We’d like to thank the disc golf manufacturers that contributed prizes to the State of Disc Golf 2018 Survey. If you haven’t had a chance to take the survey yet, please do so. That way you can share your voice about the game of disc golf and quality yourself for the prize drawings at the completion of the survey. You can go directly to the survey HERE.
These are the prize contributors that have helped Infinite Discs to promote the survey:
DISCMANIA provided a stack of new GLOW C-LINE FD3 discs as prizes for several survey participants.
PRODIGY DISC has provided a variety of Prodigy branded accessories for winning survey participants.
GATEWAY DISC SPORTS has provided a variety of discs as prizes for winning survey participants.
WHO WINS?
Some of the prizes provided will be given away while the survey is in progress, encouraging more participation from the disc golf community. FOLLOW INFINITE DISCS ON FACEBOOK for your best chance to win those prizes as the survey continues.
After the 2018 survey is complete and it is closed, we will do a random drawing of the participants to select the winners for the remaining prizes. We contact the winners through email, so be sure to include a valid email in the survey in case you win one of the prizes.
Thanks for participating in the survey, and thanks to the quality disc golf brands for providing excellent prize support!
A Few of the Excellent Prizes Being Given Away During the Survey
When it comes to disc golf brand awareness, Innova remains king. While Dynamic Discs and Latitude 64 have taken great strides to increase their popularity and reputation, far more disc golfers are aware of Innova than any other brand.
This graph shows a break down of the overall awareness of brands included in the survey by combining all categories other than the “not aware of”.
While more disc golfers are aware of the long established “Discraft Brand” when it comes to “regularly follow”, Dynamic Discs and Latitude 64 rank higher. Westside Discs ranks #8 for brand awareness, but #5 for “regularly follow.”
It’s interesting to see that while the gap isn’t very big in awareness between the companies, when it comes to “regularly follow” there is a large gap between Innova and everybody else. Discmania, MVP, and Prodigy who rank 6th – 8th were only “regularly followed” by about 15% of the surveyed disc golfers.
Favorite Brands
At Infinite Discs we are able to get a good feeling for which brands are favorable by what sells. It’s also interesting to see which brands people find favorable based on a survey. The results are pretty similar and not surprisingly, Innova is the most favorite brand according to the 2017 State of Disc Golf Survey. The graph between “Favorite Brands” and “Regularly Follow are pretty similar.
It’s interesting to note that the trend over the last few years made it appear as if Dynamic Discs and the Trilogy brand might overtake Innova as most popular, but 2016 saw a significant step back from the up and comers. Through 2017, we are seeing a trend with Innova widening the gap.
I Bag ‘Em
While 75% of those surveyed include Innova among their favorite brands, the number of players that throw at least one Innova Disc is even higher! 83% of surveyed disc golfers carry at least one Innova Disc in their bag. This is 24% higher than second place Discraft where 59% of surveyed disc golfers bag their discs.
An interesting relationship occurs here between “bagged discs” and popularity in that Discraft doesn’t rank nearly as high in terms as popularity as the Trilogy Brands, yet a higher percentage of disc golfers actually throw their discs. This could say something about the quality of Discraft discs and the relationship to their limited marketing efforts.
Limited to an Exclusive Manufacturer
Likely a result of Innova’s dominance in terms of recognition and the number of people that own their discs, when the question “If you could throw discs made by only one manufacturer?” was asked, nearly half (45.5%) of survey respondents said they would choose Innova. One third (32.6%) chose the Swedish manufactured trilogy discs. Only a very small percentage of disc golfers said they would choose any other manufacturer if they had to exclusively throw only that brands discs. Discraft came in third at 7.8% followed by MVP at 6.5% and Prodigy in a distant fifth at 2.7%.
Here at Infinite Discs, we’re always excited to discover new disc makers, especially when they are quality companies from outside the USA. Of course, we love the home-grown American companies too, but there is something a little bit exotic about importing some really cool discs from across the ocean.
In August we were able to bring in our first batch of discs from RPM Discs, a great disc golf company from New Zealand. At first inspection, the discs looked absolutely beautiful right out of the box, with a quality appearance to the plastic that is instantly eye-catching, embellished with some great, Maori flavored stamps. There was a nice mix of attractive, metallic plastics, and softer, pastel plastics. They all felt great, with the perfect mix of durability and “grippy” touch. Let’s take a look at the three plastic types present by RPM Discs.
Strata plastic is the “base plastic” blend. It is the least expensive and the softest. It still doesn’t feel “cheap” as it has a comfortable feel and has a little shine to it. It doesn’t seem as destructible as some of the soft plastics out there. Of course, the TUI putter would be the disc that most players would want in base plastic, since putters are most often sold in softer plastic types.
There are two premium plastic types, and both are priced the same. The difference is mostly in the appearance, with the Cosmic Plastic being more translucent (see-through) and the Atomic Plastic being more creamy and opaque.
You could think of Cosmic as being similar to Champion, Opto, VIP, or Elite Z. The Atomic could be compared more to Gold Line, Tournament, Star, or Titanium. However, I would emphasize that the actual feel of the plastic is not very different between the two. At first touch, they seem interchangeable when it comes to the feel of the plastic. It’s more the appearance that makes the difference.
RPM Discs has some very nice plastics, and you will by no means feel cheated when paying for either a base or premium plastic because you know when you grip it that you’ve purchased a solid, quality product.
Next, let’s take a look at the discs that make up the introductory core of the RPM Discs operation.
First of all, the putter is called the TUI and it has a unique profile which feels more like a mid-range disc when you first pick it up. The profile is pretty low, meaning that the inside pocket is not deep and the rim edges are not tall. In that way, it almost feels more like a driving putter, and in quick field tests, we found that it can actually fly well when thrown with a little steam, especially for anhyzer turns. It flies straight for close-range shots, which is what you’d want in a putter. It has a bead on the rim edge, so the closest comparison would probably be to a beaded version of a Dart.
Next up, there is the PIWAKAWAKA(sorry, no pronunciation guide– just go with your heart). It is a mid-range disc that flies as straight as an arrow. It can even take some heat and not flip over too dramatically. It is not quite as chunky as the extremely popular Buzzz, but the flight is similar. The rim is a bit more dainty than some of the mid-range discs out there, which can make it more comfortable for smaller hands. It is certainly a finesse disc, designed for getting your disc predictably from point A to point B when you don’t have to worry about a winding path. All in all, it is a solid mid-range disc and won’t disappoint when it comes to short-range fairway needs.
Of course, every disc producer needs a beginner-friendly, easy-to-throw fairway driver, and that is where the TANIWHA comes into play. It’s still rated as a speed 10, which lands it more into the “distance driver” category for most players, but it is pitched as the “control driver” of the bunch. It would be comparable to a Valkyrie as far as beginner-friendly drivers go. It is rated as 10, 5, -2, 2.
Then there is the bomber driver for the more powerful arms, and that is the KAHU. The Kahu is an overstable, speed 13 distance driver. It is RPM’s equivalent of the Innova Destroyer, or the Discmania DDx, or the Discraft Force, or the Legacy Outlaw. Break out the big guns when you grab this disc and let it fly. It has a low profile and a relatively sharp edge, so it slices through the air very well. I haven’t seen much of a “dome top” on the Kahu discs that came in our shipment. A lot of big throwers like that flat profile.
I admire the fact that RPM Discs didn’t feel complete without including a “super class” disc. A lot of disc makers ignore the appeal of oversized discs and the fun new angle that they can bring to the game. Of course, the roots of disc golf are found in what we now call “super class” discs with a larger diameter and slower speed. We’ve traded in that high-glide, controlled accuracy for sexy, high-speed, small discs. RPM adds to the super class family with the TEMOKO. This is a larger disc that is PDGA approved for use in disc golf, but could just as easily be used in games of catch-and-throw. It is not as large as Ultimate discs. It is closer to an Innova Zephyr. It’s a fun disc and a unique part of the RPM Discs arsenal.
Give RPM Discs a try! Find a spot in your bag for some exotic plastic from New Zealand and you won’t regret it!
INNOVA CHAMPION DISCS has contributed a Super Heropack, a Heropack, and some Innova hats as prizes for winning survey participants.
DYNAMIC DISCS has contributed two Ranger H2O backpacks as prizes.
In August we were able to bring in our first batch of discs from