Playing the skip

[twistedturbo]

Does any play for the skip and how reliable is it?
Do overmolds skip less than a normal mold?

I throw forehand and expect skips but they are hard to predict. I live in Colorado and about half the year the grass will stop it but during this time of year skips happen. Is it better to lay up than hope for the good skip?
I recently started forehanding the DD and that thing loves to skip but I love its flight.
Does anyone have a disc they use only for skips?

 

[DatRedDude]

I play the skip when i throw my zones on approaches. If i am throwing a disc that i need to skip i go firebird and teebirds all day.

 

[thunder3boy]

It all depends on the hole and what shots are available! There are many factors that a good skip depends on: length of grass, whether its wet, how packed the dirt is, slope, etc.

I quite often rely on my firebird giving me a big flare (skip) to help me get around corners or under some low hanging trees. I can depend on a big skip from my FB when I keep my throw close to the ground.

 

[goeyj]

Generally, I will play for a big skip if there is no other way to get past a particular obstacle or set of obstacles.

Disc Choices:
Champ Gator, Champ Firebirds, C-PD2s

 

[DGHippie]

I definitely play the skip on dogleg shots. Usually disc up and choose something plenty overstable. Flat firebirds skip like crazy. I skip my overstable destroyers when I can't count on my firebird to make it all the way to the basket. After a couple hundred throws (or more) it become almost second nature matching the landing zone with angle that disc needs to hit the ground to produce the right skip.

They are a bit like overhand shots to me. They take a bit of luck to get them to work right, and they can be prone to skipping too far/not enough or getting some crazy rollaways.

 

[armiller]

The skip just started growing on me, both off the tee and for approaches. I have a decent forehand, so it's particularly useful for doglegs to the right, as others have said. I'm particularly enjoying the "OB" skip off of an OB street/parking lot or also the 150-200' "low ceiling with dogleg" approach. My backhand skip game isn't good enough to be better than a normal approach with a Zone/Drone type disc.

For skips, my Firebird is my go-to. I notice my Nuke skipping at the end of drives, but I rarely utilize it for approaches.

 

[ThrowBot]

Like anything, the skip can be a valuable addition to your game, but only if you learn when and how it will happen and use that knowledge to your advantage.

Overstable discs tend to skip better. This is partially because they tend to be fading hard when they hit the ground. That fade angle is very conducive to skipping. By the same logic, if you want to throw a shot that skips very soon out of your hand, you need to release with a hyzer angle. (This is rarely a strategic move in disc golf, but can be a stylish option when playing catch!)

Just a random thought: another factor that makes OS discs skip better might be parting line height. Discs with a lower PL might hit with the PL first and tend to "dig in" more than skip, whereas a higher PL allows the inner wing to touch down first. Obviously it has a lot to do with the discs angle relative to the surface of off which it skips.

The skipping surface is a huge factor. In addition to the good/bad surfaces that others have noted above, I would point out that ground covered by dry leaves (fall time) can give you big skips. Wet grass can give you big skips, but if the grass is too long it can also eat your disc and stop the skip...that's the hardest condition to judge, imo. Hard/flat ice can give you gigantic skips. I remember the only time I birdied Hole 12 at Wakanda Park was when the lake had just frozen and it was perfectly flat like a skating rink...massive multi-skip FH shot. Good times!

With the right speed and angle, you can even get a skip off of liquid water (somewhat like skipping a stone). I can't recommend that as a strategy, but if you ever see it it's really cool...especially if you thought your disc was otherwise doomed to a watery grave.

 

[captain jack]

Its a shot I use. Wide rimmed discs work best for me, like Wraiths. Low, with a jump up finish, I've chained out with this shot.
The only problem is, if you miss the basket, the disc is traveling on an up angle, and can end up FARRRR away from the basket, leaving a long comeback putt.

 

[slowplastic]

Super useful, know your angles so that you can tell if you will get a spike landing or a nasty (wanted) skip with the same disc. You have to throw the disc "too hard" so that at the point of landing it is still wanting to go another 50'+, and the ground won't stop it much. On short shots for me that means throwing the disc hard towards the ground and with a few degrees hyzer so it hits the ground at the time it wants to start fading. I find these shots really touchy and are a last resort for my skill level.

I have trouble with short range BH skips for that reason, but I feel like FH short range skips are much easier. It's also easier to get a low release on FH shots so they keep cruising along the ground after first contact with a hard surface.

 

[MarkDSM]

I play skips often on a few local courses. Moreso in the winter with frozen ground and dormant short grass. Love practicing skips. Handy in low ceilings and for laying up.

In general I use skips on drives beyond 100' throwing a flat low line drive a bit harder than I would at the same range. Mostly I want the skip just about when the disc is starting the fade. That way I pretty much get the same line as if disc was still in the air. Skipping directly forward is thougher. Mids more predictable, drivers able to 'jump back up' more.

 

[Kodachrome]

Not only do I play the skip, I utilize it on purpose for my thumbers and tomahawk shots especially.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

I get some pretty big skips fairly consistently with Pro Bosses... always with a hard fade.
I play the hell out of it. Low trajectories tend to result in longer skips.
I often aim for bare, hard patches (instead of grass) on certain holes I'm familiar with to enhance the skip.
Skips can help get distance on shots with low ceilings.

 

[DesertFox]

I've noticed for straight skips, the angle of the disc when it makes contact with the ground is key. If the "leading" edge of the disc is angled up and the "trailing" edge is down and makes contact before the nose, you'll get a forward skip. Conversely, if the leading edge is angled down and trailing is up and the nose makes contact first, you'll get a cut roller. Keep in mind that you'll need to throw the disc in a straight-ish line to achieve this unlike the usual right to left skippers (left to right for lefties and flickers of course)

 

[Dan Ensor]

Disc golf caddies will one day be paid large sums of money based largely on their skill for constructing skip maps.

 

[ru4por]

I use skip shot for approaches, more than for drives. I usually use a Z Crush, I like it because it is not crazy overstable. This allows me more confidence, as to where I will hit the ground. At the lower speeds of an approach, I have a hard time with the meathooks. Like Bogey mentioned, I usually look for a clear, hard spot to shoot for. Playing in wooded areas, like here in Michigan, stay below branches and getting around all the dang trees call for specialty shots. Skip approaches usually sit down nicely after they have their fun skipping through the woods.

 

[joshmo65]

Skip shots are probably my favorite kind of shot. I can easily get an extra 70' to the left with a backhand stiletto skip shot. Like others have said, you really need to pay attention to what you are trying to skip off of. It sucks to throw a skip shot that just gets caught in the grass or hits a root.

 

[KniceZ]

I haven't gotten to where I'm intentionally playing skips - there's just to inconsistent. But I do notice that it tends to happen more on forehand shots. Is it just me or is that common? And if it's generally true - why?

 

[davetherocketguy]

Does any play for the skip and how reliable is it?

Not very in some conditions. If it's a park setting with mowed grass the difference can be whether or not it was mowed in the last day or two. Smooth packed earth seems to skip the best. Hard-packed icy snow is will skip almost uncontrollably.

Do overmolds skip less than a normal mold?

No idea. The few overmolds I had from MVP never felt right to me so I don't throw them anymore. I'm sure they're good discs though...

I throw forehand and expect skips but they are hard to predict. I live in Colorado and about half the year the grass will stop it but during this time of year skips happen. Is it better to lay up than hope for the good skip?
I recently started forehanding the DD and that thing loves to skip but I love its flight.
Does anyone have a disc they use only for skips?

There really is no good way to answer that question. I would just play the course A LOT to figure it out. OTOH, if I am at a unfamiliar course but the conditions look right then yes, I will play the skip - but not completely rely on it. In other words, make the shot such that if it doesn't skip it's a decent shot but if it does skip then that's the icing on the cake that puts the disc under the basket.

I have a 200'ish hole at Flaherty that is a real bugger to park from the long tee. What I do there is take a FLX Zone and thummer it around the first few trees and then as it begins to turn right it'll skip nicely upside down. Every disc skips really nice when it's upside down.

 

[chevis]

the best skip i ever had was off a frozen pond... forward skip, followed by 3 more forward skips, then sliding and finally ending up on the far edge of the pond... it was exactly what i was trying to do.

 

[mm1315]

Skips are very consistent if you know the course and how the fairways are maintained. I use them a lot since I don't like throwing the big high hyzer I look for skip and roller angles if available first. The main thing is the angle you come in at has to be calculated for the disc correctly, with the same disc you can get a 90 degree turn or a 45 all based on the entry angle when the disc hits the ground.

Yes over molds will skip, i.e. fireball, resistor, motion, and phase are all good options. I like the phase for forehand skipshots. The thing is if you hit rocks or pavement you will take a chunk out of the rim, I'll post a pic later of my phase after it took a sidewalk skip