There is something magical about catching a disc.
Watch it float down from the sky. Track its spin as it glides toward you. Feel the moment when plastic meets palm and suddenly you have possession. You and your handler just connected across thirty yards of open space, and now the disc is yours.
That feeling never gets old. Jared Kass felt it back in the 1960s when he was inventing this sport at Amherst College. I feel it every Sunday morning at Nolte. Your grandchildren will feel it decades from now on fields that have not been built yet.
But here is the thing about catching: it is the most important skill nobody talks about. Your team can have the best handlers in the world. You can run the perfect offense. You can make beautiful cuts and create wide open windows. But if nobody can catch the disc when it matters, none of that means anything.
Catching is like breathing. Throwing may be the heart pumping blood through the system, but you need to breathe air to live and support that heart. Catching is the breath that keeps everything alive.
The Workhorse Mentality
When I interviewed Ben Jagt, two time AUDL MVP, I asked him what makes him so reliable as a receiver. His answer was simple: "I'm just a workhorse. Handlers know that. They know I'm going to run to the space. They know I'm going to get my hands up. They know I'm going to catch it."
That confidence matters more than you might think. When a handler has the disc and the stall count is rising, they are scanning the field for someone to throw to. They have options. But who do they choose? They choose the player they trust. The player who catches everything. The player who shows up in the right space with strong hands and hungry eyes.
You can become that player. It starts with mastering the fundamentals in this chapter.
The Three Basic Catches
When it comes down to it, there are really only three catches. The left hand catch is a one handed grab reaching with your left. The right hand catch is a one handed grab reaching with your right. And the two handed clap catch is pinning the disc between both palms.
That is it. Everything else, every fancy variation, every technique with a clever name, is just a version of those three. Master these fundamentals and you can catch anything that comes your way.
One Handed First: My Controversial Advice
Here is where my teaching is a little different from what most coaches do.
Most coaches say catch with two hands first because it is safer and more secure. I say try catching with one hand first, especially if you are working with beginners who have access to a very soft disc.
Why? Because once someone learns to catch with one hand, catching with two hands becomes instinctual. It feels effortless. They have already conquered the hard part. It is like training with a weighted bat and then stepping up to the plate with a regular one. Everything feels lighter and simpler.
The main barrier for beginners is fear. They are afraid the disc will hurt. That fear makes them flinch, close their eyes, or pull their hands away at the last second. But if you give them a super soft disc like a Dodgebee, one made of light foam that could not hurt them if it tried, that fear disappears.
Give It a Landing: The Secret to Soft Hands
Eric Knudsen has been playing Ultimate since the sport's earliest days. He has taught hundreds of players how to catch, and he has distilled the most important concept into three words: "Give it a landing."
Here is what he means. When the disc comes at you, do not let your hands be a brick wall. Do not stand rigid and let the disc smash into your palms. If you do that, the disc will bounce right off, even if you are using two hands.
Instead, as the disc arrives, move with it. Absorb the impact. Give it a soft place to land.
Think about catching a water balloon. If you hold your hands still, it explodes. But if you let your hands drift backward as it arrives, absorbing the impact, it lands softly and stays intact. The disc works the same way. Move your hands backward slightly as you catch. Let your arms give. Your body becomes a cushion instead of a wall.
Eric describes it beautifully: "You see it coming at you. You have your eye contact, you catch it, and you move to the side. As long as you're moving to the side, you can kind of catch it. I love catching that way. I feel like I'm in the Matrix."
This is the difference between players who catch clean and players who drop easy throws. Soft hands beat strong hands every time.
→ Action Step: Have a partner throw you passes at medium speed. As the disc arrives, let your hands drift backward six inches. Feel how much softer the catch becomes. Practice until it is automatic.
The Clap Catch: Your Foundation
The clap catch, also called the pancake or crocodile catch, is the most fundamental two handed catching technique in Ultimate.
One hand goes underneath. One hand goes on top. You pin the disc directly in the middle and push down between your hands to balance the weight so it does not flip on you. This catch works best when you get your body behind the disc. The disc arrives in line with your torso, so even if your hands are slightly off, your chest acts as a backstop.
Why the clap catch works:
- Body backup if you mistime it
- Two point contact provides maximum grip
- Works in wind because the clapping motion locks the disc
- Reliable under pressure
Keys to preventing drops: thumb over thumb, fingers over fingers, equal pressure from both hands, give it a landing by letting your hands compress on impact, and lock it in the moment it touches your palms.
The T Catch: Use Your Chest
This is a variation on the clap catch that I think is way more reliable, especially when you are running.
Take your left hand and put it at chest level, palm facing up. That is your base hand. Now take your right hand and rotate it ninety degrees, palm facing down but positioned to the side. Your hands form a T shape.
When the disc comes in, you are trapping it between your two hands and your chest. The disc has nowhere to go. It cannot flip because your body is right there backing everything up.
Think about it like catching a football. You are running onto the disc at high speed. You pin it where it almost hits your chest, clamp down with your hands, and your chest acts as a backstop.
When a pass is coming at me fast, directly at my chest somewhere between my eyes and my torso, I am using the T catch every single time.
The Crab Claw: Your One Handed Weapon
This is your bread and butter one handed catch. There are two ways to do it.
Crab claw with thumb down: Use this for catches at head level and above. Your fingers spread wide across the top of the disc while your thumb supports from underneath. This is the natural motion for catching something above you.
Crab claw with thumb up: Use this for catches at waistline and below. Your fingers spread underneath the disc while your thumb presses down hard from the top. You are scooping the disc out of the air.
After practicing for a while, you will get a good feel for what feels most comfortable. The more reps you get, the more your hands just know which orientation to use without thinking about it.
Right Side Up Versus Upside Down
Not all discs come at you the same way.
Right side up throws include backhands and flicks. They come at you flat or angled but oriented normally. Upside down throws include hammers, scoobers, and thumbers. The rim is facing up, usually arriving in a weird arc or curve.
The hammer catch is actually pretty easy once you get used to it, because the rim is facing up. You can grasp the bottom of the disc with your thumb while you wrap your fingers around the top of the rim. I almost let it go over my head and catch it right above me with two hands.
One handed hammer catches are hard. The disc is dropping very quickly and usually at an angle you are not used to. These take practice and reps to feel comfortable.
Come to the Disc: Do Not Wait for It
The most common mistake I see with beginners is they do not come to the disc when it is thrown at them. They stand still and wait for it to arrive.
You need to check for traffic, then boldly have the courage to run toward that disc and catch it before it gets to you.
Why attacking the disc matters:
- Makes it much more difficult for defenders to snatch it
- Reduces the time the disc is in the air
- Shows handlers you are hungry and confident
Catching can be slightly aggressive, and that is okay. You are hungry for the disc. Attack it like you own it.
Reading the Spin Direction
The disc is spinning. Depending on which direction it is spinning, catching on one side is easy and catching on the other side is hard.
There is old wisdom that says you want to catch backhands with your right hand and forehands with your left hand. This way the spin works with your grip instead of against it.
But here is what I really think: the best way to learn this is just to feel it. Have someone throw you backhands. Catch them with your right hand. Then catch them with your left hand. Notice which one feels more secure. After a few dozen reps, your hands will just know. You will not have to think about it.
When You Mess Up
It is okay. Everybody messes up.
If you miss a catch, there will be another opportunity. Shake it off. Move on. Play good defense. Catch the next one. The drop already happened. You cannot change it. What you can change is what happens next.
Everyone on your team is watching to see how you respond. If you hang your head and sulk, your energy brings the team down. If you shake it off and hustle back, you show your team that mistakes do not define you.
The best players in the world drop catches. Especially in the wind. Especially when they are tired. It happens to everyone. Ask yourself: was it bad luck, or was it something you need to practice more? If it was bad luck, let it go. If it was a skill gap, do the drills. Either way, dwelling on the drop helps no one.
Building Strong Hands
Everything we have talked about requires one thing: strong hands. Hands that can clamp down on a spinning disc traveling forty miles per hour. Hands that do not let go when you hit the ground. Hands that can squeeze and secure in a split second.
The Hula Hoop Drill: This is the single best exercise for building catching strength. If you read Book 1, you know this drill inside and out. Spin a disc on your middle finger. Keep it spinning for as long as you can, aiming for thirty seconds at first. Switch to your index finger. Then your non dominant hand. Build up to three to five minutes of continuous spinning. Five minutes a day, every day, and within a month your finger strength will be noticeably different.
Other hand strengthening exercises:
- Tennis balls or racquetballs — Squeeze repeatedly throughout the day. In the car. Watching TV. At your desk.
- Rice bucket — Fill a bucket with uncooked rice. Plunge your hands in and squeeze, twist, grab. This works your fingers, hands, and forearms in ways nothing else does.
- Grip strengtheners — Those little spring loaded squeezers you can get anywhere. Use them frequently.
- Hand stretches — Flexibility is important too. Stretch your fingers apart. Bend them back gently. Keep your hands supple so they can wrap around the disc easily.
- Disc squeezing — Grab a disc with both hands and squeeze it as hard as you can. Try to bend the plastic. This teaches your hands exactly how much force they can generate.
When you know how strongly you can squeeze a disc, catching a spinning disc becomes easier. Your hands know what to do. Strong hands catch more discs. Period.
The Wind Is Your Teacher
Here is my secret weapon for getting better at catching: practice in the wind by yourself.
At Nolte, there is this one corridor between these old evergreen trees. On windy days, the wind comes barreling through that gap. You can hear it whistling through the pine needles, this cool rushing sound like nature's wind tunnel. That is where I always go when it is windy.
I toss the disc up and practice catching it in unpredictable conditions. The wind pushes the disc around. It swoops, dives, floats where it should not. I am forced to adapt in real time. I develop faster reflexes. I learn to read chaotic disc movements.
The payoff is enormous. When I go play in an actual game, catching feels so much easier. My teammates are throwing it to me. They are aiming. They are putting spin on it. The throws are not nearly as chaotic as what I was dealing with when I threw it to myself in the wind.
It is like training with ankle weights and then taking them off for the race. Everything feels lighter. Everything feels slower. Everything feels catchable.
Quick Reference: All the Basic Catches
Two Handed Catches:
- Clap Catch (Pancake) — One hand on top, one underneath, pin the disc between palms
- T Catch — Left hand up, right hand sideways, trap disc against chest while running
One Handed Catches:
- Crab Claw (Thumb Down) — Fingers on top, thumb underneath, for catches at head level and above
- Crab Claw (Thumb Up) — Fingers underneath, thumb on top, scooping for catches at waist and below
Special Situations:
- Hammer Catch — Rim facing up, thumb on bottom, fingers wrap around rim
- Give It a Landing — Move hands backward on impact to absorb the disc softly (applies to all catches)
Wrap Up
◆ Catching is the breath that keeps the game alive. You cannot score or maintain possession without it.
◆ Ben Jagt's workhorse mentality means being reliable in all conditions. Handlers throw to players they trust.
◆ The three basic catches are left hand, right hand, and both hands together. Everything else is a variation.
◆ "Give it a landing" by moving with the disc as it arrives. Soft hands beat strong hands every time.
◆ The clap catch is your foundation. The T catch adds chest backup. The crab claw is your one handed weapon.
◆ Attack the disc instead of waiting for it. The disc belongs to the person who wants it most.
◆ Build strong hands through the Hula Hoop Drill (most important), rice buckets, grip strengtheners, and disc squeezing.
◆ Practice in the wind by yourself to develop faster reflexes and better disc reading.
Mentor's Closing
I have been catching discs for over twenty years.
I have caught easy throws and impossible throws. I have caught in calm weather and in howling wind. I have caught touchdowns that won games and dropped passes that I will never forget.
And here is what I have learned: catching is not about having the biggest hands or the strongest grip. It is about having soft hands that give the disc a landing. It is about building trust with your handlers so they throw with confidence. It is about attacking every disc like it is yours.
When Eric Knudsen told me to "give it a landing," something clicked. I stopped trying to muscle the disc out of the air. I started moving with it. Absorbing it. Letting it float into my hands instead of smashing into them.
That one shift made me a better catcher overnight.
So practice the fundamentals. Build your hand strength with the Hula Hoop Drill every single day. Learn to read spin direction. Attack the disc with hunger. And most importantly, give every catch a soft landing.
Because the disc is coming your way. And when it does, you are going to catch it. :)