🌍 Make your own Euro Tour

Hello and welcome, this is The Players Meeting. The only newsletter where National Disc Golf Day (8/5) is more than just the 1st Saturday of August.

Email Read Time: 5 Minutes & 38 Seconds

If you missed MAO’s recap, then I got you: Mid America Open’s Curse

Let’s get into it.

DISCUSSION
European Disc Golf

Well, ladies and gents, that’s another month in the books. The Europe Swing is over. McBeth is done spotlighting lesser-known events. And sadly, the sun sets earlier each day.

The past month and a half was an enlightening time for European disc golf. Watching coverage felt like a dream, but not because the broadcast was in the middle of the night.

Here are 3 reasons why the Europe Swing will continue to grow and why you should plan your own Euro Trip…

1/ The Courses

• From castle layouts to resorts, every course looked magical

• They’re typically shorter, more difficult, and more wooded

• Playstyles moved away from “chuckie cheeser ball golf courses” to touchy midrange shots

• You can go destination shopping with the many disc golf heavens

  • Neighboring countries of Norway, Sweden, & Finland have 4 courses in UDisc’s Top 10

  • Heinola, Finland has the “Disneyland of disc golf” with multiple courses and other amenities

2/ The People

• The European player base is rapidly growing

  • Last year, Finland’s University of Jyväskylä found that disc golf was the 3rd favorite summer activity amongst 11 to 15-year-old boys

• It’s seen as a legitimate sport

  • In February, Kristin Tattar received the Estonian National Sports Award (the industry’s highest recognition)

  • Väinö Mäkelä is practically a Finnish celebrity with his social media following

• The future is bright with unknown teenagers popping onto DGPT lead cards

3/ The Events

• Every event has set the bar high when it comes to amenities, professionalism, and player treatment

• Despite high expenses, more US players made the trip than ever before

• After 8 weeks there, McBeth plans to do it again next year. On The Nick & Matt Show, he also shared that “quite a few Americans think they’re going to do it as well.”

So what are you waiting for? Europe’s magical woods, people, and delightfully warm summer are just a flight away.

TOUR COVERAGE
Ledgestone Open (Elite+)

PREVIEW (8/3-6)

We’re officially in the thick of summer. Today kicks off the 2nd Elite+ of the season and a 3-week stretch of straight bangers: Idlewild followed by DGLO.

But forget them for now… It’s time for the Ledgestone Open. Every year, this event gets put on a pedestal for good reason.

Ledgestone is a foundational event on Tour. It takes things to another level and innovates now-popular features…

• Huge AM & Pro tournaments: 2k AM players & 4k spectators expected

• Unique event fundraiser discs… Ledgestone Waves seemingly never end

• Big pro payouts and donations to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

• 4 days, 2 different style courses: Impossibly hard Woods (Northwood Black) & OB-heavy Open (Eureka Temp for MPO)

• The only FPO-dedicated course on Tour: Sunset Hills

The list goes on and on as does the history. It was home to the 2019 Worlds where McBeth & Pierce both earned their 5x’s.

Now it’s making history again. 9 days after the announcement, Ledgestone will be the 1st ever United Series event.

LAST YEAR RECAP

MPO/ 🥇Ricky Wysocki (-26) 🥈Paul McBeth (-22) 🥉Gannon Buhr (-21)

Going into “blackout mode,” Wysocki separated himself from the field in the final round. This win completed his 3-peat (2020-2022) and solidified his dominance at these courses.

FPO/ 🥇Missy Gannon (-19) 🥈Ohn Scoggins (-13) 🥉Fajkus/Tattar/Pierce (-12)

Gannon’s consistency won out over Tattar with nerve pain, Pierce missing fairways, and Scoggins too far behind. She averaged a 991 rating over the weekend.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

With McBeth out from a shoulder injury, there are many names that could end on top…

• AB wants redemption for his European Open blunder

• Wysocki is primed and ready to go for the 4-peat

• Lizotte should be fresh off his month-long break

• All the Prodigy boys are back from their elongated Euro Trip

This weekend will be a roller coaster of emotions for the super competitive field. Both MPO courses have lots of potential heartaches mixed with ace runs galore.

Last year, there were 6 aces and 2 throw-ins: Emerson Keith, Ezra Aderhold, Chandler Fry, GT Hancock, Erika Stinchcomb, Matt Bell, Buhr’s drop zone throw-in, & Holyn Handley’s 333ft Hol-batross.

POWERED BY POWERGRIP USA
Discmaniacs Assemble

Now through Sunday, Powergrip USA is having its largest Discmania sale yet. Sales range from 28% off Signature Series to 40% off stock C-Line discs.

These are the discs I’m eyeing up…

• 41% off: Razor Claw 2 (4|2|0|3) - You can never have too many OS approach discs, and this one fits my hand just right

• 48% off: Evolution Neo Splice (9|3|0|4) - From aggressive skips to FH rollers, this mold is an absolute necessity for any bag

• 41% off: C-Line DD3 (12|5|-1|3) - Cloud Breaker, Destroyer, Zeus, or whatever you want to call it… You always need a go-to distance driver

RULES & ELECTIONS
Random Dubs

1️⃣ On Monday, the PDGA dropped its “Proposed Rule Changes for 2024.” It’s long and ranges from small changes to adjusted Tour Standards.

Here are a few you might care about or find interesting:

• Last year’s “Moving Obstacles” changes are being walked back. Instead of only clearing obstacles in your “stance”, you can clear anything behind your lie

• Everyone has to keep score for the card

  • Pros: Fairer, limits mistakes

  • Cons: Longer rounds, more work for TDs

• You must be a member to play C-Tiers. 1-round, 1-day D-Tiers will replace them

  • Pros: Easier to get into local events

  • Cons: Gatekeeps new players from competing

• Then the changes meant for the Pro Tour

  • Pace of Play - Groups can be issued violations by Tournament Officials

  • Aggregate Playoffs - Instead of only sudden death, playoffs can be a set of 6 or fewer holes

If you have an opinion on any of these, then shoot it to [email protected] by 8/15. None of these are set in stone, but they’ll likely go through unless there’s tons of backlash.

2️⃣ Speaking of the PDGA, the Board of Directors Election results were published. While Geoff Hungerford & Nate Heinold being re-elected was news, the interesting stuff came from the stats.

• Out of 266k members, only 119k are active and eligible to vote

• Only 17,720 ballots were returned, making that under 15%

• This is below last year’s rate of 18% (19,182 ballots)

• Newcomer James Koizumi was 248 votes shy of edging out Heinold

• The voting was divided - 4 out of the 6 candidates were separated by 6%

While it’s unfortunate (depending on who you ask), it’s clear that participation is not on the rise. Some say it doesn’t matter or they don’t care, but by the numbers, your votes do matter.

Meme of the Week

Thanks for reading today. Touch grass and celebrate disc golf this weekend!

- Charlie