World’s Top Disc Golf Pro Slated for North Metro Tourney
April 7, 2008 · Print This Article
The top-rated professional disc golfer in the world is among the players registered for the 4th Annual Atlanta Open disc golf tournament to be held at East Roswell Park in Roswell and Central Park in Cumming April 5-6. Ken Climo of Clearwater, Florida currently has the highest Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) rating of any player in the world. Climo has won the Disc Golf World Championship tournament a record 12 times and the U.S. Disc Golf Championship five times.
This year’s Atlanta Open will also feature at least ten other men’s players ranked in the top 100, as well as three of the top 20 women’s players, including fifth-ranked Carrie Berlogar. The Atlanta Open has also been designated as one of a small number of tournaments to function as qualifying events for the U.S. Disc Golf Championships (USDGC) and the U.S. Amateur Disc Golf Championship.
“The pros are being attracted to this year’s tournament for several reasons,” said tournament director Rand Eberhard, “including the word-of-mouth among players about the success of last year’s tournament, a strong competitive field, and the substantial purse being offered. But probably the biggest single factor was our selection as a USDGC qualifier. This is one of the earliest qualifying events on the schedule, so it gives players a chance to lock up a slot in the USDGC early in the year.” The USDGC, held annually at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina, is the premier disc golf event and the last major tournament on the PDGA tour. This year’s USDGC will be October 1-4. The top five finishers in the Pro divisions of the Atlanta Open will be accepted as qualified competitors in the USDGC.
Player interest among amateurs has been high. The full field of 90 pros and 72 amateurs includes players from at least 15 states, as far away as California, Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Texas and Massachusetts.
“This is a unique opportunity for Atlanta to see the world’s top player in action,” said Eberhard. “Other nationally ranked players competing in this event are Brad Hammock of Decatur, Phil Arthur of Woodstock, Kevin McCoy of Senoia, Eric McCabe of Emporia, Kansas (currently ranked 16th), Michael Hoffman of Raleigh, NC, and Eric Roadhouse of Louisville, KY, all of whom are in the top 100.”
Both of last year’s Open division champions are returning to defend their titles: Men’s Open winner J.D. Ramirez of Allen, Texas, and Women’s Open winner Sarah Stanhope of Easley, South Carolina. Fifth-ranked female pro Carrie “Burl” Berlogar of Pleasanton, CA, who has won over two dozen tournaments since 2003, will challenge Stanhope and 14th-ranked Courtney Peavy, an East Point native now living in Senoia. “This is the most impressive field for an Atlanta-area tournament in quite a while,” said Eberhard.
For more information on the Atlanta Open, contact tournament director Rand Eberhard at randeberhardgmailcom or 706.408.4150, or assistant tournament director Imran Khan at imrankhan771hotmailcom or 770.328.6799. Find it on the web.
For more information on the Professional Disc Golf Association, tour player rankings, or disc golf in general, visit the PDGA web site.
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