Best Disc Golf Fairway Drivers of 2023

January 18, 2023 Ted Hegemann 38 comments

In a recent blog we took a look at the top disc golf discs in each category (Distance Drivers, Fairway Drivers, Mid Ranges, and Putt and Approach). Then we checked out the top 50 disc golf distance drivers, including the top overstable and understable molds. This week, we’ll do the same with the top disc golf fairway drivers.

Fairway drivers have slightly slower speeds than distance drivers. They can be used for drives and approach shots in all but the longest distances. Their rims are narrower than distance drivers, making them easier to grip for most people. Plus, their slower speed makes throwing them within skill set of most people. Fairway drivers are also called ‘control drivers’. Let’s see which fairway drivers were the most popular, and which ones you might consider throwing for 2023.

The top 50 list is based on the direct to consumer sales directly from InfiniteDiscs.com for last year.

Top Selling Disc Golf Fairway Drivers

Sitting at the top of the chart is the Infinite Discs Dynasty. This speed 9 control driver is not even a year old, but is already working its way into many of our bags. This was one of Eric Oakley’s 2022 signature discs which helped propel it as one of the top fairway drivers. The Dynasty has a stable flight, with a little turn and a dependable, but not too harsh fade.

The Finish Line Era got a podium finish for the year. Finish Line was started by Drew Gibson. It is another very new brand, but is making a mark in disc golf. The Finish Line Era has a very similar flight to the Dynasty in Forged plastic, but is substantially more overstable in the Composite blend.

The Centurion, Sphinx, Exodus and Firebird round out the top five (the Exodus and Firebird tied for fifth) Three are sold by Infinite, and one is an Innova classic.

The Leopard and Teebird have been around for decades and are popular among disc golfers of all skill levels. Those two staples were the next two on the list, followed by Axiom’s entry in the top 10, the Axiom Insanity. The Innova Valkyrie Rounded out the top 10.

Best Fairway Drivers by Month

This moving chart shows top fairway driver sales by month during 2022. This is a fun way to watch the trends and see as hot new discs are released or restocked.

Brands In The Top 50

While most manufacturers make some great disc golf fairway drivers, only some of them have the brand following and marketing power to land their discs in the Infinite Discs top seller lists. Below we see how many different fairway molds by each brand made the top 50 list for the year.

Innova was the top manufacturer for fairway drivers with 13 molds in the top 50. Discraft was in second, but several molds behind Innova. MVP and Infinite had the next most molds. Latitude 64 and Dynamic were the only other brands with more than two molds. There were a few manufacturers with two on the list, and a lot with one mold. In all, there were 17 different manufacturers in the top 50.

Let’s see how those molds translates to sales. We listed manufacturers of the top 50 fairway drivers and sorted them by the percentage of fairway drivers sold. There are a few interesting numbers on the list.

It is not surprising to see Innova on top, since they had the most molds. Infinite was next in line. Although Infinite is quite a bit ahead of third place, it is even more behind Innova. In third place is Discraft. The top three make up 50% of all control driver sales for the year!

Top Overstable Fairway Drivers

Just like the distance drivers, we will find the top 10 overstable fairway driver molds. This category is for overstable and very overstable discs. Here are the top 10:

Discraft has the most molds in the top 10 with 4, with Innova one mold behind them. Five brands had a disc in the top 10.

Overstable Discs Approval Dates

I like to see what dates each mold was approved to see which molds have been around for a while, and which ones are newer. The older molds are well established and have been popular for a long time. Newer brands might be hype, but they might also be the popular for a long time. Here are the dates.

Mold	Approval Date	Sales Rank
Innova Teebird	May-99	2
Innova Firebird	Mar-00	1
Dynamic Discs Escape	Dec-12	10
Innova Thunderbird	Aug-14	3
Discraft Undertaker	Apr-16	8
Discraft Raptor	Dec-18	4
Infinite Discs Scepter	Apr-19	6
Discraft Anax	Jun-19	7
Thought Space Athletics Votum	Mar-21	5
Discraft Captain’s Raptor	Dec-21	9

The oldest two molds are also the top molds. The Firebird and Teebird are more than two decades old. The Votum and Captain’s Raptor are the new kids on the block, each getting approved around two years ago as of this writing.

Top Understable Fairway Driver

For this blog, understable fairway drivers are those molds that have a turn of -2 or more. Understable discs are popular among beginners and people who don’t have a lot of arm speed. Here are the top 10 understable fairway drivers.

Innova had half of the molds in the top 10. The other five spots were taken by five different brands.

Axiom and Latitude 64 made the understable list, but not the overstable list.

Understable Discs Approval Dates

Mold	Approval Date	Sales Rank
Innova Leopard	May-99	2
Innova Valkyrie	Aug-00	4
Innova Sidewinder	Nov-04	8
Innova Roadrunner	Aug-05	9
Latitude 64 Diamond	Mar-11	10
Discraft Heat	Oct-14	7
Axiom Insanity	Dec-14	3
Innova Leopard3	Aug-17	6
Infinite Discs Sphinx	Mar-18	1
Thought Space Athletics Mantra	Oct-19	5

Just like the overstable molds, Innova has a couple discs in the top 10 that have been around for decades and have earned their way in our bags. That didn’t get them the number one spot, but they did get second in the top 10. Infinite took first with the Sphinx. While not as old as most of the Innova molds on the list, it has still been around for nearly half a decade. View the most recent listing of highest rated fairway drivers, according to reviews of customers here.

Next Blog Well Look At Mid Range Discs

What are the Best Fairway Drivers for You?

What will be the best fairway drivers of 2023? Will any brands catch up to Innova or Discraft? Or will the old school molds continue to dominate? The PDGA has already approved 17 new molds for this year (as of this writing). Maybe one of them will be a top fairway driver.

What is your favorite fairway driver? What fairway drivers do you think will be the best selling in 2023?

Best Discs

Best Disc Golf Discs for 2023

January 3, 2023 Ted Hegemann 151 comments

As a new year and new tournament season dawns, disc golfers will once again be considering which discs we will be throwing, and looking for new discs to try. Here at Infinite Discs, we thought we would check out our sales from 2022 to let you know what the most popular discs are and give you some discs to consider trying this year. We’ll break it down by disc type and find the top five for each category. Let’s check out the top discs!

Before looking at the individual disc types, let’s look at a graph of all discs sold by Infinite last year, sorted by category. The category that won by a small margin is Putt & Approach, which is just under a third of all sales. Second place was more of a battle. Distance Drivers barely beat Control Drivers by a fraction of a percent. Midranges brought up the rear.

Top Selling Disc Types

Putt and Approach Discs
Distance Drivers
Control Drivers
Midrange Discs

Best Distance Drivers

The top three drivers were all pretty close in sales, with each of the three representing about 6% of all Distance Driver sales. They are also very similar in flight, having a little turn and good fade. The Infinite Disc’s Emperor just edged out the Innova Wraith for the top spot, both selling within a hundred discs of each other. Innova’s hot selling disc, the Destroyer, was the third most popular disc for 2022. In fourth place was another popular Infinite mold, the Pharaoh. It accounted for about 5% of all Distance Driver molds. Wrapping up the top five is the Aztec, Infinite’s speed 10 driver.

It will probably not come as a surprise the most popular plastic for the first-place Emperor is the Halo S-Blend. That good-looking plastic is a hit for any mold. About 22% of all Emperors sold in 2022 was in the Halo S-Blend. The next closest was the Metal Flake Glow C-Blend, with 16% of all Emperors sold in that plastic.

2022 Top Selling Distance Drivers

Read the full breakdown of best disc golf distance drivers of 2023 here.

Best Control Drivers

Stepping down in speed a little bit we find Control or Fairway Drivers. The best Control Drivers for 2022 were also quite close in sales. The Infinite Discs Dynasty was the best-seller for the year, just beating the Finish Line Era by half a percent of all Control Drivers sold. There was a neck-and-neck race for third place with two Infinite molds. The Centurion ended up beating the Sphinx by a fraction of a percent. Rounding out the top five is the ever-popular Innova Firebird, not too far behind the Sphinx.

The best-selling plastic for the top Control Driver, the Dynasty, is the Signature Swirly S-Blend. The Eric Oakley Dynasty is a beautiful stamp, and the Swirly S-blend adds even more to its appeal. A little over a third of all Dynasty’s cam in the Signature Swirly S-Blend. The second most popular plastic is the I-Blend. Infinite’s I-Blend has the perfect balance of amazing feel at an inexpensive price. It’s one of my favorites.

Top Selling Fairway Drivers

Get the data and read our article on the best fairway drivers here.

Best Midrange Discs

For the Mid’s, there isn’t much of a surprise in discovering the mold that sold the most in 2022. It feels like it has been the category leader forever. Selling more than double the second place mold is the amazing Discraft Buzzz. The Buzz made up 12 percent of all Mid’s sold last year. Taking second at around 5% is the Innova Mako3. Just a smidge behind the Mako3 is my favorite, the Infinite Anubis. Another smidge back and you have the Thought Space Athletics Pathfinder. Bringing up the rear, a tick behind the Pathfinder is the Innova Pig. The interesting thing about the Pig, is that for many this disc is classified as a putter or at least an approach disc.

A little over one in four Buzz fans preferred the mold in ESP plastic. ESP was the most popular Buzzz plastic in 2022, beating Z-Line by about 4%.

Top Selling Midrange Discs

Get the full article on the best midrange discs here.

Best Putt and Approach Discs

On to the final, and largest category, Putt/Approach. Technically, that is two categories. Most of us have our putting putters, and separate discs for throwing. Many molds do both quite well, like the number one seller for 2022, the Infinite Alpaca. Just a couple years old, the Alpaca has quickly become a favorite of many disc golfers. The Alpaca was the best seller in the Putt/Approach category AND the number one selling mold in all categories in 2022.

Next up, also with some respectable sales numbers, is the Infinite Tomb. It trailed the Alpaca by a couple percentage points. Nearly matching the Tomb in sales is the Discraft Zone. Coming in as the third hottest Putt/Approach disc, the Zone is a perennial favorite among disc golfers. The Axiom Envy moved up a little from last year, cinching the number four spot. Last on the top five best-selling Putt/ Approach discs is the Kastaplast Berg.

The top plastic preference for the top Putt/Approach disc is the Signature P-Blend Glow. Nearly one in four Alpaca buyers chose that plastic. A little over 15% of the Alpacas sold were in D-Blend.

Top Selling Disc Golf Putters and Approach Discs

Read this article for more sales stats and recommendations on the best disc golf putters.

Best Discs Compared To All Disc Sales

Looking at just the top mold in each of the four categories we see that just those four molds make up over 7.5% of all disc sales for the year!

There you have the top five disc sales in each of the four categories. We will provide follow up articles with more details about top sales for each of the four categories of golf discs.

The Best Disc Golf Brands for 2023

And finally, let’s check out the top five discs in each category, and sort by the number of molds each manufacture has in the top five. It turns out that Infinite dominates the field, even beating out Innova as having more molds in the top 5. It’s also interesting to see some of the smaller brands make the list. Here is the breakdown:

Top Selling Disc Golf Brands of 2022

When you include all disc sales of all brands (not just those that included top five discs) on InfiniteDiscs.com these were the top selling disc golf brands of 2022.

Check out this moving graph showing monthly disc sales by brand on InfiniteDiscs.com since 2014.

Best Disc Golf Discs for 2023

We Want YOUR feedback!

What do you think the top selling discs of 2023 will be? Let us know what discs you think will make the list for the top distance driver, top control driver, top midrange and top putter. Which disc golf brands do you see moving up or down the list in 2023?

How many of the top molds do you throw? Do you throw the top plastics for the top molds? How many of discs on our list are in your bag?

Best Discs

Best Beginner Disc Golf Sets

September 9, 2022 Ted Hegemann 9 comments

The disc golf starter set is an amazing way for people just getting into the sport to get the discs that will be useful to them, at the best possible price. Starter sets are created with idea that the people who will be using them don’t have the skill to throw faster, more stable, or heavier discs. With a few exceptions, I always recommend starter sets to people new to the sport. I’ll talk about the exceptions later, but for now, let’s look at some of the best disc golf starter sets.

Infinite Discs Starter Set

1 – Infinite Discs Starter Set – At the risk of sounding like a homer, I really think this starter set is awesome! It features two discs in the I-Blend plastic, and one in D-blend. The I-blend Sphinx and Anubis are excellent for beginners because of their flight and speeds, but they will continue to find a place in their bag as their skills improve. The D-blend Alpaca is a popular mold and plastic choice with people from a variety of skills levels, which makes this putter the perfect option for a disc golf set.

The Sphinx and Anubis are staples in my bag. The I-blend plastic feels wonderful to me, and it has the added bonuses of being less expensive than other plastics, and very durable. The Alpaca is a very popular putter that you can use at any skill level. The plastic types, the perfect molds, and the relatively inexpensive price that the Infinite Discs Starter Set gets the number one spot.

Divergent Discs Starter Set

2 – Divergent Discs Starter Set –One of the many new companies in the disc golf world, Divergent Discs produces high quality plastics at a good price. The bargain prices and molds that cater to newer disc golfers means that beginners can get discs designed for their skill level, while still getting good quality. That will let people continue to throw those discs, even as their skill level climbs. Base plastics don’t always have a long life and will be discarded as they wear, and the thrower improves. The MaxGrip plastic used in the Divergent set feels great and is very durable. You’ll get the Kraken, Leviathan, and Narwal molds. Excellent for beginners.

Viking Discs Starter Set

3- Viking Discs Starter Set – This starter set is made out of base plastic, and contains three molds that are sure to make you a fan of Viking Discs. The Rune is a putt/approach disc that straight and excellent for beginners. The Axe is a midrange with a little bit fade. And the Ragnarok is a great driver that will deliver nice flights for less skilled hands.

Divergent Discs Glow Set

4 – Divergent Discs Glow Set – Want to take an already great brand of discs and make them better? Make them glow discs! The Divergent Discs Glow Set is slightly stiffer than the regular MaxGrip plastic, but still has the durability. With this set you have the option to play a round during the day, then break out the UV flashlight and play at night. This set includes the Kraken, Kapri, and Narwal molds.

XCom 3-Disc Premium

5 – XCom 3-Disc Premium – X-Com is another small, newer brand that people might not be familiar with, but that has amazing discs. Their premium starter set is perfect for beginners who still want to throw quality discs. Despite being a ‘premium plastic’, it is not too overstable for beginners. The flight of these molds are straight. They are also suitable for younger players. The molds in the set includes the Bennu, the Griffon, and the Helios.

Other starter set options

If you want to start with more than three discs, check out these multiple-disc sets. Some of these discs are more advanced than those designed for beginners.

Yikun

The 9-disc set from Yikun is a complete disc golf set that covers every situation on the course. The set includes base and premium plastics. It’s a great way to have a complete bag with just one set.

Yikun’s 7-disc set is similar to the 9-disc set, but with more base plastic discs. It is a great option that fills most of a disc golfer’s needs.

Viking Discs

Viking offers multiple-discs sets in different plastic types:

Ground/Storm plastic mix.

Divergent Discs Family Pack

This driver/putter pack gives the family enough discs to play together.

Divergent Discs 8-Disc Set with Bag

Inexpensive Disc Golf Sets

If cost is a deciding factor for your beginner set selection, check out these base plastic starter sets. They offer the discs you’ll need to get playing, and give you a starting point for your disc golf bag.

UPlay Disc Golf Set

Hero Disc Golf Starter Set

Discmania Active

Starter sets were made with beginners in mind. The discs included are lower speeds and usually lighter. Although the plastics are usually base and not as durable, that is not a bad thing for beginners. The one exception would be sets that include some plastic types. Champion plastic, and those similar to it, are typically more overstable and challenging to throw for beginners. And they take a long time to ‘break in’ due to their high durability. Once you develop the skills to handle more overstable flights, Champion plastic is great. Until then, stick to the base plastics.

Comment Below

Let us know about your experiences with Beginner Sets. Did you start with one? If so, which one and how did you like it? If not, what was your first disc? Did this blog help you decide on a set? If so, which one appeals to you? Let us know.

Check out our blog about the best disc golf practice baskets here.

Best Discs

New Disc Releases

August 15, 2022 Tara Martin Leave a comment

New Disc Releases – Aug. 1-13

Hooligan Discs Yeet – Drew Gibson

Drew Gibson now has his own signature Hooligan Disc… The Yeet

The Yeet is an overstable driver that is good for all players, from beginners to professionals. Hooligan Discs is an up and coming brand that works in partnership with Lonestar discs. So far, they have provided two top-quality discs for you to try. Stay up to date on the uprising of Hooligan because they are bound to make some great new molds.

Flight numbers: 12 | 5 | -1 | 3

Doomsday Discs

This is a new, up-and-coming disc golf company focused on making plastic to throw during the end of the world. Read our most recent blog post HERE about this company to learn more about their depressing lineup.

Bleak

This is Doomsday’s first putter, available in both premium and base plastic. It is straight-flying, and is perfect for off the tee or in the basket. It is an all around great putter, get it here.

Flight numbers: 3 | 4 | -1 | 1

Dystopia

This mold is great for all players, and has little turn/fade. It also comes in both a base and premium plastic for your preference. Get a Dystopia today, before it’s too late.

Flight numbers: 10 | 6 | -1 | 2

Infinite Discs

Slab

The Metal Flake Slabs have been out of stock for a while, so it feels good to have them back in stock! This run of Metal Flake Slabs is a stock stamp restock

The Slab is a workhorse and can come in handy in a lot of situations. Whether you want a disc that fights the wind or you are in need of a dependable fade, the Slab is for you! Keep a look out this week for the stock stamp edition of this popular mold (Wednesday Midnight California Time).

Flight numbers: 12 | 3 | 0 | 4

Maya

Do you need more distance when throwing? Then the Maya is for you! This is an understable bomber that is great for players of all types.

The Metal Flake Glow plastic was the one released this past week, and people are raving about the feel of this plastic and how well it holds the line they want it on.

Flight numbers: 11 | 5 | -3 | 1

Prodigy

H7

The H7 is a fast, very understable driver from Prodigy. The H7 will be a useful tool for a wide variety of players, but is not likely to be one of there top pros signature discs. It’s understability will help beginners and lower arm-speed players throw long turnover shots. Players with more power will achieve hyzerflip turnovers and long rollers.

Flight numbers: 9 | 2 | 1 | 1.9

Stryder

This next disc in Prodigy’s Collab series – the Stryder. The Prodigy Airborn Stryder is a controllable midrange developed for Cale Leiviska. Cale is a master of throwing the midrange, and now he has one to call his own. The Stryder can handle power and still maintain its point-and-shoot purpose. The Stryder goes straight with a touch of stability at the end.

Flight numbers: 6 |4 | 0 | 3

Clash Discs – The Cookie

The Cookie is a straight to stable fairway driver by Clash Discs. It offers a reliable flight path and can be easily manipulated to hold different angles. Clash Discs designed the disc to have just enough torque resistance so it is also a great choice for forehand players.

Flight numbers: 7 | 5 | 0 | 2

MVP/Axiom/Streamline

Tesla

The Tesla has a slight turn and reliable fade, but they also help players gain maximum distance. Some say it is the “big brother” of the Volt, another acclaimed fairway driver.

Flight numbers: 10 | 4 | -0.5 | 2

Jet – Proton SL

The Jet is an easy to throw understable distance driver for everyone. It works well as a big turnover disc, a hyzer-flip machine, or a straight flying driver; all depending on your arm speed. This is an understable compliment to the Trace, filling a much needed spot in your bag.

Flight numbers: 11 | 5 | -3 | 2

Insanity

The Insanity is Axiom’s first distance/control driver with a 20mm rim width. This disc is slightly less stable than the ultra popular MVP Inertia. If you’re looking for a straight flying GYRO driver with loads of attractive color options, you might as well try Insanity.

Flight numbers: 9 | 5 | -2 |1.5

Guru Discs – Glacier Line

Night Trooper

The Guru Night Trooper is an easy to throw fairway driver designed to give new disc golfers maximum distance and control.

Flight numbers: 7 | 6 | 0 |2

Mad Mission

The Guru Mad Mission is a stable flying approach midrange with a flat top and thin rim. This disc excels for short drives and consistent approach shots.

Flight numbers: 3 | 3 | 0 |2

Short Slacker

When thrown with high speeds the Short Slacker exhibits a significant amount of high speed turn for gliding S-Curve flight paths. New players will find that the Short Slacker has a significant amount of low speed end of flight fade.

Flight numbers: 11 | 5 | -1 |2

Most Important Factors for Selecting a Disc: Weight, Flight Ratings, Color

April 14, 2022 Ted Hegemann 2 comments

Choosing the Right Disc: What to Consider

When it comes to buying a disc, there are many factors we might consider in making our decision about which disc to choose. I think that most of us have established our hierarchy of disc needs that we weigh against the options available.

Flight numbers, for better or worse, and weight are definitely high on my list of requirements. There are many molds and weights that are outside my set parameters and I would never buy one of those discs. Plastic type is only slightly behind weight and flight in importance, and sometimes I have some flexibility in what I will buy – assuming that my top preference is not available.

Following those three factors, my hierarchy becomes less about needs, and more about desires.

Although I will throw any brand, I have a lot of Infinite molds in my bag because I like the molds and plastics. And I will also throw any color disc, but if I have a choice I will pick bright pink. Pink is the best color when you end up searching for a lost disc in bushes, trees, or long grass. (I love the look of a black disc, but HATE looking for a black disc in bushes!) Collectability, resale value, and the stamp are all important factors in certain circumstances. But, for a thrower those things are near the bottom of my list.

Factors in Choosing Discs

All of the factors mentioned above are what we asked about in the State of Disc Golf survey. This week we will look at what we consider important factors in disc selection. We will also look at a couple of subsets of survey participants and which factors are important for them. Let’s start with the three things that I place at the top of my preference list: flight numbers, weight, and plastic type.

We have established in previous survey blogs that although some of us buy discs to collect and not throw, most of us are going to play with the discs we buy. Since that is the reason we are buying most of our discs, the factors affecting the flight will be the most important things to consider. Here are the results of the survey question asking about the importance of those factors. We gave four options to select, ranging from ‘Don’t care at all’ to ‘Very important’.

Flight Numbers

Nearly 90% of disc golfers consider the flight numbers of the disc as an important factor. 59.1% consider flight numbers very important while 29.6% feel the flight numbers are semi-important.

Graph showing that 59% of disc golfers consider flight numbers very important.

Disc Weight

To more than 90% of disc golfers the weight of the disc is an important factor when selecting what to buy. While flight numbers are very important to the majority, weight is not rated “very important” quite as often.

Plastic Type

Disc golf is full of different plastic blends and varieties. Players develop preferences, and the plastic type of the disc is important to 96% of disc golfers. My guess is that the plastic preferences don’t variate much between premium plastics, but do vary substantially between a disc mold when comparing a base and a premium disc mold.

Our Disc Choices

It is interesting to see that more people chose plastic type as being Very Important than chose flight numbers or weight. Regardless, around 90% of us consider those three factors as being at least semi-important. I would expect at least that amount, and maybe more. Let’s look at a few more factors.

Less Important Disc Selection Factors

Beyond the flight of the disc we might consider its aesthetics when looking for a disc to buy. Finding a color that is appealing, or utilitarian, as well as a stamp that we like can be as difficult as finding the right flight numbers and weight. Even more so if we prefer a specific brand of disc. Here are the survey results showing the importance we place on those three factors.

Disc Color

The color of the disc is important, but more than 32% of disc golfers don’t consider the disc color as important while only 22.6% of disc golfers surveyed consider color to be very important.

Bar graph showing percentage of disc golfers that consider color important.

Disc Golf Brand

There are many brand loyalists in disc golf, especially for sponsored players. Over 70% of disc golfers consider the brand of the disc as an important factor when selecting their next frisbee to buy.

Disc Stamp & Stamp Artwork

While having a good looking disc with a nice stamp and artwork is awesome, just a little over half of surveyed disc golfers consider the stamp artwork as important with only 14.2% of disc golfers saying that the disc stamp is very important.

Graph showing percentage of disc golfers who consider the disc stamp artwork as important.

Once again, if we consider the percentage of us who think that those factors are semi-important to very important, we see that brand and color are hovering around the 70% mark. The stamp/ artwork factor drops off a bit from the other two categories, coming in near the 54% mark. All things considered, most of us would take an amazing, good-looking stamp over a boring stamp. But, little more than half of us make that a priority. Disc color and brand are a bit higher.

Buying Discs for Collectability and Resale Value

The final two factors to look at when buying a disc are beyond the throwers that most of us are looking for. Buying a disc for its collectability, or rarity, is something that few of us think about. Resale value is important to even fewer of us. While there are many in our sport who buy a rare disc to immediately flip it for a profit, most of us don’t make purchases for that reason. Even the one in five of us who buys a discs for its collectability does so without the thought of resale value about half of the time. Here are the numbers:

Percent of disc golfers that buy discs to collect Graph showing that most disc golfers do not care about the resale value of the discs they buy.

Skill Affecting Decisions

What factors are most important to beginners, intermediate players and professional disc golfers?

Jumping back to the top three factors that most of us consider when buying a disc (Weight, Flight Numbers, and Plastic Type), I wanted to see how our skill level impacts the importance we place on those characteristics. Let’s compare the numbers of beginner/intermediates with professionals. Here is the data:

Although both skill levels give the Weight of a disc nearly the same level of importance, there is a bit of difference when it comes to Flight Numbers and Plastic Type. Looking at what those two skill levels consider are the most important characteristics, we see that professionals care a significant amount more about plastic type than beginners. And beginners care about the same amount more than pros do about Flight Numbers.

Our Flight Rating System

Ahhh, flight numbers. Many disparaging remarks have been made about our current 4-number flight rating system. As flawed as it may be, many of us still rely on it for information about a particular mold. As people first get into disc golf they learn about the flight rating we use, and rely on it heavily. That would explain the higher number of beginners who value the Flight Numbers.

As people get more experience in the sport, I suspect they rely on other methods of determining which disc will be useful to them. Talking to other experienced players, and seeing what other people on their level are throwing would be more accurate to them than the flight numbers. They likely also develop more of a feel for what they want to throw, which would explain the higher value placed on the Plastic Type by pros over less experienced players.

Collectors – How Many Discs do They Buy

One other subset of the general population that I wanted to look as is the avid collectors. For this blog we will look at the 344 people who said they bought more than 40 discs that they will collect and not throw. I wanted to see what value they place on Stamp/Artwork and Resale Value. Let’s see what the survey says:

Disc golf collectors care about disc art graph Graph showing importance of resale value

It’s not surprising to see a higher percentage of people who collect discs make Stamps and Resale Value a higher priority. Speaking from experience, there are some discs I want to add to my collection regardless of the stamp. Other discs I want exclusively because of the stamp. The Nicola Tesla stamp is a good example of that. Plus, I think that most of us like the idea of having discs in our collection that enough people want that gives us the option of selling it down the road for a tidy sum. That’s just a little more of a priority for collectors.

Comment Below

Comment below and let us know which of these survey results surprised you the most, and which was completely expected. Then check back next week for more survey results!

Best Distance Driver For 2022

February 9, 2022 Ted Hegemann 282 comments

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!

Best Discs

Best Fairway Driver of 2022

February 3, 2022 Ted Hegemann 66 comments

Best Fairway Driver of 2022

To find the best Fairway Driver of 2022, we looked at the sales date and mold ratings to determine which discs you are buying the most, and which ones you rate the highest. Then we reached out to you to have you vote for the mold that you throw the most. Combining all of that data we can now announce the Best Fairway Driver of 2022! Here are the top molds:

	Disc	Sales	Rating	Fan Vote	Total
1	Innova Leopard	3	4	2	9
2	Innova Firebird	1	9	3	13
3	Innova Teebird	2	14	1	17
4	Innova Thunderbird	6	11	4	21
5	Innova Leopard3	7	8	7	22

Although Innova is the consistent leader in disc golf sales, we didn’t expect a clean sweep of the top spots in the category. The fan voting really cinched it for several of the molds. The results of the fan voting is listed near the end of this blog. For now, let’s take a closer look at the top molds.

Although I would be tempted to call the top three molds, ‘old-school molds’, if I did, I would immediately get corrected by someone who has been playing disc golf from its beginning, who would remember when the Leopard, Firebird, and Teebird were the newest kid on the block. Those three molds were released in 1999, 2000, and 1999 respectively. They started selling when there were far fewer choices than we have now, at a time when ‘e-commerce’ wasn’t the popular way to shop for disc golf discs. Although that might have been a giant assist in getting the molds off the ground, they have since proven themselves as useful discs in our sport.

Innova Leopard – The flight of this popular disc is such that it can be used by a wide variety of arm speeds. The Leopard is a commonly found in starter sets because it can be thrown rather easily by someone who lacks the proper form for throwing faster molds. It is also useful for people with more experience, who will gravitate to heavier discs and more stable plastics. The Innova Leopard looks like it will be a staple in disc golf for a long time.

Innova Firebird – Even for newer disc golfers, the overstability of the Firebird can be tamed enough to use this utility disc in a variety of situations. Excellent for flick shots and headwinds, it can be flexed with full confidence that it will come out of the anhyzer and finish strong. Need to throw an must-have hyzer? Count on the Firebird to deliver. Its lower speed and variety of plastics makes it easy to see why the Firebird is consistently among the top discs.

Innova Teebird – While more overstable and a little faster than the Leopard, the Teebird can still find a home in the bag of players at a variety of skill levels. It is commonly used to shape shots in tight fairways, and is a reliable disc in medium-range shots. Like the Leopard, it can also be seen in the hands of newer players, typically in DX plastic. Even at its low speed the Teebird can be thrown into the wind with confidence.

Fairway Drivers

Moving up in speed on our list of best discs of 2022 we find the fairway driver. The fairway driver, or ‘control’ driver, fills the gap between the versatile midrange and the higher speed distance driver. Fairway drivers are easier to throw than distance drivers for a couple of reasons. First, their lower speed means that you don’t have to generate as much arm speed to be able to get the disc to fly like it should. That makes the disc more useful for newer disc golfers, as well as more experienced golfers that can shape the disc more than newer players. And second, their slightly smaller rim diameter means they are easier to throw for people with smaller hands. (The smaller rim, by definition, means that disc has a lower speed).

Using the common 4-number flight rating, the fairway drive has a speed rating that falls from speed 6 to 9. Some manufactures list speed 9 discs as distance or ‘high-speed’ drivers. But enough list speed 9 as fairway drivers, so that’s what we will go with for this blog post.

Like any other disc type, fairway drivers come in a variety of stabilities, from very overstable discs to molds with a lot of turn. Checking out the molds in the top 20, below, reveals a wide variety of flight characteristics, giving us a ton of different flights within on disc type. Here are the top 20 discs based on sales:

2022 Sales rank	Disc Mold	Percent of Sales
1	Innova Firebird	5.2%
2	Innova Teebird	4.7%
3	Innova Leopard	4.3%
4	Infinite Discs Exodus	3.9%
5	Innova Valkyrie	3.8%
6	Innova Thunderbird	3.5%
7	Innova Leopard3	3.4%
8	Infinite Discs Sphinx	3.1%
9	Infinite Discs Scepter	3.1%
10	Thought Space Athletics Mantra	3.1%
11	Discraft Undertaker	2.9%
12	Innova Roadrunner	2.5%
13	Discraft Heat	2.4%
14	Infinite Discs Centurion	2.2%
15	Discraft Raptor	2.1%
16	Innova Sidewinder	2.0%
17	Discraft Passion	1.9%
18	Innova TeeBird3	1.8%
19	Thought Space Athletics Votum	1.7%
20	Discraft Anax	1.7%

Best of the Best

Innova is the king of the top 20, holding nearly half of the top 20 spots, and a majority of all fairway drivers sold. That’s not surprising, given that Innova has been around for a long time and offers more fairway driver options than some smaller companies have molds in total. Discraft has a fourth of the top 20. Their chunk combined with Innova’s heaping pile doesn’t leave a lot of spots for other brands. Infinite Discs and Thought Space Athletics still managed to land in the top 20, with Infinite nearly matching Discraft with the number of molds represented. In fact, even though Infinite has one few mold, their total sales exceeds that of Discraft. Here is the percentage of sales of the top 20 molds:

Most Molds Sold

Looking at how many fairway drivers each brand offers, we see several that offer quite a few molds, but still didn’t end up in the top 20 for percentage of sales. That goes to show you how popular the top 20 brands really are. Here are the top 20 brands based on the number of different molds sold:

Best Rated Fairway Discs

Turning our focus from the sales records, we look at how our customers feel about certain molds once they try them out and review them. We’ll check out the top 20 molds in sales, and compare their customer rating. Topping the list are three molds from Infinite Discs. The Sphinx, Scepter, and Centurion hold the top three spots, and TSA’s Mantra was the fourth-highest rated mold. Rounding out the list at number 20 is the relatively new fairway driver from Discraft, the Passion. Here are the top 20 molds and their average rating:

Fan Vote

We asked you to tell us about your favorite fairway driver. Below are the top 20. Innova certainly dominated the polls! Over half of the top 20 molds belonged to them. Infinite and Latitude 64 were tied in distant second with three molds. In addition to the top molds, there were a lot of discs that didn’t make the cut, but still received some love from the fans. There were also votes for molds from Lone Star, Millennium, MVP, Gateway, Legacy, Streamline, and Axiom. Here’s are examples of feedback about some of those mentioned:

Joshua – “I’d have to say the Lone Star Disc’s Mad Cat! That thing is so reliable and glides a ton!“

Adam – “I love the Axiom Clash. It’s a perfect straight flying control driver that has the stability to resist any power, but has a gentle reliable fade at the end. Great for both forehand and backhand, it is perfect for any skill level.“

Here are the top 20:

1	Innova Teebird
2	Innova Leopard
3	Innova Firebird
4	Latitude 64 River
5	Innova Thunderbird
6	Infinite Discs Centurion
7	Infinite Discs Sphinx
8	Latitude 64 Explorer
9	TSA Mantra
10	Infinite Discs Exodus
11	Innova Sidewinder
12	Innova Leopard3
13	Innova TL3
14	Innova Valkyrie
15	Latitude 64 Diamond
16	Innova Roadrunner
17	Innova Teebird3
18	Discraft Undertaker
19	Discmania Essence
20	Innova Eagle

We asked you to tell us about your favorite fairway drivers and you responded! We randomly selected one commenter to win a $50 gift card. And that winner is:

Brad H. Congrats! The card will be added to your account.

We Still Want Your Feedback!

Post below and tell us about your go-to fairway driver. Is there one that you throw every round? Tell those looking for the best fairway driver why you like YOURS!

Best Discs

Best Midrange Disc Golf Discs for 2022

January 25, 2022 Ted Hegemann 80 comments

The Best Midrange For 2022

	Fan Vote	Sales Rank	Rating	Overall
Discraft Buzzz	1	1	5	2.3
Infinite Discs Chariot	2	3	3	2.7
Axiom Hex	3	8	1	4.0
Innova Mako3	6	2	9	5.7
Infinite Discs Anubis	12	4	8	8.0
Innova Roc3	4	6	14	8.0

Taking first place in two of the three categories used to select the best midrange is the popular Discraft Buzzz! This perennial winner continues to dominate the category, and it is easy so see why. The Buzzz feels comfortable in your hand and has a nice, straight flight that can be utilized by beginners and experts alike. If you don’t have one in your bag, click the link in the chart above to see what the Buzzz is about!

Infinite Discs and Innova both had two molds represented in the top 6, with the Chariot within striking distance of Buzzz. Axiom also made waves with their new mold, the Hex. Not even a year old, the Hex took the top rated spot and with another year of sales might just make a bid for number one. Click the links above to check out the other molds on the list.

Best Disc Golf Midrange Discs

Like putters, midrange discs are known for their versatility and utility. They come in a variety of stabilities, rim sizes and shapes. They can easily be used as drivers off the tee pad, and just as readily be used to approach a basket. The ease of shaping their flight combined with their softer landing compared to a higher speed disc increases the number of shots that you might feel the need to pull out a midrange. Which midrange are we reaching for the most often?

Let’s take a look at its popularity for the past year. New molds always take a small chunk of the market share as people try some of the new molds being released. Even so, there is no other disc near the level of the Buzzz. Here are the numbers for the past year:

Top Five All-Time Sales

Not only are the Buzz sales for last year nearly double the numbers of the second most popular disc, the Mako3, the gap between first and second place for sales since Infinite began is even more pronounced. Here are the top-selling midrange molds since 2012, when Infinite began:

The Buzzz Family

As you can see, the Buzzz just dominates the competition. It has a straight flight that is easily shaped, and the Buzzz feels amazing in the hand. It comes in a variety of plastics, too, so you can choose the one with the feel and stability that is right for you. One thing to point out with those high number for the Buzzz is that the percentage does NOT include the Buzzz’s siblings, the Buzzz OS, Buzzz SS, and the Buzzz GT. If you add those molds to the numbers, the Buzzz family sales would be over 17% of all midrange discs sold at Infinite last year!

Top Rated Midrange Discs

Another factor we use in determining the best midrange disc is the customer rating found on our website in the review section of a disc. That tells us what you think about a disc once you buy and throw it. Newer molds don’t have a lot of reviews, so we only took molds that had at least 15 reviews. Here are the top rated molds:

Best Midrange Discs For Beginners

While the midrange disc is an amazing utility disc that can be shaped, floated, used for hard right or left corner shots, or accurate shorter shots, certain molds can still be bricks in the hands of newer players. Without the skill to throw overstable midrange discs, beginners will find little use for many of the discs in the previous lists. With that in mind, let’s looks at some of the discs that are manageable for those in the Recreation or Novice divisions.

Top Midrange Discs for New Disc Golfers
1	Kon Tiki
2	Pathfinder
3	Meteor
4	Sol
5	Buzzz SS

Newby versus OG

As we see more new companies and molds enter the market, we will see them chipping away at market previously held by molds we have been playing with for years. Sometimes those molds will succeed in the short term due to some great marketing. Even molds that have been around longer than some of us have been playing can receive a boost when a top-tier pro starts throwing that mold. Ultimately, the hype will fade and the cream will rise to the top, and we will see the most popular molds more often in the future. Let’s take a look at some of the previous years’ top molds to see which names are still making the list.

Top 10 Midrange Discs by Year Comparison

2018	2020	2022
Discraft Buzzz	Discraft Buzzz	Discraft Buzzz
Discraft Comet	Innova Mako3	Innova Mako3
Dynamic Discs Emac Truth	Innova Roc	Infinite Discs Chariot
Innova Gator	Innova Roc3	Infinite Discs Anubis
Dynamic Discs Justice	Discraft Comet	Discraft Buzzz GT
Prodigy M4	Discraft Buzzz SS	Innova Roc3
Innova Mako3	Discraft Malta	Innova Roc
Discmania MD3	Dynamic Discs EMac Truth	Axiom Hex
Hyzerbomb Mortar	Discraft Buzzz OS	Infinite Discs Kon Tiki
Innova Roc	Discraft Meteor	Elevation Disc Golf Interceptor

Fan Vote

We asked you to vote for your choice of the best midrange disc, and you responded! We’ve added up your responses and have posted them below. This year, 30 different molds were selected by you as your choice for #1. Here are the top molds and the percentage of votes:

1	Discraft Buzzz	18.5%
2	Infinite Discs Chariot	10.8%
3	Axiom Hex	10.8%
4	Innova Roc3	6.2%
5	Dynamic Discs EMac Truth	6.2%
6	Innova Mako3	4.6%
7	Discmania MD3	3.1%
8	Discmania Origin	3.1%
9	MVP Reactor	3.1%
10	Innova Roc	3.1%

Some of the comments about the Buzzz:

Kjell R – “By far the best mid I’ve ever thrown.”

Brian J – “Buzzz Buzzz Buzzz”

Kit H – “The Buzzz holds the line so reliably. I bet the Chariot will keep gaining, though! Such a nice disc.”

We also randomly selected a winner for the $50 gift card and Kit H (see the comment above) was chosen as our winner. Congrats, and thanks for commenting!

Next we will look at the best disc golf brands.

We Want Your Feedback!

Once again we’ve looked at the sales numbers and the ratings of the top midrange discs on the market, now we need to hear from you. Post below and let us know your choice for the best midrange.

Best Discs

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