Almost every player I talk to about disc speed immediately thinks of maximum driver distance. "How far can you throw" is a common question in disc golf. ?"That's not surprising when we see Simon Lizotte park a 726 ft Par 4 in the Glass Blown Open for a tap-in eagle.
Throwing a disc over 500 feet takes some serious disc speed and we all wish we could do it.
However, there's a big problem with this kind of thinking because disc speed and arm speed is shaped too much by "Max Distance". There is no doubt that on certain courses or holes Max Distance is a huge advantage, but there is so much more to disc and arm speed than Max Distance. When was the last time someone posted on Udisc 300ft low ceiling mid-range
It's one reason many players waste valuable time when doing field work.
but we often go to a much of maximum driving distance is affected by the overall mechanics and timing of your throwing motion combined with your disc selection. How is your footwork, is your X-Step too long, too short, or even too fast? Do you reach the peak of your reachback at the same time your brace foot plants, when do your hips open, are you in balance? All these factors impact max distance and this information is important and you do need to have an idea how far you can throw a disc because it tells you how stable a disc you should be throwing when you throw as hard as you can.
But ... and it's a big but...Disc Speed & Arm Speed is so much more than maximum driver distance.
The bigger question is what's your arm speed when you have to throw a tee shot through a tight line between trees or when you have to stay behind your marker on a 250-300 ft shot from the fairway.
These "control power" shots are mainly arm speed pulls and they make up a huge number of shots on most courses.
It is true that increasing your disc speed will give you more distance on your driver, but more importantly it will give you more distance in your "control power" game.
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