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How To Sanction a PDGA Event

The PDGA Event Sanctioning Process

This is your step-by-step guide to sanctioning a PDGA event.  If you have questions or need any assistance with these steps or with your event, please ask [email protected].

1)  Select a date and tier then have it approved by your area’s PDGA Coordinator.

  • Player packs, number of holes, added cash, and basket types are all important factors in whether a tournament should be a B-Tier or C-Tier (A-Tiers and above require applications submitted to the PDGA a year – or two years, in the case of a Major – beforehand, and do not go through your Coordinator).  Check out the Tier Standards Chart on page 10 and the Target Requirements on page 11 of the PDGA Tour Standards document (and read the rest of it, too).  Want to run a league instead?  PDGA Leagues are a great way to grow sanctioned play in your area.
     
  • Make sure the property owner, park manager, or other relevant decision-maker has approved your event!  This might be as easy as an email exchange or might require a formal application for a park use permit.  Check out and become familiar with the rules in your local area.  Working with local clubs will often help this process.  If the venue requires insurance, well, insurance is included in sanctioning for events in North America!  However, if the venue needs proof of insurance, there’s an additional $50 fee to receive that (and you can add them as an additional insured entity, as well). You can request and pay for that when you fill out the Sanctioning Agreement.
     
  • Next, submit the tournament’s date, location, and proposed Tier to your area’s Coordinator (Leagues do not need approval, but it’s a nice courtesy to let them know about those, too).  If you don’t know who your Coordinator is or how to contact them, you can use the Contact page by choosing your geographic area from the relevant Coordinator dropdown menu.  Your Coordinator is responsible for making sure events in their state/region, province, or country don’t conflict with any restrictions on how close events can be to one another so that events have the best chance of filling and running smoothly.

2)  Fill out and submit the Sanctioning Agreement online.

  • Fill out and submit the PDGA Sanctioning Agreement.  Make sure to read the brief Terms and Conditions that you’re agreeing to.  If you’re scheduling multiple days of competition with different divisions each day (e.g. Saturday Ams and Sunday Pros), make sure to select the option to host distinct divisions on separate days at the same venue, and remember that each day of competition will need a separate Event Report.
     
  • Make sure you hit the CONTINUE > button at the bottom of the Sanctioning Agreement to get to the payment page. The Sanctioning Agreement will not be submitted without payment of the sanctioning fee.
     
  • The agreement will also not be submitted if the Event Director (and Assistant Event Director, if there is one) is not a current PDGA Member (join or renew here) and/or not a Certified Official.  In order to become a Certified Official, you must pass an open-book exam covering material from the Official Rules of Disc Golf and the Competition Manual.  You may take the test as many times as you need to until you pass.  Once you pass, you will be prompted to pay a $10 fee for your certification, which lasts for three years.

3)  How to make changes to your sanctioned event.

  • You can edit the name of your event (adding sponsors, fixing typos, etc.) on the Setup tab of the event’s Tournament Manager page.  Tournament Manager is a tool that allows you to handle event logistics from the palm of your hand. Learn how to use it here.
     
  • All other changes (e.g. date, location, Tier, TD, Ass’t TD) need to be made by the PDGA Event Support Team. Do not re-sanction or re-submit your event.  Please instead send an email to [email protected] with the information you need changed, and our staff will assist you.

4)  Additional resources.

Sanctioning Fees

After completing the Event Sanctioning Agreement, one of the following sanctioning fees will apply. Fees can be paid online using a debit/credit card or PayPal at the end of the online sanctioning process.

  • C-Tier: $50
  • B-Tier: $75
  • A-Tier: $100
  • Elite Series: waived
  • Major: waived

NOTE: The fees listed above also apply to experimental PDGA events (XC-Tier, XB-Tier, XA-Tier).

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