Originally published at: https://discgolf.ultiworld.com/2022/03/18/ultiworld-disc-golf-mpo-power-rankings-post-waco-march-18-2022/
Two tournaments into the 2022 season and we are ready to draw definitive conclusions, make bold statements, and prematurely crown a favorite for Worlds. Yes, welcome to the internet. Forget about our preseason power rankings. Today we are older, wiser, and have actual data to go on. Let’s dig into our new rankings.
The Las Vegas Challenge and Waco Annual Charity Open often get tagged as fluky tournaments that have little bearing on season-long performance. I think this is understandable, but it’s also untrue. In fact, looking over the results since 2018, most of the top ten finishers at both events are either: 1. exactly who you would expect to perform well at these courses, or 2. the players you’d expect to win and play well, period. Let’s take a moment to recall just the winners:
LVC: Drew Gibson and Catrina Allen (2022), Eagle McMahon and Paige Pierce (2021), Nate Sexton and Catrina Allen (2020), Calvin Heimburg and Paige Shue (2019), Eagle McMahon and Paige Pierce (2018).
WACO: Paul McBeth and Valerie Mandujano (2022), Nikko Locastro and Kona Panis (2021), Colten Montgomery and Eveliina Salonen (2020), Paul McBeth and Catrina Allen (2019), Jeremy Koling and Paige Pierce (2018).
So let’s drop the narrative that these tournaments are bad predictors of season long success. Can you think of another pair of back-to-back events which provide a more comprehensive sample of hole types and skills tests? I can’t.
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.
Subscribers, read on for discussion of the top 10 and additional notes on the field.
Notes on the Top 10
The ‘recent unweighted’ category below includes the last 7 rounds from Elite Series, cumulative stroke play tournaments in 2022: Waco Annual Charity Open, Las Vegas Challenge.
[table id=228 /]
Field Notes
Adam Hammes (13) finished 7th at the LVC but missed cash in Waco. With the exception of league events, Hammes hadn’t missed cash since the 2018 USDGC. Hammes took a family-sized Wendy’s order of bogeys last weekend, logging 3 doubles and 2 triples. Yikes.
Eagle McMahon (14) will be out of commission for the foreseeable future tending to his shoulder rehab. I’m reminded of a past Simon Lizotte vlog where he analyzed McMahon’s forehand form and wondered aloud “how is this possible?” Well, the answer seems to be “maybe it’s not.”
Kyle Klein (16) finished 24th in Vegas and 16th at WACO. His results aren’t terrible, but he was never in contention at either event. In both cases, he shot his best rounds once he was already out of it. He is facing much higher expectations this season, so here’s hoping he can right the ship.