Here’s a look at the top MPO storylines headed into this weekend…
1️⃣ Gannon Buhr Aims to Solve the Stockton Puzzle
Gannon Buhr is putting together a start to the 2026 season that is nothing short of legendary. He currently leads the MPO field in almost every imaginable metric: most wins (3), highest podium percentage (71.4%), and a flawless 100% top-10 execution rate across seven events. He is averaging a microscopic 2.57 finish per weekend, leading the tour in birdies while keeping his scorecard clean with the fewest bogeys per round.
Yet Swenson Park has remained his toughest test. In four career appearances at the venue, Buhr has reached the podium just once, back in 2023. That 25% podium rate in Stockton contrasts sharply with his 41.2% career podium rate at Elite and Major events. He enters this week off a seventh-place finish at the Open at Austin, marking his lowest result of the season and his second straight event without a podium after opening the year with five consecutive podiums at M/ES events. Despite that, the world number one arrives in California with a substantial lead in the standings and a clear opportunity to secure his first OTB Open title.
2️⃣ Paul Ulibarri & the Ultimate Encore
You could not write a better script than what Paul Ulibarri pulled off at the Open at Austin. By capturing his first-ever DGPT title in a thrilling playoff, Ulibarri shattered records by waiting 113 DGPT starts for his first win. The victory marked an incredible 5,453 days between his first Elite Series win in 2011 and his second. To put that longevity into perspective, only 28 of the 112 players in this weekend’s field were even PDGA members when Ulibarri won that first title (before 2011).
The historic victory catapulted him 20 spots up into 18th in the DGPT World Standings and secured him a career-high $12,000 payout. Now, the tour veteran, who holds more Elite and Major starts (236) than any player in disc golf history, looks to conquer a brand new mountain. Ulibarri has played 15 career Elite or Major events in the state of California but has never finished inside the top five. He enters Stockton playing with absolute house money and the entire crowd behind him.
3️⃣ Calvin Heimburg’s Swenson Standard
If you want to map out the definition of course dominance, look no further than Calvin Heimburg’s relationship with Swenson Park. The 2024 OTB Open Champion enters the weekend sitting third in the DGPT World Standings, and he lands on a West Coast layout where he has literally never finished outside the top-10 across five career appearances. His tracking data at Stockton is a masterclass in consistency, boasting a runner-up finish in 2022, a victory in 2024, an eighth-place finish at last year’s Major, and the Swenson Park B-Pin course record with a blistering 1086-rated 12-under par round of 54.
Heimburg also brings unparalleled durability to California, carrying an active 84-event Elite and Major cash streak dating back to February 2022, which ranks as the 8th-longest stretch in MPO history. He currently trails only Gannon Buhr and Sullivan Tipton in season efficiency, maintaining a 10.6 average finishing position across the 2026 schedule. Riding a streak of four consecutive M/ES top-10 finishes, the reigning OTB Open champion is primed to use his strong course history to chase down his first victory of the year.
4️⃣ Ezra Robinson Eyes the All-Time Bogey-Free Record
While his brother Isaac has captured plenty of headlines at this property, Ezra Robinson is currently on the verge of making individual history. Ezra put together a flawless, bogey-free 72-hole performance over the weekend at the Open at Austin to force a playoff finish and climb up to 15th in the world standings.
That incredible display keeps his active bogey-free streak alive at 80 consecutive holes, the seventh-longest streak recorded since hole-by-hole tracking began in 2021. Aaron Gossage holds the all-time record at 101 consecutive bogey-free holes from the 2022 season. Ezra needs to navigate just 22 more clean holes to standalone at the top of the history books. If he can keep his scorecard perfect through Hole 4 of Friday’s second round, the record is officially his.
5️⃣ The Search for a Swenson Bounceback
Swenson Park is welcoming back a handful of elite competitors who are looking at these familiar fairways as the ultimate opportunity to reset their seasons. Aaron Gossage lands in California after a brutal 71st-place finish in Austin, which shockingly snapped his historic 19-event cash streak. Luckily for Gossage, Stockton is his ultimate comfort track. His second and third career Elite Series podiums happened right here in 2022 and 2023. He currently holds the unique distinction of having the most podiums (10) and career cash earned ($160,445) without an Elite Series victory, making him incredibly hungry to finally break through.
Concurrently, we have the highly anticipated return of former OTB Champions Simon Lizotte (2022) and Eagle McMahon (2021). Both players are looking to break uncharacteristic winless droughts on tour. With 2023 champion Emerson Keith and former Major hot-round hero Paul McBeth missing from the registration list, the door is wide open for these past winners to use their extensive course knowledge to ignite a massive weekend turnaround.
All the action starts on Thursday, May 21st! Tune in to the Disc Golf Network and catch post-pro coverage from JomezPro all weekend.