For Immediate Release:
DGPT to Debut Elite Series Doubles Competition at the Preserve in 2026
November 20, 2025: The Disc Golf Pro Tour (DGPT) is excited to announce that the 2026 Preserve Championship will host the first-ever DGPT Elite Series tournament with a doubles format. The originally announced dates and location of the 2026 Preserve Championship remain the same, but the event will feature a new format and name: the 2026 DGPT Doubles Championship at the Preserve.
The decision to introduce a doubles format for the 2026 season was made in coordination with and support from the DGPT Player Council and Preserve Championship organizing team. Veteran players Simon Lizotte and Cale Leiviska, both of whom are closely tied to the Preserve and longtime advocates of the doubles competition format, were key voices in bringing this vision to life.
“I’ve been hoping and waiting for a top-level doubles event for a long time,” said Simon Lizotte. “I love doubles, and it’s been a big part of my disc golf experience. Coming up in Germany, there was always a doubles event the day before every tournament, and the format truly brings out the most fun and exciting disc golf I’ve ever seen. I can’t wait to be a part of the event next year, and to work with Cale and the DGPT team to get the Preserve ready to host some top-level doubles.”
The DGPT Doubles Championship at the Preserve will be a three-round tournament with separate divisions for FPO and MPO. The Tour worked hand in hand with the DGPT Player Council to identify a list of formats that best represent and showcase professional doubles competition. While many format options were discussed and considered, the Tour ultimately decided on two rounds of best shot followed by one round of alternate-shot. Sunday’s alternate-shot round will use a similar set of modified rules to those in effect at the 2025 World Games in Chengdu, China, earlier this year.
“In designing the first-ever DGPT Elite Series doubles event, we wanted to highlight formats that were both immediately recognizable and capable of showcasing elite doubles play,” said Jeff Spring, DGPT CEO and Tour Director. “Best Shot is a format that everyone knows and loves; It’s familiar, fan-friendly, and sets up some incredible scoring opportunities. For the final round, we will shift to an alternate-shot format where every shot matters, and mistakes can be costly. Players need to develop a plan before the round and make a strategic shift in how they approach the course on the decisive Championship Sunday.”
The Tour will work with Leiviska and Lizotte to implement changes to the Black Bear course at the Preserve to prepare the venue for doubles competition. Changes will focus primarily on increasing the course’s risk-reward opportunities and difficulty in preparation for best-shot doubles, while maintaining layout flexibility for Sunday’s alternate-shot final round.
DGPT Doubles Championship Format Breakdown
| Round | Format | Description |
| 1 & 2 | Best Shot | Both players throw off the tee and then pick their favorite lie out of the two drives. Both players then throw from that lie, and play continues as such until the hole is completed. |
| 3 | World Games Style* Modified Alternate Shot | Teams assign which partner will tee off on each hole prior to the round, with each player required to take exactly 9 tee shots. No one player may tee off on more than 2 holes in a row, and the 9/9 split must be met by the end of the round. After the tee shot, players alternate throws: the other partner takes the second shot, the partner who took the tee shot throws the third, and so on until the hole is completed. |
*At the 2025 World Games, players competed with a modified alternate shot format, but used match play scoring instead of stroke play scoring. The DGPT Doubles Championship will use stroke play scoring for all three competition days, including the final round of modified alternate shot.
Forming Doubles Teams
Registration for the Doubles Championship will open first to 2026 full Tour Card holders during Tour Card registration. Players will register individually for the event at first, and then declare their teams in early 2026. After Tour Card holder registration is complete, additional teams may enter via ratings-based registration, subject to available spots. The field size for the Doubles Championship will be similar to that of a standard singles Elite Series event. For questions about doubles registration, contact operations@dgpt.com.
Competition will be separate for the MPO and FPO divisions. Aside from that, players may form teams as they wish, and an initial list of teams will be announced early in 2026. The DGPT will evaluate player feedback and event results after the tournament to inform how professional doubles competition can continue to grow on Tour, and the format and team formation process may evolve over time.
Points
The Doubles Championship will award points to the 2026 World Standings, using an adjusted points distribution curve for doubles play. Instead of full singles points being awarded to both players, each member of the winning doubles team will receive half of the combined total awarded to first and second place in singles competition. The second-place team will receive half of the combined total normally awarded for 3rd and 4th place, and so on.
| Division & Place | 1st (Singles) | 2nd (Singles) | Total Available Points | Divide by Two = Doubles Points Awarded |
| MPO 1st Place | 150 | 125 | 275 | 137.5 |
| FPO 1st Place | 150 | 120 | 270 | 135 |
Win Benefits
Due to the nature of doubles play, the Tour will not automatically qualify Doubles Championship winners for the DGPT Championship, as is done with singles tournaments. However, the Tour will award access to the Tour Card program for the next season, but only to the winners of each division. This means that the winners of the 2026 Doubles Championship will automatically be awarded a 2027 Tour Card, but must earn their way into the DGPT Championship via other methods in order to compete at the season finale and earn the associated two-year Tour Card exemption.
Record Keeping
The DGPT Doubles Championship will be sanctioned as an Elite Series tournament. However, because the doubles format is separate and distinct from singles play, the Tour will collaborate with the PDGA Technology team and StatMando to track individual player career statistics on a format-by-format basis. This means that if a player has 10 Elite Series wins and then wins a DGPT Doubles Championship, the Tour will recognize that player as having 11 total Elite Series wins, with 10 in singles and 1 in doubles.
The 2026 Disc Golf Pro Tour season officially begins on Friday, February 27, at the Supreme Flight Open in Brooksville, FL. The 2026 DGPT Doubles Championship at the Preserve will take place from August 14-16 in Clearwater, MN.
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For media inquiries, please contact DGPT Communications Director Charles McCracken at charles@dgpt.com.
