PDGA Seeking Hosts for Major Tournaments

Clubs and convention and visitor’s bureaus who want to host a PDGA-owned Major: Now is the time.

Proposals to host a 2021 Major, including the PDGA United States Women’s Disc Golf Championship; the PDGA Tim Selinske U.S. Masters Championship; the PDGA Professional Disc Golf World Championship; the PDGA Masters Disc Golf World Championships; the PDGA Junior Disc Golf World Championships; and the PDGA Amateur Disc Golf World Championships will be accepted from July 1 through November 1, 2019. By awarding the bid to host these events by the end of 2019, the eventual hosts will be provided ample time to ensure a high-quality experience for all PDGA Major competitors, supporters, and spectators. The PDGA will continue with this timeline moving forward.

For each of its owned Major championships, the PDGA seeks hosts and encourages bids from around the globe. An experienced disc golf club; nonprofit business; an individual working in conjunction with a community sports commission; visitor’s bureau; or facilities owner can submit a bid to host an event or a combination thereof. U.S. national championships must be contested within the United States. All bids are reviewed by the PDGA staff and Board of Directors, and a host is selected based on the experience with running a large sanctioned disc golf event, contents of the bid, suitable facilities, proximity of courses/venues to each other, and various other requirements. The 2021 PDGA Majors bid packages can be accessed from the Documents section at the bottom of the PDGA Major Events page.

2021 introduces new formats for the Amateur and Masters World Championships. The top amateurs in the mixed and female divisions will now compete in a stand-alone event (Am Worlds), while all age-based divisions will compete with the pros at the Masters World Championships. These new formats are meant to showcase the world's best amateur players and offer them more spots in the competition, while bringing age-based players together again with their professional counterparts.  

Additionally, the ability to bid on a combined World Championship (Pro/Am, Open/Masters, etc.) is now offered, should the bidding community be in a position to do so.

“The PDGA is excited for the next iteration of the national and world championship events, as they are a direct reflection of the growth of our sport and the increased demand to bid on and participate in a PDGA Major,” PDGA Director of Operations Michael Downes said. “Over the last several years, we have seen an exponential increase in the number of members wishing to compete for a championship title. The future of these championships looks bright, and now, with the ability to bid on a combined Worlds event, we offer more opportunity for our eventual hosts, as well. We can’t wait to see the bar raised as the events continue to grow, and we are thrilled to receive and review bids for these 2021 events."

The general bidding guidelines can now be found in a single document to provide a clearer picture of the expectations of a PDGA Major, while the event-specific guidelines are now detailed in separate event documents. This new presentation is meant to accentuate the individual requirements to host each event, while the general guidelines to bid on any event are consistent and can be found within one single RFP.

We want to thank the many dedicated volunteers, tournament directors, event sponsors, city hosts, and all others involved in making these events possible, and look forward to the future of these great PDGA Major Championships.