Building the minimalist bag

[ranger]

Yea, like you have never cracked a joke at someone for a typo...


Lighten up Francis

No, never.

 

[tylerc]

For 3 discs I carry:
300 pa1, flippy prod zone, and a color glow destroyer
4 discs: flippy FT kc roc
5 discs: flippy 400 f3
6 discs: newish c pd2
7 discs: stable prod zone
8 discs: beat opto trident
9 discs: newish diamond spirit
10 discs: beat star firebird
11 discs: newish proline quake
12 discs: beat s pd2

that's how I would add discs starting with essentials then moving into more specialty discs. I putt and throw the pa1s, and throw equally sidearm and backhand so that helps a lot. Any more than 12 is usually just discs to break into the slots I like discs at.


Making a minimalist bag is a lot like making a regular bag in my opinion. Start with 1 disc and play a round, find out what it cannot do and next time bring a disc for that. Do this until you have a "full" bag. My bag I fill so everything isn't all floppy while I walk.. but 1/3 of the discs are in there normally just to beat up or throw for fun.

 

[Broken Shoulder]

I think I could get by pretty well with:

- Putting Putter
- US Mid
- Stable Mid
- US Fairway or Control Driver
- Stable Fairway or Control Driver
- Firebird

I think I could make the mids work well enough in place of putter drives and upshots, but I'm not 100% on that. I might really miss my Polecat for certain shots. Can I have 7 discs?

 

[BuzzzChief]

2-disc: stable putter, stable driver

3-disc: stable putter, stable fairway driver, understable fairway driver

4-disc: stable putter, stable mid, stable fairway driver, understable fairway driver

Beyond that I would add specialty discs based on the course or conditions. Probably a very overstable utility driver (firebird or similar) and a max distance driver would be next. Fairway (speed 7-8) drivers will give you the best bang for your buck, and you probably don't throw them THAT much shorter than a distance driver in an open field.

When I travel I often go with something like this setup:

Stable Wizard
Stable Ghost
Patriot
Rival
Firebird
Beat Outlaw

 

[tdschrock1]

The core of my bag is:

Stable Distance Driver - Photon
Straight Fairway/control Driver - Volt
OS Short range disc - Resistor
Straight Mid - Axis
Straight Putter - Anode

I rarely throw anything other than these, but bag some additional discs situationally

 

[roggenb3]

It's weird how much importance I placed on including a firebird like disc in my own list. It was the first thing I added after a putter.

I think an OS utility like that is more important in the minimal bag of someone who has a BH and a FH. It would be my 5th disc (4th after the putting putter) added.

I only use it for BH shots, and for the majority of those shots a Leo3 is stable enough to get around the corner with a lot of hyzer. And since I can also turn the Leo3 over, it is available for far more shots than a FB type disc. It's not as good at getting around the corner, but the versatility for more shots outweighs the 5 ft I lose using it for the hyzer shots.

 

[Keller]

I play three/four disc rounds all the time, I just like the simplicity of carrying them in my hand and going off to play. My personal best score on one of my home wooded courses was played this way and the funny thing is; after initially wishing I had X or Y disc, I just figure out how to make what I have work, and that has opened my eyes to lots of possibilities I once never thought of.

My 3 disc bag is;
Star Eagle-X
KC Roc (seasoned)
DX Aviar

If I add 3 more;
Rhyno - Overstable approach disc
Polaris LS, beat in - Workable stable/understable fairway
A 9/10 speed Driver. Depending on the course, it's either an Orc, Sidewinder or Valkyrie.

I don't have the arm to utilize a Firebird, for a while I carried a Banshee but in all honesty, a new Eagle-X does me just fine.

I can forehand every thing I have listed, so I really don't see any holes and with the above 6 discs I can and do play pretty comfortably.

If I were to add any more, it would just be more of the same molds in different places in a cycle.

Less discs means less decisions and better execution, at least for me.

 

[roggenb3]

I play three/four disc rounds all the time, I just like the simplicity of carrying them in my hand and going off to play. My personal best score on one of my home wooded courses was played this way and the funny thing is; after initially wishing I had X or Y disc, I just figure out how to make what I have work, and that has opened my eyes to lots of possibilities I once never thought of.

Less discs means less decisions and better execution, at least for me.

Exactly. You don't always need the "perfect" disc. You learn your discs far better when you force yourself to throw different types of shots with them.

Carrying a million discs is a crutch for a lot of people.

 

[Moose33]

I take a minimalist bag when I travel for work, and make sure to stop at the best course in the area.

Star Tern
Star Orc
Star Roadrunner
Z Hornet
Z Buzzz
DX Aviar

I do that a lot as well, the OG Nutsac with 4 discs fits in my computer bag really well.

Used Champ FB
Storm Barbarian
DX Roc
Electron Atom

for the last couple of trips.

 

[Dire Wolfy]

Walmart starter set, 10m brick, groove, wolf, turbo putt.

 

[art_vandelay]

John Lennon said he could get art out of a tuba or something close to that. I'd still pay disc golf if they took away everything but my stable glow wizard and a beat in star tee bird. I think people would be surprised how close they can come to their usual scores with only a couple of discs in hand. It's kind of eye opening.

 

[davistd0]

I've played some of the best (casual) rounds of my life with nothing more than the following (disclaimer, New England courses are rather wooded and I would pick other discs for a significantly open course):

Star Leopard3 (pretty fresh)
Proto Star Rat (well seasoned)
Proto Star Aviar3 (well seasoned)
Yeti Aviar Pro

The newish Leo3 allows plenty of distance and power off the tee when needed. But the natural "leopardness" of the disc makes it adjustable on lots of flex and turnover lines.

The Rat is a great neutral flyer when broken in, and handles backhand and forehand throws well to a cover a wide assortment of lines. The Aviar3 is similar to the Rat in its versatility, with a low speed for terrific accuracy approaching the pin.

Yeti Pro for putting because as minimal as you want to go, you need to have your go-to chain smasher.

 

[JNichols]

My minimalist "Funbag" is based around discs can control in any condition. Discs I can Hyzer flip, but are still stable enough to throw full power flat shots with, and not crash to the ground and cut roll. I have a soft spot for Discraft, so even though my main bag is all Trilogy plastic, my small Fossa 8 disc shoulder bag is all Discraft, loaded as follows....
1 Z Heat Stable/Understable
1 Z Mantis Stable
1 ESP Cyclone Stable/Understable
1 Max weight Z Buzz
1 Max weight Z Comet OR ESP Meteor
1 ESP FLX Challenger Putt AND Approach

I have had some great games with the 6 disc bag. As said before, it makes you learn each disc, and use them to their full potential, instead of bagging one disc for every shot you may need to throw.

 

[Jowie]

I'm playing right now with a 4-5 disc bag and it feels right for me. I don't seem to have lost anything for the change

Reliable distance driver
Understable distance
Overstable fairway
One Putter

I've been throwing a roc in there lately, but not sure if it's totally necessary for the courses in my area and for the range the proxy has.

 

[swhite]

I am just a recreational player, so philosophical questions like how many discs one fits in their bag for their dance toward the pin are too esoteric for me.

If I play with just one disc (make it whatever you want) that is minimalist for me, since I literally cannot pay a round with less than that. And, I sometimes do play with just one disc, which is a fun challenge.

Being a maximalist, for me, is cramming a 17th disc in my 16 disc capacity Grip EQ bag, but that is bad since it is hard to pull the discs out then. So, yes; maximalist bad.

 

[Putt for D'oh]

I've been thinking about this a lot recently, and I'm interested in hearing other ideas.

Creating a minimalist bag seems to require making sacrifices or prioritizing certain types of discs over others. Obviously, this has a lot to do with throwing style/skill level/personal preference, but I'm curious to hear how others approach this task.

I think when done right and after some experience there isn't a true sacrifice. Maybe some strange utility needs where you are left with something that kinda does the job, but for most "normal" golf shots its pretty straight forward.

So, how would you build a bag of 3-6 discs that could be used on any course and still give you a chance to throw close to your best? I'd like to hear what types of discs and specific flights are essential and what you would eliminate. For example, is it important to have a laser straight mid but okay to completely drop high speed drivers?

***I know an ultra-minimalist bag would be one or two discs but that's a different topic

For starters I see no need for Distance Drivers. I have a couple in my big bag and they are finally starting to get me more distance consistently than my fairways but I am sacrificing very little without them. Good ole reliable fairways. Teebird/Eagle/FD are my staples and I will mix and match those in various plastics and wear based on how much wind or tight the lines need to be. Generally I would take 2. One stable/OS and one slightly US if there is a lot of wind it might be OS and US for headwind and tailwind. But basically I have right now I have like 8 speed 7 fairways I like to throw from OS to US. I can happily choose 2 for a course if it were two forever and ever? stable/OS and stable/US

Then Putting putter and 3 putter/mids from OS to US. I use a BT soft Harp, Fresh Compass and seasoned Truth. OS, Straight, US slots

Bonus question: Is it worth putting with a premium plastic putter that can double as a thrower?

I'm bad at putting... people complain about the basket or wind or all kinds of stuff for missing a putt... I wish I was good enough to blame something besides my putting for a miss... but that being said I still feel a putting putter is needed and its only duty is putting.


summary:
2 fairways - Stable/OS and Stable/US
3 Mids/putter - OS, Stable, US
Putting putter

I think if I NEEDED a disc like a firebird that a lot of people throw all the time I still would only take that and a less stable fairway.

 

[Streets]

I've posted this before but I like my core to be 4 discs:

Stable/OS driver
Stable/US driver
Stable Mid
Stable Putter

And I just add discs based on what I need. Maybe I'm playing a longer course and need a distance driver? Maybe I'm in the deep woods and need a FH OS putter and OS driver for some trick shots?

 

[lyleoross]

My real bag:

1. Valkyrie
2. Thunderbird
3. TL3
4. Teebird3
5. Panther
6. Jokeri
7. Colt
8. Soft Harp
9. Firebird for wind and hard fades

All those high speed drivers fail for me. I just can't keep them controlled.

If I had to, I could take out the Thunderbird and Valkyrie, without even thinking about it. Yes, they are longer than the T3s, but not enough to worry about it.

 

[Streets]

My real bag:

1. Valkyrie
2. Thunderbird
3. TL3
4. Teebird3
5. Panther
6. Jokeri
7. Colt
8. Soft Harp
9. Firebird for wind and hard fades

All those high speed drivers fail for me. I just can't keep them controlled.

If I had to, I could take out the Thunderbird and Valkyrie, without even thinking about it. Yes, they are longer than the T3s, but not enough to worry about it.

Do you see much overlap with Jokeri and Harp?

 

[SaROCaM]

My 3 disc bag is;
Star Eagle-X
KC Roc (seasoned)
DX Aviar

This is a great setup. I'd be happy with this as a minimalist bag.