Best Discs for Turnover Shots

Preparing for A Turnover Throw

A key aspect of improving your disc golf game and becoming a skilled player involves mastering a variety of throws, including the turnover shot. This is one of the most touchy and difficult shots to throw consistently, and having the best discs for turnover shots is key. This article aims to guide you in choosing the right discs for executing successful turnover throws, a crucial aspect of mastering this shot.

Understanding Turnover Throws

A turnover throw in disc golf is a shot where the disc turns in the opposite direction of its natural fade, enabling the player to navigate around obstacles and shape the disc’s flight path. The ability to skillfully execute turnover throws is a key factor that sets skilled players apart from beginners.

Six primary factors affect the degree to which a disc will turn over: the angle of release, release point, trajectory, spin, wind, and disc stability. Understanding these factors is essential to mastering turnover throws and selecting the right disc for each shot.

The Art and Science of Turnover Shots

Mastering the turnover shot is a delicate balance of art and science. The angle of release, release point, and trajectory significantly impact the flight of a disc during a turnover throw. The angle of release refers to the nose of the disc at release, while the release point is where the disc is released from your hand. The trajectory is the path on which the disc is pulled back and released.

External factors such as wind also influence the flight path of a disc. Headwinds can make a disc less stable, while tailwinds can make it more stable. Understanding how these factors interact can help you execute successful turnover throws.

Disc Selection for Turnover Throws

Disc selection plays a crucial role in executing successful turnover shots. Discs suitable for turnover throws usually have understable flight characteristics, which means they are designed to turn right when thrown with a right-hand backhand throw. The best discs for turnover shots really depend on your arm speed and skill level. Understanding the characteristics of these discs can help you make an informed decision when selecting a disc for your turnover throws.

In general, lower speed discs like putters and slow midranges are going to perform best for turnover shots. The shape of the slow speed discs helps reduce its fade, which is very important for turnover throws when you want the disc go hold its line on the anhyzer angle.

9 Best Turnover Discs for Beginners

divergent-discs-leviathan

If you are a newer disc golfer, you are going to want to select from VERY understable disc golf discs for turnover shots, otherwise your throw is not going to be able to hold the turnover line.

  1. Divergent Discs Leviathan – The Leviathan is one of the most understable discs in all of disc golf. Even though it’s a midrange, it is a relatively fast midrange and lots of players find that it can get as much, or more distance, than they can their drivers. The thing that makes the Leviathan so good for turnover throws is its degree of high speed turn
  2. Infinite Discs Kon Tiki – The Kon Tiki is an understable approach disc perfect for finnesse turnover shots. It’s trusted by professional players such as Juliana Korver and is just an excellent disc for turnover approach shots.
  3. Yikun Tomahawk – The Tomahawk by Yikun is one of the most underrated disc golf discs on the market. It utilizes double mold technology for a very unique flight. In many ways its flight is similar to the Leviathan, but the feel of this disc is so different. Even though it’s a midrange it holds an anny line like a putter.
  4. Innova Sonic – The Sonic is an ultra low speed putter but does not fade out at the end of the flight at all. For short turnover shots, and approach shots where you want to make a backhand throw that drifts to the right, the Innova Sonic is the best disc on the market for that shot.
  5. Divergent Discs Basilisk – The Basilisk is actually a distance driver, and the only distance drivers I recommend for turnover throws. Now this is definitely not the most consistent disc for turnover throws, but the extreme understability of this disc allows it to perform flight options otherwise not possible. Once you get a little more power, you can actually release the Basilisk at a hyzer angle and watch it still turnover without even fading at the end of the flight.
  6. Discraft Archer – The Discraft Archer is one of Discrafts most understable molds. It provides a gentle high speed turn and has very little end of flight fade – for a driver.
  7. Prodigy F9 – The Prodigy F9 is a really fun disc to throw. It is Prodigy Discs most understable driver and is an excellent choice for beginners who want a good turnover driver.
  8. Yikun Gou – The Gou is Yikun’s offering for beginners who want an ultra understable driver. It provides a smooth flight with a rapid turn that can help players hyzer flip and get more distance. Suitable for players with lower arm speeds, the Gou is a good choice for turnover drives and is one of the few drivers you can get to hold an anny angle for the entire flight.
  9. Divergent Discs Tiyanak – The Tiyanak is designed for beginners who need an understable driver. This might be the most understable PDGA driver and excels in turnover shots as it can be thrown with minimal effort to achieve a curved flight path. Its ultra understability make the Tiyanak an excellent tool for beginners to explore different angles and shot shapes. However, because this driver is so understable, it’s not the easiest disc to control.

Best Turnover Discs for Intermediate and Advanced Players
Infinite Discs Anubis - Great turnover midrange

For intermediate level players like myself, the best discs for turnover throws are understable midrange discs. When you’re looking for a good turnover disc that will hold the line, neutral flying midrange discs are the best choices. Unless you can get the angles just right, it’s hard to get any disc golf driver to fly consistently and hold an anhyzer line on throws. Here are a few of my favorite turnover discs as an Intermediate/Advanced player.

  1. Infinite Discs Anubis
  2. Innova Wombat 3
  3. Discraft Meteor
  4. Latitude 64 Fuse
  5. Westside Tursas

Best Turnover Drivers

Westside Hatchet Turnover Driver

If you’re looking for big distance on a turnover throw, you’re going to want to throw a driver. Which driver is best for you will really depend on your arm speed as what’s flippy for a player that can throw 300 feet is much different than a player who can throw 450+. My maximum distance is about 400 feet and I can consistently throw in the 350 range with hyzer flip shots. These are a few of my favorite drivers for turnover throws.

  1. Westside Hatchet
  2. Infinite Discs Sphinx
  3. Doomsday Discs Blackout
  4. Thought Space Athletics Mantra
  5. Latitude 64 River

Different Turnover Throws and How to Execute Them

Turnover throws can be executed in different ways, depending on the situation. An anhyzer S-turn shot involves the disc turning in one direction before finishing by turning in the other direction. This shot is useful when obstacles on the right side of the fairway require starting the shot on the left side but finishing on the left side as well. For S-curve shots, you don’t want to use a very understable disc, but want something with a bit more stability so that the natural fade will pull the disc out of the anhyzer angle allowing for the S-Curve flight.

Executing each turnover throw requires a combination of the correct angle, speed, trajectory, and spin. The best way to find the discs that work for you for this type of shot is to simply pick your S-curve obstacle and try throwing all of your discs at that anhyzer angle to see how far they will hold the anny angle for you before fading around to clear obstacles at different distances away.

Tips and Techniques for Executing Turnover Throws

The grip plays a significant role in executing turnover throws. You can use a fan grip or a power grip, depending on your comfort and the type of shot you want to execute.

Increasing spin and nose angle steepness can help a disc hold a straight line after turning over. This technique is useful for shorter shots. When you throw a disc nose up it will fade out more quickly.

Remember, the key to improving your turnover throws is practice and experimentation with different discs and techniques to find what works best for your style of play.

Understanding turnover throws and selecting the right discs for successful execution is crucial in improving your disc golf game. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced player, mastering these throws can shave strokes off your game and set you apart from other players.