Best Distance Driver For 2022
This article was written for 2022. Check out this article and data if you’re looking for the most up to date best distance drivers list.
Best Distance Driver of 2022
We looked at the best selling molds, the best rated molds, and counted your votes for your favorite mold, and we can declare the winner of the Best Distance Driver. And boy was it close! The Innova Destroyer and Wraith traded position on top of the sales and fan vote categories. And the ratings were separated by a hundredth of a point!
The top five were all Innova/Infinite, which is not surprising after seeing the results of the individual categories. Four of the top five molds have fairly similar flights, the exception being the 5th place Maya, the only understable mold. Here are the top molds and their ranking in the different categories.
| Mold | Sales | Rating | Fan | Total |
| Innova Destroyer | 1 | 4.63 | 2 | 7.63 |
| Innova Wraith | 2 | 4.64 | 1 | 7.64 |
| Infinite Discs Emperor | 3 | 4.75 | 3 | 10.75 |
| Infinite Discs Pharaoh | 4 | 4.71 | 4 | 12.71 |
| Infinite Discs Maya | 5 | 4.58 | 5 | 14.58 |
Here are some comments mentioned by fans:
Matt M – “Destroyer has to be my all time mold. Why? There are so many different throws you can make with it. A controlled spike hyzer, a sidearm flick, an all out distance bomber.”
David M – “My go-to is a seasoned Star Destroyer. It has a good feel for backhand and forehand. One at a lighter weight like 167-170 if I’m wanting a little more turn. The Destroyer is the gold standard for good reason.”
Tom – “My favorite driver has always been the Wraith. As they break in the develop a little instability so I can bag several Wraith of various plastic / beat in yet have the same grip. The Wraith is also very good in wind as I find it very reliable and wind resistant. Plus what is not to like about the Halo Wraith, wicked cool stamp.”
In this series exploring the best discs of 2022, we started with putters and have been moving up the speed ratings until this week. You can check out the survey results for Putters, Mid Ranges, and Fairway Drivers by clicking these links. Today, we will finally check out the highest-speed discs, the distance drivers, or high-speed drivers. Once again we will look at the sales data to see what people are buying. Then we will rank the molds by their Infinite rating. Finally, we will ask you to vote for the distance driver that you feel is the best. Then we will compile the information and declare a winner! We will also award one lucky commenter a gift card for their input.
Best Distance Drivers
There is something about the feel of a distance driver that sets it apart from other types of discs. The wide rim makes you feel like there is something significant in your hand, both in terms of mass and of potential distance. The sharper edge has a distinct feeling that is unlike other discs. Their higher speed rating requires a little more effort in your throw, making the movement a little more physical. All of these things add up to a different experience when you throw a distance driver.
The high-speed, or distance driver category has been the bane of many new disc golfers. Someone new to disc golf may not understand that the name of the category refers to how fast the disc must be 
thrown in order to fly like it’s designed to do. Instead, newer players regularly buy discs that they don’t have the skill to be able to throw properly. Therefore, many bad habits might be formed before the disc golfer understands the need to start by throwing lower-speed discs. Lighter plastics can help someone without the arm speed to throw higher speed discs. However, there are benefits to throwing lower speed discs when starting out.
High speed drivers account for slightly over a quarter of all disc sales at Infinite. That’s pretty close to where we could expect it to be. It does trail putters as a category by a couple of percentage points.
To find out which molds were the most popular, I pulled up a list of the top 20 discs that were sold in the past year. Below is a chart with the top discs, along with the percentage of all distance drivers sold:
| Rank | Brand and Mold | % of all distance drivers |
| 1 | Innova Destroyer | 10.5% |
| 2 | Innova Wraith | 9.0% |
| 3 | Infinite Discs Emperor | 6.5% |
| 4 | Infinite Discs Pharaoh | 5.2% |
| 5 | Infinite Discs Maya | 3.2% |
| 6 | Innova Beast | 2.3% |
| 7 | Innova Shryke | 2.1% |
| 8 | Innova Mamba | 2.1% |
| 9 | Discraft Avenger SS | 1.9% |
| 10 | Discraft Nuke | 1.9% |
| 11 | Innova Tern | 1.7% |
| 12 | Discraft Force | 1.5% |
| 13 | MVP Photon | 1.5% |
| 14 | Discraft Surge SS | 1.4% |
| 15 | Discraft Hades | 1.4% |
| 16 | Innova Boss | 1.4% |
| 17 | Discraft Zeus | 1.3% |
| 18 | Discraft Thrasher | 1.3% |
| 19 | Discraft Scorch | 1.2% |
| 20 | Innova Katana | 1.2% |
Brands in the Top 20
Although most people know about the popularity of the Destroyer and Wraith, they may not know that one out of every five distance drivers sold at Infinite is one of those two molds! Those are some successful molds. In addition to holding the top two spots in the category. Innova is also responsible for 8 of the top 20 distance drivers we sell. That ties Discraft, who also holds 8 of the top 20 spots. In a distant third place is Infinite Discs, with 3 of the top 20. There were only four manufacturers in the top 20, and here is a chart with the breakdown:
Although Infinite Discs only had three molds in the top 20, those molds accounted for a significant portion of the distance drivers sold. In fact, sales of Infinite’s three top-20 molds surpassed Discraft’s eight molds in the top 20. Here is a list of the four manufacturers in the top 20, with the percentage of overall distance driver sales for the past year:
Best Rated Discs
Now let’s take a look at the Infinite Discs rating for the top molds. These are the ratings that customers have given each mold when they give a review. The ratings give us a picture of how people feel about 
the disc once they’ve had a chance to throw it. That’s a more accurate indication of the long-term view of people’s opinions of the disc, assuming it’s been around long enough for a significant number of people to rate the mold. Infinite Discs’ Emperor and Pharaoh top the list, with ratings a bit above the rest of the group. Here are the top 20 discs, sorted by Infinite rating:
| Infinite Discs Emperor | 4.75 |
| Infinite Discs Pharaoh | 4.71 |
| Innova Wraith | 4.64 |
| Discraft Zeus | 4.64 |
| Innova Destroyer | 4.63 |
| Innova Tern | 4.61 |
| Innova Shryke | 4.6 |
| Discraft Surge SS | 4.59 |
| Infinite Discs Maya | 4.58 |
| Discraft Hades | 4.58 |
| Discraft Thrasher | 4.58 |
Fan Vote Results
We asked you to let us know which mold you considered to be the best distance driver. You responded by the hundreds, and we’ve compiled a list of the top molds. Just like the top mold sales, the fan vote was all Innova/Infinite. Topping the list wasn’t the popular Destroyer. It was the Wraith, which is like a slightly slower Destroyer. In addition to the brands you would expect to make the list, there were votes for many other brands, including Divergent Discs, Viking, Millennium, Legacy, Axiom, Kastaplast, Thought Space Athletics, and DGA.
Here is a list of the top voted discs, along with the percentage of people who voted for that mold.
| Mold | Percentage of Votes |
| Wraith | 13.9% |
| Destroyer | 9.4% |
| Emperor | 4.5% |
| Pharaoh | 4.1% |
| Maya | 3.7% |
| Boss | 3.4% |
| Grace | 3.0% |
| Mamba | 3.0% |
| DD3 | 2.2% |
| Shryke | 2.2% |
Thanks to everyone who voted!
Let Us Know Your Favorite!
Now it’s your turn to let us know about your favorite distance driver. Even if your disc didn’t make the list, let us know what it is, and why it is the best disc for you or the best driver for beginners. This is a great chance to show people looking for a distance driver why your favorite disc works for you!
Ted Hegemann
Ted is the Chief Writer at Infinite Discs. He is responsible for the State of Disc Golf Survey articles and most of the "best discs" posts. Ted runs all kinds of local disc golf leagues and tournaments and tournaments in Northern Utah.
I honestly don’t have the arm to throw most of these and give them a fair shake. I’ve had the occasional decent throw with a wraith or shryke though and they seem popular with the folks I know who can throw them. Me personally, my go to distance is the Innova Orc
The Wraith is a great disc, but lately I’ve been starting to replace mine with Streamline Traces, which are also great.
My favorite is a beat in Innova Star Max
I don’t think they are available anymore, but is a fun disc.
It didn’t make the list but Dynamic Discs Trespass is like a Destroyer for those of us with noodle arms. Its the only wide rimmed driver I can routinely get a full flight out of and it goes and goes and goes for me
The Innova Destroyer is my go to distance driver for distance and long shots without a head wind. On side arm bombs I can get the destroyer to turn over and hold for a long way while knowing that it will come back. For those reasons it would be my top distance driver.
However if I need distance with more accuracy I will always go to my Innova Boss. The Boss will only turn over for me with serious head wind and I have that disc dialed in for sidearm distance approach shots. The Boss is also my go to disc for gentle headwind.
Both the Boss and Destroyer are great discs that have different uses in my bag and I believe compliment each other extremely well.
The Innova Wraith is my favorite all time distance driver. It’s not as fast as some but still gets the distance by having great glide and a tighter S shape. It’s easier to get up to speed for those of us who don’t throw as far as Garrett Gurthie and he even throws a Wraith. Albeit a more OS version (Halo).
The great thing about the Wraith as well is you can get it in so many different plastics and stabilities. I have Pro/Star/Champ and Halo blends. So no matter the wind down or head, I just simply grab a different Wraith and I am covered. Pro being US, Champs and Halo being OS. Star in between generally.
I also have tried many faster drivers but find the Wraith goes just as far (375-400 max for me). The consistency is the key with this disc. Easier to control and still get the distance of some faster discs.
My favorite distance drive is currently the photon, but it changes all the time
For me the Latitude 64 Grace has been my primary distance driver. I love the feel of the plastic and I feel more confident with the release than any other I have used. Not only is it close to my farthest flying disc, but I am much more accurate with it than other molds as well. It is perfect for my arm speed and has the right amount of stability that allows me to throw it in a variety of ways. Shout out to the Streamline Trace for a runner up. The plasma flies great in the wind when I put away my Grace.
I’ve tried a lot of different distance drivers but with my noodle arm I can’t get most of them up to speed so lately my go to driver is a star starfire. I love it because I can get it up to speed to get an almost destroyer like flight out of it but I can control it and get it out farther than most other drivers.
I love the Lat64 Sapphire! It is so great for beginner throwers. The Opto plastic feels great. It has a great amount of turn to get great distance for beginners.
Streamline Trace is my go to distance driver.
Neutron Axiom Vanish, specifically upper 150s. Technically it should be too fast for me, but that’s an advantage of the light weight. I forehand primarily and have some finger dexterity/grip issues, so the rim is the PERFECT size (lower speeds are typically too narrow for my fingers to grip), and with that weight range , it’s not too overstable and not too understable. And again with the finger issues, the plastic is a little grippier than many of the comparable versions, so the disc doesn’t get slick.
My favorite driver of all time is the MVP Wave. It was my first MVP disc and I fell in love with the feel of the neutron plastic and rim. I now have a Lat 64 Ballista Pro for beefy/windy forehand drives along with an Innova Valkryrie and Wraith and Discraft Zeus, Scorch and Raptor. Love Discraft drivers in ESP plastic!
My favorite driver is the mamba.
The L64 Grace is a great disc. Invictus by Innova is also a good one.
Gummy c-blend maya is my choice
L64 Grace, the new plastic is second to none and it glides forever
Really surprised to see Discraft barely make the Top 10 for distance drivers. I’ve really liked my Zeus, even if I don’t really have the arm got it lol
I absolutely love the discmania dd3! It’s a bit more comfortable than a destroyer and also a little less overstable for those max distance bombs!
I love the Boss from Innova, keeps flat really well with not a lot of fade for long fairway and tunnel shots. The destroyer has been great for me to shape other shots as well, and they both work great both forehand and backhand.