Pop on your putt

[disc-golf-neil]

I do understand the concept, but when you say 'aim' what do you mean? Just a focus point?

I'm just curious at what distance your actual disc has to go above the band to make the putt. I don't question the methods being presented here, I think our brains are all capable of figuring this out in different ways. I just always find that I throw too low, too often when I have tried aiming at the basket itself.

It's focusing on that link and trying to throw the putter at it but knowing it will hit the basket at a lower, link.

Not sure of the distances because I don't range putts often and most courses don't have circles marked. And again it depends on the style and pace I feel like. When I go for a more direct instead of lofty trajectory I of course have to aim lower even at the same distance.

You can see in the pics here how far above the band the putter is from a 50 foot putt with various nose and launch angles:
Post in thread 'Tech disc test driven development'
Tech disc test driven development

However, I could've done a much higher spush putt with a lot more loft but forgot to do that. Like if I wanted to get that loftier flight for some reason like needing to go over an obstacle or wanting a miss to be less deep of the basket. But I find those harder to aim, might just be because I don't practice them as much or maybe because it's more 'off line' and you can't tell if it's going to make it until later into the flight when it starts to fade, also def harder to aim when you have to pick an imaginary point in space without an easy depth in empty space to focus on.

Also I sometimes try to keep focus on the link / band when aiming there during the flight so might not notice where the apex actually is. This has been surprisingly helpful because there's a jump the gun effect of wanting to watch it fly and your gaze leaves the aim point too early as you anticipate the flight or you interfere with follow through so exaggerating how long you focus on it after release can help.

 

[BenjiHeywood]

I always aim for the link i want to actually hit. It's a point of focus, but it's not an aiming point for the initial trajectory (as Neil seems to be describing above where he talks about expecting to hit a different link than his aiming point). I'm trying to get my conscious mind out of the way and let my unconscious solve the problem of how to get it to hit that exact link. The unconscious is much better when simply told 'achieve this result' than when i give it too many suggestions on how to do it.

Which generally works fine, until tournament time lol. Then my mindset naturally switches to a negative phrasing like 'don't miss low' or some other worry, the sort of instruction the unconscious is very bad at following.

 

[itlnstln]

I always aim for the link i want to actually hit. It's a point of focus, but it's not an aiming point for the initial trajectory (as Neil seems to be describing above where he talks about expecting to hit a different link than his aiming point). I'm trying to get my conscious mind out of the way and let my unconscious solve the problem of how to get it to hit that exact link. The unconscious is much better when simply told 'achieve this result' than when i give it too many suggestions on how to do it.

Which generally works fine, until tournament time lol. Then my mindset naturally switches to a negative phrasing like 'don't miss low' or some other worry, the sort of instruction the unconscious is very bad at following.

Sounds like we're cut from the same cloth. Particularly the tournament part

 

[RowingBoats]

I always aim for the link i want to actually hit. It's a point of focus, but it's not an aiming point for the initial trajectory (as Neil seems to be describing above where he talks about expecting to hit a different link than his aiming point). I'm trying to get my conscious mind out of the way and let my unconscious solve the problem of how to get it to hit that exact link. The unconscious is much better when simply told 'achieve this result' than when i give it too many suggestions on how to do it.

Which generally works fine, until tournament time lol. Then my mindset naturally switches to a negative phrasing like 'don't miss low' or some other worry, the sort of instruction the unconscious is very bad at following.

Haha, ya I totally get this. I've tried all of the 'focus' strategies I've read about at one point or another.

I think human brains do possess a lot of evolved instinctual ability to throw objects and subconsciously account for the needed trajectory. I just have, over time, found that I have better overall results when I aim for the apex of the shot rather than the point of impact.

I think this method also makes it easier to hit the weird putts. The ones where you need to do some ridiculous floaty bend around a tree, etc. I'm just always practicing getting better at aiming for that apex point, so not seeing the basket isn't a huge deal.

There are just a lot of ways to manipulate the flight of a disc. Throwing something as consistent as a ball, I think most people aim for the impact point and not the apex, and use that subconscious intuition that people describe here. Discs, imo, are a bit different and far less intuitive from that perspective.

 

[itlnstln]

Haha, ya I totally get this. I've tried all of the 'focus' strategies I've read about at one point or another.

I think human brains do possess a lot of evolved instinctual ability to throw objects and subconsciously account for the needed trajectory. I just have, over time, found that I have better overall results when I aim for the apex of the shot rather than the point of impact.

I definitely switch to a similar aiming strategy when I need throw/putt around/over something. The main thing is that whatever strategy you use puts the biscuit in the basket

 

[RowingBoats]

I definitely switch to a similar aiming strategy when I need throw/putt around/over something. The main thing is that whatever strategy you use puts the biscuit in the basket

Haha I actually edited my post to talk about this

 

[Sewer bill]

I'm probably weird, but I honestly don't understand aiming for a chain or for the basket itself in general.

How far away are y'all before the disc has to go above the band for a putt? For me, at 20' Im gonna be putting the disc higher than the band at the apex of the flight. I 'aim' for that pocket of air lol.

Maybe edge of c1. I'm still aiming through the basket even if I'm 80 out I'm just accounting for the parabolic trajectory as part of my aim.

 

[disc-golf-neil]

It's similar to drives for me in a sense, once far enough away from a low ceiling that you want to go under, aiming under the low ceiling makes you throw too low when ideally the disc is closer to the height of the ceiling when it gets to the ceiling. So when that happens, I have to aim at or higher than the ceiling so that you count for the disc losing height on the way there.

 

[RowingBoats]

Maybe edge of c1. I'm still aiming through the basket even if I'm 80 out I'm just accounting for the parabolic trajectory as part of my aim.

That must be a pretty darn powerful putt haha. A 30' putt that does not go above the band is pretty gnar.

It would take some time to put together a lot of examples of pro putters, to see what distance they have to throw above the band. But I think we'd all consider McBeth a competent putter and watching his PP360 video, its 15' for him.

 

[Sewer bill]

That must be a pretty darn powerful putt haha. A 30' putt that does not go above the band is pretty gnar.

It's probably not that drastic but it feels like I'm still within the band. I don't have any data to back it up and I don't think I have ever had anyone film my putt. I do my practice putting in my yard under my dogwood tree out to 50 and there's only about 2' of clearance above the basket. If I go too far I scrape the branches everytime.

 

[RowingBoats]

It's probably not that drastic but it feels like I'm still within the band. I don't have any data to back it up and I don't think I have ever had anyone film my putt. I do my practice putting in my yard under my dogwood tree out to 50 and there's only about 2' of clearance above the basket. If I go too far I scrape the branches everytime.

Oh I believe ya haha. Im just not bold enough to putt that hard.

 

[Sewer bill]

Oh I believe ya haha. Im just not bold enough to putt that hard.

It's fun to have the pressure of absolutely sailing by the basket if you miss.

 

[disc-golf-neil]

It's fun to have the pressure of absolutely sailing by the basket if you miss.

he likes the pucker factor

 

[Sheep]

I'm probably weird, but I honestly don't understand aiming for a chain or for the basket itself in general.

How far away are y'all before the disc has to go above the band for a putt? For me, at 20' Im gonna be putting the disc higher than the band at the apex of the flight. I 'aim' for that pocket of air lol.

I do understand the concept, but when you say 'aim' what do you mean? Just a focus point?

I'm just curious at what distance your actual disc has to go above the band to make the putt. I don't question the methods being presented here, I think our brains are all capable of figuring this out in different ways. I just always find that I throw too low, too often when I have tried aiming at the basket itself.

You're not the only one who doesn't really comprehend it. But I think it just helps people focus.

The difficulty I run into with it is this. I'm a "aim small miss small" kind of guy when it comes to stuff. But.. I don't apply that to putting, I only apply it to throwing. And I think that's really the idea, but the realistic expectations from it are crazy.

But I'm also using the same putt from like 5 feet to 15 feet. Im not aiming at any particular spot, just its the same putting power/speed/rhythm. Cause its the same putt. VS worrying about how high on the basket i gotta toss and blah blah. I just know what I gotta do to get it tin there at those distances, cause I practiced with my eyes closed.

I just personally dont find the stare down a link thing to be benificial in the long run, at least for myself. But I know people who do it and putt successfully. Might be better for them to keep focused on what they are doing vs going full squirrel mode. *shrugs*

I just step up and putt, no pump fakes, no whatever, . sometimes i might have a practice movement to make sure my arm is working. but..
yeah, I just putt. none of this cupcake or nikko crap.

 

[Sheep]

It's fun to have the pressure of absolutely sailing by the basket if you miss.

Well, you can't literally make it unless you give it enough to sail passed the basket.

I don't know why this is never stressed enough, you put THROUGH the basket, not to the basket.



Thats why I made a video with just like the most basic of basic putting tips.

 

[NewnHot]

On my practice basket at home, I have yellow tape on the pole inside the basket halfway up. I always aim for that point regardless of the distance. In rounds on a course, I pick a link closest to that tape mark on my home basket, closest to the pole, inside the basket. Your mind, body and throw will adjust for the distance pretty quickly.

Watch the beginning of "The Patriot" when he gives a 10 sec aiming lesson to his sons. "Aim small miss small, aim big miss big"

If you aim big, for the basket in general, and miss you miss the whole basket. If you aim small, for a link close to the pole halfway up, and miss you still have a chance to hit other chains, still be high enough to be in, or low enough to miss the band.

 

[ChrisinFL]

One of the things that really helped me dial in my putting, besides getting a home basket and practicing a lot, was some nobody guy's home video that contained all of the tips he had heard of - at least ten I think…. I just started trying out many tips, combinations of tips, to see what worked for me. I found that 3-4 tips was all I could process at once, and I messed around until I found the few tips, and combination of tips, that helped me the most. Then I stuck with that. Now occasionally if I come across an interesting putting tip I hadn't heard before, I will try it out, but so far my original four tip combination is still the best for me. Also, I found putting practice games or methods that I enjoyed, so practice was fun, and not like a chore. One thing I got from an old Sheep video, was marking off distances from my basket, then I kind of took it my own way. I marked every 5' from 10' to 50'. When I practiced, I would use the distances, and get used to what size step it was for me, that two steps equals 5'. First that got me so that on the course, I could figure distances easily. Eventually it got me so I could also have a decent eyeball guess at distances. Also, using those distance marks, I have developed a few practice routines that I really enjoy. Good luck, y'all!

 

[ChrisinFL]

So, the putting tips video… Trying to paste U-Tube link below - I am not real tech savvy! His tips are not an exhaustive list - but he shares many tips, and the video turned me on to trying out lots of tips, and combinations of tips, which was fun, and eventually helped me find 'my combination'.

 

[disc-golf-neil]

So, the putting tips video… Trying to paste U-Tube link below - I am not real tech savvy! His tips are not an exhaustive list - but he shares many tips, and the video turned me on to trying out lots of tips, and combinations of tips, which was fun, and eventually helped me find 'my combination'.

In slow mo it seems like most pros start the back leg push off before the arm swing. It's a kind of lag that helps the arm feel more weightless because it's already being carried by the body's momentum before the arm tries to lift itself without that help.

 

[BenjiHeywood]

In slow mo it seems like most pros start the back leg push off before the arm swing. It's a kind of lag that helps the arm feel more weightless because it's already being carried by the body's momentum before the arm tries to lift itself without that help.

If we think about inertia again, this might start to seem obvious.

For maximum easy power, you'd want to use the legs to get the whole system moving (including the shoulder and arm) and only then, when you've stopped accelerating with the legs, add a bit more with the arm.

Imagine you're sitting in a Ferrari trying to throw a ball. If you're traveling at a steady 60mph, and throwing at 30mph, the ball will come out at 90mph. Nice and simple. But if you're accelerating hard from 40 to 80mph, so that you feel like you're being thrown back into the seat, and you throw the ball just as you hit 60mph, the same muscular effort as before is not going to add +30mph. You'll need to overcome the inertia that your arm is experiencing, which will cost you speed. The ball won't come out at 90mph.

So it makes sense, in putting, to use the legs to get moving and then, while moving (but no longer accelerating), use the arm.

Of course, there's lots of different styles and some people don't use the legs at all. But accelerating with the legs at the same time as the arm is generally pretty inefficient - you want that lag.