PEI is preparing to host the first Canadian leg of the Pro Disc Golf Tour

The first-ever Pro Disc Golf Tour event is coming to Canada this year, with stops close to home.

Disc golf is similar to regular golf, or ball golf as disc golfers call it, but uses discs instead of clubs and balls.

There are 17 disc golf courses at PEI, five of which are 18-hole courses suitable for championship-level play.

One of these is Rose Valley Disc Golf in Rose Valley, PEI, where the tour stop will be.

Part of the course was damaged by Fiona but the owners are carrying out clean-up and testing.

They say it will be better than before the first pro disc golfers tee off thanks to upgrades from promoter Ben Smith.

“Ben Smith has done a great job with Flickline to promote the sport in our area, not just in PEI but throughout the Maritimes,” said Patrick O’Hanley, co-owner of Rose Valley Disc Golf. “I’m really happy that the pros are coming and playing.”

For disc golfers, it’s like the PGA coming to the Maritimes for the first time.

Jacob Smith has been playing disc golf since 2019 and quickly decided to open his own shop. He stocks thousands of discs, with different specializations and golf terms like driver and putter.

He said it’s a great opportunity to grow the sport in our region.

“We have some great courses here and people want to play them,” said Jacob Smith of the Island Disc Golf Company. “The fact that the professional players come and play on our pitches is first class. This is the next level.”

He said nearly 300 disc golf athletes will be on the island. So far 117 professionals have registered, 65 of them are among the global top 100.

Smith said PEI has had pro tournaments before, but since this counts in the Pro Tour standings, which decides who competes in the pro championship at the end of the year, this is the highest stakes that ever stood here for disc golf.

The Discmania Open is coming to PEI on September 8th.

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