Honest Question - soft landing discs

[Glide]

Thanks for the incredibly descriptive thread title. Very helpful when navigating DGCR.

What makes a 'soft' landing disc? I practice at home on soft PGA style grass which always grabs the disc near the basket.

My local course likes to offer the additional challenge of multiple death putts (miss by the inch, pay by the mile). A 10' putt can easily go to a couple +30' come-backs. Makes getting it close and stopping it paramount. Elevation, river rocks, and hard-pan make for painful recovery and plenty of roll-always.

I haven't tried a ton of molds, but of those I have, the DX Birdie and soft electrons seem best.

Thoughts on discs that land soft and stick?

 

[PBokor]

Sorry, meant no offense

Thanks for the incredibly descriptive thread title. Very helpful when navigating DGCR.

My bad, apologies. Sorry.

 

[Peter S]

o.k. back to business.

I use a SSS Wizard on fast or tricky greens.

For reference my normal putting putter is a Medium Pure.

 

[Atvizory2000]

Soft Vibram putters grab the chains unlike any other disc.

 

[sidewinder22]

The 10M Brick is a putter that is no longer approved for competition. It was good for about 10M max and then essentially dropped and stopped.

10M Brick is still on the PDGA approved list.

 

[tbird888]

10M Brick is still on the PDGA approved list.

I was thinking about the Wheel. I knew it was the Turbo Putt and something else.

 

[Shamis]

soft disc, or throw a tomahawk pancake(slides forward but never rolls away)

 

[DG_Before_Breakfast]

You just need to hit the chains

 

[PBokor]

You just need to hit the chains

DG_B_B - I'm trying, brother. I practice at home daily with a Marksman and a Hive (with the funky cross chains). What I can't emulate are the rock filled, hardpan greens on slopes that lead to DG h3ll.

So, of my existing discs (MVP/Innova only), soft Electrons and Protrons would likely be best, followed by DX?

 

[93EXCivic]

I use a Polecat b/c it's easier to get to come in for a flat landing, which as others have alluded to already, is really the trick to reducing rollaway potential. Any of the lid type discs are good for this b/c their slowness makes them so manipulable, plus the flat rim tends to roll a little less than a beveled edge IMO.

Truth. Polecat doesn't roll away easily. The only times I have had Polecat roll aways is when I have chained out or hit the cage and it has stood up upright.

Still though I keep the Woodchuck around for approaches where I can't hit flat and can't have a rollaway.

 

[Keller]

For those touchy upshots that I want to sit, I use a lid. A Birdie, (Yeah, probably the most hated mold around here after the Wolf)but I prefer it over the Polecat.

If there are lots of roots or rocks that may kick a disc up and roll away, I use an R-pro Rhyno.

It's more about how you throw it than the plastic though. Although, I stopped using KC Aviars because for me, they were the roll away king of discs.

 

[clard]

I couldn't read through the whole thread but a lot of it has to do with the angle and speed of the disc on landing. It's very hard to make a fast, OS disc land flat and at low speed. It's much easier to make a slow, neutral disc land softly and not move. If I really want my approach to stick I throw a Nova. I've really never thrown anything that sticks as well. The XT they use for the overmold is super sticky and bites when it lands (especially on grass) and it is probably the most neutral disc I've thrown.

 

[armiller]

I also like the Polecat for this role (not roll...get it?) since it's easy to keep it flat and floaty. But I agree with others that the main thing for approach shots is learning how to manipulate disc flight and angles. A Wizard, Pure, Aviar, or even Zone can be the right choice depending on terrain and flight line. Of course, hitting the basket means all bets are off.

Another given is just to practice putts. I think 10-15' should be a given for almost any disc golfer after enough practice. You know this already, but as you extend your "I know I'm gonna make it" range, everything in the putt & approach game gets easier.

 

[PBokor]

keller - Popular opinion be ******, my Birdie will always have a place in my extended bag, along side it's cousin the Wedge. Never really found a place for the Wolf.

clard - Most of my putters are Neutral/US (DX Birdie, Aviar, Colt, Whale, XT Nova or beat soft electron Ions and soft proton Anodes). My Nova is a love/hate thing right now. On odd days, I rarely miss from anywhere, it simply amazes me. On even days, I could not land it in a garbage truck from 20'. For whatever reasons, I am much more consistent with the other molds.

Still working on angles and speed daily.

 

[Discette]

keller - Popular opinion be ******, my Birdie will always have a place in my extended bag, along side it's cousin the Wedge. Never really found a place for the Wolf.

clard - Most of my putters are Neutral/US (DX Birdie, Aviar, Colt, Whale, XT Nova or beat soft electron Ions and soft proton Anodes). My Nova is a love/hate thing right now. On odd days, I rarely miss from anywhere, it simply amazes me. On even days, I could not land it in a garbage truck from 20'. For whatever reasons, I am much more consistent with the other molds.

Still working on angles and speed daily.

You are already bagging all the putters I would recommend, Birdie, Wedge and XT Nova. I also recommend the R-Pro Pig for windy putting situations.

 

[CaptainAnhyzer]

4x JK Pro Aviar or R-Pro XD is what I have in the bag.
A few people out here have the Gumbputt/Blowfly discs they use when they want the disc to "sit"

 

[Danderlion]

Try giving Vibram putters a chance.

I played in a local Vibram Birdie Bash earlier this year, and had never thrown any Vibram disc before. I was given a VP (overstable putter) and a vamp (understable control driver) to use.

The VP is now my main putter, and it is pretty good at sticking near the basket on misses. In the past I used JK Avairs, but the VP seems to be slightly better when it comes to roll aways. The rubber disc just grips the ground really well.

 

[drew2000]

If I need a disc to stick, I always throw my XT Nova. Never seen it roll away. The softer plastic the rim is molded out of will absorb so much more energy than any other disc I have thrown (It is a putter, but I don't like putting with it though, just got it for approaches). It replaced my R-Pro Aviar I used for upshots after the first couple of test throws. It even sticks for me on pine straw.

 

[PWaggoner]

Nova! Sticky disc man. Not gimcky sticky like some of the previous mentioned molds.

But when I switched from wizards/ kc pro avairs the amount of spit outs and roll aways have gone down dramatically.

 

[treekickluv]

my best advice is the slowest disc that you can buy. one that really hit the brakes on approach shots for me is Kastaplast Berg. superslow putter, anny flex and it will run out of speed and it will always land just like an helicopter.

Reptilian does a similiar mold called the scale. tho i havent tried it myself so dont trust my words on it.