Two DGPT Victories in Less Than One Month
The first win is the hardest – Innova Star Team member, Kat Mertsch, broke that barrier four weeks back at the Jonesboro Open and is now riding the momentum. At last weekend’s 2023 Cascade Challenge, Kat played with the confidence of a proven winner, taking down the 2nd DGPT event of her career by a three stroke margin. Emily Beach took 6th place, just two weeks after her big podium finish at the OTB Open. And Joona Heinänen had his best-ever DGPT result, 5th place in MPO.
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From Rising Star to Proven Champion
Photo by DGPT
In just one month’s time, Kat Mertsch has become two-time DGPT champion. At the 2023 Cascade Challenge, she came out determined, but seemingly at ease. Kat went into the final round down one stroke, but birdied the first three holes to charge her way to a three stroke lead by Hole 4. She went on to shoot the hot round of the tournament at -5, winning the event by three strokes.
Mertsch looked strong in all aspects of her game. She led the field in Fairway Hits, Birdie percentage, Scramble percentage, and Circle Two Putting. Kat has established herself as one of the top contenders in the FPO field, moving into 6th place of the DGPT Point Standings for the season. Her win at the Cascade Challenge was the 7th top ten finish of Kat’s season at DGPT events and PDGA Majors. She will be going into next weekend’s DGPT Elite+ Event, the Portland Open, as one of the favorites.
Emily Beach in Top 10
Emily Beach took 6th place at the Cascade Challenge, backing up a recent podium finish at the OTB Open. She was 4th in the field in C1x Putting. Emily was a 2023 addition to Team Champion and each weekend she shows us why she deserves to be there. She is one of the most well-rounded players in the FPO, with both crushing distance off the tee and consistency inside the circle.
Joona Heinänen’s DGPT Career-Best
Another 2023 addition to Innova’s Team Champion, Joona Heinänen had the best Disc Golf Pro Tour finish of his career at last weekend’s Cascade Challenge, taking 5th place. He was 3rd in the field in Strokes Gained Tee to Green. This is Joona’s first full season of touring in the United States and he has been making the most of it. He has had two DGPT top 10s and good finishes at multiple other events.
Photo by DGPT
Garrett Gurthie had his best tournament so far this season, tying for 9th. His 60-footer for eagle on Hole 8 in the first round was one of the highlights of the entire MPO field for the weekend.
2023 Portland Open
The 2023 Portland Open, a DGPT Elite+ Event, will be held next weekend at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, Oregon. Elite+ Events offer bigger purses and more DGPT points than standard Pro Tours. This will be a four-round tournament with a cut before the final round. Almost every big-name player on tour is set to be there competing. Kat Mertsch has serious momentum on the FPO side and Vinny should be coming into the event refreshed and ready to put on a show. Watch all four rounds live on the Disc Golf Network and visit Innovadiscs.com for tournament recaps, tips, Innova new, and more.
