Upshots

[zpitman135]

I just had a major technique discovery and think im getting a full hit now as i can push my buzzzes 350+. im still having some trouble with the higher speed stuff, but thats not really my priority right now. I was wondering what players that can full hit do on upshots. I still let them slip out of my hand, but now that im fully hitting i realize how inaccurate this approach (no pun intended) is. I guess as much technique as i researched ive kind of neglected this part of my game. What are the top players doing on these types of shots?

[JHern]

...I was wondering what players that can full hit do on upshots...

Throw stable putters.

[roman]

I ran into the same problem when I started really hitting drives last fall. I used to throw great nose up stall shots for upshots that were always money, and I lost the ability to do that when I finally learned to throw far.

I spent a significant amount of time working on upshots in the field this spring to get it back and one thing that helped me get the nose up stall again was a change of grip. I used the same grip on my putters for upshots as I did for drives, which was a modified fan grip. The pressure points generated by the thumb and the fingers helped to get the disc nose down on release as well as a strong grip, which is useful for some upshots, but for shorties where I wanted a simple nose up stall shot I had problems. Trying to get the nose up by adjusting the wrist angle just caused more problems for me.

Anyway, I adjusted the grip for my upshots to get more of my palm on top of the disc. With a driving grip, I only had the pad of my thumb on the flight plate. With this other grip, I have the whole thumb and part of the palm leading up to the thumb. This creates a more evenly distributed (but weaker) pressure point on the disc that is easier to get nose up. It also lets the disc slip out rather than rip out, generating less spin which makes it easier to range the flight of the disc at shorter distances.


Play around with different grips is what I'm trying to say, I guess


-edit- I just saw you said you still let your upshots slip out. That's part of where my problem was... My changed grip/form/whatever didn't really allow for much slip. I tried to make it happen anyway but lightening up my grip or trying to throw not as hard, or whatever. That just created all sorts of timing issues which resulted in me spraying my shots. Actually adjusting the grip so that I CAN'T rip the disc out, and just let it slip out on its own helped. That way you still go through the same throwing motions, but the disc slips out instead of ripping out, so it's on target but not going as hard.

Learning to control spin on discs and seeing how it affects flight is my goal for field work this year.

[ChrisWoj]

My midrange game is composed of, basically, short-arming. I over-emphasize snap and drop my arm speed.

[Pwingles]

To me these are 2 different skills. One being the ability to achieve a full hit regularly, and two, to be able to control spin and arm speed to manipulate flight at shorter distances.

I think mistake number one is thinking you need to "hit" approach or upshots like you do a drive. Not to say that there arent situations that will arise in which you will need to, but in general, for your standard 100-250 upshot range, it sounds like you need to work on powering down.

Play around with adding and taking away spin, different heights, different release and nose angles and obviously different discs. See what works for you.

The easiest band aid would be to get some glideless overstable mid that wont carry very far and always fades hard, but that will hinder you more than help in the long run. It will take patience and a little work on your end but it will be worth it.

[zpitman135]

To me these are 2 different skills. One being the ability to achieve a full hit regularly, and two, to be able to control spin and arm speed to manipulate flight at shorter distances.

I think mistake number one is thinking you need to "hit" approach or upshots like you do a drive. Not to say that there arent situations that will arise in which you will need to, but in general, for your standard 100-250 upshot range, it sounds like you need to work on powering down.

Play around with adding and taking away spin, different heights, different release and nose angles and obviously different discs. See what works for you.

The easiest band aid would be to get some glideless overstable mid that wont carry very far and always fades hard, but that will hinder you more than help in the long run. It will take patience and a little work on your end but it will be worth it.

Thanks everybody for the input. Yeah that makes since i guess they are 2 separate skills. Ive spent so much time working with driving and putting and i figured id just naturally get the hang of upshots, but i guess its just like everything else you have to practice it to figure out what works.

[NoLifeLeft]

Go play some catch. Seriously.

[isobar]

I agree with what NoLife said. If you and a buddy grab a buzz/putter and stand about 75 feet apart and just throw back and forth, you will get much better. You can change the distance to suit your average upshot distance or what you need practice with. Another good way to practice is when you go play a normal round, instead of driving for distance, pick a target that's about 50 feet shorter than you would normally throw and aim for that. This will give you some good practice with it as well.

[JR]

What he said but after warming up switching to a Comet or a putter will teach you faster. Except possibly controlling nose angle.

[NoLifeLeft]

Also... while playing catch, shape some lines. Throw short annies, hyzers, and flexshots. Just imagine there is a tree between you and your target. Practice those nightmare shots.

[DsmDisc]

Get a buddy and go out where there is a good sized tree. Play some catch with each of you positioned differently. Sometimes have them on the outer edge of the tree, sometimes right behind it.

This will let you practice all types of upshots. I highly recommend using a stable putter for these shots (within about 75', maybe a bit further even.) They give you the ability to shape shots with far more consistancy. You can get beatuiful hyzer and anny shots using putters, because you don't have to worry about them stalling out like a faster mid-range disc will.

The other tip I have is not to aim for the basket, but to aim for a 15' circle centered on the basket. Nobody is going to consistantly make shots from 75'. The goal is to leave yourself a drop-in. Try to drop it within that circle in a way that it won't roll away.