Tournament Director Training Program

Welcome! 

Welcome to the PDGA's Tournament Director Training Program!  We're excited to have you join us. 

There are many factors that contribute to the growth and success of disc golf but there is no doubt that the primary reason is the hard-working and often underappreciated tournament directors.  Our goal with this Tournament Director Training Program is to increase the number of qualified Tournament Directors available to run PDGA-sanctioned events and increase the depth and breadth of knowledge of our TDs. 

We have a full set of resources related to tournament planning and management to help you prepare for your event, and when you're ready you can submit your sanctioning agreement online.  You’ll see that we have organized these training materials in the same sequential order that you’re likely to encounter the topics as you visualize, plan, execute and wrap up your events.  So, if you’re new to tournament directing, you can start with the page you’re reading right now and just follow the pages in order, learning as you go. 

If you’re already running events, you’ll find that this organizational design is intuitive and should help you find answers to those specific questions that brought you here today.  The topics are arranged in that logical, sequential order described earlier, with a navigational outline displayed on the right-hand side of your browser screen to help you find the specific answer you’re looking for. Add in the Search tool, and you should find your answers quickly. 

One of the key components of our Tournament Director Training Program is the collection of “TD School” videos, hosted by World Disc Golf Hall of Famer Andi Young (#2094) and PDGA Event Support & Training Manager Allen Risley (#1752). These videos, patterned after the popular “Rules School” videos produced by the PDGA, serve as introductions to key topics in our training curriculum. You can learn a lot from watching the TD School videos, but the details you need to know to become a successful Tournament Director will be in the accompanying text and supplemental video content. 

Let’s Celebrate our Tournament Directors! 

As an introduction to our training program, we want to begin by celebrating Tournament Directors and the role that they play in running disc golf tournaments. 

On behalf of the PDGA Board of Directors, PDGA Staff, members, players, and spectators, thank you for your interest and volunteering your time by hosting a PDGA-sanctioned event. The members, players, and spectators appreciate your dedication and what you do for the sport of disc golf.  

Please do not hesitate to call the Event Support Helpline at (762) 253-2200 or contact the PDGA Event Support Team ([email protected]) if you have questions.  If you’re contacting us regarding a specific tournament, please make sure to include the specific event link or name so we can help you that much faster.