2015 Pro Worlds Preview
2015 Pro Worlds Preview
Disc golf's most exciting week begins!
The 2015 Pro Worlds players meeting went off without a hitch on Monday night at the amazing and beautiful Senator John Heinz History Center. 400+ competitors from 10 different countries and 46 different states and provinces filled the center and happily toured its newest exhibit, "The Evolution of the Flying Disc", before the meeting began. Even the Mayor of Pittsburgh, Bill Peduto (pictured above), couldn't resist stopping in to welcome everyone and wish them all good luck! A lot of great things happened today and we only expect more of that to come with competition beginning on Tuesday morning.
It almost goes without saying, but none of this would be possible without an unimaginable amount of hard work from a dedicated and well organized team. As the 2015 PDGA Pro Worlds preparations began in the Steel City, getting the courses ready for tournament play was not an easy task. Typically, the Pittsburgh area enjoys a nice balance of each of the four seasons. Spring usually brings with it the rainfall necessary to replenish the water table and, aside from the occasional summer storm, moderate summer temps make western Pennsylvania an ideal destination for disc golfers of all skill-levels.
This summer proved to be anything but normal as the area saw significant rainfall 25 out of 31 days in July. This followed an uncharacteristically wet May and June, and while the four 2015 Pro Worlds courses felt the wrath of Mother Nature, course directors felt the pressure of preparing each course for the tournament.
Courses
Knob Hill Park DGC
Knob Hill in Warrendale, PA affectionately became known as the mud pit during the early part of the summer. Preparing the course throughout July was challenging for course director Keith Clark #284 of the Pittsburgh Flying Disc Society, and the public works crew as work was incrementally completed between consistent rain and occasional severe storms that brought down trees throughout the park.
One main challenge of preparing this course was laying concrete tee pads, which can be especially difficult during wet ground conditions. Still, the tee pads were finished, the Prodigy DG-T1 baskets were installed, downed trees were chopped up and now line some of the fairways, and the grass planted nearly a month ago is lush and ready for foot traffic. The story doesn't end there though. Some out-of-state off-road joy riders tore up the fairway on Holes #10 and #11 The disc golf gods were not pleased with this trespass onto their sacred land and when the vehicle became stuck, local police arrested the culprits. The tracks they left are all but covered over now and thankfully no people or baskets were injured!
Deer Lakes Disc Golf Park
Deer Lakes in Tarentum, Pa was even more challenging to prepare for this year's Pro Worlds events than the other local courses. One unique addition to the course is Hole #8, and building this hole took some doing from the club and the public works crew. This is unlike any hole on any course in the Pittsburgh area and in a region where course design focuses more on natural surroundings rather than man-made structures, it is a welcome addition that offers diversity on this heavily wooded course.
Deer Lakes - Hole 14
Anyone who knows Deer Lakes will tell you to watch your footing when playing the course, so adding stairs and grading steep hillsides was another facet of getting the course up to par for Pro Worlds. Signature Hole #3 was a virtual flood plane less than a month ago and thanks to severe early summer storm, a sizeable old growth Maple became an unplanned obstacle in the middle of the fairway on this 831ft. beauty.
The bridge on scenic Hole #15 washed some distance into the lake, and as this is the lowest drainage point for the course, there was quite a bit of work to do to make this hole Worlds ready. All and all some quick and proficient bridge building, a bit of chainsaw work, and some landscaping from the league and course directors, and Deer Lakes, perhaps the most versatile course of the four, eagerly awaits Pro World’s competitors.
Slippery Rock University Disc Golf Links
Playing through the college campus for the first nine holes and then venturing into the hills and woods surrounding the college for the second nine, Slippery Rock University’s showcases some of the most scenic holes that Pro World’s competitors will experience during the tournament. In terms of variety, this course has it all from tight woods to wide-open, big arm throws.
Ken Tyburski #45935 teeing off at Slippery Rock. Photo by Jake LaPutka #52776.
Slippery Rock is the newest addition to the Pittsburgh area and was finished only a few weeks before the start of the Worlds tournament thanks to Tournament Director J. Gary Dropcho #2734 and his team of dedicated volunteers. The final nine-hole showcase is perfectly set at Slippery Rock and will be a treat for spectators to watch the world’s best disc golfers play on the most unique courses in the area.
Moraine Lakeview DGC
Preparing Moraine for the tournament was a bit less nerve wracking than getting the courses closer to the Metro area, namely Deer Lakes and Knob Hill, ready for World’s play. The majority of the work on Moraine was cosmetic, yet these detail touches makes this premier Pittsburgh course a gem for spectators of the Worlds tournament and a challenge for the tournament players.
Will Schusterick #29064 throwing Hole 15 at Moraine.
A bit of routine course clean up and installation of concrete tee pads were the final pieces to prepare this course for Worlds play. With the final detail being the new tee signs, this Pittsburgh staple course is ready for the games. The relative ease of preparing this course as opposed to the other area courses did give tournament directors, staff, and volunteers a much-needed respite in terms of prepping for the games. Many of the holes at Moraine can be termed “signature holes”, yet spectators will not want to miss the 843 ft. Hole #15 that overlooks beautiful Lake Arthur.
Vital Links
Everything you need to know about the upcoming events of the week, including the items linked below and more, can be found on the 2015 Pro Worlds page on PDGA.com.
- General Information
- Player Roster & Results
- Live Broadcast Schedule
- Live Scoring (begins Tuesday, August 4th at 1:30pm EDT)
- Schedule
- Course Details
2015 PDGA Pro Worlds Promotion by Emerging Sports TV.
