| QCDG.com: You mentioned in the intro that you were fortunate enough to have a mentor. How important do you feel that has been to your continued improvement in the game and what do you feel new players could do to find their own “mentor”? |
| Dan: Having a mentor is not a bad thing. It really does help someone “get” a sport a lot quicker by having a coach-like person to help them through different aspects of the game, pulling from their own experiences and just their general knowledge. My mentors have helped me with almost every section of this game and I just have to harness everything I’ve gathered from them. I feel it’s a give and take situation. You’ll meet a lot of different types of people and players that will give you a tip or two here and there but having an actual mentor to give you one-on-one training will really help you get mean in any sport. I encourage anyone to find someone who’ll take them under their wing and take the time to help them even if it’s just a quick tip every once in a while. It’s pretty easy to grab someone to help you with your game because most people in disc golf will love to brag about their game to you and help you out. Go to leagues and recognize the better players in your state or country and just ask random questions about how to manipulate different things in your form or just general game play. |
| QCDG.com: Who do you feel has had the biggest influence on your game? Is there a player that you’ve modeled your game after and how has that helped you? |
| Dan: I would have to go with my mentors on that one. I tried to emulate Blake Takkunen and his putting stroke as well as Terry Parson’s strong mentality and positive attitude on the course. When I was first being taught how to throw farther I was studying the form of a few top players in the world; Steve Brinster, Walter Haney, Ken Climo, Chris Sprague, Michael Jo, Timmy Gill, and Jon Drummond. I was picking out similarities rather than differences in how form works and why they all throw 430+ feet on a line drive. Blake played a huge part in that process to help me see the similarities in a top pro’s form or anyone else who could throw that distance accurately. |
| QCDG.com: What’s the best single piece of advice that you’ve been given about playing disc golf and how have you used that to help your game? |
| Dan: “You have mad game but you just have no head!” A local Pro said that to me after a league night where I didn’t shoot my best. He knew I talk myself out of a lot of things while I’m on the course and he knew that was the culprit of that night. This piece of advice is so simple yet so very effective and after that I started playing my percentages and playing within myself instead of just going for broke on a lot of shots. In order for my game to be more forgiving for me I have to play it forgivingly. I have had a pretty tough mental game ever since and don’t let bad shots get to me too much if at all and my mentality continues to grow. |
| QCDG.com: What’s the furthest distance that you’ve thrown a disc and what do you attribute your success in reaching those types of distances? |
| Dan: My longest throw came just recently when we had 45 degree weather and my discs weren’t frozen! I threw an Inferno 619’ with a 2 MPH tailwind. Everything I’ve learned about form I learned from advice on footwork from Jon Drummond and Blake T. Blake also taught me how to aim and aiming was a huge factor for my longer throws or any throw for that matter (throwing through apexes). Jon showed me proper footwork and I practiced it and figured out that his advice gave me a stronger pivot. With a longer plant step you can push off a lot more and a lot harder along with the step being more closed than usual. By learning how to accelerate and coming through tight to my body I found could accelerate a lot faster. Wrist extension, which is basically popping your wrist so your palm is facing forward or curling your wrist and having it popping neutral, is another point that is important to gain a lot of distance. I was also shown a stronger grip that can pull off a LOT of POP. For my grip I just place the disc in my hand like normal and move the disc up above the seam on the upper pad (thumb pad). This allows more hand explosion. |
| QCDG.com: . It seems that in today’s game everyone is obsessed with throwing the big bombs, everyone wants to throw 400 feet plus on every drive. Where do you feel the length of a player’s drive falls into the overall scheme of success for players? What do feel players, especially newer players, should be focusing on to improve their games? |
| Dan: Of course everyone wants to throw far. It’s fun to watch and, to all who think it’s unimportant, yes it is actually an advantage. Someone throwing a Destroyer on a 350 foot hole is going to be at a disadvantage versus someone who can throw a Roc that same distance. Some AM players around my area can throw 400+ feet with a destroyer but that’s only about 320 – 340 feet or most likely less Tee-Bird power. I have people throw Gazelle’s or Cyclone’s and base their distance from slower fairway drivers. Because most likely they’ll have too much off axis torque in their throw to even be able to throw them properly, players often don’t use those discs because they think they suck. A Destroyer is a very unforgiving disc if you screw up in any way. If you miss your line even slightly, you are off line about 60 feet away from the target. If you throw a Tee-Bird off line slightly you're still going to have a putt. I try to tell AM players to focus only on the control within the distance, not the feet in the distance. |
| QCDG.com: Is there a specific pre- shot practice routine that you’ve found has helped you improve or that you teach other players and what do you feel are the benefits of that routine? |
| Dan: As far as routines go I would say find something that works for you as long as it’s not too long. Mistakes happen when you take more than 10 seconds on any routine whether it’s putting, upshots, drives etc. I found that a consistent routine that’s simple works best in any situation because you don’t want to confuse yourself or drift your mind away from what’s really important…. the shot at hand! Also, don’t put too much importance on any on shot either because it will not be around for much longer. Another note, stick to the routine that you practice! |
| QCDG.com: Many players talk about routines they follow to get prepared to play a round. What type of process do you go through to get prepared both mentally and physically for each round? |
| Dan: Stretch before each and every round! Before every tournament round I stretch for about 15 minutes and then hit the field. I don’t throw far or my hardest for the field part. All I do is hit each and every line I possibly can without putting too much power on the throw. If you know the course already trying this is even better! Try to hit the lines you know you’ll be using. Don’t play a whole round before a tournament trying this approach because practice will be different from the actual competitive round and it may psyche you out. This will all help you to stay in the game and keep the mindset you’ll need without putting too much importance on the individual shots. |
| QCDG.com: What are the strengths of your game and where do you feel you would like to see the most improvement. What steps do you feel you need to take to make that a reality? |
| Dan: I would have to say the strengths of my game would have to be “Shot Selection”. I know what is within my game, and I know the shots I need to make and the risks that are involved in each and every shot. I know my accurate distances with discs that I have in my bag, and I know the discs that I have very well. The main thing I would like to change in my game and excel in is my putting. I am not a very good putter. I don’t know the mindset that is within a good putter. I practice almost every single day hoping to gain some edge on it but sometimes I feel like I’m not making any progress at all. I am trying my best at it and it will soon come. |
| QCDG.com: What type of course do you feel your style of play is best suited for and gives you an advantage over other players you might compete against? |
| Dan: The course we have in my area right now is called C.P. Adams in Hastings, Minnesota. It’s well known as the longest course in the state. I have a definite advantage over most players in the state because that course really shows the difference between 350’ and 450’ avg. distance. Most players in my division try to boom drives far past their driving level which causes them to spray their drives way too often and get themselves into trouble. The players I compete against have an overall avg. of 380’ of somewhat accurate distance. This course really favors me because I know the holes well enough to know when to play safe and when to use my distance off the tee to go for them. Hole 18 at C.P. Adams is notorious because it plays a legit 460 feet on flat ground with the road OB to the right. I find that I play better on courses that have a lot of OB and very thin fairways while other players get psyched out by that. |
| QCDG.com: Of course a well rounded game is an advantage to anyone wanting to excel in the sport of disc golf, but what types of shots do you feel are “must haves” for a player trying to get started in the game versus the more experienced player? |
| Dan: Learn as many shots as you can! Backhand, Sidearm, Thumber, Tomahawk, Grenade etc. These are all very important shots that you must have for balance. At least learn all of these before you turn pro even though you may be better at one of them than the other. |
| QCDG.com: Would you consider yourself to be an aggressive player on the course or do you lean more towards the conservative side and how does that play into your overall strategy of a round? |
| Dan: Depends on the competitive edge versus my game that day. I am 50/50 when it comes to being either conservative or aggressive. If it’s a two round tournament I’ll play the course and the percentages the first round and see how it goes. Then I would make my decision or not. If I was on the bottom cards of course I would go for broke on my shots. If I was on the top card I would be conservative if necessary. A few players have said I have a disc golf poker face because I was unpredictable in any situation. I looked calm on the pressure shots and I looked mean on shots that didn’t seem to deserve too much importance. That comes from my mentor Terry’s mentality that I have learned since the beginning of my days in disc golf. |
| QCDG.com: Do you have a certain brand of discs that you prefer, and what would you consider your “go to” driver, mid-range and putter? |
| Dan: I use the Tee-Bird, Z Predator, X2, Avenger, and I added a Star Wraith to my bag because it makes those longer drives hold easier. My “go-to” driver is in fact a DX Tee-Bird. I only have one mid-range mold because you only “need” one. I throw DX Rocs. As for my putter I use Wizards for driving and any kind of putting and upshots. I have three that are in the mid to upper 160g’s and a couple that are max weight for longer upshots or drives. I putt and make short upshots and some trick shots and shorter drives with the lighter ones. I like to have a balanced bag and resist anything super fast by all costs! |
| QCDG.com: What do you feel has been your greatest disc golf experience? |
| Dan: First time being on a card with Jon Drummond. It was the first time I ever got to see a big arm play. He has been playing for a long time and it was just really exciting to see how a player of his caliber plays the game. What shots he chooses over others, his disc selection, and I knew that both of our forms and techniques were totally the opposite of each other and it was just really exciting. |
QCDG.com: What advice would you like to give a new player looking to get involved in the sport of disc golf? |
| Dan: Shy away from the fast and stable molds, they will do no good for you right now. You will throw a Cyclone a lot farther than you could a Predator or a Destroyer. You’ll learn proper grip also if you use these older discs like a Tee-Bird or a Cyclone because they don’t have a super wide rim and you can “hit” them a lot harder than you could a Destroyer, Force, Boss etc.
Wider the rim, weaker the grip!
It is not the feet in the distance that counts the most; it is the control in the feet. |
Thanks so much to Dan for sharing his time with us at QuadCityDiscGolf.com! |
