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(quoted from PDGA.com)
The growing popularity of the game of disc golf begins with the essential fact that throwing a flying disc with power and accuracy is a marvelous sensation. The constant challenge, the social nature of the game, the good physical and mental conditioning, and the fact that it is inexpensive to play are also attractions. Disc golf is a recreational sport for everybody, regardless of age, gender, or ability.
The object of the game is to traverse a course from beginning to end in the fewest number of throws of the disc. Each consecutive throw is made from where the disc came to rest after the last throw. Score is determined by counting the number of throws made on each hole plus penalty throws and then summing all holes. The winner is the player who completes the course with the lowest score.
The course consists of a series of holes laid out so that when the player completes one hole he or she proceeds to the beginning of the next until all the holes have been played. The player is provided with a teeing area from which to begin each hole and a target to complete the hole. Disc golf courses are normally laid out among wooded areas with diverse terrain to provide natural obstacles to the flight of the disc. These natural obstacles are very much a part of the game and must not be altered by the players in any way to decrease the difficulty of a hole. Disc golf courses are normally 18 holes in length, but there are also 9-hole, 24-hole and 27-hole courses in existence. Disc golf courses can be found in each of the 50 United States and in Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, Hungary, United Kingdom, Peru, and Africa.
Disc golf is a game that expects high standards of etiquette and courtesy. Among the basic considerations of etiquette are such things as concern for spectators and other players and respect for plant life on the course. These rules have been designed to promote fair play for all disc golfers. In using these rules, players should apply the rule that most directly addresses the situation in question. If in doubt, players should consult an official.
All of the descriptions that follow are for a right handed thrower throwing backhand. For a left handed throw, reverse everything. For a forehand throw, reverse everything. Which means that a left handed forehand throw will behave like a right handed backhand throw.
Flying discs differ in their flight characteristics. There are three general types of discs, overstable, stable, and understable.
- An overstable disc will tend to go in the direction that is opposite of the throwing hand, so our right handed player's overstable disc will tend to fall left.
- A stable disc will tend to go straight when thrown flat.
- An understable disc will go in the direction of the throwing hand, so our right handed player's understable disc will turn right.
The heavier a disc is, the more overstable in tends to be. The lighter it is, the more understable it tends to be. Also, as a disc ages it will tend to become more understable.
Given these different characteristics, you will sometimes have to vary your angle of release in order to get the disc to end up where you want it.
- Hyzer means to release your disc with a negative angle. That is, for our right handed thrower the left edge of the disc will be lower than the right edge when it is released.
- Anhyzer means to release your disc with a positive angle. That is, for our right handed thrower the left edge of the disc will be higher than the right edge when it is released.
So let's say you're right handed and have a very overstable disc. You want it to end up straight ahead of you so you throw with anhyzer. Your disc starts out flying to the right but soon flattens out and comes back left.
Similarly, if you have an understable disc and you want it to end up straight ahead of you, you should throw it with hyzer. It will start by flying to the left before flattening out and flying to the right.
One important thing to keep in mind is that, given enough time, a disc spinning clockwise (right handed backhand or left handed forehand) will eventually fall to the left (and a disc spinning counter-clockwise will eventually fall to the right). Many times a thrower who wants their disc to turn right will get the nose up on it and it will hyzer out, meaning it will fall back to the left. This type of throw is generally followed by muted (or maybe not so muted) cursing and the occasional kick to their bag.
Ok, so now you've got your stables and your hyzers all set and you're on the tee pad staring into the teeth of a fifty mile per hour wind. You have a nagging feeling that your disc won't fly quite like you've been told. You are absolutely right.
A headwind (wind blowing in your face) will do several things to a disc in flight.
- It will raise the disc up, so when throwing into the wind it is best to keep the throw low and flat.
- It will turn the disc over, meaning it will make it go in the direction of the throwing hand. So our right hander's throw will go to the right.
- It will slow the disc down. (Hey, I didn't say that these were all insightful observations)
So with the wind blowing in your face you might want to throw a more overstable disc to keep it from turning over, or you might want to throw with hyzer so when your disc does turn over it will go from left to straight instead of straight to right. Of course, if you're playing in a hurricane you'll want to do both.
A tail wind (wind blowing from your back) will also do several things to a disc in flight.
- It will drop the disc down, so when throwing with a tail wind you might want to throw your disc a little bit higher than normal.
- It will make the disc hyzer out sooner, falling away from the throwing hand.
- It will push the disc along nicely, if you let it.
So there's a huge tail wind and you want to take advantage of it, you throw an understable disc and get it up in the wind a little bit. Because it's understable it will take longer to hyzer out and in the meantime you get to see your beautiful little disc fly hundreds of feet towards (presumably) a basket.
If you're just starting out and unsure of what (or how) to throw, there are a few quick guidelines that will help. The first (and, to me, most important) is, throw light discs. Yeah, the pro at your course is throwing a 180g viper 500 feet, but forget about it. Start light, you'll get better arm speed and better distance, as well as putting less strain on your body. Once you've gotten comfortable with your throw and your light discs are starting to turn over, then start to experiment with heavier weights. In general a light disc will fly just as far as a heavier one. The world distance records for women and masters were set with 150g or lighter discs and the overall world distance record was set with a 169g disc. That said, if you can generate the same arm speed with a heavier disc, it will go farther because it has more momentum. Also, most players are more accurate with a heavier disc.
The second guideline is to start with a stable or an understable disc. I'm a huge fan of the stratus, stingray, comet, and shark as beginner discs. Lightning also makes some extremely user-friendly discs that are good for beginners.
Third (once you have your light, understable disc) is to keep your body relaxed through your throwing motion. You should concentrate on releasing cleanly and keeping the nose of the disc down. If you get the nose up your disc will stall out and fall off to the left, costing you distance and accuracy. You can generate lots of arm speed (and, thus, distance) by reaching your throwing arm back across your body as far as you can and pulling the disc straight through (as opposed to around). Finally, you can get a good "snap" on the disc by holding it tightly (but not so tightly that the rest of your body tightens up).
John Houck has a video called Learn to Play Disc Golf which does a good job of covering the basics, there are also articles in many issues of Disc Golf World News with suggestions to improve your throwing technique. Probably the best source of information, though, are the good players around your home course. Watch them and talk to them, ask if you can play a round with them, most of the time they will say yes.
Learn to Play Disc Golf Video w/ John Houck - This 14 min video, featuring leading course designer John Houck, teaches the basics rules, the differences in golf discs, throwing techniques, and other tips to improve your game in a hurry. A must have for the beginning player. VHS.
$7.99 
Typically, the lighter a disc is, the further it will carry. However, the more advanced player you are, the heavier disc you will need to be able to control your shots correctly. Heavier discs rely on the lift created by the rotation of the disc for their distance, so they have to be thrown with a lot of spin.
If you're a beginner, you would have the most success with the 150 Class. The 150 Class discs were designed with new players in mind
Intermediate players usually work up to discs ranging from 165-175 Grams
Advanced players typically have a whole array of discs in their bags, each one designed for a specific shot. They normally need heavier and more stable discs because they throw with a lot of power and rotation.