Post Event Pulse: 2025 MVP’s Open at Austin Recap
A shootout from the Lone Star State! The first DGPT+ event of the season did not disappoint. When all was said and done, Niklas Anttila once again donned the role of Finnish Cowboy, and Holyn Handley survived a duel with World #1 Kristin Lätt for her first victory of the season. The Open at Austin had it all—let’s dive into the action!
MPO Recap
Round One
- Adam Hammes continued the trend of the previous event winner taking the lead at the next event after the first round. He shot a 12 under 54 at Sprinkle Valley and snagged the birdie on the difficult 18th to finish in a tie for first with Kyle Klein.
- Klein played bogey free golf and dunked it for an eagle on the 11th en route to his 12 under par.
- Five players, including Niklas Anttila, Matty O’ and Raven Newsom were in a tie for 12th at seven under par, five shots back of the lead going into Friday.
Round Two
- Friday was a scoring day for MPO with six players shooting 10 under par or better. Simon Lizotte shot the hot round at -12, but Niklas Anttila was the charging story of the day. He shot another bogey free round to go -11, finished with three straight birdies, and didn’t miss a putt from the circle. Despite last year’s champion making a charge, Kyle Klein manufactured a -10 under round to take a four shot lead into moving day.
- Gavin Phillips made Friday’s highlight reel. He aced hole 17 at Sprinkle Valley with a smooth. This wouldn’t be Phillip’s last highlight of the tournament.
Moving Day
- The top four didn’t change after Saturday, but the order did. Kyle Klein put together a -5 at Harvey Penick, which put him at -27 overall and gave him a three stroke cushion going into Championship Sunday.
- Anthony Barela shot -6, moving him into second place, while Gannon Buhr and Anttila tied for third at -22 after 54 holes of disc golf.
- The story of the day was Paul McBeth shooting a scorching hot -12 round to leap up 37 spots on the leaderboard into a tie for fifth. McBeast birdied eight holes on the back nine and birdied out from hole 12 on.
- Phillips did it again, this time skipping it in on the 15th hole at Harvey Penick for his second ace of the tournament. Phillips ended the tournament tied for 39th at 11 under par.
Final Round
- Ezra Robinson made a valiant charge on the final day to snag 4th place. He shot a 12 under par bogey free round and finished the tournament at -29.
- Anttila defended his title and got to wear the cowboy hat once again. He erased Klein’s three stroke lead in the first five holes. Anttila shot -5 on the front and then survived the electric back nine, tying hole after hole with Klein. Niklas eagled hole 11. Anttila crushed a backhand that skipped past the spectators and back in bounds. He put his upshot to 28 feet and drained his eagle putt.
- Anttila had a 35 footer for the win on 18 but missed it just left. Antilla and Klein went into a playoff starting on hole 18.
Playoff
- After a short drive from Klein, Anttila smoothed a great drive down the middle of the fairway. Klein’s recovery shot got him to C2, but his ensuing obstructed bid just missed, hitting the right side of the cage. Niklas made the correction and threw his upshot to 20 feet. He drained the putt to claim his second straight victory at the Open at Austin and his first win of the season.
MPO Takeaways
- Anttila will always be a top contender and carved the course this weekend with his shot shaping to defend his title.
- Despite the loss in a playoff, Klein had a great tournament and will break through for a win this season. I could see him taking down one of the next three tournaments.
- Paul McBeth still has the fire and skills. He will get a win this season.
- Buhr was in contention all the way to the end and his drive on the last hole was simply BOOMED.
MPO Players to watch at the Open at Austin
Simon Lizotte, Niklas Anttila, Chris Dickerson, Paul McBeth, Ezra Robinson, Isaac Robinson, Gannon Buhr, and Anthony Barela.
- The big question going into this tournament: will Simon Lizotte three-peat to win another guitar? I think he will. His game has been right there and despite a tough finish in Austin, he has familiarity with success at MCO and can get his third win.
- You can’t count out Chris Dickerson playing in his home state. He won MCO in 2022 and earned three straight victories in the event 2017-19 before it became a DPT Elite series tournament.
- Niklas coming off a win could do something special, Paul could shock all the fans and end his winless streak, the Robinson brothers know how to hit lines in the woods, and Barela and Buhr simply have the talent to be favorites heading into Nashville.
FPO Recap
Round One
- In a month that highlights the slogan “survive and advance”, that mantra hit home on day one at the Sprinkel Valley Course. Hole 18 got the best of the field, tanking solid rounds with 780 feet of chaos. The par 5, 18th averaged 7.81, 2.81 over par and saw top players like Kristin Lätt card an 11 and Silva Saarinen take a nine. Rebecca Cox, Eveliina Salonen, and Heidi Laine carded improbable birdies on 18.
- Last year’s Champion Ohn Scoggins took the lead after round one with an even par 1006 rated round. Sarah Hokom (+1), Rebecca Cox (+2), and Valerie Mandujano (+2) rounded out the top three after Thursday.
Round Two
- The field battled Sprinkle Valley again on Friday with varying results. Rebecca Cox shot one over on the day to move up a spot for the solo lead (+3) going into moving day. Valerie Mandujano played consistently on day two, finishing at two over par and one back of Cox. Holyn Handley also shot two over and jumped up two spots in a tie for third with Silva Saarinen.
- Kristin Lätt would have shot -3 for the round had she carded a single bogey on hole 18. Unfortunately, she took a big number to end the round, finishing in a tie for fifth at +7 going into moving day.
Moving Day
- Round three shifted to the Harvey Penick course, which saw a dramatic improvement in scores with eight players in the field shooting under par and five at even. That’s eight more under par rounds and four more even rounds than we saw at Sprinkle Valley.
- The story of the day was Holyn Handley. She survived two days at Sprinkle Valley, advanced to round three, and lit up the course shooting -8 to take the solo lead at -3 and six strokes ahead of Lätt in second at +3. Handley put together a perfect back nine en route to the hot round. Handley was flawless off the tee, parking seven of the nine holes on the back nine and cashed her two farthest birdie looks, a 32 footer on 12 and a 27 footer on 17.
Final Round
- Stroke swings on six of the first seven holes highlighted the exciting back-and-forth battle between Lätt and Handley. Kristin’s charge slowed on the back nine and Handley parked holes 10 and 12 for two of her three birdies on the back nine. Handley shot -1 for the event and tapped in on 18 to earn the win and secure her third DGPT victory of her career.
FPO Takeaways
- Every week It’s about staying in the hunt and capitalizing when you are on, especially when one course is significantly harder than the other. Holyn Handley did just that. She weathered the opening rounds and stayed in it, then capitalized on a scorching back nine in round three which ultimately gave her the victory.
- Every disc golfer has that one hole they just can’t quite figure out. Unfortunately for Kristin, that was 18 at Sprinkle Valley this week. The fact that she was able to shoot up the leaderboard and take second after having her chances dashed on 18 back-to-back days just shows how strong of a competitor she is.
- Ohn Scoggins had a great tournament and shot seven under par on the final day to take solo third place. It’s just a matter of time before she snags another win. She has the skills and is lights out on the green.
FPO Players to watch at the Open at Austin:
Kristin Lätt, Holyn Handley, Ohn Scoggins, Rebecca Cox, Kat Mertsch, and Henna Blomroos, and Ella Hansen
- Prepare to see either a dominant Kristin victory or another battle between Kristin and Holyn, similar to the opening holes in the final round in Austin. Holyn has the momentum and the skills while Kristin wants to get back into the winner’s circle and earn her third guitar.
- Henna Blomroos could find a way into contention for the final day and you never know if her putt is on, she could take it down.
- Cox finished 10th last year at Music City. Following a strong start to her year, we will see Cox earn a spot on the podium this year.
Next Event: MVP Music City Open presented by Another Round
Live daily broadcasts from Friday 4/4 – Sunday 4/6
- FPO Coverage begins with Tournament Central at 9:00 AM CT / 10:00 AM ET
- MPO Coverage begins with Tournament Central at 2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET
