Originally published at: https://discgolf.ultiworld.com/2021/05/20/ultiworld-disc-golf-fpo-power-rankings-us-edition-may-20-2021/
Catrina Allen remains atop the Power Rankings heading into the United States Women’s Disc Golf Championship. The 2012 USWDGC champion has four podium finishes and a win in her last four events and looks to keep rolling this weekend in Northern California. Of all the women in FPO, she is probably least perturbed with the three course format. However, the margins for error are thin, and Paige Pierce and Hailey King are hot on her heels. Each has won two Elite Series tournaments this year, one more than Allen, and both enter the first major of the year having won their last event. Pierce is the most decorated returning champion (’14, ’17, ’18), and a win would be King’s first major title.
Though Allen, Pierce, and King are options 1a, b, and c this weekend, the field is deep, and contenders abound. Two-time USWDGC champion Sarah Hokom is back after withdrawing from the Dynamic Discs Open. If the elbow is fully mended she competes for the win. Jessica Weese learned to play on the trio of courses featured this weekend and plans to take advantage of her insider’s knowledge. And Ohn Scoggins won the St. Patrick’s Classic in Orangevale back in March.
Who else is in our top 25? Here’s how they stack up heading into the USWDGC.
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 USWDGC.
FPO Power Rankings
Full breakdowns for each player continue below.
1. Catrina Allen continued her excellent run of play with runner-up finishes at the Dynamic Discs Open and OTB Open. In the final round at Swenson Park Disc Golf Course this past weekend, she nearly overtook Paige Pierce despite falling five strokes off the lead through six holes. Allen dug deep and rattled off seven consecutive birdies between holes 7-13 and went nine under par over the final twelve holes. A bogey on fourteen proved costly, but it was an inspiring run of play. Over the past three tournaments including the Jonesboro Open, she averaged 25 strokes gained tee to green, but the revelation has been her putting. In Stockton, Allen connected on 74% of her C1X putts and was perfect (7/7) in the final round. Last year she exceeded the 70% threshold four times in total. This year she has accomplished the feat three times already, and we’re not even halfway through the season. She’s also second on the tour from C2 and the fifth best scrambler.
2. Hailey King owns the PDGA National Tour, and her wins in Texas and Kansas demonstrate a well-rounded game. She looks comfortable in the woods and in the open. Her drive on hole 14 at the Emporia Country Club on championship Sunday made me jump out of my seat it was so good. Showing wisdom beyond her years, King has been strategic with her touring schedule this year. She’s only played one Silver Series event and just skipped the OTB Open to get a little extra R&R before the USWDGC. King knows she needs her head right to win, and returning regularly to home base in Wisconsin appears to be just what the doctor ordered.
3. Paige Pierce returned to her winning ways after a hiatus in Hawai’i. She looked rusty in the first round, especially on the putting green, but improved measurably each consecutive day at the OTB Open. Pierce wrapped the tournament with a 1005-rated, bogey-free 9-under par 61. The final five holes seemed to have her number all weekend, but she battened down the hatches on Sunday and avoided bogeys down the stretch. Her clean play proved to be the difference-maker. She had two fewer penalties and two fewer bogeys than Allen on the final day, which translated to a two-stroke lead heading into hole 18. Despite riding the roller coaster to start the season, Pierce still leads the division in birdie percentage, fairway hits, parked percentage, C1 in regulation, and C2 in regulation. She only ranks outside of the top five in scramble percentage.
4. Missy Gannon is quietly climbing in the rankings and has four, fourth place finishes in her last six events. At her last three Elite Series events she took home 7th, 6th, and 4th place, respectively. That trend bodes well heading into the meat of the West Coast Swing and the first two majors of the season. Though she ranks outside the top 10 in every driving category, she is eighth in birdie percentage. Putting is the name of the game, and Gannon is converting her C1X looks at a 75% clip, good for third best on tour.
5. Macie Walker popped onto the pro tour for the Jonesboro Open and DDO, took home fourth and third place, respectively, and cashed the two biggest tournament checks of her career. Previously, her biggest payout came last year at the Women’s National Championship where she finished in sixth place. I don’t remember talking much about her after the WNC, where her fellow Tennessean Heather Young stole the spotlight from the other up-and-comers, but perhaps we should have taken more notice. She has a powerful backhand and forehand, the latter of which earned praise from Hailey King at the DDO, and she’s keen for the battle out there on the course. When Walker needed match a surging Young to hold onto the podium finish at DDO, she rose to the occasion. First, she stuck the island green on 16 and nailed a death putt for birdie from the back wall. Then, she drained a 65-footer for eagle on hole 17, the only one on the weekend.
6. Kona Star Panis took a big step forward with her All-Star Weekend and WACO wins early in the season and every week seems on the cusp of becoming a consistent podium contender. The putter is holding her back. She ranks fourth on tour at achieving C1 and C2 in regulation, fifth in birdie percentage, eighth in fairway hits, parked percentage, and OB rate, and 10th in scramble percentage, but she’s only making 51% of her C1X putts and 5% of her C2 putts. Based on what I see in videos of her practice rounds, she connects at a much higher rate than her tournament stats indicate. And when she cans a big putt center chains it just looks so good. For my money, making a major change to your form is harder than swapping manufacturers, and Panis just needs more time to grow into her putt.
7. Heather Young followed up on her big W and a fat paycheck at the Mid-America Open with a gutsy third place finish at the Dynamic Discs Open. Remember when everyone was worried about her after that 68% C1X showing in Waco and that paltry-for-Young 79% in Belton? Yeah, that wasn’t a thing. Try 87% at Texas States, 81% at Jonesboro, 88% at Mid-America, and 93% at the DDO. She made 43 of 46 between 12-33 feet and 5 of 17 (29%) from C2 in the Kansas Wind where she was the class of the tournament on the green, not just FPO. Young won’t rejoin the tour until the World Championships in Ogden, UT and she’s only signed up for one tournament between now and then, the Tennessee State Disc Golf Championships. Hopefully she’s spending a lot of time on fieldwork, because she’ll be unstoppable with more distance off the tee.
8. Ohn Scoggins came out of the gates strong this season but has ridden the roller coaster of late. Her second place finish at Goat Hill was a great bounce-back performance after missing the top 10 for the first time this season at DDO (where I thought she would contend for the win), and her moxie was on full display on championship Sunday in Stockton, where fired off a 5-under par 65 to claw her way back into the top 10. Scoggins’ eighth place finish at the OTB Open was her best at an Elite Series event since WACO. I’m still bullish on Scoggins and she’s my sleeper pick at the USWDGC.
9. Lisa Fajkus is playing good golf. How’s that for an understatement? She took home her first Silver Series title of the year at the Challenge at Goat Hill and a top 5 at the OTB Open. I was especially impressed with her performance in Stockton. Fajkus is a master of course management and committing to a game plan that capitalizes on her strengths. Take the 1015-foot par 5 ninth at Swenson. Fajkus casually tapped in for three pars on a hole that averaged well over par for the weekend. Only Pierce, Allen, Holyn Handley, and Zoe Andyke played the hole better. Three of those women have elite distance. Fajkus hasn’t missed cash in 2021, and she’s running a 26 tournament streak in the green dating back to her first Silver Series win last year at the Silver Cup.
10. Jessica Weese is feeling the home state feels in Cali, and earned two podium finishes at Goat Hill and OTB. I’ll admit that I was worried about her elbow after she dropped out of the DDO due to fatigue, but she just conquered two big courses: 8,925 feet with elevation in Oceanside and 10,022 feet in Stockton. Now she heads north to play a trio of courses she knows very well for the USWDGC. The field only has four days to learn those courses ahead of the first Major of the year, giving the hometown hero Weese a distinct advantage.
11. Sarah Hokom withdrew from the DDO citing a pinched nerve in her throwing elbow and hasn’t played an event since. Color me concerned. Her nine-spot drop in our rankings is almost entirely due to the uncertainty surrounding her injury because statistically speaking she remains a top 10 player. Hokom was having a typically solid Hokom season before her DNF, and though her rating has fallen 11 points since July of 2020, she remains in the elite class of seven women worldwide to be rated above 960.
12. Erika Stinchcomb finished 12th at the DDO and 11th at the OTB Open after her breakout performance in Jonesboro. Both are good results and seem to indicate that she is maintaining her post-WACO form. Stinchcomb’s rating is up seven points to 931, continuing her upward trend in that metric, and her 2021 tournament winnings through May already exceed her previous yearly sums. She ranks 12th in DGPT points and eighth on the National Tour.
13. Valerie Mandujano may have popped off the tour for a bit of a recharge after the DDO, but it’s not like she’s kicking up her feet. This past weekend she won the 43rd Annual Norman Pro/Am, a long-running Oklahoma A-tier, and cashed another four-figure check. Curiously, she is not playing the USWDGC, where she would have been a strong contender, opting to rejoin the tour next weekend at the Masters Cup. Mandujano admitted early in the season that the road warrior lifestyle was harder than she thought it would be, and her average finish has slipped somewhat since the season began. Hopefully she’s feeling refreshed after some time at home because she’ll be back in the saddle through August.
14. Juliana Korver has that competitive itch again. It is exciting to see her on the course and on camera at big events. She took ninth at Goat Hill, where she could have easily finished in sixth had her first round matched the last two, and then sixth at the OTB Open. She led the field in fairway hits this past weekend and was top seven in both GIR categories. Korver’s putting is what ultimately held her back. While she only lost one stroke on the field, her 59% conversion rate needs to improve. If it does, she will contend for the podium.
15. Zoe Andyke hadn’t played on tour since the Las Vegas Challenge, but she jumped back into the fray with quality performances at Goat Hill and OTB, where she finished 11th and seventh, respectively. By percentage she was the best putter in Stockton but just didn’t give herself enough looks for birdie. Andyke must be feeling good heading into the first major of the year. She took second place behind Scoggins at the St. Patrick’s Classic, which was contested at Shady Oaks in Orangevale, so she may have a slight leg up on her competition with her advance knowledge of that track.
16. Rebecca Cox announced that she was taking an indefinite break from the tour to work on her game following a run of subpar performances, culminating with a 25th place finish in Emporia. Fortunately, she can afford to take a little bit of time off. Despite her recent woes, she still ranks 11th in DGPT points and seventh on the National Tour. Undoubtedly she’s working on her Circle 1 putting, which currently sits at 44%. Cox remains on the Portland Open registration list. Fingers crossed she’s ready to compete by then, but if she isn’t, Worlds would be a fitting return.
17. Holly Finley will play her first tournament since the Lone Star Classic this weekend at the USWDGC, which makes her a bit of a wild card. Don’t forget, Finley finished second at the Texas State Championship and appeared to find her groove during the Texas Swing. I wouldn’t be surprised if she finished in the top 10 this weekend despite the time off. She plays well in the trees.
18. Madison Walker is still ranked too low for my liking. In four tournaments, all Elite Series events, she’s finished 11th, 11th, 13th, 13th. She’s ninth in DGPT points. Walker’s quality performances and cheery disposition overshadow the fact that she’s still recovering from a series of injuries and didn’t play at all on tour last year after WACO. And hey, she recently announced a new disc sponsorship with Aria Discs, a newcomer to the DG scene.
19. Ella Hansen is one of several exciting new players crossing over from ultimate frisbee, and the first of this new wave to make our top 25. In three DGPT events this year, it’s clear that she has the distance game to hang with the best. At the OTB Open Hansen ranked fifth in parked percentage, and gained 11.65 strokes tee to green. She was the only player all weekend to card an eagle 3 on the first hole, a 776-foot par 5. A week earlier at Goat Hill, Hansen led the field in parked percentage, C1 in regulation, and C2 putting. There she gained 19.39 strokes tee to green, second only to Jen Allen. Double and triple bogeys are her bugaboo right now and she needs to clean up her C1X putting to capitalize on her distance advantage.
20. Alexis Mandujano finished in the top 10 at three consecutive tour stops beginning with The Open at Belton. Her fourth place finish at TX States is her best finish at any Elite Series event to date and her ninth place finish in Jonesboro tied with the 2020 Idlewild Open for her best on the Pro Tour. Alexis Mandujano, like her sister Valerie, is also skipping the USWDGC and jumping back on the tour for the Masters Cup.
21. Stephanie Vincent has only played one event since the Texas Swing of the tour, placing second in Pro Masters at a small Women’s Global Event in Austin. There she fell by one stroke to Hall of Famer Des Reading. For the record, they would have finished 1-2 in FPO, so don’t let the age protected division fool you. Also, she was the tournament director for that event! Vincent does plan to hit the road a bit beginning in June for the Portland Open, so we’ll see her on the big stage a couple more times this season.
22. Holyn Handley finally makes our top 25! The Californian has been on our radar since opening the season with a win over Catrina Allen and Jennifer Allen at the Maricopa Open. At the time she was 892-rated and the early season trip to AZ was her first tournament out of state. She wasn’t a PDGA member until last year and didn’t turn pro until September. In short order, Handley has increased her player rating by 34 points to 926, picked up an endorsement deal with Dynamic Discs, and placed third at a Silver Series event. She just missed out on receiving her invitation to the Throw Pink Women’s National Championship in Rock Hill at the Challenge at Goat Hill, where she lost in a sudden death playoff with Jessica Weese.
23. Casey Pennington finished 14th at the Waco Annual Charity Open and 17th at TX States. On Instagram she posted that wooded courses like Dogwood are her favorites because they “challenge you to hit lines, control your distance, and find creative ways to get to the basket.” While the fairways at the USWDGC aren’t quite as tight on average, the same skillset that allowed her to succeed at the Elite Series events in Texas should benefit her on the USWDGC courses this weekend.
24. Camille Skweir made her DGPT debut this past weekend at the OTB Open, finishing 16th. She ranked fifth in strokes gained putting, converting C1X putts at a 79% clip. On Saturday she was a perfect 10/10 inside of 10 meters, and she improved her score each day. Skweir has tournament experience on the USWDGC courses and earlier this season took third at the St. Patrick’s Classic at Shady Oaks and second at the Auburn Open.
25. Maria Oliva notched her first top 10 at an Elite Series event in 2021 at the Dynamic Discs Open, her first since finishing eighth at WACO in 2017. Four years ago eighth place in a field of 18 missed cash. The average player rating in FPO was 900 on the nose, and Oliva clocked in at 873. Fast forward to the 2021 DDO where the field was 38 women deep and paid out the top 16. The average player rating was 915, and Oliva was 924-rated at the time. She’s up to 928 now and recently took down back-to-back wins in Texas at regional A- and B-tiers.