Disc golf discs for beginners: The three you need, and starter sets
In short: Good disc golf discs for beginners are three slow ones: A putter, a midrange and a fairway driver, with the driver on the light side. Skip distance drivers for your first season. A good starter set holds those three, with a little turn and a gentle fade in their flight numbers.
Start with a putter, a midrange and a fairway driver, all slow, with the driver on the light side. A fast distance driver looks like the shortcut to distance, but it needs arm speed you don’t have yet. Slower discs can go about as far, for slower arms, and they fly much straighter while you learn.
Picture the shop wall: Dozens of putters, midranges and drivers, and you need three. Which three depends on how hard you throw and where your throws end up, and that’s tricky to know in your first weeks. Digo is an app for disc golfers, coming soon to iPhone, that you can simply talk to. Tell it what your throws do so far, and it can suggest your first three discs, each with its flight numbers, so you’re not guessing in the aisle.
This guide is for your first season, when you’re about to buy a few discs or a set. You’ll get the flight numbers to look for, a few example discs of each kind, and a plan for the fourth and fifth disc.
Directions here are for a right-hand backhand. For a left-hand backhand or a right-hand forehand, everything flies to the opposite side.
Why do slow discs work better for new players?
The short answer: A disc only flies its numbers when you throw it at its speed.
The first of the four flight numbers is speed. It tells you how fast the disc needs to be thrown, not how far it goes. A speed 12 driver thrown at a speed 6 pace never reaches the part of its flight where it glides and holds a line. It slows early, fades left and drops.
A speed 6 fairway driver thrown at that same pace flies the line it was built for. That’s why a slower disc can go about as far as a fast one for a newer arm, and it lands closer to where you aimed. More speed in a disc needs more arm speed. It doesn’t add distance by itself.
Innova explains the four numbers (speed, glide, turn and fade) in its flight ratings guide. Treat them as a hint, not a promise. Each maker rates its own discs, so a 5 from one brand is not exactly a 5 from another.
The three discs to start with
The answer: One putter, one midrange, one fairway driver.
| Disc | What it’s for | Numbers to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Putter | Putts, and short throws near the basket | Speed 2 to 3, turn 0 or a little below, fade 0 to 1 |
| Midrange | Shots in between, and straight drives on short holes | Speed 4 to 5, turn 0 to −1, fade 0 to 1 |
| Fairway driver | Your drives | Speed 6 to 7, turn −1 to −2, fade 1 to 2 |
Some examples of each, with the makers’ numbers. They’re examples, not a ranking.
Here is how a set of three flies, drawn from the makers’ numbers: The Judge from Dynamic Discs, Discraft’s Buzzz and Innova’s Leopard.
- 1JudgeDynamic Discs2401
- 2BuzzzDiscraft54−11
- 3LeopardInnova65−21
Look at how close the three lines stay to the middle. That’s what you want in a first bag: Discs that go where you aim them, so you can see what your throw is doing.
Treat these as starting points: The ranges in the table matter more than the exact names.
For more on each kind, read how to choose a disc golf putter and the guide to fairway drivers.
Why understable is your friend
The answer: A bit of negative turn helps a slower arm fly straight.
Turn is how a disc behaves at high speed, early in its flight. A negative turn means it drifts right. Fade is how it finishes as it slows, and almost every disc drifts left at the end.
A stable disc flies close to straight, with a gentle finish left. When you throw slower, every disc acts more stable than its numbers say: It turns less and fades sooner. A disc with a turn of −1 or −2 makes up for that. The small drift right balances the fade left, and the disc ends up close to straight.
That’s why the fairway drivers above all have a negative turn and a low fade. A disc with turn 0 and a fade of 3 or more is overstable. It’s a good tool later, but as your only driver it pulls every throw left. The guide on understable vs overstable shows both side by side.
What weight to pick
The answer: A light fairway driver, and a normal weight for the putter and midrange.
A lighter disc is a little easier to get up to speed. A heavier disc of the same mold (the disc’s model, like the Leopard) usually flies a little more stable, which means more fade for an arm that already fades every disc. So for your driver, look for about 150 to 165 g. Your midrange and putter are thrown slower anyway, so a normal weight of about 165 to 175 g works, and it feels steadier in your hand. Go heavier only if you often play in wind.
The guide to disc golf disc weight explains how weight changes a flight.
What to look for in a disc golf starter set
The answer: A putter, a midrange and a fairway driver, with the numbers in the table above.
A disc golf starter set, sometimes sold as a beginner set or starter pack, saves you choosing three discs one at a time. Before you buy one, read the flight numbers printed on each disc or on the maker’s page:
- Check for all three kinds. You want one disc each at speed 2 to 3, 4 to 5, and 6 to 7.
- Check the fastest disc. If the driver in the set is speed 9 or more, it’s built for a faster arm than most first-season players have. The set can still be worth it for the putter and midrange.
- Check the turn on the driver. A turn of −1 to −2 is easier for a newer arm than a turn of 0.
- Check the fades. Fades of 0 to 2 across the set mean straight, friendly flights. A set full of fades of 3 or more fights you.
We don’t quote set prices or contents here. They change by shop and season, and those four checks let you judge any set yourself.
What to add as your fourth and fifth disc
The answer: The shot your three discs can’t make.
After a few rounds you’ll notice which throws keep going wrong. Your fourth and fifth disc should fix those, not just add distance.
- A disc that always finishes left. An overstable approach disc fades at the end even into a headwind. Discraft’s Zone and Innova’s Pig are two examples. They help on short shots around trees and on windy days.
- A more stable fairway driver. Once your arm gets faster, your first driver may turn too far right. A disc like Innova’s Teebird holds a straighter line with a firmer finish.
- A second putter. Some players putt with one and throw the other on short holes, so the putting one stays feeling the same.
- A faster fairway driver, later. When your fairway driver stops going farther however you throw it, try a speed 8 or 9 disc with negative turn, like the Saint from Latitude 64. It’s still a fairway driver: Distance drivers start at speed 10.
Five discs is enough for a long time. Give each one its own job, and know that job before you reach into the bag.
What to skip in your first season
- Distance drivers, speed 10 and up. They’re made for arm speed most new players don’t have yet.
- Discs bought for a name. A disc a top player throws is matched to their arm, not yours.
- Several discs that do the same thing. Three molds at speed 7 with the same numbers fly nearly the same line.
Your next move
Buy three slow discs, or a starter set that passes the four checks, and play a few rounds with only those. Watch where each one lands. Once you can say which shot is missing, you know your fourth disc.
If you’d rather not carry those rounds around in your head, tell Digo about them and it remembers which discs you trust.
Find your fourth disc
Digo isn’t out yet. Once it is, say which shot your three discs can’t reach, and it answers which disc to buy next, starting from the bag you already have.
Questions
What disc golf discs should a beginner buy?
Three slow discs: A putter, a midrange and a fairway driver around speed 6 to 7. Pick ones with a little turn and a gentle fade. Go a little lighter on the driver, and pick a normal weight for the putter and midrange.
Is a disc golf starter set worth buying?
Often, yes, as long as it holds a putter, a midrange and a fairway driver. Read the flight numbers before you buy: A set built around a fast distance driver is harder to learn with.
Should beginners throw distance drivers?
Not yet. A distance driver needs a lot of arm speed to fly the way its numbers say. Thrown slower, it tends to fade early and can land shorter than a fairway driver.
How many discs does a beginner need?
Three is enough to play a full round: One to drive, one for shots in between and one to putt. A fourth and fifth can come once you know which shots you're missing.
What does understable mean for a beginner?
An understable disc has a negative turn number, so it drifts right early in its flight for a right-hand backhand. For a newer arm, that drift often balances the fade and the disc flies straighter.
Keep reading
- Types of disc golf discs: Putters, midranges, fairways and driversFour types, sorted by speed, with one flight path each. And why how fast you throw matters more than the label.
- Disc golf disc weight: Does it matter, and how to chooseWhat a few grams change, who should throw lighter discs, and how to read the weight on a disc before you buy it.
- Fairway drivers in disc golf: When they beat a distance driverSpeed 6 to 9, easier to throw clean, and for a slower arm about as far as a distance driver. How to pick one.