Ken Climo

Ken "The Champ" Climo
— Disc golfer —
Personal information
NicknameThe Champ. The People's Champ.
Born1968
Clearwater, FL
Nationality United States
Career
Turned professional1988
Current tour(s)PDGA National Tour
Professional wins229
Number of wins by tour
PDGA National TourOpen: 14
Masters: 6
Best results in major championships
PDGA World ChampionshipsWon: Open: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006
Masters: 2012, 2014, 2015
USDGCWon: 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2007
European OpenWon: 2007
Japan OpenWon: 1993, 1994, 1995
Achievements and awards
Disc Golf Hall of Fame1995
PDGA Male Player of the Year1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2007

Ken "The Champ" Climo (born March 27, 1968, in Clearwater, Florida) is an American professional disc golfer considered by some to be the best professional disc golfer of all time. Climo has claimed twelve PDGA World Championship titles, including nine in as many years from 1990 to 1998.[1] The only other golfers to achieve multiple World titles are Harold Duvall (1982, 1985), Barry Schultz (2003–2004), Nate Doss (2005, 2007, 2011), Paul McBeth (2012–2015, 2019, 2022), Richard Wysocki (2016, 2017) and Isaac Robinson (2023, 2024). In addition to his world titles, Climo has an unequalled record in the United States Disc Golf Championship (the premier event in the game), earning five titles (1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2007). Named PDGA player of the year seven times, Ken Climo was inducted into the PDGA Hall of Fame in 1995.

He competed in the World Championships masters division for the first time in 2012, at the age of 44, and won by a large margin, securing his 13th world championship title. He has added 2 more world titles to his resume since then (2014, 2015).

During his three decades in the PDGA, Climo has notched 103[2] aces.

Climo, with Innova Discs, has created his own special blend of plastic, known as KC Pro. Several popular disc molds are available in KC Pro, including the Aviar and Roc. Climo spent 26 years as an Innova sponsored player. His departure from the brand was announced on November 27, 2024.[3]

Professional career

[edit]

Open division

[edit]

Climo has 221 wins in the Open Division, the most all-time, including 12 World Championships and 5 US Championships.[4] He was the first player to ever win the World and US Championships in the same year.

PDGA Pro World Championships (12)

[edit]
Year Location Stroke Margin Winning Score Runner Up Prize Money
1990 Scottsdale/Mesa/Fountain Hills, AZ -1 (43-47-43-47-45-45-45-46-46-45=452) Sam Grizzaffi $2,042
1991 Dayton, OH -10 (45-48-48-49-48-42-41=321) Eric Marx $2,700
1992 Detroit, MI -9 (44-43-46-41-53-47-45-42-52-29=442) Crazy John Brooks $3,500
1993 Huntsville, AL -4 (47-44-45-46-43-45-50-45-44-25=434) Dean Tannock $2,539
1994 Port Arthur, TX -18 (47-60-47-45-42-45-46-54-50-27=463) Joe Mela $2,500
1995 Port Arthur, TX -4 (46-50-41-50-41-45-47-53-48-27=448) Mike Randolph $2,350
1996 South Bend, IN -3 (48-49-48-40-51-49-44-42-41-20=432) Geoff Lissaman $3,600
1997 Charlotte, NC -7 (45-50-48-47-47-46-49-46-49-23=450) Scott Stokely $3,000
1998 Cincinnati, OH -4 (47-46-47-49-48-47-48-46-26=404) Scott Stokely $3,581
2000 Ann Arbor, MI -8 (62-61-60-45-50-49-61-25=413) Barry Schultz $7,303
2002 Houston, TX -14 (51-47-44-52-48-45-43-46-46-25=447) Barry Schultz $4,500
2006 Augusta, GA -5 (51-50-45-45-65-47-46-23=372) Nate Doss $5,500

Other majors (8)

[edit]
Year Tournament Stroke Margin Winning Score Runner Up Prize Money
1993 Japan Open -13 (43-44-44-43-44-21-26=265) 'Crazy' John Brooks $4,350
1994 Japan Open -12 (47-45-49-45-47-21-22=276) Marcus Cisneros $4,350
1995 Japan Open -10 (47-45-45-48-46-29-27=287) John Ahart $4,350
1999 US Disc Golf Championships -15 (51-50-49-54=204) Alan Schack $1,400
2000 US Disc Golf Championships -5 ( 59-55-54-58=226) Alan Schack $2,000
2002 US Disc Golf Championships -6 (60-58-59-60=237) Barry Schultz $8,000
2004 US Disc Golf Championships -5 (56-66-69-64=255) Cameron Todd/Darrell Nodland $10,000
2007 European Open -8 (50-54-50-51=205) David Feldberg $5,480
2007 US Disc Golf Championships -11 (63-58-56-56=233) Avery Jenkins $15,000

Major playoff record (0-1)

Year Tournament Opponent Result
2003 US Disc Golf Championships Barry Schultz Lost to birdie on tenth extra hole [5]

National tour (14)

[edit]
Year Tournament Stroke Margin Winning Score Runner Up Prize Money
2003 Bell South Open -3 (45-47-47-41-27=207) Barry Schultz $2,500
2004 Bell South Open -3 (43-47-49-43-26=208) Keith Warren $2,500
2004 Masters Cup -5 (77-75-70-27=249) Barry Schultz/David Feldberg $2,500
2005 Golden State Classic -1 (57-55-61-57-32=262) Barry Schultz/David Feldberg $1,500
2005 Greater Des Moines Challenge -8 (52-48-44-51=195) Coda Hatfield $1,500
2005 Skylands Classic Playoff (44-59-51-52=206) Steve Brinster $2,100
2006 Melbourne Open -4 (64-67-68-26=225) Johne McCray $1,500
2006 Masters Cup -11 (76-72-67=215) Steve Rico $2,000
2007 Bowling Green Open -1 (43-49-48-47-25=212) Coda Hatfield $2,000
2007 Golden State Classic -3 (53-54-64=171) Matthew Orum $1,750
2009 Atlanta Open -4 (50-50-55-62=217) Barry Schultz $1,700
2009 Beaver State Fling -7 (54-51-51-52=208) Avery Jenkins $2,850
2010 Sunshine State Shootout Playoff (62-74-65=201) Nathan Doss $1,250
2010 Masters Cup Playoff (78-72-71=221) Bradley Williams $1,840

NT playoff record (3-0)

Year Tournament Opponent Result
2005 Skylands Classic Steve Brinster Won on second extra hole [6]
2010 Sunshine State Classic Nathan Doss Won with birdie on first extra hole [7]
2010 Masters Cup Bradley Williams Won with par on first extra hole [8]

Summary

[edit]
Competition Tier Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-25 Events
World Championships 12 2 0 16 22 22
Other Majors 8 5 1 18 31 33
National Tour 14 6 6 43 65 65

Annual statistics

[edit]
Year Events Wins Top 3 Earnings $ / Event Rating
1988 7 1 3 $408 $58.29 x
1989 11 4 6 $2,173 $197.55 x
1990 15 9 13 $6,996 $499.71 x
1991 8 4 6 $4,917 $614.63 x
1992 23 14 23 $10,667 $463.78 x
1993 15 12 14 $12,660 $844.00 x
1994 17 11 17 $11,105 $653.24 x
1995 26 23 26 $19,107 $734.88 x
1996 21 16 19 $12,523 $596.33 x
1997 21 14 19 $13,599 $647.57 x
1998 22 13 19 $17,812 $809.64 1032
1999 20 15 19 $22,426 $1,121.30 1033
2000 19 12 17 $22,096 $1,162.95 1035
2001 19 8 15 $17,110 $900.53 1031
2002 18 6 14 $30,597 $1,699.83 1044
2003 12 3 7 $14,121 $1,176.75 1036
2004 16 5 11 $26,520 $1,657.50 1033
2005 16 4 10 $17,080 $1,067.50 1037
2006 19 8 11 $22,687 $1,194.05 1041
2007 21 10 15 $39,210 $1,867.14 1038
2008 15 4 8 $13,552 $903.47 1032
2009 17 7 10 $14,748 $867.53 1036
2010 19 6 13 $19,010 $1,000.53 1039
2011 12 2 4 $5,580 $465.00 1037
2012 12 3 7 $8,265 $688.75 1039
2013 9 2 4 $2,461 $273.44 1026
2014 6 2 4 $4,647 $774.50 1031
2015 8 1 5 $5,195 $649.38 1026
2016 5 2 3 $1,460 $292.00 1024
2017 1 0 0 $285 $285 1024
Career 448 221 341 $398,732 $890.03 x

Masters division

[edit]

Although eligible for the Masters Division in 2008 when he turned 40, Climo played his first Masters event in 2012, when he won the World Championships. He has won two additional World Championships since then (2014, 2015), bringing his total (including Open Division) to 15.

PDGA Masters World Championships(3)

[edit]
Year Location Stroke Margin Winning Score Runner Up Prize Money
2012 Charlotte, NC -9 (55-46-59-51-52-60-46-26=395) Barry Schultz $3,500
2014 Portland, OR -1 (54-54-56-60-53-53-63-31=424) Barry Schultz $2,500
2015 Pittsburgh, PA -3 (56-57-64-57-60-56-27=377) Patrick Brown $2,400

National tour (6)

[edit]
Year Tournament Stroke Margin Winning Score Runner Up Prize Money
2013 Memorial Championship -9 (55-52-50-47=204) Jonathan Baldwin/Phil Arthur/Rex Rogers $1,500
2013 Beaver State Fling -10 (54-54-52-54=214) Patrick Brown $1,500
2014 Memorial Championship -3 (57-49-50-49=205) Patrick Brown $1,500
2015 Memorial Championship -9 (49-49-52-52=202) Patrick Brown $1,600
2016 Memorial Championship -7 (50-49-48-45=192) Patrick Brown $1,600
2016 Beaver State Fling Playoff (57-58-56-57=228) Patrick Brown $1,250

NT playoff record (1-0)

Year Tournament Opponent Result
2016 Beaver State Fling Patrick Brown Won with birdie on first extra hole [9]

Summary

[edit]
Competition Tier Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-25 Events
World Championships 3 1 0 5 5 5
Other Majors 0 0 1 4 5 5
National Tour 6 1 0 8 8 8

Annual statistics

[edit]
Year Events Wins Top 3 Earnings $ / Event Rating
2010 1 0 1 $1,200 $1,200 1039
2012 2 1 1 $4,325 $2,162.50 1039
2013 5 2 3 $6,325 $1,265.00 1026
2014 3 2 2 $5,000 $1,666.67 1031
2015 4 2 3 $5,450 $1,362.50 1026
2016 3 2 2 $3,850 $1,283.33 1022
Career 18 10 12 $26,150 $1,452.78 x

Equipment

[edit]

Climo has been sponsored by Innova Champion discs throughout his career. He has a number of past and current signature discs (marked with *) and carries a combination of the following discs in competition:[10][11]

Drivers

  • Boss (Champion)
  • Destroyer (Pro, Star)
  • Firebird (Champion)*
  • Katana (Echo Star)
  • Starfire (Pro)
  • Tern (Champion)*
  • Wraith (Pro, Star)*
  • XCaliber (Echo Star)

Fairway Drivers

  • Banshee (Champion)
  • Eagle (Champion)*
  • TeeBird (Champion, KC Pro)*
  • TL (Champion)
  • Sidewinder (Champion)

Midranges

  • Roc (KC Pro)*

Putters

  • Aviar (KC Pro)*

Climo's other signature discs have included: Cheetah, Cobra, Gazelle, Pegasus, Polaris LS, Raven, Scorpion, Stingray, Viper, Vulcan, Whippet, XD

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Ken Climo #4297". Professional Disc Golf Association. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  2. ^ "Ken Climo - 12 time PDGA World Champion, 5 time US Champion". www.kenclimo.com.
  3. ^ {{Cite web|url=https://www.innovadiscs.com/innova-news/thank-you-ken/?fbclid=IwY2xjawG65g1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHYfMG-S3bdTEdXJBzbxP6dsGMSRmpVZcbCZZRgwjl9lNK7MlLCv-a1hFLA_aem_Xbf0qgxuw_4leM16NOQzXQ}}
  4. ^ "PDGA Player Page: Ken Climo".
  5. ^ "2003 USDGC Sudden Death Playoff". www.youtube.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-08.
  6. ^ McAvey, C.; McAvey, A. "Warwick's Best Kept Secret" (PDF).
  7. ^ Duesler, J. "Climo wins shootout".
  8. ^ "Climo & Berlogar Win". Professional Disc Golf Association. May 24, 2010.
  9. ^ "2016 BSF Masters Final Round Part 2 Climo, Brown, Smith, Ryan". Archived from the original on 2021-12-14 – via www.youtube.com.
  10. ^ "Ken Climo".
  11. ^ "In My Bag with 13-time Disc Golf World Champion Ken Climo". Archived from the original on 2021-12-14 – via www.youtube.com.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ken_Climo&oldid=1260811177"