One of the common topics new disc golfers ask about is how to grip or hold the disc. In this disc golf grip guide, I will go over all of the most useful and common ways to grip disc golf discs. In addition, I will discuss what kind of throw each grip is best for you to reference. So keep reading for more information.
Disc Golf Grip Guide
Backhand Grips
Let’s begin with four main backhand grips, including fan grip, power grip, modified fan grip, and modified power grip. These grips can be used with every backhand shot, including fairway driving, driving off the tee, putting, and mid-range shots. Let’s discuss each one and what they are best for.
Fan Grip
Attributes
- High Accuracy.
- Low to Moderate Distance.
Best For
- Approach Shots.
- Putting.
Brief description
This grip delivers the highest degree of control and accuracy. But it will sacrifice a lot of distance potential to gain a high level of control.
This grip probably should not be your go-to grip for the long shot, but it is excellent for shots that require a high degree of control and accuracy, such as approach shots and putting. Personally, I like to use the fan grip for putting.
Regarding performing the fan grip, you must hold your chosen disc in the dominant hand, so your fingers are splayed out and rest on the flight plate’s bottom. Your forefinger should be rested outside the disc’s edge for added support, giving you even more control.
Power Grip
Attributes
- Decent Accuracy.
- High Distance.
Best For:
- Fairway Drive.
- Driving Off The Tee.
Brief description
That grip is among the most common grips for driving off the tee. That grip delivers an extremely firm hold on your disc, which will allow you to put the maximum amount of torque on your disc without worrying about it slipping out of the grip too early.
That grip is ideal for fairway driving and driving off the tee. I prefer to use that grip for my tee shot since I find I gain the greatest distance potential utilizing it.
That said, I would not recommend it for all the shots requiring a high degree of accuracy. Though disc golfers can become quite accurate with that grip, other grips are ideal for that. That grip is mainly for distance and power.
Regarding utilizing the power grip, just hold your disc firmly in your palm’s middle with your thumb on the top flight plate’s rim.
Your fingers should be curled around the edge so that the tips are set inside the rim of the bottom of your disc. Hold your disc firmly but avoid being too tight and keep the wrist loose and straight as you throw.
Modified Fan Grip
Attributes
- Medium to Moderately High Accuracy.
- Medium to Moderately High Distance.
Best For
- Approach Shots.
- Fairway Drive.
- Midrange.
Brief description
This grip is a combination between the modified power grip and the traditional fan grip, and it will give you a high degree of control and accuracy while still enabling you to throw a little bit harder for more distance.
The modified fan grip is also great for mid-range shots and can also be used for approach and fairway driving shots depending on the case.
Personally, I typically use this grip with all of the midrange discs. In addition, I really prefer this grip for throwing putters since it allows me to firmly grip my disc despite its deep rim.
As for performing this grip, your pinky and forefinger should be curled around the disc’s outside and resting on its inside lip.
Your ring and middle fingers are curled around the outside of your disc, but they should be out straighter and resting on the flight plate’s bottom. This is still a firm, tight grip, but it will add a little bit more control over the power grips.
Modified Power Grip
Attributes
- Moderate Accuracy.
- Moderately High Distance.
Best For
- Fairway Drive.
- Driving Off The Tee.
- Midrange Shots.
Brief description
That grip is for disc golfers who are looking for a hybrid grip enabling for distance, accuracy, and power. You may sacrifice a minor amount of distance with that grip, but you will get a little bit more accuracy. Some disc golfers like the extra control the grip delivers over the power grip.
The modified power grip is a great grip for driving off-the-tee and fairway drives. You can use it for mid-range shots as long as it feels comfortable for you.
Using that grip is quite similar to the power grip, with some slight exceptions.
Firstly, your fingers tuck around the edge to rest on the inside lip and are splayed out a bit more than the power grip.
It will give your forefinger the space it needs to wrap around your disc’s outside edge rather than tucking it under like your other fingers do.
Forehand Grips
There are three common forehand grips, including stacked grip, power grip, and split grip. Those grips will enable you to throw every kind of forehand shot, including fairway driving, midrange shots, and driving off the tee. The thing that is left off the list is putting, which you probably should not do forehand anyway.
Split Grip
Attributes
- High Accuracy.
- Medium Distance.
Best For
- Approach Shots.
- Fairway Drive.
- Midrange
Brief description
That grip is all about accuracy. It is quite similar to the fan grip for the backhand since it delivers more control and support by spreading out the middle and index fingers on the bottom plate of your disc.
That grip is ideal for approach shots when disc golfers need more control, especially when there is an obstacle, such as a large clump of bushes or a tree that they need to get around. I believe this grip will give me the accuracy and control I need to perform this shot.
To perform this grip, all you need to do is hold your disc with the thumb on the flight plate’s top, with your middle finger and forefinger spread out on the bottom of your disc, making the shape of a peace sign.
Your middle finger would rest along your disc’s inner lip. Your ring and pinky finger should rest on the outside lip of your golf disc for support.
Power Grip
Attributes
- Decent Accuracy.
- High Distance.
Best For
- Fairway Drive.
- Driving Off The Tee.
Brief description
The power grip will maximize distance potential. This grip should be used when you have a wide-open shot and want to gain the maximum distance out of your golf disc.
Some disc golfers find the power grip a bit less reliable where accuracy is concerned. Hence, you may have to practice with this grip till you can reliably release your disc, but it will give you the best distance out of any forehand grip.
All you need to do is hold your disc in the dominant hand between your forefinger and thumb. Your thumb should be on the top flight plate with the forefinger wrapped around your disc’s outside and resting on its inside lip.
Your middle finger is totally straight, also resting on the disc’s inside lip. Your pinky and ring finger should rest on the outside lip of your disc for support.
Stacked Grip
Attributes
- Moderate Accuracy.
- Moderately High Distance.
Best For
- Midrange Shots.
- Fairway Drive.
- Driving Off The Tee.
Brief description
That grip is an excellent balance of both accuracy and power for distance driving. With that grip, disc golfers may feel confident in putting more power into their swing without losing control over the release of their disc.
If you are keen on a forehand grip that is controllable and stable but also lets you put more power into your shots, which is an excellent all-around grip that might work for you.
To perform this grip, just hold your disc with the thumb on the top flight plate, and the middle finger and forefinger stacked atop one another on the flight plate’s bottom and rest on the inside lip of your disc. The middle finger and ring finger should stay on the outside lip of your disc for support.
Extras
Grip Pressure
How strongly you should hold your disc would vary depending on the grip. In most instances, you will want a firm grip instead of a loose one.
A firm grip will lead to better control, more power, more spin, and a greater flight with better accuracy and distance.
There is a balance to grip pressure, and you will figure it out with experience playing this sport. Here are some most important tips:
- Do not hold onto your disc tightly so that your fingers hurt.
- Do not hold onto your disc loosely so that it can be swatted from your grip by others walking by.
As a general rule, if your disc is wobbly as it leaves your hand, you’ll need to grip your disc more firmly.
Thumb Position
Changing your thumb position leads to a change in the forward angle of the disc.
It will be helpful if you find that your disc is consistently being released with the nose up, meaning the front of your disc is too high in relation to its path or trajectory.
In layman’s terms, throwing the nose up will be less aerodynamic and reduce how far the disc can be thrown as there is more wind resistance on the disc.
If you want to correct, throwing your nose down is necessary, simply meaning that your disc should be flat in relation to its path or trajectory.
One of the good ways to do that is to position your thumb closer to the disc’s outside. You will notice the angle of your disc begins to point more downward. As you move the thumb closer to the center, the angle increases.
Try positioning your thumb and changing the forward angle of your disc till you consistently release flat or nose down.
Grip Lock
Grip lock is a common concern for many disc golfers, and it involves a disc golfer who holds onto their disc too long which leads to a late release. That late release then will cause your disc to fly off in a direction you are not intending.
That is very frustrating when it occurs to you, and there are some factors that lead to grip lock and several things you can do to mitigate the problem.
The first thing is sweat or humidity on your hands. If the air is humid or if your palms are sweaty, your disc might stick to your hand, leading to a late release.
The greatest way to fix it is to prepare a birdie bag, which is basically a canvas sack filled with dried wood powder. It will soak up any moister on hand. All you need to do is pat the bag before throwing it, and you will be good to go.
The second thing is rounding, which is the most prevalent cause of grip lock or other release timing problems. Rounding happens if your disc travels around your body during your throw rather than in a straight line.
Rounding is effortless to check for. Just go through the swing from beginning to end in slow motion. If your disc does not follow a straight line from reach back to release, you are rounding.
More Distance
In addition to telling accuracy, rounding robs you of distance. I could add around 100 feet of additional distance to my throw when I fixed my rounding problems.
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The Bottom Line
In this post, I have covered a lot! I discussed seven of the common grips in disc golf which can be utilized for both forehand and backhand shots. I also talked about which kinds of shots these grips are best for and how to utilize them.
Hopefully, you find them useful. Thanks for your time!
Further Reading