Thursday, June 24, 2010

Just like that: the World Championships in Santa Cruz

Even though it's one of the 'majors' of professional disc golf, the World Championships has always seemed more to me like a Worlds Fair. In fact, in disc golf circles it's known as 'Worlds,' as in "did you go to 'Worlds' last year in Kansas City?'

I played in one Amateur 'Worlds' in my illustrious career, in 1998 in Wisconsin, and one pro Worlds, in 2000 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Both are notable for me for different reasons.

The 1998 event was the culmination of me finally putting it all together as an Am player, and I finished 12th out of 180 or so. In 2000 9after turning pro right after the 1998 Worlds), I was in the middle of a long period of floundering in the Open division, but I had other things on my mind. I was in the first six months of dating my now wife, who is from Michigan. she went with me to the Worlds, I met her family in Michigan and Ohio . . . and sucked big-time at the Hudson Mills Metroplex.

Why all this talk about Worlds? Because somehow, inexplicably, the PDGA's biggest show is coming to Santa Cruz. We're hosting it at four courses between here and Monterey, and Tom (Schot)'s vision will have us breaking new ground in several areas. Stay tuned . . .