Twenty-seven holes might not sound like much, but when every tee pad is full it certainly makes for a very long morning (and afternoon) of disc golf.  Today, 100+ professional division competitors at the Brent Hambrick Memorial Open (BHMO) took on the 27-hole layout of the course that goes by the same name: Brent Hambrick Memorial DGC. The BHMO is the last and most important stop on the 2016 PDGA National Tour, as points from this event cannot be dropped when summing up the total NT Points Standings for the series.

The morning began with a shotgun start at 9:30am EDT under a blue sky and bright sunshine. The players were blessed by great temperatures all day and strangely low wind speeds for the Hoover Reservoir, but the humidity made an already long and warm round slightly more intense. Keeping your hands dry is a must.

McBeth vs. Wysocki: Part….Who Knows

Coming off his win at last weekend’s Ledgestone Open, Paul McBeth #27523 came out of the gates with an early lead. He began the round by shooting five under par through the front nine, two under par through the middle, and started the back nine well. Finishing with his only two bogeys in the last four holes created a window of opportunity, and as we've seen so many times before. Ricky Wysocki was there to take advantage of it.

Current PDGA Professional World Champion Ricky Wysocki #38008 had a hot streak of his own on the front nine, carding birdies on holes 1, 3, 5, 6, and 7 to start the round. He also blazed through the middle of the course, which appears to be the most difficult when observing the hole-by-hole scoring on pdgalive.com. He shot only three under par through the middle, the best score against par by anyone today on the wooded holes 10-18.

Unlike his unofficial archrival Paul McBeth, Ricky finished very strong with three birdies in his last four, giving him the lead heading into Round 2, one ahead of Paul. They'll be joined by Nate Sexton #18824 and James Cole #29690, both of which finished the round with a 74 (seven under par), three off the lead. 

There are plenty of other Open division players well within striking range of the leaders. 2013 BHMO champion Jeremy Koling #33705, like many others, claims to have left a few strokes out there today. “I have to continue to stay focused and the birdies will come, doing whatever I can do to avoid fours (bogeys)," said Koling. "I need to make a few more jump putts and I’ll be right in the mix.”

Catrina Allen Off to An Early But Significant Lead

Catrina Allen #44184, also coming off a win at the Ledgestone Open last weekend, is once again leading the field. Her round of 81 (even par) gives her a cushion of four strokes heading into the second round tomorrow, with 2012 PDGA Professional Women’s World Champion Sarah Hokom #34563 four back and current PDGA Professional Women’s World Champion Val Jenkins #17495 holding the third place position three back of Hokom.

We would normally expect to see Paige Pierce #29190 in the hunt for the top position, but she isn’t competing in the event, opting instead to caddie for her close friend, pseudo-wife, and travel companion, Madison Walker #59431. Joining Catrina, Sarah, and Val on the lead card tomorrow will be Michelle Frasier #24356.

Live scoring will begin bright and early once again on pdgalive.com for another shotgun start at 9:30am EDT, playing the 27-hole Brent Hambrick Memorial course for the second time. Live video coverage will begin shortly after on the SmashBoxxTV YouTube channel, covering the Open lead card for a majority of the round.