Garrett Gurthie is the poster child for the “drive for show, putt for dough” motto. The man is living proof that, regardless of skill level, even if you can launch a disc “over them mountains,” it doesn’t amount to much if you can’t get the job done within 33 feet of the chains …
The good news is that, outside of two or three guys on the Pro Tour, NOBODY can throw farther than DoubleG. The bad news is that Calvin Heimburg, Simon Lizotte and Drew Gibson have all proven they can win with at least some kind of relative consistency at the highest level …
In fact, up until yesterday, it’d been three long years since Gurthie had done the same. Seriously, the guy’s last meaningful victory came at the 2019 Santa Cruz Masters Cup. Back then, the event was a National Tour tournament. The much-needed change was obvious …
Guthrie needed to put the biscuit in the basket.
Don’t take this the wrong way, but for the longest time, DoubleG’s been a bit of a circus-style performer: He’s got the razor-thin chinstrap beard, the juggalo-turned-disc-golfer sense of fashion and, of course, the ability to throw 550-plus feet with a backhand on command …
And he bags a Sonic – there’s that, too.
But without a pro-level putt, there wasn’t much to his game beyond a mega-cool “parlor trick.” You know – throwing far in front of people who can’t. Nine-to-five fans like you and me loved it, but DoubleG’s tournament earnings in 2021 totalled $27,055 – that’s not much to live on …
No wonder he entered the world of dried meats.
This story has a VERY happy ending, though …
His putt finally found its groove in Portland, as well as at Milo McIver this past weekend. And true to his do-it-all-differently way of life, it was thanks to disc golf’s “eephus-pitch” putt …
If you don’t watch baseball, here’s that in action:
He hit an eephus pitch! A blooper!
— John Sterling Calls (@JSterlingCalls) June 12, 2022
Higashioka! The home run stroka! pic.twitter.com/ZFl3ANxDuK
Now compare that thing to Garrett’s Portlandia putt:
Back-to-back C2 birdie putts push Garrett Gurthie up into solo 2nd place pic.twitter.com/M24oueYBDN
— Disc Golf Pro Tour (@DiscGolfProTour) June 3, 2022
* Note: If interested in emulating DoubleG’s putt, he’s a KC Pro Aviar guy – it’s a great putter.
Smirk all you want at the bell-curve flight path, but following up a nail-biting, second-place finish at the Portland Open with a big-time takedown of the the Beaver State Fling with these kinds of putting numbers is nothing to shake a stick at – all that matters is that you make ‘em:
- He birdied 44% (3rd) of his holes.
- He converted 87% (38th) of his C1X putts.
- He drained a solid 33% (20th) of his circle-two bids.
- He led the entire MPO field with a 100% scramble rate.
The above might not look like much, but for DoubleG, it’s good enough to win – that’s how much of a FORCE the rest of Gurthie’s game is: Just enough putting is good enough putting.
Throwing far made Garrett Gurthie a social media sensation …
Putting well will keep him in the sport for years to come.
Have anything to add? Take to Twitter to let us know – we’ll actually (for real) get back to you.
Editor’s Suggestions:
- How to trick your wife into loving disc golf
- This page exists on Infinite Discs (you should bookmark it)
- The Disc Golf Guy: Terry Miller is (way) better at disc golf than you
Real quick, if you happen to buy something through a link in this article, there’s a chance we’ll get a small share of the sale. It’s how we keep the lights on. To learn more, click here.
