The 2023 Discraft Great Lakes Open (DGLO) disc golf tournament in Michigan was from Thursday, August 17 to Sunday, August 20. The tournament was the first of two Disc Golf Pro Tour Playoff Events in 2023.
All three rounds were played at the legendary Kensington Toboggan Disc Golf Course.
Click or tap a section below to find out more about the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament:
- How and when to watch the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament live
- How to watch the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament for free
- Scores and stats for the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament
- Win probabilities for the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament
- Who won the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament?
- All past Great Lakes Open disc golf tournament winners
- History of the Great Lakes Open disc golf tournament
How to Watch the 2023 Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament: Live
You can watch archived live coverage of the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament on the Disc Golf Network (DGN).
The first round was streamed on the DGPT's YouTube channel at no cost, but you'll need a paid DGN subscription to watch the live coverage of the other two rounds.
How to Watch the 2023 Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament for Free
You can watch the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament for free via JomezPro (FPO and MPO lead cards), Gatekeeper Media (MPO chase cards), and Ace Run Pro (FPO chase cards). All offer condensed, post-produced rounds on their YouTube channels.
Scores & Stats for the 2023 Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament
You can tee shot-by-shot scores and in-depth stats for every round of the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament on UDisc Live for MPO and FPO.
2023 Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament Win Probabilities
Prior to the start of the 2023 DGLO disc golf tournament, these are the players UDisc Live's pro disc golf Win Probability model gave at least a 2% chance to win in MPO and FPO:
Win Probability Before Event | Player: MPO | Win Probability Before Event | Player: FPO | |
15% | Eagle McMahon | 24% | Ohn Scoggins | |
15% | Calvin Heimburg | 18% | Missy Gannon | |
12% | Ricky Wysocki | 15% | Catrina Allen | |
9% | Gannon Buhr | 7% | Valerie Mandujano | |
8% | Chris Dickerson | 6% | Holyn Handley | |
7% | Matt Orum | 5% | Hailey King | |
6% | Kyle Klein | 4% | Ella Hansen | |
4% | Isaac Robinson | 4% | Kat Mertsch | |
4% | Simon Lizotte | 4% | Sarah Hokom | |
3% | Joel Freeman | 3% | Macie Velediaz | |
2% | Anthony Barela | 3% | Jennifer Allen | |
2% | Natalie Ryan |
On mobile, swipe left/right to see all columns.
These percentages were created prior to the start of the event and changed dramatically as it played out. To see how, check out Win Probability on UDisc Live.
Note that Win Probability doesn't always match up with Disc Golf World Ranking because Win Probability takes into account how players have historically performed on holes of specific distances and difficulties and compares that information just to holes they'll face at a single event. That means the probabilities above related to how players' historical performances suggested they'd do just at the 2023 DGLO whereas World Ranking is a broader assessment of past performance.
Who Won the 2023 Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament?
Simon Lizotte (MPO, 30-under par) and Ohn Scoggins (FPO, 25-under par) won the 2023 DGLO.
Previous Winners of the Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament*
- 2023: Simon Lizotte (MPO), Ohn Scoggins (FPO)
- 2022: Calvin Heimburg (MPO), Natalie Ryan (FPO)
- 2021: Eagle McMahon (MPO), Kristin Tattar (FPO)
- 2020: Eagle McMahon (MPO), Paige Pierce (FPO)
- 2019: Paul McBeth (MPO), Paige Pierce (FPO)
- 2018: Paul McBeth (MPO), Sarah Hokom (FPO)
*All winners at the Great Lakes Open as a DGPT event
Great Lakes Open Disc Golf Tournament History
Everything began on August 29, 1982, in remembrance of a deceased hamster.
Yes, you read that correctly.
The Great Lakes Open – which has existed for 40 years and has become a staple on the national disc golf stage – was initially run in honor of a hamster nicknamed "Weenie" who died from cancer.
The 1st Annual Weenie Memorial was hosted at Starr Park in Royal Oak, Michigan. One year later, a fledgling disc manufacturer named Discraft stepped in to sponsor the event, changed the name, and inspired players from across the Midwest to attend.
In 1986 the tournament moved 15 minutes north to Firefighters Park in Troy, Michigan. FPO star Elaine King began attending the event once it reached Firefighters Park and notched four of her nine career Great Lakes Open victories there.
In 1992, the Great Lakes Open reached A-tier status for the first time as its popularity continued to rise. To meet the growing demand and to challenge the top professionals who regularly attended, the event moved to Hudson Mills in Dexter, Michigan, in 1995 under the leadership of Mark Ellis.
Only eight years later in 2003, the tournament would make another leap as it was welcomed onto the new PDGA National Tour. Barry Schultz took home that year's title (the same year he'd win the first of his two disc golf world championships). After five years as an NT, the Great Lakes Open spent the same number of years as a regular A-tier again.
After nearly two decades at Hudson Mills, the professional side of the tournament moved 30 minutes northeast to its current home at Kensington Metropark: The Toboggan. The United States Amateur Disc Golf Championship had been run on The Toboggan since 2002, but it wasn't until 2013 when John Minicuci took command of the tournament that the Great Lakes Open also became synonymous with the course.
Minicuci brought the event back to NT status in 2013 and then onto the DGPT in 2018. The tournament entered the Pro Tour with a bang as Paul McBeth wowed the disc golf world – and many others – by shooting a perfect 18-under par during the second round en route to his 2018 victory.
For 2021, Discraft hired Nate Heinold to be the tournament director. Heinold's success at the Ledgestone Insurance Open made Discraft confident that he could bring the Great Lakes Open even higher prestige amongst players and fans alike.
Heinold's first move was to implement new concrete tee pads on the course to replace the uneven rubber ones. The course is only open from just before the USADGC in June to the Great Lakes Open in July, so getting permanent tees in the ground was a tough sell, said both Heinold and Minicuci.
Ultimately, Heinold's pitch was successful. In early spring of 2021, with the cold rain keeping visitors away from any visible progress being made, Minicuci oversaw the pouring of the new pads as Heinold's vision came to fruition and the Great Lakes Open took a big step forward for the 41st edition of the event.
Since then Heinold has made alterations to the course in hopes of increasing emphasis on placement and technical ability to go along with what the course calls for in sheer distance.