Distance Drivers, as their name suggests, have the greatest potential to travel the greatest distance. However, they also require the greatest speed to travel true to their intended flight characteristics. Distance drivers have wider rims and sharper noses, so they might not be the best choice for younger players, newer players, or players with slower arm speeds.

Fairway Drivers have slightly smaller rims than distance drivers and are easier to control because they have less speed potential. While fairway drivers have less distance potential, they are a great choice for tighter lines, shots with less skip at the end, straighter flights, and shorter drives. Fairway drivers are generally a good choice for experienced and inexperienced players alike.

Midranges are a great disc to choose as your first disc. Midranges often offer straighter flights and won’t vary from their intended flight to the degree that fairway and distance drivers will if thrown errantly. Midranges have smaller rims that feel comfortable in most people’s hands and often have slightly deeper inner rims than drivers do. Midranges are very helpful for navigating narrow fairways and landing approaches close to the basket.

Putters are the deepest, slowest, disc golf discs and have the thinnest rims. Putters are intended to fly shorter distances and on straighter lines. Putters are the slowest spinning discs, so they have less potential to deviate off line. While putters are made to go in the basket, they’re also less likely to fly too far beyond the basket. Along with developing a good short game, a player’s use of putters is extremely important to scoring well.