There were over 1100 competitors last weekend in Peoria, Illinois at the 2022 Masters and Juniors Disc Golf World Championships. Out of this massive pool, eight Innova Team members rose above their competition and clinched for themselves and for Team Innova eight new world titles. A huge congratulations to Tanner Grayum (MJ08), Oliver Beavers (MJ10), Victoria Eriacho-Paul (FJ18), Joe Rovere (MP40), Ohn Scoggins (FP40), Pam Reineke (FP60), Johnny Sias (MP70), and Pete May (MP80) for outstanding performances in their respective divisions.
MP40 and FP40
Colorado’s Joe Rovere, a player with 125 Open Pro victories in his career, took down his first Major title last weekend becoming the Pro Masters World Champion. Through five and a half rounds, Rovere squeaked out the win by a single stroke. He was one of only two players in the 121 player field who managed to finish under par for the event played on the extremely challenging Northwood Black and Eureka Lake Temp courses. This win marks the largest payout of Rovere’s career. It is a well-deserved victory for a player who has been at the top of the game for well over a decade.
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Ohn Scoggins might just be the hottest player in the sport of disc golf this year. With multiple Elite Series podium finishes, A-tier wins, and the 2022 Match Play Championship title, Scoggins went into the 2022 Masters World Championships with serious momentum. She used that momentum to trounce the field, handily beating her competitors by 14 strokes through five and a half rounds. Ohn showed how she has become the player with the best outside the circle putting percentage in the FPO field, nailing deep putts in every round. This is her second, consecutive Masters World title. With half of the 2022 disc golf season still to come, Scoggins will be the player to watch in upcoming FPO events.
Juniors
They keep making them younger and stronger. Innova Junior Team member Tanner Grayum is the proof. Grayum won the Junior’s eight-and-under division by eleven strokes over the second place finisher after four and a half rounds of consistent, well-played disc golf. Between the semifinals round and the final nine, Grayum shot one under par and took just one bogie in 27 holes. This impressive finish secured Tanner Grayum his place as one of the youngest world champions in disc golf history.
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Some players crack under the pressure of the World Championships, but Oliver Beavers has shown he is built for Majors. Averaging over 40 points a round above his player rating, Beavers played his best tournament to date at the most significant event for a junior in the sport. Winning by only 3 strokes through four and a half rounds, he had to battle down to the wire. This sort of perseverance through heated competition on a major stage at such a young age is how seasoned champions are made.
Victoria Eriacho-Paul took down the Juniors eighteen-and-under division for the women. Though Eriacho-Paul already has 21 career wins to date, this Junior World title will be the new centerpiece in a large and growing trophy case. Eriacho-Paul dominated the event by 14 strokes through six and a half rounds, comfortably coming out on top of the competition. With this new major champion shooting multiple rounds rated over 900, the sky’s the limit for Victoria Eriacho-Paul’s future in the women’s divisions.
FP60, MP70, MP80
In the FP60 division, Pam Reineke claimed the world title, winning by 17 strokes through four and a half rounds. Pam is on a Major winning streak, just two weeks off her victory in the FP60 division of the United States Women’s Disc Golf Championship. In her career, she has been no stranger to Major titles. She is the 2008 Masters World Champion, the 2014 USWDGC Grandmaster Champion, the 2016 USWDGC Grandmaster Champion, and the 2019 PDGA Masters FP55 World Champion. Her two back-to-back Major wins this past month show that Pam is still at the top of her game.
Innova Team member Johnny Sias won the MP70 division of Masters Worlds by a 10 stroke margin. Sias is the 1986 Open Disc Golf World Champion, the 2012 Grandmaster World Champion, the 2013 Sr. Grandmaster World Champion, the 2019 Pro Masters MP65 World Champion, and now the 2022 Pro Masters MP70 World Champion. This completes Sias’s long-time goal of winning a world title in five different age divisions. Given how strong this past year’s finish was, Johnny Sias looks well positioned to take down world titles for years to come.
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Photo: PDGA
In MP80, Pete May clinched his seventh Professional PDGA World Championships title, making him one of the top 10 winningest players in PDGA World Championships history. Earlier last week, May was deservedly inducted into the Disc Golf Hall of Fame. Since 2011, Pete May has won a world title every year that the World Championships have been held. Four of these were amateur titles and the rest were professional titles in MP70, MP75, and MP80. Pete May’s winning streak is an inspiration. Congratulations Pete.
From 8 and under to 80 and over, and from Tanner Grayum to Pete May, the 2022 Juniors and Masters World Championships showed that disc golf is a game you can play for a lifetime. The juniors showcased their progress, began to learn how to handle the pressure of Major tournaments, and let the disc golf community know that they are coming. The masters showed that experience is an asset in the game of disc golf. Congratulations to all our new World Champions at Innova and to all of the 1100 competitors who fought their hardest last weekend on the sport’s top stage.
