More women throwing hammers, please!

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I liked Alex Rubin's recent (paywalled) Ultiworld article analyzing how Brute Squad and Fury responded to DC Scandal's zone defense at 2024 US Nationals.

Alex focuses on shape and speed:

The biggest differences in Brute Squad’s and Fury’s approaches is in their shape and the speed at which they play... [Fury] spaced themselves out from one sideline to another, [and] moved the disc incredibly quickly...

I don't disagree with Alex's analysis—it fits well with the ideas I presented in How do you actually beat a zone defense? But I'd like make another point about what I saw watching Brute Squad vs. Scandal. And unless you somehow missed the title, you already know what it is: we need more women throwing hammers, please!

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If you have an Ultiworld account, you can watch the Brute Squad vs. Scandal game here. I watched live and what stood out to me at the time, as much as Brute Squad's issues with "pace and space", is that they never looked to throw over the top of the zone.

And this wasn't due to wind—in fact, it was one of the least windy games you'll ever watch. I'm not sure how to best prove this to you, but it's pretty clear if you watch the game (aside from how cleanly the disc is flying throughout the game, note how you never see any ripples on the tents). Here's a pre-game shot I found with a completely limp US flag "flying" in the background:

Even with this epic lack of wind, Brute Squad's throwers never looked to get the disc over the top of Scandal's zone.

Here's a screenshot from one of the points Alex discusses in their article:

Brute Squad’s Samiya Ismail (#11, near the bottom of the screen) has no defender anywhere near her, but the throwers never consider throwing over the top to her.

Here's another screenshot from another point Alex highlighted:

The Brute Squad receiver near the left edge of the screen has no defenders within 10 yards of them (and since all 7 DC defenders are in front of them, they're effectively even more open than that — throw a disc behind them for them to run onto).

On the last point of the game—also highlighted in Alex's article—Ismail is again wide open towards the bottom half of the field when the disc is on the top sideline:

It got really foggy during the last few points of the game. Honestly it was pretty epic. Ismail is just above the 'E' in RAVENS

I've made an honest effort here to screenshot moments where the receiver was open for quite a while, and it wasn't just a momentary chance that a thrower wouldn't really be able to take advantage of.

These are the kind of opportunities that a great thrower needs to be able to take advantage of, especially with no wind. When a defense has to respect these threats, they're forced to spread out, making everything you do against a zone easier. But DC correctly chose not to respect receivers in the ‘hammer spot’, and focused on having defenders near the disc clogging up space.

So yeah: we need more women throwing hammers!¹ This game is just one prominent example, but it matches what I've seen, both playing locally and watching top-level games: there just aren't that many women who are comfortable throwing hammers. If you need some encouragement:

Work on your hammer! Get so good at it you'll throw it with the same immediacy you'd throw an open 20-yard flick! Don't succumb to the peer pressure of only throwing forehands and backhands (whether in throwing sessions or games)—be the peer pressure you want to see in the world! Show this article to your friends and get them on board, too!

(Another reason to practice hammers: the science of learning is pretty unanimous that "variations around a theme" are a more efficient way to learn than doing the same exact thing repeatedly—hammers are a variation that will help your body learn to throw flicks even better.)

It's been pointed out to me before that men and women have, on average, different shoulder anatomy. But I'm very confident that's not relevant here. I've helped a few DoW players learn to throw hammers, and every single one of them got better quickly once they started actually practicing hammers.

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Some quick notes on developing a hammer:

I've seen some consistent themes in my time encouraging people to throw hammers. Here's what I suggest focusing on as you begin learning:

• Practice. If you throw hammers as much as you throw flicks, you'll eventually be as confident in your hammer as you are in your flick.

• Learn to push off the same-side foot. Lots of players who don't come from a "throwing sports" background have the instinct to step forward with their throwing-side foot when they throw hammers, the same way they do when throwing a flick (for example: right leg steps forward on a right-handed flick). But we know from every other sport that you maximize your power by pushing off the same leg you throw with. Let quarterbacks and pitchers be your inspiration:

  

  Baseball pitchers push off their right foot when throwing with their right arm. Source – Ohtani

  

  In football, righties throw with their right foot back, left shoulder forward. Source — Goff

  Righties pivot around their left foot in ultimate because it maximizes the distance you can step out on throws, not because it's a mechanically better throwing motion.
  Of course, you still need to avoid traveling—you're not stepping forward with your pivot foot the way pitchers do, but you are putting your non-pivot back to push off of. In summary: for righties: start with right foot slightly back, left shoulder slightly forward.²
  
  

• Build up to high spin speed and low wobble. The hammer is essentially a forehand with the arm in a different slot. If you can release a flick with high spin speed and low wobble, you can do the same for your hammer. Work patiently on your ability to do so. You’re aiming for that same powerful snap to your wrist, but in a new arm position. As people do with flicks, one way I like to teach this is by practicing super short (less than five yards), super soft hammers to encourage spin regardless of speed.
  
  You can even work on spin speed in the comfort of your own home by laying on the bed—or sitting on the ground—and throwing a "hammer" straight up and down to yourself.

Happy hammering! And if you’re not convinced, let me know what points I need to discuss to convince you.

1. And other over-the-top throws

2. It's very possible to throw a hammer without pushing off the same-side foot, you'll see ultimate players do it all the time. Once you’re confident in the arm & wrist motion, you can gets lots of power even throwing off the wrong foot. But I still think it's an important skill to learn as it helps add power and encourages efficient throwing form