McBride's Sizzling Start Fuels Lead at Nick Hyde Memorial

Peter McBride's fortunes have turned around in a big way at the Nick Hyde Memorial. After struggling in his first two tournaments of the season, the 20-year-old California pro has taken control of the lead at the Disc Golf Pro Tour's third stop.

McBride's scorching hot round on the Harry Myers Park tournament layout set a new record with a 1078-rated, 15-under par 49. He seized an early lead, leaving Paul McBeth and Nate Sexton tied for second place after their 13-under par 51s. Simon Lizotte rounds out the lead card today, as his 12-under par 52 is tied with Ricky Wysocki and Emerson Keith for fourth place.

For McBride, this impressive performance was the culmination of shaking off the early-season rust from his game. "I was just getting back into the swing of things," he said. "Keeping my focus for a whole round, even when I didn't play well in the past tournaments. It all clicked together for this round."

McBride's round got off to a blistering start, with birdies on the first 10 straight holes. He cooled down slightly during a middle stretch, but then caught fire again for four consecutive birdies from holes 14 through 17. By the time he missed his only putt of the day, it was already hole 18 and he had secured the clubhouse lead.

The approach McBride employed was relatively simple: "I knew pretty much all the discs and lines I needed to hit," he said. "I just stayed focused and threw good drives and made my putts." His perfect putting from 30 feet and in was matched by Sexton, who took one hole more than his young counterpart to rack up a 10-under par total through the beginning of the round.

McBeth also had a standout performance, carding nine birdies and two eagles. However, he felt that his score didn't reflect his level of play. "I was driving really well and putting pretty good," he said. "Everything was working, except for a soft patch in the middle where random things were going on."

Now entering the second round atop the lead card, McBride acknowledged the added pressure that comes with being in first place. However, he seems to be handling it well, surrounded by experienced pros like McBeth and Sexton.

Sexton recalled a similar experience from his own early days as a pro, when he played on a stacked card at the Beaver State Fling. "I was more nervous about the gallery than the players," he said. But McBride's seasoned approach reassured him: "He's been in big moments already, so I'm not worried about him."

McBeth also offered some words of advice for McBride: "Just have fun with it. People want to see you play well, so why not go out there and put on a show?"

In other action from the first round, Eagle McMahon carded an 11-under par 53 to finish in seventh place, while several players are knotted up in eighth and 13th place respectively.

The lead card will tee off today at 4:30 p.m. EDT, with coverage of the second round beginning at 5:00 p.m. EDT on the Disc Golf Pro Tour's YouTube channel.

This article was compiled from disc golf coverage with AI assistance. Source: pdga.com — https://www.pdga.com/mcbride-storms-out-early-nick-hyde-memorial-lead