From the desk of Owl P. Jackson, Esq.
May 8, 2025 by Owl P. Jackson, Esq. in Opinion, Recap
We’ve made it to the first Major of the year! So, buckle up and double-check your lie. In my opinion, these are the top 10 storylines of the 2025 PDGA Champions Cup.
1. Isaac Robinson does it again
“I’ve taken my bows and my curtain calls.”
Isaac Robinson has won his fourth major title. Allow me to rephrase—Isaac Robinson has won his fourth major title in just 24 months. And now for emphasis—Isaac Robinson has won 4 of the last 9 majors. Between the dominance of Gannon Buhr and the consistency of Ricky Wysocki and the raw power of Anthony Barela and the likeability of Simon Lizotte, it can be easy to forget about Isaac. But when he is on, there is no one more unflappable. He steps up to pressure putts and tournament-on-the-line throws and takes less than two seconds before letting it fly.
While I still easily forget about him as one of the best players of today, he has already established a legacy that puts him on lists with the all-time greats. Only 5 players have won more majors than Isaac Robinson: Ken Climo (18), Paul McBeth (17), Dave Feldberg (7), Ricky Wysocki (6), and Barry Schultz (5).
2. Missy Gannon wins her 2nd Major
“You brought me fame and fortune and everything that goes with it; I thank you all.”
Is there actually something to the “Big Money Missy” moniker? Out of her 12 Elite Series/Major wins, half of them have come with a payday of $10,000 or more. Who actually knows if the money has something to do with it? Only Missy. What we do know is that Missy tends to step up during the biggest events of the year. She also shows no signs of feeling the pressure, even when holding a lead over Kristin in the final round of a major. Like Isaac, she isn’t flashy, but she is undeniably clutch.
She said following the win, “I try not to think about the strokes I already have…I just try to shoot the best I can.” Simple.
3. Four days of Paul McBeth
“But it’s been no bed of roses, no pleasure cruise.”
What in the world happened to Paul McBeth? Paul started the tournament with a blistering, 1097-rated 14-under. After the first round, he held a 3-stroke lead and looked like the unstoppable McBeast of previous years. Paul ended the tournament with a total score of -15. 20th place. McBeth has had a great season so far—he has had 4 top-10 finishes and sits at 4th overall in Pro Tour points. But that’s not a great season by the standards we have for Paul—or that Paul has for himself.
Paul has not won an Elite event since July 2023. He hasn’t won an Elite event against a full field since his last World Championship in September 2022. I don’t know if he gets it done this year, but there is no denying that things are more exciting when Paul is in the mix.
4. The foot fault
“I’ve had my share of sand kicked in my face, but I’ve come through.”
If this list was merely ranking the amount of online discourse, Kristin’s foot fault would be number one by a mile. In case you live under mini marker, allow me to summarize. Kristin Lätt committed a foot fault on hole 16 in the final round, and a rules marshal called her out. To an outsider, this doesn’t sound like something that’ll rile the masses. But every disc golfer knows that no one calls anyone on anything—even at the pro level—other than that one insufferable MA3 guy that caught you at your last local C-tier. On top of that…it was close. An eagle-eyed viewer could find 10 more egregious violations throughout the course of a round (and many did). Even more—people love Kristin.
The reality is that Kristin wasn’t going to win either way, but we still have some decisions to ponder. The players have shown us that they will not call rules or time violations with any sort of regularity. So, are we going to add more marshals to call it black-and-white or just stay out of it? Floating in the middle of the two options isn’t it.
5. Calvin Heimburg—too little, too late
“I’ve done my sentence, but committed no crime.”
Ugghhh…a tale as old as time. Why do I love Calvin so? Until he does it, the storyline going into every major will be, “Can Calvin finally get his first major?” He is clearly the best player of all time without one. That storyline was answered by the end of the first round, with Calvin shooting a -3 and finding himself in 40th place. Another defeat is bad enough. But Calvin decided to pour salt in the wound by going full garbage time quarterback in the final round. He shot a -12, three strokes better than the next best of the day, and put himself just enough into the mix that we all have to remember how good he is.
I continue to believe he will get that major win. For the sake of Calvin fans everywhere, I hope it happens soon.
6. FPO characters
“I’ve paid my dues time after time.”
There are three FPO players that need to be mentioned in the story of this tournament.
- Hanna Huynh had the breakthrough performance of her career so far. Her first round -9 put her firmly in second place. She fell back over the course of the tournament but was still able to earn her third top-10 of the season.
- Man, it is so good to have Paige Pierce in contention. Paige has struggled in her comeback from injury. The start to the season has been slow for her, missing the top 10 in every event. But she looked rejuvenated at Champions Cup and was able to finish in 3rd.
- Silva Saarinen did a less punishing version of what McBeth did. After two rounds she was in the lead by 3 strokes. She went only 1 under par over the final two rounds. She did still finish in 4th place but was 9 strokes behind Missy.
7. MPO final round leaderboard
“And we’ll keep on fighting ’til the end.”
Ok, that was fun. Even though we all knew in the back of our minds that Isaac had more holes left, it felt like half the field was within two strokes during the final round. Calvin set the pace. Buhr and Barela made charges. Marwede hung in there. Hammes, Aderhold, Presnell, and Callaway moved up and down the board. At times, it felt like nobody really wanted to win. Any one player could have gotten hot and ran away with it, but no one ever did. Love it. More of this, please.
8. Champions Cup leaves the woods
“And bad mistakes, I’ve made a few.”
In its short history, Champions Cup has earned it reputation as “the wooded major.” Showcasing wooded courses like W.R. Jackson and Northwood Black gave this early season major its own flavor to stand out from the rest. With Jackson still out of commission, Swenson Park stepped in. Sure, it doesn’t fit the wooded theme of years past. But that shouldn’t come as a surprise from the flip-floppiest of Majors. Don’t forget—this tournament has announced and backed out of dates, locations, future plans, and even styles of play.
So, how did Swenson fair as a major host? The idea of alternate layouts was intriguing but ultimately didn’t do much for me. The holes aren’t memorable enough to notice anyways—until the final stretch at least. That’s where this course shines brightest. Plenty of O.B. and water hazards made bogeys abound and no strokes were guaranteed. The last handful of holes made for an awesome ending.
9. Presidents Cup
“I consider it a challenge before the whole human race; and I ain’t gonna lose.”
The annual matchup of USA vs. Europe journeyed across the pond to Californian soil this year. Had Europe finally built the lineup to defeats the Americans? Could the American women hold their own against their European counterparts? I want so badly to love this event. But every year it plays out the same way. I tune in and quickly lose interest.
How can they make it a bigger deal? I think the easiest improvement is to add more women to the event. That seem inevitable at this point. Beyond that, I’m not sure. The event actually has a long history—at least as much as a disc golf event can have history. Don’t worry, though. I’ll be excited to tune in next year again.
10. The season so far
“No time for losers ’cause we are the champions of the world.”
In my mind, Champions Cup marks the end of the beginning phase of the tour. At the first checkpoint, here are some observations:
- Holyn Handley and Kristin have not missed the top 5 at any event so far. They are the two to beat and I don’t expect either of them to miss top-5 more than once.
- Silva has proven she can compete with the full field. But can she win?
- The season feels like a step back for Gannon Buhr after last year, but he is still at the top in Tour points. Most of his wins came late last year, so don’t be surprised if he still wins five events this year.
- There are three people that really need a Major win this year: McBeth, Wysocki, and Heimburg. Only one of them will get one.
Thanks for reading, everyone!
