⚖️ "The Gang Sues a 17-Year-Old"

Hello and welcome, this is The Players Meeting. And just like that, the season’s off to the races. Remember it’s a marathon not a sprint, but TPM is here for you.

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If you missed last week, then I got you: 1,400hrs of Disc Golf

Let’s get into it.

PRODIGY DISC, INC V. BUHR

Someone woke up on Feb. 15 and chose violence. Lawsuit violence.

By Sunday afternoon, All-Stars was already a thing of the past. Ultiworld reported on the bombshell that is Prodigy and Gannon Buhr’s falling out.

Let’s unpack the alleged details, school lunchbox style:

• NOV 2022: Gannon Buhr and Michelle Nesheim (mother) requested a release from Prodigy

• JAN 13: Buhr invoked a 30-day clock on contract termination due to undelivered promises

  • No Rookie of the Year commemorative discs

  • No sales reports to verify disc royalties

  • No signature disc selection

  • Poor disc quality, inconsistency, and flashing

  • Unpaid bonuses ($500)

• In response, Prodigy paid the $500, sent sales reports, and attempted to renegotiate with a quadrupled compensation package

• FEB 13: Buhr announced his departure from Team Prodigy

• FEB 15: With All-Stars in 2 days, Prodigy filed a lawsuit for breach of contract against Buhr and his mother

• FEB 16: 1st court hearing was held and a follow-up is scheduled for MAR 3rd

  • Prodigy wants to force Buhr to comply with his current contract, not sign with another sponsor, OR pay fair damages and walk (a sponsor could front the bill)

  • Without him, they estimate a $1.5M sales loss and irreparable brand damage

Once the news dropped, the DG world went wild. The memes streamed in, and Drew Gibson tweeted that this happened before… Allegedly, Prodigy failed at suing Chris Dickerson when he switched to Discraft.

Bottom line: Buhr has confirmed that he’ll continue to wear and throw only 5 Prodigy discs at Vegas. This could get ugly for both sides but many speculate the parties will eventually settle out of court.

Either way, Prodigy is trying to set a precedent but seems to have already lost in the people’s court.

LAS VEGAS CHALLENGE

PREVIEW (2/23-26)

Now that the vacation is over, we can finally get our hands dirty with the new season. Starting tomorrow, the 1st Elite event kicks off in Las Vegas, NV.

For 4 days, 540 players (120 MPO, 60 FPO, 360 A-Tier attendees) will battle ball golf courses in cold, wet, and windy conditions that are becoming the norm. But for the 1st time in a while, each division only has to prep for 2 courses.

On PDGA Radio, the TDs explained that 4 holes on each course changed while others saw minor adjustments. Mainly, OB was added to the Innova course to prevent pros from getting away with poor shots.

FPO will play the Infinite & Innova courses, while MPO will play Millennium & Innova. The pros are finally spared, but we viewers still have to wrap our heads around 54 holes that blend together.

LAST YEAR RECAP

MPO/ 🥇Drew Gibson (-39) 🥈Gannon Buhr (-39) 🥉Calvin Heimburg (-36)

I’ll pass the reins to Gibson, as he summed it up perfectly in his victory interview…

FPO/ 🥇Catrina Allen (-30) 🥈Paige Pierce (-29) 🥉Kristin Tattar (-25)

The 2 generational greats went back and forth all Final Round, but when it mattered Pierce threw OB. It was another epic battle for the ages that fell in Allen’s favor.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Besides the giant microscope on “5-Disc Gannon” and Wysocki out on injury, McMahon does well in Sin City.

With both Tattar & Pierce missing, there’s a huge opportunity for anyone to grab their 1st 2023 win. Will the Finnish Phenoms get over the putting yips or is another FPO superstar waiting in the wings?

FRESH PLASTIC

Sponsored by Powergrip USA… A PRETTY GOOD disc golf shop.

👉 Powergrip’s Highlight: Ledgestone Wave 1
It wouldn’t be a new season without the relentless waves of Ledgestone drops. The 1st of 2023 is available now.

With every wave comes long-forgotten molds or unique plastic paired with Discraft go-tos. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Jawbreaker Raptor (9|4|0|3) - How many kicks does it take to get to the center of a jawbreaker? One, two, three tree kicks will get this OS fairway going straight

• Rubber Blend Zone (4|3|0|3) - I don’t throw this around lightly, but every bag should have a base-blend Zone. The journey of beating in an OS approach disc is priceless

• Z Swirl Nebula (5|4|-0.5|2) - Looking for a compliment to your Buzzz but hate how a Buzzz OS feels? Welcome to your next disc

If one-off runs aren’t your style, then Discmania’s best molds are available in stock S-Line starting at 11AM ET today (2/22). The FD, PD, and DD3 are getting the treatment in this perfectly firm, grippy, and silky plastic.

Unlike C-line, these discs won’t take forever to beat in and will mostly have noodle-arm stability out of the box. To Colten Montgomery, this plastic “reminds [him] of the old stuff.”

RANDOM TRIPLES

1️⃣ It was a tale as old as time. All-Stars showcased the rivalry of the last decade - Mr. 6X vs. Self-Proclaimed #1. And it was epic. Nope, Ricky Wysocki dropped out the morning of due to a wrist injury. Corey Ellis took his place, and Buhr was promoted to captain.

Regardless, All-Stars was fun but with its format, recapping it can be a drag. Instead, watch these highlights that led to Team Catrina and Team Ricky edging out Ohn and McBeth.

2️⃣ Last week, the DGPT sent out a rules reminder to all its players with the season starting. Notably, this stood out…

With LVC tomorrow, how or if they actually enforce this could come into play with the undulating greens and gusty winds.

3️⃣ Jaani Länsiö is the mastermind behind @jaanigoingplaces & DG Spin Doctor. He’s been creating form content for over a year, but recently switched to English and his notoriety exploded.

His latest explains how timing is the #1 issue everyone has. Here’s his simple approach to proper timing:

1. Fully coil your body with the backswing

2. With a weightless backfoot, jam your front leg into the ground

3. Only then does your body uncoil and boom goes the disc

Check him out for simple videos about dispelling myths and pushing “The Brace” gospel.

MEME OF THE WEEK

In case you’re new here, TPM bumps up to 2x/week starting Tuesday (2/28). With the ever-increasing content, we give you what you need to know in only 5 min.

Get in. Get out. And play more disc golf. Happy 2023 Season!

- Charlie