Originally published at: https://discgolf.ultiworld.com/2021/10/05/ultiworld-disc-golf-mpo-power-rankings-us-edition-october-5-2021/
Coverage of the 2021 USDGC and TPWDGC is presented by Skybreed Discs.
A look back at the last five elite events — Delaware, MVP, Green Mountain, Match Play, Music City — and you don’t see a repeat winner in the Open field. Two of those events also had first time Elite Series winners in Connor O’Reilly and Mason Ford. Some top players also elected to skip a couple of events in that stretch, meaning the group we’ll see at this week’s USDGC will be the first time we’ve seen a full strength field in a bit of time. And right in time for the year’s final Major.
Despite not getting a win since Ledgestone, Ricky Wysocki has finished second at the last four traditional format events he’s played and that consistency has seen him retain first in the Power Rankings for another cycle. He’ll be trying to get a monkey off his back at USDGC, and will need to hold off a surging Chris Dickerson who will be trying to defend his 2020 title. And while Wysocki has the forehand to succeed at Winthrop, Adam Hammes is also lurking close by and ready to prove his two Elite Series wins in 2021 make him worthy of becoming a Major winner.
They’re ready to play. We’ve got ’em ranked. Read on to see who else made our top 25 heading into the USDGC.
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 subjective ranking, staff consider 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. how well players pass the eye test (aka “film study”).
MPO Power Rankings
Full breakdowns for each player continue below.
1. Richard Wysocki could cement his case for player of the year with a win at Winthrop. Since the PDGA World Championship, Wysocki has two wins and only missed the podium three times. More important to the two time World Champion that POY accolades is the USDGC ring. Wysocki has never won at Winthrop.
2. Our reigning US Champion Chris Dickerson is, as usual, heating up at the right point in the season. Though he has been more inconsistent this season than we are used to seeing, he seems to have found his grove on the east coast. Heading into the USDGC, Dickerson has three straight top four finishes, including a dominant win at the Green Mountain Championship.
3. Adam Hammes‘ win at Maple Hill was probably the biggest of his career, and while he stumbled a bit at GMC, the young star found himself back on the podium at MCO. He is certainly positioned to make a run for the title this week.
4. Calvin Heimburg hit a bit of a mid season speed bump but has returned to form since the Ledgestone Insurance Open. Many will recall his near win at USDGC last year, when he nearly overtook Dickerson from the chase card in torrential rain, only to fall short on the dreaded 17th. Heimburg is still hunting for his first career major championship.
5. Eagle McMahon‘s last win came at the Great Lakes Open, but has four podium finishes since then. Consistency pays off. In 2016, McMahon finished fourth at USDGC but has never cracked the top 3.
6. Paul McBeth has had a pedestrian season by his standards, which are absurdly high standards and perhaps not the standards those in the media should judge by. Nonetheless, it’s foolish to bet against McBeth, especially when he’s pissed off. And let’s be real, he’s probably pretty pissed off at this point.
7. Like Kaiser Soze, it seems that Matthew Orum is more myth than man. You hear stories about a haberdashed Alabaman who shows up, shreds, and then *poof* he’s gone. At the ten Elite Series events he has played this season he has six top 10 finishes including three top fives.
8. Andrew Marwede hasn’t missed the top 10 since The Preserve Championship, and is your newly minted champ of Northern Michigan.
9. Mason Ford. Taking down your first NT in a playoff over Wysocki earns you a seat at the top 10 table.
10. Kevin Jones struggled in New England, missing the top 20 at both MVPO and GMC, and didn’t make it out of the first round at the DGPT Match Play Championship. Will his strong showing at the Music City Open propel him to an even stronger finish?
11. Bradley Williams has spent the last month and a half on the east coast touring. His performance has been delightfully surprising. He earned four top 10 finishes, and a win at the Greater Hartford Disc Golf Open.
12. Garrett Gurthie. His fourth place finish at MCO is GG’s best finish since way back in February when he landed in fourth at the Las Vegas Challenge.
13. Nikko Locastro has had an up and down east coast swing: an 11th place finish in Delaware followed by two finishes outside the top twenty, then he took fifth at match play and a 10-spot at MCO. Locastro is a former winner at USDGC and is liable to pop one off any given weekend.
14. Kyle Klein has cooled off a bit since his win at Idlewild. Hopefully some time off following the Green Mountain Championship sort things out. Klein finished tied for fifth at the USDGC last year.
15. Alden Harris has finished in the top 20 in three of his last four tournaments, and his tenth place finish at MCO is a career best at an Elite Series event.
16. Three straight top 15s, including a win at Nantucket, have Paul Ulibarri coming into the weekend riding a hot hand.
17. Matt Bell has the scariest PDGA player page photo out there. Ya know what else he has? Three top tens in his last four events played including MVP and GMC.
18. Zackeriath Johnson is quietly putting together a strong final leg of the season, with no finishes outside the top 20 since Ledgestone. Johnson is also the newly minted Kentucky State Champion.
19. James Conrad has only cracked the top 20 once since early August, a third place showing at the DGPT Match Play Championship.
20. Andrew Presnell‘s third place finish at GMC is his best ever finish at a DGPT event.
21. Nathan Queen has finished in the top 20 at five of his last six events.
22. Joel Freeman probably should be higher up this list, as he’s only missed the top ten twice since Ledgestone. He finished in third place finish at Idlewild and seventh at the MVPO.
23. Benjamin Callaway is among those who could be considered break out player of the year, but the consistency just hasn’t been there for him on the east coast.
24. Corey Ellis is the number 1 putter on tour and finished sixth in Delaware but has found himself on the outside looking in, since. In his last three starts, he’s gone 21, 24, 30.
25. Jeremy Koling played well in New England, with three straight top 20 finishes. Hopefully the 2015 USDGC champ has learned his new bag well enough to compete in S.C.