On Sunday, October 18, players on the course at Ivy Hill Golf Club were doing some quick math. Kat Mertch told WSET she expected to take home about $35,000. Eliezra Midtling put her own payout at roughly $2,000, and Emily Weatherman put hers at about $2,500. The 52 best disc golfers in the world, from 10 countries, were finishing the Disc Golf Pro Tour's Powerball Cup in Forest. The purse was $350,000, which event coordinator Nate Heinold called the biggest in the sport's history.
If you live near Ivy Hill, you might wonder why you can't take a bag of discs over on a Saturday morning and throw the same holes. Ivy Hill's disc golf course is an event course laid over a working ball-golf club. Everyday access opens in short windows set by the pro calendar. The next real change on the schedule is 2028.
Who won at Ivy Hill in October
According to the PDGA's event results, Gannon Buhr won the men's open division at 46 under. Silva Saarinen won the women's division at 25 under. Each took $50,000. The DGPT schedule put all four pro rounds at Ivy Hill, Thursday, October 15, through Sunday, October 18. In the pro payout format WSET described, every competitor earns money, with the rest of the purse split by ranking.
The week was the third time in three years that a pro disc golf championship had come to the golf course off Ivy Hill Drive.
| Year | Event | Ivy Hill's role |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | PDGA Professional World Championships, Aug. 21–25 | Host course, plus a new spectator layout |
| 2025 | DGPT Championship, Oct. 16–19 | Final two rounds, Oct. 18 and 19 |
| 2026 | DGPT Powerball Cup, Oct. 15–18 | All four pro rounds |
| 2028 | PDGA Pro Worlds and PDGA Masters Worlds | Co-host with New London Tech |
In 2025, the opening rounds were played at New London Tech in Bedford County, and the tour then moved to Ivy Hill for the finish. By 2026, Ivy Hill hosted the whole pro event.
A golf club first, by design
Ivy Hill is still an 18-hole ball-golf club. It has a clubhouse café, a pool, pickleball courts, golf instruction, tournaments, and memberships. According to the club's own history, ownership passed to R&P Golf in 2016. The membership page lists golf benefits. Disc golf access isn't among them.
That fits what owner Chris Runk told WSET in August 2024 ahead of the first Worlds. He described Ivy Hill as a traditional ball-golf course, not a daily disc golf operation. He said the club was adding disc golf while keeping its regular golf structure, with tee pads placed to stay out of ball golfers' way.
The idea started with a conversation. Lynchburg's announcement of the 2024 Worlds said Paul McBeth, a world champion, told Heinold that Lynchburg could host the event. Heinold then toured courses, hotels, and venues and laid out the showcase design at Ivy Hill. He credited Runk and Runk & Pratt for their support. Heinold also told Ledgestone that Ivy Hill was, in his view, the most beautiful golf club ever used for a disc golf event.
So the arrangement is deliberate. The fairways and greens serve ball golf every day, and disc golf takes over the property for set weeks.
Two disc golf layouts, both tied to events
Ivy Hill has two disc golf layouts. The pros play the championship track. The second layout started as the Ivy Hill Spectator Course, built for fans at the 2024 Worlds, and is now called Ivy Hill South. According to UDisc's course page, the Paul McBeth Foundation designed it for spectators, and Heinold is listed as the initial designer. The 18 holes run across the front nine of the golf course and are known for big elevation changes.
The same UDisc page lists it as "unavailable for play" and "open for special events only," with registration on Disc Golf Scene required. Disc Golf Scene's course listing labels it a private, temporary 18-hole course. The club's disc golf page says its pro events aren't open for public play, though spectators are welcome. It also invites visitors to sign up for the newsletter for news on "unique opportunities for public play."
So the newsletter is how you'll hear about the next chance to play.
What a public window looked like in 2026
The clearest example of public play came during Powerball Cup week, at an amateur flex round on the spectator course on Wednesday, October 14. These were the terms on the DGPT schedule:
- Tee-off window from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Groups of at least four players
- $20 green fee and cart charge
- $3 PDGA fee and $3 tournament director fee
That comes to $26 per player for one round, with registration in advance. Pro practice was tighter. Practice tee times for the Powerball Cup were booked through Disc Golf Scene, walk-ups weren't guaranteed a slot, and practice was limited to registered competitors. Players in The Amateur Challenge, the amateur event held alongside the pro finale, got one more opening. Ivy Hill South was set up for practice all day on October 15, with carts for rent and no tee time needed.
If you plan to play a future window, UDisc's course notes say it's cart friendly and stroller friendly, with water and restrooms. Dogs aren't allowed, and it's not recommended for people with limited mobility.
Why 2028 is the date to watch
In January 2026, Bedford County announced that the PDGA had picked Lynchburg and Bedford County to host both the 2028 PDGA World Championships and the 2028 PDGA Masters World Championships. Both events will use New London Tech and Ivy Hill. The release expects about 300 elite pros at Worlds and about 1,100 competitors at the Masters event. It also cites a city tourism estimate of $11.4 million in combined direct revenue for the region. For comparison, the 2024 Pro Worlds drew more than 12,500 unique spectators and filled more than 8,400 hotel room nights.
Having 1,100 Masters players is what makes a temporary course harder to keep temporary. Ledgestone's listing for The Amateur Challenge on Disc Golf Scene says Ivy Hill South "is currently temporary but will become a permanent and featured course of 2028 PDGA Masters World Championships." For now that's an organizer's plan for an event about two years away, so it isn't open today.
Where to throw this weekend
The amateurs who played alongside the pros in October also played public courses nearby. The Amateur Challenge listing calls the other courses in its rotation public and open for practice anytime outside event setup.
- New London Tech Disc Golf Course. This is Bedford County's Paul McBeth design, the main course for the 2026 and 2027 PDGA Champions Cup and a 2028 Worlds host. Ledgestone calls it one of the toughest courses on the pro circuit.
- Falling Creek. Ledgestone calls it a staple of the Lynchburg and Bedford circuit, "challenging but scorable," and it's also on the list for the 2028 Masters Worlds. It's a good pick if you want a well-kept course without New London's rugged terrain.
To get more out of Ivy Hill, sign up for the club's disc golf newsletter. Paid flex rounds have been the way in, and they come up when a pro event is in town.
If you love having the pro tour down the street from Ivy Hill and want to know what that means for your own home plans, I'm happy to talk it through without any pressure. Reach out to Jordan Smith. Let's Connect.
