The
biggest
tournament
of
the
season
has
arrived.
August
28,
2023
by
Justin
Westfall
in
Preview
with
comments
PDGA
Pro
Worlds.
Photo:
DGPT.
The
PDGA
Pro
World
Championships,
the
third
and
most
prestigious
major
of
the
season,
begins
this
Wednesday
at
the
Smugglers’
Notch
resort
in
Burlington,
Vermont.
Originally
designed
by
Disc
Golf
Pro
Tour
CEO
Jeff
Spring,
“Smuggs”
typically
plays
host
to
the
Green
Mountain
Championship
as
the
penultimate
or
final
event
of
the
DGPT
season
before
the
Tour
Championship.
This
is
the
first
year
that
Elite
Series
and
Major
events
cannot
share
the
same
venue,
so
the
GMC
will
return
to
the
tour
next
year.
Choosing
when
to
play
conservatively
is
a
necessary
skill
in
all
sports,
especially
golf.
Equally
as
important
this
week
will
be
knowing
when
to
play
aggressively
and,
with
five
rounds
of
play,
understanding
that
there
will
be
time
to
overcome
early
mistakes.
Major
championships,
and
none
more
so
than
Worlds,
are
where
legacies
are
built.
Pros
and
aspiring
amateurs
dream
of
someday
joining
the
exclusive
club,
while
past
winners
continue
their
daily
grinds,
in
hopes
to
capture
the
sport’s
most
prestigious
title:
World
Champion.
Last
year,
14
months
removed
from
James
Conrad’s
“Holy
Shot”
that
denied
him
a
victory,
Paul
McBeth
was
finally
able
to
capture
his
6th
career
world
title.
McBeth
entered
the
final
round
three
strokes
off
Aaron
Gossage’s
pace
and
played
some
head
games
by
switching
up
his
game
plan
on
several
holes
to
match
what
Gossage
had
been
doing
in
the
prior
rounds.
Going
into
hole
17,
McBeth
and
Gossage
were
deadlocked,
when
McBeth’s
tee
shot
failed
to
clear
the
low
ceiling
and
fell
into
the
fairway
well
back
of
ideal
position.
He
proceeded
to
throw
a
brilliant
500
foot
shot
over
OB
to
land
within
70
feet
of
the
basket
before
sinking
the
putt
to
go
up
a
stroke.
Gossage
tied
McBeth
with
a
birdie
on
hole
18,
but
he
threw
his
first
playoff
tee
shot
in
the
water,
allowing
Paul
to
lay
up
for
the
win.
Meanwhile
in
FPO,
Kristin
Tattar
was
playing
excellent
disc
golf
but
found
herself
tied
with
Henna
Blomroos
for
the
lead
after
three
rounds.
Tattar
then
shot
21-under
par
in
the
final
36
holes,
averaging
a
1030
rating,
to
win
her
first
World
Championship
by
a
comfortable
eight
strokes.
Past
Winners
| Year | Open |
Open Women |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 |
Paul McBeth |
Kristin Tattar |
| 2021 |
James Conrad |
Catrina Allen |
| 2020 | n/a | n/a |
| 2019 |
Paul McBeth |
Paige Pierce |
| 2018 |
Gregg Barsby |
Paige Bjerkaas (Shue) |
| 2017 |
Ricky Wysocki |
Paige Pierce |
| 2016 |
Ricky Wysocki |
Valarie Jenkins |
| 2015 |
Paul McBeth |
Paige Pierce |
| 2014 |
Paul McBeth |
Catrina Allen |
| 2013 |
Paul McBeth |
Paige Pierce |
| 2012 |
Paul McBeth |
Sarah Hokom |
| 2011 |
Nate Doss |
Paige Pierce |
| 2010 |
Eric McCabe |
Sarah Stanhope |
| 2009 |
Avery Jenkins |
Valarie Jenkins |
| 2008 |
Dave Feldberg |
Valarie Jenkins |
| 2007 |
Nate Doss |
Valarie Jenkins |
| 2006 |
Ken Climo |
Des Reading |
| 2005 |
Nate Doss |
Des Reading |
| 2004 |
Barry Schultz |
Birgitta Lagerholm |
Six
Things
We’ll
Be
Watching
1.
Reigning
and
6-time
World
Champion
Paul
McBeth
will
be
competing
in
his
first
event
since
dropping
from
the
European
Open
last
month
due
to
an
injury
in
his
throwing
shoulder.
McBeth
posted
on
his
Instagram
last
week
saying
that
he
is
not
at
100%
yet
but
will
be
ready
to
compete
come
Wednesday.
A
win
this
week
would
give
McBeth
his
18th
MPO
major
title,
tying
Ken
Climo
for
the
most
in
PDGA
history.
While
McBeth
will
likely
never
match
Climo’s
12
world
titles,
surpassing
him
in
total
major
wins
feels
like
just
a
matter
of
time.
Paul
has
only
won
the
Green
Mountain
Championship
once,
back
in
2019,
one
year
after
finishing
2nd
to
Gregg
Barsby
in
the
2018
World
Championship
on
these
same
courses.
Aside
from
2017
when
he
had
to
drop
out
of
GMC,
McBeth
has
never
finished
worse
than
5th
at
Smugglers’
Notch.
Remarkably,
McBeth
has
finished
1st
or
2nd
at
the
World
Championship
every
year
since
his
first
win
in
2012
and
has
an
average
event
rating
of
1057
over
that
span.
Still,
this
has
likely
been
the
quietest
season
of
McBeth’s
professional
career.
The
same
was
true
last
season,
but
even
with
a
new
backhand
form
implemented
the
week
of
the
event
and
coming
into
the
final
day
at
a
deficit,
he
still
pulled
it
off.
When
it
comes
to
Worlds,
McBeth
simply
plays
at
a
different
level.
2.
If
there
was
ever
a
time
for
Ricky
Wysocki
to
claim
his
3rd
career
world
title,
it’s
now.
Wysocki
has
won
the
GMC
five
times,
including
last
season,
and
has
podium
finishes
in
eight
of
his
nine
starts.
His
worst
finish
at
Smuggs
came
at
the
2018
World
Championship:
Ricky
finished
9th
in
his
three-peat
world
title
attempt.
Since
his
win
at
the
Preserve
in
June,
Ricky
has
not
missed
the
top
10
but
also
hasn’t
looked
like
the
best
version
of
himself.
He
has
also
failed
to
finish
inside
the
top
5
at
four
consecutive
major
championships.
Historically,
Wysocki
has
been
excellent
at
both
Brewster
Ridge
and
Fox
Run,
so
with
five
total
rounds,
he
should
absolutely
be
in
the
mix
come
Sunday.
3.
Reigning
World
Champion
Kristin
Tattar
returns
to
the
U.S.
this
week
for
the
first
time
in
nearly
two
months.
Tattar
is
coming
off
consecutive
wins
at
the
PCS
Open,
European
Open,
and
European
Championship.
Kristin
was
also
last
year’s
GMC
champion;
she
averaged
a
fantastic
1007
rating
and
won
by
seven
strokes.
Of
course,
the
big
story
of
her
European
Championship
win
was
a
career-high
1054
rated
second
round
that
helped
propel
her
to
a
16
stroke
lead,
which
was
nearly
squandered
in
the
final
round.
With
her
lowest
rated
round
(892)
since
2019
and
athletic
tape
on
her
arm,
many
speculated
that
Tattar
had
re-injured
the
elbow
that
was
surgically
repaired
in
the
offseason.
Her
comments
since
then
seem
to
indicate
the
issue
was
more
mental
and
execution
based,
nearly
succumbing
to
the
pressure
of
winning
the
last
event
on
her
“wish
list.”
With
the
final
tournament
on
that
list
now
checked
off,
the
Estonian
may
be
able
to
play
a
bit
more
freely
in
an
attempt
to
claim
her
2nd
straight
world
title.
4.
Coming
off
her
first
career
Elite
Series
win
at
DGLO,
Ohn
Scoggins
has
an
opportunity
to
claim
both
the
FP40
and
FPO
world
titles.
Surprisingly,
this
is
not
unprecedented.
In
1995,
Beth
Tanner
won
the
Masters
World
Championship
and
then
went
on
to
win
the
1996
FPO
World
Championship.
At
42
years
old,
Scoggins
is
playing
some
of
the
best
disc
golf
of
her
life
and
just
proved
that
she
is
capable
of
winning
on
longer
open
courses.
Coupled
with
the
fact
that
Brewster
Ridge
is
now
shorter
and
far
more
scorable
for
the
FPO
division,
Ohn
feels
like
a
lock
to
at
least
make
the
podium.
Don’t
count
out
2-time
World
Champion
Catrina
Allen
either,
despite
recording
the
three
worst
finishes
of
her
career
in
a
row.
Allen
has
won
twice
at
Smugglers’
Notch,
though
she
has
not
finished
on
the
podium
since
2020.
At
last
year’s
event,
she
finished
24th,
which
at
the
time
was
the
worst
finish
of
her
career.
With
an
extra
week
off
to
work
through
her
mechanical
issues,
Cat
will
be
eyeing
a
return
to
form
in
Burlington
this
week.
5.
Calvin
Heimburg
is
still
looking
to
earn
his
first
career
major
championship,
but
he’s
yet
to
have
a
great
performance
at
Smugglers’
Notch.
Vinny
has
played
GMC
four
times,
averaging
a
1043
event
rating
with
a
career
best
finish
of
6th
place
back
in
2020.
Traditionally
he’s
performed
a
bit
better
on
Fox
Run
than
Brewster
Ridge,
so
one
extra
round
on
the
open
track
could
play
in
his
favor.
Chris
Dickerson,
on
the
other
hand,
has
been
fantastic
at
Smuggs,
winning
the
2021
GMC
and
finishing
as
a
runner-up
in
2022.
Chris
was
tied
for
the
lead
on
the
final
hole
last
year
but
threw
his
tee
shot
out
of
bounds
and
ended
up
carding
a
triple-bogey.
After
a
slow
start
to
the
season,
Dickerson
has
been
quietly
rounding
into
form
and
just
took
home
a
podium
finish
at
DGLO.
The
2-time
major
champion
should
be
considered
one
of
the
favorites
to
claim
his
first
world
title
this
week.
6.
Plenty
of
previous
major
winners
aside
from
Dickerson
have
a
great
opportunity
to
become
first
time
World
Champions
this
week.
Hailey
King
won
the
2021
GMC,
logging
a
1052
rated
round
at
Fox
Run,
and
was
the
runner-up
in
2020
after
a
tremendous
battle
with
Paige
Pierce.
King
did
not
play
in
the
2022
GMC.
Missy
Gannon
may
only
be
a
major
winner
in
spirit
(the
TPWDGC
is
technically
an
A-tier),
but
her
back-to-back
wins
at
Ledgestone
should
give
her
some
confidence
to
perform
well
on
both
Brewster
and
Fox
Run.
Eagle
McMahon
has
played
well
as
of
late,
but
came
up
just
short
at
several
events.
His
best
career
finish
at
Smuggs
was
a
4th
place
finish
in
2020,
but
he
is
more
than
capable
of
shredding
both
courses.
Champions
Cup
winner
Isaac
Robinson
played
the
GMC
for
the
first
time
last
season
and
finished
tied
for
2nd
with
Dickerson
and
Matt
Orum.
With
two
majors
and
an
average
tour
finish
of
10.2
since
April,
Robinson
would
immediately
jump
into
the
Player
of
the
Year
conversation
with
a
win
in
Burlington.
Of
course,
reigning
U.S.
Champion
Gannon
Buhr
is
Calvin
Heimburg’s
primary
competition
for
that
title,
and
he
currently
has
more
wins.
Becoming
the
World
Champion
would
almost
certainly
give
the
nod
to
Buhr,
who
would
become
the
second
youngest
World
Champion
in
PDGA
history.
The
Courses
Smugglers’
Notch
is
home
to
two
premier
disc
golf
courses.
Brewster
Ridge
is
a
shorter
but
tightly
wooded
track
that
plays
in
the
foothills
of
the
Sterling
Mountain
Range.
Brewster
ranked
#4
on
UDisc’s
2023
list
of
the
best
disc
golf
courses
in
the
world.
The
other
course,
Fox
Run
Meadows,
currently
sits
at
#7
on
that
list.
Fox
Run
is
an
open
course
with
beautiful
mountain
views
and
plenty
of
OB
to
keep
players
out
of
the
wetlands
that
surround
the
course.
The
open
meadows
can
lead
to
increased
difficulty
progressing
up
the
fairways
when
heavier
winds
are
present.
While
both
courses
have
been
altered
from
the
2022
GMC,
the
most
significant
changes
are
to
Brewster’s
FPO
layout.
The
course
now
plays
nearly
200
feet
shorter
and
one
stroke
easier
to
par.
Holes
2,
4,
9
and
15
all
have
new
FPO
teepads
that
have
been
moved
up
to
make
the
greens
more
reachable
for
the
entire
field.
There
were
only
eight
birdies
carded
on
those
four
holes
combined
at
the
2022
GMC.
While
the
MPO
layout
has
seen
fewer
changes,
it
will
play
more
difficult
as
a
result
of
those
tweaks.
Hole
3’s
MPO
teepad
has
been
moved
back
40
feet
after
seeing
a
65%
birdie
rate
at
the
GMC
and
just
one
bogey.
It
played
as
the
easiest
hole
on
the
course.
Hole
8
had
both
teepads
moved
back
200
feet,
and
will
now
play
as
a
Par
5
as
opposed
to
a
Par
4.
Hole
14
now
has
separate
baskets
for
the
divisions.
The
FPO
basket
plays
25
feet
shorter
than
GMC,
and
the
MPO
basket
plays
55
feet
longer.
Hole
18’s
basket
has
been
moved
back
55
feet,
though
the
FPO
teepad
has
been
moved
up
to
negate
the
difference
in
length
for
that
division.
On
Fox
Run
Meadows,
hole
7’s
skinny
fairway
has
been
widened
in
certain
areas
to
create
bigger
landing
zones
as
players
progress
down
the
Par
5’s
fairway.
Hole
8
has
been
shortened
into
a
Par
3,
while
hole
12
now
has
tighter
OB
and
has
been
adjusted
from
a
Par
4
to
a
Par
5.
The
MPO
teepad
now
plays
300
feet
longer
and
requires
a
long
OB
carry
off
the
tee.
Hole
10
has
tightened
OB
along
the
left
side,
while
hole
13
has
a
new
mando
right
on
the
edge
of
circle
2.
Hole
17
has
been
moved
back
70
feet
for
both
divisions
to
increase
the
difficulty.
2023
MPO
Brewster:
8,350
Feet
Par
62
2022
MPO
Brewster:
7,997
Feet
Par
61
2023
MPO
Fox
Run:
9,515
Feet
Par
63
2022
MPO
Fox
Run:
9,426
Feet
Par
63
2023
FPO
Brewster:
7,485
Feet
Par
62
2022
FPO
Brewster:
7,661
Feet
Par
61
2023
FPO
Fox
Run:
8,360
Feet
Par
63
2022
FPO
Fox
Run:
8,453
Feet
Par
63
Extended
Forecast
While
rain
and
thunderstorms
seem
likely
for
the
opening
round,
the
conditions
for
the
remainder
of
the
week
should
be
close
to
ideal.
-
Wednesday:
Thunderstorms
likely
in
the
morning
with
scattered
thunderstorms
possible
in
the
afternoon.
Highs
in
the
mid
70s.
Winds
10
to
15
mph.
Chance
of
rain
80%. -
Thursday:
Sunny
with
highs
in
the
upper
60s.
Winds
5
to
10
mph. -
Friday:
Sunny
with
highs
in
the
mid
70s.
Winds
light
and
variable. -
Saturday:
Partly
cloudy
with
highs
in
the
upper
70s.
Winds
10
to
15
mph. -
Sunday:
Mostly
sunny
with
highs
in
the
lower
80s.
Winds
5
to
10
mph.
