October 1, 2020 by Christopher Wiklund in Rankings with 0 comments
In our last mid-season edition of the 2020 Power Rankings, the top-rated player in the world is back on top of the rankings. The Green Mountain Championship and the MVP Open featured some thrilling final rounds, and we’re hoping for more of the same in Arkansas and the Carolinas. With three tournaments over three consecutive weekends, including the only Major of the year, the physical and mental toll will be grueling. It’s all about that grind, and it ain’t over ’til it’s over.
Methodology: We combine an algorithmic objective ranking with subjective ballots submitted by UWDG staff and subscribers. The algorithm uses a standardized scoring model to compare elite events, awards competition and cash bonuses, and features a decay function that gradually phases out past results. Staff and subscribers consider results from the past two months, prioritizing elite events in the U.S. and Europe. The most recent month receives priority over the previous month. Voters may consider other PDGA sanctioned events but observe the following hierarchy: Elite > A-tiers > B-tiers > C-tiers. For this edition of the Power Rankings, we prioritized the following tournaments:
| US Tournament | Dates | Euro Tournament | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| MVP Open | Sept. 11-13 | ||
| Green Mountain Championship | Sept. 3-6 | ||
| Ledgestone Insurance Open | Aug. 13-16 | ||
| Idlewild Open | Aug. 7-9 | ||
| Prodigy Disc Pro Tour - Kuopio | Jul. 31-Aug. 2 |
Let’s get to the results!
Power Rankings Top 10 are available to all Ultiworld Disc Golf readers. Want the entire top 25? You’ll have to be a subscriber.
MPO Power Rankings:
| Rank | Player | Change | Prior |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul McBeth | +3 | 4 |
| 2 | Ricky Wysocki | - | 2 |
| 3 | Calvin Heimburg | +2 | 5 |
| 4 | Eagle McMahon | -3 | 1 |
| 5 | Chris Dickerson | -2 | 3 |
| 6 | Kevin Jones | - | 6 |
| 7 | Garrett Gurthie | +11 | 18 |
| 8 | Nikko Locastro | -1 | 7 |
| 9 | James Conrad | +5 | 14 |
| 10 | Andrew Fish | - |
1. Paul McBeth
Rating: 1055
Last Month: 2nd Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 1st Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish: 1st place – Dynamic Discs Open (DGPT), MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
McBeth reclaims the top spot in our rankings thanks to a second place finish in Vermont and a win at Maple Hill. He is looking like he is peaking as we approach the DGPT Tour Championship and USDGC. McBeth has only missed the podium twice this season.
2. Richard Wysocki
Rating: 1050
Last Month: 3rd Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 2nd Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT), 1st Place- Down East Players Cup (A Tier)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish- 1st Place- Ledgestone
Wysocki stays our #2 player coming down the home stretch. Wysocki looked confident and played with confidence in New England, especially at Maple Hill where he putt at 93%, and led the field in fairways hit, Circle 1 in regulation, birdie percentage, and Circle 2 putts.
3. Calvin Heimburg
Rating: 1044
Last Month: 6th Place-Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 3rd Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill
2020 Best Elite Series Finish: 1st place – The Memorial
Calvin Heimburg jumps back into our top three, looking more like himself at MVP and GMC. Heimburg had looked a little out of sorts at Idlewild, Ledgestone, and DGLO, courses where expectations were high for him. Heimburg is a strong contender for Player of The Year, depending, of course, on how he shows up to finish the year.
4. Eagle McMahon
Rating: 1054
Last Month: 1st Place- Sparkman Monster (B Tier), Idlewild Open (DGPT)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish: 4th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 14th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
McMahon slips from the top spot after missing the podium in Vermont, and a poor showing at Maple Hill, where he finished outside of the top 10 for the first time since WACO. McMahon also withdrew from the Maine State Championship, citing a desire to rest up before USDGC. McMahon is not currently registered for Jonesboro.
5. Chris Dickerson
Rating: 1045
Last Month: 13th Place-Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 5th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT), 1st Place- Madisonville Open (A Tier), 2nd Place- Music City Open (A Tier)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish- 2nd Place- DGLO (DGPT), Idlewild Open (DGPT),
Dickerson’s only finish outside of the top 10 came in Vermont, but he followed it up with his usual high level and consistent play. Dickerson has finished on the podium in three of the six DGPT events he has participated in this season.
6. Kevin Jones
Rating: 1037
Last Month: 1st Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 20th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish- 1st Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT)
“Jones is still in search of his first Elite series win this season.”- us, last time. Well, Jones got his win at GMC, arguably the biggest win in his career, on World Championship-level courses against World Championship-level competition. He struggled at Maple Hill, but who among us wouldn’t trade a win at GMC for that? Looking ahead, Jones has got to be excited. He next plays in his home-state of Arkansas at the Jonesboro Open, and the USDGC, an event at which he has always performed well.
7. Garrett Gurthie
Rating: 1033
Last Month: 14th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 5th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT), 1st Place- Maine State Championship (DGPT Silver Series), 19th Place- Music City Open (A Tier)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish: 5th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
Gurthie’s up and down season continues, and it looks like he should probably just move to New England, right? I’m not biased at all, but I think it’s clear. Gurthie’s only win on the season so far came in Maine, and his first top 10 finish at a DGPT event since pre-Covid came at Maple Hill.
8. Nikko Locastro
Rating: 1031
Last Month: 7th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 7th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT), 19th Place- Music City Open (A Tier)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish- 1st Place- The Preserve Championship (DGPT)
Back to back top ten finishes in New England will keep Locastro in our top 10. Since his win at the Preserve, Locastro has three top 5 finishes, and has only missed the top 10 three times.
9. James Conrad
Rating: 1034
Last Month: 4th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), 14th Place- MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
2020 Best Elite Series Finish- 3rd Place- The Preserve Championship (DGPT)
Conrad is still seeking his first win of 2020, and coming off of a rough stretch in the midwest, Conrad looked like he had found his form in Vermont, but it didn’t stick. Still, Conrad stays in our top 10. The next time we see him will be at Winthrop where he will be defending his US Championship title.
10. Andrew Fish
Rating: 1025
Last Month: 12th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT), 2nd Place- Stafford Open
2020 Best Elite Series Finish: 12th Place- Green Mountain Championship (DGPT), MVP Open at Maple Hill (DGPT)
Making his 2020 Ultiworld Power Rankings debut and rounding out the top 10 is the darling of disc golf Twitter, Mr. Andrew Fish. Fish has only played in two elite series events this year and he played well at both. Fish shot the hot round to start the MVP Open but wasn’t able to carry it through the full event.
Top 25 continues below.
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