guides · Updated 2026-10-04

Tournament Caddie Book Basics

A caddie book (sometimes spelled caddy book) is the event’s printed or PDF course-rules package: hole maps, OB and mando notes, drop zones, and anything else the Tournament Director (TD) needs you to know so you play the layout as designed for that event. This page teaches literacy—how official materials and personal notes differ—without inventing hole-by-hole secrets, distances, or course ratings for any named park.

Companion reads: Out of Bounds and Mandos · Reading a Disc Golf Course Map · How to Mark Your Lie · League Night: What to Expect.

What a caddie book / course rules sheet is for

At PDGA-sanctioned events, the Competition Manual puts the burden on the event to give players enough course information to play correctly:

It is the event’s responsibility to provide, at minimum, a specific course rules sheet to every player so they can play the course correctly and as intended. A Tournament Director who adds course rules to the PDGA Digital Scorecard has met this requirement. (Competition Manual 5.03.H)

Majors and Elite Series events often publish downloadable caddie books / course rules PDFs on the event page (for example, PDGA’s own Champions Cup and Worlds caddie-book hubs). Local C- and B-Tiers may hand you a one-page rules sheet, post notes in Live Scoring, or cover everything at the players’ meeting. The format changes; the job does not: official notes define the layout for that round.

PDGA’s Rules Q&A also treat the players’ meeting or caddie book as the normal place course specifics live—alongside tee signage—when a TD is explaining order of holes, OB, and related features (QA-APP-7).

You are still responsible for knowing those rules. Competition Manual 1.05.D says it is the sole responsibility of the player to know the course rules, be at the starting hole, and be ready on time. Missing the players’ meeting does not excuse you: PDGA’s TD guide notes that players who do not attend remain responsible for the information given there (How to Run a PDGA Event).

Official source vs personal notes

Do not invent “secret lines.” Personal notes record what you saw and measured from official markings and published PDFs. They do not create new OB, erase a mando the book lists, or invent island rules the TD never published.

When permanent park signs and the tournament caddie book disagree, play the tournament rules for that round. Casual park OB and event OB are often different layouts.

What belongs in the official book (and what you copy from it)

Per Competition Manual 5.03.B, tournament format for official practice and competition means the course has:

1. All out-of-bounds (806.02), hazard areas (806.05), mandatories (804.01), and drop zones properly marked; and
2. Event tee signs in place; and
3. In-play branding assets in place (event logistics, not your scorecard).

A useful official sheet typically covers (confirm on your event’s materials—do not assume every local event lists every item):

• Which tees and baskets are in play for each division/round
• OB lines and how they are marked (fence, paint, water edge, road)
• Mandos and designated drop zones
• Hazards, casual areas, required relief, and any two-meter call (default is off unless the TD puts it in play—see QA-2M-1)
• Non-standard options that need a waiver context (island greens, limited OB options)—the TD handles waivers; you only need the published hole note (5.03.F)

Copy those facts into your personal notes verbatim enough that you cannot misremember a penalty option. Literacy for the rules themselves: Out of Bounds and Mandos.

What you typically record yourself (from official sources)

During a practice round or walkthrough on the tournament layout, many players jot personal reminders. Keep the source honest:

Tools that help navigation (UDisc offline maps, park PDFs, rangefinders) are fine for finding the next tee and estimating distance. They do not override the event rules sheet. Map priority literacy: Reading a Disc Golf Course Map.

PDGA design guidance for everyday tee signs (hole number, length, direction, par, special rules) is useful background for reading pads in general (Course Design Elements)—but tournament tee signs and the caddie book win for that event.

Practice rounds and “playing the course as designed”

• Schedule practice yourself. Players are responsible for scheduling practice rounds; availability of the tournament set-up varies by tier (1.05.A; practice-day requirements in 5.03.A–D).
• Official practice days (when required) mean the course is in first-round tournament format—OB, hazards, mandos, drop zones marked, event tee signs up—for a minimum of six daylight hours, with practice hours announced beforehand.
• During competitive rounds, the course is closed to practice unless the TD says otherwise (1.05).
• Use practice to confirm what the book says on the ground: walk OB lines, find mando planes and drop zones, read every event tee sign. That is course literacy, not inventing hole notes for a famous layout.

We will not publish sample hole-by-hole notes for any named tournament course. If you need that detail, download the event’s own caddie book from its PDGA event page (when published) or ask the TD.

Optional blank personal template (literacy, not coaching)

Use a blank page per hole. Fill only what you verified. Leave blanks as TBD until the book or the ground answers them.

1. Tee — Which pad? Length on the event sign? Special note on the rules sheet?
2. Landing zone — Where in-bounds looks playable relative to published OB/mando?
3. Approach — Basket position for this round; any hazard or mando still in play?
4. Putt / finish — Drop-zone or OB options if you miss long/short (from the sheet, not from memory of last year’s casual round)
5. Source check — “Copied from caddie book PDF dated ___ / players’ meeting / Live Scoring”

That template organizes attention. It is not a promise of birdies, and it is not a substitute for the Official Rules when a ruling is needed.

Discrepancies: what to do

1. Caddie book vs permanent park sign → Follow the event materials for that round.
2. PDF vs Live Scoring hole notes → Ask the TD or an official before the round; play a provisional if a ruling is unclear mid-round (QA on provisionals).
3. On-course paint vs missing book line → Do not invent. Confirm with the TD. The event rules sheet / Digital Scorecard notes are what 5.03.H requires the event to provide.
4. You missed the players’ meeting → Get the sheet, read Live Scoring notes, ask a cardmate and verify against the published document—you remain responsible (How to Run a PDGA Event; 1.05.D).

Honesty gaps (read these)

• We do not invent distances, OB maps, or “local knowledge” for any specific famous course.
• App community tips are not official event rules.
• Ace pools, payouts, and gambling framing are out of scope here.
• If an event has not published a caddie book yet, treat hole specifics as TBD and use the players’ meeting + on-site markings.

Next reads

Out of Bounds and Mandos · Reading a Disc Golf Course Map · How to Mark Your Lie · League Night: What to Expect · Warming Up Before a Round · How PDGA Ratings Work · PDGA Membership Worth It?

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