The Ledgestone Open is a showcase event. Not just for Central Illinois, and not just for Discraft, but for the entire world.
A showcase event deserves a showcase course.
The MPO field has theirs at Lake Eureka and the FPO division has theirs at Sunset Hills. The Ledgestone Open is one of the only events on tour with a standalone course designed specifically to highlight the skills of the professional women.
In 2017, Sunset Hills became the first exclusive FPO course on the pro tour. Since then, it has been featured annually at the Ledgestone Open as well as during the PDGA Professional Disc Golf World Championships in 2019.
This is an aspect of the event that tournament director Nate Heinold sees as a massive upside and yet another thing that sets Ledgestone apart.
“The benefit is that it was designed for FPO,” Heinold said. “There are no throwaway holes where the basket is just 100 feet shorter than the MPO basket. It’s for the women and that’s why it’s so key.”
Difficulty and scoring separation both hold back a lot of FPO courses on tour currently.
“Many holes are too hard and don’t provide scoring separation,” the Ledgestone TD said. “Some of the holes are just out of reach for most FPO players. That’s what takes away from the product because holes are not strategically designed for FPO players.”
This is an issue that has been eliminated at Sunset Hills. Excitement abounds with hot shooting and scoring swings.
Every hole can be birdied, but there are also plenty of out-of-bounds lines and numerous hazard areas to make the players think through each shot. The use of shorter par 4s and a par 5 is one of the reasons Heinold believes Sunset Hills brings the fans back in bigger numbers every year.
“There are some par 3s that are challenging, but all of the par 4s and 5s are scorable,” he said. “The average disc golfer can watch and say it looks fun. Some rounds at some tournaments beat you down and it’s a grind to watch, but at Sunset Hills it’s exciting, it goes quickly and it’s fun to watch.”
It's enjoyable to watch, but it’s also enjoyable to play. Exclusivity, special-attention and a good time on the course are what bring the bulk of the FPO touring field back year in and year out.
“It’s one of the most fun courses you’ll play,” Heinold said. “The FPO players score well there. At Sunset it’s a lot of birdies and it’s exciting. It’s just a lot of fun to play that course.”
The disc golf course at Sunset Hills sits on the grounds of the Sunset Hills Golf Course, a public course with a clubhouse and on-site restaurant in Pekin, Illinois. The disc golf layout was designed by Seth Friedrich who built it with the ladies in mind.
The FPO field will play four rounds at Sunset Hills during the 2024 Ledgestone event. Freidrich and his team have made a few adjustments to the layout in preparation.
Hole 7’s tee pad has been pushed back 89 feet into a grove of trees to create a tunnel-shaped tee shot and a longer par 4. In addition, Hole 10’s pin has been pushed back 32 feet to create a more difficult landing zone after a large guardian tree fell. Finally, Hole 12 will see a small change of 17 feet as the tee pad has been moved back on the hillside between the cart path and cart barn.
Beyond that, holes 10, 14, 16 and 17 have tightened the OB lines to increase difficulty and create even more scoring separation.
The FPO field will begin play at Sunset Hills on Thursday, August 1.
