USWDGC Preview
Pierce goes for a record 6th U.S. title as 323 players descend on Madison, WI for the second major of the year
The dog days of summer are officially here, the month of July will host two major championships, two Disc Golf Pro Tour elite series events, and a trip to Europe which includes a silver series event. First up is the U.S. Women’s Disc Golf Championship which will take place in Madison, Wisconsin on two courses across four rounds. Reigning and 5-time USWDGC champion Paige Pierce looks to join Des Reading as the only player to win three titles in a row. To do so she’ll need to defeat 2-time champion Sarah Hokom as well as 2012 champion Catrina Allen. And beyond the veterans there are plenty of younger players vying for their first major including Hailey King, Valerie Mandujano, Missy Gannon, Ella Hansen, and 84 other FPO competitors.
2021 recap
Last year the story was all about Paige Pierce who put up one of the most dominant major performances in PDGA history. Pierce averaged a 1024 event rating, shooting rounds of 1015, 1023 and 1035 on her way to a historic 13 stroke victory. Hailey King shot an incredible 1044 rated second round to pull within two strokes, but ultimately shot 11 strokes worse than Pierce in the final round. Ella Hansen, in her first career major and only the 18th tournament she’d ever played, was able to take home a podium finish. Paige not only led the event in strokes gained from tee to green, she dominated on the putting green making 100% of her C1 putts. Take a look at her stats below, she led in 6 of the 8 main statistical categories.
Pierce's legacy
Paige has five USWDGC titles, two more than any other player. A win in Madison would give her twice as many as Des Reading, the only other player to win three. More importantly it would be Pierce’s 18th PDGA major, or 17th depending on who you ask. Paige won the 2014 USDGC Performance Flight which, despite having an unusual format, was considered an MPO major. Many don’t like to count this win as a major, however Pierce does consider it a major championship and includes it in her total. We learned during the Champions Cup that she has a bet going with Discraft teammate Paul McBeth on who can win 20 majors first, and after the win in Appling earlier this year she sits at 17 by her count to McBeth’s 16. In just a few weeks, Pierce could potentially win the USWDGC and the European Open, putting her at 19 majors and just one win away from her 20th, a grand slam, and her record-setting 6th World championship. Discussing all of that now is very premature, but with two majors in a three week span this season could quickly take on a very interesting narrative for the the GOAT.
The courses
The FPO division will play two rounds at Token Creek and two rounds at Elver Park. In 72 holes they will play 50 par 3’s, 22 par 4’s and no par 5’s. At the 2021 event in central California, across three rounds on three different courses, only 4 of the 54 holes played as a par 4.
Token Creek: 6,266 feet Par 59
Elver Park: 6,576 feet Par 60
Podium picks
Coming in 3rd place I have Catrina Allen, whose smooth hyzer flips should help her navigate the woods and possibly get some eagle looks on the shorter par 4’s. Allen historically does not perform to her standard at this event, having just the one win back in 2012. With shorter course designs the best putter has a great chance to win this event, and while Cat is certainly capable of impressive putting performances her average putting statistics are well below players like Ohn Scoggins.
Which leads right into my runner-up, 2021 Masters World champion Ohn Scoggins. The 41-year-old has a real chance to win this tournament, as long as Ohn can hit the gaps off the tee she is the best putter in the FPO division. And despite her age Scoggins is still improving her game, currently rated 968 as opposed to 954 when she played this event last year. Although she’s coming off a very sub-par performance at the Preserve, if anybody can shake that off and move on to the next one, it’s Ohn.
And of course I’m going with Paige Pierce as the winner of this event, earning her 17th/18th major title. As long as Paige is hitting her lines it’s simply going to come down to putting. If she can consistently put her Fierce’s in the basket like she did last year, she will more likely than not walk away victorious.
Weather report
No rain in the forecast and warm temperatures should make for a gorgeous 4th of July and USWDGC weekend.
If you enjoy this newsletter please consider subscribing to The Players Meeting, your weekly caddie guide to the most interesting stuff in disc golf.
Follow @PDGAStats on Twitter for professional disc golf news and stats
Read “Inside the Numbers” on Ultiworld