Take a look in my disc golf bag, and you might be surprised by what you find: To date, I don’t bag six Zones like Ezra Aderhold, five KC Pro Rocs like Ken Climo or seven Star Destroyers in various stages of wear like Philo Brathwaite. I do bag three, though – Destroyers are still sick.
Don’t misunderstand me: These gentlemen know far more about our sport than I do – they’ve been playing for way longer. But that’s my point – they’ve been playing for WAY longer.
With Dynamic Discs, Eric Oakley was known for bagging a million Felons. Naturally, without any additional effort, he’d beat them in over time – he loved the mold. He preferred to throw an understandable Felon over an Escape. No joke, check out the guy’s “In the Bag” from last year:
But these are the pros …
What are the rest of us plastic-hucking “mortals” to do?
For starters, don’t do this …
Stop trying to stockpile the “must-have” discs you see the game’s best raving about online. Instead, fill the slots you KNOW you’ll need in your bag – just find what works. For example, you don’t need four FDs, five EMac Truths or six Pigs (oink, oink) like Mr. Richard Wysocki …
Or Harps. Or Slammers. Or whatever – you catch my drift.
The truth of the matter? Unless you and your “noodle arm” have somehow managed to already beat each of your one-mold multiples into submission, they’ll all fly relatively the same …
And they’ll just take up room in your bag – no bueno.
Next, identify molds you like and throw well
Heads-up: This is NOT a short process. To speed things up, however, the “used bin” at your local disc golf shop will prove invaluable. In it, you’ll largely see discs that’ve been beaten in by their previous owners. Keep at it, though – some of the best fliers you’ll ever find will be in there.
At this stage, you’re looking for two things:
- Focus No. 1 – Discs that feel comfortable in your hand.
- Focus No. 2 – Discs that you can throw with confidence.
Much of what you encounter will be baseline stuff, which brings me to my next point …
Third, take to baseline plastic – it’ll work fine
Yeah, it will be a little less stable, but the feel in your hand will pretty much be the same as the mold’s premium-plastic counterpart. Buy a few used-and-abused baseline discs. Tinker with ‘em during practice. Then, when you find one you like, spring for the same disc in a premium plastic.
The result?
ONE mold. TWO discs. TWO distinct flight paths.
For most amateurs, trial and error is the best way to pinpoint molds that fly the way they want them to. It worked for me – I discovered my go-to fairway driver, midrange and putter this way.
My preferred fairway driver is the Innova Thunderbird – here’s how that went down:
- I started with DX plastic.
- I learned I loved the mold.
- I upgraded to Champion plastic.
- I purchased two more from a used bin.
Voila.
I now bag four Thunderbirds – each one flies differently.
The Westside Anvil + The MVP Ion = Rinse and Repeat
NONE of these molds are the most popular on the planet, but they ALL work great for me.
Here’s my favorite part of this: You know those guys who carry 25-plus discs in a massive, custom-made Octothorpe by Pound Disc Golf? Usually, they lean on the same five or six discs. Doing things this way, the discs I bag are the discs I use – I love every last one of them …
There’s no wasted space. Every disc serves a clear-cut purpose.
So, as opposed to hitting up your local disc golf retailer to drop some serious cash on the latest and greatest in “pretty-looking” plastic, take a look at your bag: What flights are you missing?
Feel. Test. Upgrade.
Building a bag: It’s that simple.
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