In just three events as a professional, Saskatoon's Bailey Inglis has three podium finishes, including this victory at the Gold Eagle Open 2023, a Canadian Disc Golf Tour event.

Cochin, SK - Although Disc Golf has been variously reported to have been born in California, Chicago, and other (mostly American) places, the first recorded instance of a golf game played with flying discs occurred in Bladworth, Saskatchewan, Canada. Today, it’s a town of less than a hundred people in the wheat-soaked heart of the Canadian prairies, but 97 years ago it was home to a group of boys throwing tin lids at targets in a school yard and counting strokes. While you won’t find any monuments to this event, it is a well-known story among prairie locals and a point of minor pride for Canadians, who file this tenuous claim to the birth of the sport somewhere between basketball and Crokinole.

Three hours north, on the shores of Jackfish Lake, Saskatchewan, today’s decidedly more professional athletes test their mettle atop windy hillsides and on lighthouse-shaped targets perched at the water’s edge. Jackfish Lake is a popular tourist spot in north-west Saskatchewan, home to warm, clear waters ideal for swimming and boating. With ample camping, lodging, and room for courses, it makes for an ideal tournament location. The Gold Eagle Open 2023 Sponsored by Latitude 64 has been drawing hundreds of disc golfers to the lake’s natural beauty since 2019, quickly becoming the largest and richest (and first) A-tier event in the province and a calendar-marking event for all of Western Canada. The permanent Jackfish Lake Blue course is a professional-difficulty track that runs up and down hillsides and around birch and aspen forests, defying the flat-land stereotypes of the province. The temporary Beachside course is a smaller park-style course on the sandy shores of Jackfish Lake, providing a play style contrast for competitors and showcasing all of the area’s enviable geography, with holes running along the beach, using the freshwater lake as an OB line.

“It was such a great experience being part of the CDGT. The BDGC was thrilled to have our pride & joy venue, which is The Battlefords Provincial Park and its courses, showcased for so many from Ontario to BC and everywhere in between. The weather was spectacular, and the event ran perfectly smooth thanks to our huge team of volunteers & staff. We are looking forward to making the event bigger & better than ever in 2024.”  -Tournament Director Evan Zimmer.

The Gold Eagle Open also marks the end of the first year of the Canadian Disc Golf Tour. Casey Hanemayer and Bryan Freese, having clinched first and second place in MPO respectively at the previous event, were not in attendance despite both being previous winners here. Noah Higgins, fighting for the final podium spot on the overall Tour, showed up ready to play, though. Higgins led with a course record at Jackfish Lake in the first round, and grew his lead in the second. Kyle “Big Friendly” Wiens and Brandon Redekop (bringing some Saskatchewan pride to the leaderboard) and graduating Manitoba junior Austin Boge all pushed Higgins in the final round, but Higgins’ consistency proved to be too much, as he took his first PDGA A-Tier victory, reached the 1000-rating plateau for the first time, and claimed third place in the overall Canadian Tour with the victory.

Noah Higgins of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada hoists his first PDGA A-tier trophy at the Gold Eagle Open 2023.

There was even more on the line in the FPO Division. Teri Hong began the weekend in third place in the overall CDGT standings, and only a victory would provide enough points for the overall championship. A four-way logjam at the top for much of the tournament eventually gave way to a two-person playoff after 54 holes between Hong and Bailey Inglis, who was tied for the lead with Jeri-Ann Brownbridge after two rounds. After five thrilling playoff holes in front of the largest gallery of the weekend, Bailey Inglis took her first A-Tier victory in only her third event as a professional. The second place finish for Hong was enough to put her in second place for the overall tour, but five points shy of the CDGT championship, which went to Burlington, Ontario’s Colleen McInnes. 

At the end of the weekend, the atmosphere and community nature of the Gold Eagle open were the highlights, as a celebration of the end of disc golf season. Fireworks by the beach capped off a fun-filled player party, and the late summer sun creeping its way closer to the horizon earlier each night, reminded everyone that they’ll be waiting another eight months for summer to be back. In that spirit, tables and campsites were full of chatter, glow rounds and doubles rounds were raucous, and smiles ran deep. Full coverage of the Canadian Disc Golf Tour events will continue to roll out on Parked Pro’s YouTube channel through the fall and the tour will be back in 2024.

"This was our first time experiencing the Gold Eagle Open, and it definitely won’t be the last. You hate to call Jackfish Lake a hidden gem, because everyone seems to know about it, but it really is a world class disc golf vacation spot. The campsites were walking distance to just about everything, The Tournament Directors ran everything ultra-smoothly, the Saturday party and fireworks were spectacular. What a way to wrap up the tour." - Andre Lodder, CEO Parked Pro Media