Discraft vs Innova

In the world of disc golf, there are several major players. Innova is the biggest and most well known manufacturer of golf discs. A few years ago its patent expired, and as result several up and coming disc manufacturers such as Westside,  Latitude 64, Millennium, Vibram, and Ching have emerged with new plastics and technology.

The two players that we are pitting against each other today are Discraft and Innova. This should be a “Part 1” because there are quite a few surprising differences between the two discs that would take a series of posts.

First of all, Discraft comes in two more options of plastic than the Innova discs do.

Instead of a complex system of numbers for speed, glide, turn, and fade, Discraft discs have only one number associated with them, and that’s the stability rating. Other than that, it’s all you.

Commentary From a Beginner/Intermediate Frolfer

For a player who would still class myself as beginner/intermediate, I would say that Discraft is the way to go. The lack of complexity really allows for some straightforward game play for those who do not have the time to fine tune their throwing and want something which is going to be consistent. I noticed that with Discraft the fade of the disc was steady throughout the entire throw, whereas with Innova discs, it seems that there may be a turn first, it will continue in its course, and then a fade will begin to happen. For advanced throwers, getting accustomed to the advanced Innova disc system is a must; but let’s be real, not many of us are that advanced.

I do look forward to having some stellar Innova results as I continue to progress, but again – I was really pleased with how far I was able to throw the Discraft Discs without much of a learning curve. In fact, my results with Discraft distance testing proved to be about 20 feet further than my results with Innova discs. Also, keep in mind that this testing was only done with our distance throwing, no mid range throws, approaches, or putts; just pure distance.

– Kirk

While Kirk likes the simplicity of the Discraft discs stability rating, I like knowing beforehand how fast, how much turn, and how much low speed fade a disc is expected to have before ever buying or throwing. I think the Innova ratings are absolutely valuable. It’s no wonder company’s like Latitude 64 and Westside use a similar rating system.

For forehand distance throws, our top two discs the Krait and Monarch are both made by Innova. Our best rated approach disc, the Dart, is also an Innova disc.

The fact is that both company’s make some great performing, long lasting disc golf discs, and they continually come out with newer better technology. This debate can go on forever, and neither disc may actually be the best disc manufacturer. My favorite backhand driver the Astra is made by Millennium, as is my favorite putter, the Omega Super Soft. Latitude 64 and Westside make some awesome discs that look and fly great. My favorite plastic is made by Skyquest.

From my experience thus far, if I had to choose just one brand of golf discs to use, I’d have to choose Innova.