Fairway driver....distance or accuracy?

[Hampstead]

Control first, distance second.

It might be rare that I think Chuck is wrong, but I do not think the Valkyrie and Roadrunner are true fairways. Stick with speeds 6, 7 and 8 for the fairway slots.

With advent of really wide rim high speed drivers, it's not much of a stretch to call Valks, Firebirds, Roadrunners, Sidewinders, etc fairway drivers. I've even heard some folks referring to PDs as fairways.

 

[ThrowBot]

The definition of "fairway driver" has been slowly getting faster and faster. I prefer:

Speeds 6-8: Fairway driver
Speeds 9-11: Control driver
Speeds 12-?: Distance driver.

...But the "control driver" terminology is not as widely accepted.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

The lines between fairway and distance drivers is certainly debatable and anything but clean cut.

Generally speaking, I'll consider anything "speed 9 or slower" with a sharp edge as a fairway. Anything faster as a distance driver. But folks get some big D out of Valks and the like.

The way I see it, it's about the slots they fill in your bag.

 

[Cgkdisc]

Control first, distance second.

It might be rare that I think Chuck is wrong, but I do not think the Valkyrie and Roadrunner are true fairways. Stick with speeds 6, 7 and 8 for the fairway slots.

Valks and Roadrunners at 9 speed are at the higher end of fairways with 8 and 7 the mid and lower end. The TL3, TL and Leopard3 (I use as a long mid-range) would also be fine in the 160s for fairway control. However, I recommended the Valk and Roadrunner as having more upside distance potential as a new player develops that skill.

 

[Pymm]

I am past my prime athletically (mid-50s) and I don't throw anything faster than a Saint anymore. A disc that has been great for me since I started is the FD, a very popular fairway driver, which is accurate and will get you some good distance. I generally throw lighter weights in anything faster than a mid-range-usually mid 160g. Probably a good starting point for someone just beginning, and as you say, you are still at your peak, so you can move up in weight and speed eventually.

 

[ray1970]

Definitely different strokes for different folks.

My main fairway is an FD and it does many things for me. Power it down a bit and will hold an accurate hyzer line or just go dead straight on a flat release. Crank on it or give it a little anny and it works for turnovers.

When I want to throw something hard and know where it's going to land as soon as I release it I favor something in the 9-10 speed range, usually a PD or maybe a Thunderbird. Maybe they'll turn a little but I can't turn them over by accident and they always fade predictably at the end.

I really don't throw my fairways much. Usually I'm going for as much distance off the tee as I can get and then it's a mid or putter to take me the rest of the way to the basket on longer holes. Shorter holes I'm usually just teeing off with a mid or maybe even a putter depending on the length of the hole or the flight I want.

 

[jakebake91]

You don't need anything faster than fairway drivers (speed 7-9) in the beginning.

I suggest you pick one straighish driver with some turn and some fade as your workhorse driver. You should be able to throw it on various angles and produce various lines. As well, forehand it.

To that one add one rather overstable driver, not extremely overstable but with enough high speed stability to throw into a headwind and 2-3 fade. That one can complement your straightish driver well.

You can cover most lines with such a duo, if you forehand and backhand.

This is exactly what I did once I got serious into playing. My main driver is a speed 9ish 166g axiom insanity. Slightly US. Awesome disc! I pair that with a slightly OS axiom wrath. Same speed. Works so well I haven't needed to change anything yet.

 

[R-Ogre]

Don't care what you call it, but for my noodle arm speed 9 is about as fast a disc as I can get to fly like it's supposed to fly.

 

[DoWork]

Accuracy, 100%

 

[Meillo]

Accuracy, 100%

That's too easy IMO.

Because then you would avoid understable discs completely. As soon as there is some room to work, you'd only throw very overstable stuff to eliminate the wind but pay with a lot of distance.

Accuracy is important, but if you cannot reach a hole with an overstable disc on a dependable line, then you'll not birdie it. Thus you'll likely want to sacrifice accuracy for enough distance to get a chance for birdie. (This is the point where the big arms have advantages, because they can throw their stupid hyzers far enough, where others have to go with less dependable lines to reach the pin.)

I'm a big fan of stable to overstable discs. Actually there's no single understable disc in my bag. This works well to make pars, but for birdies on longer holes I would have to throw more understable discs, resulting in more birdies but probably also more bogeys.

Disc golf (as any game) would be boring if there's only one winning stragegy. The art is balancing the various conflicting goals you want to achieve. Accuracy and distance are two of them.


But yes: Accuracy over distance is like putting over driving. Yet, you need both.

 

[Buiscutboy]

I mostly carry fairways, but usually have some distance driver in the bag for when I'm feeling reckless. Never turns out well.