Redemption: Paul McBeth wins 2022 PDGA Worlds

By: Taylor Larsen

The 2022 PDGA Worlds could’ve gone SO terribly wrong for Paul McBeth …

But it didn’t.

Headed into Saturday’s fifth and final round in Emporia, McBeth found himself three strokes back of “Mr. One Angle,” Aaron Gossage. Up until that point, the relatively unproven Gossage appeared to have McBeth on the ropes at all times. A frequent owner of the box, “The Goose” routinely bombed forehands and backhands, parking drives and approaches in the process …

And while tap-in birdies were the result for him, McBeast practically lived at circle’s edge. A bum shoulder and problematic leg had Paul doing weird stuff with his off-arm during backhand drives. And perhaps of greatest consequence, mid-tournament, tinkering with his putt, as well.

It wasn’t pretty …

DGPT: Paul McBeth

But it was good enough.

Though “Sunday McBeth” has largely sucked this season, “Saturday McBeth” came to play. Six holes in, the three-stroke deficit had been erased. Neck-and-neck, Paul drained a 69-foot putt on the 17th hole to put him back up by one – and with only a single, 691-foot par four remaining …

This time around, there would be no soul-crushing throw-in. Gossage’s second-throw, 330-foot forehand spike-hyzer put him at 12 feet for the guaranteed birdie, though. McBeth left himself with a downhill, circle-two bid to match Aaron’s tap-in birdie and end things for good …

Nope.

DGPT: Paul McBeth

As a result, Gossage and McBeth entered a playoff to determine the eventual winner. They’d play the 16th, 17th and 18th holes in a three-hole loop until a World Champion was crowned.

Here’s a snapshot of the 16th at Emporia Country Club:

We’ve seen this show before …

And it DIDN’T end well for McBeth.

Gossage threw first on the 16th hole. And though he technically made the island, his disc landed just short of the OB line drawn by tournament directors. Conversely, McBeth’s drive made the island, forcing Gossage to hit his drop-zone putt. He didn’t. McBeth laid up and tapped in …

He’s now a six-time World Champion.

* Note: If you missed final-round coverage, it can be watched for free by clicking here.

This SINGLE win is big for McBeast, as it completely changes the narrative surrounding an otherwise lackluster season for the guy. Leading up to Saturday, his only Elite Series win of the year came at the Waco Annual Charity Open in March – the second DGPT event of 2022.

Furthermore, the last time McBeth was in Emporia to compete came at the Dynamic Discs Open in April. He finished in 51st position – failing to make a cut for the first time in his career.

Now, after Saturday’s triumph, if McBeth wins USDGC for the second-straight time, he’s suddenly in the running for the PDGA’s “Player of the Year” award – all’s well that ends well.

I guess it wasn’t as dumb as I though it was for Discraft and Paul to announce the addition of the Athena to the McBeth lineup last Tuesday – the same day as the first round of Worlds. If you’ve been keeping tabs at home, the number of letters in each of the discs in McBeth’s Discraft lineup correspond with the number of World Titles he’s won. “Athena” has six letters in it …

Again, LAST Tuesday this was announced …

Paul “Nostradamus” McBeth.

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Taylor Larsen

Taylor Larsen is a staff writer for Green Splatter. He uses disc golf to self-reflect, pondering questions like, "Where the heck did I throw that?" and "What happens if the disc lands on top of the basket?" He resides in Utah with his dog, Banks, who loves to chase frisbees of all sorts.

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