How Discs Fly - A Beginners Guide to Disc Golf

This video explains how discs work. It's designed for beginners who have no clue why discs fly the way they don't want them to. The plan is to help reduce frustration, play more better and have more fun. Guardians of Recreation

[@skpalakiko5728]

A must watch for all beginners to the sport. I finally learned what hyzer and anhyzer means.

[@timdennis2156]

Love. Love. Love this video. Light-heated, cheesy, but full of great information!

[@philfox452]

I can't believe this was FREE. I feel like I should've paid $19.99 for this on VHS. Thank you so much for the laughs and instructing a noob!

[@clarkdefranco7185]

One of the best beginning guides I've watched. Thank you!

[@sunflowerbadger]

Perfect explanation. I have trawled through a lot of very confusing videos that make a total mess of explaining this stuff. The guy in this video is hilarious too.

[@alightened]

i finally understand what over stable and under stable means. only took 2 years and this video :D wooooooooh!!!!!

[@Zerbeast_TTV]

Wow, theres a lot of great information in this video, well done! Gonna have to watch it again and take notes so I can play more better. Thank you!

[@lkieewa]

As a beginner this video is awesome, especially with the graphics. Many thanks!

[@brettjohnson3764]

Great video. I use it for the university disc golf course that I teach.

[@dpcrn]

Excellent video. I work with a boys mentoring program called Royal Rangers. I plan to show this video because it is such an excellent explanation.

[@mrkontra]

My first disc was a 174 g Predator, took me a year learning how to throw it properly! Watching this video in the beginning should surely saved my tears...

[@BlutigeTranen]

"Play more better" My biggest issue in disc golf tends to be that I throw too high. My driver is a Valkyrie from Innova, mid is a Hawk from Discraft which I love because it does whatever I do and currently I have two putters - a gumputt (just a floppy disc I tend to use if I am right on the basket) or The Wizard from Gateway Discs. I love this putter. It's firm and stable enough that I can get considerable distance out of it for long putts and flies straight as an arrow. I've tried a lot of things to lower my toss height because I am buffering a lot of distance by throwing that high but I always seem to wind up throwing high. Another issue, one which I somewhat worked out this morning, is that I put far too much rotation on the disc. I tend to use my wrist which is a no-no. I've found it's a whole arm movement, starting from the shoulder. A friend advised me of this and it made a massive difference. My first game today I shot well over par for the course (it's fine, I dont expect to be good, I barely have played at all) but after this change I played the first 9 holes par for the course. It'll sound silly but I actually wore a tendinitis brace to immobilize my wrist. Any ideas on lowering my throw height?

[@QactisX]

+Thomas Godwin This may also sound silly, but angle your disc down towards the ground during your setup, and focus on continuing to release it angled downward during your throw. Getting the valk to fly straight will net you insane distance before it fades hard to the left. I use a glow valkyrie and it's my best driver. Most of the time, a low, slightly anheizer angle is what you want.

[@derekemrie2987]

Maybe, I'll give it a try (I find the very difficult thing is getting some footwork down, getting the correct torso twist, AND the correct wrist snap WITH correct release angle; it really is quite a thinkers sport, and you have to get body and mind to work together. Thanks

[@darinladd5312]

Basically the opposite of what you are trying. More spin = gyroscopic stability, which reduces fade. But, this was 3 y ago; you probably figured that by now. The comment on Anhyzer release is also valid. Tilt slightly to the right. The disc will make a long sweeping S. Or just buy a Wraith, which likes to do that naturally.

[@noelr4722]

Fantastic educational video! I wish I had watched this video when I was first learning to throw.

[@nicholasmccain5818]

Minus the guy acting like an idiot, of course.

[@Coldrin6]

This video helped me "play more better".

[@peacefuljeffrey]

Huge thanks to whoever produced this video. This is an A+ production! I'm not a beginner, and have learned all this already, but this is great stuff for reference. Thank you!

[@rubenk4698]

Hej, this is a really nice introduction into Disc Golf, the presentation is really fun to watch. i will give it a try, thank you!

[@JohnDoe-ki6fm]

One of the best videos I have found. Nice job! Pretty field, too. Looks kinda like New Mexico. Where was this video made?

[@marcodetaos]

New Mexico it is... good eye.

[@capoman1]

Very nice, taught the basics. My disc was ALWAYS turning to the left early, now I know why, I need a slower disc, I'm not a strong enough thrower for that disc. And that guy was cracking me up.

[@jjr007]

Much lighter versions of the same discs you are using helps immensely. This video touches briefly on this, though the lower 160s disc it shows, is still on the high scale for beginners. Discs less than 150, on down into even the 120s are available, and are much more beginner friendly.

[@burns1210]

Disc golf bag - check Discs - check Water bottle - check Graphing calculator - check Slide rule - check Abacus - check Anemometer - check Protractor - check Physics degree - check Ok, I'm ready to play!

[@ivargu]

Great video. On point and entertaining. Well done!

[@Rahamuseo]

Can't wait to get back to the course after watching this - good job guys, I enjoyable vid for beginner like me 😊

[@nashvillediscgolfpros787]

Disc selection is critical!!

[@rlupton99]

Thx, this video changed my game completely =D

[@daddio6129]

Excellent video! Thank you.

[@spicychicken2]

This video is amazing.

[@DanielleMalkinNinja]

This information was great! Thank you so much! I just played on my first course yesterday.

[@s.swihrt61114]

Great video my wife and I are just starting out... Want to play more.

[@jerkwagon]

just bought my 1st set and this video contradicts what the guy in the said. This video is by far the best intro the sport on disc selection and basics. THank you so much for this video.

[@Vallejo83]

Thanks great advice

[@jonrobinson6437]

I wanna play more better

[@ifunk79]

Thats funny i read this as he said it!!

[@Oostyylin]

"...so you can play more, better." Tough to grasp, I know.

[@jeffheyer7783]

lol So did I.

[@achoaiidi4022]

I'm not sure but ,if anyone else wants to discover golf playing tips try Magonsi Amazing Golf Expert (do a search on google ) ? Ive heard some super things about it and my cousin got excellent success with it.

[@longtalltexan1867]

I'd like to be the most betterest I've ever been.

[@lynnmarsh169]

This is so great! Thank you thank you thank you

[@tasop151]

So at 1:00 minute is that peyote right behind the bag?

[@Chris.Davies]

First Class! Outstanding!

[@georgewrathall5950]

Okay, this is epic.

[@nikaivaliotis448]

Sipapu, New Mexico. Go There!

[@nicholasmccain5818]

Been there! Amazing!

[@davidmiles8384]

Great video.

[@geofreak75]

Very helpful, thanks!

[@FiveGunsWest]

excellent post!!!!!!

[@bobdole735]

how much did it suck having to go pick up all them disc ?

[@WulfusBoof]

This vid helped my game

[@wheresbicki]

My only complaint with this video is that since there is no tee pad its hard to see where "straight" is

[@JohnDoe-ki6fm]

+wheresbicki I don't think there is any tee pad where they are shooting most of this. It's just an open field, so "straight" is kinda relative to where the thrower thought they were trying to get to. Don't sweat the details too much, take in the overall message about different discs and different kinds of flight paths. ;)

[@recorDsbeshipped]

Thanks very much.

[@martinsmith6690]

MORE BETTER!

[@jimmylopez433]

Thank you

[@iangriffith3940]

thank you!

[@HeyScotE]

Was this shot in Pagosa Springs?

[@kustomkure]

Amazing video. What's with the creepy guy though? :)

[@cybertree]

I thought he was hilarious.

[@Biophoria1]

Great vid. The guy in the Hawaiian shirt was cracking me up!

[@cybertree]

I know right? This video was amazing, I watched it before my first time playing yesterday, and surprisingly did better than some of my friends.

[@DireWolfy]

This is how we all learned

[@martinkiefer6733]

Recreated also my 40 year old school english

[@austinearly]

I didn't know Clint Eastwood played disc golf.

[@squarefan80]

excellent informative video! could've done without the cooky infomercial type acting.

[@ArturoPadilla]

Do y'all still have any of those Aztec Aviars?

[@marcodetaos]

+Arturo Padilla - Sure do amigo. How can I get you one? M

[@ArturoPadilla]

The Guardians of Recreation I emailed the number on the site. It said it wasn't valid. Do you have another email address?

[@marcodetaos]

+Arturo Padilla - send your mailing address to mp "at" taosnet.com and I'll send you one. Play more better. M

[@dragonjay9500]

Why do all my throws go to the right

[@WISSPORTS16]

this infomercial acting is top notch

[@nicholasmccain5818]

Ironic that nothing was for sale.

[@EagleHandsJonny]

play more better....

[@cybertree]

MO BETTA!

[@AppaJooey]

Can someone explain what causes discs to turn left or right? They're all symmetrical, so it doesn't make sense to me that they are classified as right or left turning. They're less stable than an ultimate disc, I get that, but it seems logical that the turning of the disc would depend simply on how it's thrown, like any symmetrically round object would do. I looked up the Coriolis effect, that which causes tornadoes to spin clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and opposite in the Southern Hemisphere, to see if that is what causes discs in our hemisphere to turn left, or clockwise. Apparently this is not the case, as it is a myth that water going down the drain is affected by this, owing to the small amount of time and small weight of the water, so it seems that a disc with its short flight time and light weight would not be affected by this either.

[@oscrsvn]

It has to do with the spin on the disc. If the disc is stable or over stable and you're throwing right hand, back hand (disc releases going clockwise) it has a tendency to fade to the left more due to disk shape.

[@RubSomefastOnIt]

gyroscopic procession.

[@bennettlayman5228]

It's all about what Louis Brady said, plus a bit of physics. First off, the actual spin of the disc does give the disc a gyroscopic force that keeps it at the same angle it was first released at (usually). To put it VERY basically, the gyroscopic force keeps it oriented the same way as it was thrown, because it's easier for the disc to cut through the air that way. Secondly, the actual direction of the disc is a matter of lift. Different types of golf discs have very distinctly curved edges, and there's a reason for that. Lift is generated for a disc in the same way it's generated for a plane, namely that air flows faster over the curved top surface than it does over the flat bottom surface. So here's how it comes back to golf discs. A driver's edge is designed to be thrown at a specific speed that will give it the perfect gyroscopic force. If that disc is thrown/spun harder than it was designed for, the gyroscopic forces controlling the disc's flight will begin to turn the disc to the right (opposite of the originally planned disc path), and the aerodynamic principles of lift will aid those rogue gyroscopic forces, providing a new path for the disc to follow based on the principles of aerodynamics (once the disc has begun to rotate and is flying off axis [diagonally], the disc keeps moving, and the low pressure is still on the top of the disc [with the high pressure pushing it up from the bottom], which will only force it farther to the right). Because I tried explaining this after I've been drinking, I have to ask. Does that make sense?

[@tunretni]

I have a different analysis. Assume right/back handed throw. The OP points out that the disc is symmetrical, but, it's not, it's spinning in one direction. As the disc is flying, the center of the disk is moving at the some speed relative to the air. The left side of the disc, (looking at it flying away from you), relative to the air, is moving faster than the center. It's moving at the forward speed, plus the speed of rotation. The right side is moving slower, relative to the air, than the center. It's moving at the forward speed minus the speed of rotation. The friction on the left side will be greater so a greater slowing of the disk occurs on the left, the friction on the right side will be less, with less slowing on the right side. If the right side goes faster than the left, the disk will curve.

[@RSpence777]

Good basic information. However I believe you’ve overlooked the most important factor of disc throwing. Amount of spin.

[@CryVirGeo]

Everyone wants that right..

[@stephanie4912]

lol thanks fam health teach makin me do this womt

[@TheLegend-me8lo]

0:08 pause

[@ramos2058]

if you throw an Aerobie Pro flying ring; you will forget about all these other discs and Frisbee. Thats how awesome it is!!! you have to have an Aerobie Pro!!!! all these other frisbees SUCK! compared to the Aerobie Frisbee!

[@nitbot]

That's not a golf disc tho

[@justinmullins4469]

The Aerobie epic disc is actually extremely stable, making it dang near impossible for beginners. . . I hope you're not throwing a ring for disc golf... wouldn't hurt anything but the disc itself, but it's not made for the game.

[@someguy2135]

@@nitbot Correct. You wouldn't be allowed to use an Aerobie ring in a tournament. If it were allowed, it would be the perfect driver. It would be like comparing a sailplane to a hang glider. That is one reason it holds the distance record.

[@someguy2135]

@@justinmullins4469 I disagree. Starting from scratch with no experience, the Aerobie would be easier for beginners to learn. I taught a beginner and he mastered the Aerobie quickly. He still hasn't mastered the disc.

[@the__________]

I couldn't stop laughing

[@ViciousKnids58]

PLAE MOAR BETTAR

[@jonathangarza8308]

I wanna "play more better"

[@imtypingwords]

Was that "play more, better". Or "play more better?" Cause one isn't proper grammar lol.

[@muggymug]

You need a PhD to play this freaking game

[@mleibov5631]

LOL

[@Conjay3]

Anyone search this after watching JoMez BigSexy AMA?

[@voirinkeli]

Still don't understand xD

[@trucon782]

I didn't know Ted Nugent played disc golf

[@xgoredol1]

i was forced to watch this

[@95rydinBLAZIN]

hahahahahaha

[@jmoneymaker96]

Any lefties here?

[@HealthySkepticism1775]

jhumenik97 NO FREAK!

[@iWearLacoste]

Ah yes Frisbee golf, for people who can't play anything else.

[@KrystalessR]

ViscountStratton - LOL, what does that mean exactly? The statement actually makes no sense.

[@alyjos9103]

Guarantee you it's a lot harder to throw a frisbee with good flight mechanics than it is a ball.

[@KrystalessR]

Alexander Dane - Not to mention his comment is logically incorrect. That's like saying, "basketball, for people who can't play anything else." Or, "cooking for people who can't do anything else." That sentence could literally apply to anything, that commenter is an idiot.

[@someguy2135]

@@KrystalessR Yep. Obvious troll. Discs are much harder to control than balls. BTW, glad to encounter another Plant Based primate. Great handle.

[@EagleMcMahon]

It's Eagle from Colorado. Great video!

[@anon5214]

Yeah, a great video for beginners like us Eagle! You should try slower and more understable disc, I've noticed you throw a lot to the left too.

[@rasmusolsson4449]

Gotta love this comment

[@RonaldMoD]

I only came here for the music

[@Carbunkal]

I only came for the acting.

[@Nate-cm9jp]

Still the best tutorial video ever!

[@mikedickey4952]

The video mcbeth watched before he started his world title run

[@justinross9660]

doubt that, these guys forms are close to horrible, rounding, not weight shifting, ect.

[@arpinen69]

@@justinross9660 r/wooosh

[@nikogranlund9322]

@@justinross9660 that is what i was thinking

[@da324]

@@justinross9660 That's why the video is titled how discs fly, instead of the proper mechanics for throwing a disc.

[@rufusromeo]

Thank you. This is so much easier to understand than the other related videos I've watched. Well done.

[@jeffnarum1373]

I recommend all beginners I play with watch this video first. Gives them the vocabulary.

[@hwugh1]

After using Photogrammetry to make 3D computer models of real world golf discs and putting those discs inside computer/virtual wind tunnels I learned golf discs don't fly. At least not in the manner described by, "Because of the Frisbee's curved shape, the airflow above it must travel at a higher velocity than that underneath, thereby creating low pressure above and high pressure below the disk. This pressure difference provides the lift. " The wind tunnel showed "lift" to be practically nonexistent at the speeds an average person throws a Frisbee. The only way to get the golf discs to "simulate" flight and stay in the air was to increase the discs speed through the air. (As in with enough thrust/speed you can get anything to fly...even a brick.) Good luck wit'dat.

[@azraider75]

Its been a log time since I've thrown a disc. I wish I had this info "back in the day". Very good video on explaining the physics, etc, of discs.

[@jamesthompson9179]

This was probably one of the best illustrations of how disc fly. Especially when you can see the actual flight.

[@dougdruziak8795]

"They (putters) won't go anywhere near as far as drivers".....he obviously hasn't seen Simon throw lol

[@DTylereRod]

Thanks for this. I'm determined to make my advanced discs work for me and watching this at least made me understand why they don't fly more better.

[@someguy2135]

I grew up on understable discs. I started disc golf using a 119G World Class Frisbee brand disc. Later, specialized golf discs came out, but were mostly just heavier versions of the World Class series. When the beveled edge, stable discs came out, I felt like my favorite sport had changed so much that it wasn't the same sport. I went from being competitive to being a clueless newbie. I still haven't got the hang of the now standard golf discs, but this video should help a lot. Thank you.

[@jasonlovi8745]

I love the instructional dvd vibe

[@davidmiles8384]

Is this segment part of a bigger video/dvd? If so, does anyone know which? I LOVE this video and it's easily the best instructional video on here.

[@JohnDoe-ki6fm]

+David Miles The guardians have made a number of videos. Some (but it seems not all) are linked from their own website: www.guardians-of-recreation.org/

[@cybertree]

I agree, I'm a strong guy and have quite an arm, but the physics of the discs is what I was confused about at first. After I watched this video, I went back to the course and got -3 (2nd time out!)

[@derekemrie2987]

I'm a gym and fitness buff, strong arm, great pecs, and I admit there's a hell of a lot more to DG than strength. I watched the vid and still can't get 100' out of a disc, maybe 60'...maybe I need some other disc, or maybe the disc, given to me by my nephew in Topeka, Ks. won't allow a lower a Alabama lad get more distance than that (the Tide is jealous)? Well, at least I can play for free, I hardly think I'd even try if I had to pay for a game.

[@zeroa69]

try a tomahawk throw. i grew up playing baseball and throw my disks just like it and it works great for me. once you figure out the grip that works best for you and how to maximize your flip its gonna go far no problem. at least for me its far easier to get great distance like that then the traditional backhand throw which i suck at.

[@n1cb987]

try a different grip. I use two fingers back hand, 360 is my average. Also utilize the pirouette spin.

[@webjunke]

This was made in 2012 but looks like it was made in 1990 by the producers of How It's Made

[@JohnDoe-ki6fm]

@RonaldMoD who only came for the music: guardians-of-recreation.org/tunes.html

[@DOdermdoc]

Great video - helped a lot with the mechanics of disc golf!

[@stevecox4534]

I can't describe all the things I love about this video.

[@steelkatz9750]

There was a lot of marijuana smoked in the making of this sport

[@jesper5112]

What if you´re gay and try to throw a disc straight?

[@cybertree]

I think you might miss the hole. xD

[@AlbertoM-qe6wi]

LMFAO

[@gussinger6939]

Dont worry, the disc turns gay too

[@idunno3302]

Not a form video. Hahaha that reach back before the x step

[@Heinzy78]

Awesome video. Great tips and really sweet ambient music.

[@lagadefala]

Play more Better!! Excellent instruction video. :)

[@soupgod21]

after losing 2 drivers to water hazards today I realized I had to make adjustments. This video is very helpful, and i'd stoked to take my newly learned knowledge onto the course tomorrow. thanks guys!

[@jeffnarum1373]

I still refer new players to this video as a vocabulary lesson.

[@draggonwagon8444]

why would anyone give this a thumbs down?