Backhand Form and Technique

Playing at Manchester made me realise more than ever, that the practice on our local park was one thing but playing on a course and negotiating the various shaped fairways was something else. I had managed to get around the course using my forehand throw, but sometimes a backhand would have been a much better option. 

I’ve always been a sporty, outdoor loving person, right from being small and winning my first race at school sports day. During my life I have been a champion Field and Track Athlete, breaking and making new records. A champion Powerlifter, breaking and making records as well as placing 3rd in Britain, and a champion Bodybuilder competing and winning competitions nationally, including Miss Northern and Miss Southern Britain. I’ve played sports such as Table Tennis and Pickle Ball and Ball Golf recreationally, took up Skiing at age 40 and now I'm analysing my new sport of Disc Golf at nearly 60!

I was still having problems with my backhand throw, and although I'd watched lots of competition Disc Golf videos, my technique was clearly off and I wasn't throwing anywhere the distance my partner was. I'm very much a visual learner, so decided to search You Tube to see if I could find any technique teach-in type videos. The videos below I thought looked promising so decided to use these as a starter to try and understand where I might be going wrong and see if watching them could help.

How to throw Backhand

Add Distance to your Throw

After watching these it was back to the park to practice. Its only when you take a photo breakdown (or maybe a video slowmo) that you can see where the problems are.....

So self analysing and my first mistake is, don't try and throw like a pro with an X-Step in the equation. Too many things to think about and go wrong, and neither of the videos showed this for starters, so why did I think it was OK to include it. I should be starting with no run up and concentrate on pure technique. I also think I'm turning my body much too far round when I do the reach back. We do have hip issues in the family and I'm not sure whether I'm overcompensating for that or I've just not understood how my body is behaving when I do this move. Also, I can see I'm holding the disc like a wet rag! Clearly not in the right place to get any kind of spin. It's no wonder I'm not improving, I must be using complete strength rather than true technique. I think all I can do is watch the videos again and keep practicing.

Meanwhile, we've decided as Covid lockdown has eased and there is no restriction on travel within the UK, we will plan a trip with our motorhome (RV) and try out some other UK courses. Now let's see, where to head for first.....