No matter if you’re new to Disc Golf or have been playing for years, every Disc Golf player would like to throw farther off the tee pad.
If distance is an area you struggle with then you probably want to find out how to get the maximum distance out of your drives, but if distance is one of your strong points you may want to know how to make accurate throws with a high-speed driver.
Below you’ll find some tips on how to improve your Disc Golf distance, as well as how to improve your maximum distance, driving distance and accuracy.
Focus on Footwork
The positioning of your feet on the tee pad will have a great impact on your distance capabilities. Just like traditional ball golf, or even baseball, the power of a Disc Golf throw comes from your legs and hips.
You may have heard some professional Disc Golf players talk about the ‘X Step’ and watching some intermediate and experienced players is a good way to get some inspiration for your own ‘X Step.’ The right ‘X Step’ will let you rotate and release your hips to improve your maximum distance.
Here’s a great video about the X Step:
But Don’t Neglect Your Upper Body
Maximizing distance doesn’t just stop with your lower body. It involves your lower body and upper body working in tandem. Your head, arms, shoulders and chest need to be positioned correctly throughout your throwing motion.
A good hip turn will give you a natural reach back with your throwing arm, allowing it to snap through as you open your hips. Also, make sure to pull through your shot as fast as possible (as long as it doesn’t throw off your form).
Understanding how different parts of your body work together when you throw will make for a more accurate, consistent, and powerful performance.
Be Wary of Rounding
Intermediate players fall foul to this quite often. Rounding is when your throwing arm goes out and around your body in more of a circular motion instead of coming straight back and through the distance throw.
Rounding doesn’t affect distance or arm speed much for beginners – as their footwork and form is probably something they’re still working on – but for more intermediate players it can be a source of many inconsistencies with their release point.
If early releases and/or grip locks on your drives are a problem for you then you may be rounding your arm. If you think you’re rounding, we have a great article addressing rounding and how to fix it here!
It’s All in The Timing!
As we’ve mentioned above, a lot is going on in your body during a Disc Golf drive. Professional players also stress the importance of timing to increase average drive distance.
Everything has to be working in-sync throughout your throw to maintain power and maximize distance.
The apex of your reach-back should be when your hips are most turned. Then open up your hips just before you pull your arm through to generate more power! Really pull that arm through and focus on rotating your upper body as quickly as possible to get that disc to fly out at maximum speed.
Follow Through
Now let’s talk about follow-through. Your arm should swing all the way through and the opposite side of your body should be facing your target from how you started your throw.
It’s worth noting that the target isn’t always the basket, but instead, it could be further left or right depending on your shot selection and how you plan for the disc to bounce, slide or roll from where you were aiming.
Good follow-through means bigger distance because it means you’re not unconsciously holding back any power. It also staves off injuries to your shoulder, hips, lower back and knees because it releases tension on these important joints while throwing maximum distance.
If you need help with your follow-through, we have an in-depth guide on the topic that can be accessed here!
Choose The Right Discs
Disc selection and flight ratings are crucial if you’re looking to maximize your Disc Golf distance. While most of the tips we’ve discussed are focused on form, what discs you choose will have an impact on your overall power.
Beginner or intermediate-level Disc Golfers who have a slower arm speed may find the distance achieved by less stable drivers more suitable than the fairway drivers or mid-ranges preferred by professionals.
However, while distance drivers are called ‘distance drivers’ for a reason, not every player will find these drivers helpful in achieving the distance they want.
Distance drivers are high-speed discs that require higher arm speeds to reach their full potential. When working on your overall form and technique it’s best to stick to mid-range discs and putters and then gradually work your way up to fairway drivers and then distance drivers.
Maximum distance is also easy to achieve with lightweight and more understable discs with high glide ratings.
There is definitely nothing wrong with ‘discing down’ (that is, opting for more understable discs with the same glide ratings of their more stable counterparts).
It’s the lower speeds and understability that make these discs easier to throw and easier to achieve more distance. They flip over more naturally and glide out pretty much effortlessly.
If you don’t have the same level of power as professionals do just yet, it’s best to hold off on using the overstable discs they favor for now.
Accuracy Over Distance
Discs favored by some Disc Golf pros include Innova Wraiths and Champion Eagles.
A Wraith is an 11-speed driver that is still considerably fast, but follows a neutral flight path and is a lot easier to control than faster discs such as the Destroyer, Corvette, or any other high speed distance driver.
Meanwhile the Champion Eagle is only a 7-speed fairway driver.
What can we take away from this? That throwing as far as you can isn’t always going to deliver results.
Again, this is where discing down comes in handy as fairway drivers, mid-range discs, or even putters can help to improve your accuracy and be beneficial to your form.
Final Thoughts
There is plenty of advice out there on how to improve your distance, including hundreds of videos on YouTube.
A lot of advice out there will talk about the same techniques we have, but ultimately, the best advice we can give in terms of achieving an accurate, consistent form is to find a style of play that is comfortable for you.
If it feels natural then it’s easier to be consistent.
Also, don’t compare yourself to professionals!
They’re professionals for a reason, because they’ve put time into honing their game – just like you are doing. These tips can of course help you improve your distance, but just like anything, maximum distance is achieved over time with plenty of practice.
