Wow, Owl P. Jackson’s desk is nice, man. This leather top is very deluxe. I have to admit I’m a little creeped out by the giant stuffed owl, but hey, who am I to judge another writer’s decor? Anyway, I’m standing in for Owl P. this weekend. Here are the top 10 storylines from Bad Rock Creek.

1. The Most Interesting Boring Last Rounds We Have Seen

Playing on a course that seemed suit their games, both Gannon Buhr and Holyn Handley opened up healthy leads in the first round, held off the chasing pack in round two, and started the final round with comfortable buffers. But what should have been a victory lap for both players held interest up until the final few holes as both winners couldn’t slam the door shut. Handley stretched her lead over Cadence Burge to six strokes on the front nine before dropping a couple of strokes in the back nine to make it a slightly edgy finish. Meanwhile, in the weather-shortened nine hole final round for MPO, Buhr, who admitted later to feeling a little unwell on the final day, let his 7 stroke lead over Paul McBeth and Ricky Wysocki drop to three courtesy of a double bogey on hole three, before birdieing four of the last five holes to win over Wysocki by 4 strokes. Could Wysocki or McBeth chased Buhr down if they’d played full 18 holes in the final round? Don’t be ridiculous.

2. Cadence is Coming

Scottish author Irvine Welsh once said that the most crucial moment of your life is the first couple of minutes after someone has given you a nickname. The wrong reaction can leave you with something harder to remove than a tattoo. So, I hope Cadence Burge kept a stoic poker face the first time she heard ‘Chainsaw.’ Unless she likes the nickname that is.

Regardless of what we call her, the flame-haired 18 year old from Huntsville is clearly here to stay. With four top 10 finishes out of five starts in the DGPT this year, Burge is showing that she belongs at the head of the field in FPO. Although still lacking a reliable forehand, Burge led the field in scrambling percentage and was top three putting from C1X, behind who else but Ohn Scoggins and Deann Carey. Burge was perfect from C1X during her hot final round to cap off a weekend where she provisionally averaged 1014 rated golf. Cadence kept the pressure on in the final round and made Holyn earn it.

3. Holyn Brings Her Tool Bag

A discussion broke out among the DGPT commentary team about who’s ‘best was best’ among the FPO field this year. The automatic reply was Kristin Lätt, followed by Holyn Handley, Eveliina Salonen, and perhaps Henna Blomroos. Gentlemen, I disagree – if we are talking straight physical tools, I would put Holyn at the top of that list: length off the tee, forehand and backhand, and putting (yes, putting).

But if it was just about the tool bag, then your local casual round hero would be on the pro tour, wouldn’t they? It’s about the ability to bring that bag and use it again and again under the highest of pressure. And right now? That is where Kristin has no peer. Anyway, fight amongst yourselves on that one.

Holyn brough her full bag to Bad Rock Creek, though, averaging 1018 for the tournament. Even if it looked in the closing holes that she might be getting a little shaky, that’s not how she said she was feeling.

“Honestly it was a pretty fun, chill kinda round,” Handley said after her win. “I didn’t feel any stress there until hitting something early on hole 17. It’s probably the most calm I’ve ever felt in a final day with the lead…the only nerves were on 17 because I knew I was in a little bit of trouble off the tee.”

It’s been an all-podium start to the DGPT this year for Handley and so far she’s averaged a 1002 rating in DGPT events. If she learns to pack that bag more often – look out.

4. Does Gannon Make It Look Too Easy?

Buhr’s course record, 14-under-par 53 opening round was provisionally rated 1095, equalling the best rounds shot this year on the pro tour. He was asked after the round if there had been any high stress shots during it. “Not really,” Buhr said. “Maybe the approach into hole 8 because this year I’ve had a tough time finishing out a round so to get the last four felt really nice. I got into a good groove there and disc golf is interesting like that. Once you’re in that groove, it’s hard to miss. “

What was one of the most dominant performances so far this year came with little fanfare, though. The inclement weather in the last two rounds may have muted the gallery noise somewhat, but DGN commentator Charlie Eisenhood summed it up after the tournament with his comment that, when Buhr is playing well, he doesn’t ride this wave of momentum created by successive 50 foot putts. There’s no raptor legs or shouts of ‘roll tide!’ in a Buhr performance. In fact, he only faced 12 circle 2 putts on a weekend where his average putt was 15 feet.

It was another clinical display from The Iceman.

5. Cue the Jaws Music

In the production of movie Jaws, a series of problems with the mechanical sharks forced Steven Spielberg to just hint at their presence when shooting the film. This ultimately increased their menace. I’ve been reminded of this in the last 12 months as I’ve tracked the return of Ricky Wysocki and Paul McBeth to the top 10. McBeth’s worst finish on the pro tour this year is 11th; he’s had two podium finishes and currently sits second behind Buhr in the pro tour rankings. Wysocki has slid down the standings a couple of times but has still managed two podiums and a top 10.

Both players are clearly looking for a third act to their storied careers and would have no doubt been positively bristling at the talk that they might be washed up and needing to give way to the new generation. But for a few missed clutch putts and a missed fairway or two, both champs would have been close enough to put some real pressure on. Don’t count either out in the majors and world championships this year.

6. The Comeback of Gavin Rathbun

Shoulder pain is the worst. It doesn’t just make it impossible to throw hard, it ruins your sleep and robs you of your sense of humor. So, it was good to see Gavin Rathbun back at the head of the field with a fourth place this weekend after surgery on a torn labrum in 2021, a long rehabilitation, losing his sponsorship, then another setback with a wrist injury before getting on board with Prodigy this year.

7. A Shortened Final Round

On Sunday morning, the FPO field enjoyed quite mild conditions despite the predictions of bad weather coming. One look at the weather radar, though, showed that the Bad Rock Creek was sitting in a little island of calm conditions surrounded by biblical storms on all sides. It was too good to last. The weather wiped out any chance of an afternoon’s play when it finally hit. Lead card competition finally got underway in the late afternoon though. Playing a final nine was a good compromise: the fans got to see some golf, and nobody had to finish the day by torchlight.

8. Welcome Back to the Show, KCWO

One of the longest running tournaments in disc golf and a staple of the PDGA National Tour, the Kansas City Wide Open was a happy return to the show this year. It was virtually impossible to find a negative comment about the tournament, with talk almost universally positive about the quality of the event, the amenities, the overall hospitality, and the Bad Rock Creek course itself. Some are saying it might be the best Midwest course on the tour now and if that’s not true, then it’s at least among the best.

9. The Europeans Taking a Break

They do seem to have work-life balance more squared away, don’t they? Some contenders from across the Atlantic decided to head home for a few weeks to prepare for the first major of the year and break up the grind of the tour. Niklas Anttila paused his winning streak to head back to Finland in MPO, while Linus Carlsson, Jesse Nieminen, and Albert Tamm all stayed stateside. In the FPO, the bulk of the main contenders went home, with Kristin Lätt, Silva Saarinen, Eveliina Salonen, and Henna Blomroos all heading home.

Would they have made a difference? Well, Buhr and Handley’s scores would have taken some special shooting to top. But we all know what a bit of extra pressure can do.

10. Cue the Match Play

With the first installment of the five group play rounds of the DGPT Match Play Championships rained out in Nashville earlier this month, this was the first chance we got to see this competition for the year. There are three more rounds planned, adjacent to the Krokhol Open, LWS Open at Idlewild, and the Green Mountain Championship (plus probably the Cascade Challenge) before the top 8 players in each division face off in an elimination bracket in the Championship at Hornet ’s Nest as the tour concludes. By all accounts, it was an exciting addition to the weekend. Look for this side show to the big show to build momentum and interest throughout the year.