After drawing a few hundred of the world’s top disc golfers in hosting a world tournament last summer that attracted thousands to Bedford County and the city of Lynchburg, both localities are seeking to co-host more events next year and in 2028.
Bedford County’s tourism department is partnering with Lynchburg’s Office of Economic Development and Tourism in attempting to co-host the 2026 Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) Champions Cup in April 2026 and the Pro-Am Tour stop in October 2026. Both localities would split a $70,000 cash naming rights/partnership, according to a report from Nicole Johnson, the county’s tourism director to the county’s board of supervisors.
The two localities also are working to seize an opportunity to submit a bid to host the 2028 PDGA Pro World Championships, a $60,000 cash naming rights/partnership ask between the two with a bid package going forward this year.
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“These events represent significant opportunity for Bedford County to drive economic impact and elevate our presence on a national and international stage,” Johnson said.
The board voted unanimously on March 24 to support the county moving forward with the partnership. In August 2024, two courses in Bedford County drew a world class field of about 300 disc golf players on two courses in the county — the Ivy Hill Golf Club and the New London Tech Disc Golf Course within an industrial park in Forest on U.S. 460.
The 2024 event marked the first time the Lynchburg area hosted a Professional Disc Golf Association tour event, let alone a world championship.
“The response was very favorable from players and spectators who attended the 2024 Worlds, so they want to return to Virginia,” Johnson’s staff report to the board states.
Next year, the two localities seek to put on two major PDGA events. Johnson said PGDA hosts four major events per year so the county being the destination for two of them is a rare opportunity.
Johnson said the April 2026 event would include about 150 professional players and about 3,500 spectators. The Pro-Am Tour in October 2026 would include just more than 70 pro players, 400 amateur players and about 3,000 spectators, she said.
“Both are multi-night events over the course of four days. So that will drive overnight visitation,” Johnson said.
Organizers would anticipate about 13,000 spectators for the 2028 world championship event mostly coming from outside of Virginia, Johnson said.
“They will stay in an average of five nights, further increasing economic impact for our area,” Johnson said.
The combined events could use multiple disc golf courses in Bedford County and Lynchburg with the Ivy Hill and New London courses being the main ones, according to Johnson. Her report states there is a chance to possibly host major PDGA events in 2027, but next year and 2028 are the current focus.
The three events in 2026 and 2028 combined would generate an estimated $11.7 million in estimated business sales and $502,411 in projected local tax revenue, according to Johnson’s report.
