Questions from a Frustrated Forehand Thrower

[DaddyD]

I'm a frustrated left-handed forehand thrower who started playing Spring 2010 and I need some advice on getting better distance and more consistent throws.

I don't have the arm strength or athleticism to get decent distance on a backhand throw (LH or RH), so I've gravitated to driving LHFH for anything but really short hyzer holes of less than 200 feet. My results have been less than spectacular, with my best drives going about 275 feet (and there are few of those).

I've seen all the videos online and read numerous articles, but I have some questions that I would like to know the finals answers to.

Question 1, The Grip. I've tried stacking my fingers and tucking the index behind the middle, but I can't get any control unless I use the fan/spread grip with middle finger against the inside rim and the index against the underside pointing to the center. My question has to do with the positioning of the thumb in my grip. I've heard that it should run towards my middle finger and pinch there, and I've heard that it should run parallel with my index finger and pinch on the joint where the index finger meets the hand. Is there a consensus on this?

Question 2, The Snap. I understand what snap is on a backhand throw but what exactly is the snap on a forehand throw? How do I know if I'm getting it/enough of it? What am I looking for from the disc? What am I looking for physically from my arm/hand?

Question 3, The Follow-Through. I've found conflicting advice regarding what the follow-through should look like (or if there should be any follow-through at all). Some places tell you to let the disc pull itself from your grip as your arm makes a full move around your body, but others say to stop your arm abruptly, which causes the disc to eject. Which is correct? In either technique, where should the release point be?

I'm sure I'll have more questions if this gets discussed, but getting some answers to these would help me.

 

[chrishysell]

I would love to be able to throw my forehand 75 feet farther than my backhand. What are your epectations? I think I'm a pretty good forehand thrower and I only get them out there about 325ft max.

Here is a quick summary of my throw. Remember no one throws the perfect shot. I have many different types of forehands that I throw but my grip is always the same. I'm a one-finger thrower. My thumb is on the top of the disc and I pinch the disc between the thumb and the pointer finger. Also I don't throw a baseball style forehand. I use more of a downward sweep. While my arm may move up to 3ft or more the actual throw happens in the lower 18" of the sweep. By not releasing at the end of the throw the snap is created. I also have 3 primary shot types. The stand still creates more of a turnover throw because it is thrown more with the upper body rotation. One step is used for hyzer shots and longer straighter shots can be achieved by doing a walk up step through. The motion of your hip eliminates you over-rotating and creating excessive turnover.

 

[Cory]

When you throw are you stepping through? You should be leading with your right foot, rotating your hips, and whipping with your arm.

As far as snap is concerned... you ever been fishing? Think of the wrist action in casting. That's snap.

 

[Dillon_Gourley]

Daddy O , here's some advice from none other than a left handed forehand thrower tournament player.

I put my finger stacked on the rim with my thumb on the outter rim, I guess you would call it pinched.

Accuracey is in the wrist and arm (for aim) but power comes arm/elbow/wrist.

If you use to play baseball you will find yourself being a better forehand thrower I believe.

Now, I am in the boat where I need a backhand to become a better skilled player. I turned to forehand little over a year ago due to not being able to play in the woods and shanking most backhand drives but now woods is where my game is it's strongest.

I would reccomend working on your backhand for open/distance holes because trust me, you will need it and the sooner you learn it the better.

 

[Dillon_Gourley]

For more distance watch Avery Jenkins throw FH and try to mimic that. Brings his hand up high and over and snap. I call it the rodeo flick. Although I do not use this method I showed it to a friend and you can get more D out of your forehands.

 

[lokirising]

I can't throw sidearm worth beans.

 

[warren1086]

Are you using the x-step? Also I try to keep my elbow close to my ribs and reach back as far as I can, but still trying to keep a 90 degree angle with my elbow. For more control I spread my index finger about an inch or two, depending on how much control/distance I want. The closer together I keep my middle and index finger the more distance I get but less control, and the more I fan them the more control but less distance. Oh and I just keep my thumb on the inside edge of the rim for both grips. Hope this helps.

 

[djjeremiahj]

I'm a frustrated left-handed forehand thrower who started playing Spring 2010 and I need some advice on getting better distance and more consistent throws.

I don't have the arm strength or athleticism to get decent distance on a backhand throw (LH or RH), so I've gravitated to driving LHFH for anything but really short hyzer holes of less than 200 feet. My results have been less than spectacular, with my best drives going about 275 feet (and there are few of those).

I've seen all the videos online and read numerous articles, but I have some questions that I would like to know the finals answers to.

Question 1, The Grip. I've tried stacking my fingers and tucking the index behind the middle, but I can't get any control unless I use the fan/spread grip with middle finger against the inside rim and the index against the underside pointing to the center. My question has to do with the positioning of the thumb in my grip. I've heard that it should run towards my middle finger and pinch there, and I've heard that it should run parallel with my index finger and pinch on the joint where the index finger meets the hand. Is there a consensus on this?

Question 2, The Snap. I understand what snap is on a backhand throw but what exactly is the snap on a forehand throw? How do I know if I'm getting it/enough of it? What am I looking for from the disc? What am I looking for physically from my arm/hand?

Question 3, The Follow-Through. I've found conflicting advice regarding what the follow-through should look like (or if there should be any follow-through at all). Some places tell you to let the disc pull itself from your grip as your arm makes a full move around your body, but others say to stop your arm abruptly, which causes the disc to eject. Which is correct? In either technique, where should the release point be?

I'm sure I'll have more questions if this gets discussed, but getting some answers to these would help me.

1) 2 finger grip... Just grab the disc with 2 fingers and stop thinking where your thumb should go... <wherever> it rests naturally is where it should go....
* i would guess that your problem is gripping too light... - if the disc "flutters" out of your hand you arent gripping hard enough....

2) The best forehand thrower i know, complains that he's given himself carpal tunnel from too much snap.... i can say, however, that he can drive a Pig almost 350'.

3) Follow through? if you are worrying about this, then you are throwing wrong... i can push a wraith 300'+ from a standing position. The throw is more about arm speed and snap than body movement.

i'd type the standard "how to throw sidearm" writeup, but it would be a lot easier for someone else (cough cough) to use the search function than it would be for me to write the same words again (for the 1000th time)

 

[Smigles]

I don't have the arm strength or athleticism to get decent distance on a backhand throw (LH or RH), so I've gravitated to driving LHFH for anything but really short hyzer holes of less than 200 feet. My results have been less than spectacular, with my best drives going about 275 feet (and there are few of those).

I know that this is not what you want to hear, but :

Strengh and athleticism has absolutely nothing to do with BH drives under 350 feet. It is all in the technique. Same thing for forehand realy.

If you have the right technique, power only decides how much MORE than 400 feet you can throw. Look at people like Simon Lizotte. He throws 500 +, but loses to his girlfriend when they do arm wrestling.

 

[simpletwist]

Always follow thru. I pulled the longheads and shortheads of my left bicep by not following thru (LHFH). Its like a side arm pitcher in baseball. Hell any pitcher. They always follow thru.

 

[CwAlbino]

The same elements to a backhand are needed for a forehand. These are all things I've worked through myself, take my advice or leave it, As you can tell from the picture I'm not a big dude, I'm about 6' 145lbs and I can still crank a forehand 350-375' average and can break the 400' mark on good days. Works pretty good for me so far.

Grip, The more you can get on the rim of the disc, the more torque. Anything on the bottom of the flight plate will give accuracy but will not help with accuracy. Also if you are rolling your wrist it will cause OAT. I use a single finger grip, where the index finger is the only thing on the inside rim. When the disc is held, it's held with the thumb in line with my forearm. The bottom of the rim is resting on my middle finger and ring finger. Pic below of the grip I use.

Follow Through I always tell people, point to your target. When you finish a forehand throw, your finger(s) should be pointing at your target. By Pointing to the target, it helps to keep from early or late release. Late release is a common addition to OAT. Pointing to the target helps to keep the arm close to the body

The Pull There are many arguments about this subject, to keep the elbow bent and close to the body, or to stretch the arm out. I'm a firm believe in a bent elbow, making a straight line from reach-back to follow-through has, for me, been the most accurate and distance giving pull. Keeping the arm close and the pull through straight is done with practice, and largely by the runup/stance

Runup/Stance- I use a modified X-Step for forehand. If you know the x-step, you probably don't need to read the next part. This is how it goes for a RHFH thrower, think baseball stances:
1. Left foot goes foreword, showing your back to the target and giving you a "closed" stance
2. Right foot behind for the x-step
3. Left foot is brought across the body and opening your hips and torso. This basically puts you into an open batting stance.

How you step after the hit is completely up to preference, just make sure the completely follow through is comfortable and still gets the "hit" in there as well as the point, if only for a split second.

Remember to keep your body over the disc, leaning back will cause the nose angle to be bad or causes low to high throws.



Hope I helped somebody

here you go. The "point to your target" thing is something that helps with snap and the "hammer hit". By pointing to your target with the finger that is your release point, you are focusing on getting the hit in there, and hitting it harder. It's more accurate, and gets you more distance.

 

[srm_520]

Good to see there are fellow LHFHer's out there. My grip - like taking a pinch of chew - two fingers underneath for balance and support, thumb on the outside where it is comfy. Snap should be easier than backhand since the disc movement from the wrist should promote more spin naturally. However, if you limp wrist it - it'll never do what you want. Follow through like you're shooting that gun and let the disc rip out of your hand producing more spin and further distances. I'm no pro, but it works for this amateur. Having said that I typically hit 300-350 feet on most drives.

My brother (also LHFH - crazy huh?) uses a one finger underneath the rim grip, but I found that I lost a lot of my control with this grip.

 

[NovaDiscHead]

Here's some advice:

Type of grip, power and follow through depend on type of shot and distance:

Short, accurate drive: I stand on the pad, and concentrate on my wrist snap. I use a two finger grip with my index finger resting on the rim, and my middle finger next to it, my thumb is pinching it tight (but not too tight). I start with the disc fairly vertical (about 50 degrees) and using a smooth motion, I sling it out horizontal. On my best throws, I have my arm follow through like a good golf swing, if you can imagine.

Long "Go for it" drives: Using the same grip and follow through as I described above, I use a "reverse X-step" to add power and distance. I start by stepping to the right edge of the pad, on the back end, sliding my right foot behind my left, then stepping through with my left, so I end up facing the aiming point of my throw. Obviously, you'd need to reverse this being left handed. Don't "overthrow", I mean trying too hard to add extra velocity and snap to your throw- this causes you to lose accuracy, and to "short arm" your throws. This means your disc will release earlier than it should and your disc will end up going to the left of your aiming point. I've lost several discs due to this. If you relax, and let your smooth form take over, you'll add distance with refinement and practice, along with accuracy.

Short "lay-up" throws: I use a one finger grip, and start low, looping the disc up from my ankles, across my chest with a relatively high release point. Adjust your release angle to compensate for environmental factors, such as the wind, trees and mandos.

One other piece of advice on "wrist snap"- try practicing with doing a forearm WITHOUT moving your arm- keep it tight against your body. I use this as a teaching technique with newer players, and it is amazing how quickly they pick up the proper motion after doing this a few times. I find that most problems I've had with my forehand are derived from poor form with my arm, i.e. dropping my elbow during my throw, throwing with too much power, and short arming. When I have a couple of bad throws in a row, I'll actually do this to remind myself of the proper way to throw a forehand.

Good luck, and Godspeed!

 

[GLong]

I always tell people to work on it by playing catch with a frisbee. Throw 100 FHs with a lid and you start to figure it out pretty quick the important thing is that the wrist has to be moving faster than the arm. Good FH throws do not require a ton of arm speed. Keep that elbow tucked in and just focus on the wrist.

I am not a FH dominant thrower, just use it when I need to and average 300-325' with it.

 

[DiscChainBasket18]

Quick-flick

Here's what I learned:
Use two fingers. Lead with your elbow & extend your arm with a quick little snap. If the disc comes out fast & flips over on you, try dropping the outside edge of the disc a little bit (throw it with some hyzer).
For driving, use an understable disc & throw with a hyzer tilt. It will whip up straight & turn a little as it covers good straight distance.
You dont need much body but you need a smooth follow-through, just a quick little blip.
You dont need much power (that's why new players like it) i.e. dont try to snap your arm too hard or the disc will come out all floppy-doppy

 

[jivedude]

Forehand/Sidearm Fundamentals

 

[Osteodiscer]

My ahaha moment tonight.
Pinch the forefinger tip and thumb.
It looks like Nate Sexton's grip. First photo is forefinger and thumb pinch. then just place the middle finger in front of forefinger( Second pic.)
Don't just lay the fingers along side the inside rim while the thumb just sits on top of the plate. Like third photo.
This pinch eliminates OAT! And 200FT stand still and accurate. I will take that to be a great start for me. The rest of the distance should come easly with run up. Can't believe its taken 5 years to get this. The Nate Sexton forehand video would have been perfect if he told you to pinch the forefinger tip to the thumb then put middle finger in place.
My forefinger and middle finger are arched like his because they have to be in order to have the forfinger and thumb pinched.
Mt stretched out fingers give too much friction and off axis torque. It is now 100% gone! Absolutely shocking.
My might make a video about this over looked fundamental aspect of the forhand grip.
Sorry so long but i want to make sure people understand this. A game changer.
Keep slinging .

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