Mauri Villmann’s misplay saga at the LWS Open at Idlewild during Round 3

This post has been created for archival purposes and is all about the misplay saga by Mauri Villmann at the LWS Open at Idlewild during the final round on Hole 9.

Players on the lead card:

Gannon Buhr, Mauri Villmann, Chris Dickerson and Mason Ford.

The group was accompanied by a DGPT Marshal, Tom Odegaard.

What happened?

Mauri Villmann was putting for birdie on Hole 9 during the final round at the LWS Open at Idlewild.

He putted from inside a bush, hit the rim and the disc took a bad roll into his bag, resulting in a +1 stroke for his equipment interfering with the disc.

Mauri initially went to putt from where the disc hit his bag, but was then pointed back to his previous lie. He went back to putt from his original lie, like he was supposed to, but then the group thought the correct way to play was to play from where the disc hit his bag and the marshal agreed with them.

He confirmed his new lie with the marshal and the card, then hit the putt for bogey to finish the hole.

Later, after the round, he was given two more strokes for a misplay after following the marshal’s instructions.

Instead of carding a 4 or a 5, he ended up carding a 6. +1 for interference and +2 for misplay.

Mauri’s Round 3, Hole 9 PDGA live scorecard:

Full clip of Mauri Villmann’s misplay saga at the DGPT LWS Open at Idlewild during Round 3 on Hole 9:

Aftermath:

The LWS Open at Idlewild took place the very next week after the controversial Rainers Balodis and Aaron Gossage foot fault call at Pro Worlds and fans were still extremely upset about the topic. This controversy only added more fuel to the fire.

Fans once again started questioning the judgment of the PDGA & DGPT Marshals on the ground and asking what their purpose is if such officiating mistakes keep happening.

In addition, some fans online have stated that after back-to-back horrible officiating calls, they have unfollowed/unsubscribed from the Disc Golf Pro Tour.

Because of this officiating mistake, Mauri ended up tied for 11th instead of tied for 5th, costing him around $1,000 in payout and valuable Disc Golf Pro Tour standings points, which are extremely important with the Playoffs about to begin.

DGPT CEO Jeff Spring stated on the Ultiworld Disc Golf podcast that it was an unfortunate event, but Mauri Villmann would not be compensated for the misplay, either financially or with additional points.

Villmann on social media: “I learned my lesson, NEVER trust anyone even if they have rules in front of them! Yeah, it was a really bad situation.”

“USA disc golf has a lot to improve” & “And another European got screwed over.”

Multiple professional disc golf players online were upset about the call and the additional penalty, especially the fact that Mauri was penalized for following the Marshal’s instructions.

Drew Gibson speaks out about Mauri Villmann’s officiating saga: “Marshals not knowing the current and accurate set of rules the costing players strokes and money will never not be an absolute joke to me.”

The Disc Golf World’s YouTube video about the topic: “This is embarrasing for disc golf.”

The Estonian Disc Golf Association sent an appeal to the PDGA

You can read the full article here – https://discgolfiliit.ee/edgli-poordumine-pdga-poole/

Full text from the Estonian DG Association to the PDGA:

Dear PDGA representatives,

We are writing on behalf of the Estonian Disc Golf Association regarding the ruling involving Estonian player Mauri Villmann at the 2026 LWS Open at Idlewild.

We are aware of the circumstances surrounding the ruling and would like to formally express our concern regarding the additional penalty throws assessed to Villmann after he followed the instruction given to him by an on-course official.
From our perspective, this raises serious questions about the authority of tournament officials and the responsibility placed on players when following an official ruling.

We would therefore appreciate an official clarification from the PDGA on the following:

How does the PDGA justify penalizing a player for following an instruction given by a tournament official?
What is a player expected to do if they believe an official ruling may be incorrect?
Does the PDGA consider the ruling and the resulting additional penalty throws to have been applied correctly in this case?
Will the decision and Villmann’s final result be reviewed?

We also believe it is important to acknowledge the very real consequences this ruling has had for the player. As a result of the additional penalty throws, Villmann has lost, among other things, prize money and tour points, and the change in his final placing may also affect his ability to qualify for the DGPT Playoffs. We find it extremely unfair that a player should face such consequences as a result of following an instruction given by an official.

As a national association, we need to be able to give our players clear guidance on how they are expected to act when receiving rulings from tournament officials.

We also want to make clear that we are not satisfied with how this situation was handled and expect a clear explanation from the PDGA.

Respectfully,
The Board of the Estonian Disc Golf Association

PDGA’s response to the Estonian Disc Golf Association:

Thanks for writing, for being a PDGA member and for your efforts in helping to build Estonia into a disc golf destination. We fully understand the frustration over the situation at Idlewild and why you are reaching out for clarification. 

 In your letter you asked the following: 

• Can a player be penalized for following a Marshal’s instruction? 

• What can a player do if they suspect a Marshal’s instruction is incorrect? 

• Does the PDGA agree with the result? 

• Will this be reviewed by the PDGA? 

• Can the PDGA adjust the DGPT standings to account for this incident? 

• Is there anything further the Estonian NGB can do? 

To begin, the facts of the situation are not in dispute: during the third round, on hole 9, Mauri Villmann threw his drive near the basket. His second throw hit the target’s tray, rolled away, and hit his bag. After discussion, Mauri played from where the disc came to rest, completing the hole. 

“It is a violation if a player or their equipment interferes with the course of their own thrown disc,” ORDG 810.D. If this occurs, the correct outcome is that “the player continues play from the previous lie” counting both the throw itself and one penalty throw, Id. Here, a disc golf bag is equipment, and the bag was Mauri’s. The correct outcome was therefore for Mauri to play from the previous lie with a penalty (i.e., throwing 4). 

Initially, Mauri was instructed by the Marshal on the card to do precisely that: to play from the previous lie. Two other members of the group disputed the ruling, arguing that Mauri should play where the disc came to rest. Despite the confusion, Mauri did not call a provisional. The group settled on having Mauri play where the disc came to rest, and the Marshal agreed. This was, by rule, an incorrect lie. Mauri then completed the hole and recorded a score of 4.  

Because Mauri played from an incorrect lie, this constituted misplay under 811.F.1. Mauri continued to play after the misplayed throw, teeing off on hole 10, and so the proper penalty was two throws, 811.F (“If an additional throw has been made after the misplayed throw, the player continues play from their current lie and receives two penalty throws for the misplay”). Accordingly, Mauri was assessed a two-throw penalty for the misplay, for a score of 6 on hole 9. Mauri appealed the misplay penalty to the Tour Director under Competition Manual 4.12.B. The appeal was denied. This is consistent with how these rules have been applied at previous events. 

(As a side note, this misplay was associated not with the throw that struck Mauri’s bag, but instead with the subsequent throw that took place from the incorrect lie and is therefore not a double penalty under 801.02.J. Further, “[a]ny penalty throws applicable to the throws used are assessed in addition to the penalties for the misplay,” 811.F.) 

This does not, however, address why the penalty stands despite the group and the Marshal providing Mauri with incorrect instruction. To address this, we must discuss appeals, which appear in multiple areas of the rules: 

• A player may appeal group decisions to an Official and an Official’s decision to the TD (801.03.A). 

• A player may make provisional throws under 809.02 as part of an appeal (801.03.B). 

• A player at an Elite Series event may appeal a TD’s decision to the Tour Director (4.12.C). 

• The Tour Director is the Chief Official in lieu of the Tournament Director (4.12.C and 1.12.F). 

• Rulings by the Tournament Director – or in this case, the Chief Official – are final (801.03.C). 

• Once the event is over, scores are final (808.G). 

Let’s apply these rules to Mauri’s situation. Section 4 of the Competition Manual was in effect because was an Elite Series event, 4.01. The Marshal is a Tournament Official, 4.11.A. Mauri had the right to appeal the decision of the Marshal to the Tournament Director and the decision of the Tournament Director to the DGPT Tour Director, 4.12.C. However, Mauri did not appeal in the moment, only after the fact, and he did not make provisional throws as part of that appeal under 801.03.B. The failure to declare a provisional limited the options available on appeal. 

Had Mauri played a provisional, he almost certainly would have won the appeal. Without a provisional, however, there is no alternate set of throws to substitute for the misplayed throw. The Tour Director therefore denied the appeal, and that denial is final, 801.03.C. Scores stand once the event has concluded, 808.G. Because of all this, the PDGA affirms the outcome, which stands as called. 

We fully understand the effect on Mauri’s standings with the Disc Golf Pro Tour. However, those standings are not regulated or managed by the PDGA.  

The PDGA has announced a Task Force on Marshaling. This Task Force may address different rules for a situation where improper guidance is given by a Marshal. Under the current rules, however, no such provision exists. Therefore, players must rely on rules mastery, use of the online rules resources, appeals, and provisional throws. 

Sincerely, 

Robert Leonard 

Senior Policy & Compliance Officer 

Professional Disc Golf Association

Conclusion:

The ruling stands and Mauri Villmann finished tied for 11th spot at the LWS Open at Idlewild.

On a positive note, the PDGA letter mentions a new task force that will be established to address situations in which players are given incorrect instructions during a tournament. Since no such task force currently exists under the rules, PDGA says that retroactive changes cannot be made.

Pro tip! No matter what, always throw a provisional…