The European Open disc golf tournament will be held in Nokia, Finland from 20th to 23rd of July, 2023. The European Open is one of the four Major tournaments of the year, attracting the world’s best disc golfers to Nokia to compete for the coveted Major victory. The tournament offers a prize pool of over 100,000 dollars.
What is the Disc Golf European Open?
The European Open has been held in the Pirkanmaa region in Finland for several years. Over time, the event has grown into a major sports festival and is one of the biggest sporting events in Pirkanmaa. The event gathers disc golfers from around the world to follow the competition on site or live online. Last year, the event attracted over 20,000 spectators on site and has garnered well over a million views on Youtube.
The European Open has provided intense experiences and battles over the past few years. The dominant force in recent years has been Paul McBeth. Last year, Eagle McMahon challenged McBeth, with the competition only being decided on the last hole, with McMahon emerging victorious. The duo was in a class of their own last year. The best European competitor last year was Niklas Anttila, who finished fourth.
In the women’s category, two Europeans reached the podium last year, with Eveliina Salonen and Henna Blomroos coming in second and third. The victory was claimed by Paige Pierce, who has dominated the sport in recent years. Unfortunately, Pierce is not able to compete in 2023 due to injury.
Why do Americans travel to the European Open?
What makes over 50 Americans travel across the Atlantic to Nokia to play in the European Open? In addition to being a Major tournament, the European Open is a electrifying disc golf event that attracts the world’s best disc golfers to enjoy the atmosphere of the competition.
The European Open is the world’s largest disc golf tournament in terms of audience numbers. Finland has the highest number of disc golfers per capita, and this is evident in Nokia. Disc golf, which in the United States is considered a marginal sport, is a completely different matter in Finland. Most top players are public figures in Finland, and they have plenty of fans.
Last year, American spectators marveled at how many children were at the disc golf courses and the European Open. There are so many fans now that at the European Open, a separate route had to be made for players after the round to get them off the last hole.
In addition to the experience, Nokia’s “The Beast” disc golf course is also a unique entity that is the favorite course of many top players. For example, Paul McBeth has said that the Nokia course is his favorite. “The Beast challenges you in every aspect. There are hardly two similar openings,” Paul McBeth described in an interview last year.
Also, social media influencer Brodie Smith, known from Youtube, who became a disc golfer a few years ago after his ultimate career, described his experience at the European Open last year as “a competition that he particularly loved last year”. Smith has over 2 million subscribers on Youtube – he too will be seen at the European Open in 2023.
Will McBeth take the victory again?
Paul McBeth is the best in the world. He is in a class of his own in big competitions. Only Ken Climo, who dominated the sport at the turn of the 2000s when the sport was nowhere near as big as it is today, precedes him in world championships and Major victories.
His ability to play at a top level in important competitions under heavy pressure surprises year after year.
What Discs Does Paul McBeth Use?
Paul McBeth is considered as one of the best MPO disc golf players of all-time. Check out the full list of discs Paul McBeth uses by clicking here!
Other interesting players are Ricky Wysocki and Eagle McMahon. Wysocki is a perennial success, but he has not succeeded in Nokia. McMahon, on the other hand, is defending his sensational victory from last year.
In the open category, there are over 100 competitors. Only nine of these have Major level victories.
If Paul McBeth is the pre-tournament favorite in the open category, reigning world champion Kristin Tattar is an even bigger favorite in the women’s category. The Estonian Tattar has been almost unbeatable in the past year – and above all, consistent. Consistency is the most important advantage in a four-day Major tournament, where winning requires excellent play for four days in a row.
In the women’s category, there are just under thirty women competing for the Major victory. Coveted victories have been achieved by five different players but one is Paige Pierce, who is not competing.
What Discs Does Kristin Tattar Use?
Kristin Tattar, from Estonia, is one of the best Female Professional Open disc golf players in the world. Check out the full list of discs Kristin uses by clicking here!
Finnish Expectations at the European Open
From the Finnish perspective, attention turns to Niklas Anttila. Anttila has been really good in Major competitions, having won two silver medals and a fourth place at last year’s European Open within a year. However, Anttila, known for his steady and confident play, carries heavy expectations under the watchful eye of the entire Finnish disc golf community. Also Väinö Mäkelä will receive media coverage in Finnish media.
The best performances in the open class have come in 2006 and 2009, when Timo Pursio finished second both times. In the current model of the European Open, there are two fourth places – last year’s Niklas and Pasi Koivu’s fourth place in 2013. In addition, Jesse Nieminen reached fifth place in 2019. We have not seen any Finns on the podium in the open category.
In the open category, there are, at present, about 35 Finnish people competing for podium places – which is less than the number of Americans.
In the women’s category, the situation is intriguing as, in addition to Eveliina Salonen and Henna Blomroos, Silva Saarinen and Heidi Laine have been in top form in European competitions. Eveliina and Henna both have top-class placements at the European Open in recent years. Henna has been second twice and Eveliina was second last year, only three throws behind Paige Pierce. This year, the victory is largely dependent on the kind of grip Kristin Tattar gets on Nokia’s The Beast.
European Open: Schedule and Broadcasts
The European Open is held from Thursday to Sunday, 20th-23rd July 2023. On Wednesday, 19th July 2023, the legendary President’s Cup, Europe vs USA, will be played.
The players in the women’s category start their rounds daily in the morning at about 8 o’clock. The women’s leading card starts playing at 9.30 local time.
Competitors in the open category set off after the women’s category and the last players at the top start their round at 15:30 local time.
LIVE Disc Golf Broadcast – Disc Golf Network
The European Open can be seen live through the Disc Golf Network. To watch live disc golf you will need to subscribe to Disc Golf Network, which is the official Disc Golf Pro Tour live broadcast. Click here to subscribe to Disc Golf Network!
DGN subscription fee is fairly affordable, being only $12.99 a month for the 2023 season.
PS! PDGA members can enjoy a 50% discount on the monthly subscription by using their PDGA number to generate a 50% discount code! Click here to learn more about the 50% discount!
I personally enjoy watching live disc golf as it unfolds rather than post produced coverages. And it’s dirt cheap, for $6.50 a month you can watch 2-4 tournaments every single month during the DGPT season.
Live coverages usually take 3-4 hours per round, highly depending on the weather and difficulty of the course.
Post-production coverage of the European Open 2023
Post-produced coverage will be exclusively available on the Disc Golf Network during the tournament, but will be released on the JomezPro & MDG Media YouTube channels after the event. Free release on YouTube will be quicker this year with coverage starting to become available on August 8th. This means that post-production coverage will be available for free starting 16 days after the final round, down from a 30-day delay in 2022.
In addition, Frisbeegolfmedia reports all the important events from the European Open in Finnish.
European Open – Disc Golf Traveler’s Guide
Are you traveling to Nokia to watch the European Open? Be sure to check out our European Open Traveler’s Guide! It has the most important tips for the disc golf tourist for the European Open week.