Beginner

[Taylor Johnson]

Hi I just started playing about a month ago, I was hoping I could get together with some seasoned vets so as to improve my skills. I usually play at JB or Schroeder. IM me plz at irockyouknowit@gmail.com!
Thanks!

[Taylor Johnson]

Ok so I bought a bunch of discs but I have no idea how to use them so I was hoping someone could tell me how to throw/what type of shot to use them for. I bought one of each of the following:
Champion orc
Champion sidewinder
Champion roadrunner
Champion wraith
Champion beast
Pro eclipse driver 0 rating
Z nuke ss 1 rating
Esp meteor -.5 rating
Star roc
Star wedge
Wizard putter

Please and thanks for your help!

[Stubborn Puppet]

I won't pretend to have much expertise to share with you about those discs, but I have heard some damn consistent advice from experienced and pro players... over and over and over again.

They all say spend your first year throwing only a midrange disc and a putter. They recommend the same four discs every time: Putter to be either an Aviar or a Wizard and the midrange to be a Buzzz or a Roc. The idea is that these are all very consistent, versitile, straight-flying discs that will teach you just how to grip and release consistently.

Too much variety in your bag when you're new will just confuse you and your arm. I've heard these folks go on and on about how the big distance drivers like the Nuke will totally mess with a beginners form as you attempt to compensate - they're designed to be thrown really fast and if you can't throw them that fast, you'll naturally start trying to throw them anhyzer (assuming a right hand, back hand form, where the edge of the disc that is away from your body is pointed up away from the ground on release to force a right hand turn) so that they actually fly and draw an "S" shaped line rather than diving into the ground right away. That compensation will carry over into your general form and cause you to start throwing all your discs that way and it'll take you even longer to unlearn the bad habits of overcompensation.

If you feel you must ditch the advice about avoiding drivers all together, I suggest a TeeBird. They are really straight flyers that don't require a ton of speed to fly correctly and have a modest length edge so they won't change your grip too much.

It'll be several years before your arm speed get's there as it's all about form, not about strength at all. Focus your energy on accuracy in your approach and putting - you can't get the distance, so it's better to think about the short game. Getting your shots to land where they will set you up for an easy next throw is really the key ingredient to a lower score.

I've honestly seen many experienced players who followed this "disc down" philosophy at first who can now throw a putter further than I can throw most distance drivers... it works.

Another tip for beginners (that I learned the hard way at first) is to pay attention to weight. Innova and Gateway always write the exact disc weight right in the middle of the disc (i.e. 172). Discraft used to, but now they just use a sticker that shows a range that the disc weighed between (i.e. 167-169g). As a beginner, I had a much easier time and got more distance out of the lighter discs between 163-168g. The heavier discs just seemed to slow down and fade (that hard left turn into the ground) way too early.

Finally, unless you plan on replacing a disc every other game, buy hot pink or neon orange discs (bright blue is good in the fall). Those cool looking tie-dye discs and manly dark colors seem like a good idea until you realize you're spending more time looking for them, right out in the open, than you are throwing them. Seriously, even if that tie-dye has pink and blue and orange and red in it, they just turn into camoflage that your eyes can't distinguish agains the leaves and grass. The worst violators are green, brown, black and yellow (in the spring and summer, yellow just looks like a ray of sunlight on the ground and in the fall it's a fallen leaf). Also, mark your discs with your name and number: you will lose them from time to time. Sure, 60% of people will probably just marker over your name/number and put their own, but that 40% of the time when a cool player or fellow club member finds them... you'll be glad you took that extra 10 seconds.

[Taylor Johnson]

Wow, I really appreciate all of the tips. I will start throwing only my wizard and roc right away. I already bought heavy ones, but I will try to find a lighter one. I mainly throw right hand side arm anyways.

[Stubborn Puppet]

I'll assume, when you say, "right hand side arm" that you mean you throw with your right arm on the right side of your body most of the time... If so, most people will call that "fore-hand". That would make your normal "style" a Right Hand Fore Hand (RHFH) throw. A Right Hand Back Hand is when you throw with your right arm on the left side of your body.

Neither way is "a better way" to throw, but you will generally get more speed on a drive with a Back Hand and putting accuracy will generally be better on a Back Hand. As you've probably already noticed, your RHFH throw will ease to the left (called turn) at first and then hook (called fade) right at the end. So, that means you'll need to work on both your RHFH and RHBH style so that you can pick the right style to match the hole you're playing.

Another two terms that will help you describe shots are "Hyzer" and "Anhyzer".

A Hyzer is when you throw your disc with the edge that points away from your body towards the ground more when you release. That will cause a sort of rainbow shape to the shot that has the disc turn in the same direction as it "fades". i.e. You throw RHFH - if you throw with the edge pointed a little towards the ground, the disc is going to arc to the right for the whole flight and hit the ground with the right edge.

An Anhyzer is when you throw with the outside edge of the disc pointed a little up towards the sky when you release. These are a little harder to do. If you, throwing your RHFH style, put a little bit of "anhyzer" on it, a disc will probably follow a slightly "s" shaped line - turning left at first and then fading off to the right at the end. If you, RHFH again, throw with a lot of anhyzer (the outside edge of the disc is pointed even more upwards on release) your disc will make a big arc to the left and probably hit the ground on it's left edge before it starts to "fade" back to the right.

There are certainly more terms to learn that will help you communicate with the seasoned players, but I think those are the two most common and will help you enough for now, without overwhelming you.

Good luck with your game.

P.S. I'm thinking of starting a "Beginners League" this Spring that runs through Watson Trail park, Schroeder Park and a couple of other courses like these that are "shorter" and "technical". They don't see quite as much of a crowd as courses like Jefferson Barracks and won't beat you up on the score as much. I'd like to see a bunch of first and second year players join and get some long term players to tag along with us and help us work out the kinks. Would you be interested in something like that?

[Taylor Johnson]

I would absolutely be interested in a beginners league! That would be the best thing for me I think would be to play with vets and beginners alike in order to learn from both sides of the game. Thanks again, I will memorize everything you told me, so I hope you're right lol!

[Stubborn Puppet]

I will memorize everything you told me, so I hope you're right lol!

I'll assume I'm right until someone contradicts me here.

[Puck'n'Disc5]

Taylor,

I'm definitelly not a pro player but I have been playing the sport for several years. I definitelly recommend throwing the buzzz and roc as well as the wizard, I carry all three in my bag (Gateway's Magic and Voodoo are also great putters as well). Another great disc for a beginning player, let alone a more advanced player, is discraft's cyclone. I would recommend one that weighs right around the 165-167 gram range. The disc is considered to be a fair way driver and has a rim that is similar to many mid range discs and has a similar flight pattern as the roc, just with more distance. After a while of throwing this disc you will find that you can put it on any line that you want! I will caution one thing, this is not the disc to use on windy days! I found that out the hard way! Good Luck with your game and hopefully I'll see you on the course soon!

Johnny Lynn,

RCF #66
SICG #22

[Taylor Johnson]

Well, that makes two recommendations for throwing only a mid range and putter, I will most definitely have to start playing that way. I will also look up the stats for the Cyclone and see what i would be getting myself into, if I like what I see I will definitely purchase one, maybe even i could see you on the course and try yours out before I buy one!! I doubt that I wont see you, however I may have trouble recognizing you

[Stubborn Puppet]

You'll recognize us by our bag tags. Just look for that plastic circular tag with a number on it hanging off of our bags out there.
I'm actually real easy to get a hold of and if you're in the Crestwood, Sunset Hills, Kirkwoodish area, just call me to see if I'm free. You can find my number by looking at the course captains list: I'm Daniel under Watson Trail.