How many different throwing styles do you use?

[BuzzzChief]

I think to be a high level player you need to be able to throw both backhand and forehand at least somewhat effectively. It probably doesn't matter which one is your primary throw, but the secondary needs to be at least serviceable and long enough to be used off the tee on short- to medium-length holes.

I think a decent roller is also necessary, a good indicator would be that you can roll a disc close to the same distance as your max air shot. Top pros can obviously push the rollers even farther. Opposite direction roller (forehand for most players) needs to be at least good enough to be used for "get out of jail" shots.

Along with that you need to be comfortable with a variety of short-distance, uniquely shaped shots like thumbers, tomahawks, grenades, high panning flex shots, etc. Otherwise you will have a tough time hacking your way out of the trees, and kill your round with one or two bad holes.

 

[Meillo]

Thumbers and several kinds of short rollers (thumb roller with the flightplate away from the body and the other thumb roller with the flightplate towards the body, plus FH rollers) have allowed so many difficult approches to succeed. They each saved one stroke. This is the more important set of throwing techniques to me.

For driving, a standard set of BH shots and some kind of forehand covers it all. :-D

 

[DiscinFiend]

Off The Tee
Backhand 50%
Forehand 40%
Tomahawk 9%
FH/BH Roller 1%

I prefer backhand over forehand for straight shots. Plus my backhand is what I prefer for max distance. That's the main reason I throw more backhand shots than forehand. I use tomahawk for a lot more than just "get out of trouble shots". If I have the option to either throw over the top or hit a small gap, I'm going over the top...I can't throw a thumber to save my life. I don't throw backhand or sidearm rollers very often off the tee. I actually throw a lot more forehand rollers than backhand. In tournaments I've thrown very few gernades, thumb rollers, turbo putts etc. I'll only do so if it's a weird situation and those shots are without a doubt the best option available. I play a lot of wooded courses. I actually throw a lot more forehand rollers than most people, especially when I get in some trouble in the woods. Its saved me SO many strokes. If Im in a situation where an obstacle is in my way and I can't get a full backswing (backhand/sidearm), I'm going roller. I don't use it off the tee often, though there are a few holes locally that I do. I'm still working on it. It's a great tool to have, I'm surprised I don't see top pros use it more often.

Anyone on here actually throw chicken wing??? I've tried it but I'd never actually use it in competition.

 

[Dan Ensor]

No chickenwings or grenades (I want to start including grenades), and my LH OH is not course-functional atm.

Other than that, I can't think of anything I haven't thrown in a tournament round.

 

[pjhayes7]

Thumbers and several kinds of short rollers (thumb roller with the flightplate away from the body and the other thumb roller with the flightplate towards the body, plus FH rollers) have allowed so many difficult approches to succeed. They each saved one stroke. This is the more important set of throwing techniques to me.

For driving, a standard set of BH shots and some kind of forehand covers it all. :-D

What does a thumb roller with the flight plate facing your body do that a forehand roller won't?

 

[Meillo]

What does a thumb roller with the flight plate facing your body do that a forehand roller won't?

You can throw it even if you don't have room to work with your arm, because you can throw it from your chest.

 

[roggenb3]

This throwing lefty thing is awesome. I'm having so much more fun on this little pitch and putt than I ever did righty. So much more room for improvement, so much to learn.
Got my first lefty turkey the other night!

 

[zontar]

This throwing lefty thing is awesome. I'm having so much more fun on this little pitch and putt than I ever did righty. So much more room for improvement, so much to learn.
Got my first lefty turkey the other night!

good for you. "handicapping" yourself and relearning the game is fun. I'm not ambitious enough to throw lefty (dang, my wife is totally ambidextrous), but I mix up my bag a lot to relearn discs and throw stuff I "think" I don't like. seems to help my game overall, especially in my head.....

 

[tdschrock1]

All right hand throws: Off the tee, I'm 95% backhand, 4% forehand and 1% other (tomahawk or a rare grenade). On usphots, its similar, but a little bit more even distribution.

 

[Plastic Thunder]

Not including the 10 I made up.....ahh.... 7

Backhand, forehand flick, thumber, tomahawk, turbo, up-side-down skid shot along the pines needles under a low hanging tree branch and the Chicken Wing.

 

[Plastic Thunder]

And yeas the chicken wings is a shot, I will post a video later, I need to have someone hold the camera or I might injure myself.

 

[EarthRocker]

My grip is the subject of WTF-type questions occasionally. See, I'm a righty, and backhand is all any of us knew to do back in the early 90's. To be clear, some guys used a forehand, usually for one of two reasons:

1. Trouble shots where a backhand just isn't possible; or
2. A less-strenuous way to throw for distance that doesn't feel all frisbee-ish to those who abhor such things.

But anyway, my grip for a backhand with any power at all involves only my index and middle fingers gripping it. I've tried the traditional power-grip for kicks, and it's pretty funny. Just zero accuracy.
For a forehand, which I use very sparingly, it's only the index finger under the lip. The weight of the disc rests on the middle knuckle of the middle finger. I almost never drive this way, only trouble shots, rollers, and occasional short-ish forehand-anny upshots.

I often wonder how my game might improve if I worked on different grips. Fact is, I'm too old for that stuff. What I do works for me, and if I'm not exactly setting course records, I'm competitive with guys who are decades younger...

For putting, spin or push exclusively, my index is wrapped around the front edge.

I do have a pretty great backhand roller that only works in the open. Being in Charlotte, I never use it...

My go-to trouble shots are tomahawks I can shape through (and over) stuff, and thumbers that I use to throw the disc flat, top-down, and then skip it to the right. I'm sure it has a name. It's a very, very handy shot that I've noticed some of my compatriots working on recently.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love disc golf? Haven't played in almost two weeks, and it's really nice to be able to sit here and read, write, and think about it. :thmbup:

 

[Dynamic_83]

98% of the time its backhand,I have tried to work on my sidearm but having no luck.Once in a blue moon I will throw a tomahawk or roller but I can usually get the job done with backhand