If you’ve played disc golf for some time now, you’ve likely progressed past the beginner stage.
You’ve developed as a player and improved on many aspects of the game. You are likely throwing farther with more control off the tee.
You can likely sink your putts consistently inside the circle and are more confident during those testy putts.
If you are looking to improve your skills as an intermediate disc golfer you are in the right place.
I’ve outlined 5 tips that will help you take your game to the next level.
If you take these tips to heart I promise you you’ll see even more improvement and have more fun on the course.
Without further ado, let’s jump into the list of my disc golf driving tips for intermediate players.
1. Perfect Nose Down
If you want to really improve at the game of disc golf, you are going to want to focus on the small things.
To really excel in the sport, you must get every detail right. One of those tiny details is the nose-down release.
It’s a small change that can make a huge difference in your throw. Well, what do I mean when I say keep the disc’s nose down when you throw it?
It might sound like I mean to keep the disc pointed down to the ground when throwing down, but that’s not it. It would just crash into the ground a few feet from the tee pad.
When we talk about throwing a disc that is nose down we’re saying that the front of the disc is angled down slightly in relation to the direction the disc is traveling through the air.
Why is this important? If you don’t keep the disc’s nose down when you throw, it’s not going to fly as far as it should. Especially when you are driving.
So if you want to drive farther and perfect your game, learn to throw nose down. For more information and tips on this, check out our article here.
2. Master the X-Step
When it comes to throwing in disc golf, we tend to place a lot of emphasis on what the top half of our body is doing.
While our upper bodies are important, a great way to improve your throw is to master the proper footwork.
With the proper footwork, you can get the lower half of your body engaged in the throw and maximize the power you impart on the disc. This can lead to longer drives and more distance.
And I think I can speak for everyone when I say we are all looking to add more distance to our drives. So, what is the X-Step?
You can think of the X-Step as a more controlled way of performing your run-up.
It allows you to increase your momentum by using your legs during your drive and also gets your upper body into the perfect position for your reach back.
The X-step can be broken down into 3 steps. If you are a right-handed player, you’ll begin by stepping with your right foot, then having your left foot come behind your right foot, and finally stepping with your right foot again.
This should get you in a great position for your reach back to continue with your driver. If you’d like to learn more about the X-step, check out our article here.
3. Learn to Scramble
If you are looking to take your disc golf game to the next level, becoming an affective scrambler is a great way to do that.
Being able to get out of those tricky situations on the course consistently is going to lead to better results and lower scores.
So, what do I mean by scambling? Basically, scambling is the ability to recover from a bad throw or less than perfect lie.
For instance, if you find yourself on a par 3 hole and you shank the drive. Once you locate it, it’s behind a bush that obscuring your route to the basket.
If you were a good scamber you’d be able to find a way to get around that brush and set up a good putting position.
If not, you pitch your disc to right or left to set up your next shot. If you are keeping count, that’s going from a par to an extra stroke.
This may not seem like much, but it adds up a lot over a long round and more importantly, your disc golf career.
There are a lot of shots you can develop to help your chances of getting out of trouble on the disc golf course.
Some great shots to develope would be the standstill forehand, the forehand roller and any overhand shot like the tomahawk and the thumber.
They will help when you need to get around, under or over any obstacle that obstructs your throw.
As you play disc golf more, you naturally become better at scrambling but it won’t hurt to practice these situations.
4. Enter a Tournament
Thinking about competing in a disc golf tournament can be scary.
You’ll be placed with other disc golfers some probably better than you and you’ll have to compete in front of a live audience.
These things can keep a disc golfer from entering their first tournament but if you want to take your disc golf skills to the next level entering a disc golf tournament can be the perfect way to do that.
It’s a great way to play the game as it’s designed to play by the PDGA. You also get to test your skills against other disc golfers that are at a similar level to you.
But competing isn’t the only benefit you’ll get out of entering a tournament. Before the tournament, you need to prepare.
That means studying the rules so you don’t loss strokes during play and spending more time practicing to sharpen your skills.
This might seem like a lot to do beforehand, but knowing you have that day coming up is a great motivating factor.
If you haven’t yet played in a disc golf tournament, give it try. You can go here to see the upcoming tournaments. Don’t wait, sign up now. Good luck!
5. Upgrade your Discs
As a disc golfer, the main tool you have at your disposal is the disc. Discs allow you to approach disc golf holes in many different ways.
Depending on the type of discs, it’s stability and it’s shape, you have almost an unlimited amount of choices.
Disc golf manufacturers are producing different types of molds all the time. You have almost an unlimited amount of choices to consider.
As a beginner, you likely filled your disc golf bag with slower, understable discs. Which is perfect for the level of the game a beginner is at.
But if you haven’t upgraded your bag and added new discs since then, it’s time to consider doing that.
Don’t get me wrong, don’t give rid of your understable discs. You’ll still need them for turnover shots, hyzer flips and other shot shapes that understable discs excel at.
But as an intermediate player, you’ve perfected your disc golf throw and increased your arm speed.
You’ll want to get some discs that have a higher turn rating to match your increased arm speed. These are generally referred to as stable or overstable discs.
Thes discs will also serve you well for windy days, skip shots and when you need the disc to flex.
For specific discs recommended for intermediate players check out our article here.
Flickr Image Creative Commons Credit – Jeffrey