The 2023 PDGA Champions Cup had everything going for it. Regardless of what you think of the PDGA, disc golf’s governing body knows how to put on a Major. And at a historic course, too. W.R. Jackson is one of disc golf’s premier wooded layouts. Incredibly, in only its second-ever installment, this year’s Champions Cup truly felt prestigious …
That’s impressive.
But just because a Major has all the workings of an instant classic, doesn’t mean it’ll live up to the hype. As you know by now, Kristin Tattar is your FPO Champion. And on the MPO side, it was Isaac Robinson who took down the event. But good gravy: These were one-sided wins.
After four rounds of play, Tattar beat out Ohn Scoggins by 14 strokes. As for Robinson’s part, he topped Eagle McMahon and Niklas Anttila by five each. Both were WELL out of reach heading into the final round, though. And incredibly, both were wire-to-wire winners, too.
Obviously, the question of boredom is a subjective one …
It’ll differ from fan to fan.
For as much as I love Tattar, I’m slapping a “boring” label on her tourney takedown. Much like you, I’ve not yet forgotten the choke-job she put on display on the final hole at last year’s gig. Because of it, this year’s victory meant redemption. In and of itself, that’s a solid storyline.
But this was SUCH a blowout, the biggest point of intrigue heading into Sunday was if she’d somehow manage to top the second-place finisher by 20 strokes. She failed on that front, but dominated in virtually every other aspect of the game. Tattar shot the hot round for four consecutive days, averaged a 1010 rating and bogeyed only one hole in 72 attempts.
At this point last year, Tattar had zero wins to her name …
This time around?
Four in six attempts.
Before the start of the Champions Cup, I expected her to win – and you did, too. Not wanting to disappoint, Tattar went above and beyond the call of duty. Greatness is always worth watching. But with Catrina Allen, Ella Hansen and Paige Pierce so far in her rear-view mirror, if I’m completely honest about my excitement levels, I’d all but lost interest after Friday.
And now for the men …
Truthfully, I could’ve gone either way on this one, but I’ll give Robinson the nod …
Color me (kind of) entertained.
While Tattar winning a Major is something we’re all used to, Sunday’s victory marked the first of Robinson’s career. Yes, Silas Schultz unexpectedly got within three strokes of the eventual champion on Sunday, but there was never much of a doubt Isaac would come out on top.
Furthermore, his victory was an improbable one.
Courtesy of StatMando, as the then-ninth-ranked MPO disc golfer in the world, Robinson is the lowest to have won a Major title since Will Schusterick did it as the 10th-best at the 2010 United States Disc Golf Championship. Parking (literally) one of every four holes will get the job done.
Kudos to the kid.
All in all, it was a great weekend in Appling.
But next year?
More drama, por favor.
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Kristin Tattar’s current dominance is impressive. And one post-script on the MPO field: Paul McBeth melted down badly at the end of the first round. It was strange, seeing how poorly/unfocused he played on the final two holes or so of the first day.
Yeah, that was REALLY weird …
He’s been off for the better part of the start of the season.
If history serves as any kind of measuring stick, he’ll be back …
But remember: The field just keeps getting strong and stronger and stronger.
It’s never been harder to finish at the top of the field week after week than it is now.
There are two things to consider on the MPO side of the “boring” question.
First: It’s the “Year of the Chase Card.” Anything less than a close, multi-card race down the stretch was going to feel boring regardless of tournament tier or margin of victory.
Second: Just who exactly it was coming down the stretch. Let’s say it was still Isaac Robinson with a lead after hole 12. But let’s say McBeth or Calvin was -11 through those 12 holes instead of Silas Schultz. Would it have felt as foregone as it did? I don’t think so. Neither for us at home nor for Isaac.
On the whole, this wasn’t as exciting as it could have been or felt like it was going to be in the weeks leading up to our springtime major. But it wasn’t a write-off either. The parity of the last calendar year of the Pro Tour has been the most fun since I began watching disc golf over ten years ago.
The fact that we can call someone other than Paul, Eagle, Ricky, Calvin, or Chris winning a major “boring” is an incredibly good sign for the years to come.
All great points, Craig!
And, man …
Can’t thank you enough for putting some real thought and effort into your comment.
Believe it or not, people often spend more time reading the comments than the actual articles …
Yours is helping feed that trend – can’t thank you enough, man!
The MPO coverage on Jomez was the most fun I’ve had watching rounds. Even if the result felt like a forgone conclusion, the gameplay we got to see was incredible. The amount of backhand finesse we saw was stunning. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed myself that much watching a tournament. Also I wasn’t discounting Silas and potential other as much as the commentators were.
Man, he was in and out of it, wasn’t he?
Referring to Silas, of course …
He went from winning, to not cashing to flirting with victory again.
Good stuff 🙂