Disc Golf Tips and Technique: Putting with Dan Beato (Video)

[Puddleduck]

I'm definately not an expert ... but here's a Kinesthetic I did to help with finger spring:

Hold up your putting hand with all four fingers bunched together ... curl them half way to your palm and bring your thumb over the top of the fingers ... like you were gripping a ... um, pole. You should be able to establish some tension by trying to straighten the fingers while the thumb holds them in place.

Now strengthen your effort to straighten your fingers until they pop out from under your thumb and 'spring' out to straight.

Doing that fairly lightly produces the same sensation as finger spring.

The difference in putting is that instead of your thumb holding the fingers in place you are lightly gripping the disc. The tension of the fingers against your thumb simulates the inertial force that occurs when you suddenly stop your arm movement and your wrist extends ... your wrist should be loose so when you stop your arm it swings open to its natural stopping point and your fingers will want to continue that motion by springing open.

I find I get best results if I consciously exaggerate that spring ... popping my fingers open as I feel the inertial tug to start the motion. It is a subtle motion, no strain, little effort ... just feels like a 'pop' at the end.

Don't know if that makes any sense, but it worked for me.

[AciDBatH666]

I don't really get to play that much. So my putting is what has suffered the most. I play doubles maybe once every week or two, and most of the tournaments in the area. Because of my lack of being able to play, and doing so poorly in tournaments, I went strictly to a straddle putt from outside of 10-15 feet. Yeah my putting is that bad.

The straddle putt from outside of my comfort zone gave me a decent chance at going for it, but not letting my putt overshoot it. So my comeback putt was only 5-8 feet usually. I don't throw the disc really high when I do it, maybe eye level at the peak of it's glide.... but I'm debating on switching my putting style again to something a little different.
Would this short arm technique do any good for me if I worked on it? Im just worried about overshooting the basket and going too far past it.

I did see the Dave Felberg ( i think ) vid where he catches that disc between his ankles a couple of weeks ago that was posted here on the forum. That dude's putting looks SICK. Just from the waist, and it looks like it glides for days. I'd kill for a sick looking straight putt like that. Also, I switch between my glow wizard and my 150 Omega SS.. But was debating on going back with the Magics for something that'll hold that straight line longer with less force.

[Blake_T]

Blake - Am I right that putts out to 30' don't require much more power than is needed for a 15' line-drive ... just a higher apex?

depends on what kind of putter you use and how much "oomph" you have. at my peak, yes, i would say this is true. nowadays (less oomph and my primary putter from back then got discontinued) it's more like 25' = 15' pop and i have to put more nuttage on 30'ers.

depending upon the drop rate of your putter, executing an apex putt for many discs is like ~18' power for 30'.

*EDIT* Blake, any chance of getting a video of you performing the technique? No disrespect to Beato'(did a great job and explained it very well) but I think it would be nice to see someone who has mastered it in action, as apposed to someone who uses a different putting technique when he plays trying to imitate it.

Thanks for the video though - its a relief to me because I'm a 100% visual learning, its difficult for me to read something and execute it with confidence because I always second guess myself. I tried to practice short-arm putting when I read it a few months ago and I was doing it way wrong

i'm about 15 lbs away from being willing to appear on film

to some extent, visual aids in this is over-rated. there's only 3 universals i use when looking at putting and how other people putt.
1. you release before full extension (short arm)
2. apex putting yields great precision and short comebackers.
3. keeping as many things in line with the target line will increase technique exectution.

the idea behind finger spring and palm ejection is more important and this only happens due to experimentation, trial & error. wrist extension is visible. palm ejection really isn't. finger spring isn't visible. i'm not trying to come off like a dick on this, but i'm curious as to what it is you are attempting to see? it's more of a feel.

masterbeato's video has his "take" on those things. watching each and every good putter will merely yield "their take" on what those things are. putting is very similar to a cross between jai alai and shuffle board. it's part rotational, part shove. the only "wrong way" there is is if it doesn't work/do it. if you can 19 out of 20 from 20' there's no second guessing.

1. Acceleration; it seems like this technique would be capped at about 20 feet before you would have to start tinkering with the mechanics or 'opening it up' a bit. I could wrong but, it feels a bit like I'm 'hand cuffed'.

2. Flutter; Anyone have any tips on getting rid of this? Could you explain 'finger spring' a little more? It doesn't seem to effect accuracy much but it looks ugly and I feel like its indicating I have a flaw in my form which might hurt accuracy as I try to increase my putting range.

#1 is true. it is capped unless you elongate the stroke. the disc has a lot of launch force but not a lot of launch momentum. i use weight shift and apex putting to resolve this and/or chooing putters with a lower drop rate.

#2 flutter means there is a finger that doesn't leave cleanly. finger spring means you are pushing/pulling the disc with your finger tips and popping it off your fingers when they all leave the disc. an easy example of finger spring is throwing a paper airplane. this is something you wouldn't be able to see in video but it's possible to understand conceptually. honestly the best way to grasp the concept right now is to fold up a paper airplane and try to bullet it with a short stroke and thinking about how it feels leaving the fingers.

[Jsw]

Great, I think I've got it. As far as dropping rate - are you suggesting that if you are having trouble getting range that it might be advantageous to switch molds to something that isn't as overstable? I.E. Wizard/KC aviar to a warlock or aviar?

Thanks for the information, going to grab my bag and practice this technique a bit more.

[Blake_T]

did throwing a paper airplane work? if you haven't thrown one yet, there's no way i'm making a video until you have

As far as dropping rate - are you suggesting that if you are having trouble getting range that it might be advantageous to switch molds to something that isn't as overstable? I.E. Wizard/KC aviar to a warlock or aviar?

it depends on how much power you are feeling you need to generate.
things that will decrease drop rate:
1. throwing a lighter putter.
2. throwing a more beat up putter.
3. throwing a less stable putter.

i prefer to go the weight route as i like putters that penetrate well.

[Jsw]

I didn't actually make and throw a paper airplane, but I threw plenty in my youth to still remember the feel and get basically what you are saying. I'm guessing by 'finger spring' you mean using your fingers to continue the forward thrust you put on the disc - as well as trying to release all your fingers at the same time? Those are the two concepts that come to mind when I think of throwing a good paper airplane

I use a 175g KC for ups/drives. And I just picked up a black 169g I'll use for putting.

[Blake_T]

I'm guessing by 'finger spring' you mean using your fingers to continue the forward thrust you put on the disc - as well as trying to release all your fingers at the same time? Those are the two concepts that come to mind when I think of throwing a good paper airplane

correct.

that no one probably actually made a paper airplane and threw it is why i don't make videos. people gotsta meet me halfway with the effort

[Jsw]

I threw darts this weekend, does that count?

And the reason I wanted to see you demonstrate it was that I think it would be interesting to see how you tweak the motion from further distances. As appose to someone demonstrating the basics from 10 feet away. I think the video was great and informative - but it would be cool to see another one expanding on some of the finer aspects.

[Blake_T]

the motion from 10' away is basically the same as from 20' but possibly with some weight shift and a higher trajectory. if you try to "muscle it" the technique breaks down.

i guess i'm not really sure what you are trying to see in a video.

to putt farther i generally release a bit higher and use more weight shift. that's about it.

the secret is in the release, and that is learned in the 10-12' range.

[josser]

I feel like I have somewhat of a feel for this technique out to about 20', but after that it starts to break down and I start really flinging it at the basket. By that I mean I start to fling it much more than finger finger spring it.

Would anybody who feels like they have a decent handle on Blake's short-arm technique in the 20-30' range like to post a video of what it looks like in those ranges? That would be most appreciated.