Sometimes, disc golf vacations are all I want to do. Right now I'm wrapping up an epic West Coast swing that allowed me, among other things, to play some of Washington State's finest disc golf courses. And even though I'm near mercury poisoning from all the raw fish I've eaten and my taste buds are ruined from overly hoppy west coast IPA's, I can't get the 802 out of my mind. After all, we are just a few days away from the North Calais Open, which looks to be a real turning point for the Green Mountain Point Series.
Everyone knows the situation we are in
right now. There are six of ten GMPS events out of the way. Chris
Young has fallen from first place for the first time in a long time.
Jeff Spring looks to be hot, coming off his first win of the season
at Sugarbush and taking sole possession of first place in Pro.
Saturday, August 4 will bring us the North Calais Open, a real test
of skill on Vermont's oldest disc golf course.
To win at Calais, I think a player
needs a few things. First of all, Calais is a place that favors
large throws. The course is filled with long, long fairways and lots
of elevation change. Second of all, there are tons of opportunities
for huge errors, so to win players will need to stay calm, stay safe,
and play smart disc golf. Lastly, it'll take someone who's up to the
challenge of two more grueling rounds of tournament disc golf. So,
who's it going to be?
Right now the registration list shows
some stellar Pros playing the NCO. Jeff Spring, Chris Young, and
Mike Habets, currently ranked first through third in the division,
will be there. Vermont favorites Chris Mayone, Dave Frothingham,
Pete Hess, Sean Bleything, Matt Marro, and Johnny Betts are all
registered. New Hampshire golfers Ian Thurston and James Beaulieu
are also playing. In true Vermont disc golf style, I have to imagine
we'll see some last minute, out of state additions to the Pro field.
In my mind, five Pros have a real shot
at glory in Calais. Here they are.
Pro Breakdown:
*Jeff Spring: Jeff is in a good
position right now. He has an awful lot of momentum- he's built a
great disc golf course, he's coming off his first win, he's in first
place in Pro, he just took down a Money Game doubles win, and he's
the reigning NCO champion. Plus, he's not TD'ing Calais, so that
should take some weight off his shoulders. But, it's not going to be
easy. The whole division is going to be gunning for him. Spring
does have the things I think it'll take to win. He throws very far,
he's adept at staying out of trouble, and long, grueling tournaments
don't seem to phase him.
*Chris Young: Young Bucks has had a
lock on the division for the early part of the season. Right now
he's facing the first real adversity he's had this year. Not that he
can't handle adversity, he did it for the entire 2011 season. But
Calais will be his turning point. A win there and he'll take over
first place again. Psychologically, that may be enough to put down
the rest of the players in the division. But, I doubt his fellow
Pros will make it that easy for him. Look for Young to do well
staying out of trouble at Calais, but watch to see how he handles the
burden of coming from behind.
*Mike Habets: Habets took the division
by storm when he won at Pinnacle, the first event of the season. For
a hot minute, I thought he was going to cruise for the rest of the
season. Instead, he's had some struggles since then. The Lincoln
Peak Open was his next best finish of the season, and he only got
63.64 points out of that. Right now he's got one of those ever
important 100's, but he has nothing else to go with it. A second win
would obviously catapult him, but at this point it looks like he
plays well at Pinnacle and Pinnacle only. He does throw far, which
will help at Calais, but I don't think he has the experience to put
together two stellar rounds at a place like that.
*Johnny Betts: Mr. Betts could be in an
interesting position to play the role of spoiler. He's appeared in
only two tournaments this year, but won one of them. He's the third
Green Mountain Disc Golf Club member to have a 100 this year, along
with Spring and Habets. A second would obviously help a lot,
although I still don't think he'll play enough to win the division
this year. We all know that he's got what it takes to win big
tournaments. The extra motivation of Chris Young's smack talk may
also add a little more encouragement. And, if Spring doesn't manage
to win this one, then he may be hoping for Betts to steal another
win. (Or would that just encourage Betts to make a stronger late
season push?)
*Sean Bleything: Sean's got some
momentum going also. Bleything has a Money Game win, was the top
Vermont finisher at the Killington Classic, and shot a good round on
the Peak Course at Sugarbush. I'm not convinced that he's in a
position to make a run at the division win, but he too could play a
great spoiler for those up top. Sean's best attribute for Calais is
his smart, efficient disc golfing. Don't expect him to get in too
much trouble or to be stressed out by some challenging tournament
disc golf. I could see him on the podium at Calais, but I don't
think he'll be the winner.
Circle Three Prediction:
Every time I say that predictions suck
and I don't want to make them any more, I keep making them. If 2012
is going to be the Year of the Spring, then Calais needs to be the
place for it to happen. Last year Spring won Calais and then won
Wrightsville shortly after. This year he turned up the heat a little
sooner, with his LPO win. To me, it seems like the stars are
aligning for Spring, so I'm picking him as my winner. Chris Young is
no slouch, though, so expect him once again to stay close. Bleything
seems deserving of some attention too.
Win/Place/Show: Spring/Young/Bleything
Something tells me that the loyal
Circle Three readers have some other feelings about Calais
predictions. The commenting is fixed, so let's hear what you have to
say about your own predictions. And see you in the 802 soon.
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