The grenade is one of disc golf’s cooler utility shots. If you’ve got a wall of trees in front of you with no way around ‘em, it’s simple – go over. And whereas a spike forehand or backhand will bring with it side-to-side movement, the grenade goes up and down – it also hits and sticks.
The flight’s certainly desirable …
The thumb pain associated with throwing one, though?
Not so much.
The more problematic, pain-inducing (and popular) grenade grip is the standard, four-finger power grip. Only, instead of four fingers pinched tightly underneath the rim of the disc and the thumb resting along the outside edge of the flight plate, things are reversed – the disc, as well.
Like, LITERALLY – flip the disc over.
From there, pinch your thumb tightly underneath the rim and rest the other four fingers along the outside edge of the flight plate. Eagle McMahon’s a big-time proponent of this grip. He just so happens to be one of the best grenade-throwers out on the Pro Tour, as well – check it out …
Here’s the “top” of the disc – remember, things are flipped:
And here’s the “underside,” as well:
You’re NOT Eagle McMahon, though …
The vast majority of amateur disc golfers who attempt to huck a grenade with this grip are going to feel like their thumb’s about to fall off immediately afterwards – it’s a sharp, nagging pain.
Here’s the SMARTER way to go about doing things:
- Step No. 1 – Similar to the aforementioned grip, turn the disc upside down.
- Step No. 2 – From the knuckle down, hook your pointer finger under the rim.
- Step No. 3 – Clamp down on your fingernail with your thumb – press down tightly.
- Step No. 4 – Along the flight plate, the remaining three fingers will curl and form a ball.
If that didn’t make much sense, watch this – the correct timestamp’s been accounted for:
* Note #1: Unlike Rick, I do recommend making your three side-by-side fingers into a ball.
* Note #2: By doing so, the entire grip is firm and compact – you’ll get a cleaner release.
I’m just as much an amateur as you are, so my grenade’s by no means the best the game’s ever seen – it’s not terribly inconsistent, though. I’m not Kevin Jones – I can’t get 350-plus feet out of the thing. But with a Firebird, Fireball, Felon or Raptor, within 200 feet, it’s pretty dang reliable.
The grenade is a shot you need in your bag – use the above grip to make it happen.
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