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.
Westside HVAC! Thing has crazy glide. Rip it hard on a hyzer line then grab a sandwhich and eat it because it’s going to cruise! It will flip up and slightly roll over. Then about mid flight when that drink cart comes around a second time it starts to fade back right at your target line. You can throw it on nice low lines through narrow gaps like that Rebel Pilot on Star wars that refuses to let up when the Imperials are chasing him down. “Stay on Target”. Oh but it has to be OPTO plastic as the Goldline is too flippy. The old Goldline model was a bit more stable but at some point they got flippy so had to switch to OPTO.
For my Intermediate arm speed, my Innova Champion Tern has been the most consistent long disc in my bag. It’s understable enough to easily flip up & flex for incredible distance, and the fade at the end is forgiving enough if I don’t flip it up as much as I wanted to. I even use it occasionally for hyzer-to-flat forehand tunnel shots. 10/10, do recommend.
The prodigy D1. Gives great distance while always finishing left. Especially into a light head-on breeze.
I don’t have the power to throw distance drivers. So my vote will be a Control Driver: Glow Champ Valkyrie. It’s more stable than the other Valkyries I’ve thrown.
I like the DDx for it’s consistency, but I complement it with a Pharoah for long bombs.
Destroyer was my old favorite, but now its all about the DD2 I can get it to reach 425 consistently. The DD2 frenzy stamped if you need something that wont flip over and glide.
I think this is a flaw in the thinking: “We want to select a popular disc that can be utilized by disc golfers at a large variety of skill levels and arm speeds.”
The same disc is often NOT so useable by different arm speeds. I’m a weak arm and I love the Sidewinder but big arms can’t through it even as a turn over disc because it turns too much for them.
I really like the Pharaoh!!! I got my hands on a first or test run! Love the way it feels in my hand great color! I can let this puppy rip and it goes forever for me! Love it!
Champion Valkyrie – Durable, useful, reliable, far-flying. The disc that almost any player can grow into, master, and use in new ways throughout their development. It’s one of the few discs that makes a great first driver that can still be useful in advanced player’s arsenal.
Destiny if there is no headwind… Pharaoh for headwinds. I can get both near 400 consistently. I will caveat the headwind rule with this… I have noticed that the Tournament Burst Destiny is more overstable than any of its other plastics and I’ve been bombing it in any wind. Also, the I-blend Pharaoh flies more like a tournament Destiny and almost always matches distance. But, the Tournament Destiny is by far my most consistent distance driver… 400+ avg with a solid 20-30 ft skip and finish. (I traded out all my old drivers (Destroyer and Mystere) for this tag team though! Team Destiny/Pharaoh for life).
Air Bolt for sure. In my advanced age and deteriorating arm, it’s my farthest and most accurate driver. I bag 2 of them at all times. I’ve tried about everything out there and nothing has kicked them out of my bag yet.
For headwinds – for me – the Destroyer.
As long as there is no headwind, the Daedalus is the best I’ve thrown. It will turn and fly every time.
Innova gstar destroyer is in my opinion the best. I have thrown many distance drivers to try to get a feel for it as I am fairly new to the sport. I used to use an innova beast and threw on average 200-300 ft but quickly found I have much greater distance with a forehand destroyer shot. I recently hit the basket for the tee pad on a 426ft hole. This disc greatly impressed me with a super comfortable feel in the hand. I would have never found out about this disc if it wasn’t for a infinite mystery box a family friend got me. The destroyer has now become my go to driver.
Always depends on the wind conditions but assuming it’s a relatively calm day, the Pharaoh gives me the most distance. I used to throw an average 425ft with a Shryke, a Destroyer or even a Knight but I’m able to reach 465ft with the Pharaoh. Crazy mix of speed and glide.
For a beginner a dx sidewinder worked wonders for me, was able to get it to flex out for good distance and it was also easy to turn into a roller on an anhyzer release. Must have for a backhand only player!
My go to distance driver is the big z discraft thrasher. For me being a middle aged man who has done manual labor his entire working life is strong but beat in. For my arm it goes the furthest in any conditions. Tunnel shots, anny flex, long “slow” hyzer, holds any line my busted body can get behind reliably every time. A friend gave me his glow esp thrasher after beating it to death and becoming to flippy for him. It’s now my hyzerflip machine dead straight 300’. The only disc I can rely on as much is the new musket it’s just a little shorter for my arm by 20’ or so. Besides that I love Val. Stupid Doss stole her heh.
I have just begun my disc experience, so i will be purchasing a Westside Destiny next in order to improve my game. It seems to have endured the test of many players.
I don’t have a big arm (normally 280-320 ft) so for me it’s definitely the Twin Swords from Yikun. This disc flexes for big distance, but it does need a wide fairway to work its magic. I can get it out in the 330-350 feet range if I get a good pull on it and if I have the room to let it work. If I power down just a touch, it’s laser straight with a reliable fade at the end for an easy 300ft. This is by far the most consistent driver I’ve thrown.
The Orc has been a game changer for me. I can bomb this baby out to 320+ with consistency(bh). It goes the same distance as my Thrasher and usually lands one foot in front of it, but the weird thing is that it doesn’t flip as hard as the Thrasher. Its also great for low ceiling shots and low hyzer flip forehands. I love the pfn Champion and star orcs and I cants stop buying them from infinitediscs.com.!
A gummy star destroyer with a slight dome max weight. These are usually thee best distance drivers and get better as they beat in.
Or
A brand new first run pharoah. Note: maybe the new metal flake glow pharoahs will be even better and beat in slower!