Dye Dreams

The Premiere Nobody Asked For 🎬

Clears throat, adjusts metaphorical glasses. Welcome to Week 1 of the Purple Chain saga, where 19 brave souls gathered at Art Dye Disc Golf Park to launch the most ridiculous fundraising scheme in disc golf history. Despite temperatures hovering between 32-39°F—cold enough to make even Chain Prince question his life choices—the "Dye Dreams" pilot episode delivered everything the script promised: chaos, drama, and enough rating swings to power a small LED light show. Two players tied at -7 with identical 996-rated rounds, proving that even when the script calls for one winner, the disc golf gods love a good plot twist. 🎭

The Script Called for One Winner

Kenneth Oetker and Shawn Hansen both fired identical -7 rounds in RPA, creating the kind of dramatic tension that would make any theater director weep. Kenneth shot 30 points above his 966 rating while Hansen went 26 above his 970, with Hansen delivering a wire-to-wire bogey-free masterpiece that would've been the perfect storybook ending—if not for Kenneth's clutch birdie on hole 18 that secured the outright victory and the coveted Cue Card bag tag. Tanner Shell led through hole 3 before a hole 4 bogey sent his dreams crashing faster than a speaker falling into Art Dye's lake, finishing 7th at +2. The lead changed hands more times than a hot potato, but Kenneth's rollercoaster ride from leader to chaser to champion proved that sometimes the best performances come from those who can improvise when the script goes sideways. 🎯

Ninety-One Points Above the Script

In RAH, Joel Benavidez absolutely demolished his 905 rating with a +91 explosion that registered -7 and left everyone else wondering if they'd shown up to the wrong audition. His 6-hole hot streak from holes 7-12 was the kind of sustained excellence that makes rating systems question their existence. Kaden Mecham grabbed second at -2 (940 rated), while the early lead ping-ponged between Kaden and Trace James, who held the spotlight through hole 6 before bogeys on 4 and 7 sent him tumbling to 4th place. Craig Bennett surged to third with a back-nine performance that was 3 strokes better than his front nine, proving that sometimes the best acts save their energy for the closing number. 🔥

Surviving Art Dye's Technical Audition

Tyler Romney emerged as the lone survivor in RAD with a -1 that was worth 31 points above his 897 rating—the only negative score in a division where everyone else was fighting for their disc golf lives. Eric Pearson and Chris Fox both led early, with Chris commanding the stage through hole 5 before completely forgetting his lines and stumbling to a brutal 67 points below rating with three closing bogeys. Eric steadied himself with an 8-hole par train from 11-18, but the early damage was already done. In a division where making par felt like a standing ovation, Tyler's controlled performance proved that sometimes the best strategy is simply not falling off the stage. 🌲

Seventy Points Above? That's Not Acting 🎭

Chris Howk delivered the most convincing performance in RAE, going 70 points above his 881 rating to claim victory at -3—a number so absurd it breaks the fourth wall of what's supposed to be possible. The lead changed more often than costumes in a quick-change act, with Corry Johnson and Michael Riley tied after hole 1, Clark Kerswell taking over on hole 2, and Chris finally seizing control on hole 5. Clark shot 33 above his rating but couldn't overcome a brutal 4-hole cold streak from 5-8, while Corry's back-nine surge (4 strokes better) catapulted him from 5th to a tie for 3rd. Chris's 951-rated round was the kind of breakout performance that makes even Mojo Steele Productions take notes. ⚡

The Back Nine Redemption Arc

Clinton Atwater authored a classic comeback story in RAF, using a 3-stroke back-nine improvement to claim victory at +7 despite trailing Dave Mecham for most of the round. Dave led through hole 14 and shot an impressive 35 points above his 780 rating, but Clinton's surge proved that in disc golf, as in theater, timing is everything. Both players exceeded their ratings significantly—Clinton by 23 points above his 815—turning what could've been a struggle-fest into a genuine battle of wills. Clinton's sole birdie on hole 7 and his refusal to fold when the script called for defeat made for the kind of narrative arc that keeps audiences coming back for more. 🎪

The Ensemble Cast Delivered Chaos

Art Dye's technical woods claimed their victims and created their heroes with equal enthusiasm. Shawn Hansen navigated the entire course without a single bogey—a performance so clean it belonged in a museum—while rating explosions lit up the leaderboard like a poorly wired stage setup. Joel Benavidez (+91), Chris Howk (+70), and Dave Mecham (+35) all shot significantly above their ratings, while Chris Fox (-67), Dusty Ratcliffe (-51), and Tanner Shell (-43) discovered that Art Dye's trees don't care about your rating. Sole birdies became precious commodities, with players like Clark Kerswell (holes 2 & 11) and Kenneth Oetker (hole 15) claiming the only under-par scores on holes that ate everyone else alive. The par trains ran on time—Chris Fox's 8-hole stretch and Eric Pearson's closing 8—but couldn't overcome the early derailments. 📊

A Pizza Box of Destiny Changes Hands

The Cue Card found its first host in Kenneth Oetker, who conducted a 996-rated masterclass to claim this laminated artifact of backstage panic. Born from Chain Prince's first disastrous "Dye Dreams" rehearsal—a pizza box hastily annotated with purple Sharpie and emergency snack bar contacts—this weather-beaten rectangle of cardboard has evolved into the definitive script for Art Dye's absurd musical rebellion. Kenneth didn't just follow the script; he rewrote it with a clutch hole 18 birdie that secured both the division win and the tag. The Cue Card's gaffer-taped edges and LED coordinate markings now belong to the man who shot 30 points above rating, proving that sometimes the best directors are the ones who can improvise when the original plan falls apart. 🎬

The Backstage Economy Thrived

While the main stage drama unfolded, $198 changed hands across three skins cards as the real power brokers made their moves. Craig Bennett dominated the 8:00 AM card with an 11-skin, $55 performance featuring 6 birdies, while Clinton Atwater scooped a massive 6-skin carryover on hole 12 for $35. The 11:00 AM card saw Kenneth Oetker claim 12 skins for $48 behind 8 birdies, with Michael opening strong with a 3-skin haul on hole 3 and Dusty Ratcliffe closing with 2 skins on hole 17. Between Craig's birdie barrage and Clinton's perfectly timed carryover scoop, the skins action proved that sometimes the most dramatic moments happen when nobody's watching the leaderboard. Learn how to set up skins 💰

The Rebellion Raised Nineteen Dollars

Episode One of "Dye Dreams" officially launched Chain Prince's campaign to save Art Dye from the developers, and the fundraising results were... exactly what you'd expect from 19 players contributing the automatic $1 each. The Art Dye Course Fund now sits at $171.14—a whopping 17% of the $1,000 goal—proving that even the most modest rebellions start with small steps. The first rehearsal was chaotic in all the right ways: cold streaks through the woods, rating explosions that defied explanation, and enough lead changes to make a soap opera writer jealous. Chain Prince's "when it pours, it roars" catchphrase got a dry run (literally, given the 25% precipitation chance that never materialized), but the real storms are brewing for later episodes. Meanwhile, that mysterious figure in the sequined jacket continues taking notes from the parking lot. 🎭

Eight Episodes Remain in This Fever Dream

Week 1 of 9 is in the books, with Kenneth Oetker and the Cue Card leading the charge into "Lakeside Jam"—where a proper stage by the lake awaits, along with bigger crowds and the inevitable arrival of Mojo Steele in his purple convertible. The Super Ace pot continues to grow after multiple players stumbled on hole 1, the rating system has filed several complaints about the abuse it suffered, and the rebellion has officially begun its march toward that storm-soaked finale. Whether Chain Prince's glow-round concert scheme can actually save Art Dye remains to be seen, but if Week 1 proved anything, it's that this community knows how to put on a show—even when the speaker falls in the lake and the script calls for chaos. 🎪