🏳️ Has the March to Masters begun?

Hello and welcome, this is The Players Meeting. The only newsletter that keeps track of when post-8 pm sunsets end.

Email Read Time: 5 Minutes & 18 Seconds

If you missed Idlewild’s recap, then I got you: Idlewild After Dark

Let’s get into it.

DISCUSSION
The March to Masters

Look, I’ll give it to you straight: You’re not getting any younger, and your peak is likely past. To quote Matthew McConaughey, “I get older, they stay the same age.”

This DGPT season has shown that the level of competition has risen. Any of the top-25 could easily win, and several teenagers are successfully touring full-time.

Is this YouTube Generation changing the pro scene? These young guns started by watching 2015 McBeast Mode, and now, they’re terrorizing the field.

Championed by the older generation, the safe game plan is being exchanged for a birdie-at-all-cost mindset. As discussed on the Fish Golf Brah-dcast, the signs of change are here.

• The DGPT point structure and payouts heavily reward wins

• You need to be on camera to thrive with sponsors, hot rounds = air time

• You need to average ~1020-rated golf to cash in MPO & ~945 in FPO

• Courses demand ~450’ of accurate landing zone distance

Of the older generation, Nate Sexton is a prime example. Since growing his family, he’s cut down his events and now admits the number isn’t going up soon.

In an interview with Fish, the 38-year-old said he’s feeling the “sobering truth” of his skills and age. Life is happening, the motivation to practice has wavered, and he’s looking forward to Masters events.

The game is slowly changing, and those nearing MP40 or having families will thin out their calendars. But like Wysocki, Matty O, and even Uli, veterans on Tour will always be grinding it out and staying competitive.

TOUR COVERAGE
Discraft Great Lakes Open (Playoff)

PREVIEW (8/17-20)

The signs of late summer are all around us: State fairs are kicking off, long vacays are ending, and the DGPT Playoffs start today.

The 1st of 2 Playoff events kick off with DGLO. Insert Jim Mora Playoffs GIF here… JK, I’ll spare you since it’ll be shared no less than 7 times this weekend.

For 4 days, Michigan’s Toboggan course will challenge pros mentally and physically with unmatched ups and downs. In its 41st year, this is Discraft’s main event and they’re pulling out all the stops.

As a Playoff, the field starts to become more exclusive. The invite-only doesn’t come into play here, but in 4 weeks, the field cuts down to the top 72 MPO & 36 FPO at MVP Open.

With competition heating up, there’s more Barbasol money at stake and extra points to be earned. So those on the Tour Championship bubble (36 MPO & 20 FPO) will need to make moves.

Like every year, course changes are made that didn’t exist for McBeth’s 2018 perfect round. Worth noting is the alternating pin positions on multiple holes (finally), Hole 16 is now an island, and Hole 18 has been made harder into a true par 4.

LAST YEAR RECAP

MPO/ 🥇Calvin Heimburg (-25) 🥈Corey Ellis (-25) 🥉Ricky Wysocki (-22)

In front of possibly the biggest US gallery ever seen, Heimburg was poised to lock in his 2nd win of the season. But he missed 2 routine shots, opening the door, and letting Ellis tie.

After 2 drives into the playoff, it was over. Ellis threw OB by a cm, and Heimburg tapped in for the win.

FPO/ 🥇Natalie Ryan (-18) 🥈Ohn Scoggins & Emily Beach (-16)

With a pop-off 2nd round (1007 rated), Ryan created some separation and continued her march to victory. She’ll be back to defend her title as this is part of the United Series.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

As a Michigan native, Kyle Klein knows the Toboggan course better than most. For years, he’s competed on these hills and has a 2019 US AMs win to show for it.

But watching him throw bombs could get boring, so my eyes are on the highest-rated player in the world… Manabu Kajiyama. Traveling from Japan, his 1056 rating will hit the Tour for 3 weeks ending with Worlds.

He doesn’t have the biggest arm and maybe his rating is inflated, but he still stands a chance to break DGLO’s pattern of repeating champs. Kajiyama only has to get past Heimburg’s ludicrous level of play and the event’s history.

POWERED BY POWERGRIP USA
Control Drivers Are Underrated

Earlier this week, Apollo Disc Golf gave an inciteful history lesson on his channel. It was a quick dive into the birth of 9-speed control drivers.

To most historians, the 1st control driver to hit the market was Discmania’s PD in 2008. It quickly became popular amongst pros wanting a cyclable fairway with 0 turn.

6 years later, the Innova Thunderbird could be seen shredding every course by Paul McBeth. Now there are dozens of flavors on the market, and Powergrip USA has them.

1. Kyle Klein’s Discmania Vanguard (9|5|0|2) - Their latest creator series is arrow straight with reliable fade

2. Latitude 64 Royal Grand Honor (9|5|0|2.5) - In one of the best plastics, this recent release is available in 1st run

3. Innova Halo Thunderbird (9|5|0|2) - You can’t go wrong with the classic in a new plastic

THE MACHINE & PLAYER B
Random Dubs

1️⃣ Earlier when I said Discraft was pulling out all the stops, I forgot to mention that Bert Kreischer is in town. He’s the sport’s latest celebrity crush who’s been vocal about his addiction to flinging the disc.

In Kreischer’s honor, DGLO renamed its VIP area to the “Bert Zone”, released commemorative items, and included him in the “Play with the Champs” charity event. That went down yesterday with McBeth, Heimburg, Catrina Allen, and Dickerson.

2️⃣ Thanks to YouTuber Broderic and his viewers. I found a new way to make solo practice rounds more fun.

It’s called Player A vs Player B. It’s simple, engaging, and can create interesting situations.

1. Go to your local course

2. Create a new scorecard on UDisc with Player A and Player B

3. Play out each hole as if you were both

4. Keep score and see who comes out on top

It gets interesting as the throwing order switches due to previous hole scores. When that happens, Player A no longer gets the benefit of using the 1st disc choice and vice versa.

Give it a try the next time you play with yourself.

Meme of the Week

Thanks for reading today. Get out and make the 1st putt this weekend!

- Charlie