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Unreachable Uphill Drives

GoobyPls

Double Eagle Member
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Joined
Nov 29, 2016
Messages
1,812
I played Mt. Airy last weekend, which was my first experience on a course with multiple par 4's. A couple of them took two uphill shots to get to the basket. It occurred to me that I didn't know what type of driver to use on something like that.

What is everyone's technique for long uphill holes? Do you throw something glidier and slower hoping to avoid stall for as long as possible, or just mash something faster trying to get as uphill as quickly as you can? This is assuming the hole is mostly open.
 
This is a hard shot. It's easier to throw high with either hyzer or anhyzer...lets you put some height on the disc while keeping the nose down much more easily. If you are throwing an uphill hyzer flip, you need something quite to very understable. Need to throw it nearly parallel with the line of the hill, let it flip up and maybe glide a little right. You aren't getting a full flight out of it anyways, so just don't go so understable that it will land on edge and roll.

The harder you can throw, the faster a disc you can use, and the higher above parallel to the hill you can throw a hyzer flip. If you throw too high or too fast/stable of a disc, it will stall out early.

With the anhyzer you can throw kind of up high over the apex of the shot, and it will start crashing into the hill eventually rather than meeting it at a softer angle like the parallel to hill hyzer flip. You'll throw the shot higher with an anhyzer, probably a pretty neutral disc in this case. I think this is a more predictable shot for where the shot will land on the hill, and you can throw it a bit higher without stalling it if you are decent at throwing annies.

It's tough though to throw these shots, it's basically throwing a distance line on flat ground, except now fairly parallel to the hill and much shorter the distance you would normally get.

Out of the discs that are in your sig list, the River/Thief are what I would be trying first as they are glidey, slow enough, somewhat understable, and still get good distance. I'm not as familiar with the Photon or Insanity. Plus you get so much distance loss throwing uphill, the consistency of the right disc stability is more important than a couple extra feet.
 
My most consistent uphill discs are a beat DX Teebird or a Star Roadrunner on a little annie flex. Those are for woods shots.

If I got the room, I throw a beat 160gr star Wraith on a flex
 
The 2 holes you are referring to are usually attacked with a power hyzer because they have room on the right. Hole 9 is pretty long on that line, probably 400 feet of power.

Players in my group that don't have that much distance typically throw an anhyzer (FH or BH), both are limited by the early tree on the left and right though but well executed can reach the pin with about 350 feet of power.
 
I usually do stable anny lines uphill because I have trouble throwing hyzers uphill for some reason (i often end up just throwing them into the side of the hill).

If the hill isn't too steep, and it's short grass, I will often throw rollers, like stable discs that I rip on a big anny that will roll a little further uphill after contact. Works great for gradual uphills, obviously not the best option for huge uphills. But if you have a very steep uphill section followed by a flat section, a roller is a great option, since anything else will come over the crest of the hill nose up and peter out fairly quickly.
 
Mt. Airy is a tough course and for me I just like to get in a good position rather than power on the Par 4's. The first hole (Par 4) I just like to make it on top of the hill usually with a hyzer so my 2nd shot I am shooting straight at the basket downhill. Now I have seen guys throw it over the hill and make it down the hill which takes tons of power. Hole 9 which is an uphill par 3 is pretty tough to get to as well, so I am happy with a par on that hole. Hole 17 (Par 4) is pretty much the same idea as Hole 1, Just land on top of the hill in good position and hyzer down for the 2nd shot.
 
Uphills for me equals reaching for an understable disc and anhyzer or hyzerflip it depending on the shape of the hole.
 
I recently played Panther Creek in Morristown TN. The course has two holes with 100 foot inclines, Hole (5) a 500 foot par 4 and hole (11) a 600 foot par 5. Part of these holes have slopes at a 30 degree incline where any style of bh and fh throws are ineffective. I throw tomahawks and thumbers to get up crazy elevation.
 
Out of the discs that are in your sig list, the River/Thief are what I would be trying first as they are glidey, slow enough, somewhat understable, and still get good distance. I'm not as familiar with the Photon or Insanity.

A Photon is basically MVP's version of a Destroyer. Insanity's kinda similar to a Beast. I don't really get the Photon up to speed, plus I actually broke the overmold with a tree hit, and it's about to get kicked out of the bag.

The 2 holes you are referring to are usually attacked with a power hyzer because they have room on the right. Hole 9 is pretty long on that line, probably 400 feet of power.

Players in my group that don't have that much distance typically throw an anhyzer (FH or BH), both are limited by the early tree on the left and right though but well executed can reach the pin with about 350 feet of power.

I'm a noodle arm, and while both of these are par 3's, I can't reach either. For reference, I parked the B-position of Hole 12 (340', but I think slightly downhill) with a full-power Thief S-shot, and the A-position of 18 (267' but very uphill) with the biggest Volt flat drive I can throw.
 
plus I actually broke the overmold with a tree hit, and it's about to get kicked out of the bag.

You should post a picture in the MVP disc thread. :popcorn:


I'm a noodle arm, and while both of these are par 3's, I can't reach either. For reference, I parked the B-position of Hole 12 (340', but I think slightly downhill) with a full-power Thief S-shot, and the A-position of 18 (267' but very uphill) with the biggest Volt flat drive I can throw.

Yeah 9 is hard to reach for most players. Nothing wrong with a 3 there. I've seen plenty of 6+ scores (and carded a few in my youth).

I'm not remembering 18 being that uphill. I second everyone's advice, if you can't reach it with a power hyzer, opt for a hyzer flip or an Anny.

Just make sure to give the Hyzer flip enough height to turnover up the hill or you'll have executed a sad roller :doh:
 
Depends. Sometimes a FH roller is the best way to go uphill a long distance. Other times I typically just mash a Bliz Boss on hyzer and match the slope.
 
Already in this thread, I've seen how different players try different ways to get up hill distance. :cool:

High glide + low weight.
^this is what works for me. My bag contains:
150's D Crank & Z-Light Crank: I use these for max D and long up hills... provided I can take a decent X-Step to get the disc up to speed. You can usually do that off the tee, but pretty awkward from an uphill lie. The Z Light has more stability, so I let the wind conditions determine which.

Low 160's Star Leopard: I still prefer to at least step into my shot when using this (even if I can't get a full X-step).
Easier to get up to speed with less oomph than a distance driver of similar weight.

150 Class Z Storm: sadly OOP :( ... so please send me any you have.
Absolutely <3 this disc for "stand and deliver" distance. In terms of speed, the Storm is somewhat of a tweener mid/fairway... basically the longest mid in my bag.
Slower - so you don't need much speed for it to do it's thing.
150g - so it's easier to get up to speed.
Glidey - indeed it is.
 
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If the teepad slopes upward the first thing I want to do is practice my run up with shorter steps so my timing is less effected.
 
I like the former's post on adjusting run up. Also, it seems almost all uphill shots have a teepad that is never level and adds resistance to your run up.

First-if you can work on a better run up and get success. try using what's in your bag already.

Second-adjust your disc selection by reducing weight. that invariably always adds glide. duh... the disc is less affected by gravity.

the holes you are referring to at mt airy. the long ones anyway require the disc to finish with hyzer for good placement. flippy, glidey discs will push you further away.

so in fact you still need major stability in your shot selection. modern distance drivers now can be reduced in weight and still finish stable.
 
the holes you are referring to at mt airy. the long ones anyway require the disc to finish with hyzer for good placement. flippy, glidey discs will push you further away.

so in fact you still need major stability in your shot selection. modern distance drivers now can be reduced in weight and still finish stable.

What nonsense. If I remember correctly, there are 4 uphill shots on the course. 1, B, 9, 17. 1 plays like a par 4 for most players, and there is plenty of room to work the disc in any direction and with any finish. B is not unreachable for any but raw beginners and is a simple turnover shape, good for flip and glide. 9 is a hyzer shaped hole with an air shot, but as any experienced player ought to know an understable disc is often preferable for right to left shapes, especially uphill. 17 is wide open and will take any shot of any shape, but preferably ending on the right side of the fairway.
 
Either a starlite wraith nose up or anny valk, I feel like I can get them both to pop up predictably on a big uphill. Valk got me parked on a really big uphill last week which was nice.

If I've still got a lot of uphill to go, I will go with my floatiest putter and glide it up to try to avoid death rolls off a bounce etc.
 
Lighter (if not still OS/Stable when wt is reduced) or US faster go to molds 4 sure. Can't get the same leverage trying to run up when sloping up so let the discs do the work. Hyzer flip.
 
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If the grass is short uphill rollers work well. I can throw a roller further up the hill than an air shot. Especially if it plateaus at the top the airshot stalls but the roller keeps going. But as a general rule more understable with high glide works best.
 

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