Best Disc Golf Distance Drivers of 2018
***Update***
This post was written for 2018. If you’re looking for the best drivers of 2020, check out these more recent articles.
Choosing a disc golf disc isn’t as easy as it used to be. Over the last 5 years alone the disc golf industry has exploded with new manufacturers and molds that has given the disc golfer more variety and options than ever before. But what is a blessing can also be a curse for folks who are new to the sport. They might feel intimidated by complex flight charts and numbers. While working at Infinite Discs, I have often been asked by newer players, “Could you just tell me which is the best disc?”
Well, that’s the question this new series of posts will hope to answer. Over the next few weeks, we will be naming nominees for the best disc golf disc in a variety of categories and awarding one of the nominees with the title of The Infinite Discs Best Disc Golf Disc in each category. Will our nominees and winners be subjective? Absolutely, but we will do our best to be fair and impartial judges.
How will we choose our nominees and winners then? The two key words we will use to guide us in the nomination process will be popularity and utility. We want to select a popular disc that can be utilized by disc golfers at a large variety of skill levels and arm speeds. We will also try to avoid nominating similar discs from the same brand. For example, we won’t be nominating both the Destroyer and the Wraith from Innova. While they are two different discs that can be used differently, that difference is slight enough to not merit nominating them each individually.
Today, let’s discuss the best disc golf distance drivers. We will first take a look at the top 10 selling distance drivers of 2018, and then I will name our nominees.
Top sellers of 2018:
- Innova Destroyer
- Innova Wraith
- Innova Shryke
- Infinite Discs Pharaoh
- Innova Boss
- Innova Tern
- Innova Beast
- Dynamic Discs Trespass
- Discmania PD Freak
- Innova Orc
If you have followed any of our sales reports, this shouldn’t be a very surprising list. The one that surprises me the most would be the Discmania PD. It wasn’t a new release this year, but its popularity has grown significantly over the last few years. This is a category that has been dominated by Innova for a while now, but as you will see in our nominees, there are other manufacturers that are producing high quality distance drivers that continue to grow in popularity.
So, without further ado, here are the nominees for the Infinite Discs Best Disc Golf Disc: Distance Driver:
Discraft Crank
The Discraft Crank was originally released in 2013. Ever since then, it has been a staple in the Discraft lineup that has provided throwers with a long, slightly understable flight that works great for intermediate players who are just getting the hang of the distance drivers, but it still has enough stability for more expert throwers who need a reliable understable flyer that can just sail forever.
Discmania DDx
The DDx set the disc golf world on fire during the summer of 2016 with a hot release that was highly anticipated. The DDx is rumored to have been created by combining a Destroyer top and a Tern bottom. I’m not sure how true this is, but this allows for a great explanation for the DDx‘s flight pattern that is enjoyed by players of all skill levels. It isn’t too understable like a Tern is for some, and it isn’t too overstable like a Destroyer is for others. The DDx is a straight, stable flying disc with glide for days.
Westside Destiny
The Westside Destiny might be the most understable distance driver nominated, but don’t assume you have too much arm speed if you haven’t tried it yet. The Destiny offers higher arm speeds a reliable hyzer-flip disc that (in the right conditions) can turn over and sail a long time before slowly stabling up to have a soft fade to finish. If you’ve tried throwing the other discs nominated here and can’t seem to get the distance your more experienced friends are getting, try out the Destiny.
Innova Destroyer
The consistent king of the sales charts, the Destroyer definitely ranks high in popularity. It has an impressive performance as well that nearly all disc golfers can incorporate into their game. It may not be considered the most beginner friendly, but this disc is available in a wide variety of weights and plastic types that make it accessible for nearly all skill levels, and it is a disc that players do not outgrow. There has been some speculation already that the Destroyer will suffer from the recent Paul McBeth news, but they have a short memory. The Destroyer has been a game changer since 2007, and I think it will be just fine without the McBeast.
Discraft Nuke
The old question in the distance driver world was do you prefer the Nuke or the Destroyer?
Since then the distance driver world has gotten much more crowded, but the Nuke still remains a favorite for lots of disc golfers who prefer the higher speed and larger rim that it offers.
Like the Destroyer, Discraft has made the Nuke available in a wide variety of plastics and weights.
Dynamic Discs Sheriff
The Sheriff came to town in 2017 with a very welcomed reception. The Sheriff offers a little more stability than the Westside Destiny, making it one of the most utilizable distance drivers in the trilogy lineup.
The Sheriff can be hyzer-flipped by the big arms, and it offers reliable distance for nearly all skill levels.
Innova Shryke
The Shryke has had a somewhat sneaky climb into prominence. It rose above other understable high speed drivers that Innova released before by offering that perfect balance in stability that allows higher arm speeds to still enjoy and maximize the distance in the Shryke.
For many players, the Shryke has become the Destroyer light.
Dynamic Discs Trespass
The Trespass was one of the first discs that Dynamic Discs released when they began manufacturing discs in 2012. It has been a strong seller ever since, and it was one of the first discs that really disrupted the “Nuke or Destroyer” train of thought. It disrupted the market with a similar flight in the now popular Swedish plastic blends, and now the Trespass has become a household disc golf name.
Those are the nominees for The Infinite Discs Best Disc Golf Disc:
And the winner is….
Best Distance Driver of 2018
THE INFINITE DISCS BEST DISC GOLF DISC: DISTANCE DRIVER
No upsets here. The Innova Destroyer was a game changer when it was first released over 10 years ago, and it continues to be a force in the disc golf community. It is available in nearly all plastics and weights, so if you haven’t given this disc a shot, you should be able to find a Destroyer that will fit for your game. We have thousands of Innova Destroyer’s in stock in dozens of fun and limited edition stamp types.
Prodiscus Razeri. Big time bombs
I love the Trespass but lost my favorite one a few months back. Just because I haven’t tried to many MVP discs I picked up a Catalyst and have really grown to love that disc over the last couple months.
I am newer to disc golf and am older than most (in my 50’s). I haven’t been able to get much speed so my driver of choice is the Innova Valkyrie. I have tried others but I still throw my old broken in Valkyrie further and straighter than all the rest.
My favorite distance driver right now is the G-star Mystere. I don’t throw a lot of innova but for my arm speed it is my farthest driver for now. Great dependability for a flex off the tee and lots of turn if necessary.
I use the sheriff, and it works great for flex sidearms. And of course I have the trusty firebird for hyzers and headwinds
The Westside Destiny is by far my favorite distance driver. I can pretty much do whatever I want with it, put it on any line I choose if the conditions allow. As it breaks in, it gets more understable. This combined with the high glide make for huge distances if thrown correctly. Sometimes a bit touchy, but super happy it made the list.
The Legacy Canon and Outlaw bomb for me in consistent fashion
I believe that the Innova star destroyer is the best disc golf distance driver In the game. It does all you need for a distance drive. You can bomb it out there and always depend on it to come back. I think it is the perfect mix of distance and control for a driver. Sure you could grab a blizzard boss and throw it farther than a destroyer, as even the pros do the same thing, but they don’t use the same discs for max distance competitions as they do for a max distance tournament shot. I have 5 star destroyers that vary in flight from under stable to overstable. I use them for any shot I need to go far. Forehand or backhand. Max distance or control drives.
The Champion Boss from Innova is the best distance driver. The first reason is it can be thrown a great distance using backhand or forehand. This allows for more adaptability and dependability on the course no matter what situation you are placed in. It is overstable enough to fight though windy conditions without worry of turning over. It has the perfect amount of glide and speed to stay airborne for a long time and is perfect for anhyzer shots that you know will fade back at the end.
The Beast is quite underrated for great distance when you don’t have a super strong arm, like me. I confess I haven’t sampled dozens and dozens of different drivers – but of my most consistent favorites (Saint, Pipeline, Tern, Krait), the Beast probably comes out on top.
Discmania TD is the best in my opinion. It’s good for slower arms, but a firm C-Line stays pretty stable and essentially performs like a long FD. Rim width is just right so you can get a ton of snap on it!
Innova Star Shryke.
Living in higher elevation requires to have a monster arm or throw light/understable discs to get that max D flight out of a driver. The Shryke is fairly neutral at higher elevations in the 170-175 g range and is a great distance driver in weights lower than 170 for my arm speed. I bag around 4-6 of them in differing plastics, wears, and weights. If you are struggling with finding a distance driver and live in high elevations, give the Star Shryke a try.
Best distance driver is ballista!
The Innova Champion Boss is my favorite distance driver. It holds such a straight line for a long period of time. Also since it is so overstable I am able to throw it hard on a anhyzer and watch it flip over to maximize the distance.
Love my Destroyer & Wraith, but I only have Innova in my bag. Would love to add a Pharaoh or a DDx to my arsenal.
Innova Destroyer has been my favorite as it is very controllable and accurate. However, I can throw an Unlace by Vibram way farther… just not as accurate.
The Axiom Insanity is a slightly understable driver. Works great for my backhand and sidearm. Also great for beginners.
The Pharaoh has surprised me and become my most consistent distance driver. I get turn but no too much turn, (it’s never turned too much and rolled) and the fade is consistent but gentle. I’d say the fade is a 1 but it’s always there, which is amazing.
Infinite discs pharaoh is my go to distance driver right now. I have a first run and a Gurthie signature and use them for different shots. My first run is definetely flippier and I can throw it with hyzer and it flips up and rides out a nice long flight with subtle fade at the end. My Gurthie I use for similar shots but with my forehand mostly.
I have to agree with the destiny. it was the first disc i was able to break 400’ with (and still the only one). once they beat in you have a good roller disc as well. i still love my destroyers and shrykes.. but on calm confitions.. its the destiny i pull out for big distance.