Round 1 Recap
July 31, 2025 by Josh Mansfield in News, Recap
“The big reason that I’ve always struggled at Worlds is that I’ve had a bad round one,” Gannon Buhr said in his post-round interview. “And this year, we’re starting off good.”
It seems though that all eyes will be on the world #1 after his 10-under par effort in round one of the World Championships as we shift over to his favorite course on tour — The Monster in Tampere. Will he continue to play at the level that many expect from the highest-rated player in the world?
The largest comeback from any point in an MPO world championship (since the switch to a five round format) is three strokes. That means one of two things: either history will be made in yet another way in Finland, or the list of possible winners in MPO was reduced to 11 players after round one. For the first time in his career, Buhr finds himself on that list. And the rest of the field should be concerned.
While Buhr had a strong day one, it is Sullivan Tipton who leads the pack. Tipton turned in a 12-under par early in the day: what was thought to be a good round turned out to be a great one. Tipton, rated 1036 (16th highest in the field), has played well at the majors this year. He finished 5th at Champions Cup and was in position to contend on Sunday but shot a lackluster one-under par which pulled him off the pace. The key for Tipton will be maintaining a high level of consistency over the next four rounds if he wants to hold onto his lead.
Adam Hammes (U.S.), Pyry Joutsen (Finland), and Eetu Tuominen (Finland) round out the lead card only one stroke back. This lead card holds no players rated above 1040 and no previous major winners.
The rest of the pre-tournament betting favorites? They’re in the rearview mirror. Buhr and Ezra Robinson are the only players rated above 1040 in the top 10. You then have to go down to 20th to find Niklas Anttila, who missed a gimme putt on hole 18’s green that gave a flash into the putting nerves that the hometown favorite must be feeling.
You have to drop down to 39th place Ricky Wysocki (-5) to find your first world champion on the leaderboard. Isaac Robinson (52nd) and Paul McBeth (65th) join Ricky in the club that would have to overcome more than double the previous comeback record if they want to find themselves at the top at the end of the weekend.
While they are grateful for the marathon nature of the Worlds format, they are going to have to right the ship immediately moving over to The Monster if they want any chance of a possible comeback.
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In FPO, Henna Blomroos finds herself in the lead at another major. Like at the USWDGC, Henna managed to play well enough on the green to avoid sabotaging electric throws from the tee. Henna has the physical skills, even considering the putter, to win this tournament. The biggest question mark is her mental game and whether she has the fortitude to overcome the inevitable struggles on the green. Despite her solo lead, it was hard not to feel like Henna wasn’t the biggest story of the day.
The top five players in the world, who collectively own the three majors this season and 12 in a row dating back to 2022, had a disappointing performance. Missy Gannon’s tin cup 14 on hole 16 has her sitting in dead last for the top FPO pool. Holyn Handley and Eveliina Salonen, who both sit at 3 over par (T-28), both tallied five OB strokes in the first round. Silva Saarinen was the lone bright spot among the “big five,” shooting a four down and earning a spot on the lead card for round 2.
Perhaps the biggest storyline though was Kristin Lätt and her struggles. The putting woes continued, with Latt putting 50% C1x and 0% C2. Despite not looking like her normal self still, Kristin managed to make it to the clubhouse at even par, sitting inside the top 10. But you can’t help but be concerned. In an Instagram post prior to the start of the tournament, Lätt shared that she has had anxiety attacks every night since the European Disc Golf Festival, where she lost to Saarinen in heartbreaking fashion. Then in her post round interview yesterday, nearly in tears, she expressed the difficulties with her mental health, adding that she may “not even finish the tournament.” Even with the challenges, Latt has the skills to still find herself in contention on the final day. But she is going to have to make it there first, and it seems that the marathon five rounds, what once used to be an undeniable advantage for the world number one, may be the greatest obstacle for her to overcome.
Quick Hits
- Two lightning delays disrupted MPO play in the afternoon. Expect further lightning delays as the week goes on, a test in the mental resilience of players to overcome disruption to their rounds.
- Finland hold six of the top twenty spots on the leaderboard. Expect strong home crowd reactions for those players as the week goes on.
- Finland turned out on one of the largest crowds the DGPT has ever seen on a weekday round, and certainly for a round 1. Tampere has more restrictive spectating options, but expect the projections of 10,000 players on championship Sunday to be a very possible outcome.
