General aiming issue/question

[stinlin]

Hi all -

I started playing this only a few months ago. So far, it's amazing. There's a course directly across the street from my apartment (and it's a pretty nice course, too!), so I can play whenever I feel like it (i.e. stop for a quick round after work). But I've started to notice a HUGE issue that I can't figure out how to remedy at all. And here's how I figured it out (easier to describe the issue this way!).

Hole 3 at my local course is a long straight hole (maybe 350-400). The right side is open whereas the entire left side of the hole is lined by a forest. An icky forest at that. I can't for the life of me throw it straight. At all. No matter what I do, I am almost completely unable to get the disc to go where I want. I learned this after many trips into that forest.

So here's what I'd LOVE! Some tips on how to get my discs to fly the direction I want. I can't figure out where my "sweet spot" for my release is, and it's driving me crazy! I went to a football field yesterday and just tried to throw my discs over and over and over again. I had a few nice throws with my Monarch, but not enough to write home about.

What are some common beginner's mistakes that I can work on to make this NOT drive me nuts. My girlfriend will be in town visiting this weekend, so I'd like to show her the game, too. Any tips I get here will probably be passed right on to her so she can hopefully enjoy the game, too!

Thanks, and I look forward to (hopefully) a fun and exciting adventure in improvement!

[jubuttib]

So here's what I'd LOVE! Some tips on how to get my discs to fly the direction I want. I can't figure out where my "sweet spot" for my release is, and it's driving me crazy!

Here's one: Don't release it. When driving, hang on to the disc to the bitter end. You're not supposed to let the disc go, it's supposed to rip out of your hand. Trying to release the disc will lead to a. inconsistency and b. loss of distance. You can't throw far unless you grip the disc as hard as humanly possible.

[Star Shark]

Also, focus on the line you want the disc to go on. I mean literally. Look down that line. Concentrate on it. Let your body do what it needs to to get the disc there. The less thinking, the better.

[stinlin]

Alright - I'll try some of this when I'm out this weekend. I'll review a few other starting articles around here to try and get a few other ideas in my head so I'm not reinforcing any bad techniques.

[Mark Ellis]

Hi all -

I started playing this only a few months ago. So far, it's amazing. There's a course directly across the street from my apartment (and it's a pretty nice course, too!), so I can play whenever I feel like it (i.e. stop for a quick round after work). But I've started to notice a HUGE issue that I can't figure out how to remedy at all. And here's how I figured it out (easier to describe the issue this way!).

Hole 3 at my local course is a long straight hole (maybe 350-400). The right side is open whereas the entire left side of the hole is lined by a forest. An icky forest at that. I can't for the life of me throw it straight. At all. No matter what I do, I am almost completely unable to get the disc to go where I want. I learned this after many trips into that forest.

So here's what I'd LOVE! Some tips on how to get my discs to fly the direction I want. I can't figure out where my "sweet spot" for my release is, and it's driving me crazy! I went to a football field yesterday and just tried to throw my discs over and over and over again. I had a few nice throws with my Monarch, but not enough to write home about.

What are some common beginner's mistakes that I can work on to make this NOT drive me nuts. My girlfriend will be in town visiting this weekend, so I'd like to show her the game, too. Any tips I get here will probably be passed right on to her so she can hopefully enjoy the game, too!

Thanks, and I look forward to (hopefully) a fun and exciting adventure in improvement!

Let's start with the most important thing. DON'T TEACH YOUR GIRLFRIEND HOW TO PLAY. It is fine if she learns on her own or if someone else teaches her. But wives/girlfriends take direction poorly from their hubbies/BFs and she will hold any real or imagined slights against you forever. Look at it this way, before long the GF will hate disc golf because it competes with her for your attention and time (ok, not for sure but 98% likely). So there is no reason to have her hate YOU because you told her she is holding the disc wrong or throwing it wrong. So find someone else to give her a basic lesson even if that means waiting for the next time she comes into town.

On to the small issue, controlling a disc. I'm guessing you throw right hand back hand (RHBH) and your disc hyzers into the icky forest at the end of its flight even if it starts going straight down the center of the fairway. Discs are built to hyzer (cut hard at the end) so they have the stability to handle the power of a long throw (meaning that one day that hyzer tendency will actually help you throw better and farther). You counteract this hyzer by throwing low and flat.

You probably think you are throwing flat but the flight of the disc proves you are not (the frizzzbee never lies). Usually on a hyzer your arm motion goes from low to high (low on release with a higher follow through) and you lean your chest forward and you angle the disc down on release. So try standing straight up (don't lean forward) and throw straight across your chest, following through completely and smoothly. The disc needs to be released flat, too, so the wing of the disc (the place opposite where you grip the disc) needs to be raised so it is parallel to the ground as you release it. Now this will feel weird as heck at first but it is the price you pay to learn control.

It will feel even weirder when you try to control an anhyzer. To do this you need to bend backwards, with a high to low arm angle and raise the wing up on release.

It is hard to understand throwing motions by reading instructions so find a good player to give you advice. It is also hard to know what you are doing since you can't see yourself. So boldly walk up to the best player you can find and seek a basic lesson. It may save you years of trying to figure it out on your own.

[stinlin]

What I think I'll do about her is just take her out and let her play. I won't tell her anything outside of what we're trying to accomplish and possibly how to hold a disc. I'm not going to avoid taking her out to play when I only see her once every 2-3 weeks (gotta love the whole 6 year long distance thing...). So rather than try and instruct her, I'll show her how to hold it and tell her to try and get it into the basket.

I should probably go and grab someone who's out soloing like I do and try and glean some tips and tricks. That really is one of the best ideas I can go with, you're right.

[krik72]

For me having the disc rip out of my hand at the same point lets me control what direction it is going when it comes out. After that how you oriented the disc, the height and the wind will determine where it ends up. When the disc doesnt go where you intended see if you can figure out where you went wrong and maybe even toss a second disc to see if you can adjust and fix it .

[Dr. Burd]

Throw your putter more than your Monarch. If you buy a disc for your girlfriend to use, make it a putter.

The biggest two jumps in distance came for me when I:
A) started to use a completely limp noodle arm with no grip strength during reach-back and first half of pull
B) focused on gripping the hell out of it when my arm was out in front of my chest

Those two things took me from around 260' average to 340-350' average in about two months. (there were other things I started working on that helped, but it changed my form and timing dramatically).

Other than that, you have a lot of reading to do. I suggest starting with the technique articles on the DGR home page and then check out the links below. Good luck.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=18825&start=210
^--- this is still a bit experimental, but what it's teaching is extremely important, so start following it from that page forward and try to feel the disc pivot as they post new drills.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=16139
^--- there's a lot of good info in this thread, you should probably read all of it.

[stinlin]

Great, thanks. I'll be reading a lot today after I finish my real work stuff, haha. And I was planning to let her use my Shark or my Aviar. But maybe I'll give her the Aviar and I'll throw the Shark since both work great for putting and shorter mid-range stuff.