Quad Cities – Starting this Saturday, almost 650 players start arriving in the Quad Cities for the 2017 Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) Amateur and Junior Disc Golf World Championships on July 15-22, 2017.
These amateur and junior players range in age from 6 to 80+ years old and are up and coming in the PDGA ranks. Qualifications include having the minimum number of points and PDGA membership.
There are players coming from the all over the U.S. and the world, including Germany, Canada, Australia, Austria, and Sweden. Local players from the Quad Cities have qualified as well.
There are over 100 competing in the Junior Leagues. Local players include:
- Junior II Boys – Dawson Snelling, Moline
- Junior II Boys – Graham Vanderpool, Buffalo, Iowa
Competitors will be traveling the Quad Cities throughout the week to play courses at Camden Park, Credit Island, Eastern Avenue Park, Middle Park, Prospect Park, Richmond Hill Park, and West Lake Park. The Quad Cities is known as one of the premier disc golf outlets across the country.
Tournament play takes place Tuesday to Friday, July 18-21, with the semifinals and finals on Saturday, July 22. The finals play a nine-hole course at West Lake Park in the afternoon followed by the awards ceremony.
Before tournament play begins, there are activities each day. On Saturday, July 15, Amateur and Junior Mixed Doubles take place at 10 a.m. at Camden Park in Milan. On Sunday, July 16, there are field events from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Credit Island in Davenport. Field events include longest drive, mini disc golf and putting, and EDGE Skillshot.
For more information, visit the PDGA website www.pdga.com/2017amworlds
The Am and Junior World Championships are led by Chase Roberts PDGA #20460 of Iron Lion Disc Golf Supply with the support of the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau (QCCVB).
“We’ve been watching disc golf grow for 10 years and we’ve spent that time running tournaments and trying to build the local golf scene towards this type of event,” says Chase Roberts, co-owner of the Iron Lion. “A Worlds event puts the spotlight on the Quad Cities and is our opportunity to show the world what we have to offer.”
Disc golf got its start in the Quad Cities in the mid to late 1980s, with the first major promoter being Dale Haake. After moving to Longview Park in Rock Island from Lincoln Park, disc golf got a foothold and slowly started to expand. After a slight lull, the Quad City Disc Golf Club got active and from there promotion and course growth exploded. A perfect storm of Internet access and big city parks led to a massive change in the landscape as we went from one 12-hole course in town to 18-hole layouts in Rock Island, Geneseo, Milan, Davenport, Bettendorf, and Moline. More courses would be added, and in 2006 the tournament scene here started expanding, going from virtually none to many in a few short years. In 2009, the Quad City Disc Golf Club hosted the U.S. Women’s temporary course and one-day B-Tier at West Lake Park.
Roberts says, “We wanted to work with the QCCVB to submit the bid because we wanted to showcase the Quad Cities scene and prove disc golf could make an economic impact on the area. We are proud to work with the QCCVB to help facilitate this for our local golfers and more so for the community.”
The QCCVB estimates the local economic impact from the week-long tournament is $800,000.
Lynn Hunt, QCCVB vice-president of Sales, notes that hosting one of the largest PDGA Disc Golf World Championships is a big deal for the Quad Cities. “Over 1100 visitors will be traveling our region, course to course, for an average of five days, taking in all the cool amenities we offer. Our guests will see our community and style up close!”
Amber Hamer, QCCVB Event Manager, and PDGA Pro Jay Reading have lined up some signature Quad Cities experiences. PDGA competitors and their traveling companions will be treated to a night at Modern Woodmen Park, Splash Landing Waterpark, Micro Brewery Tours, and a night of games and magic at QC Family Entertainment.
All competition events are open for the public to spectate and watch the best amateurs and juniors in several divisions. The schedule of play can be found at this link. http://www.pdga.com/2017amworlds/schedule/course
The public is also invited to attend the following disc golf events throughout the week:
- Monday, July 17 – Free Clinic Extravaganza at Veterans Memorial Park in Bettendorf from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Join top disc sponsors to learn the game, or get some tips.
- Wednesday, July 19 – Fly Mart at the Quad-Cities Waterfront Convention Center in Bettendorf from 5-10 p.m. Shop everything disc golf. Free admission.
- Saturday, July 22 – Check out the finals in the afternoon at West Lake Park in Davenport. Major disc golf companies will be there to vend their products, food vendors will be available, and the awards ceremony will be held following play, around 5 p.m.
PDGA Major Events are the premier national and international competitions for the sport of disc golf each year, featuring the world’s best disc golfers competing for World and National Titles. Hosting a PDGA Major is no easy task. Interest was shown from several involved local organizing committees, meaning selection of the 2017 events was difficult.
The PDGA has conducted its Major Championship Events in nearly every region of the U.S. The 2016 PDGA Amateur and Junior Disc Golf World Championships were held in Madison, Wis.
