What’s up, degenerates? Jefferson here from The Disc Golf World — breaking down my main takeaway from Paul McBeth’s recent media circuit after his Idlewild win. The GOAT finally gave us some classic one-liners, spicy takes on pace of play, and his real thoughts on disc golf majors. Let’s get into it.
“All Majors Should Be Five Rounds” – McBeth’s Bold Take
McBeth didn’t hold back: he thinks every disc golf major should be five rounds. Why? Because right now, Worlds feels way bigger than the rest — and that, in Paul Ulibarri’s words, “dumbs down the other majors.”
His fix: keep Pro Tours at three and four rounds and make majors five-round marathons. It’s his way of elevating Champions Cup, USDGC, and the European Major to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Worlds.
McBeth vs. Gannon: Pace of Play & Targets on Backs
Remember when Gannon got called out for playing slow? Yeah — McBeth addressed it directly. He admitted that a handful of players “definitely slow the courses down” and that Gannon Buhr gets extra heat because of how much coverage he gets.
McBeth explained it’s not just the 20+ second pre-shot routine, but also the range finding, disc selecting, and decision making that isn’t shown on coverage.
Disc Golf Majors: History, Confusion, and Prestige
McBeth also weighed in on the history of majors. From PDGA Worlds in 1982 to the USDGC in 1999, the Japan Open in 2002, and random one-off majors like the Copenhagen Open, disc golf has had a messy past of what counts as a “major.”
If disc golf doesn’t figure out how to balance majors prestige, we’re going to keep having this same argument. Right now, Worlds is quadruple the value of anything else. But if you inflate the others, do you risk devaluing it? McBeth says no — it makes the sport better.
Final Jefferson Rant
Look, I get it. Worlds has history, USDGC has Winthrop, Champions Cup wants to be the wooded major, and Europe has its own flavor. But if disc golf wants to grow, you gotta make more tournaments feel important. Throw some money at it, market it, and the prestige will follow.
For now, McBeth’s five-round idea is the spiciest take in the room. And you know what? I don’t hate it.
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That’s it for this breakdown. Tomorrow I’m diving into the Discraft AI controversy — and you don’t want to miss that one. So smash that sub button, drop a like, and let me know in the comments: Should all majors be five rounds?
