The short answer is: Yes they do.
However, the distance is in the details. You COULD get more distance with a driver… if you have the skill to throw the disc fast enough to make it fly properly. If you don’t have that skill, which most beginners don’t, then throwing a driver won’t net much more distance.
An interesting thing occurs when newer disc golfers take a stack of discs to a field and throw them all. They often times find that the putters, midrange discs and drivers get close to the same distance.
This is usually a result of one of two different things. Either the faster discs are way too fast for your skill level (Read this article for an explanation of disc speed and how it affects beginners HERE), or you are throwing the discs nose-up.
Throwing nose-up is where the leading edge of the disc is slightly higher than the trailing edge. Normally, a driver is more aerodynamic than a putter.
When both are thrown nose-up, the difference is minimal. Thus, your putters and drivers will have the same resistance and frequently end up near each other.
How to Correct the Possible Issues
Nose Up: When a disc leaves your hand and it is flat, it will fly differently than if you have the nose (front of the disc) slightly higher than the rest of the disc. Here is a video that describes the problem of putters and drivers flying similar distances
The author, Danny Lindhal has three suggestions to correct for improper nose angle:
- Keep your reach back a little lower and make sure you keep your pull below your shoulders. You might need to film yourself to see if you raise your disc when you start your throw.
- Keep your wrist straight and your hand on the outside of the disc, in relation to your body. (See picture) Your wrist doesn’t need to be bent.
- On your follow-through, finish higher than your release.
Driver speeds too fast: If your skill is not sufficient to properly throw a high-speed driver, throw a slower speed. If you aren’t getting much distance on your drives, or your drives fade left almost immediately after you throw, you are likely throwing a disc that whose speed is too fast for you.
In order for a driver to fly like it should, you have to throw it fast enough. Slower drivers don’t need to be thrown as fast.
Another way to help with arm speed is to look for lighter discs. Since there is less mass to accelerate, you are able to generate more arm speed with a lighter disc. That may give you enough arm speed that the disc will fly properly and you will get the full flight of the disc.
Start slow and get faster
These tips might help you get a little more distance with your putter. Cleaning up the form errors and throwing the proper disc speed/weight will help you pick up quite a bit more distance with your drivers. Then you can use your putters and mid’s for more touch shots, knowing that you can always pull out the drivers to cover a lot of ground.
In case you were wondering what distances are possible with a putter, check out this video of Simon crushing his P2:
Conclusion
Drivers are a great way to get a lot of distance. However, as a beginner your best bet is to start with slower discs, so you can develop the form that will allow you to progress faster to becoming a skilled disc golfer. Then when you jump up to drivers you’ll find that they are outdriving mids and putters by a good distance.