PDGA Competition Manual 1.03: Withdrawals and Refunds Amended Temporarily (Updated March 21, 2020)

UPDATED March 21, 2020

Effective immediately, the PDGA Board of Directors, in consultation with the PDGA staff, is temporarily amending section 1.03 Withdrawals and Refunds of the PDGA Competition Manual for Disc Golf Events in response to the SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 pandemic.

This amendment will remain in effect for all PDGA events sanctioned as of 3/12/2020, that are taking place between 3/12/2020 and 12/31/2020. This policy will be reviewed, and if deemed necessary, be renewed or modified for events in 2021 no later than 11/1/2020.

The current 1.03 policy will remain in place for players registered in Pro divisions. This amendment only affects those players registered in Amateur divisions. This amendment covers both withdrawals from Amateur divisions 30 days or more prior to the tournament and event cancellations due to the SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 pandemic.

This amendment is meant to handle situations where a tournament director (TD) has spent considerable funds in advance of an event on amateur player pack items for that specific event. The goals of this amendment are to ensure that TDs can continue to provide high-value tournaments while mitigating their financial risk and also ensuring that our membership is protected and provided value in return.

Temporary Amendment for PDGA events sanctioned as of 3/12/2020:

1. This amendment temporarily replaces the policy for withdrawals from Amateur divisions taking place 30 days or more from the event that would normally be governed by 1.03.C.  All other withdrawals (e.g., withdrawals from Professional divisions or withdrawals from Amateur divisions less than 30 days from the event) are governed by the applicable provisions of 1.03, above.
2. This amendment also serves as policy for event cancellations during its effective dates.
3. Players who officially request to withdraw from an event 30 or more days before the start of the event will be entitled to a 100% cash refund minus up to a $10 handling fee ONLY if their spot in the tournament is filled through either the waitlist or a walk-up entry (if offered).  If the player’s spot is NOT filled, the TD may, at their discretion, either provide a cash refund OR exercise the appropriate option listed in 1.03.J.4 or 1.03.J.5, below, depending on the value of the player pack as compared to the entry fee.
4. For an event where the amateur player pack retail value is equal to or exceeds 100% of the entry fee, the TD has the option to provide that player pack to the player in lieu of a cash refund. This is an option to the TD and not a requirement. If actual shipping costs are more than $10 per package, and would cause the TD to incur a total combined cost for the player pack and shipping that exceeds the player’s entry fee, the TD will have the option to charge those shipping costs to the players.
5. For an event where the player pack retail value is less than 100% of the entry fee, the TD has the option to ship the player pack to the player while providing a cash refund for the remaining balance of the entry fee.  For example, if a tournament entry fee is $50 and the player pack value is $25, the player would be entitled to a $25 cash refund plus the $25 players pack.  If actual shipping costs are more than $10 per package, the Tournament Director will have the option to deduct the shipping cost from the cash portion of the player’s refund and should shipping costs cause the TD to incur a total combined cost for the player pack and shipping that exceeds the player’s entry fee, the TD will have the option to charge those shipping costs to the players.

For events that have not yet procured player pack items but have plans to run an event, the PDGA highly recommends that TDs avoid purchasing items that have specific event dates or logos on the items.

The PDGA further recommends that events transition, at least for this year, to using virtual player packs or store credit player packs to minimize their financial risk.

Please see the PDGA Board of Directors' statement on the COVID-19 pandemic for more information.