The Rise of Team Innova
Day 3 of the 2024 PDGA Pro World Championship was a great day for Team Innova. Evelina Salonen maintained her lead in the FPO division. She was two rounds away from claiming the title, both on the Innova Champion Course, with a comfortable win in the second round. In the MPO, Vinnie maintained her position on the chase card, with multiple Innova players climbing the leaderboard.
Top Innova Storylines
Evelina wins by three strokes
Evelina Salonen had a really great day off the tee, never missing a fairway, regularly hitting C2 on every hole and regularly hitting C1 on the 14th hole, giving her plenty of birdie opportunities. Evelina was at -8, her best result of the day, and now tied for the lead with Hollyne Handley, 3 strokes back.
Vinnie the Hunted
Calvin Heinberg is currently eight strokes back from the lead, but with Ivy Hill doing well in his game, we can't give up on him just yet!
Photo courtesy of DGPT
Cat lands after a tough stretch
Cat March is in sole third place and will return to the lead in the FPO tomorrow. She lost seven strokes from the fifth to the seventh holes, but made up eight strokes in the final ten holes to finish off a strong round. If she can erase the three-hole losing streak, Cat will be tied for first place.
Photo courtesy of DGPT
Holly Finley never misses!
Holly Finley is currently the only player with a perfect C1x putt through three rounds at FPO, and at 40 out of 40, she has made more C1x putts than most other players, making this statistic even more impressive.
Sexton Ace Hole 4
Fan-favorite Nate Sexton ace'd the 286-foot fourth hole to cap his best round to date at the 2024 World Championship, the second year in a row he's made an ace at the World Championship.
Randan Latta climbs 47 places
Randan Latta shot -8 in New London and made a big jump up the leaderboard. He is now tied for 32nd place with Innova teammates Greg Barsby and Vaino Makela.
Top contenders
Innova has a number of athletes ranked in the top 20 in both divisions. Hayley King is alone in 5th place in the FPO and is looking to make the podium. Henna Blomroos is tied for 7th and is one of the best disc throwers in the field. Orne Scoggins is tied for 14th and is looking to finish in the top 10 after the final two rounds.
At the MPO, Joel Freeman is tied for 16th and moved up 10 spots on the leaderboard today. Kevin Jones is tied for 19th, just five strokes out of the top ten.
Success or failure at Ivy Hill
With all the excitement of the first three rounds, it's easy to forget that the World Championship isn't over yet. Players will have to take on the challenging Innova Champion Course at Ivy Hill on Moving Day and Championship Sunday. Innova contenders Evelina and Vinnie both have playing styles that are well suited to Ivy Hill's long, out-of-bounds fairways. Watch the action from the final two rounds live on Disc Golf Network. Check back daily for more team highlights. After the event, visit Innovadiscs.com for a complete tournament rundown.
