From the desk of Owl P. Jackson, Esq.
June 5, 2025 by Owl P. Jackson, Esq. in Opinion, Recap
It was an ending so good (and so painful) that it makes you forget everything else that happened over the four-day tournament. Let’s see if we can do a little review. In my opinion, these are the top 10 storylines of the 2025 Northwest Disc Golf Championship.
1. AB blows the lead
“Yeah, yeah. I had a pretty amazing trip. I mean, it was unreal.”
The painful losses are so much more memorable than triumphant wins. Anthony Barela went into the final hole with a one-stroke lead. Worst case scenario? Gannon gains a stroke on him and they head to a playoff. What followed was tough to watch—a low misfire on the drive, first available on the second shot, barely gets back in bounds on a positioning shot, and leaves the upshot a little loose. And yet, even after all that, Barela still had a 20 footer to send it to a playoff. It hit low right on the chains and splashed out.
The images of these losses get seared into disc golf lore—Gannon hanging his head at LVC while Drew Gibson putts out, Corey Ellis in the shed at Maple Hill, Ella Hansen being embraced by friends on the 18th at Waco. Give credit to the cameramen—they caught an incredible shot of Gannon and AB synchronized swimming after the missed putt. Even more credit—they held the camera on him for what felt like an eternity while he crouched in catcher position with his head in his hands and his bill pulled low over his eyes.
Blowing the lead was the AB narrative, with the European Open Tin Cup moment as the first piece of evidence. Since then, A.B. has rattled off five Pro Tour wins. Hopefully, this was just a quick bump in the road and not a rerouting. On Instagram, A.B. said, “Confidence is still at an all time high, you win some you lose some.”
2. Gannon gets his second win of the year
“I can’t wait to hear about it.”
“No, I have a lot to tell you.”
He kind of backed into this one, didn’t he? In fact, had Gannon not won, we would all be talking about his uncharacteristic total shank on his final hole second shot. But you can’t hold it against Gannon for the way things played out. After a slow start, he birdied seven of the last nine to even create a little pressure on AB. He hasn’t been winning as much as he was during the second half of last season (and how could he?), but once again, he was there at the end. Don’t let the lack of wins fool you. Gannon is still the best player in the world. He has finished in the top 5 in seven straight tournaments.
3. Holyn Handley wins when she should
“Remember when people were content to be unambitious? Sleep to eleven?”
Holyn Handley was supposed to win this tournament. She and Missy were the best players in the field. And of the two, Holyn holds the advantage of the big arm at Glendoveer. Credit where credit is due—Holyn ended up walking in a seven-stroke victory.
Haters (and Kristin lovers) will point out the lack of the European women. And there is some truth to that. But Holyn did what great players do—win when they are supposed to.
4. Hang on, Uli!
“Do you remember the ‘90s?”
Before the final round drama, Paul Ulibarri was the biggest story of the tournament. Uli shot a blistering -11 on day one and found himself at the top of the leaderboard. Could Uli possibly hold on for his first ever Pro Tour win? With two days at Glendoveer, probably not. But it was fun while it lasted. Uli slowly slid down the leaderboard before ending in T-14th. Fresh off the plane from Europe, Uli notched his best finish of the year.
5. A tale of two halves for McBeth
“You could put on bird on something and just call it art.”
McBeth has had a solid season. He has earned his way onto eight lead cards through the first eight events. But what happened this weekend? After the first two rounds at Milo, McBeth sat in 2nd place, 18 strokes under par. Over two rounds at Glendoveer, McBeth shot +1.
Inconsistency has been a major theme over the last few years — and especially this season. Paul shoots up the leaderboard before dropping a clunker…or he sets a course record after falling out of contention. That’s not good enough to win anymore. In a field this deep, there will always be someone who puts together three (or four) solid rounds.
6. 2027 Worlds way-too-early preview
“People were singing about saving the planet; forming bands. There’s a place where that idea still exists as a reality and I’ve been there.”
These courses pair together so nicely. Milo offers a taste of the classic and allows more classic-style players to get in the mix. Look at the leaderboard after the first two rounds and you’ll see names like Uli, McBeth, and Bradley Williams.
Those are names that probably wouldn’t be your first picks on a golf course layout like Glendoveer, which showcases another style of play. Everyone hates golf course disc golf courses, but the PNW is so beautiful it doesn’t matter. The towering firs make any shot interesting. And let’s face it—if every hole is going to feel similar, it might as well be similarly beautiful. Portland fans came out in full force on the spectator friendly track. 2027 Worlds is going to be awesome.
7. Klein claws his way back
‘It’s like Gore won. And the Bush administration never happened.”
Lost in the shadows of madness on the final hole, it is easy to forget about Kyle Klein. Honestly, it is always easy to forget about Kyle Klein, so let me remind you. He started the day five strokes back of our two leaders. While Gannon and AB sputtered and stalled, Klein had himself a 10-under day. He even had a makeable eagle bid on the 18th to send it to a three-way playoff—or so we thought at the time. He finished T-2nd, along with Barela.
8. FPO quick hits
“So from what I can surmise from what you’re positing, it’s like Portland’s almost an alternative universe.”
A couple of notes from the FPO top 10:
- Missy Gannon has looked great, after a slow start to the season. She looked great this weekend too but just couldn’t keep up down the stretch.
- Jennifer Allen finished in a season-best 4th place.
- Congrats to Taylor Chocek, who had a career best 7th place finish!
9. MPO shoutouts
“I gave up clowning years ago.”
“In Portland, you don’t have to.”
A couple of MPO players deserve a shoutout as well.
- Newly masters-aged Nate Sexton finished T10th in his home state. He’s still got it!
- Ezra Aderhold, who is in the middle of a wild world tour, still managed to put together a 10-under final day and T-5th finish. He’s still next up on the “next to win” list.
10. DGPT Points check-in
“The dream of the ‘90s is alive in Portland.”
NWDGC was our second Elite+ event of the year (and way more representative of a top tier tournament than Austin, let’s be honest), which means there are a lot of points to be won, including 200 points to the winner. So, let’s do a quick check of the points standings.
FPO is going to be really interesting to watch. With the field split between continents, top players are grabbing points in their respective regions. When they come together, points will really be valuable. It will also make the player of the year discussion nice and murky. For now, let Holyn, Missy, Kristin, and Silva run those points up.
Gannon and AB are separating themselves from the field by more than 100 points. I think that could very well be the expectation over the next decade. A lot of talk this weekend highlighted their rivalry as the new Paul-Ricky. We’re not there yet, but the forecast looks promising.
