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.
For my distance driver it’s the Innova Tern. It’s flight path is great for my throws and in gstar plastic is comfortable to throw.
By far, my favorite distance driver is my Mint Eternal Longhorn. It’s has more glide than advertised, it’s reliable, it’s very straight, and it’s extremely comfortable forehand or backhand.
I’ve really enjoyed my Discmania Enigma in Neo Plastic! This disc has allowed me to have controllable max distance. I’ve beat the disc in to allow for a flip up, slight turn with a lot of glide. It’s flight predictability makes it my favorite distance driver.
Discmania original CD3 is not just my favorite driver, but favorite disc. When I first started throwing it 2 years ago, I couldn’t get it up to speed and it was the disc I worked with to throw harder and faster. Now that I’ve gotten better and can throw farther, it is my control driver that I can throw smooth and trust. Now I just need Innova to resell the mold with a new name.
My favorite is the Innova wraith. Perfect stability and a lot of plastic options. I have several in the bag, but my 171g stock pink star wraith is the go to driver! My 168g pro wraith is an awesome calm day/downwind bomber!
The Shryke almost got me my first ace the other day at 380 ft, been working on becoming good enough to throw it consistently well. While that was exciting, I have loved and also recommend the Sapphire. It works well with my arm speed for my max distance and I can create many different shots that sometimes impress the guys. Cheers!!
Destroyer is my favorite on the list, although part of me feels ashamed by its popularity lol. It’s number 1 for a reason! I love it because out of the box it’s reliable, then it beats in and becomes the perfect flippy driver.
My go to is the MVP Inertia. It’s a speed I can handle and flies flat. I’ve tried other discs with similar numbers and they don’t fly like the Interim.
My go to is a Dynamic Discs Renegade. Playing at altitude with just an average arm speed I get my best distance with it. Total flight path ends up fairly straight and its fun to watch it s curve along the way.
My go to driver is the discraft Thrasher, I’m middle age but have a lot of damage physically. I find my noodle arm gets the best flight out of the thrasher because I can reliably give it anny and it’ll go as far as it can and finish exactly where I aimed. When it beats in I can start getting in some hyzer flipping to flat and eventually a turn over disc. I threw the same big z thrasher for 4 years playing three plus times a week and it finally became a natural hyzer flip turn over disc. Discraft big z starts slick but get it dirty and it’ll be the perfect grip. Hades is my overstable disc I’m working on getting to be my go to, but still rocking my thrashers for life.
Loving the new Infinite Discs Maya distance driver. Wanted something to replace my Tern, and Maya’s shallow rim depth, low overall profile and grippy G-blend plastic is fitting my smaller hands and intermediate arm speed really well. Flippy enough to be able to turn over when thrown flat at higher speeds, or come back if thrown on a slight hyzer. Have bought a few to learn how to throw the mold consistently, and the Maya will definitely have a place in me bag for the foreseeable future!
Innova Sidewinder. In my case, I can make great throws both FH and BH. It’s understable setup makes for a great 300′.
I really like the Swirly S-Blend Pharaoh!
My go to driver is the discraft Thrasher, I’m middle age but have a lot of damage physically. I find my noodle arm gets the best flight out of the thrasher because I can reliably give it anny and it’ll go as far as it can and finish exactly where I aimed. When it beats in I can start getting in some hyzer flipping to flat and eventually a turn over disc. I threw the same big z thrasher for 4 years playing three plus times a week and it finally became a natural hyzer flip turn over disc. Discraft big z starts slick but get it dirty and it’ll be the perfect grip. Hades is my overstable disc I’m working on getting to be my go to, but still rocking my thrashers for life.
I’m a fan of the INNOVA BOSS which has become my most reliable distance driver.
Nice long stable flight, with a trusty fade I can depend on. I like it in G-Star plastic.
Wraith all the way but I don’t have the arm to throw the destroyer decently. Also love a good mamba
I tend to gravitate towards distance drivers that have some turn to them, as they allow someone with a little slower arm speed to still launch with some control. Until this year, my pick was a Tern. I found it to be a pretty easy driver to flip up. Recently though, I discovered the Wraith in Pro plastic. I found the Pro plastic to be a little easier to flip up than Star and could get a Wraith to go straight and – for me – pretty long. The Scorch has also impressed me recently as an easy throwing driver.
I like the Axiom Vanish in proton plastic. It’s more stable than the numbers (I’m at altitude), and the proton has decent grip in all conditions. It’s my go to driver for glow rounds too. Taping a light to it doesn’t seem to affect its flight very much, and the brighter colors are easier to spot.
My go to and favorite distance driver right now is the Discmania Essence. The speed is 8 and it floats forever without much fade. I’m still pretty novice and it has really helped my driving game. And has helped me work on my form during my motions.
The tern is a go to for me. The amount of different shots you can do with the disc is crazy. It’s great for easy distance when your an intermediate player like me. This is why the tern is my favorite.
I can add my love to the Wraith pile. It gives me enough turn to flip up predictably without the risk of turning all the way over with too much power (like the Tern). As a bonus, I can support Nathan Queen with his Glow Star Wraith tour disc!