Contents
  1. Overview
  2. Flight characteristics
  3. Recommended uses
  4. Plastics & variants
  5. History
  6. Notable throwers
  7. Similar discs

The Innova Stingray is a 4-speed very understable midrange. With published flight numbers of 4 / 5 / -3 / 1, it is most often described as suited for mid-to-long-range roller shots (often called the best midrange roller in existence), right-turning (rhbh) shape shots and turnovers.

Overview

The Innova Stingray is — per IsaacSam — 'perhaps the most underrated disc in the history of Innova,' and the first modern midrange Innova ever made.[1] With 4/5/-3/1 flight numbers,[2] it's a very understable Speed-4 midrange that Innova bills as their best disc for right-turning (RHBH) shots and one of their most popular roller discs.[2] When it was released in 1987 it was classified as a driver — faster than any other Innova mold at the time — and was a key part of early Innova professionals' bags.[1] The Stingray is the second-oldest Innova mold still in full production, behind only the Aviar.[1]

Flight characteristics

Flight numbers: manufacturer vs. community
SourceSpeedGlide TurnFade
Innova (mfg) 4 5 -3 1 Published spec
Discpedia community Loading ratings…

Flight numbers describe the published behavior of the disc when thrown at its design speed. Real-world flight varies with plastic, weight, age, and thrower power. The community-averaged numbers above reflect crowd-sourced observations from real throws — typically slightly more understable than the manufacturer's published values, which is the most consistent pattern across nearly every commercial mold.

The Stingray excels on hyzer-flip midrange approaches, gentle anhyzer S-curves, dead-straight tunnel shots, and — most distinctively — long roller shots.[1][2] Some players claim the Stingray is the best midrange roller disc in existence.[1] DX Stingrays beat in fast to become 'flippy but predictable'; the Star and Halo Star runs hold their factory turn longer.[1][2] The shallow rim makes it especially gripable for smaller hands.[2]

Best for:

  • Mid-to-long-range roller shots (often called the best midrange roller in existence)
  • Right-turning (RHBH) shape shots and turnovers
  • Hyzer-flip approaches that ride out flat
  • Tunnel shots from beginner-friendly arm speeds
  • Touch upshots for smaller hands (shallow rim)

Plastics & variants

The Stingray is available in the following plastic blends from Innova:

Halo Star, Star, DX

Plastic blend significantly affects flight character. Premium plastics like Champion, Z, or C-Line generally fly more overstable when fresh and hold their stability over time. Base plastics like DX, Pro, or Active beat in faster and become more understable workhorses with use.

History

The Stingray was PDGA-approved on January 1, 1987 (certification 87-08),[3] making it Innova's first long-range driver-class disc (it was reclassified as a midrange later).[1] DGA's early 'Professional Disc Golf Disc 1-3' line was made up of modified Stingrays produced by Innova for DGA[1] — which is why those early-DGA discs appear on the PDGA approval list as 'Modified Stingray.' Gregg Barsby (2018 PDGA World Champion) still throws the Stingray.[1] The original 'Amoeba' stamp is the most sought-after vintage Stingray, followed by the 2nd-variety 'Circle Stamp' Stingrays and PFN Champion runs (the Champion plastic Stingray is no longer made).[1] Kat Mertsch has a modern tour-series Halo Star Stingray run.[2]

Notable throwers

Gregg Barsby (2018 PDGA World Champion — still throws the Stingray), Kat Mertsch (tour series)

Similar discs

References & further reading

Sources

Content on this page has been cross-checked against the following sources. Numbered citations in the prose above link to the matching entry here.

  1. "Every Single Innova Disc, Part 1 (Aero – Roc)" — u/IsaacSam98 on r/discgolf (dedicated Stingray chapter)
  2. Innova Stingray — Skyline Disc Golf (flight numbers + manufacturer description summary)
  3. Stingray — PDGA approved-disc database (certification 87-08, approved 1987-01-01)

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