I have been playing DG for about 9 months now.
Pretty seriously. First, wondering what exactly is turbo putting ??

I practice Putting pretty religously and I Putt from the upper body area. I see many Pros starting very low and coming up and I don't quite understand this technique. It seems to diminish accuracy at least for me.

When you shoot a handgun at a target you don't aim low from the waist and hip area and move gun upward as you pull the trigger at target.
You would lose major accuracy doing this, wouldn't you ??

You aim the gun at the target from the upper chest area nearer to your eyes for best accuracy , right ??

Not to sound too technical but it just seems common sense that if you decrease the distance from Disc:eye:target you will increase accuracy.
Whereas when you start the Putt low and come up you are increasing the distance of Disc:eye:target. Making it more inaccurate.

And also remember the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. And putting low and moving up seems to not be the most efficient way according to this theory.

So why and how is this form of starting low and moving up beneficial for Putting ?? I am no way an expert in Putting and I am far from ever being a Pro. That is just a dream right now.
But I am just wanting to learn more about this game.

Thanks for any insight !!!

A turbo putt is an overhand putt, the disc is over your head. The theory is that you have a bigger target coming down from above. Some people are very good at it but most use it as a utlitiy shot.

When throwing out from the chest you are moving the disc in three dimentions, the motion you see the pros use keeps the disc in two dimentions and means you have to compensate for fewer things. Each has its merits and gets used a lot by both Pros and Ams. Keep in mind a lot of what you see in sports is correlated to what people learned. It might not be the best but they got used to it.

There are actually names for each style you've mentioned (it escapes me at the moment) but there are whole threads debating the merits of each. Go to kenclimo.com for his explanation of why he uses the lift method (there is less torque and so the disc is less likely to bounce out).

Pretty sure players will start low if they're using a pitch putt, and higher if they're doing a throwing putt. The mechanics of the pitch putt just require you to start low. Its like throwing a horseshoe, you can't throw something underhand if you start up by your chest. Players aim with things besides their eyes when they throw a disc. Some people can putt with their eyes closed. They line up feet and belly button and chest so the basket is directly in front of them. Then they also use a weight shift to aim. Ken Climo said he throws the disc as if its a rock. He just lines up the weight shift with his back foot (I think) the disc and the basket. So I guess the short answer is, players use their eyes to see the basket, and then they line up their body with the basket so they no longer need to aim with their eyes, once their body is in a certain position they know where the basket is. That way they can just focus on recreating the same feel of the putt they have done countless times for the disc to go out of their hand and into the basket.

The cons of throwing the disc on straight a line as possible is that you have to put more power on it to throw it on a a straight line than you do for using an arc. When the disc has more power on it, it is more likely to go farther if you miss the putt, and it is more likely to bounce out of the basket.

Done this : Some people can putt with their eyes closed.

Also , try Putting at night and with distractions.
Helps to stay focused on what your doing at the time.

starting a putt up high requires an elbow extension to power the putt. as the elbow continues to extend, the force vector imparted on the disc becomes an arc, following the extension. end result: very slight timing mishaps lead to misses to the right/left (more commonly the right).

the theory that you would aim the disc like a gun is really only sound if the disc flies on a perfectly straight line drive, which also isn't very feasible unless you want a 35' comebacker if you miss a 25' putt.

an underhanded pitch motion generally keeps the power of the putt linear and thus has less tendency to push/pull. as for aiming with this style, generally people use a part of the body to aim with on line with their desired flight path (often the toes of the front foot, the center of the chest, etc.).

Around here we use "turbo putt" to refer to the putt that is thrown from more or less eye level and the grip kind of looks like a waiter carrying carrying a serving tray elbow down, palm up with the tray at about eye level except the waiter would have four fingers under the tray and the putter has two or four fingers on the rim with the putter balanced on the thumb. You push the disc with your index finger and rotate counterclockwise [right handed] to impart spin.

If you can get the hang of the turbo putt it is useful because the line of flight is your line of sight, and the line of flight is descending instead of ascending.

The turbo putt is also very useful for selling putters to new players.

Ha Blake,
That makes sense. You are the first one to explain it to me in clear detail (and you too jacksweather). And the first one to really legitimately refute the gun theory. I appreciate it . Eveytime I asked it at my local disc Club Golf Site, people always would reply, "well the pros do it and thats all you need to know ".

Anyway, let me ask you this.I have been putting chest level since the beginning 9 months ago and am a pretty good putter. Should I totally revamp my putting style and begin all over with the underhand pitch approach ??

basically the best way to describe putting is to break it down to 2 style. YOu have the loft/pitch/push putt and a spin putt..
PUsh is a misused term it seems, but loft and pitch are the best way to describe the putt.. you are starting low and lofting the disc on an arc at the basket. THe putt Doesn't UTILIZE Spin as a way to keep the disc in motion, but uses the momentum of your arm and fingers popping off the disc. Little spin is created, but it is a very accurate putt.

the other would best be described as a spin putt. Usually thrown on a straight line or very slight arc and fade at the basket. YOU throw from higher in your body(which creates more spin) and you are basically utilizing spin to keep the disc in the air. Many pros use this style, but i find it very hard to use as you can get horrible blow-by putts and i am not so accurate with it.

Climo, Schultz, Brinster, Jenkins, Feldberg, etc would be considered using the pitch/loft/push putt.
RIco, Schweberger, Haney, Russel, etc would be considered using the Spin putt..

HOpe this helped a bit.

-Scott Lewis

p.s. as for turbo putting eveyrone else pretty much covered it. i'd recommend it only for utility shots where you have no putting room except over things.

Ha Greatzy,
You may have answered this with that list. But what Top Pro Putts like myself, starting and releasing from the middle and upper chest area and on a straight line from his eyes?? If any ??
Thanks

steve rico and walt haney putt like that, however their styles differ in a way. rico releases with his arm almost fully extended whereas walt "short arms" it and releases much closer to his body. each type has its inherent advantages/disadvantages.


Should I totally revamp my putting style and begin all over with the underhand pitch approach ??




this is up to you. if you can make say, 70% from 25', there is no reason to change really. if you are more like 20% from 25' and have been practicing a lot, then i would say you have an inherently weak style and could/should probably consider modifying.

something i forgot to mention about putting with an up/down arc flight path. if the disc approaches the basket on a somewhat downward trajectory you have the largest surface area to hit that will result in a "made" putt.

One other consideration is the ability to maintain a consistent putting style for both short and long range putts. It is easier for newer players to maintain a spin style putt when they are further from the basket than it is to lengthen the pitch putt. I found that especially true on courses with baskets protected by trees that restrict the ceiling on longer putts.

i definitely agree that it is easier, especially before players develop a good weight shift to power the putt. however, for most players at that stage, i also recommend laying up outside of 20' or so and telling them to "play within themselves" until they have developed a style and practiced it to the point where a 10' comebacker doesn't = a 3 putt.

Ha Blake,
Yeah I went out to DG Course today. Practiced about fifty Putts.
Took a measuring tape and measured 25 ft.
My first set of 10 Putts I hit 8. Second set of 10 I hit 7.
It went down the next two sets at 5 out of 10 for each one.
The last set of 10 I was 9/10!!

I know when i miss its usually left or right. Rarely straight and short.I guess probably typically for my style??

you are correct in that being typical for the style. i was able to consistently putt 50-70% from 25-30' with a throwish style, but i kept getting PO'd when i'd miss in the exact same way every time (yank to the right).

i can say that my wrist/hand behavior is the same for a pitch/loft putt as it is for a throw/spin putt.

what make % is good enough for you will dictate if you will change or not. for me, i wanted more like 80-100% make.

the next step in practice for you will be to throw those same putts but rotating around the basket for wind variation. eventually you will come to a style that will work in most conditions (unless you are good enough at driving to always leave yourself your ideal wind).

Anyway, let me ask you this.I have been putting chest level since the beginning 9 months ago and am a pretty good putter. Should I totally revamp my putting style and begin all over with the underhand pitch approach ??



there's a player at my local course who putts off his chest. his style is pretty much a quick elbow extension with a crisp release, lifting his back leg a bit as his arm goes out. it goes completely against my own style, and many others'. but you know what? he kills it... he's been winning some big AM1 tournaments and is probably on the verge of turning pro. he's an amazing putter!

if you think you're a good putter and believe in your form, go with it dude!! the pros ain't got it all figured out, this sport is young, and putting is a very personal thing.