Originally published at: https://discgolf.ultiworld.com/2021/04/23/ultiworld-disc-golf-mpo-power-rankings-us-edition-april-23-2021/
Photo: DGPT
The 2021 season began with parity atop the leaderboard. Through three Elite and Silver Series events we had three different winners: Eagle McMahon, Nikko Locastro, and Ricky Wysocki. Oh how things have changed. Wysocki hasn’t looked back after emerging victorious from his classic tilt wit Paul McBeth in Belton. He bagged both Elite Series titles up for grabs after Belton and now owns 50% of the W’s through six tour stops. The tour has a clear cut number 1.
The trio of Calvin Heimburg, McBeth, and McMahon continue to offer Wysocki his stiffest competition, though Heimburg seems to be the only one firing on all cylinders. Of those three, he is the only one to win a tournament, The Vintage Open, during Wysocki’s run. McBeth, on the other hand has yet to claim a victory on the proper tour this year and is struggling on the green; McMahon took home the first title of the year in Vegas, but has battled minor injuries since.
Maybe because of its World Championship pedigree, next weekend’s Dynamic Discs Open in Emporia, Kansas seems like the start of the real push toward the PDGA World Championships in Ogden, Utah, which begins in just under two months. We know who’s in the driver’s seat, who wants to challenge for pole position?
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. Ricky Wysocki is the best player in the world right now. He won three of his last four tournaments in Texas to Arkansas and is our first multi-elite-event winner of the season. Wysocki is looking healthy, confident, and has his putter working for him. His power game is on point, and he is carving lines in the woods. Right now Wysocki is probably the favorite to take down Pro Worlds in Utah, especially considering his track record of success in the Beehive State.
2. Calvin Heimburg has been doing his level best to knock Wysocki out of the number one spot but has come up juuuuust short. The pair had a great battle in Jonesboro and look like the two top dogs right now. Heimburg has missed the podium only twice this young season, and his worst finish is fifth place, which is still pretty darn good. Heimburg is first in DGPT tour points, and second in birdie percentage this season.
3. Paul McBeth is top four in every major statistical category except for Circle 1 putting, where he is hitting a mediocre (for him) 81% of his attempts, which ranks 23rd on tour. He is also 30th in OB rate. McBeth has gone through stretches in the past where his putter just isn’t doing it for him, but he always bounces back.
4. Chris Dickerson stumbled a bit at the Vintage Open but otherwise has been rock solid on his much expanded tour schedule. His 23rd place finish at the first Arkansas tour stop is his only finish outside the top 10 so far. Like McBeth, his C1X putting has been uncharacteristically iffy–only 82% from inside 10 meters.
5. Nikko Locastro clawed his way back into the top 10 of our power rankings with a third place finish at the Vintage Open and a tie for 10th in Jonesboro. Perhaps most surprising is the fact that Locastro is leading the field in scramble percentage at a jaw dropping 78%. The resurgent Locastro often talks about never feeling like he is out of the fight, and if that number doesn’t convince you, I don’t know what will.
6. Eagle McMahon took a brief pause to rehab a back injury, and looked (ahem) back in peak form in Jonesboro. He is leading the pack in Circle 2 putting and assuming the injury doesn’t return, Eagle should be licking his chops thinking about the upcoming events where he’ll be able to flex his distance. Eagle should be considered a top contender to take down Worlds, assuming he can get his woods game to where it needs to be.
7. James Conrad Conrad has figured out his bag. After a 34th place finish in Waco, it was fair to worry about his progress dialing in the new discs. However, an eighth place finish at Texas States, and a second place finish at Vintage should help get folks bullish on baseball hat Conrad. His final round at Jonesboro sunk an otherwise great tournament, and his 14th place finish doesn’t have me worried.
8. Kevin Jones salvaged his homecoming tour with a fourth place finish at Jonesboro, surging up seven spots in the final round and only missing the podium by two strokes. Jones continues to be streaky, either placing in the top 10 or well outside of it. It’s easy to wonder if this is due to a fluctuating mental game or a “horses-for-courses” thing, but I think people just have off weekends. If Jones can find some consistency, his Worlds stock will be on the rise.
9. Casey White makes his power rankings debut inside the top 10. He wasn’t even an option on my staff ballot, so good job, algorithm and write ins! White has four straight top 10 finishes at Elite and Silver Series events, and were it not for a sudden monsoon on the final hole at Jonesboro, he would have likely taken fourth in Jonesboro. White doesn’t have mega-Discmania-distance off the tee, but it’s obviously good enough, and his forehand is top tier. It’s also worth noting that White is out-putting most of the names above him on this list, connecting on 87% from inside 10 meters, good for sixth best on tour.
10. Garrett Gurthie, disc golf fashion icon and pioneer, rounds out the top 10. Like Jones, his finishes have been a bit up and down this season, but if you saw him rocking the camo-vaporwave Sonic combo at Jonesboro, you know that there are some things more important than finishes in this life, like looking fresh as hell. Gurthie should be among the favorites heading into DDO.
11. Adam Hammes looks like he’s on the upswing with back to back fifth place finishes at Vintage and Jonesboro. The youngster is perhaps best known for his range with the putter — he is, in fact, 29-for-84 from outside 30 feet. Hammes has shown steady improvement and flashes of brilliance over the past several seasons, lets see if he can truly break out.
12. Paul Ulibarri, Prime Guy, Ageless Wonder, Mr. Bushnell, himself, got off to a hot start this season but has slipped a little over the past two events. Finishes in the 40s at Vintage and Jonesboro are certainly the exception that proves the rule that Uli is one of the most consistent and able players on tour. He is fond of saying he really only cares about Worlds and Majors, so let’s not get too worried about some iffy finishes just yet.
13. Drew Gibson is first in fairway hits on tour, which is a little surprising. He is definitely known for his power and ability to throw farther than almost anyone else on the planet, but this season he has been keeping it center cut which bodes well moving forward.
14. Chris Clemons stays put at 14th in our rankings. He’s only cracked the top 10 once this season in Waco, where he finished in seventh place. More troubling is that Clemons has made the top 20 twice at Elite or Silver Series events, three times across all competitions, and missed it four times.
15. Kyle Klein has an abundance of potential. He’s one of three up-and-comers on Team Discmania, along with Casey White and Gavin Rathbun, catching more attention this season. He hasn’t quite caught lightning in a bottle like he did at the end of 2020, but let’s give him time to acclimate to full-time touring life.
16. Ezra Aderhold has struggled since leaving the friendly open skies of the southwest. He should be more comfortable in Emporia, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him back in the top ten at a venue where he can air it out again.
17. Jeremy Koling would probably rather forget his Jonesboro performance. That showing aside, Koling is quietly putting together a solid season with three top 20 finishes. Did you know he is third in parked percentage at 20%? I didn’t, and am frankly stunned by that.
18. Eric Oakley usually places in the teens to mid-twenties on tour. Except for a poor showing in the woods at Texas States, that’s where Oakley has wrapped on Sunday so far this season. He usually makes a few appearance on the lead or chase card throughout the year, and with Worlds coming up in his home state of Utah, keep your eyes on Oakley.
19. Colten Montgomery Let’s be frank, Montgomery did a poor job defending his title in Waco. Also, he has rebounded nicely. As noted in the Gatekeeper coverage Jonesboro Open, Montgomery has elite distance and seems to be playing more relaxed this season. His 13th place finish at Jonesboro is his second best finish since his 2020 win at Waco, which should help his confidence heading into DDO.
20. Matt Bell The widely acknowledged putting master is hitting 88% from inside 30 feet, and 36% from outside the circle. Once we get into the woods where his disadvantage off the tee is mitigated somewhat, expect Bell to put together some top 15 finishes.
21. Emerson Keith hasn’t quite been able to recapture the magic he showed at 2019 Pro Worlds, but did perform quite well in his home state during the Texas swing with three straight top 20 finishes.
22. Thomas Gilbert’s 15th place in Jonesboro ends a bad stretch of four straight finishes outside the top 40. As Nate Sexton put it during the livestream in Jonesboro, Gilbert has never had a problem getting birdies, it’s limiting the bogeys.
23. Nathan Queen should probably be higher up our list, right? Queen has two fourth place finishes at Silver Series events this season and an 11th place finish at the Texas State Championship. He’s been punching above his weight and the lefty is probably one of the most underrated players on tour.
24. Brian Earhart, friend of Ultiworld Disc Golf, is a player who seems to be right on the cusp of big things, and has seemed that way for a couple years now. He usually finds his stride mid-season, so let’s see what happens in the stretch leading up to Worlds.
25. Bradley Williams doesn’t tour as rigorously as most of us would like, but what we’ve seen from Mr. Smooth Form so far this season has us excited to see him again at Worlds and when the tour moves back to the midwest and east coast.