Wysocki Takes Charge in Ed Headrick Disc Golf Hall of Fame Classic

The International Disc Golf Center's W.R. Jackson Memorial Course has once again proven its reputation as a challenging but rewarding layout, hosting some of the world's best disc golfers at the Ed Headrick Disc Golf Hall of Fame Classic. Two-time PDGA World Champion Ricky Wysocki made his presence known on Friday, posting an impressive 1055-rated 9-under par 59 to take the lead into the second round.

Wysocki, who has a history of success on this course, having won here in 2011, 2013, and 2017, seemed at ease as he navigated the challenging terrain. Despite struggling with some uneven play on the front nine, he rebounded strongly to close out his round with five consecutive birdies.

"I feel really comfortable playing out here," Wysocki explained after his round. "I've played out here a lot, I've won out here a lot, so I know what you have to do and when you have to be aggressive."

Rounding out the top of the leaderboard is JohnE McCray, who shot an 8-under par 60 to land in second place. The 46-year-old veteran was thrilled with his performance, which included a highlight-reel eagle on the 990-foot, par-5 12th hole.

"I've never 3'd it before – I've never even smelled 3 on it," McCray said with a grin. "I was pretty happy about it. It was like 10, 12 feet."

Paul McBeth, Eagle McMahon, Zach Melton, and Kevin Jones are all tied for fourth place after shooting 7-under par 61s. McBeth, the newly minted United States Champion, struggled with motivation after his recent win, but eventually found his rhythm to close out his round.

"It's pretty hard," McBeth admitted. "This is the second time they've done this this year...but Worlds, having an NT after that was a little different because I took second and I felt like I had to work on so much more after Worlds than U.S.…This one, it's kinda boring, honestly."

Melton, meanwhile, powered through the round with a breezy attitude, attributing his success to staying positive and focused.

"Instead of getting frustrated that I wasn't getting birdies – I think I had two holes in a row I had the best tee shot out of the group, I was in prime time position, didn’t pull off the upshot, take a par," Melton said. "Instead of getting mad, I kinda kept rolling with it and told myself, 'This course is hard, so pars are good and stay with it.'"

Gregg Barsby and Michael Johansen also made notable performances on day one, earning spots in the chase group alongside Wysocki and McCray.

The Open lead card tees off for another round at Jackson on Saturday at 12:10 p.m. EST, with instant scoring and statistics available via UDisc Live.

This article was compiled from disc golf coverage with AI assistance. Source: pdga.com — https://www.pdga.com/news/wysocki-makes-himself-home-during-hofc-opener