It’s a Major for MPO and a very important A-Tier for FPO.

October 5, 2022 by Justin Westfall in Preview with comments

Since the beginning of the pro tour season in February, players have been battling for position in the standings to earn a spot in next week’s tour championship. What often goes overlooked is that all of those months of hard work culminate this week as well. Many Elite Series events, and of course the Majors, offer players a chance to qualify for the United States Disc Golf Championship and Throw Pink Women’s Disc Golf Championship.

At last year’s event, both Paul McBeth and Missy Gannon entered the final day with a one stroke lead. Gannon was able to hold off Valerie Mandujano and Hailey King to take home a two stroke win in the inaugural TPWDGC. Though not considered a major, it’s difficult to not give this event a similar level of prestige given the circumstances. That sentiment was evident as Missy would go on to win the Elaine King Player of the Year award, in large part due to consecutive wins at TPWDGC and the DGPT Championship.

McBeth, on the other hand, saw little resistance from his fellow lead card competitors. Ricky Wysocki, Joel Freeman, and Kyle Klein were all making moves from the chase card, but McBeth was somewhat unsure of just how much they were moving. When Paul reached hole 17, Kyle Klein was finished with his round and sitting in the lead. But as the UDisc scorer was making corrections to his scorecard, nobody was quite sure exactly what Klein’s score was. This uncertainty forced McBeth to run a 60 foot putt on hole 17, which he converted in dramatic fashion. And then on hole 18, unwilling to trust that he was tied for the lead, Paul ran a very dangerous putt for the win, which luckily did not roll away after missing. McBeth would go on to win after a one hole playoff, sinking a circle’s edge putt from nearly the exact same spot he had missed from seven years prior in a playoff against Will Schusterick.

Past USDGC Winners and Runners Up