The Becky Zallek Women’s Choice Award is an award given to tournament directors who have proven to be a leader amongst their peers in providing a woman-friendly atmosphere. These TDs keep women’s needs top of mind and go the extra mile to ensure a positive experience for women – both new and tenured. Women and girl PDGA members nominate TDs and from those, the winner is selected by the PDGA Women's Committee.

The Becky Zallek Award celebrates the women who build, support, and strengthen our disc golf community. Becky showed us what leadership with heart looks like — and this award carries that spirit forward.

— Serenity Madison, Chair, PDGA Women’s Committee

The award is not limited to gender when it comes to the winner, anyone can be nominated and win. Some of the nominees included: Cameron Harbachuk, Caley Allen, Shannon Saunders, Andrea Michaud, Alessandra Lance and Madison Tomaino (2023 winner).

But one tournament director stood out from the rest in a big way. 

Nikole Coleman's impact in Washington and beyond is significant. We received over 50 nominations for the Becky Zallek award this year and over 30% of those were for Nikole. In 2025, Nikole directed seven events. Repeated themes through her nominations were the Evergreen Women's Series, her supportiveness, inclusiveness, her welcoming nature, not only being a great TD but helping others become great TDs as well, and of course, fun. And snacks, they mentioned the snacks too. 

A testament of Coleman's impact is right in the nominations:

I signed up for my very first tournament because it was part of the EWS and I knew I'd get to meet other women. What I didn't know was just how life-changing it would be. That event became the catalyst for my entire disc golf journey, and I will always be grateful to Nikole for creating the space that made it possible.

Nikole has been a stellar member of the disc community! She started up the Evergreen Women's Series, focusing on community, compassion, inclusion and creating a safe space for women and girls, among many other clinics, tournaments and fundraisers. She does all this while working a full time job as well as helping her husband run a disc golf store. She is an amazing human and deserves to be recognized!

Nikole has built a series that is welcoming, inclusive, and uplifting for players of all divisions and all ages. Through the Evergreen Womens Series, she has created a supportive environment where new players can grow, where women feel empowered, and where community truly thrives. One of her most meaningful contributions is her commitment to developing new Tournament Directors, giving them opportunities to gain hands-on experience and build confidence in leading events. This not only strengthens the present series but also ensures the future of womens disc golf in the region.

On a personal level, although I have only been part of this community for five years, it has completely transformed my life. In a world that often feels chaotic, Nikole has helped build something that brings stability, joy, and connection. Her events are something I genuinely look forward to, and nothing brings me greater joy than being a part of the Evergreen Womens Series. The community she fosters has given me a sense of belonging, purpose, and positivity that I will always cherish.

Nikole has been nothing but encouraging for all women. I've been playing for a minute... Usually only having two or three women near me (2 HRS ish away) Losing one of my closest friend and competitor in this sport Melodie Bailey hit hard. This comrodery has healed my heart so much that I drive more than 4 hrs (both ways) at a time just to be surrounded by the love this series exudes. I wear the earrings Melodie made and gave me at every women's tournament. Nikole is a blessing.

She started our Washington state women series, called the Evergreen Women's Series! She's put her blood, sweat, and tears into starting this series and keeping it going! While also working a full time job and helping her husband with his small business and also running other events in the PNW! She's brought so many of us together & continues to bring us together! She's extremely humble & selfless, everything she does is for others.

After Nikole was chosen as the winner, we were curious about the Evergreen Women's Series, its success, and how Nikole runs not only the series, but how she as an individual makes such an impact. We interviewed her before she knew she won the 2025 Becky Zallek Women's Choice TD of the Year award. 

About the Evergreen Women's Disc Golf Series

How did you get into disc golf initially?

I got into disc golf back in 2014 when I met my now-husband while he was opening 360 Disc Golf in Bremerton. I had heard of disc golf before, but had never actually played. At first, we didn’t get out much—he was recovering from a back injury—so I kind of eased into the sport.

Once we started playing more, I was introduced to a local women’s group called Women’s Peace of Disc Golf. I had just moved to the area and started a new job, so finding that group was huge for me. It gave me an instant community and helped me make friends, and honestly, playing with the ladies is what really hooked me and made me want to keep playing and get more involved.

My very first sanctioned event was a WGE event in 2019, Women of the Woods. Thank you, Lisa, for putting together that awesome event!

What made you decide to start TD’ing?

Honestly, I’m not totally sure what made me start TD’ing, it kind of just happened. I’m a natural organizer, and my day job as a city planner definitely helps, so staying organized and making things happen comes pretty naturally to me. I started by helping put together non-sanctioned events through my husband’s shop, and I realized I genuinely loved doing it.

Around the same time, our favorite local course—on private property—was about to close, and I really wanted to give the ladies a chance to have that space one last time. That spring, I pulled together the Honey Bee Spring Open. It was very bare bones at first, but it clicked for me that I really enjoy creating welcoming, intentional spaces for women to enjoy the sport.

TD’ing also led me to get more involved with the West Sound Disc Golf Association. I joined the board around 2021 and was elected president in 2025. Being on the board has meant stepping into the TD role even more, especially for some of our long-standing club events, one of them is nearly 20 years old. It’s an honor to help keep those traditions going, and someday I look forward to passing the torch and seeing the next person carry it forward.

How did the Evergreen series come to be?

The series really came out of friendship more than anything else. It started with five-women disc golfers who somehow became close friends despite having very different backgrounds and interests. One afternoon after a round, we were sitting in a bar in Bremerton, Washington, talking about how we could help grow the sport for women. Over a plate of frickles, the idea for the series was born.

Each of the five of us played a role in those early conversations—I just happened to be the “organizer” of the group and naturally took the lead. The others supported me every step of the way, and from there it just slowly grew. It was very simple and very humble in the beginning.

I also spent time looking at other women’s leagues and series around the country and reached out to folks involved with things like the Michigan Women’s Series, the Poppy Series in California, and the Heartland Women’s Disc Golf Series. Those women answered my questions and provided a lot of inspiration as we figured things out and built our own version.

How is the series structured?

The series is made up entirely of sanctioned singles events. That was intentional, we really want the PDGA to see how strong and consistent the women’s disc golf community is. Each year, we usually bring back three to four favorite events and then add a few new courses or locations to keep things fresh. Some events rotate every other year, which helps us expand into new areas, bring in new female TDs, and also give organizers a break so we’re not relying on the same handful of events every season.

The points system is designed to reward both participation and performance. Simply showing up and playing earns you points, and placing first through third in your division earns additional points. To qualify for the series, players need to compete in a minimum number of events, usually three or four, depending on the year. Once you qualify, those points count toward an end-of-year series winner in each division.

The series has never really been about big payouts at the end, but having a points system and a series champion does help incentivize participation and gives players a fun goal to work toward throughout the season.

What were your initial goals with the series?

The initial goal was pretty simple—just to get more women playing and to create a space where they felt comfortable and heard. At the time, there was a general feeling among local women players that their concerns weren’t always being taken seriously. Things like always being grouped with juniors, lack of restrooms, or the perception that women “took too long” to play were coming up a lot. Nothing dramatic, but it was definitely starting to build, especially as the sport really took off during COVID.

So the goal at first was just to create an environment where women actually wanted to show up and play. From there, it naturally evolved. The next big goal became getting more women involved as TDs. While we were incredibly grateful for the male TDs who supported us early on, we really wanted to shift toward women running women’s events. A big part of the series is about training and encouraging women to step into TD roles themselves and helping build confidence to do that.

By 2023, we hit a big milestone—every event in the series was run by a female TD, and that’s continued since. When we’re in a spot where there isn’t a local, experienced female TD yet, we’ll bring in a male TD to mentor them through the process. It’s been incredibly successful and has really helped build confidence, skills, and leadership within the women’s community.

How many people participated?

Participation really changes year to year and even event to event. On average, we see about 45 women per event, with some drawing more and some a bit less. Western Washington is a really unique place geographically, and travel can be a challenge—long drives, ferry crossings, and mountain passes all play a role in whether someone can make it to a particular event.

That said, we do have an amazing group of women who have traveled over the Cascade Mountains for nearly every event since 2022, and we absolutely love those ladies. In 2025, we had a total of 429 player appearances across the series, representing 106 unique women. Four players managed to play in every single event, which is always impressive. In terms of divisions, FA1 consistently had the largest overall field and also the most players who qualified for the series by playing four or more events. FA3, on the other hand, had the highest number of unique players, which really speaks to how many women are trying the series for the first time or jumping in for just a few events. It’s been really encouraging to see that level of commitment and community grow year after year.

What have been some challenges with organizing the series?

That’s a tricky question, because of course there have been bumps along the way. There will always be people who don’t quite understand the purpose, or who are skeptical, or just don’t see the value. But honestly, none of that really matters when you’re standing on a course with 50 awesome women, enjoying a (sometimes rare) sunny day in Western Washington, cheering each other on and genuinely supporting one another.

The bumps are temporary. The detractors come and go. If your intentions are pure and the focus stays on community and inclusion, the hard stuff fades into the background pretty quickly.

What have been some surprises?

Maybe not a total surprise, but I’m constantly in awe of the women involved. They’ve really taken the Evergreen Women’s Series and made it their own. I might be the face of the series in some ways, but it truly belongs to them. They champion it, promote it, support each other, and show up in ways I never could have imagined. I honestly can’t put into words how happy that makes me or how grateful I am to be part of something that feels so community-driven.

What’s next for the EWS?

It’s hard to say what’s next, because the EWS has already grown in ways I never expected. Part of me feels like, why change what’s working? At its core, the goal will always stay the same—women’s events, led by women. And also non-sanctioned events, because not everything has to be about competition.

Last year we hosted a women’s clinic and had about a dozen ladies sign up. Pro-level women donated their time to teach putting, forehand, backhand, upshots, and even the famous “scadoosh” (our local version of the pancake or get-out-of-jail shot in the trees). That was such a cool experience to watch.

This year, we’re launching an event called First Flight. I hear so often from women that they’re nervous or just don’t feel “ready” for a tournament yet. This event pairs newer players with experienced tournament women to gently introduce them to the sanctioned tournament world in a supportive way. I’m incredibly excited about that one.

And honestly, I tell the ladies all the time—you tell me when the EWS has served its purpose. If someday it feels like it’s time to park it, that’s okay. Until then, we’ll just keep doing what we’ve been doing: creating safe, welcoming, fun spaces for women to throw frisbees.

What advice would you give to another woman wanting to do something similar in their area?

Start somewhere. Seriously. Don’t get discouraged by low turnout at the beginning. Two women turn into three, then five, then ten, it builds more organically than you expect. I really believe in the idea of “create the space and they will come.”

Also, lean on the network of women who are already doing this work. Reach out, ask questions, share ideas. The women who are running leagues, series, and events genuinely want to help and want to see more of this happening everywhere. We all love this sport and want to see continued growth among women, so the more we support each other, the better it will be for everyone.

Oh, and provide snacks. Always and forever.