We get it, you don’t like watching the Pro Tour make stops at courses in the wide open – hyzer fests get old real quick. Seeing touring pros lace lines looks awesome and is what many of us appreciate it as the most entertaining way disc golf can be watched. BUT its all fun and games until you have to hit that gap.

If you have ever played a wooded course on tour(think Idlewild or Northwood Black), you find out real quick that the professionals make the gaps look MUCH bigger than they actually are. If you want to learn better ways to hit more gaps like the pros, read below!

Throw the forehand(if you can)

This only applies to those that can confidently throw a forehand, even if it is only 200 feet. One of the best parts of a forehand throw, is that you can look where you are throwing and lose next to no power – a recipe for carving up a wooded course. Even if a hole doesn’t shape for the forehand, if you can work the disc up the fairway, having a long putt for a birdie is way better than scrambling for the par off the fairway.

Disc down(or up)

You head it in little league – choke up on the bat when you have two strikes to try and just make contact. This sort of translates to disc golf(we are stretching the comparison but just go with it) in the sense that clubbing down to hit the gap, even if you sacrifice distance, is often a wise choice. The reason we say that it may make sense to club up is that you should throw the disc that you feel most confident hitting the gap…but trust us, switch out that distance driver for a fairway, you can thank us later.

Throw the angle that makes sense to hit the gap

This is probably the most important factor, regardless if you are throwing forehand or backhand. Angle control is super tough – but most of us have a preferred angle at the least. Finding that angle and matching it with a disc that will fly as needed makes for a deadly combination. Most people prefer to throw on hyzer in the woods and flip something understable up but plenty of players will work other angles with different stabilities – just find what works best for you!

Hopefully the next time to step up to a hole with a scary gap you focus on hitting it and not worrying about the trees – just remember, trees are 90% air anyways.