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Directors Poll: Week 8

Directors Poll: Week 8

Change at the top – but nowhere else – as the tour prepares to head overseas

Tuesday, July 3, 2018 - 11:44

Austin Hannum broke into the top 20 after his fourth-place tie at the Utah Open. Photo: Alyssa Van Lanen / DGPT

Well, that was fun while it lasted.

After Eagle McMahon finally seized the top spot in the Directors Poll, Ricky Wysocki took it right back after an 1105-rated final round at the Utah Open. It's hard to fault the directors for giving the honors back to the reigning PDGA World Champion – he found the accuracy off the tee that had been stymying him all season and ironed out some kinks on the green – but it's likely a little tougher for McMahon to swallow. After all, he tossed a 1087-rated final, his second-best of the 2018 season, and still came up short.

With the world's top three pro disc golfers all rated over 1040 and hitting their midseason stride, our next poll – after the Konopiště Open, this season's European Major – should be a fun one. Other observations from this week:

  • Stasis was the name of the game in the rest of the top 10, as well as nearly all of the Open Women's division. Only James Conrad, who tied for sixth in Utah, was able to gain much ground.
  • Austin Hannum finally cracked the top 20, and he didn't just sneak in. The Oklahoma pro hasn't lit up the stat sheet in 2018, but his recent play at golf courses have upped his profile. His fourth-place tie in Utah comes on the heels of a final round push at the Santa Cruz Masters Cup that put him into a tie for fifth.
  • Paige Bjerkaas is on the tail end of her summer mini-tour, and she's going out in fine fashion. She had the best OB rate in the 14-player Open Women's field at Utah, and that helped her to a second-place tie.

Open

Rank Player PDGA # Previous Change
1 Ricky Wysocki 38008 2 ↑ 1
2 Eagle McMahon 37817 1 ↓ 1
3 Paul McBeth 27523 3 --
4 Simon Lizotte 8332 4 --
5 Drew Gibson 48346 5 --
6 Nate Sexton 18824 6 --
7 Garrett Gurthie 13864 7 --
8 James Conrad 17295 10 ↑ 2
9 Nate Doss 11794 8 ↓ 1
10 Jeremy Koling 33705 9 ↓ 1
11 Philo Brathwaite 26416 11 --
12 Paul Ulibarri 27171 12 --
13 Kevin Jones 41760 14 ↑ 1
14 Josh Anthon 17946 13 ↓ 1
15 Seppo Paju 36744 15 --
16 Austin Hannum 68835 New --
17 Chris Dickerson 62647 16 ↓ 1
18 Anthony Barela 44382 New --
19 Bradley Williams 31644 17 ↓ 2
20 Joel Freeman 69509 New --

Open Women

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Paige Bjerkaas kept it between the lines in Utah. Photo: Alyssa Van Lanen / DGPT

Rank Player PDGA # Previous Change
1 Paige Pierce 29190 1 --
2 Catrina Allen 44184 2 --
3 Sarah Hokom 34563 3 --
4 Lisa Fajkus 32654 4 --
5 Jessica Weese 50656 6 ↑ 1
6 Valarie Jenkins 17495 5 ↓ 1
7 Madison Walker 59431 7 --
8 Jennifer Allen 15354 8 --
9 Paige Bjerkaas 33833 New --
10 Vanessa Van Dyken 62325 9 ↓ 1