Whatever brought you to try out the incredible game of disc golf, congratulations! Whether you just want to play a few casual rounds a year with friends or family or you have competitive goals in mind, the most important rule to remember is to always have fun. When you approach disc golf with that in mind, you will never grow tired of it.
The exact origins of disc golf history are hard to trace. People have been playing catch and throwing flying discs around since the days of the old Frisbie Pie tins in the late 1800s. Somewhere along the way, someone must have developed the concept of disc golf and thought about throwing the disc at a specific target and counting how many throws it would take to get from point A to point B.
“Steady” Ed—The Father of Disc Golf
The man credited as the “Father of Disc Golf” as we know it today was “Steady” Ed Headrick (PDGA Member #001). He patented many key inventions. The first was the plastic Frisbee that he developed in 1966 while working at the Wham-O toy company. And yes, the name is a nod to the old Frisbie pie tins that are credited for starting the flying di
Though the design of a flying disc may seem relatively simple, there is a lot of science that goes into the architecture of each mold. It’s more than just a plastic circle that magically floats through the air. Disc golf discs are molded with certain aerodynamic qualities and features to achieve very specific flight characteristics.
Some differences are clear when the disc flies. You can easily see what makes a flatter, sharper-edged distance driver disc type different from a putter with a rounded edge and deep rim. One disc flight is designed to cut through the air and achieve maximum distance when thrown at high speeds. The other is designed for optimal control o
One of the best things about becoming an avid disc golfer is getting into all the gear. It’s exciting to buy new discs, but then comes the all-important question of how will you carry them all? That’s when you start shopping around to find the disc golf bag that is best for you.
“Best for you” is the key statement here. Simply asking “What is the best disc golf bag?” is a loaded question. Ask any manufacturer and they’ll tell you their disc golf bags are the best. Ask any disc golf retailer, and they’ll point you to whatever they have in stock. Ultimately, you want to find a bag that gives you the functionality you need and the features you want.
The sport of disc golf was around a long time before Innova. However, this company changed the game forever and is responsible for what we now know as modern disc design. There have been many key figures involved in the company throughout the history of disc golf, but none more influential than founder, Dave Dunipace.
Innovating Disc Design
Dave was an avid disc golfer and skilled distance thrower as disc sports grew to prominence in the 1970s. He still is an avid player. If you play disc golf in Southern California, there’s a good chance you’ll run into him on one of the courses. Dave started tinkering with his own disc designs in the early 1980s. He would cobble together pieces from multiple discs and try to form his own modern disc golf shapes to see what worked best.
We’ve covered the 3-Series lower-profile design. We talked about the VTech rim with a convex shape and more weight distributed to the outer edges of the disc. We have one last Innova variant to cover, and that is the X-Series.
What is the Innova X-Series?
The “X” name is added to certain disc names. It basically stands for “extra” stability, as X-Series discs are the most overstable versions of their counterparts. A
In our previous blog article, we talked about the science and story behind Innova’s 3-Series discs like the Leopard3, Roc3 or TeeBird3. Today, we want to talk about VTech, which is a disc molding technique utilized on certain Innova discs.
The Shark that Started it All
The first disc in Innova’s lineup to utilize VTech was the Shark, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. Now
A non-beveled edge deep rimmed disc that holds its line and falls straight. A stable disc now featuring Innova's Thumtrac rim that is used primarily for short range approach shots and putting.
