Sorta new to DG, new to forums.

[Rasputin]

First off, I'm new here. So what's up DG'rs.

I discovered Disc Golf when I went to a small college in Indiana back in the early 90's. We didn't have baskets, just a campus known set of trees, pillars and rocks we threw our 180g ultimate discs at. But it was THE pastime at Hanover and I was pretty good at it. So it's probably been since '95 that I've played a round of DG.

I just got a new job and there's literally a course on the grounds, so I thought I'd pick it back up for something to do during lunches or after work. http://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=4527 So I did some research on the sport, made a spreadsheet of discs that might be helpful for a new player and here's what I purchased last night.

Innova Leopard Champion (175g)
Innova Shark DX (175g)
Discraft Buzzz Elite-Z (168g)
Discraft Magnet Pro-D (174g)

After reading a bit on the forums here, I think I may have gone a little too heavy for my first time out, which will be later this week when my order arrives. My original thought was since I can throw a 180g ultimate disc accurately a country mile, I should be fine with 175g or so, but now I'm not so sure since I've read it's much more about finesse than brute strength.

What do you guys think? Should I get a lighter driver and putter to start so I'm not discouraged?

Thanks in advance...

 

[JR]

Welcome. Those are all good to ok discs. The Shark is the weakest link but doing understable stuff with the Buzzz makes it ok. Much better than the Shark alone for everything. Depending on the distance you get now 175 could be all right. Max weight discs get buffeted less by winds. The more weight you have the less likely the disc is to flutter away without stabilizing or blown around by the wind.

 

[Rasputin]

Thanks. The shark was just $6.99 so I thought why not... or if I wanted to have someone else play with me. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

 

[dgdave]

The shark is a great mid.

 

[JR]

Not as great as say Roc, Buzzz, Comet, MD1, MD2 and Coyote for example. The Shark is better off paired with another dissimilar mid. Preferably a mid that can handle winds. Z Buzzz fits the bill if it is a flat topped one manufactured within the last two years and the weight suits the power of the thrower.

 

[vw02]

i love my 10year old shark

 

[jubuttib]

Welcome to the forums. =)

Great to see that you didn't go for the warp speed discs, good on ya. Your setup is pretty nice, but as you're apparently most used to throwing an Ultimate lid I'd suggest you give the Discraft Comet a try, in X or Z plastic. It's probably the most liddish golf disc that isn't a lid.

 

[Rasputin]

Cool, thanks for the tip on the Comet, I'll definitely pick one of those up and probably the Z Buzzz SS. I'm also eyeballing a Valkarie, and Aviar P&A with those on my next order, but any suggestions are welcome.

The discs mentioned in the first post should be here later today, and I've got the day off tomorrow so I'm stoked to start playing. Going to try and play a few rounds in the morning.

 

[JeremySW]

Those are all nice discs, just use what you have for a while. The best advice I can give on a rank beginner is "Nose down/ disc down". Meaning those are the two biggest things to concentrate on, keeping the "nose" of the disc down(you don't want to see much of the top of the disc in-air) and keeping the disc itself "close" to the ground(you want to avoid throwing escalator shots). It is very common for noobs to throw these big swooping shots that go 50 feet in the air and then stall out and crash down to the left or right(depending on your dominant hand). Its actually even worse for people who have some ultimate experience because lids are much more forgiving that golf discs to that sort of thing.

I would also focus on getting your discs to fly straight for the majority of their flight. Its a good way to learn how to manipulate release angles and how your discs behave. Throw at like 80% power and really pay attention to the cause & effect that the force and release angle plays on your disc. If you just go out and try to crush every drive(which will be your first instinct) you will not have a good time. You wont score as well as you could have, learn as much about your discs , and possibly injure yourself. Since you have some ultimate /throwing experience - you probably have enough snap to really get yourself in trouble when your fundamentals break down. This was demonstrated to me when I let my best friends brother play with me one time. He was a natural athlete and picked up how to throw a disc fairly far within about 3 holes. Yet he ended up losing 2 of my discs(and making us search for his drives a lot) because he had enough form to get a disc screaming pretty well, but he had no technique to control it. Don't be one of those guys.

Don't over think putting, just find a comfortable stance , aim for the basket and follow through.

That's all for now. Have fun.

 

[Rasputin]

Awesome advice. I've probably got enough whip to get myself in trouble, so I'll definitely be taking it easy with the drivers.

A buddy just gave me a Roc and Valkyrie, both lightly used if not new he said. Anyway I can tell the plastic or weights on these? Print just shows a standard patent and Innova - Champion Discs, Inc. Rancho Cucamonga Ca. etc. I'm assuming with the softness of the Roc it may be a DX, and a Champion Valkyrie. Still no clue on weights. Guess I can lay them on a scale.

*Edit*
I think I see weights barely visible on the bottom of Roc 148g and Valkyrie 150g. Lightweighters...

 

[Rasputin]

So I got my discs this afternoon. Went out and played 9 holes on my own and shot +8. yeesh! Every drive with the Leopard hyzer'd a ton which killed the already mediocre distance I was getting with it, so I started using the light weight Valkyrie with better success. What really killed me was two putting all but one hole. I liked putting with the Buzz more than the Magnet. The Buzzz felt really good all around so my mid-range was pretty decent.

When I got back to the turn I ran into a couple guys getting ready to start a round, we got to talking and told them I was a new player. They let me play along for their 18 and I ended up +1 on the round with their help. Got a few deuces even! They improved my putting (I was trying to throw it with too much spin like a short mid-range) and helped me settle down my drives a bit changing my grip. Still a got a bit of a hyzer on it but much straighter. Only maxing at 300ft or so, but consistent.

So, Driver wise, I feel I can handle a little more speed than my 150g Valkyrie, but didn't have enough speed for the 175g Boss I tried, at least not yet. So I'm thinking maybe a 170g Wraith will be my next driver.

Mid-range I was really happy with the Buzzz. The Roc felt like I needed a little more finesse to be consistent, and I might like a better plastic than the DX too, but a keeper for sure, even as a new player. I know it's a disc I can grow into as I improve. I didn't throw the Shark much, but will tomorrow.

Putting I did a lot better with the Buzzz than the Magnet. Magnet felt kinda heavy at 174g, so I may look for 165-170g Aviar in the proshop tomorrow before going out. I saw some in there the other day.

Overall a great experience, great people to play with, and I'm hooked. I'm going to get another 18 in tomorrow morning.

 

[JeremySW]

Sounds like a good time, just keep playing and you'll get the hang of it.

150g is OK for drivers, however - for mids and putters I would say aim for 165g +

DX plastic is fine for mids/putters , but certain drivers don't have very good durability in DX(I wouldn't use DX on anything faster than a fairway driver, personally - unless it was just for open field shots). Its not that "fast"(high speed/big winged) drivers don't "fly well" in base-line plastic. Its more that they don't hold up very well to abuse for whatever reason(could be the thin wings).

Fairway drivers tend to hold up a bit better in DX, especially the stable ones.

In regards to your putting, its somewhat common for beginners to be more proficient at putting with a mid range versus a putter. The reason why is the depth of the rim. Putters take some getting used to because they feel so different than anything else in the bag, and they perform the most frustrating task :lol: . Do yourself a favor and stick with the Magnet, in the long run you're much better off. Nobody is winning world championships putting with a buzz, and you probably wont be the first :wink: Once you get used to the feel of putter molds, they become much more accurate than mid ranges for putting.

These are just my suggestions, to each their own.

I take it you throw RHBH?(Right-hand, back-hand?) Or are you one of those hippie scum-bag flickers :x ?

 

[Rasputin]

Played this morning. Front 9 was kinda rough, but worth getting used to the Magnet. Was +4 on the turn, then par'd all but 18 on the back 9 and that was a mental error. I like it now. Finished +5 Actually rattled the chains once from 130ft with the Buzzz but it didn't stick. Definitely need to find some more distance with my driver if I'm going to get any deuces though.