The 16th Annual Sask Open Driven by Innova Disc Golf Tournament is headed to east central Saskatchewan.
The combined Patrick and Rodney Ridge Parks in Yorkton and the Melville Regional Park courses will be used for the event, which will feature men's, women's, and youth divisions
The event which was held at Murray Disc Golf (Watrous) in 2020, will be held Aug. 14 and 15.
“Current registration stands at 89, but more are expected to sign up before the July 31 deadline,” said Duncan Holness, Tournament Director for the Sask Open. “Last year, we had 60 competitors due to COVID restrictions. Competitors are coming from as far away as Calgary and Winnipeg, but are mainly coming from around Saskatchewan.”
And there will be a new men’s champion crowned.
“The defending champion is Dan Fortier of Regina, but he'll relinquish the title this year due to a family event happening that weekend,” said Holness.
On the women’s side “our champion was Wendy Chapman of Saskatoon, and she will be attempting to defend her title,” said Holness.
Players will play three rounds of stroke play -- total strokes are counted, and the winner is the player who played the event in the fewest strokes -- over two days. All of the players will play on both courses, using tees according to their divisions.
“At the end of the weekend, our new provincial champs will be crowned, and we will pass the torch onto the next host for 2022,” said Holness.
For many it will be the first look at a revamped Melville course after the ice storm earlier this year forced some course changes.
“The course in Melville did sustain heavy damage in an ice storm earlier this year, so the layout will be changing slightly,” said Holness. “Todd Schick has done a fantastic job of tweaking and reimagining the holes, using the space that we have to work with out there very well.”
And the long-time tonals will be gone.
New baskets will be going in on July 29.
With such a large contingent of top Prairie players expected, it’s a great time for people to attend the event to see what the sport of disc golf is all about.
“Spectators, fans, family, and friends are absolutely encouraged to come out and watch the event,” said Holness.
“The best times will most likely be any time that anyone can come out, but our champions will be decided during our Sunday morning rounds (9 am) at both Melville (Pro divisions, MA1), and Yorkton (All other Am divisions and juniors), so Sunday morning is going to be very exciting.”
And if you want to help out, that’s great too.
“Volunteers are always welcome, especially for setup and takedown, and possibly for registration table duties during the rounds,” said Holness.
“Another way that people and businesses can help is through sponsorship. This event is big and fun and can be expensive if we want to do everything right.
“Contributions to the pro purse are also appreciated because that purse helps us to attract more and better disc golfers to our events.”
Volunteers and sponsors can contact Holness at daholness1@gmail.com
