Simon goes back-to-back; Valerie dominates.

June 7, 2022 by Justin Westfall in Analysis with comments

The 2022 Portland Open was a terrific event showcasing scenic views, two spectacular courses, and very impressive golf across both divisions. Players also had to navigate a steady dose of rain all weekend, which in typical Northwestern fashion varied in intensity and came and went at a moment’s notice. Valerie Mandujano took home a wire-to-wire win, shooting hot rounds to open and close the tournament. Simon Lizotte took the lead from Isaac Robinson on the back 9 in the second round, and while Garrett Gurthie claimed a share of the lead multiple times on Sunday, Lizotte never relented and won outright on the final hole of competition.

Simon Lizotte

Prior to Sunday, Paul McBeth, Ricky Wysocki, and Eagle McMahon were the only MPO players with back-to-back wins on the Disc Golf Pro Tour since its inception in 2016. With wins at the OTB Open and now the Portland Open, Lizotte joins a short list of elite disc golfers and is the only MPO player besides Ricky Wysocki to earn multiple wins this season. Simon led the field in holes parked, was 3rd in strokes gained tee to green, and only carded four bogeys during the entire tournament. A major part of Lizotte’s success was limiting his OB strokes to just six total on the weekend; three of his four bogeys were the result of an OB stroke. The German has clearly returned to the elite echelon of the sport and should be considered a contender to win every event.

Garrett Gurthie

Double-G played excellent complimentary golf, shredding the fairways and hitting putts at a rate well above his average. Gurthie made 89% of C1X putts, 11% higher than his…