Week 5 Preview
PGF 2026 Season, Week 5 Preview: The Kings and Jett Lead, but the Playoff Line Is Still Wide Open
The regular-season closer arrives with Las Vegas at 124, Jett Thompson at 58, Alabama still second at 98, and the last playoff spots still moving.
LAS VEGAS - The closer is here, and the PGF 2026 Season still has two races alive. The Kings carry 124 into Wednesday, April 1, the Twisters chase at 98, and Jett Thompson leads the athlete board at 58 with Kevin Beuhring next at 40.
The team lead is real, but the playoff line is louder. Jayden Groner now owns the eighth spot at 19 after the first three-sub-under-a-minute night the league has seen since Season 1, and he is the only Wolverine still alive heading into the closer. Andrew Kochel is right behind him at 18, and a pile of names are still close enough that one finish can move the bracket.
Five Week 5 Matchups That Matter
| Matchup | Week 5 Slot | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Jett Thompson vs Kevin Beuhring | Block B | No. 1 against No. 2 is the clearest leverage match of the regular-season closer. |
| Austin Oranday vs Elijah Carlton | Block B | They enter tied at 38, so the race for third gets a direct answer on the mat. |
| Chuy Magana vs Jayden Groner | Block C | Magana is chasing seeding at 31, while Groner is defending the last playoff spot after his Week 4 surge. |
| Kevin Beuhring vs Andrew Kochel | Block C | Beuhring is still Alabama's best answer, and Kochel needs a jump from just outside the top eight. |
| Jett Thompson vs Derek Rayfield | Block A | The leader opens against a Phenoms veteran who needs a huge night, which makes the pressure immediate. |
Las Vegas has more than one way to close this. Thompson leads, Oranday is tied for third, Chuy is at 31, and the Kings have built this race by spreading points across the whole card. If they protect that shape for one more Wednesday, the regular-season title is theirs.
Alabama's path is different and simpler. Beuhring has to pressure the top, Carlton has to keep the tie for third alive, and the Twisters have to turn a 26-point gap into something uncomfortable early. That is a big ask, but it is still the clearest way the team race changes.
Then there is the bubble. Groner's Week 4 explosion made him the man everybody below the line has to catch, and Colorado's only live route into the bracket now runs through him. Kochel is closest. Cam Hurd, Jake Straus, Derek Rayfield, and Jared Fekete are still alive enough that every late-block match matters.
So the final Wednesday is not just about who leads. It is about who gets into the April 8 playoffs, who grabs seeding, and who forces the last loud swing before the bracket locks.