Originally published at: https://discgolf.ultiworld.com/2021/04/23/ultiworld-disc-golf-fpo-power-rankings-us-edition-april-23-2021/
Photo: PDGA
Catrina Allen became the first player to notch two victories on tour with her dominant win at the Jonesboro Open. Her 1041-rated, 12-under par 54 in the second round was a masterpiece from tee to green. With six Elite and Silver Series tournaments in the books, Allen has emerged as the most consistent golfer of the five tournament-winners this year, a group that includes Paige Pierce, Kona Panis, Hailey King, and Sarah Hokom.
Elsewhere in the top 25, Texans dominate this edition of the power rankings after a protracted swing through the Lone Star State, claiming seven spots on our list. Regional pros like Stephanie Vincent, Casey Pennington, and Maria Oliva made their mark, turning in a spate of solid performances close to home. And speaking of regional talent, Macie Walker showed up in a big way at the Jonesboro Open, where she finished in fourth place and outperformed many of the players ranked higher than her.
For tour stalwarts and upstarts alike, next week’s Dynamic Discs Open feels like a bellwether event on the road to the major championships in California and Utah, owing to its pedigree as a longstanding NT and a former Worlds venue. With less than a month to go before the US Women’s Disc Golf Championship, players continue to jockey for position as they round into form for the first major of the year. Here’s how they stack up heading into the DDO.
Note: while COVID travel restrictions remain in place, this list considers players based in America. We will break out an international top 10 once the season gets underway across the pond.
Methodology: We combine an algorithmic objective ranking with subjective ballots submitted by UWDG staff. The algorithm uses a standardized scoring model to compare elite events, awards competition and cash bonuses, and features a decay function that gradually phases out past results. For the second regular season ranking, staff considered the following criteria: 1. results from the 2021 Elite and Silver Series events, 2. UDisc and PDGA statistical measures, 3. the previous UWDG Power Rankings, and 4. their super subjective vibes, gut feelings, and premonitions heading into the Dynamic Discs Open.
Full breakdowns for each player continue below.
1. Catrina Allen bossed the field at the Jonesboro Open where she averaged 1007-rated golf over three rounds and led the division in eight of the 13 UDisc Live statistical categories. Her 1041-rated second round is the second highest in her storied career and her best since the semifinals of the 2012 PDGA World Championships in Charlotte, NC. She gained 20.87 strokes tee-to-green, the highest value at any three-round Elite Series or Silver Series event this year. When you include the 8.07 strokes gained putting and adjust for penalties, Allen’s 24.95 total strokes gained is the best at any UDisc event in 2021. Even in the final round when Paige Pierce bested Allen by four strokes, Allen still matched her card mate with nine birdies, tied for most on the day. She ranks first in the Pro Tour Standings through five events and her average finish at the four Elite Series events is 3.5, also tops. Through mid-April, Allen has displayed the most versatile skillset of anyone in the field.
2. Sarah Hokom may not have quite as high a ceiling as some of her top rated competitors—22 of her 28 rounds rated higher than 1000 fall below the 1010 mark—but what she lacks in explosiveness she more than makes up for with consistency. Her eight-stroke victory at the Vintage Open was a masterclass in precision and another solid performance in windy conditions. In Jonesboro, she was her usual accurate self off the tee and led the field in scramble percentage, converting at a 75% clip.
3. Paige Pierce lost 19 ratings points in the latest update and fell from 996 to 977; however, she remains the highest rated woman in the world, 11 points clear of Sarah Hokom, Eveliina Salonen, and Henna Blomroos. While her season has been disappointing by her own standards, most golfers would swap their 2021 stat sheet with hers in a heartbeat. Her average finish at Elite Series events is 4.75, second best after Allen. She leads the division in fairway hits, parked percentage, Circle 1 in regulation, Circle 2 in regulation, and birdie percentage. After the bumpy Texas swing, things seem to be trending in the right direction. Her first (994-rated) and last (1009-rated) rounds in Jonesboro are more like what we’re used to from Pierce. Once she dials in her short game, especially her scramble percentage and C2 putting, we’re going to see a lot more 1s from PP.
4. Hailey King took down the W at the Texas State Championship in commanding fashion. After blitzing the first 13 holes on Sunday, a couple of miscues over the final five shrunk her margin of victory to three strokes, but she never appeared out of control. King’s putt to save double bogey on hole 14 was especially crucial and demonstrated her confidence in the face of adversity. A quick look at her stats shows that she has all of the skills to win regularly on tour. King is top five in every driving category, third in birdie percentage, third in C2 putting, and sixth in C1X putting. She just needs to keep the disc in play and scramble more effectively.
5. Kona Star Panis continues her strong run of play in 2021. Save for her poor performance at the Texas State Championship, she’s finished in the top six at every event this year. Through four Elite Series events, Panis’ average finish is approximately two places higher than her average finish last year. If you drop her worst from this year (26th – TX State) and last (27th – Ledgestone Insurance Open), that number improves to 5.5. Granted, the 2021 sample is relatively small (four events in 2021 vs. 11 in 2020), but when you consider her performance at the All-Star weekend and the Silver Series, it’s easy to see that she is maintaining a higher level of play. Her tournament earnings reflect this trend: Panis has nearly matched her total winnings from 2020 in 13 fewer events.
6. Missy Gannon hasn’t missed the top 10 yet this year. Based on her 2020 season, it’s what we’ve come to expect from her. Last year she only missed the top 10 twice, at the Memorial (11th) and the Ledgestone Insurance Open (12th). It seems like only a matter of time before she starts nabbing a few more podium spots. If she can improve her driving stats by five percentage points, that will quickly become a reality.
7. Heather Young has had a quiet season so far after a barnstormer in 2020. Through four stroke-play events on tour, she’s already missed the top 10 more this year (twice) than last (once). She nearly picked up a Silver Series W at the Open at Belton, but couldn’t quite close the door on Catrina Allen. Chalk the slow start up to growing pains. 2021 brings with it higher expectations for the young pro from Tennessee. Here’s the crazy thing, Young’s stats have improved in nearly every throwing category, and she still ranks second in C1X putting and fourth in scramble percentage. The level of play across the field in FPO continues to rise.
8. Ohn Scoggins might be the favorite to win in Emporia. Paige Pierce is in Hawaii and will miss the tournament. Catrina Allen will be coming off a vacation in Mexico. Scoggins bested Hokom and King, the remaining two women with higher ratings than her, on the golf courses in Vegas. Assuming she keeps her disc between the ropes, we know she’s going to make putts. Scoggins leads the division in C1X putting (80%) and is the fifth best C2 putter (14%), only trailing league leader Valerie Mandujano by three percentage points.
9. Jessica Weese has played eight events in 2021. She has two podium finishes at the Las Vegas Challenge (3rd) and the Vintage Open (2nd), placed in the top 10 on three other occasions, and missed the top 10 three times. It all comes down to putting. 52% from C1X—down 6 percentage points from 2020—won’t cut it on the Elite Series. Weese is such a versatile player from distance with a strong backhand and forehand game that 10 points better on the green will make her a fixture in the top 10 at every event.
10. Alexis Mandujano is rounding into form as the season progresses. After taking 21st in Vegas and 17th in Waco, the younger Mandujano has finished in the top 10 at her last three Elite or Silver Series events. Her rating jumped another 10 points to 935 with the most recent update, setting her new high water mark. Putting is the name of the game, and she is converting 74% of her C1X putts this year. To take the next step, she’ll need to up her greens in regulation
11. Valerie Mandujano had a rough weekend in Jonesboro and missed the top 10 for the first time this year. Notably, only five strokes separated the 9th and 18th positions, and the best C2 putter on tour went 0/17 from distance in Arkansas. Her woes on the green persisted inside the circle as well, where she fell 13 percentage points shy of her 2021 average previously. In other words, this result was unusual and shouldn’t be considered a predictor for her upcoming events.
12. Lisa Fajkus cashed a fat check at the Lone Star Classic in Austin. A $3,519 check, to be exact. Quite a haul from an off-week B-tier. On tour she has three top fives. She opted not to defend her Mid-America Open title this weekend, traveling to Bowling Green instead. Seeing as Harmony Bends is washed out after recent storms, her decision seems prescient. Fajkus’ penchant for keeping the disc in play and avoiding penalty strokes should bode well for the DDO next week.
13. Holly Finley has strung together four consecutive solid finishes after a lackluster season opener in Vegas. She took second at the Texas State Championship, demonstrating her comfort on wooded courses (her preferred style of play). Finley’s short game is top notch, and her scramble rate is up 17 percentage points from last year.
14. Rebecca Cox took third place at the Texas State Championship and ranks 10th in the DGPT points standings. Her performance off the tee is significantly improved from 2020 and she’s a top 10 putter from C2. However, like Jessica Weese, C1X putting is Cox’s bugaboo. Her season conversion rate is a paltry 45%. At the Jonesboro Open, she finished dead last in C1X putting at 38%. These numbers must come up if she wants to find the podium with greater regularity.
15. Macie Walker punched her ticket to the Throw Pink Women’s National Championship with her fourth place finish at the Jonesboro Open. She was a force off the tee, ranking in the top three in every UDisc driving category. Walker averaged 962-rated golf in Arkansas and her 994-rated opening round marks a new high. If her birdie attempt on 18 hadn’t rolled OB, she likely breaks 1000.
16. Vanessa Van Dyken has only played three tournaments so far in 2021 and plans to skip the west coast swing save for the US Women’s Disc Golf Championship and Worlds. As such, it’s somewhat difficult to get a bead on her season. What we know: she quickly righted the ship after finishing 26th in Waco, taking 11th place in Belton and Jonesboro. And 11 seems about right. While she hasn’t played enough holes to qualify for the UDisc Live statistical rankings, a cross comparison of her season stats against the field puts her driving percentages just outside the top 10. Her putting has improved with each event as well from 38%/5% in Waco to 61%/10% in Jonesboro (C1X/C2).
17. Erika Stinchcomb is trending in the right direction. At the Las Vegas Challenge she took 26th, Waco 23rd, TX State 13th, and Jonesboro fifth. Not to be forgotten is her fourth place finish at the Memorial Championship. The fifth year pro out of Montana popped up repeatedly on the live coverage during the final round at Jonesboro with highlight reel putts playing on the chase card. She ranks 16th in Pro Tour points, which roughly corresponds with her average UDisc Live statistical ranking.
18. Stephanie Vincent just achieved her first player rating above 930, jumping nine points to 936. Based on what we saw of her in her home state of Texas, this should come as no surprise: seventh at Waco, 13th at TX States, third at the Lone Star Classic (where she earned $1,557). Like Van Dyken, Vincent doesn’t qualify for the overall UDisc Live statistical rankings, but here’s where should would rank in the major categories: fairway percentage – sixth, parked – 12th, C1 in regulation – 12th, C2 in regulation – ninth, scramble – ninth, birdie percentage – 13th, C1X putting – third, and C2 putting – 14th. Don’t sleep on Vincent at Worlds.
19. Madison Walker seems perennially underrated. While she hasn’t cracked the top 10 at an Elite Series tournament yet this year, she also hasn’t finished worse than 13th. Walker’s OB rate is higher than she would like, but she’s top 12 in every other UDisc Live statistical category. She owns the second best scramble rate and is sixth best at achieving C2 in regulation.
20. Ellen Widboom popped onto the tour for two events with middling results after a long warm-up romp in the southeast, failing to cash at either the Texas State Championship or the Vintage Open. Her stats at those two events compared poorly to her body of work in 2020, including a 16% drop in fairway hits, 20% in C2 in regulation, and 9% in C1X putting. Hopefully these early results are just blips on the radar.
21. Casey Pennington, like Stephanie Vincent, is another talented Texan doing work in the middle of the pack. She hasn’t finished worse than 17th at an Elite or Silver Series event, and boasts top 20 skills. Her 16% C2 putting would tie for second with Catrina Allen, her 40% scramble rate is better than 12 of the women preceding her on this list, and her driving is top 15.
22. Callie McMorran would rank higher on this list if she played more tournaments. From the looks of her schedule, she doesn’t plan to venture out of the midwest for the rest of the season, which means she will skip both women’s majors this year. She held her own on the DGN feature card on Friday at the Jonesboro Open, but her OB rate and inability to gain strokes from tee to green let her down as the tournament played out. If McMorran could have halved her OB strokes from 8 to 4, she would have finished 13th, just like in Vegas.
23. Maria Oliva’s player rating jumped 12 points this month, up to 924, and after not playing a PDGA sanctioned tournament in 2020, she has a trio of mid-teen finishes on tour this year. She’s got silky smooth form, apparently a prerequisite for Texas golfers, and would rank third in parked percentage, ninth in birdie percentage, 10th in C1 in regulation, and ninth in C2 in regulation if she qualified.
24. Nicole Bradley won’t rejoin the tour until the west coast swing, which is a shame following her 11th-place showing in Vegas. Historically she’s played well at events like the Masters Cup, Beaver State Fling, and San Francisco Open, so don’t be surprised if she pops up at the top of the leaderboard on the regular beginning in May.
25. Sami Keddington tied with Maria Oliva and Sara Sinclair at the Texas State Championship and was the highest placing golfer rated below 900. She averaged 922-rated golf for the weekend, 44 points higher than her rating at the time. Keddington took home third place at the Maricopa Open earlier this year, besting Jen Allen by one stroke.