What’s in my Bag #8

Current and Previous "What's In My Bag" posts here

I'm having a great time disc golfing lately.  I dg-ed lightly for a few months because of a bad back & leg, but things have been better lately and I've started to get out more.  I finished 11 of 37 in a good-sized tournament and 1st of 7 in a small fund-raiser tournament.  Those are good gains for me.  Out of probably 8 tournaments, I've cashed 4 times and won twice.

And, my backhand has come along to be a very reliable shot.  If you are just starting out in disc golf, get both forehands and backhands. Having a choice means not having to shoehorn an annhyzer in the wrong situation.  You want to take the easy path to the best landing zone.  Forehands help, but if you are using them into the wind, or with too much armspeed relative to snap, then you aren't going to throw well.  Backhands are easier, much easier, to throw.  If you make a minor mistake with a backhand, you aren't going to go too wrong.  A minor mistake with a forehand and you got yourself trouble.

The other thing I've learned about is "landing zones."  I don't always throw it as far as I can anymore.   After playing Ingleside Gold a dozen times, it's obvious that a drive in the fairway is way more important than a drive a long way, but into the bushes or behind a tree.  Another landing zone issue is better putting.  If you can  hit a 20 footer reliably, that means you can take safer upshots.  You don't need to be 5 feet from the basket to know you have that putt.  Sometimes the need to get within 5 feet instead of 20 means that you have to risk a tree or floating long into OB.  Having confidence in your putt means you can take that safe shot and still get your deuce or par.

Now, What's in my Bag?

Overstable Drivers

Discraft Force (ESP) (174g) - See old Bags for more on the Force. Still use it, still love it.  This is my distant forehand disc.  I can throw it hard and 300+.  It comes back hard to the right (RHFH) at the end no matter what.  If I have room to the left or the hole doglegs right, this is my disc.  I've used it RHBH a few times lately, too, on hard left shots into the wind.  I dueced a 300 foot hole with only a wide-open right side in a tournament in Victoria, TX in February 2010.  That's a long shot for me RHBH with this disc, which need a LOT of speed to carry on.  It's not a floater.

Innova Star T-Rex (175g) x2 - Still use it, for the same reasons as I did in WIMB #6.  I'm getting better with my backhand and this comes out into the wind more, because I'm getting more speed and snap on the RHBH and turning over my other discs.  I also use this on touch RHFH drives or tailwind RHFH drives that the Force would spike too quickly on (tailwinds make discs more stable, so the Force dives sooner).

Innova Pro Wraith (167g) - Still use it, still like it, see WIMB #6.  I am starting to like thicker rimmed discs for my distance shots.  This disc has the most comfortable grip for me -- still -- and I can throw it 350+ if I get my best form (1 of 3 drives on straight holes longer than 350 at this point are my best form, but the nice thing about backhands is that they never go too far wrong if you screw up... I can get 275 out of a bad drive nowadays.  Caveat: on the four courses I play regularly, about 8 holes fit the "wide open, throw hard backhand" holes).

Fairway Drivers most overstable to most understable:

Discraft Flick (171g) - Still love it, still use it. The Flick is becoming more of a distance driver for me.  I still use it for short trick shots but since lately I've been staying out of trouble more, it's staying in the bag (and my scores are dropping).  I can get great distant if I release this with a chop.  It comes out going annhyzer then fights back to a looping hyzer and ends with almost a spike (depending on wind and how hard I threw it).

Innova Star Teebird (175g) - Still use it, promoted to "Favorite Disc" status. I am using the T-Bird for tons of shots now. It's the default disc and I'll go away only if I have a reason (long hyzer with Force or Flick, more distance with a tailwind from a Wraith, etc). I have been throwing nice, easy, accurate sidearms with this now, especially on the narrower fairways at Ingleside Gold. It's lovely if I don't go all stupid and try to throw it too hard.  Update: still favorite and most used disc but losing ground to other discs as my confidence with those discs grows.  I will probably always use this disc, though.

Discraft Tracker (174g) - Put it back in my bag for practice, as it's more stable than the Teebird and I have been turning over the T into the wind.  Not enough confidence with it to use it a lot.  Plus, the Teerex can fit in times when I might turn over the Teebird.

Discraft Avenger SS (174g) - Discraft came out with a "Stalker" last year, too.  What are they thinking?  Avenger is dumb because I don't understand what I'm Avenging.  Stalker is dumb because the first thing people think about now is not woodsmen like Natty Bumppo but sex offenders.  I overheard some people wondering if they will be coming out with a "Sex Offender" next.

I don't really care about the disc's name if it will do what I want or need, that's all that matters. For the record, the new Discraft Nuke is a good name, IMO.   But why not have a Bomb, a Missile, a Blade, Flamethrower or Holy Cow! for names?   I know a lot of those have violent connotations but the act of throwing a disc really far is badass and the disc names should be also.   I think one of the best names is the Valkyrie.  Makes me think both of classical music and that huge awesome silver plane that tragically crashed in the 70's.  For God's sake, valkyrie is based on an old Norse word that means "chooser of the slain".   You can't find a better name with a better background than "Valkyrie."  I could do without "Wraith" though the disc design is one of my favs.

As I said, it's not really that big of a deal.  I reserve the right to name one of my children "Valkyrie" though.  You don't think I'd do it?  I named my only biological child after Darth Vader.  So there.

Anyway, the Avenger fits between the Teebird and the Valkyrie, but I never use it during a round.  Or, rarely, I guess. I don't have faith in my ability to put the right angle on it and I'm afraid of getting a big long throw, but way off line.  Sometimes when I'm practicing in the field I throw this disc the farthest, but sometimes I'm no closer to the hole.  I like it, though.  If I get it on the right angle I can throw it straight for quite some distance and would like to be able to use it for long tunnel shots that can't skip or hyzer at the end.

Innova Pro Valkyrie (175g) - I'm finding more and more reasons to throw a Valkyrie.  I've had the Pro in my bag for awhile but I bought a Star backup because I couldn't find another Pro in the same weight.  Valkyries are terrific if you can get the correct angle on the release.  For some reason, I can do this better on the Valk than the Avenger.  I think the Valkyrie is much more understable and so I can release it at about a 45 degree angle and that works.  The Avenger is not as understable so I have to release it flatter and I don't have the feel.  I think I can either go completely flat or with a big angle but don't have the touch for in-between yet.   When I throw the Avenger, I lose the subtle angle on release and it comes out flat, turns over and flies forever, but not in the direction I want.

The Valkyrie is terrific in left dogleg tunnel shots.  It holds the angle at first, then starts to flatten and keeps going.  Sometimes you want to start left then go straight. Here's your disc.  It is touchy to angle and speed.  If you throw it hard, it will flatten out sooner than if you throw it softer (which makes a nice gliding arc, with no spike).  This has really become an important disc for me, but not so much for longer shots.  It's just great for about a half-dozen drives around here where I need to start going left then have it go straight and not skip or fade left too hard at the end.

Here's what I said in the last WIMB:

Now, I'm finding more use for that disc because the Open players that could really turn on a T-Rex or Wraith or Destroyer make it glide going on a slight hyzer run down these narrow fairways. I was using my T-Bird, for example, on Ingleside Gold #3, a 585 foot par 4 that hooks hard left (more than 90 degrees). Problem was, I can't get the T-Bird to glide a long way with a hyzer. I can backhand or forehand it straight or to finish with a hook, but on IG you need a disc to hold that glide. For the tournament, for the first time, I used the Valkyrie on #3 and got what was by-far my best drive on that hole. I managed to get it as far as I realistically could, into a spot where 3 of the 4 Open players made it the day before in doubles (the 4th player's shot wasn't as far...).

And the best part is, the Valk, to me, feels similar to the TBird. I have it in Pro plastic and intend to get at least one more, maybe two more, in Pro at the same weight. I'm pretty psyched about it.

I will say with my improving backhand, I may not need the Valkyrie forever, but it's a great disc for me now.

Mid-range most overstable to most understable:

Discraft ESP Zone (175g) - Great forehand approach disc.  I play from my knees with this disc a lot, probably half my shots with this disc is kneeling.  It's great.  Just a flick of the wrist from 150 feet and in, facing the basket.  9 of 10 upshots here are within 20 feet now.  I use a jump putt (with my Aviar usually) from about 50 feet in (I almost never make it, but the nice thing about the jump putt is you can get it under the basket pretty easily.  I use the jump putt more as an upshot right now though I hope to start challenging the basket more in the future).

I also use the zone for standing 200 foot hard-right hyzers when the Flick would die too soon. The thing about the Flick is that you have to throw it hard for it to go very far -- it's very overstable.  If you have a 150-200 foot shot, sometimes throwing hard is too risky and throwing soft means the Flick will die well before the desired landing zone.  I made this mistake repeatedly during a recent tournament (full of short holes).  The Zone works great for the shorter holes.  You can throw it fairly hard and it will go straight-ish for 100 feet then start hard on the hyzer.  It's not a high-speed disc so you can force turnover-like behavior from it if you throw it "too hard."  But once is starts to slow (which happens quickly) it starts to dive to the ground.

Innova Star Cobra (CFR) (175g) - I've added the Cobra back to my practice bag as I'm going to learn a roller this year.  I think there are two or three holes around here that could use one.  It's windy, though, so I'm not sure how often I'll use it.  I have a forehand roller for short shots that involve some luck getting through a stand of trees.  I want a 400 foot roller for longer holes where a roller is the safest shot.  Honestly, at this point no local courses have holes that qualify, but I've been to a few courses out of town where I'd loved to have a good backhand roller.

Discraft ESP Buzzz (max) - Last WIMB: "Buzzz, I love you, but I just got a Roc in a player's pack and you might be challenged. We'll see."  Nope.  Still love the Buzz, have two more of them including an FLX (wow... love the mid in FLX).  Don't see the Buzzz going anywhere.  Roc sits in my trunk.  Not even in my practice bag.  The Buzzz is a great forehand annhyzer trouble disc (when you can't get a backhand stance in the weeds, say), great straight RHFH disc, good mid backhand disc (I can throw it 300 feet when practicing), good touch tunnel disc (Ingleside Red #4 has a big dog leg, a landing zone then a 150 tunnel; instead of using my putter for the tunnel, which I often overthrow or get my fingers caught in, I can choke up and throw a nice little low straight shot with my Buzzz and I'm all set.  Happened last week during a tournament when I missed the landing zone, smartly tossed out into the tunnel and then made the Buzzz shot within 15 feet for a bogey.  I often try to recover for a par, but really if you miss the landing zone on IR#4, you are  playing for bogey unless you want to challenge for a double or triple.  I ended at -2, so I made the right choice.

Putter:

Innova Aviar Putt 'n Approach, DX (175g) - Still my favorite putter.  Have not found a duplicate yet.  It's comfy, does what I want and goes in a lot!  Probably my disc-priority now is finding a backup DX Aviar with the same feel (harder than you think, I have many of them that feel differently and I lost my best-backup, a broken-in gift from a friend recently).  I may have to get my hands on a R-Pro Aviar to see if the feel is close.  The R-Pro Dart was too domey.

All in all, I don't feel like I have a hole in my bag right now.  I'm comfortable with most of my shots, though I want a 250 thumber and a 400+ backhand roller.  I'm not sure the thumber will ever happen because I'm afraid of hurting myself but the roller will probably come along eventually.  The hangup with the roller will be my ability to throw it in high winds, which we have in my area a lot (20-40 on many days... it's so windy here I originally moved here for the windsurfing).

comment on this post on twitter