Putting is one of the most important elements to improve scores in disc golf. It can mean the difference between a good/great round and an otherwise forgettable round. This disc golf putting tip will help you keep your trusted putting stroke but also help improve your performance on the course.
Stop me when this loses familiarity. You decide to practice putting so you set up your basket. You grab your putters and mark out the distance you want to practice from.
Then, you start putting. Miss, hit, hit, hit, miss, hit, hit, hit, hit, hit…
You go collect your putters, go a little further from the basket and start again. Miss, hit, hit, hit, hit, hit, hit, miss, hit, hit.
Rinse and repeat.
But what’s the problem? You hit 8/10 putts on that last round. 80% is pretty good by most metrics. You’re ready to go even farther back you think…
Here’s the problem. You missed your first putt. In a real round, your first putt is the only putt you get from that spot.
Does any of that sound familiar? It sure does for me. It’s why I’m writing to you today. I noticed that I would consistently miss my first putt. Then, I’d recalibrate and start clanging chains and feel pretty good in the process…
It didn’t take me long to figure out, however, that this was a problem. Today, we go about fixing that problem with a disc golf putting tip that anyone can use. It won’t cause you to change your putting style at all. It’s just a proven method used in other sports that I’ve found has translated quite nicely to my putting game.
I’ll even give you a pro example that I saw the other night…
Let’s get into it…
The Disc Golf Putting Tip For Instant Improvement
When it comes to technical putting tips, I am not your guy. As you may have read in my about page, I’m more of a guy that knows a guy… In other words, I’m going to curate and direct you to the best content from people in the know.
That being said, I’ve found this tip to be very helpful and it does NOT require you to change your putting style. If you saw me putt, you’d never ask me for advice (though I am getting much better so look out!).
Like I said before, I was missing my first putt in each round of putting, and that does you no good on the course.
I was finding that I was either aligned improperly or my form was off on that first putt so I’d pull the putt off line )or not follow through and have it fade left without ever having a chance).
Then, I remembered a tip that helped me tremendously in free throw shooting in basketball. I was just okay at basketball, but if you fouled me, those free throws were going in! Here it is!
Disc Golf Putting Tip: Before throwing your putt, first go through your complete putting motion without the disc in your hand. As you do this (and slightly after) visualize the result you expect.
There it is! It doesn’t ask you to change your technique at all, but could greatly increase your chances of success on your first (only) putt from a given spot. (Note: I also like to practice the motion with the putter in my hand to get a feel for the weight and the disc.)
Before we get to why, let’s give this tip some credibility from people we know (and not some guy who calls himself “Mr. Disc” (me).)
The Pros That use this Technique
I already likened disc golf putting to free throw shooting. I think there are a lot of similarities (uncontested, trying to hit a target from a considerable distance, want to limit extraneous movements, want to find a consistent, repeatable motion, etc.).
So, with that in mind, let’s look at one of the very best free throw shooters in the game (Currently 2nd All Time in NBA Free Throw Percentage (Behind Steph Curry (barely!))). I speak of Steve Nash! Watch this video. It’s 2:06 and well worth your time!
Tell me that’s not great! Don’t you see how well that translates to putting in disc golf?
Let’s Review some of the key points and takeaways
Focus – In the intro, you couldn’t help but notice how many opportunities there were to be distracted in a packed arena with people taunting/jeering. When I have just one person watching me putt/throw I get a little nervous. I can’t imagine what it’s like to have thousands willing me to miss. But that focus comes, in part, from these other tips.
Routine – Nash dribbles 3 times, takes a deep breath and shoots. He said this about it. “When you practice something and you stick with a routine, you take away all the unknown variables. That allows you to just feel confident and focus in on the technique.” To me, this has obvious implications with putting and I plan to continue to develop my routine for putting (including that deep breath).
Visualize – Nash talks about it as if it’s a given. If it’s a given for him than it should probably be a given for us. “People talk about visualizing and how important that can be to success as a shooter (putter). I think that’s true…” He then goes on to connect it his practice shots without the ball…
Practice Shots Without The Ball (Putter) – This connects to his visualization technique. “I mean just one or two practice shots for me without the ball… this is also like visualizing plus. It allows me to not only see the ball go in the basket but to feel my mechanics, and most importantly as a shooter, to feel your rhythm.”
Rhythm – This can probably be incorporated into the routine aspect, but there’s a rhythm I consistently hear about in disc golf putting videos from pros and others. Basically it’s a few seconds back and then putt forward type rhythm, that I will try to be more cognizant of. It may help you as well…
Missing a Shot – We all miss! Some (me) more than others. And when Nash misses he tells you in no uncertain terms that it pisses him off. That makes me feel better because I feel the same way. But here’s the take-away. We could either let the miss rattle us/eat away at us and affect the rest of our round, or we can move on from it. Here’s what Nash says about moving on: “The key thing is to not let it affect you. You know, I let it burn for a second. Then, I just try to wash it away and get onto the next play…”
I don’t know how you could pack more value into a 2-minute video than that! I picked up a lot by watching it a few times and I encourage you to go back and watch it again.
To me, there is a clear correlation between that advice and how it can translate to your putting. If you agree, then pick some/all ideas from what he said and see if it helps you as well!
A disc Golf Pro Using the Same Technique
I was just watching this last night so this pro is fresh in my mind. Also, I’m consuming disc golf at a ravenous rate, but I’ve only been at this for a few months (at the time of writing this)…
So, I’m guessing there are other examples of other pro disc golfers using this technique too. If you see some, let me know in the comments and I’ll look for it.
For my purposes, because I just watched her last night, I think a great/clear example of this method being put to use on the pro circuit is Catrina Allen.
Watch Catrina Allen, before almost any putt (even very close putts) and you will see her go through a similar ritual. This tells me 1. That she values routine and wants to keep her routine even on the “gimme” putts, and 2. That she has found success using this method.
Who else? There have to be others right? If not, send them this post or something!
How About Some Research to Support it?
This is turning into a research article. I feel like I’m in college again… I’ll keep this brief.
Getting back to free throws, I wanted to see if there was any research that supports my idea. Basically, for the most part, free throws usually happen in twos.
So, if my muscle memory idea is correct, then NBA players would hit their second free throw more often than their first free throw.
This was found to be true and here is the article I found to support it. I didn’t thoroughly vet the source because I’m NOT in college AND because it proves my point (Ha!). Nevertheless, you can take my word that it looks very official and well researched!
The article is entitled Better with each throw—a study on calibration and warm-up decrement of real-time consecutive basketball free throws in elite NBA athletes“
Now tell me that doesn’t sound official why don’t you?
And while we’re in that vein, here’s an article on the importance of visualization and athletic performance.
Thoughts on Muscle Memory
Here’s how I think about muscle memory and practicing my putt without a putter.
Basically, I think of it as “activating the physical pathways that I have trained my body to perform.” If that sounds like BS to you, you’re probably not alone.
Another way of thinking about it is that I am preventing the bad first shot, by showing my body what it already knows how to do.
More BS? But do you get the point? I think it’s really, really important. So do Steve Nash and Catrina Allen! It also works for me and I’ve seen results! I drive a Dodge Stratus!
Let’s put a bow on this…
In Summary
It is my genuine hope you find this disc golf putting tip to be helpful. It has truly helped me start making more first putts when practicing and putts on the course when playing.
As a reminder, the tip is this: Before throwing your putt, first go through your complete putting motion without the disc in your hand. As you do this (and slightly after) visualize the result you expect.
Also note that there’s also value in doing your motion with the putter to get a feel for the weight. I incorporate both.
In addition, as we saw from Steve Nash, there is also value to be had from establishing a routine (with a deep breath perhaps), establishing a rhythm to your putting, and being able to move on from missed putts (which happens to the best of us!).
For fun, we even threw in some research that supports these ideas and a pro example (Catrina Allen) using it on the disc golf circuit to boot!
Give it a try when you are disc golf’n around the putting greens and see if it helps you with your putting like it has for me.
Thanks for reading everyone! I sincerely hope this tip brings you value in your own disc golf putting game! If you want more content like this be sure to subscribe/contact me and let me know what you think. Finally, in the comments, feel free to let me know if you have a routine/rhythm that works for you. And of course if there are other pros using this method then let me know that too!
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