[DexterHawk]

I'd say the disadvantage isn't having lower rated players in your pool, but rather having newer players in your pool. These newer players are getting better faster and many of them expect to throw better than their rating 75 - 90% of the time. That would push ratings down because the average player in the pool would be better than their average. This phenomenon may have been further exaggerated by this being the first tournament of the year, with a bunch of folks having practiced and improved over the winter.