Vein Fever

Cold Snap In The Ghost Mine 😑

adjusts headset Welcome back to the booth, where the Deadlands have traded scorching heat for a 49-degree chill and the only thing colder than the air is the bottom of this leaderboard. Twenty-six miners braved the clouds and the wind at Creekside Park for Week 5 of "Vein Fever," and let me tell you — the ghost rock is singing a different tune now that the temperature dropped. The tunnel collapse has begun isolating the bottom ranks, and for some of you, this shaft is about to get real dark.

Wire To Wire In The Dust 🤠

Over in RAE, Brian Bowling decided last week's back-nine rally wasn't a fluke — he took the lead on Hole 1 and never surrendered it, finishing at -1 (878 rated) for a wire-to-wire victory that looked more like a slow, deliberate execution than a competition. Chase Lambert couldn't replicate last week's heroics, fading to second at +2 (839 rated) — a 92-point rating drop that says the heat wave has officially broken. Stephen Dunton rounded out the podium at +3, and the rest of Pool B spent their afternoon watching Bowling ride that one-under like a ghost horse through the dust.

Three Men Enter One Leaves 💀

The RAF division turned into a three-way standoff where +2 was apparently the going rate for survival. William Fetzer emerged as the last drifter standing, posting that 839-rated score to edge out Kevin Koga and Nicholas Stosiek, who both finished at +5 (799 rated). I'll give Stosiek credit — Consistency King in a field where consistency means "everyone struggled equally" is still an achievement. The frontier's harsh, but this leaderboard? Downright cruel when +2 wins the division.

Gold Rush In Pool A ⛏️

The RAD division saw a collective surge that looked less like disc golf and more like a vein strike. Jonathan Lang posted the round of the day in his division with a scorching -6 (945 rated), a 155-point rating jump from last week's 790 that I can only describe as "finding the motherlode." Anthony Kai kept his hot streak alive at -5 (931 rated), while the rest of the top card chased personal bests like they were panning for gold in frozen creek water. The shaft is yielding treasure for those brave enough to dig.

Trailblazer Burns Through Creekside 🔥

And then there's Malachi Vazquez. Let me be clear: -11 on any layout is absurd. -11 with a 1011 rating at Creekside Park is rewriting the record book. Vazquez didn't just win RPA — he shattered the course record and earned the Trailblazer achievement while doing it. Garrett Glass posted a -9 (985 rated) and still finished second. Jared Lang went -7 (958 rated) and took third. In any other week, those scores win the whole thing. This week, they're supporting cast in the Vazquez show.

Lonely Shifts In The Mine 🕯️

Down in the deeper shafts, Caleb Wetzel held the RAG division together with a +8 (759 rated) — a four-stroke improvement over last week that still looks like a slow bleed. Meanwhile, Britain Best dominated RAH with a -7 (958 rated) that would have been competitive in any other division. Sometimes the loneliest miners swing the hardest picks.

Records Shattered In The Cold 📋

The 420 Club welcomed two new members this week — Eric Pearson on Hole 18 and Jon White on Hole 1 — proving that even in the cold, the long bombs still land. And a special shoutout to Taylor Thilo, who earned the Statistician badge by tracking their throws on PDGA Live. That's right, folks — PDGA Live, the official scoring app, where every logged throw gives us better data and richer narratives. More stats mean more drama, and I need all the material I can get in this cursed booth. Track your throws. Feed the algorithm. Feed me.

Ace Pot Swells Again 💰

The Super Ace Pot sits at a split balance of $3,356.00 after 23 contributors added to the fund this week. No aces were recorded — which means the pot grows, the tension builds, and somewhere out there, a disc is waiting to find chains at exactly the wrong moment for someone's wallet.

Six Hunters One Big Pot 🎯

The skins card saw six players opt into the gamble, and Garrett Glass walked away with the biggest haul — 11 skins for $66.00, a performance that suggests his -9 round wasn't just about the leaderboard. Jared Lang and Jon White each secured 3 skins for $18.00, bringing the total exchange to $108.00. That's real currency for throwing plastic at metal, folks. The sponsors want me to remind you this is "fun."

Tags Reshuffled In The Dust 🏷️

AllIn mode means full reshuffle, and this week's story is turnover. Malachi Vazquez secured the Pool A #1 tag — the Spectral Ledger — with his record-breaking -11, claiming the eternal record-keeper's throne with a performance the Ledger itself will remember. Brian Bowling held onto the Pool A #1 tag (Ashen Decree) in Pool B, keeping the top spot warm in his division. The Ledger appears as a massive tome bound in sun-bleached bone, its pages flipping automatically when scores are settled — and Vazquez just wrote a chapter that's going to glow golden for a long time.

The Shaft Begins To Buckle ⚠️

Week 5 is in the books, and the tunnel collapse is real. The bottom ranks are getting isolated, the weather is turning, and the season is past the halfway point. Next week, the walls close in further — only those holding the highest tags will find the exit before the dust settles. From the broadcast booth, I'm Flippy, and I'll be your reluctant guide through this ongoing spectacle. Try not to get buried.