournaments we organize, smaller prizes are awarded to the best three players in the MPO, FPO and to winners in Red, Green and Purple division, while we additionally reward all players through a raffle. The raffle is held at the end of the tournament, after the Winners ceremony. The usual top raffle prize is a disc golf backpack.
In order for a player to win a raffle prize, he must:
1. Be present at the Players meeting
2. Pay the registration fee in advance or during the tournament (no later than the beginning of the Winners ceremony)
3. Complete all rounds of the tournament
4. Register on time (mandatory check-in) if this is stated in the tournament schedule
5. To be present at the Winner ceremony
If a player is drawn in the raffle, but has not met all five criteria, he cannot claim the prize, so the next player is drawn instead.
The same player cannot win a raffle prize in two consecutive tournaments.
In the Mars Springs 2024 tournament, the prize cannot be won by players who won it at the Chasing Sparrows 2024 tournament.
|
