Day One Update
First Look at New London Tech
Round one of the 2024 PDGA Pro World Championships co-sponsored by Innova showed the teeth of the New London Tech course. +1 was over 1000 rated for the day. The players loved the challenge and even those who wished they’d shot better still raved that the venue is fair and well-designed.
You can lose a tournament on Day One, but you can’t win it. Many Innova athletes are still well-positioned to make a run at this year’s World title, including Kat Mertsch in 2nd in FPO and Bradley Williams in 5th in MPO.
Top Innova Storylines
Kat Mertsch in Solo 2nd
Kat Mertsch is loving the New London Tech course. She shot a 1013-rated, -7 and will head to the Innova Champion Course at Ivy Hill in solo 2nd place.
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8 in a row for BWilly
Bradley Williams turned it on in the back 9, hitting 8 birdies in a row between holes 10 and 17. Bradley leads the field in Parked percentage after round one and currently sits in 5th place at -8.
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No One Outdrives Henna
Henna Blomroos will be on tomorrow’s lead card in a tie for 3rd. She leads Fairway Hits, C1 and C2 Hits in Regulation, and Strokes Gained Tee to Green after Round One.
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Anneli Tõugjas-Männiste Makes Statement Start at Worlds Debut
Team Innova Crew member Anneli Tõugjas-Männiste looks unphased by the pressure of her first World Championship. She is in a tie for 11th after the first round, ahead of many of the top-ranked FPO players.
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Perfect Putters
Team Innova had five players with perfect C1 putting on Day One! In the FPO, Holly Finley went 14 for 14 from inside the circle. In the MPO, Bradley Williams, Emerson Keith, Väinö Mäkelä, and Nate Sexton all kept it clean on the green. Emerson also had a highlight 90-foot throw-in for birdie on hole 14.
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Still Anyone’s Game
With only one of five rounds behind us, it’s still anyone’s game. Ivy Hill will present the players with a completely different set of challenges than New London. Calvin Heimburg shot -4, landing him in the thick of the pack with many of the top players. Eveliina Salonen is in a tie for 5th and was just a couple late round errors away from making the lead card. We’ll have a better understanding of where the players stand after they put down their first round on the Innova Champion Course. Catch the action live on the Disc Golf Network all week. Revisit this article daily for more highlights from Team Innova.
