Story time.
This was probably five or so years back. It was an unsanctioned tournament – it might’ve been a league get-together or something. I wasn’t new to disc golf; I was new to competition, however.
It was a crack-of-dawn round. Still, to get loose, I arrived early to not feel rushed. As is often the case, one of the event organizers had placed a portable basket in the middle of a soccer field for practice putting. So, with nobody around and no earthly idea what I was doing, I did what any idiot does: Without missing a beat, I started working on my 45-foot, circle-two jumpers …
Duh.
Besides, converting two or three of these during the actual event would be the difference between totally sucking and flirting with a tourney takedown, right? I would’ve run with this logic if it weren’t for the experienced dude who strolled up on me in the middle of all this …
No greeting.
No pleasantries.
Here’s the FIRST thing he said to me:
“You should practice making putts – not missing them.”
I laughed off the good-natured ribbing, but no clarification was needed …
He’d made his point.
It stuck.
If you’re struggling to read between the lines with all this, the mystery man in question was referring to my inability to hit from 45 feet. Before he’d arrived, I’d probably attempted 20-ish putts. Of that bunch, I’d made three, drawn metal on four or five and air-mailed the rest of ‘em.
Form, routine, practice drills and even the putters themselves: Putting is largely a “you-do-you” kind of undertaking in disc golf. But one thing that undoubtedly makes a BIG difference?
Success.
And lots of it.
Over and over (and over) again.
These days, in the backyard, I start every practice-putting session with ten putts from 10 feet.
Literally.
My brain needs to see my putt working before moving farther from the basket. And even then, as an amateur, the majority of my practice putts will be inside of 28 feet. Of course, the higher your skill level, the better you’ll be at hitting from a greater distance – you’ve got a longer leash.
Yes, my putting stroke needs work …
But more importantly, I want to make a habit of drilling the putts I can make.
That way, when they matter, it’s not a problem.
You’d be wise to do the same.
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I take 3 putters, and go ten steps away from the goal and putt all three. If I make all of them, I move out a step. If I stick 2 I stay there if I miss two or more I go back a step. That will target your outer limits of what you can do consistently.
Great advice, Benji!
Also, did you just refer to the basket as the “goal,” by chance?
Never heard that before. Haha.
(not a bad thing – gonna give this term a test-drive)
I have about 40 or so putters. I will throw the first 40 from circles edge at my backyard basket. After that I putt the misses in from where they lie. Retrieve all the discs and repeat the process. The final step is to move to circle twos edge and throw about 20. And then putt the misses in from where they lie
Hey, that’s not a bad idea – thanks for the tip, TurboJoe!
BTW, you’re not …
Turbo-putting these, are you?
The part of putting I struggle most with is timing the weight shift with my release. So for my first putts I disregard this advice and start my practice putting from mid c2. About the distance where any farther and it becomes a “must jump-putt” distance. I’m not expecting to make many, but I focus on making sure that my weight transfer is good and I’m putting with my body, not my arm/wrist. Then I follow this advice and start taking putts with a high chance of making starting at 15ft and moving out to circles edge as I make more.
If I start at 15ft and drain a bunch, I notice when I move out, I may have been practicing bad weight shift timing since putts can still easily be made from that range without an ideal weight shift. I basically need to reset my mind/body connection with some c2 putts to get that effortless feeling of putting with your legs and core. Then move into a “must make” distance and follow this advice.
If you’re a push/spush putter maybe try that if you struggle with timing.
Great stuff, Bob!
Appreciate the nice write-up, as this “weight-shift” stuff might very well help some of our readers …
What you’re saying makes sense – thanks, again!
Haha I can throw one but never use it. Same with a scoober. I’m a spin putt guy all the way
Very nice!
Great advice. Repetition with positive reinforcement makes a big difference.
Agreed!
Thanks for reading, Harry.