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Derek McGraw

@drok_dg

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PDGA #204525
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@d_rok26

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Fort & Friends Crosstown champion in ma1 🏆

Super excited to get my first win in ma1, and my first PDGA win since 2024. And it was awesome to do it at my home course of Sedgley. It was tied going into the last hole, but I hit a 40-footer from my knees for birdie to win it. I also hit a 40 footer from my knees for birdie on the first hole of the tournament.

My putts were feeling great, especially compared to Peoples Championship the week before. My only misses inside the circle were chain outs, and I was back to hitting step putts at a good rate. The putting really made up for my drives. I felt like I couldn't get my backhand to work right all day. I'm very proud of how I kept pushing through and found other ways to keep myself in it instead of just getting frustrated and throwing the day away.

Super excited to keep getting those practice reps in and keep this momentum going into the Maine Classic next month 💪 taken in Sedgley Woods Disc Golf by @drok_dg

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4 months ago

People's Championship - 2nd place after a playoff with @harsh.parikh10

The second round was one of the most intense and fun battles I've had, going toe-to-toe with Harsh. A lot of drama on the last 3 holes led to a playoff that Harsh managed to win with a laser beam 35-foot putt. Even though I lost, it was still awesome to see him get that W.

I came into this event super confident in my throw after I had been working nonstop on my timing for 2 weeks. The work really paid off, and this is the first tournament I've played where my drives were actually working the way they're supposed to. I finally feel like I'm actually hust playing my game and not just chucking plastic randomly. I managed to shoot my 2nd and 3rd highest rated rounds, and my highest average for a tournament because of it.

I was really attacking every hole for birdie instead of the constant scrambling I usually do in tournaments. I was bogey free for the tournament until I had an unfortunate roll-away on a c2 putt halfway through the second round.

While my drives were great, my putting is what did me in. 5 missed C1 putts is unacceptable for me, including 2 that were under 20 feet but with awkward footing making it slightly uncomfortable. I need to be able to cash those home if I want to actually win. I also didn't make a single C2 putt, and I had plenty of opportunities. Making a lot those is what I've been known for lately, so it was very disappointing to keep coming up short on those all tournament.

I'm still very proud of how I played and attacked the course. Just need to clean up the putt a little bit and I should be shooting lights out soon

(Also shoutout to the frog I found before my birdie putt on hole 7)

#discgolf #cosmicdiscgolf taken in Jordan Creek Disc Golf by @drok_dg

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4 months ago

Rhode Island States - Not my best performance over the first 2 rounds. My biggest issue is overthinking my drives and rushing my shots, instead of just getting in rhythm and throwing the shots I am confident I can execute. Third round was a rainy one, and I feel like I was at least starting to get the hang of playing wet. That was until I dropped my last dry towel in a puddle, and absolutely lost all ability to grip the disc on hole 17. Yes I shot an 11 on a par 5. The good news is that I'm pretty sure I've now gotten the worst hole of disc golf I'll ever play out of the way. This past week I've spent reflecting on what went wrong and locking in my backhand rhythm has given me a lot of confidence going forward.

Besides the bad play, this was one of the most fun tournaments I've gotten to be a part of. I definitely look forward to being back next year taken in Ninigret Park by @drok_dg

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4 months ago

Stafford Open - T-3rd ma1

I had one of the coolest tournament moments of my career, leading off my card with an ace on the first hole of the day. Of course the ace adrenaline got me after that, and it took me about 9 holes before I settled in to actually start playing good disc golf. After a couple really bad mental mistakes near the end of round 1, I finished with a one stroke lead and a chance to take down my first ma1 win.

I started out hot in round 2 and got the lead to 3, before my putting troubles from the weekend before came back to get me. I still felt confident with my c2 putts and hit a couple, but everything inside the circle was coming up short. It all came crashing down when I missed a 20-footer and lost the lead with 3 holes left.

While I'm upset about how I finished, I still had my highest-rated event, I got my first PDGA round ace, my drives felt great, and I know I can really compete if I just clean up my sloppy putts and mental game just a little bit. I've been working on this every day, and I feel very confident going into Rhode Island Championships in a couple weeks. taken in Stafford Woods by @drok_dg

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5 months ago

MVP Am Side - T-32 ma1

First tournament of the year was a mixed bag. My gameplan coming in was to play the most boring and safe disc golf I possibly could, and that worked perfect for the first round at Maple Hill. I was tied for 5th going into the second day, 3 strokes off of the lead.

I thought I was feeling confident going into day 2, I knew I could score well at MM63, but my putt just absolutely fell apart. Everything felt weak and I just kept missing low. I was putting myself in birdie position a lot, but just couldn't finish. I'm happy with the way I at least held myself together over the 2 saturday rounds though and still made the cut by a wide margin.

Sunday was a different story. I had put myself so far out of the lead that I really couldn't find much motivation to play well. I just kept making mental mistake after mental mistake, and completely collapsed over the last 9 holes. It was definitely one of the worst rounds I've had in recent memory, but I'm using it as an example of everything not to do for the rest of the year.

Excited to turn things around at the Stafford Open this weekend. Shout out to Cosmic and all the great courses for running a great event taken in Maple Hill Disc Golf by @drok_dg

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5 months ago

2025 recap (and late Philly Open recap):

First of all shout out to @cosmicdiscgolf, Cosmic Dave for bringing me on this year, and all the Cosmic team members I've gotten to know and meet over the course of the year.

This year I set the lofty goal for myself to get my rating high enough (960) to play in Am Worlds next year. I fell very far short of that. I know my game has improved a lot this year, especially with the way I've developed my decent putt into one of my biggest strengths, anywhere in the circle and especially in shallow C2. However, my flaws have become very apparent: starting out strong and playing in bad weather.

These issues were out in full force at the Philly Open, my last tournament of the year. I missed an easy birdie on my first hole, and then took a triple bogey on my third hole to start round 1 off. Despite this bad start, I was able to take a 1 stroke lead heading into the last 3 holes of the tournament. Then it started raining harder than I've ever played in, and I couldn't throw a good shot to save my life. I ended up losing by 2 strokes.

Even with the rain's bad timing, I should have had much more of a lead if I didn't start off so bad. I should be able to keep my composure in the rain and at least throw decent enough shots to sustain my lead.

I really think I have the skill to play at the level I want to play at, and now I know what I need to fix to get there. I need to play a lot more serious rounds, and stop throwing second shots off the tee. I think this trains my body not to take the first shot as seriously. I need to go do field work in the rain and ripping wind, as unpleasant as that sounds.

My goal in 2026 is the same, and if I put the work in I know I'll be at worlds in 2027. by @drok_dg

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10 months ago

Never got around to posting my PA States results. Better (2 months) late than never right?

It was the safest I ever played, and my putt felt great, especially from C2. I let two lazy upshot/putt combos get in my head, and then ended day 1 (2 rounds) with a terrible blowup hole (quad bogey) on the last hole of the day.

I let these mistakes ruin the tournament for me, and never really showed up to play mentally on Sunday. Just gotta clean up a few mistakes like that and work on my mental game. That's exactly what I've been doing the past 2 months, and I feel great heading into my last (1? 2? 3?) tournament(s) of the year 😤 taken in Roland Disc Golf Park by @drok_dg

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a year ago

Fort and Friends Crosstown: second place in ma1. This is my first ever podium and first time "cashing" in ma1, but it was still frustrating knowing I could have won and played much better in general.

I'm realizing I have some fundamental flaws in my form that only seem to come out when I'm playing under the pressure of a tournament. Luckily I have a few weeks before my next tournament to iron down some good mechanics, and I'm already well on my way.

The positive in all of this is that I'm proving to myself that I can compete at a high level when my game is actually on. My putting feels great, and I know what I need to improve on. It's probably a good sign that I shot above my rating and finished in second place despite both of my rounds feeling like the worst rounds I could possibly shoot. My "floor" is getting a little bit higher all the time, but now I need to find a way to shoot for my ceiling.

#discgolf taken in Sedgley Woods Disc Golf by @drok_dg

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a year ago

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a year ago

Cosmic Open 2025 late recap: Day 1 was the absolute worst weather I've ever played in, and I just wasn't prepared at all. By the end of the round I was soaked, my bag was soaked, my discs were soaked, and I couldn't grip anything well enough to even throw 150 feet. Day 2 wasn't much better but I actually got myself ready to play in the rain this time with extra towels and chalk. Day 3 the weather was finally good, but I let myself get into the mindset that I was already defeated and was basically just playing the round to get through the weekend, not to actually play well. I finally got myself some birdie looks, but just missed the putts every time.

I learned some valuable things going forward here: my preparation needs to be better, my mental game has to be better, and I still have some things to work on with my form. I've been trying to fix all 3 of those things over the past couple weeks, doing field work and putting in the rain, and working on my mental game during tags rounds. I feel more ready than ever for the People's Championship next weekend.

Besides the bad weather and bad play, getting to spend an entire weekend on one of the top courses in the world with some cool people was great. Plus there's an exciting announcement coming soon 👀 taken in Maple Hill Disc Golf by @drok_dg

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a year ago

Tyler YoYo 4: VERY late recap. Originally I didn't want to post anything about this tournament, but one of the reasons I made this page was to keep myself accountable and make sure I'm trying every day to improve, not just for myself but for everybody following my performance.

This tournament was not how I wanted to start 2025 off. Something has been off with my throw and I just couldn't get off the tee cleanly that day, even on holes I was playing for an easy par. After reflecting on this tournament though, I've had a lot of positive takeaways. This was the best my putting has ever felt in a competitive round. I felt like I couldn't miss from c1 or short c2. I also did a great job at attacking the holes that I felt like I absolutely needed to birdie, which is something I struggled with in the past.

If I can clean up the bogeys this weekend at the Cosmic Open I feel like I can be right in the mix at the top of the leaderboard. taken in Tyler State Park by @drok_dg

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a year ago

Recapping my 3 PDGA wins so far:

8/4/24: PA States MA2 champion, my proudest moment so far. I shot the highest rated round of my career so far to overcome a 5 stroke deficit and take the trophy. A lot of great play that weekend, but still a lot more to come

6/8/24: People's Championship MA2 champion, my first win at ma2, and a close battle until the end. Very glad to take down the win in my 3rd year playing the event

8/6/23: Mosquito Open MA3 champion, my first win came in my home state of Maine, at my favorite course back home. Not the best performance, but I'm happy I was able to finally take down my first win by @drok_dg

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2 years ago