Jesse Austin, Author at Disc Golf Fanatic

With the 2024 Disc Golf Pro Tour season set to start in a little over a week, here are my power rankings for the top 50 disc golfers on the tour for the upcoming season. This is just for fun; I enjoy discussing professional disc golf and would love to see the opinions, disagreements, and predictions of others in the comments. Photo by DGPT. A few things to point out about my rankings: There are some very good players I left off my list because they don’t play anything close to a full schedule on the DGPT. Guys like Lehtinen, Leiviska, Sexton, Joseph Anderson, Nieminen, Heinanen, Withers, and Barsby are all good enough to make this list but they don’t play enough (US)DGPT events. I’m sure I probably missed some good choices, especially towards the tail end of the list. Also I’m probably not fully aware of some young guns that may burst onto the scene this season or injuries some players may currently have.There have also been some guys who made a name for themselves a couple years ago drop off (i.e. Gilbert, Hannum). I didn’t do a list for FPO because I don’t know enough about FPO to make a list beyond the top 5 competitors or so and it would be a disservice to those athletes for me to pretend I know what’s going on in their division. No, I didn’t use Chat-GPT or AI. I wasted hours of my time doing this because I’m a sports/disc golf nerd and just enjoy these discussions. My TOP 50 Disc Golf Pro Tour Power Rankings 1. Calvin Heimburg - Mr. Consistency, If there’s a DGPT event Calvin is most likely on the podium. He’s the highest rated player in the world for a reason (1052), can he put it all together this season and be even more dominant in the win column? And more importantly can he win his first major? Photo by DGPT. 2. Gannon Buhr - It feels like he’s been on the scene for a while now, but he’s still only 18 years old. It’s incredible what he’s accomplished at such a young age. He took the leap everyone was waiting to see by winning USDGC at the end of 2022 and carrying that momentum over to 2023 by having the most wins on tour with 5 (plus an additional A tier at Memorial). What will 2024 look like for the young phenom and his new sponsor, Team Discmania? Photo by DGPT. 3. Isaac Robinson - The World Champ! This dude is as cool as the other side of the pillow (RIP Stuart Scott!) He’ll probably never throw quite as long as the other top golfers but it doesn’t really seem to matter. He is insanely accurate, a great putter, and just seems to do everything well. Most importantly he seems to have whatever gene that enables someone to do better under pressure. Look for him to bring even more confidence into 2024. Photo by DGPT. 4. Ricky Wysocki - Ricky is one of the best disc golfers of all time. In fact, you could make an argument that he is 3rd best behind McBeth and Climo, but certainly top 5 at worst. Regardless, he’s had an up and down couple of seasons because of injuries and his battle with Lyme, but when he’s healthy and playing, he is still as good as it gets. Most of you probably don’t realize that Wysocki has the most Elite Series/Major victories over the last 2 seasons(7). He does everything well, and when he’s on he is tough to beat. Look for him to bounce back this season in a big way if he can stay healthy. Which discs is Ricky Wysocki using? Check out his in the bag here - https://discgolffanatic.com/ricky-wysocki-in-the-bag-team-dynamic-discs/ https://discgolffanatic.com/ricky-wysocki-in-the-bag-team-dynamic-discs/ 5. Eagle McMahon - It’s July 2021, halfway through the 2021 DGPT season. Eagle has won 4 elite series events during the first half of the season, and it seems the most talented disc golfer ever is finally putting it all together and becoming the best player in the world. One torn labrum later suffered during a video production piece for Jomez and we have had a diminished version of Eagle ever since. That diminished version has still been pretty damn good though, out dueling McBeth for the European Open title in 2022 and last season winning 2 DGPT silver series eventsand finishing top 5 in 11 events on tour. I was tempted toput Eagle at 3 because I still think he’s the most talented disc golfer in the world and he finally got his labrum repaired. But we’ll have to wait and see how he recoversfrom surgery and how he plays with a late start to the season. Let’s not forget he’ll also be adjusting to a new sponsor and bag. Photo by DGPT. 6. Simon Lizotte - The most likable and marketable disc golfer of all time… Simon has been very good for a very long time, but these last 2 seasons he has been handling business and winning elite series events. Wysocki is the only golfer with more Elite Series/Major wins over the last 2 seasons. If Simon can play more consistently this season, he could be in the mix for player of the year. Here's a list of all the discs which Simon Lizotte is using, continue reading here - https://discgolffanatic.com/simon-lizotte-in-the-bag-team-mvp/ https://discgolffanatic.com/simon-lizotte-in-the-bag-team-mvp/ 7. Kyle Klein - Elite Series victory at WACO, Major Victory at USDGC, 2nd place at the Pro Tour Championship, 2nd place at the European open, 6th place at Worlds, AND 9 top 5 finishes overall on the pro tour last season… Kyle quietly had a hell of a year last season, and has a really solid argument to be placed even higher than this. I wouldn’t fault anyone for placing him as high as 4th. But I want to see the encore first before putting him in the top 5. Photo by DGPT. 8. Paul McBeth - This could be a controversial placement for arguably the greatest disc golfer of all time. Some will have him higher but some will have him lower. But the facts are he is still one of the highest rated disc golfers in the world. He cleaned up on the European tour last season, and he looked great at times throughout the year. On the flip side, this was his worst season on the (US)DGPT since before he was a 1st time World Champion. He didn’t look good or place well in DGPT events, and he snapped his streak of 10 consecutive years finishing 1st or 2nd at Worlds. We’ll see if he can put this season behind him and get back to the Paul McBeth we’ve become accustomed to seeing over the last decade. Paul McBeth IN THE BAG 2024 – Team Discraft. Check out the full list of discs here - https://discgolffanatic.com/paul-mcbeth-in-the-bag-team-discraft/ https://discgolffanatic.com/paul-mcbeth-in-the-bag-team-discraft/ 9. Anthony Barela - One of the most exciting players on tour to watch, Anthony’s combined distance when you add BH distance, FH distance, and roller distance together is most likely only rivaled by pre-injury Eagle. Anthony still hasn’t gotten that big win on tour yet, with not a single Elite Series or Major win to date, but he is always in the mix and had a huge podium finish at Worlds last season. I don’t think anyone would be surprised if this is the year that Anthony puts together the mental game and the putting to reach the next level and be truly elite. Anthony Barela IN THE BAG – Team Discraft. Check out his in the bag here - https://discgolffanatic.com/anthony-barela-in-the-bag-team-discraft/ https://discgolffanatic.com/anthony-barela-in-the-bag-2023-team-discraft/ 10. Cole Redalen - Hot Take: I wouldn’t be surprised if Cole becomes “that dude” on tour… or HIM as the kids like to say. He dominated at Ledgestone for his first Elite Series victory on tour, and he truly played great all season long. He had 5 podium finishes in Elite Series Events last season. Only a few golfers had more. His career trajectory is pointing straight up at this point and at only 19 years old, it’ll be fun to see what he does next and where his career goes from here. Photo by DGPT. Who earned the most tournament prize money in 2023? Fun fact! To make it to the TOP 10 list a player needed to earn at least $66,755, up +$11,944 from last year. Check out the full list here - https://discgolffanatic.com/top-10-prize-money-earners-in-disc-golf-in-2023 https://discgolffanatic.com/top-10-prize-money-earners-in-disc-golf-in-2023/ 11. Matthew Orum - Did I say Simon was the most likable disc golfer? I guess that’s debatable with this guy on tour. They say Matty O is your favorite disc golfer’s favorite disc golfer, and when he took down the MVP Open towards the end of last season, this fact was evident by all the reactions across the disc golf community. With his 1047 rating and recent elite series victory, Matt is showing that he’s still a dominant force on tour after all these years. With no signs of him slowing down, look for that to continue in 2024. Photo by DGPT. 12. Chris Dickerson - Moving Chris out of the top 10 most likely isn’t going to be a popular opinion. He has a lot of loyal fans. He was right up there as the 5th best player in the world behind the 1050 boys (Paul, Ricky, Calvin, and Eagle) during their reign a couple years ago, But the fact is, he doesn’t have a win on tour since April 2022 at the Champions Cup, and he only had 2 top 5 finishes on tour last season. Only 2… With so much young talent pushing forward, Chris needs to show he can have some better finishes than he’s had over the last 2 seasons to make his way back into the top 10. Photo by DGPT. 13. Niklas Anttila - The best non-US disc golfer in the world currently. Niklas is very consistent and almost always a threat for a top 10 finish in the biggest events on tour. At only 23 years old, he is only one of a handful of golfers in the world currently rated 1040 or higher and appears ready to take the next step in his game and start competing for victories on tour. Photo by Discmania. 14. Corey Ellis - Corey is now a major winner after taking down the European Open last season by holding off guys like Klein, Aderhold, McMahon, Heimburg, Wysocki, and Barela who were hot on his trail. Corey has quietly become one of the best putters in the world (especially from C2) and when his overall game is on can compete with anyone at any time, but like a lot of young golfers he just needs a bit of a bump in consistency in his game overall to reach that next level. Photo by DGPT. 15. James Proctor - With a great start to last season, James really inserted himself into talks about being top 10 in the world. He cooled off quite a bit in the second half of the season creating some doubt. Was he just on a hot streak? Or does he belong as a truly elite gofler? This will be a “prove it” year for James where he will look to build on his success from last season. Photo by DGPT. 16. Ezra Robinson - Isaac’s little brother Ezra burst onto the scene last season and had some great finishes while flashing tons of potential. It’ll be interesting to see if he can create a rivalry with his brother by taking the next step in his career and competing for more podiums finishes. Photo by Instagram @ezra_robinson_02 17. Alden Harris - Another young disc golfer with considerable talent. He’s part of the right group considering his best friends are Gannon, Isaac, Ezra R., and the rest of that bunch. We’ll see if he can keep getting better and keep up with his buddies. Photo by DGPT. 18. Joel Freeman - He isn’t flashy, and he’s never won on tour. But he is consistently a good golfer who can put together a streak of solid finishes. Of everyone on this list, I feel like Joel is the most settled into his spot. I don’t anticipate a lot of variance in either direction for his career and expect him to continue to be a top 25 disc golfer in the world, but most likely never top 10 or even top 15. Photo by DGPT. 19. Kevin Jones - KJUSA! Always a crowd favorite, and certainly the tour’s best (and maybe only?) DJ… but he never seemed to truly reach his full potential as a disc golfer. Of all the big names on tour I question his love for the game the most. Once upon a time he seemed to have all the tools needed to compete at the highest level, let’s see if he can get back there again in 2024. Photo via Kevin Jones Instagram. 20. Bradley Williams - Possibly the smoothest backhand in the game (Though Redalen may have something to say about that) and the consumate professional these last few years, Bradley is a fundamentally sound golfer who when he puts it all together can compete for top 10 finishes on tour. Every once in a while he looks truly elite, like he did with his win at the preserve in 2022 and when almost degeating Klein at USDGC last season. Photo by DGPT. 2024 Disc Golf Pro Tour Schedule The 2024 season will have a total of 29 events! Including 4 Majors for both MPO and FPO divisions, and six events will be held in Europe, showcasing the global growth of the sport. Continue reading here - https://discgolffanatic.com/2024-disc-golf-pro-tour-schedule/ https://discgolffanatic.com/2024-disc-golf-pro-tour-schedule/ 21. Aaron Gossage - Exciting player to watch when he’s on. One of the best forehands in the game and came so close to earning a World’s victory against Paul Mcbeth in 2022. Goose has done a good job of parlaying the success from that tournament into consistent succes on tour with a handful of top 10’s last season. Photo via Discraft. 22. Adam Hammes - Once considered a top player on tour, Adam has put together a couple of lackluster seasons recently with a few flashes of brilliance mixed in (like his victory at the Portland Open) I don’t think he has the physical tools to ever be a tier 1 pro again, but I’m sure Adam looks forward to attempting to prove doubters like me wrong. Photo by DGPT. 23. Drew Gibson - Drew is an interesting player to rank. He has one of the best backhands in the game, if not the best. And he was considered borderline top 10 in the world after his thrilling victory in Vegas over Buhr. But since then he’s had some dissapointing finishes and most recently an injury keeping him away from tour for most of 2023. Drew’s bounce back in 2024 is one of the story lines I am most looking forward to this season. Photo by DGPT. 24. Ezra Aderhold - Ezra is a great disc golfer who still has a chance to be Elite if he puts it all together. Fact is, it’s easy to say that about a lot of guys but only a handful of them ever do it. Can Ezra make that jump in 2024? Photo by DGPT. 25. James Conrad - James is an absolute LEGEND and the owner of the greatest shot in the history of disc golf, The Holy Shot. James really rode that World Championship wave and changed the trajectory of MVP forever by signing there, but with that said, since the start of the 2020 season, his Worlds victory is his only win on tour. Last season he only had 1 top 5 finish in elite series events or higher. James’ best years on tour are most likely behind him. Photo by DGPT. That's it as far as player write ups! The rest of the list will be rankings only. Thank you for taking the time to read… I hope it was enjoyable. 2024 DGPT Winners and Highest Rated Rounds The 2024 Disc Golf Pro Tour season will have a total of 29 events! Including 4 Majors for both MPO and FPO divisions, and six events will be held in Europe, showcasing the global growth of the sport. Check out the DGPT & Major winners and highest rated rounds here - https://discgolffanatic.com/2024-dgpt-winners-and-highest-rated-rounds/ https://discgolffanatic.com/2024-dgpt-winners-and-highest-rated-rounds/ Best of the rest 26-50: 26. Ben Callaway27. Nikko Locastro28. Chris Clemons29. Andrew Presnell30. Vaino Makela31. Mason Ford32. Andrew Marwede33. Paul Ulibarri34. Garrett Gurthie35. Emerson Keith36. Chandler Kramer37. Evan Scott38. Albert Tamm39. Jeremy Koling40. Evan Smith41. Gavin Babcock42. Jakub Semerad43. Robert Burridge44. Parker Welck45. Brodie Smith46. Eric Oakley47. Matt Bell48. Sullivan Tipton49. Austin Turner50. Silas Schultz What Putting Putters Do Professional Disc Golfers Use? I've compiled a HUGE database of over 130+ pro disc golfers and their go-to putting putters, check it out here - https://discgolffanatic.com/what-putters-professional-disc-golfers-use/ https://discgolffanatic.com/what-putters-professional-disc-golfers-use/ Best Disc Golf Discs for Beginners I’ve compiled a list of the Best Disc Golf Discs for Beginners to ease your search and help you select an appropriate disc. Wiithout further ado, here’s the list. Check out my disc recommendations for beginners here - https://discgolffanatic.com/best-disc-golf-discs-for-beginners/ https://discgolffanatic.com/best-disc-golf-discs-for-beginners/