For people playing disc golf for the first time, it may be a little complex to familiarize themselves with the golfing vocabulary. Like other games, disc ball too has a number of acronyms and words that refer to the different types of techniques and throws. As the game keeps evolving, professional disc golfers tend to change up the vocabulary too.
Many new terms have become a standard in the disc golfing world. One such term is a hyzer- one of the most common techniques used in disc golf. What is a hyzer and how do you throw a hyzer? Read on to find out.
What is a hyzer ?
The word hyzer technically refers to the angle the disc is thrown at but as the game grew it also started to represent the various patterns or curves of disc in the air.
A hyzer, to be specific, is the angle of the disc at its moment of release. When a player releases the disc with the ungripped side of the disc pointing closer to the ground rather than the gripped side, it is referred to as a hyzer throw.
So if you want to throw a disc with a more hyzer angle, tilt the ungripped side more towards the ground making a greater angle. But if you need to throw the disc with a less hyzer anger, tilt the ungripped side less making it more parallel to the ground and flatter.
What is an Antihyzer?
As with most things in life there’s always antithesis to everything. The same is the case for a hyzer throw. Completely opposite a hyzer is an anhyzer. In an anhyzer throw, the top of the disc is facing away from the player meaning the gripped side of the disc is leaning towards the ground while the ungripped is pointed upwards at an angle.
An anhyzer release is known to be more useful for long distance throws and can provide variety to clear many obstacles. Hyzer and anhyzer are the most common basics every beginner disc golfer should be familiar with.
How to throw a hyzer ?
Now that you know what a hyzer is you might think throwing it just requires adjusting the angle of the disc i.e tilt the bottom half facing away from you downwards to the ground and throw the disc- correct? Wrong.
No matter how accurate that is in theory, throwing the disc with a proper hyzer release is not as easy as it looks. Apart from the angle of release your body position also affects the hyzer throw. Positioning your upper body by tilting a little over your feet is required to achieve that perfect curve a hyzer is known for.
You need to aim a bit away from your target landing spot to make sure the disc curves back to your intended spot on the hyzer line. A Hyzer throw always requires more power than a straight throw to make up for the curved longer distance .
Why throw a hyzer?
A hyzer is the best throw for professional disc golfers. Even if there’s a straight way without any obstacles, professionals usually choose to go with a hyzer over a straight throw. Surprising ! Isn’t it?
Even though to the amature eye straight is the most viable option, after years of experience professionals figured out how a hyzer is the one of most accurate form of release and has the least margin of error for most of them. You might also have heard about forehand and backhand hyzer if you haven’t, don’t worry it’s almost the same principle.
Backhand Hyzer
For the backhand, point the opposite side of the gripped hand, e.g if you are a right handed player, tilt the disc towards the left bottom side, towards the ground as you release the disc.
Forehand Hyzer
Now the forehand hyzer also follows the same basic hyzer principle just opposite of a backhand . You need to point the disc again away from the body towards the ground, now for a right handed player that would mean tilt it towards the bottom right. The disc naturally swings to the right curving any obstacle in the way.
As the sport of disc golf continues to grow , so do its techniques. With time innovation in the hyzer release produced many different types of hyzer throws. The most known and used of these are : spike hyzer and hyzer flip.
Spike hyzer is when a disc is thrown at a very big hyzer angle that it’s almost vertical to the ground. The disc maintains the same angle throughout the flight as it flies straight up in the air. At the landing of the disc it sticks right into the ground Like a spear cuz if it’s sharp angle.
Hyzer flip is a release that can be deceiving and very tricky to master. In a hyzer flip the disc is thrown at a hyzer angle but the disc ends up either flat or like an anhyzer angle during the projection. Starting with the hyzer angle and flipping to an anhyzer angle deceives it’s deceiving nature .
Tips to Get Better at Hyzer Throw
- The best tip would be to learn forehand and Backhand release for hyzer. If you are passionate enough to want to be better than your average players in the park you would need both of these releases to help improve your game and add variety in your throwing arsenal
- Make sure you use the recommended disc. Different throws perform better with their appropriate disc . You need to choose a disc based on your skill level and shot selection .
- Practice makes a man perfect . You need to put in a lot of time and effort into the game to just master one type of throw . No matter how well you understand the hyzer in theory , if you don’t practice it a lot you will never get it right.
The Bottom Line
Like every other sport, disc golfing too has its own particular vocabulary to refer to techniques and position. One such term is a “hyzer”. A hyzer refers to an angle of throw and it is the best most recommended move to attain a goal in the sport. While throwing a hyzer can seem daunting at first it becomes easy with regular practice. Thus, players are advised to regularly assess their skill and practise to make their move perfect.
