Tag: Approach Shots

Introduction – Dallin Blanchard & His Signature Tomb

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Dallin Blanchard is one of our top tier sponsored players, he doesn’t have the opportunity to tour as much as he would like, so many people aren’t aware of who he is. And with the recent release of his signature tomb, we thought it would be a great opportunity to introduce him through a little Q&A post. He is a phenomenal player, ranked 12th in the world, per the latest PDGA ranking update. He lives in Idaho, has a wife and four kids, and works full time. Without further ado, read more about Dallin, and give him some support by buying his signature Tomb which is now available on InfiniteDiscs.com.

How did you learn about disc golf?

My dad, brothers and I used to play “frisbee golf” while growing up. We would play with ultimate frisbees while on camping trips and in the backyard. We didn’t know there were actual baskets and that this was an actual sport so we would use trees and other obstacles as our targets. My oldest brother picked up disc golf while at PA school in Las Vegas. He told me about it and I was immediately hooked.

How long have you been playing disc golf?

I started playing disc golf in the spring of 2013 which makes it close to 8 years. I started playing casually while living in Washington DC and then got more serious when I moved back to Idaho in the summer of 2014. I played my first tournament in 2014 in the Intermediate division. In 2015, I decided I wanted to be a pro, so I played my first Open tournament and took 5th. Since then, I have only played in the Open division with the exception of the 2016 Memorial Championship where I played Advanced and tied for 5th place.

Within the disc golf world, who do you look up to?

Paul Mcbeth because he is the best and I want to be the best and beat the best. I still have a ways to go though… Garrett Gurthie because of his amazing skills with the disc and amazing attitude on and off the course. He is very easy to root for! I look up to several other players but these 2 guys stick out the most.

What’s your favorite Driver – why?

My favorite backhand long distance driver is the Star Destroyer. The Destroyers that are in my bag both give me max distance with a very consistent turn at the beginning of the flight and left fade at the end of the flight. My favorite forehand driver is the Infinite Discs Slab. I love that I can throw this disc as hard as I want and will always know that it will finish to the right for me. Both drivers are very consistent and have given me lots of birdies!

What’s the best aspect of disc golf? – ie) Long drives, hitting gaps, long putts, meeting people or something else?

While all the things you mentioned are really good things about disc golf, my favorite aspect is the competition. I grew up with 5 boys in my family and pretty much all we did growing up was play sports and compete against each other in the backyard. I love competing against myself and being able to push myself to be the best. I also enjoy competing against better players than myself because it gives me a drive to figure out how to get to their level.

What is your favorite course, and what made it so?

I have 2 favorite courses. My first favorite is Freeman Park in Idaho Falls, Idaho. The reason this is my favorite is because this is the course that I “grew up” on. It is a beautiful well maintained park with big mature trees and grass fairways. There is a small creek that runs through about 5 holes of the course. This course has everything needed to make an elite disc golf player. My second favorite is Camp Sekani in Spokane Washington. This was one of the first wooded courses I played. I love the big tall pine trees and wooded fairways that require you to shape your shot to get into birdie position. I am a fan of all types of courses whether it is in the park or in the woods.

What brand is your favorite?

I currently throw discs from the Innova, Infinite, and Discmania line up. My favorite brand has always been Innova because that is where it all began for me.

Other than disc golf, what are some of your hobbies?

As mentioned above, I am a sports fanatic and played basketball, baseball and football growing up and through high school. I love riding bikes around our neighborhood with my wife and 4 kids. I enjoy everything about the outdoors and love camping and hiking with my wife and kids. I also do a little hunting and fishing each year as well. Also, another favorite hobby of mine is cooking food on my Green Mountain Grill smoker.

Will we see you tour more in the future?

Having a full time job, a wife, and 4 kids definitely makes it very difficult for me to be on the typical disc golf tour. My plans for 2021 are to play in 2 pro tour events, Worlds, qualify and play USDGC, and play several A tiers and B tiers in the Idaho, Utah, Montana, and Washington areas. As disc golf continues to grow and sponsorships continue to increase, I definitely hope there are opportunities for me to tour more in the coming years.

Thank you Dallin for giving us the time to answer these few questions. Keep an eye out for him this upcoming year, as he has plans to play in two pro tour events among other events. You can even look him up on social media, he has had multiple shout-outs there. Or follow him on Instagram: dallin_blanchard. If you like the tomb, you should check out his Concrete Signature Tomb, it is a great looking disc.

Focus Friday – Scarab

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This week’s Focus Friday is for the Infinite Discs Scarab. It is a beaded putter with a shallow rim and a decent amount of glide.

If you have yet to throw this disc, now is a great time to try it out. From now until the end of Monday, you can buy it with 20% off by using the promo code: FOCUSSCARAB.

What I have enjoyed about the scarab is its versatility. Spin, push, and turbo putting with this is easy. Driving with this disc is really consistent as well. I have found that the product description is pretty dead on for this disc:

The Scarab is a beaded putter that has a similar rim configuration to the Infinite Discs Myth, but with a different flight plate that provides a longer glide for longer putts and approaches. If you love throwing putters for distance, or you’re seeking pinpoint accuracy with your putting game, the Scarab will earn a spot in your disc bag.

We initially designed this disc for Joel Freeman who then named it the Scarab. You can get his signature Scarab here . Also, if you want to learn more about him, watch the video below.

Head on over to our site and pick one up this weekend. Use the discount code FOCUSSCARAB and you’ll get 20% off. It’s a great time to buy this disc.

Note: After placing your discs in the shopping cart and before checking out, click on the “Discount Code” box under the shopping cart and enter that code. Then proceed to checkout.

What are your thoughts on the Infinite Discs Scarab?

Best Disc Golf Approach Discs

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The Christmas Holiday is fast “approach”-ing! Seems like a great time to talk about the best disc golf approach discs! What is an approach disc? for our purposes today, we are going to be talking about the discs you would use inside of your personal driving range when you are trying to set up a nice and easy putt to finish off a hole out on the course.

Before we list our nominees for The Infinite Discs Best Disc Golf Disc: Approach Disc, let’s again review what we are looking for when making our selection. Our two key words are popularity and utility. We want to choose a popular approach disc that is utilized and can be utilized in a variety of situations out on the course. We want this disc to be good for short approach shots as well as a driving putter for short disc golf holes. We also are not limiting these discs that are just categorized in the more broad putt and approach classification of discs, but they can be from any of the four traditional classifications.

That being said, we do not track this subcategory in our sales lists, so we will first review the chart we had on last week’s post, which is the best selling Putt and Approach discs of 2018 so far:

Top sellers of 2018:

  1. Discmania P2
  2. Innova Aviar
  3. Dynamic Discs Judge
  4. Westside Harp
  5. Dynamic Discs Warden
  6. Axiom Envy
  7. Gateway Wizard
  8. Innova Nova
  9. Innova Sonic
  10. Latitude 64 Pure

Now, here are our nominees!

Prodigy A2

Prodigy Disc recognized the difference between putters and approach discs a few years ago with the release of their “A” series of discs. all four discs in the series have been popular, but the Prodigy A2 has been the best seller this year, and it offers a stability that makes it very workable for disc golfers. It is an overstable disc with a more shallow molding that is comfortable in the hand. If you don’t put enough power behind it, it can be a bit of a meathook, but when thrown hard with a smooth release the A2 will hold straight and offer a reliable fade at the end.

Axiom Envy

The Axiom Envy was included in our nominees for best putter, and this overstable putter works great for those looking for a nice overstable approach disc that they can also use for putting. It has a nice flat top and a rim that fits comfortably in the hand for both backhand and forehand throws. The Envy is now available in a large variety of Axiom‘s plastic blends as well.

Innova Firebird

The Innova Firebird is the only driver we are nominating as an approach disc as it is a commonly used disc especially for forehand approach shots. The Firebird is an overstable disc that is especially popular for those who have a hard time gripping midranges or putters with a forehand grip. It is also a great option for approach shots in a stiff wind.

Innova Gator

The Innova Gator is definitely one of the staples of this category. It was nominated in our midrange awards a few weeks ago, but it is mostly used as a true approach disc. The Gator is an overstable disc that features a flat top (sometimes :)) and a noticeable bead along the bottom of the disc. It is a disc that is great in the wind and offers a little more distance than some of the putters we have nominated as well.

Westside Harp

The Westside Harp has become one of the most popular discs as Ricky Wysocki has thrown it all over his tour over the last few years. With Latitude 64 announcing that Wysocki will no longer be a part of their sponsorship team, it will be interesting to see if he will still throw the Harp. But either way, the Westside Harp is a fantastic overstable approach disc that has also become a very popular forehand disc. It is available in several plastic blends that offer slight variations in stability and flight that help to make the Harp one of the best approach discs on the market.

Dynamic Discs Justice

Another disc that we nominated in the midrange category, the Dynamic Discs Justice is a beefy overstable disc that is often used as an approach disc. It is great for making an approach when you need to get around a sharp corner. It also holds up in stiff winds. Like I said in the midrange article, pretty much nothing is going to make the Justice turn over in flight.

Hyzerbomb Mortar

The Hyzerbomb Mortar was also nominated in the midrange discs, but it is primarily used as an approach disc. The mold is just like an Innova Gator but it has a beadless rim. This makes it more friendly to forehand throws, but it still has a strong overstable flight that is workable from all over the disc golf course.

Innova Nova

The Innova Nova is one of only two Innova molds that features an overmold design, and it has grown into one of the most popular discs in their lineup. The Nova is not very popular as a putting putter, but is has one of the most unique flights in the disc golf world. It also has a unique mold and shape that is one of the tallest discs. It is a truly stable disc in that it is very straight with almost no fade at all at the end. It is a bit touchy and can be turned over in the wind or if thrown too hard. But when thrown correctly, it flies so straight and reliable.

Discmania P2

The Discmania P2 was also nominated in our putter category and is currently the best selling putt and approach disc on the market. I mentioned last week that Discmania has done a great job of differentiating be benefits of each plastic type, and that is especially applicable to those who use the P2 as an approach disc. The S-Line P2 is known as the most overstable P2 and the D-Line is one of the more understable versions. Both plastic blends are popular driving putters that can serve different purposes for your approach game.

Best Approach Disc of 2018: WESTSIDE HARP

In this category we nominated putters and midranges ranging from stable to very overstable, and the Westside Harp is the perfect middle ground of all of them. It is an overstable putt and approach disc that disc golfers fall in love with after just a few throws. The Harp‘s flat profile and smooth rim makes it a great selection for forehand and backhand throws. It has enough stability to fight some wind and provide a predictable fade, but it isn’t a meathook that is going to be too much for newer throwers to handle. The Westside Harp is a great addition to any disc golfer’s arsenal, and is our choice for the best approach disc on the market.

For more information, check out the top selling disc golf approach discs here. 

What are your favorite approach discs?

Which approach disc do you think is the best? Share your opinion by commenting below and telling us which disc you think is the best approach disc in the world and why!

Ricky Wysocki Upshot Tips

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Having a good upshot game can reduce putting stress and shave strokes off your round. In this clinic, Professional disc golfer Ricky Wysocki provides a few tips to help you improve your upshots.

Ricky says that these tips are pretty basic, but that it’s the basics that people fail to execute that causes most of the problems. Here are four of his tips for more accurate consistent approach shots:

1. Line up properly. Line your shoulders up with your feet so that all body parts are going the same direction.
2. Keep your legs in an athletic position, pointing where you want to throw about shoulder length apart.
3. Lock your wrist in position and keep it there the entire time. (Whether you’re throwing a hyzer, anhyzer, or tomahawk throw)
4. Eliminate the variables so that your disc only has one thing to do — go in the right direction.

Approach Shot Tips by Paul Ulibarri

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We recently hosted a pro clinic with Paul Ulibarri, Will Shusterick and Ricky Wysocki. These are three of the top disc golfers in the world, and members of Team Prodigy.

Paul Ulibarri’s clinic focused on tips to help you improve your short game approach shots. According to Paul, the most underrated part of the disc golf game is getting up and down from 100 feet. He has four basic tips to improve your control and accuracy on approach shots.

1. Get in an athletic position with your soldiers square to the target.
2. Keep your eye on the target.
3. Get the nose of the disc up. Having the nose of the disc facing upward will help prevent you from overshooting the basket. To make sure the nose of the disc stays up, Paul recommends keeping your wrist above your elbow.
4. Follow through with your shot.

Watch the full clinic video, produced by Cassidy Houdeshel right here.