Getting all mixed up

[dethyr]

Hey folks, I have been playing for about a month and a half. I am the kind of person that loves being good at the sports I spend time on. I like to have good gear and I don't like to be a "newb" if that makes sense.

My scores went from +30 to +7 in a short amount of time but now I find the more stuff about technique that I watch or read, the more I think and the more discs I try, the more mixed up I get.

My drives have great distance but my accuracy is all over the place. My mid range shots are ok but again, accuracy is a factor and putting is either bang on or way off.

Can you guys give me a bunch of steps to take where I can kind of start small and move forward with the stuff I've learned?

 

[slowplastic]

I know what you mean, but it's a lot to expect to be good at everything at once.

Practice a bit of each thing in a session, until you feel like you learned something and can do it more consistently...if you feel it going downhill move on to the next thing.

For example practice putting for a while (have more than one putter) so you can take the same shot a few times in a row before you collect the discs. That way you can build consistency and fix small errors. Focus on a consistent style/release...there are lots of putting styles, just find the one that works for you and do it every time.

In a field if you practice distance, don't just throw openly for distance. Put your bag or an object out there and aim for it. Visualize the line you want to hit. If it goes far that's good, but make sure it's on line. When you go to the course this will help...but if the courses have low ceilings/trees then it's hard to transition from throwing only in an open field to a one-chance throw on the course under trees. You have to practice this separate skill, or really visualize the line you want to hit even if it's in the open field.

Practice throwing putters and midranges. It's ok to have fairway drivers too, but if you've been buying lots of discs make sure you don't focus on speed 8+ stuff unless your putters and midranges are going straight and not fluttering/turning over into the ground.

Also I find it can be helpful to watch a bit of pro tourney footage on youtube to see what lines they throw, it will open your eyes to how to choose shots (even if lots of their shots are very difficult for us but their 'easy' lines).

 

[teemkey]

Initially throw everything from a standstill. See the schusterick video, nice & simple.

Minimize the number of discs you carry (6-8 should be enough), and learn to throw them.

Learn to drive a putter 200' accurately before you go crazy with distance drivers.

Lots of field practice. Lots of putting practice.

 

[DiscFifty]

Just get a stable putter and only throw that for a week or so. I know it will be boring at first. But learn how to throw it level, hyzer, anny, hard, soft, etc, etc. Really...really...dial it in. And THEN start throwing mid ranges, then later drivers. You will be amazed how much better you can play once you learn how to throw your putter.

 

[dethyr]

Alright, for putters I have

Soft banger
Judge
Warden
Harp

Which of these would be best for said activities?

 

[slowplastic]

Throw everything you have. Lots of people are super picky about using the exact same putter and buying a stack of them...same firmness/weight/whatever. I have different putters, I was terrible with each of them for the first few days I had them and now I putt 90% the same with them all within 20-30' of the basket.

I've never thrown any of those putters, but it looks like the Harp is pretty overstable and should be the easiest to drive without it turning. The Banger looks like it would be the most touchy.

I would throw them all in the field for practice, some may not go as far as others (they should hopefully be within about 20' of each other in distance) but as long as the understable ones like the Banger aren't turning over after 100' while the Judge or Harp are flying ok, then you should be doing alright.

As far as putting goes, if any of them don't feel right then you don't need to practice with it if it messes you up. Other than that, putting is all by feel so use which makes you comfortable. And if only one of them does...then I guess buy a few of that one if that's what works for you.

For example, I have a Classic Aviar that is very understable/stable and I don't really like using it in a round for driving...but I practice driving with it a lot. If it turns over on me I know I did something wrong...it tells me right away. But, if I throw it cleanly it goes dead straight. Something like that is finicky when your score counts, but as a practice tool it tells you without a doubt if you are doing something wrong, or it rewards you with the straightest flight possible.

Oh, one more thing. It's not completely useful to only throw putters. I love throwing putters...but they teach you different things than fairway drivers. Putters like smooth and clean release. But fairway drivers like nose down. So you don't need to practice only with a certain type of disc, each type will give you different feedback and help you get a complete throwing style. I would just be careful with anything above speed 7 until you are throwing 300' fairly regularly...those are very nose sensitive, but they will hide any sort of unclean release to the point where it can allow you to overthrow things.

 

[KDDEBOER]

the more discs I try, the more mixed up I get.

This part of your post will probably get the most attention. As other posters have stated, limit your molds. You need to learn how to control the disc's flight, not let the disc's flight dictate your shot.

Many would suggest taking one disc and one disc only for days, weeks or even months. Usually a neutral mid that you are comfortable with. Popular molds include Discraft's Comet or Buzz, Innova's Roc, or my favorite which is MVP's Tangent.

 

[garublador]

My drives have great distance but my accuracy is all over the place. My mid range shots are ok but again, accuracy is a factor and putting is either bang on or way off.

I think you'll find that You'll get a lot of really generic advice without being any more specific than that. How "great" is your distance (i.e. how far can you throw each disc), how accurately have you measured it, and how happy are you with it? For accuracy, do you have trouble throwing the same shot over and over, or are you having trouble hitting different lines?

In general, if you're just working on technique and have some minimum competency throwing a disc (most people get that pretty quick and I'd guess you're already there) then the actual molds you use to practice won't matter a ton as long as they aren't too over/understable or fast (< speed 7 or 8). Personally, I find it's easiest to feel correct timing and the hit with mids, but putters and fairway drivers are close behind. It's much harder for me with anything speed 9 and above.

If you're working on line shaping, then choosing a very overstable driver, a workable fairway driver, a neutral mid and a stable putter and doing everything with those few discs will help a lot. The trick is to learn to get all of your discs to hold all sorts of lines (some will be better at some lines than others).

As for how to practice that stuff, there are tons of articles and threads devoted to that. The quick version is to get familiar with the general driving motion, do some drill that teaches you how to feel correct timing, then build your throw around maximizing that feel. Some choose to go hard core and make sure they have the feel down for sure the first time (you might need a coach for that) and some use a more iterative process of rebuilding their throws a few times over.

 

[kevdiv48]

Here is some great info on this subject.

 

[Timeetyo]

Lots of good advice so far. One thing I'll add is when practicing, be sure to not just focus on distance - or even distance while 'on line'. When I started this was all I focused on. Set myself up at my max distance from my basket and tried to park it - or overshoot it if possible. This did help a lot with distance, but it didn't help with ranging shots which is a big part of accuracy. What I do now is pick random spots in the yard from a variety of angles and distances and then try to park my basket. I have definitely noticed a difference since I've made this change as I'm now doing a better job ranging shots on the course.

Additionally, I also try and experiment with different discs & lines when practicing. For discs - if I'm sitting in my normal range for mids i'll try a few with either putters or fairways to see if i can get it to work. Sometimes it does - sometimes it fails. My yard is pretty open so I have to imagine obstacles, but I'll set myself up where i have to hit this with a big hyzer / anny / etc.

 

[wildwing]

Alright, for putters I have

Soft banger
Judge
Warden
Harp

Which of these would be best for said activities?

Judge.

 

[Smigles]

IMO beside all the learning and practicing, you also gotta give it some time to let it sink in.

Keep up the reading and the practicing and give yourself some time.

 

[dethyr]

Tweaked a few things today in my game after watching some videos and reading some stuff and ended up breaking my low score and shooting a +5 and a +6 on the birch point course (18 par 3 holes).

I know it's not something one can be amazing at in no time but I guess I wanted to step things up a notch and look for ways to work on my game which all of you guys helped me out with. I have a lot to work on before the snow comes.