For 10 months of the year, Paige Pierce travels from coast to coast with everything she owns packed into a 2017 Ford Transit van she endearingly calls Vanna Kendrick.

For Pierce, the No. 1-ranked female disc golf player in the world, the van is home, outfitted with a bed, couch, closet, and posters on the walls.

There's ample space for the dozens of discs she plays with and the branded line of discs that she sells to fans along the way. It's hard to miss her, considering her ride is wrapped in bright shades of pink and seafoam green with her name emblazoned on it.

The van is much more functional than the small SUVs she started out in. And it's perfectly suited for her demanding schedule on the road, where she has made a living driving about 40,000 miles annually from tournament to tournament, weekend after weekend.

Pierce, 28, has traversed hundreds of thousands of miles of pavement since she went pro in 2010, at age 18, leaving records to beat in her wake. Standing 5-5 with a toothy grin, she's an unassuming powerhouse with four world championships to prove it.

Plano native Paige Pierce travels the country playing disc golf in a 2017 Ford Transit van, that's also home for 10 months of the year while she's on the road. You can't miss her. (Emily Rose Bennett / Special Contributor)

Prodigy

Before she set the bar for women's disc golf, Paige Ashton Pierce was an enthusiastic young girl with a natural ability for sports. Born in Plano to father Wayne Pierce and mother Dori Hinkley, Paige first stepped on a disc golf course at 4. Growing up, that became the primary place she and Wayne spent father-daughter time, honing the intricacies of the sport.

Popularized in the 1970s, disc golf is an individual competition sport in which players throw discs, similar to Frisbees, toward a metal basket or "hole." Much like traditional golf, the object of the game is par or better, and the person with the lowest score wins. Players use various discs for driving, shooting mid-range and putting. Discs vary in weight and shape depending on their function.

Pierce was a quick learner. By 10, she could throw as far as the adult men.

"That's when I knew she'd be a world champion," Wayne said, admitting he raised Paige not to settle for anything less. "Second place is the first loser in my family. We compete to win."

Pierce inherited her father's competitive spirit and played sports such as soccer, basketball and track throughout middle school. Wayne soon began registering Paige for tournaments across the state, selling his own disc collection to afford entry fees, hotel stays and gas.

"Paige oozed talent and form at a very early age," says Des Reading, a world champion disc golfer and one of Pierce's mentors. "She was a rare junior player that had talent, did not burn out and continued to push herself as a player and as a person."

After graduating from Plano East in 2009, Pierce enrolled at Collin College to study criminal investigation. But when a professor assured students the class wouldn't be anything like CSI, she started to rethink her choice.

Pierce hosts her own YouTube show, Nice Line, which is filmed from the couch in her van. (Emily Rose Bennett / Special Contributor)

Then a couple of friends asked her to join them on a cross-country road trip to play disc golf tournaments. She couldn't resist.

"I went on summer tour in 2010," Pierce said, "and I never looked back really."

It didn't take long for player No. 29190 -- the number she's assigned by the sport's governing body -- to realize she wanted to play disc golf professionally -- or that she could.

Pierce placed second at the 2010 Beaver State Fling, the first national tournament on that summer run. That's when it hit her.

"I loved disc golf and I had been doing it my whole life, but I didn't know exactly on a nationwide tour amongst the best players where I would stand," Pierce said. "I was one simple mistake away from winning. I thought, this is obviously something I need to continue to pursue."

Perfecting the craft

Pierce has 122 career victories, including one from the Great Lakes Open (pictured) in Milford, Mich. (Emily Rose Bennett / Special Contributor)

Since tournaments take place on weekends, Monday is Pierce's designated driving day. Tuesday might be a day off, if she's confident in her knowledge of the next course on the schedule. By Wednesday, she is in practice mode, mapping a plan of attack for the upcoming competition. Rinse and repeat, week after week.

The more Pierce plays, the more she wins. With 122 career victories, Pierce has ranked as the best woman in the world four of the last five years. Pierce is known for her expert technique and distance driving, which can range farther than 500 feet. For context, the World Flying Disc Federation's records for longest throws are 1,109 feet by a man and 569 feet by a woman.

"She has what seems like superhuman distance," said Robert McCall, team director at Dynamic Discs, one of Pierce's sponsors.

Growing up on wide-open Texas courses allowed Pierce to harness the power necessary for driving, but she'd need more than that to win at wooded, technical courses outside the state. Reading remembers giving Pierce an understable disc, which offers a different flight pattern, to transform her big shots into powerful throws with finesse, a style known as the flip-up, which she now dominates. And once she turned pro, Pierce never stopped perfecting a variety of skills.

"She worked on her putt, her touch shots, forehands," said Reading. "She developed shots that women typically did not throw because she had the power to explore them."

Thanks to her hyper focus, Pierce also mastered the sport's mental game and subscribed to playing every shot like it was make or break. That trait led her to an astonishing 17-stroke victory at the recent European Open, one of a couple of foreign events she plays each year.

Because of her rank, Pierce is able to pursue disc golf full-time, bringing in money from tournament purses and through sponsorships with Dynamic Discs and Keen Footwear, among others. Still, she admits, it's not possible for many women to make a living at the sport.

As the Serena Williams of disc golf, Pierce typically earns $60,000 to $70,000 per year, including endorsements. In 2018, she won $29,395 in prize money, according to the Professional Disc Golf Association. By contrast, Paul McBeth, the top male disc golfer who also has 122 career victories, earned $57,880.

There's more competition among men -- 179 are registered for the PDGA's world championships this year, compared with 48 women, for example -- but financial opportunity is part of the reason, said Pierce.

"If you're not at the top, you're making quite a bit less, and so to justify making it a full-time job and not working in between is quite hard," she said. "We're trying to grow the sport for women and trying to make it more feasible financially to get more women on the road."

Awareness of the sport is increasing, she said, thanks in part to YouTube, where rounds are published with commentary from the players. Pierce also recently launched her own video series, Nice Line, in which she interviews fellow competitors from her van.

"You can't turn on your TV, hit the guide and go find disc golf," Pierce said. "The closest thing we have is our round coverage. To talk people through it and bring some insight into what's going on, I think that's growing the sport."

Going strong

Professional disc golfer Paige Pierce, center right, walks with a crowd of fans and fellow golfers during the third round of the Great Lakes Open at the lush and wooded Kensington Metro Park. (Emily Rose Bennett / Special Contributor)

Pierce plays more than 20 tournaments in a year, but the highlight is always the PDGA's world championship.

The most prestigious competition in the sport, worlds are a marathon of play, consisting of six rounds (18 holes each) over six days. After that, the top four play an additional nine holes to decide the podium.

Pierce landed her first title in 2011, back when she was 19 and her stats weren't so convincing. She went shot-for-shot against veteran Valarie Jenkins before nailing the course's last putt from 20 feet and being swarmed by elated friends and family.

"There were people all around me, as if we had just won the Super Bowl, in a big huddle," she remembered. "It was very, very, very overwhelming."

But when Pierce failed to make the top four the following year, people called her win a fluke. That only fueled her fire.

Paige Pierce is known as a distance driver, with some throws that can range 500-plus feet. (Emily Rose Bennett / Special Contributor)

Armed with sharp focus and unwavering confidence, Pierce returned to the top of the world championship podium in 2013. And again in 2015 and 2017. On Aug. 10, she tees off in Peoria, Ill., with her eyes on the prize.

"A lot of people are saying this is my year because it's another odd year, but I don't know if I really believe that," she said.

One thing is for sure: It won't be even close to her last round.

"I'm 28 and I feel like I could go until I'm 35 at this level of play," Pierce said. "I don't see myself stopping anytime soon."

"I loved disc golf and I had been doing it my whole life, but I didn't know exactly on a nationwide tour amongst the best players where I would stand. I was one simple mistake away from winning. I thought, this is obviously something I need to continue to pursue."

Pierce's favorite courses

Tell someone you play disc golf and they're likely to ask what that is. Though the sport is shy of mainstream, it's popularity has grown wildly since sanctioned tournaments began in the 1970s.

Disc golf is an individual competition sport in which players throw discs, similar to Frisbees, towards a metal basket or "hole." Much like traditional golf, the object of the game to make par or better, and the person with the lowest score wins. Over the course of nine to 18 holes or more, players shoot from the tee, down the fairway using specific discs for driving, shooting mid-range and putting. Discs vary in weight and shape depending on their function.

There are more than 6,400 courses in the United States, according to the Professional Disc Golf Association, including 435 in Texas. Dallas-Fort Worth is home to at least 60 courses, most of which are free to play.

These are Pierce's top three regional and global courses:

Top 3 regional courses

Towne Lake (McKinney)

Growing up, Pierce's home course was Alex Clark Memorial in McKinney. In 2009, the city opened Towne Lake, a more challenging course, just a mile away and it quickly became a favorite. Towne Lake is what the industry calls a championship-level courses, meaning it meets the standards for hosting sanctioned tournaments.

"It's a really well designed course," says Pierce. "Lots of trees, lots of elevation. Short and long, and lots of water hazards.... you have to have every shot in your bag."

Located at 1405 Wilson Creek Pkwy., McKinney. Free.

Selah Ranch (Talco)

Located on the site of an East Texas bed and breakfast, Selah Ranch is one of the rare courses that charges admission. But its two courses, Lakeside and Creekside, which were designed by Disc Golf Hall of Famer John Houck, are well worth the cost. Expect plenty of water hazards, wooded holes and technical shots. Plus, players can rent a golf cart for an extra $40.

"If I only play one course I pretty much only play the Lakeside, which has a lot of water hazards," Pierce says. "You go over them at times. There are island holes that with little foot bridges you have to cross over... it's really exciting."

Located at 450 County Road Northwest 1051, Talco. $20 per person, $15 for those who stay overnight.

Lindsey Park (Tyler)

Variety is the spice of life at Lindsey Park with three courses to choose from based on skill level. The courses wind throughout the massive park and sometimes even share tees. The baskets are marked by colors -- red, blue and gold-- to keep you on course. Cedar (red) includes features for all skill levels, while Hickory (blue) is more advanced. Dogwood (gold) is "extremely difficult," according to the sign at tee one.

"I just enjoy that there's three different levels of course in one park," Pierce says. "You don't even have to move your car."

12557 TX-364 Spur, Tyler. Free.

Top 3 courses globally

Maple Hill (Leicester, Ma.)

Located on the Maple Hill Christmas tree farm, this course offers a stunning and challenging journey through the Northeastern woods. Every year, Maple Hill welcomes professionals for its own tournament, which never lacks excitement.

"That's my favorite course that I've ever played," says Pierce. "Every time we play, it's a little bit different."

132 Marshall St., Leicester, Ma. $10 per person or $20 for a weekend pass.

Idlewild (Burlington, Ky.)

It's not difficult to get in the weeds at this course, literally. Idlewild is tightly wooded, so if you mess up a shot, "you're really scrambling," says Pierce. "The entire 18 holes you're on your toes and having to throw really technical shots."

5550 Idlewild Rd., Burlington, Ky. Free.

Järva DiscgolfPark (Stockholm, Sweden)

Pierce lauds this Scandanavian course for its beautiful scenery and its amenities, such as a clubhouse and driving range. It's 27 holes with three different loops you can play. Throw all or one and then kick back with food and drinks at the onsite cafe. One caveat: Järva DiscgolfPark is a get it while you can deal. Construction to turn it into a cemetery is expected to begin Oct. 1.