Disc placement question

[ETXdiscguy]

I stumbled upon Blake Takkunen's grip how to section of his web page, https://www.dgcoursereview.com/dgr/resources/articles/gripittoripit.shtml, and had a question. Do you guys place the disc in your hand like he suggests (along the horizontal seam of the hand)? I've aleays gripped it like he says not to grip it. What are your thoughts on disc placement? Do you take blakes advice or do you grip it differently?

 

[HyzerUniBomber]

Yep, just like this:

 

[BuzzzChief]

I'm kinda halfway between his "correct" and "incorrect" disc placement. Probably explains why I occasionally struggle with nose-up.

 

[ToddL]

Yep. I line it up with the Bonapane grip to get the disc under the knuckle of my index finger, then wrap the tip of my finger under the rim without adjusting the position of the disc in my palm.

 

[tonyroberts]

There's so much conflicting advice about this. Blake recommends having your thumb forward and the pad of the base of your thumb on the disk as showing in the image HUB posted above. I watched an Avery Jenkins video last night in which he said get the base of the thumb off the disk, bend the thumb and press down with the tip of the thumb over the index finger. And there are many permutations in between.

Makes it hard to find that magic position that solves all ills.

The one thing I know is that with the thumb-forward position, I do a better job keeping the nose down.

 

[clard]

There's so much conflicting advice about this. Blake recommends having your thumb forward and the pad of the base of your thumb on the disk as showing in the image HUB posted above. I watched an Avery Jenkins video last night in which he said get the base of the thumb off the disk, bend the thumb and press down with the tip of the thumb over the index finger. And there are many permutations in between.

Makes it hard to find that magic position that solves all ills.

The one thing I know is that with the thumb-forward position, I do a better job keeping the nose down.

I think grip is one of those things that you have to play around with a bit yourself to find out what works for you. Different hand sizes will have to modify things a bit to work for them. A few hours of field work can work out what grip works for you. As your form changes it's good to go back every once in a while and experiment with grips again.

Starting with Blake's grip is the right way to go. The important things are that the disc doesn't come out early, you get a good lock point that the disc can pivot around, the disc comes out cleanly (without OAT/wobble), and you can get the disc nose down.

 

[TylerBrown2]

I've had a burning question about grip as well. When I first started playing I would make sure to get all four fingers on the bottom of the rim. As I did more studying (on here) about grip i realized the plane of the disc in my hand was off because I was forcing all my fingers on the rim.

I have since adjusted to a 3 finger grip and I tuck my pinky into my palm to avoid interference. I am wondering now what is more important 1) getting the pinky on the disc and if this is affecting power 2) making sure that the disc is sitting in the correct plane in my hand.

Any opinions?

 

[clard]

The correct plane is definitely more important. I'm no 500' thrower, but my pinky does basically nothing for me. I have really big hands though, so it's really easy for me to get my pinky under. Just experiment with what works for you. If it's not slipping, and you are getting the nose down then your grip is probably fine.

 

[knettles]

I've had a burning question about grip as well. When I first started playing I would make sure to get all four fingers on the bottom of the rim. As I did more studying (on here) about grip i realized the plane of the disc in my hand was off because I was forcing all my fingers on the rim.

I have since adjusted to a 3 finger grip and I tuck my pinky into my palm to avoid interference. I am wondering now what is more important 1) getting the pinky on the disc and if this is affecting power 2) making sure that the disc is sitting in the correct plane in my hand.

Any opinions?

Ya, three finger power grips are fine. There's plenty of people who use those because it just feels more comfortable to them. I believe I heard a big arm pro say he uses three fingers for distance throws and four fingers during actual rounds because all four fingers gives more control. But I definitely wouldn't go less than three.

 

[Major Tomahawk]

I believe I heard a big arm pro say he uses three fingers for distance throws and four fingers during actual rounds because all four fingers gives more control. But I definitely wouldn't go less than three.

Contrary to the quote above, I throw 99.999% of my backhand shots off of my index finger only. I've had quite a bit of success with this style. I've won 79 professional dg tournies with the one finger grip. To each his/her own. There is no "one" way.

 

[Pbmercil]

Contrary to the quote above, I throw 99.999% of my backhand shots off of my index finger only. I've had quite a bit of success with this style. I've won 79 professional dg tournies with the one finger grip. To each his/her own. There is no "one" way.

Whats your PDGA number?

On topic: there is more then one way to skin a cat. If the disc rips from your index finger and comes out nose down its fine. There are all kinds of different grips that work. It seems like every pro clinic Ive seen advocates a different grip. I use the one HUB posted.

I played with a dude in high school who insisted 2 fingers was the correct grip, and he could throw over 500 by the time he was 17 years old. To each his own.

 

[slowplastic]

I even line the disc up along my middle finger rather than between index and middle. It helps me keep the nose down.

You definitely want the disc at least parallel, or more nose down, than your forearm angle. This is 100% crucial to throwing any distance and for getting discs to carry while turned over.

 

[clard]

Contrary to the quote above, I throw 99.999% of my backhand shots off of my index finger only. I've had quite a bit of success with this style. I've won 79 professional dg tournies with the one finger grip. To each his/her own. There is no "one" way.

That's a lot!

 

[Kodachrome]

I think grip is one of those things that you have to play around with a bit yourself to find out what works for you. Different hand sizes will have to modify things a bit to work for them. A few hours of field work can work out what grip works for you. As your form changes it's good to go back every once in a while and experiment with grips again.

Starting with Blake's grip is the right way to go. The important things are that the disc doesn't come out early, you get a good lock point that the disc can pivot around, the disc comes out cleanly (without OAT/wobble), and you can get the disc nose down.

Yeah. It's true there are just too many right ways to grip a disc. I started with Blake's grip and moved on once I realized the thumb was just waaaaaay too forward. I was not getting much of any downward pressure with that thumb position. I actually felt like I had to pull my thumb BACKWARD to compensate for it and create pressure to my index. Now I model my position after Bill Clinton's thumb and forefinger position For speeches.

 

[_dj_]

Now I model my position after Bill Clinton's thumb and forefinger position For speeches.

that's a good visual :thmbup:

 

[clard]

:thmbup:

 

[broomerang]

Completely depends on the person's hand size, and perhaps more importantly thumbs size.

My thumbs are longer than most people and I don't have big hands to help make up for that so I have to pinch the disc more like Avery. Blake's way just didn't work as well.

Notice that Blake also has dozens of other options to choose from and that's just one resource.

Too each their own. Whatever works for you and is comfortable and consistent to do without thinking about it too much is the correct grip.