Discussion - Thoughts on how you choose your putter

[HyzerRoc]

You took that massively out of context and incorrectly.

What I was just saying has absolutely nothing to do with changing putters at 30 feet, but all about choosing a putter from the start.

I'm talking about choosing the wrong putter and staying with it when there are probably better options all together.

Can you list some considerations that go into choosing a putter?

Obviously hand feel is on that list and that is because a certain grip (and the finger spring that goes with it) works better with deep/shallow putters as the fingers have different loads depending on the deepness of a putter.

Telling from your comments stability goes into it. Spin putters usually like an overstable putter like a P2 and most pros go with fairly OS putters like a KC Aviar. However I dont really get exactly why they would prefer OS putters. If you putt straight at the basket it should not fade out, therefore you need to put a lot of power on OS putters which would make them sail far away. Also landing at an angle makes rollaways worse. So I dont really get why OS putters are better for that kind of putting style.

Putts that dont generate a lot of power require putters with more glide like a Dagger. For me that would be push putts or short arm putts like Calvin Heimburg is using. However Calvin also uses an OS putter in the KC Aviar when I would expect someone with that style to go for a Whale. At least Wysocki is using a Dagger as expected from someone with a push/spush putt.

One other thing in defense of just using the putter you feel comfortable with is the finger spring. For me this mechanic is really fickle and I struggle with the putter coming out nose down and general inconsistency in the nose angle. Just using an Aviar all the time makes it easier on my fingers on learning the motion of the finger spring. Changing putters to find a best one would require me to learn the finger spring over and over again with different shapes and different loads on my fingers. And how would I know I found a nice one?

 

[ru4por]

I fail to understand the idea that putting styles are innate. How can anyone develop a putting style before choosing a putter? Of course, you should find a putter that feels comfortable and start learning the disc. Much like learning any disc. People don't come with a built in putting style. Maybe I am missing something here?

 

[HyzerRoc]

I fail to understand the idea that putting styles are innate. How can anyone develop a putting style before choosing a putter? Of course, you should find a putter that feels comfortable and start learning the disc. Much like learning any disc. People don't come with a built in putting style. Maybe I am missing something here?

Do you have a preference for back- or forehand? Or maybe even certain angles within both of these throws?

I think people have learned motions from other sports and find it thus easier to do certain throwing motions based on what they know to do already. A spin putt requires you to generate a lot of power from flicking the arm and the wrist at the target. A push putt requires you to have a feeling for a weight shift and how the shifted weight can be transfered as power onto the disc.

 

[TiltedFlipCurves]

Do you have a preference for back- or forehand? Or maybe even certain angles within both of these throws?

I think people have learned motions from other sports and find it thus easier to do certain throwing motions based on what they know to do already. A spin putt requires you to generate a lot of power from flicking the arm and the wrist at the target. A push putt requires you to have a feeling for a weight shift and how the shifted weight can be transfered as power onto the disc.

Sweet! I can't do either What disc scoober putts

 

[g20]

Started with an orange Aviar from a 6 disc starter set I split with a friend in 2005. It didn't go in the basket very well so naturally I switched. Guy at the local disc store recommended an XD so I went with that for a couple months. It didn't go in the basket very well either. My friend had briefly tried a Wizard before going back to the starter set Rhyno that he uses to this day. He gave me the Wizard. I had recently found the DGR forum and the Wizard was the thing on there. I picked up a 165g blue proto wizard with a red arch stamp from Blake T in the buy/sell/trade forum and stuck with it until 2020. Only played a handful of rounds per year from roughly 2012-2020. I'd travelled to visit family in 2017 and wanted to play while I was there. Needed discs to play so went to the big box sporting goods store there and picked out the three closest looking discs to ones I had in my bag. Judge looked pretty similar to the Wiz so I used that while I was visiting. Enjoyed the Judge quite a bit, but resumed using the Wiz after getting home. Still not playing very often though. Finally got back into regular dg during COVID times. Dug out the ole Skillshot that hadn't seen action for over a decade and tried to find a putt. It's hard to express how bad I was at putting. Tried grinding it out with the blue Wiz and the practice spares I had. Blake and the DGR guys were very serious about sticking with discs and not looking for that magic disc. After a few weeks of lots of missing putts I put the Judge in the practice stack. It seemed marginally better and I noticed it was basically a shorter wizard with a wider diameter. Maybe that shallower disc worked better with my short fingers. Did a little research and discovered that the Wizard mold itself had been changed. Wondered why I was so slavishly devoted to a mold that Gateway decided to modify. Even on my best day I had not been a good putter. Not counting the 3 I bought to play while on vacation, I hadn't bought a disc from roughly mid 2008 until 2020 but the damn broke at that point. Gave the Judge a couple months but discovered that the Pilot was like the Judge, but shallower still. Also it claimed 20% more glide than the Judge. Liked that Pilot right away and sidelined the Judges. Used the Pilot from 2020 until August 2022. My putting had improved greatly since 2020, but from mid July 2022 through August 2022 I went through a very bad stretch. I missed a bunch of 5 footers 5 feet right of the basket in a big tournament I'd travelled to and basically had lost all confidence in my putt again. Switched over to the Shaman after that since I can't change myself, but can change discs. Also rededicated myself to more frequent practice and a much faster spin putt. I now love the Shaman and can't imagine switching. I'm easily the best putter I've ever been. If I could get the throwing part of my game equal to my current putting level I could play for cash instead of store credit finally. Next year maybe! Thanks for reading.

 

[ChrisinFL]

I fail to understand the idea that putting styles are innate. How can anyone develop a putting style before choosing a putter? Of course, you should find a putter that feels comfortable and start learning the disc. Much like learning any disc. People don't come with a built in putting style. Maybe I am missing something here?

I don't know the order - for me, it kind of alternated. I had a putting style, I searched for putters that worked well with my style. I got disgruntled with my results, so I changed my style, and searched some more for putters better suited to the new style. I would say out of the 5-6 guys I play with somewhat regularly, no two of us putt exactly alike. So, yeah, 6 guys, six unique styles. Plus, most of us have one style close in, and a different style from further away. I spin putt, flat. My son does more of a push putt, and always plays the fade. One guy is unable to turn his wrist to putt flat, so he does every putt on a hyzer angle. Two guys don't even use putters - they putt with mid ranges and drivers! I played with a guy for the first time yesterday - the only word I can think of to describe his putting, is spastic. I was almost cringing every time he putted. He could throw drives further than me, bragged about how good he was, and his putting was all over the place. I said, "it is hard to score well when you have an off day putting". He said he was putting fine. He smoked a joint in between rounds - maybe he was too high to know or care how he was putting?!

 

[Nick Carroll]

I first tried using a DX Sonic and then a DX Colt as putters, as they were given to me when I first started. Didn't like them at all. I read up on popular putters, because I wanted to get something that was easily replicable, and cheap enough to buy in bulk, and what I came up with were the Aviar putters. First time I put a Classic Aviar in my hand, I was in a local pro shop for the first time, and I loved the feel of it. I've been putting with the beadless ones ever since.

It came down to hand feel first, but I was looking for popular, straight, max weight putters, and I hit the jackpot quickly. I eventually moved up to R-Pro Aviars because they're grippier, stay in the chains more, and have less ground action.

 

[Sheep]

I just don't get it. Every time someone answers your question and says, "I do this, because if this" you tell them they are thinking about it wrong, and they should do something different. Seems like you're fishing for confrontational response and not actually looking for people to be honest.

You put words in my mouth and just made things up.

But you do you.

 

[Sheep]

I fail to understand the idea that putting styles are innate. How can anyone develop a putting style before choosing a putter? Of course, you should find a putter that feels comfortable and start learning the disc. Much like learning any disc. People don't come with a built in putting style. Maybe I am missing something here?

You can't.

The point that seems to be missed here though is basics of technique in any action.

You want the path of least resistance.
Also, as mentioned in another post, you tend to mimic an action that you've previously used if possible.

When you're developing a putter stroke, it has to be kind to your body and repeatable in a fashion that leaves the least amount of error possible.

Imagine a guy/gal going into a store and going "oh man, this stego feels great" then forcing their putt to work with a stego. Their percentages are going to be garbage because the predictability as you get further out becomes insane as you have to change your putt for every different distance.

So, it's identifying something like; I bought a putter that is a bit to overstable and I tend to miss left when I get out to 30 feet. It's not that you aimed wrong, its that the disc is to overstable for your putting technique.
Instead what most people do is they keep that square peg and start smashing it into that round hole trying to make it work, which they could more easily find a good hand-fitting putter that flies more complementary to their putting technique.

You shouldn't have to change your putting technique when you get passed the standard putt range, which is about 20 feet.

Does any of that make sense?
I'm not sure how this is not making sense to some people in the thread.

 

[Kennets]

Gonna chime in here.

I've tried with very straight putters (everything "hooks" at some distance to be fair) and some a tad more overstable.

I tend to put pretty hard inside the circle (like the basket owes me money) and more slow/floaty/lobbed outside of, let's say 40 feets.

I've tried putters that just keeps on gliding straight 'ish forever and came to the conclusion that I like something that hooks at the end of, let's say, a 40/45 feet putt.

I somehow left myself with some looong comeback putts, if I "blasted" one from outside the circle, straight at it, with a glidey putter - that's why I switched to a more conservative "bid" from range. I do believe my % from C2 were higher with a more straight putter, direct at the basket, but I'm playing ultra casual these days and yeah.. maybe I should switch back, who knows?

It is what it is. At this point, I'm just rambling.

 

[ru4por]

Do you have a preference for back- or forehand? Or maybe even certain angles within both of these throws?

I think people have learned motions from other sports and find it thus easier to do certain throwing motions based on what they know to do already. A spin putt requires you to generate a lot of power from flicking the arm and the wrist at the target. A push putt requires you to have a feeling for a weight shift and how the shifted weight can be transfered as power onto the disc.

You can't.

The point that seems to be missed here though is basics of technique in any action.

You want the path of least resistance.
Also, as mentioned in another post, you tend to mimic an action that you've previously used if possible.

When you're developing a putter stroke, it has to be kind to your body and repeatable in a fashion that leaves the least amount of error possible.

Imagine a guy/gal going into a store and going "oh man, this stego feels great" then forcing their putt to work with a stego. Their percentages are going to be garbage because the predictability as you get further out becomes insane as you have to change your putt for every different distance.

So, it's identifying something like; I bought a putter that is a bit to overstable and I tend to miss left when I get out to 30 feet. It's not that you aimed wrong, its that the disc is to overstable for your putting technique.
Instead what most people do is they keep that square peg and start smashing it into that round hole trying to make it work, which they could more easily find a good hand-fitting putter that flies more complementary to their putting technique.

You shouldn't have to change your putting technique when you get passed the standard putt range, which is about 20 feet.

Does any of that make sense?
I'm not sure how this is not making sense to some people in the thread.

What are you using to develop your putting stroke.

 

[HyzerRoc]

What are you using to develop your putting stroke.

Not sure if this is directed at me but I mostly use my brain to think through motions and make my body do them but it wont listen. My putting stroke has gone though a lot of evolution if that is what you are alluding to. I spent this year using mostly the short arm putt as it is easy to isolate different elements of putting with it. I spent some time on finger spring, some on the arm motion and some on the weight shift. It also showed me that slinging my arm and wrist is not doing much, it is just weak and it hurts. Therefore I focused on the weight shift as it carried well over from my stand stills.

 

[Sheep]

Gonna chime in here.

I've tried with very straight putters (everything "hooks" at some distance to be fair) and some a tad more overstable.

I tend to put pretty hard inside the circle (like the basket owes me money) and more slow/floaty/lobbed outside of, let's say 40 feets.

I've tried putters that just keeps on gliding straight 'ish forever and came to the conclusion that I like something that hooks at the end of, let's say, a 40/45 feet putt.

I somehow left myself with some looong comeback putts, if I "blasted" one from outside the circle, straight at it, with a glidey putter - that's why I switched to a more conservative "bid" from range. I do believe my % from C2 were higher with a more straight putter, direct at the basket, but I'm playing ultra casual these days and yeah.. maybe I should switch back, who knows?

It is what it is. At this point, I'm just rambling.

Thats mostly what I'm talking about.

People are not thinking about what their putter is doing when they get passed the "anything works as a putter" zone.

 

[Sheep]

What are you using to develop your putting stroke.

We mimic, to an extent, those around us.

There is a defined motion to some extent for all sports actions. It comes down to making it your own, and how good you want to be at it.

And I think that's some of the mental game that goes into putting that is important.
How good do you wanna be at it, and how many of the tools available do you want to use to increase your success.

I can teach people to putt in person quite easily. It's a LOT harder in text and through video.

It's actually easier to teach putting than it is to teach throwing. Because mechanically its about teaching someone to make a consistent stroke, how to practice, and how to aim.
There isn't all sorts of weird technique things we gotta hit to get the magic leverage. Putting truly is a thing of "making it your own." And I think that is cool, but there really isn't a guide on how to get there.

So what I'm essentially doing in here is pooling data from people responding in here to try and formulate some things.
Because when it comes down to choosing a disc to putt with. what "I" do might not be what others do. I was really curious as to how a lot of other people approached what disc to putt with.

The responses are quite interesting.

The only reason I've challenged them in discussion is to try and learn more.

 

[ru4por]

We mimic, to an extent, those around us.

There is a defined motion to some extent for all sports actions. It comes down to making it your own, and how good you want to be at it.

And I think that's some of the mental game that goes into putting that is important.
How good do you wanna be at it, and how many of the tools available do you want to use to increase your success.

I can teach people to putt in person quite easily. It's a LOT harder in text and through video.

It's actually easier to teach putting than it is to teach throwing. Because mechanically its about teaching someone to make a consistent stroke, how to practice, and how to aim.
There isn't all sorts of weird technique things we gotta hit to get the magic leverage. Putting truly is a thing of "making it your own." And I think that is cool, but there really isn't a guide on how to get there.

So what I'm essentially doing in here is pooling data from people responding in here to try and formulate some things.
Because when it comes down to choosing a disc to putt with. what "I" do might not be what others do. I was really curious as to how a lot of other people approached what disc to putt with.

The responses are quite interesting.

The only reason I've challenged them in discussion is to try and learn more.

I used a putter.

 

[Dcinmd]

4) Next issue was plastic feel, I noticed early on that I did not like hard stiff putters, especially in the cold. They were slippery in my hands even in dry conditions and I just didn't feel confident with them. I found a shallower Warden type putter, the Pure, in a grippy softer but still firm plastic and that became my putter for years.

I always shake my head when someone is putting with brand new champion type plastic.

 

[Dcinmd]

The first putter I bought was a Judge, and after years of trying to replace it I've always stuck with it. Love beaded putters. Probably have tired up to 15 different ones. My preference is a soft plastic, always interesting when I put with a hard one and how much it bounces off the basket.

For the longest time I refused to throw putters, they just never really fit my hands in a comfortable way. Two years ago after a friend forced me into a putter only round, I grew into using a PA3 has my throwing putter. Comfortable in my hand and doesn't flip over.

 

[Three Putt]

I'm not sure if I remember how I or why I made the decisions I did.

I remember that for some reason when I started playing with more than one disc (around '93), the grip on an Aviar seemed impossibly deep. The XD was a shallow disc so I putted with it. It also wasn't a putter and I used to (get ready for it) three putt a lot when I'd airball blow past the basket by 30'.

I was looking for something else and I settled on 86 Softies for reasons unknown (probably the grip ring on the top) but I literally missed all my putts with them; I couldn't dial them in at all. I went back and forth with 86 Softies and a Lightning Rubber Putter; the Rubber Putter glowed and I was playing a lot of glow at the time so it de facto was my night time putter. I just really couldn't putt with either of them.

I fell into mold minimalism around that time, and I needed a disc I could use as a driving putter and a putting putter. I couldn't drive an 86 Softie to save my life, so the driving putter became my putting putter. My driving putter was a big bead Aviar, so I just had to suck it up and get used to the grip. Once I did, I finally had some putting consistency. This was around '96 or '97.

I stayed with Aviars for a long time. I tried Magnets for a little while and they were fine for putting, but they had a kinda dumpy fade on drives I didn't like. I also switched to small bead Aviars for a time (and Omega AP's, which were the same disc with a grippier plastic) but when I move to the Chicago area I went back to big beads due to the wind.

This is the point where my competitive disc golf ended, but I kept approaching disc selection like I was serious for some reason.

I switched to Wizards for putting around '07; again I was using the minimalist "pick the putter you want to drive with and just putt with it" approach. The Wizard was longer than the Aviar for me, so it became the putter.

I was practicing one Winter in the basement; I had a stack of Wizards and one Warlock. The Warlock came out of my hand cleaner with less wobble all Winter. I tried really, really hard to make an adjustment with the Wizard, but no luck. I resisted changing for a couple of year, but finally in '16 I just switched to Warlocks.

Then I tore up my arm and could barely throw. Warlocks were going nowhere, so I switched to Discraft APX. They are more neutral with more glide, more of a finesse putter. I didn't have to putt as hard so I had less pain. As soon as my arm healed up, I went back to Warlocks.

Then I tore up my arm again last year along with significant deterioration of my knees. This meant less power, so I went back to APX for putting. I finally realized that I could have a driving putter and a putting putter, so I've stuck with Warlocks as the driving putter. At this point with as little power as I can get into a putt, the finesse putter is probably what I need to stay with.

 

[biscoe]

I always shake my head when someone is putting with brand new champion type plastic.

FTFY.

 

[acrosley]

More of what I was looking for here.

Trying to see how people derived on the putter they are using, not necessarily "what" the putter they are using.


I theorize that a lot of people just pick a putter and try and make it work, which might actually pull down their percentages overall. While they put "decent" they are so attached to X-disc/Brand/Player that they might not be willing to try "similar" discs that would increase their percentages without actually changing their putting.


Watching people putt on the course, there are a lot of putters out there who just putt with putters that are too overstable, or their putting style would benefit from an under stable putter, etc.


This isn't really a hugely thought out idea, and I figured making a video on "how" to choose a putter that was right for your game would be pretty good content, but then ... I was thinking.... "how did others come to the putter they use."

And based on the answers ya'll provided in here, its mostly "yeah, I got this putter, and uhh, it felt good, so yeah, that's what I putt with."

I'm sitting over here on like... 120 putters? 102 according to my spreadsheet.

I've only went through a few putters, but I look at putters and putting I think a bit differently because I putt with 3 or 4 different putters all the time depending on whats going on, but a lot of your pro players will stick with that 1 set of putters, one slightly worn, etc. whatever.

While I'm over here 60 out, like "screw jump putting, let me toss this ..." Which used to be a spin, then it was a glitch, and now its a watt.

By changing the putters further out, i'm getting the benifit of the putter being more understable and glidey that can be a detriment more up close and i'm far easier able to focus on the stroke and aim vs trying to jump around like a monkey, or step about like a cholo. (jokes people, jokes. come play with me and my boy, you'll get 2 hours of cholo jokes, he's fun dude)
Sorry, i got off track anyways, I dont agree with jump putting or how people step putt, I digress. the floaty flippier putter isn't benificial up close, but gives you that higher chance further out.
Or .. "oh goodness, its a headwind putt."
... always putt with envy in headwinds.
Why?
Envy dont care.
But envy got some stability to it, so when you push out 20-25 feet, you gotta start playing that fade, vs keeping the same stroke/putt to 50 feet out.


And maybe we need to look at our putting as trying to maintain the stroke as long as possible, vs trying to force a different stroke to push a disc differently cause we are further out?

Feel matters more than flight for putters inside circle 1 IMHO. If we're talking about saving strokes Id argue youre better off investing time into finding a putter that's comfortable and really honing that in. Otherwise how do you even choose a putter? They all flythe same thing from inside 15 feet. Maybe once you get past 25 feet you will notice a difference but most of us ams arent going to be automatic outside 25 feet anyway.

I will concede from deeper than that flight characteristics start to matter a lot more.