[Question] Putter/midrange tweeners usage

[fusan]

I tried some of the tweener putters. Not really a putter and not really a midrange, just in between both.
I have no idea off what I can use them for. They are a little longer than my Wizards and about the same length shorter than my mids. The problem is that the difference in length between my mids and putters is allready small, so I dont see a use for these tweeners at all.
I thought about just removing my mids and putters and just go with the tweeners as putters/midranges and I bet that would work well too. But I love the slow controlled flight of my putter for drives and approaches and
that discing up to a mid gives me a small but noticeable difference in length.
I can see the advantage when you got a big arm for these, but why are the average players using them?
What am I missing here?

 

[slowplastic]

I started with Aviar/Roc combo so there was enough gap so it was pretty obvious. Then I went to a Wizard and I was throwing the Roc less because I could get more power on the Wizard reliably than I could on the Aviar, and the flight is so similar.

Now I use an Anode, which is longer than the Wizard...same issue happened for me. I was reaching for the Roc only in the most specific of situations. My solution was to go to a Buzzz type of mid. To me a Roc flies like a putter in a way...great disc...but needs a little height and it is very straight/stable when thrown hard. A Buzzz type mid excels at a low ceiling and is a different type of flight compared to a putter.

I went through the same thing as you, and for me I am very happy with the speed 5 longer midrange type game. I still use putters on the course for shots up to 250' (I can push them to 300' but I have no reason to throw them that far on the course) and mids for 250-310'ish on the course. In open fields I can get the putters to 20-30' of the midrange distance, but on the course I feel safer cutting down how far I throw it. Plus with the different flight path of a faster mid that can do low ceilings, sometimes a little 225' shot under some trees makes you reach for that mid instead of your putter.

Then comes the next problem...midrange to fairway driver gap...then the whole bag needs to be rethought just because you liked a longer putter...

 

[JTdisc]

I use a Suspect for an approach disc. It's a little shorter than the Truth, so when I need an overstable shot that doesn't go quite as far (the Truth is super long for a mid), I pick up the Suspect. I use it for all forehand approaches as well, which is most approaches since I'm a primary forehand thrower. Putters have pretty deep rims and just don't come out of the hand as smoothly for me so I very rarely forehand them.

So I think a lot of it comes down to whether or not you like the feel of the tweener vs your putter or mid.

 

[grotto]

The deeper rims of putters give me release issues on short range up and finesse shots. I too use a Suspect for this slot and I'm always amazed at the shots I can make with this disc. Works well in the woods for powered down, forehands and cut roll shots.

There are those who drive with putters and those who don't, I tend towards the later and use my Suspect or Pig. If I need understable, I use a beat DX Roc.

 

[fusan]

@Slowplastic
That is exactly my point. When you change your puttingputter to a tweener, the difference between the tweener and midrange gets shorter and you have to change the mids. And yes! same happens between longer mids and fairwaysdrivers and you end up using PD type of disc as fairways.
What I dont get is when ppl just add the tweener and keep their normal putter and mids.

@JTdisc
Youre absolutely right about the finesse forhand. I noticed to that its pretty hard to do that with a high rim putter, but I really dont like having a disc for just one pupose and rather use my mid for the little flick, but Im loosing control.
I wish I could have a all in one putter for everything

 

[zendragon]

I can never have enough mids. I use my Envy both for putts and drives out to about 250'. I also use my Alias out to 250-280' and my Tangent 250-280'. I have a Warship for 260+, then I have my Verdict for specialty shots.

To me, each disc has something specific they do at those ranges. My Envy is more stable in the 220-250 range than my Alias, so it gets the hyzer, my Alias is longer than the Envy, buy also straighter, it gets the low ceiling 250 shots. The Tangent takes the shots that need to turn to avoid a tree or the Anny shot. The Warship gets the longer hyzer shots that I can't reach comfortably with the Envy.

Together, these discs take up 90% of my throws, so there's my use for a tweener putter.

 

[PhillyMatt]

Go ahead and toss the word "Tweener" in the same pit of hell as "Frolf", "Selfie" and "Totes" plz.

 

[runningDoc]

it gets confusing especially if you already use tweeners that go really far/have great glide... like a Dart and a Comet... then your fairway drivers start not getting any use...

it gets even more confusing if you like totally neutral discs like the Nova and Atlas (and/or their equivalents in other brands).

i didn't think totally neutral discs (neither over stable or under stable they just hold whatever line you put on it) were really a thing. I understand you can beat in a roc to that point but that usually of involves cycling.

so you can just use a nova and an atlas instead of a aviar and a roc (or their equivalents) and drastically reduce the number of putters/mids you have to carry. then its other factors like ceiling, wind, forehand/backhand/space...

I say carry the tweeners, but also carry some "bricks" for utility shots.... for instance a KC pro (or something like a P2... something with a big bead) is very useful in the wind or when you need to hyzer or S curve/trick shot/short flick....even more importantly with the mid slot (with a gator/drone/ect)...

that way you can have some bricks that you can throw hard without being afraid of overshooting as well as relying on the innate over stability in the wind/going around things/point and shooting. because what I did notice about tweener discs is that distance gauging (especially with glide-y stuff) is very touchy.

 

[PMantle]

Over time, my use of true mids has decreased big time. They(and every thing else) are just longer than I ever thought possible as a newb. So now, I bag a couple of trios of mids. Harp/Pure/Theory(I know) and Verdict/Warship/Truth. Those longer ones do not get used unless needed for specific par 3s(rare) or for approaches on par 4s if i can't reach with the shorter trio.

 

[Declarkus]

What I dont get is when ppl just add the tweener and keep their normal putter and mids.

I could probably make a Titanic/Aftershock/Drone combo work, but I love my SP Breaker for wooded approaches, and shots where I need OS between the Aftershock and Drone. When I need a disc to go like 100' and fade 15-20' thru a tightly wooded gap of trees, a putter requires too much lateral space to get it around and a Drone will cut harder and skip more, making it tough to range and control that close. SP Breaker is also my flick approach disc of choice. Again, I can flick the others, but I get the straightest, most predictable lines out of the Breaker. I throw it at least 5 times a round. I love it like others love the Zone, a very popular "tweener" disc.

 

[BirdieMachine]

I'm throwing now Suspects and Truths. The gap is a good 50 feet between them. 275-325. Works well.

 

[DangeRuss]

Flick a Zone.

 

[slowplastic]

@Slowplastic
That is exactly my point. When you change your puttingputter to a tweener, the difference between the tweener and midrange gets shorter and you have to change the mids. And yes! same happens between longer mids and fairwaysdrivers and you end up using PD type of disc as fairways.
What I dont get is when ppl just add the tweener and keep their normal putter and mids.

Yeah I started to go that route with a PD/Saint combo...but I really like throwing speed 7 discs. Sometimes the extra power that needs to be put into a PD is just more than I want to hit an actual fairway gap situation, but it's definitely not a midrange disc shot. The nice thing with fairway drivers is that the flight is significantly different from mids, whereas some mids and putters are too similar (like my Roc/Anode usage comparison, for my play style). I may go to Teebirds in the future, but keep the PD around. I feel the speed 5-9/10 jump is just too much for myself. I chose my username for a reason heh.

 

[gerth_vader]

i just switched out rocs for suspects and I'm trying to cycle those (they FH way better for me) with moderate sucess. now the gap in my bag at mid is a 3way fight between truth/verdict, GM, or kaxe. Not sure who will win out but lately I have been liking small diameter so the gremlin is in. Back to the OP, I like them cause they dont have putter glide, makes runs and low cieling approaches more forgiving. Also I may be able to switch to a more understable putter if I dont need them to FH approach or tee off with. That could potentialy lower my putts per round. Dam you suspect, my whole bag is changing now!

 

[Um...]

Yeah I started to go that route with a PD/Saint combo...but I really like throwing speed 7 discs. Sometimes the extra power that needs to be put into a PD is just more than I want to hit an actual fairway gap situation, but it's definitely not a midrange disc shot. The nice thing with fairway drivers is that the flight is significantly different from mids, whereas some mids and putters are too similar (like my Roc/Anode usage comparison, for my play style). I may go to Teebirds in the future, but keep the PD around. I feel the speed 5-9/10 jump is just too much for myself. I chose my username for a reason heh.

If you've not already, try an FD. Slower than a PD, but can stretch out down the fairway almost as long. I've gone back and forth thinking about taking the FD out of my bag because I 'think' I can power down my PD's and use them instead. However you simply can't make the PD slower when what you need is slower.

 

[scotnt73]

Over the years between my skill growing and putter technology improvements ive finally fazed out mids. I use my envy for most approaches. I can throw it comfortably and very accurately 150-225. From there depending on the line I just jump up to my leopard/teebird combo.

 

[Broken Shoulder]

Don't overthink it. Just get your shots covered. A little bit of overlap allows flexibility under differing conditions and scenarios.

 

[Toro71]

I cover at least like 85% of my shots 300 and less with an Axis and Envy.

The Envy seems to be one of these 'tweeners' for most people. I guess I can't really answer the OP because it's like he might be asking the wrong question..?

It's not like I was thinking "yes, I finally found that tweener I was looking for," it's just that it's a disc that really works for me for many shots. Whether it's long for a putter or slow for a mid or whatever, doesn't really enter into it. At least for me. (I sound like a "no labels" hipster type, right? Which is a label, too, so, paging Dr. Freud!)

OP, I guess I'd say, if the difference in D you get between your Wizs and your mids is no more than half your comfort range for putting, then why even worry about something between them? (Other than it's fun to buy plastic. )

 

[money 21]

I carry both the breaker and the theory. I don't drive with putters much and use these disc instead. the mids I carry are on the faster side so the over lap isn't bad.

 

[Hoss22]

I consider all the discs in my bag as tweeners... So, in that instance, are they still tweeners? Pure/Harp are longer than most putters, Truth/Verdict are longer than most mids, and Saint Pros are longer than most fairways...I think that it is the line/shot availabilities that keeps a spot in the bag for most.