I’ve limited this to professional disc golf, but could’ve easily opened it up.
Going that route, I would’ve had to label myself a “serial offender,” though …
Hard pass.
The inspiration for this post was Paul McBeth’s behavior during the final round of the 2022 DGPT Championship at Nevin Park. For 16 holes, it was a tale of two battles: Wysocki vs. Robinson for first place, and McBeth vs. Buhr for third – SERIOUS cash was on the line.
The 17th hole proved to be a complete dumpster fire for Ricky Wysocki and Isaac Robinson, with both golfers carding bogeys. By that time, with McBeth in his rearview mirror, Gannon Buhr was close enough to get in on the action. His birdie on 17 had him inches away from a birdie (OB) on 18 that would’ve had him taking part in the eventual playoff battle …
Major props to Rick: The dude’s got ice-cold Aquafina in his arteries.
But I digress …
For the five or so holes leading up to the 17th at Nevin Park, McBeth pouted his way to a pedestrian performance. By the time pivotal mistakes were being made by the frontrunners, the “mental giant” was planning for a hot shower and shave – just going through the motions.
And it wasn’t only me who noticed this …
Terry Miller had the huevos to (awkwardly) call him out on it during coverage. The final joke was on Paul, though, as the $35,000 was up for grabs the entire time – that had to sting a bit.
Manning the Green Splatter account, I tweeted this:
The way these guys are playing the 17th hole, if Paul McBeth hadn't spent the last five holes pouting, he might've still had a shot at taking this thing down.
— Green Splatter (@GreenSplatter) October 16, 2022
Some quickly pointed out the fact that Wysocki’s capable of equally crybaby-ish behavior. And while I agree, this time, the difference was that Ricky’s led to winning – Paul’s led to quitting.
Now let it be known that McBeth RARELY does this …
He’s a champion.
And other Pro Tour peeps are just as cringe:
- Incident No. 1 – Joel Freeman blames kosher course designs.
- Incident No. 2 – Eagle McMahon breaks his throwing hand.
- Incident No. 3 – Adam Hammes goes after cameramen.
- Incident No. 4 – Nikko Locastro attacks officials.
Fast play. Bad vibes. Mean mugs.
Perhaps what I hate most about irritability in disc golf, however, is that I’m guilty of it – and during casual rounds with buddies that mean diddly-squat. There’s room for improvement.
Be the change you want to see in the sport, right?
Noted.
Have anything to add? Take to Twitter to let us know – we’ll actually (for real) get back to you.
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