PDGA launches TD Academy to train new tournament directors

The next bottleneck in disc golf is not another tee pad or basket. It is the local tournament director, the person who can turn a club idea into a sanctioned event, a fundraiser, and a pathway for players who want more than weekend rounds.

That is the job the Professional Disc Golf Association is trying to grow through TD Academy, its interactive training program for members who have never directed a PDGA-sanctioned tournament before. The new session is led by PDGA TD Program Director Scott Withers and experienced tournament director Laura Morgan Wise, and it is built to be hands-on from the start. Instead of stopping at theory, the academy walks participants through how to sanction events, manage registration with DiscGolfScene, and use Tournament Manager and Tournament Central while also tackling course rentals, player packs and the day-to-day logistics that can make or break an event.

Applications are due Monday, June 22, 2026, and the PDGA says only serious applicants should apply. The application asks for short essay responses and at least one reference from the applicant’s disc golf community, a clear signal that the organization wants future directors who are ready to take responsibility, not just sit in on a seminar. The class itself is scheduled around five bi-weekly Monday virtual sessions, beginning with a welcome meeting on July 6 and continuing on July 13, July 27, August 10, August 24 and September 7.

The most important test comes after the coursework. Each participant will run a PDGA-sanctioned C-Tier event between September 12 and October 11, 2026, and those tournaments will also serve as fundraiser events for a club, course or nonprofit chosen by the director. That structure matters because the growth of disc golf depends on more than player interest. Clubs need trained organizers who can safely run events, keep them sanctioned and turn local energy into something sustainable.

The academy builds on the PDGA’s broader TD Training push, a free online course that launched in early April 2025. That program uses 18 lessons to cover PDGA tiers and event standards, scheduling and sanctioning, registration, rulings, and ratings. TD Academy adds the practical step that many new directors need: a real event with real responsibilities and real consequences.

The first TD Academy class already proved the model, completing a three-month training period before hosting its first sanctioned tournaments, with Discraft support including discounted player packs and follow-up sessions with Withers afterward. For everyday disc golfers, that kind of infrastructure work is the difference between wishing for more events and actually having them on the calendar.