👏 We're ALL the disc golf guy

Hello and welcome, this is The Players Meeting. The only newsletter that holds Daylight Savings higher than any holiday.

Let’s get into it.

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PROFILE
Who is The Disc Golf Guy?

It’s widely believed that the hardest-working man in disc golf is Terry Miller. You know, thediscgolfguy, who covers off-tour events, hosts podcasts, commentates on DGN, and can’t resist a dad joke.

But do you really know him? Thanks to the All Six Sides podcast Terry gave us a peek into his deep history.

It all started after finding the sport at a young age, playing constantly, and becoming a competitive pro in 2000. He’d go on to be sponsored by Discraft (2005-2006), Innova (2007-2014), and Legacy before transitioning to content creation full-time.

But that’s not when thediscgolfguy was born. Back in January 2010, he dipped into the Wild West of YouTube with vlogs, reviews, highlights, and player interviews.

Now 14 years and 1,380 videos later, he’s hit the 100k subscriber milestone. But besides that one accomplishment, he has many more and counting…

• Tied Avery Jenkins at a Michigan B-Tier in 2000 where he collected cash for the 1st time

• Has over 24M lifetime views on his channel

• Has attended 19 of the last 20 Memorial Championships

• Has had his hand in designing ~30 courses, mostly spread over the Wisconsin area

• Is a member of the Wisconsin Disc Golf Hall of Fame at Sandy Point - Class of 2011

• Talent scouted many top pros before they were known (e.g. Holyn Handley)

As for his future, Terry isn’t completely sure but knows that he’ll continue to promote disc golf, cultivate his Samui Swine course in Thailand, and be a shoo-in for the World Disc Golf Hall of Fame.

Now with all that in mind, how did he originally earn his reputation? He became known as THE disc golf guy when around friends, parks & rec meetings, and talking to as many people as he could about the sport he loves.

That also makes you, me, and everyone else here the disc golf guy too.

TOUR COVERAGE
Waco Annual Charity Open (DGPT+)

PREVIEW (3/7-10)

When you hear the 4 magical letters of WACO, what comes to mind?

• The BEast course

• Tight corridors and 2 dramatic finishing holes

• McBeth’s 2019 “perfect” round

Well, you know how the saying goes… All good things must come to an end, BUT that’s not to say great things aren’t here.

Starting today, WACO has been elevated to “Plus” status and now has a 4th round and 2nd course. This is the 1st of 4 DGPT+ events this year (Portland, Ledgestone, & DGLO).

Pros will alternate between the historic Brazos Park East and the Lake Waco Golf Club (ending here on Sunday). This new course changes the dynamic of Wacky Waco.

Laco is long, OB-ridden, and has demanding water carries. In the past anything could happen at the half-open, half-wooded BEast, and anyone could win.

But now with more rounds and open holes, the cream should have an easier time rising to the top. The narrative will be different now, so let’s kick off this busy month in TX.

LAST YEAR RECAP

MPO/ For 2 days, Adam Hammes came out guns blazing and led the pack. But even as he aced Hole 8 and shot -9 on Sunday, Kyle Klein smoked the course from Chase Card. His -13, 1084-rated round earned him his 3rd DGPT win.

FPO/ The Final Round reminded us why Waco can get wacky. Ella Hansen was in the driver’s seat to finally grab a win. But she couldn’t find in-bounds for the life of her, and Kristin Tattar was there to pick up the pieces. It was just the beginning of her historic 2023 season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

We’re in the thick of it now. The field’s at full strength, and we get to see the best of the best battle it out.

Speaking of the best, Kristin Tattar is back. She’s starting her 1st 3-month US leg, and everything is right in the world.

Over in MPO, here are 2 players to watch: Corey Ellis & Gavin Rathbun. Fresh off his Down Under tour, Ellis is making his US debut.

After winning 3 out of the 4 New Zealand events, Ellis doesn’t have any rust to knock off and will continue riding that momentum. Rathbun is in a similar boat.

He finished 6th at Chess.com and 3rd at last weekend’s Cancer Playbook Open to earn his spot on Waco’s registration list. Just 7 weeks ago, Rathbun’s season was in question, but now, he’s proved he belongs on Tour even if it’s with an unsponsored open bag.

POWERED BY INFINITE DISCS
Top-Selling Discs

Infinite Discs is the best when it comes to publishing their sales reports. It’s one way to get a gauge for the market as they’re the biggest mover of plastic.

Here’s the Top 5 for February:

1. Axiom Signature Prism Proton Envy

2. Axiom Electron Soft Pixel

3. Axiom Electron Pixel

4. Axiom Signature Electron Pixel

5. Axiom Electron Firm Pixel

MVP/Axiom was the head honcho with the Gybros releases. But not to be overshadowed is Infinite’s own line that matched in the Top 50.

Grab a top seller at Infinite Discs here! And if you missed out on the Pixel hype train, then check out a very close replacement in the Scarab (2|4|0|1).

QUICK HITS
Random Dubs

1️⃣ Do you suffer from early releases off the tee? Does your disc always leak left missing the fairway?

You’re not alone. Mr. WhyAreTrees himself suffers from it too.

During the WACO practice round, Nate Sexton was getting through some off-season rust and couldn’t get a handle on his early releases. Coach Ulibarri stepped in with a tip.

Sexton’s mistake was an early plant foot with his weight shift too far forward. Instead, you want to think about “staying back and touching the toe” when shifting from your back to front foot.

By trying to overcorrect, you’ll find the proper timing between. Don’t worry about slowing down, instead focus on keeping your weight back and then continuing with the follow-through.

2️⃣ After a tournament round, everyone always says, “If only I had made those putts.” This includes touring pros who are monsters off the tee.

On Tour Life, they crunched the numbers. If Aaron Gossage & Eveliina Salonen averaged a top-10 putting stat, what would their 2023 season look like?

The main takeaways:

• Gossage would have won his 1st Tour event plus 1

• Salonen would have 2 wins, but Kristin Tattar would still dominate

• These made-up results are exactly that. In any real matchup, reactions are situational and you never know how it’d play out

Meme of the Week

Thanks for reading today. Get out and shock yourself this weekend!

- Charlie