How to Throw a Disc Golf Backhand

The backhand is the first and most important throw in disc golf. Beginners throw it like a frisbee with all arm and get nowhere; real distance comes from your body. Here is how to throw a proper backhand.

HobbyStack EditorialMay 27, 2026Updated July 13, 20261 min read

Part of the Disc Golf hobby guideSee the full overview — what it involves, what it costs, and how to start.

Key takeaways

Distance comes from your body, not your arm. Leading with your hips and pulling the disc across your chest is what generates power.
Grip firmly with a "power grip": four fingers under the rim, thumb on top. A loose grip leaks power at release.
Reach back to load, then pull the disc in a straight line across your body, close to your chest, and let it rip.
"Nose down" and flat: if the leading edge of the disc points up on release, it stalls and dives. Keep it level or slightly nose-down.
Start close and smooth, not far and hard. Learning clean form at partial power beats muscling wild throws.

Grip and setup

A backhand starts with a firm grip. The standard is the "power grip": curl all four fingers under the rim of the disc so their tips press into the inside of the rim, with your thumb flat on top. It should feel secure, almost tight, a limp grip lets the disc slip out early and bleeds away all your power and accuracy. Stand side-on to your target, as if you were going to throw a ball sidearm the other way, with the shoulder of your throwing arm pointing toward where you want the disc to go. Your feet are roughly shoulder-width, and your weight will shift from your back foot to your front as you throw. From here the whole motion is about winding up your body and then unwinding it through the disc.

The pull: lead with the hip, not the arm

Here is the thing beginners get wrong: they throw a disc golf backhand like tossing a frisbee at the beach, all arm, flicking from the elbow, and the disc flutters 50 feet. Real distance comes from your body uncoiling. You reach back, extending the disc away from the target to "load," then you pull it forward in a straight line across your body, keeping it close in to your chest, while your hips and torso rotate through first and drag your arm along. Think of your arm as a whip attached to your rotating core, not the engine itself. The power sequence runs from the ground up: weight shifts to the front foot, hips rotate open, chest follows, and only then does the arm snap through. Leading with the hip and keeping the pull tight to your body is what turns a floppy toss into a real throw.

Snap, release, and disc angle

At the end of the pull, as the disc reaches the front of your body, comes the "snap", a sudden acceleration where the disc rips out of your grip, spinning fast. That spin (not a gentle push) is what makes the disc fly stable and far, so you want the disc to leave crisply, almost yanked from your fingers by the speed. Two release details make or break the flight. First, keep the disc flat and "nose down": if the front edge tilts up as it leaves your hand, the disc climbs, stalls, and drops; level or slightly nose-down flies far. Second, release toward your target line, letting the disc come off cleanly rather than steering it. Put it together, grip, reach back, pull across your body leading with the hips, snap, and release flat, and start at about 70 percent effort focusing on smoothness. Clean form at moderate power will out-throw a wild all-out heave every time, and the distance builds as the motion becomes natural.

Practise "field work": take a stack of discs to an open field and throw them with no target and no score, just working on the motion, then walk and pick them up. Repeating the throw calmly, without the pressure of a hole, is the fastest way to groove good backhand form, far better than only throwing during rounds.

Common questions

How do you throw a backhand in disc golf?

Grip the disc firmly with a power grip (four fingers under the rim, thumb on top), stand side-on to your target, then reach the disc back to load and pull it forward in a straight line across your body, close to your chest, while rotating your hips and torso through first. Snap the disc out with speed, releasing it flat or slightly nose-down toward your target line. The power comes from your body uncoiling, not from your arm alone.

Why don’t my disc golf throws go far?

Almost always because you are throwing with your arm instead of your body, flicking from the elbow like a casual frisbee toss. Real distance comes from leading with your hips and pulling the disc tight across your chest so your rotating core powers the throw, with the arm following like a whip. Other common culprits: a weak grip that lets the disc slip, and releasing nose-up so the disc stalls. Fix the body mechanics and grip and distance climbs.

What is nose angle and why does it matter?

Nose angle is whether the leading (front) edge of the disc points up or down as it leaves your hand. If the nose is up, the disc climbs, loses speed, stalls, and drops out of the air well short. Releasing the disc flat or slightly nose-down lets it retain speed and glide much farther. Nose-up throws are a very common reason beginners lose distance, so consciously keeping the disc level or nose-down on release makes an immediate difference.

What is the power grip in disc golf?

The power grip is the standard backhand grip for distance: you curl all four fingers under the rim so their tips press firmly against the inside of the rim, with your thumb flat on top of the disc. It should feel secure and firm. The firm grip lets you build up spin and snap the disc out crisply at release, which is what carries it far. A loose or weak grip lets the disc slip out early and wastes the power you generated.

What discs should a beginner throw?

Beginners usually throw better and straighter with lighter, slower, more understable discs, and should start with just a few: a putter, a midrange, and perhaps one fairway driver. Lightweight discs are easier to get up to speed and more forgiving of imperfect form than fast, overstable distance drivers, which tend to dump out of the air for beginners. Rather than a big-number "distance driver," start slow and controllable and let your form develop first.

Bottom line

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