Cleared for Takeoff in Clearwater
Cleared for Takeoff in Clearwater
Get ready for the DGPT - Preserve Championship
With the third weekend of Elite Series events in a row, the Disc Golf Pro Tour keeps the action going with the 2023 Preserve Championship Powered by Prodigy.
Founded and designed by touring professional Cale Leiviska, the Airborn Disc Golf Preserve in Clearwater, Minnesota is the #1 rated course in the state according to UDisc. The Preserve Championship made its debut in 2020 and is now in its fourth year as an Elite Series event.
The Preserve features multiple courses but the MPO and FPO fields will play three rounds at the Black Bear course, which was designed by Leiviska specifically with the pros in mind. The Black Bear course is a 9,648-foot par 67 for the FPO and an 11,041-foot par 67 for the MPO. The course features a mix of long open fairways, tight wooded holes, and plenty of water hazards. For example, Hole 10 is a par 5 measuring 1,000 feet for the FPO and 1,158 feet for the MPO that pushes players to get as far as possible off the tee. Even with a wide-open fairway, Calvin Heimburg was the only player in either field to take an eagle on the hole, doing so in both round 2 and round 3.
Shorter holes force players to focus on more technical shots, trading out OB lines for walls of trees that punish errant drives. Hole 17 is sure to test the nerves of players coming down the stretch on the final day as they attempt a 243ft laser-straight shot through a tunnel of trees to an elevated basket. Multiple holes have water carries immediately off the tee, forcing players to go for the basket instead of laying up.
The contrast throughout the course comes naturally as Leiviska, who has a background in wildlife preservation, aims to embrace and utilize the natural surroundings while minimizing the environmental impact.
Paige Pierce went wire-to-wire in the 2022 Preserve Championship, taking the lead on day one with a 10-under hot round and shooting seven-under on day two to extend her lead to three strokes over the field. Even with difficult conditions on the final day and Catrina Allen charging up the leaderboard with a 6-under final round, Pierce finished five strokes ahead of second place and won her second Preserve title after winning the inaugural tournament in 2020.
Bradley Williams shot back-to-back 12-under rounds to give himself a three-stroke lead going into the final round of the 2022 Preserve Championship. His previous best finish at an Elite Series event in the 2022 season was 16th place at the Waco Annual Charity Open and one more solid round would get him his best finish of the season. Despite taking an early bogey on Hole 4, Williams scored 9 total birdies on the day, including a 250-foot blind throw-in on Hole 5. His smooth and consistent style held together coming down the stretch even with the 2021 champ Ricky Wysocki making a push from the chase card.
Wysocki finished the final round at 30 strokes under par while Williams took birdies on 17 and 18 to finish the tournament at 32-under. Williams’ win at the 2022 Preserve Championship came exactly six years to the day since his last win on tour, the 2016 Vibram Open.
There will be a new champion in MPO this weekend as Williams is competing in Europe competing at the PDGA EuroTour — Swedish Open.
With hot weather and partly cloudy skies, it’s shaping up to be another exciting weekend for the DGPT at the 2023 Preserve Championship.
Here's everything you need to know to catch the action this weekend:
Tee Times & Round ratings
PDGA | Event Page
- Official scores, tee times, PDGA Live scoring and round ratings can be found on the official event page on PDGA.com.
Live Coverage
Disc Golf Network
The Disc Golf Network (DGN) is the home of live disc golf. Built by the Disc Golf Pro Tour, the DGN is a subscription streaming and on-demand platform. Covering the world’s best players competing in the sport’s most elite tournaments, a subscription includes post-produced coverage of select disc golf tournaments as well as exclusive disc golf shows, touring pro interview series, podcasts, and other segments only available on the Disc Golf Network.
Friday's FPO Feature Card (Coverage begins at 10:20 a.m. ET with Tournament Central. Feature card tees at 11:25 a.m. ET)
- Paige Pierce
- Caroline Henderson
- Ella Hansen
- Kristin Tattar
Friday's FPO2 Live Card
- Missy Gannon
- Catrina Allen
- Paige Shue
- Stacie Rawnsley
Friday's FPO3 Live Card
- Holyn Handley
- Sarah Hokom
- Jennifer Allen
- Macie Velediaz
Friday's MPO Feature Card (Coverage begins at 4 p.m. ET with Tournament Central. Feature card tees at 4:55 p.m. ET)
- Ricky Wysocki
- Gannon Buhr
- Isaac Robinson
- Calvin Heimburg
Friday's MPO2 Live Card
- Kyle Klein
- Alden Harris
- Simon Lizotte
- Cale Leiviska
Friday's MPO3 Live Card
- Luke Humphries
- Danny Polk
- Kevin Jones
- Ezra Robinson
DGPT YouTube | Subscribe
In addition to the DGN, the live broadcast for both divisions will be simulcast free on the DGPT YouTube channel for the first round only on Friday, June 30.
DGN Press Conference | Watch
Hear from some of the players before the action gets going during a press conference from 1-2:20 p.m. CT on Thursday, live on the DGPT's YouTube channel. Here is the tentative schedule for the press conference (all times CT):
- 1:00 p.m.: Cale Leiviska
- 1:10 p.m.: Calvin Heimburg
- 1:20 p.m.: Kristin Tattar
- 1:30 p.m.: Gannon Buhr
- 1:40 p.m.: Paige Pierce
- 1:50 p.m.: Ricky Wysocki
- 2:00 p.m.: Missy Gannon
- 2:10 p.m.: Caroline Henderson
- 2:20 p.m.: Stacie Rawnsley
- 2:30 p.m.: Eagle McMahon
- 2:40 p.m.: Phill Dilone
Post Production Coverage
JomezPro | Subscribe 
Open Lead Card / Round 1 MPO Feature Card
- Ricky Wysocki
- Gannon Buhr
- Isaac Robinson
- Calvin Heimburg
JomezPro | Subscribe
FPO Lead Card / Round 1 FPO Feature Card
- Paige Pierce
- Caroline Henderson
- Ella Hansen
- Kristin Tattar
Gatekeeper Media | Subscribe 
Open Chase Card / Round 1 MPO Feature Card
- Kyle Klein
- Alden Harris
- Simon Lizotte
- Cale Leiviska
Ace Run Pro | Subscribe 
FPO Chase Card / Round 1 FPO Feature Card
- Missy Gannon
- Catrina Allen
- Paige Shue
- Stacie Rawnsley
Recap Articles
PDGA.com
Check back to PDGA.com daily for a recap of all of the action from the 2023 Elite Series.