J13's WITB: Update- FUJIKURA AXIOM

[FAbb]

 

Quote

I will say i'm not the best 1 putt player but I pride myself on rarely 3 putting.  I might have a 3 putt every 2-3 rounds.  I practice a lot on speed to avoid this very thing.

It sounds like at a bare minimum you have excellent speed control.  Though I suspect you must be a very good short putter as well.  What do you think holds you back from having more 1-putts?

[J13]

20 minutes ago, FAbb said:

 

It sounds like at a bare minimum you have excellent speed control.  Though I suspect you must be a very good short putter as well.  What do you think holds you back from having more 1-putts?

 

 

Speed control is a strength for sure (don't have many comeback putts over 3ft).  Overall I tend to push putts due to a path that's in to out and my approach shots aren't as good as I'd like which further reduces the chance of a 1 putt.  Again for my hcp (+1) i'm an average putter.  I've found the lower my hcp gets the harder it is for big improvement or big jumps.  My hope with Arm Lock is that it can shave 1-2 more putts per round which would be huge.  I will say if it solves 1 problem but creates another I'll just scrap the experiment.  If I make more putts it will stay.  And the only way to know is get it on course, especially with some cash on the line.

[FAbb]

Good stuff.  That kind of validation is how I can trust what I read here more than any hot list/most wanted, etc.  It's got to be better than what you already have when it really matters.

 

I'm not as low as you.  I dipped below scratch this year after a run of good rounds, but have rebounded back above the demarcation line based on a prolonged run of not so good rounds throughout the fall lol.  If you can save 1-2 putts a round, that would be incredible.  I find myself fighting and clawing to look for ways to shave a tenth of a shot.

[J13]

47 minutes ago, FAbb said:

Good stuff.  That kind of validation is how I can trust what I read here more than any hot list/most wanted, etc.  It's got to be better than what you already have when it really matters.

 

I'm not as low as you.  I dipped below scratch this year after a run of good rounds, but have rebounded back above the demarcation line based on a prolonged run of not so good rounds throughout the fall lol.  If you can save 1-2 putts a round, that would be incredible.  I find myself fighting and clawing to look for ways to shave a tenth of a shot.

 

 

I'm with ya.  I find far more value here by reading reviews than i do from the hotlist or any golf mag.   My hcp goes up and down as well depending on time of year.  Usually the first month or so it goes up as i'm getting the rust off.  Time will tell if i find a few strokes, so far i'm not sold or selling😉

[J13]

SWAG 🚨 ALERT

 

@Fujikura Golf 👍 🔥

 

 

[J13]

Morning everyone

 

I woke up to a bunch of pm's about the putter.  Rather than respond to each one I will update the thread with those answers and also have a big update this week.  Thanks for the holiday I'll be getting in two rounds. 

 

Those that pm'd me about the swag, the hats are great, sweat liner in them and all.  The shirts run a little small so get a size up if your ordering.

 

 

[J13]

Played 9 today and playing again Saturday.  Update at the end of the week

 

 

 

To all those who wished me Happy Thanksgiving via pm I want to say the same to you and your family.  Hope everyone out there enjoys the holiday and stays safe.  

[J13]

Update:

 

Got 2 rounds in last week, 1 being a money game so I had some pressure to deal with. 

 

Round 1: Shot 75 (+3)

Had 36 putts on the day consisting of:   (14) 2 putts, (2) 3 putts, (2) 1 putts.  

 

 

 

Round 2 (money game) : Shot 71 (-1)

Consisting of 30 putts: (12) 2 putts, (6) 1 putts

 

 

What happened: Round 1 I was still struggling with distance and left myself with a lot of work on comeback putts.  Ended up missing 2 comeback putts hence the 3 putts.  Again i hate 3 putting so at this point I was ready to toss the arm anchor in the dumpster.  I was also struggling a bit with ball position so overall it was a $**T show.

 

Round 2: Money game - After round 1 earlier in the week I was very close to leaving the arm lock putter at home.  Last thing I wanted to do was get thumped on the course and lose cash but decided it had to be done to really see what the putter was made of.  The 2 days leading up to the weekend match I practiced for a few hours on just putting.  I found my optimal ball position and grip and also worked on keeping the grip of the putter on my left forearm on my follow through.  Anyway i found a groove but was still nervous.  Needless to say the day went better than i expected and didn't have any 3 putts.  I had a few good 1 putts for birdie and made some nice comeback putts from around 4ft.  Have to be honest the putts that make me the most nervous with the arm lock is the putts inside 5ft and outside of 30ft.  Lag putting is a challenge but noticeably better, the short putts force you to commit to your line and just let the putter do the work.  I tend to be handsy and a feel player so it's hard for me.

 

 

Overall the experiment is moving in the right direction.  I'm getting more comfortable with the setup and speed on lag putts.  One thing to note is I'm rolling about 50-75 putts at home per day.  My focus at the moment is to just get comfortable and confident in my setup.  I feel like i'm getting past having to think so much just to address the ball which is great.  

 

On we go...

 

[freeze16172002]

I have a 41" black series tour putter that has been sitting in the garage for the last let's say 6 years. This thread made me take it out of the dark to a putting green to try arm lock. Sadly it will be going right back to the garage. It just seems to robotic or restrictive for me, maybe that's the reason for doing it having a repetitive motion. There were distance control issues, alignment issues and me not wanting to put the time in to something that I most likely won't stick with issues. Sure works for Webb and you, but I just went from a anser style putter after more then 20 years to a mallet. Baby steps I am so used to a certain look that its hard to change

[J13]

15 hours ago, freeze16172002 said:

I have a 41" black series tour putter that has been sitting in the garage for the last let's say 6 years. This thread made me take it out of the dark to a putting green to try arm lock. Sadly it will be going right back to the garage. It just seems to robotic or restrictive for me, maybe that's the reason for doing it having a repetitive motion. There were distance control issues, alignment issues and me not wanting to put the time in to something that I most likely won't stick with issues. Sure works for Webb and you, but I just went from a anser style putter after more then 20 years to a mallet. Baby steps I am so used to a certain look that its hard to change

Its not for everyone but I will say the first few days I tried it I was convinced it was a no go for me. Felt robotic and like I had no touch or fell. After a few weeks of daily practice that feeling has gone away and my speed is slowing getting better.  
 

weather is not on my side so hoping to get a round in this weekend. Update soon

[J13]

Final Results for the Arm Lock:

 

I'll keep this short and sweet.  After 5 rounds and countless practice sessions the Arm Lock experiment has concluded. My goal is always to improve so if a club can help me accomplish that then it goes in the bag regardless of brand or style.  So the big question is, did the arm lock improve my putting?  The answer is complicated.

 

Oddly enough I thought Arm Lock putting would improve my stats from 8ft and in, it didn't.  I also thought lag putting would suffer due to speed control, but it didn't.  In other words if I didn't test it myself I would have argued with anyone about what would happen and been dead wrong.  My lag putting started off suspect but after 2 weeks I gained a lot of distance control and feel.  The part that trips people up is using the big muscles and not the wrists and hands.  Takes a minute to figure it out but once you do your good to go.  Short putts on the other hand scared me to death (which is bizarre).  For some reason putts inside 8ft just felt off.  Normal tap in's from 3ft or so gave me the sweats which is not normal.  I'm a good putter inside 6-8ft and never had this issue so i think I tend to use feel and the arm lock takes some of that away in the hands.  Keep in mind I didn't actually miss many short putts with the arm lock but i'll be damned if it didn't make me do some mental gymnastics. 

 

What I like:

Lag putting - Became much easier and i hit my lines more.  Not sure why but it was probably because i used shoulders to hit the ball and didn't get handsy.

Hitting your line - Once I figured out my setup I hit my lines a lot.  I use a line on the ball so it was very clear to see that line going end over end.  This is a strength

Quiets the hands - This is good and bad, just depends on the player.  Good for someone who gets a little shaky, bad for someone who feels putts a lot

 

What i didn't like:

Short putts (inside 8ft) - Made me obsess over my stroke and created a weird anxiety

Setup time - I found myself taking much longer at address to get my setup correct.  I was doing a lot of thinking but not on the things I should be.

 

 

Overall am I switching ?

 

No. The short putt mental breakdowns were bizarre and something I don't want to feel again.  The last 2 rounds I played with my short putter and was lights out with zero stress on the short putts.  Im glad I gave it a shot and actually think its a great training aid for people who get wristy.  It really helped remind me to use the big muscles and shoulders in the stroke.  

 

 

On to the next experiment which just arrived 🤩

[Cruisin1966]

1 hour ago, J13 said:

. . .

On to the next experiment which just arrived 🤩

Do tell!

[J13]

50 minutes ago, Cruisin1966 said:

Do tell!

 

Already have one practice session in the books with it haha.  I'll take some pics this week as I don't have my clubs with me.  😉

 

 

 

 

PM's - Got this question by a few people via PM. 

 

3 putts - Yes 3 putts were a concern as I stated earlier in the review.  It did get a little better by the end but the stress it induced on short putts would have eventually led to more 3 putts. 

[nitram]

That's too bad. I really thought you'd found something. FWIW, I couldn't make it work for me either.

[QMany]

My experiment with a Sik armlock had very similar results to you. I was a little disappointed. 

[J13]

1 hour ago, nitram said:

That's too bad. I really thought you'd found something. FWIW, I couldn't make it work for me either.

 I was hopeful but it wasn’t meant to be. I will honestly say I think it’s made me a better putter with the short stick. 
 

1 hour ago, QMany said:

My experiment with a Sik armlock had very similar results to you. I was a little disappointed. 

 

ah man sorry to hear that.  For me the short putts were the deciding factor. 

[nitram]

After trying the armlock method and switching back to a short putter, I was kind of in "no-man's land" with how to proceed. I mean there was a reason I tried the arm lock in the first place, right? So one day out of a combination of semi-desperation and boredom I was thinking about what I liked best about the arm lock and it was the accuracy I attributed to the straight left arm and lack of influence from the wrists. So I played around with a left-hand low grip until I found one I kinda liked and gave it a try. The first 10 putts from 8 ft. sucked. It was the same issue I had with the arm lock (lack of touch) but I did notice a positive. I was rolling the ball with a truer roll. I mean the line on the ball did not bobble. It reminded me of what my old golf teacher first taught me. "Focus on the roll rather than the hole".

 

So I spent the next hour or so on the practice green starting with straight 3 footers and working my way back to 8. On the straight putts I was golden as I was putting them in the center of the cup and the ball rolled true. This gave me the confirmation I was looking for in the stroke, now I needed to work on the touch. So, I started doing fringe drills and putting to objects from 5 to 20 footers and working my way back to 40 with the goal of staying inside 3 ft while still rolling it perfectly. This took some time (2 months of rolling it daily) but it also gave me a goal and quite honestly, it was like I was a kid again on the practice green, just rolling the rock to different places. 

 

Since switching to LHL and giving it the time it deserves to ingrain the feel (still a work in progress) I've averaged 28.2 PPR and a 3-jack every 22 holes. I have a good short game (by Dave Pelz standards) and I know proximity values and how critical it is to good putting. Switching to LHL has given me my confidence back in my putting. I've never rolled the ball this true and while I'm still a little "shaky" from over 50 ft (about 50% inside 3 ft), it's getting better. 

 

So yeah, there was something good that came out of trying the arm lock method. At least for right now...

[J13]

3 hours ago, nitram said:

After trying the armlock method and switching back to a short putter, I was kind of in "no-man's land" with how to proceed. I mean there was a reason I tried the arm lock in the first place, right? So one day out of a combination of semi-desperation and boredom I was thinking about what I liked best about the arm lock and it was the accuracy I attributed to the straight left arm and lack of influence from the wrists. So I played around with a left-hand low grip until I found one I kinda liked and gave it a try. The first 10 putts from 8 ft. sucked. It was the same issue I had with the arm lock (lack of touch) but I did notice a positive. I was rolling the ball with a truer roll. I mean the line on the ball did not bobble. It reminded me of what my old golf teacher first taught me. "Focus on the roll rather than the hole".

 

So I spent the next hour or so on the practice green starting with straight 3 footers and working my way back to 8. On the straight putts I was golden as I was putting them in the center of the cup and the ball rolled true. This gave me the confirmation I was looking for in the stroke, now I needed to work on the touch. So, I started doing fringe drills and putting to objects from 5 to 20 footers and working my way back to 40 with the goal of staying inside 3 ft while still rolling it perfectly. This took some time (2 months of rolling it daily) but it also gave me a goal and quite honestly, it was like I was a kid again on the practice green, just rolling the rock to different places. 

 

Since switching to LHL and giving it the time it deserves to ingrain the feel (still a work in progress) I've averaged 28.2 PPR and a 3-jack every 22 holes. I have a good short game (by Dave Pelz standards) and I know proximity values and how critical it is to good putting. Switching to LHL has given me my confidence back in my putting. I've never rolled the ball this true and while I'm still a little "shaky" from over 50 ft (about 50% inside 3 ft), it's getting better. 

 

So yeah, there was something good that came out of trying the arm lock method. At least for right now...

 

 

Make sense and glad you found a middle ground.  I can relate to the feeling of being a kid again on the practice green.  I had a lot of fun practicing putting for extended periods of time.  I got into the habit of spending 45 min or so banging balls and maybe 10 min putting.  During this process it was reversed and I really enjoyed it.  Since going back to my short putter my putting has been really good so maybe what i was looking for was right in front of me all along and it's called practice 😅

 

 

 

Side note: New experiment announcement with pics tonight 

[J_Tizzle]

So I gotta ask, have you considered side saddle putting?

 

I was a hardcore belly putter, then when they took that from me I was lost and close to ready to give up due to lack of confidence, tried the armlock and couldn't get comfortable with it at all, and stumbled onto the side saddle thread on here and found one on eBay and its been a game changer.  For me it was the exact opposite from what you experienced with the armlock, and my confidence within 10-ft was (and still is after 5+ years of doing it) extremely high.  Plus for me, the speed seemed much more natural when compared to armlock putting as you're just hitting it with your right hand, akin to rolling a ball with your lead hand.

 

It was a complete game changer for me, but I was a liability with a short putter, so anything would be an improvement for me. 

 

 

[J13]

8 minutes ago, J_Tizzle said:

So I gotta ask, have you considered side saddle putting?

 

I was a hardcore belly putter, then when they took that from me I was lost and close to ready to give up due to lack of confidence, tried the armlock and couldn't get comfortable with it at all, and stumbled onto the side saddle thread on here and found one on eBay and its been a game changer.  For me it was the exact opposite from what you experienced with the armlock, and my confidence within 10-ft was (and still is after 5+ years of doing it) extremely high.  Plus for me, the speed seemed much more natural when compared to armlock putting as you're just hitting it with your right hand, akin to rolling a ball with your lead hand.

 

It was a complete game changer for me, but I was a liability with a short putter, so anything would be an improvement for me. 

 

 

 

 

I've never tried side saddle outside of a pro shop.  I've always wanted to try one in the wild but heard good things.  Fortunately i'm putting great right now with a new short putter in my hands.  The arm lock helped me clean up some sloppiness and seems to be sticking.  Last round i made a crazy amount of putts outside 6ft.  The concept makes sense though and glad to see how much it's helped you.  I'll have to add that to my list of "winter boredom potential projects" 

[J_Tizzle]

1 minute ago, J13 said:

 

 

I've never tried side saddle outside of a pro shop.  I've always wanted to try one in the wild but heard good things.  Fortunately i'm putting great right now with a new short putter in my hands.  The arm lock helped me clean up some sloppiness and seems to be sticking.  Last round i made a crazy amount of putts outside 6ft.  The concept makes sense though and glad to see how much it's helped you.  I'll have to add that to my list of "winter boredom potential projects" 

 

HAHAHA I totally understand and thats exactly how I did it.  In Nov once my season was mostly over, I bought one and hit thousands of 3ft putts on my Truth Board and it was a game changer for sure.  Good luck, and if anything, you'll get every new person you play with asking to try it, lol.  

[J13]

4 hours ago, J_Tizzle said:

 

HAHAHA I totally understand and thats exactly how I did it.  In Nov once my season was mostly over, I bought one and hit thousands of 3ft putts on my Truth Board and it was a game changer for sure.  Good luck, and if anything, you'll get every new person you play with asking to try it, lol.  

 

Appreciate it and that's what happened with the Arm Lock.  Everyone wanted to try it lol.  

[pdiddy3]

J13, on a side note. What shaft is in your driver during these rounds now? I'm looking at ventus black or agera. But feel its a toss up. Thoughts?

[freeze16172002]

Its hard to change from feel and imagination in the rest of your game and shut that off while putting. 

[J13]

11 hours ago, pdiddy3 said:

J13, on a side note. What shaft is in your driver during these rounds now? I'm looking at ventus black or agera. But feel its a toss up. Thoughts?

 

Ventus Black 7X.  Love it.  Agera still a great shaft but not as good for me in the dispersion department. I have 2 Agera's and i use them when i'm in between clubs or shafts as they are tried and true.

 

1 hour ago, freeze16172002 said:

Its hard to change from feel and imagination in the rest of your game and shut that off while putting. 

Agree.  I think it can be done if you really put some time in but i'm fortunate in that it wasn't a necessity for me and more of an itch to scratch.

 

 

[J13]

BTW Pics of the new test tonight.  Haven't had my clubs with me but plan on practicing and maybe playing a few holes later.  

[J13]

Next up :

 

 

[Deuce78]

THAT is going to be a bomber in 15 deg!

Also I've been arm locking for many years.  And I just got my first SIK putter today.  And I was very impressed.  If you can...before you hang it up....somehow give one a go [a SIK].  You are welcome to try mine if you are in the area....good luck with the bomber. On paper and in person that looks epic....

[FAbb]

As a current TS2 3 wood player, and new ventus user all I can say is, SUBSCRIBED!

[BallerNate]

Man...that’s a meaaan looking 3-wood!! Looks like there should be a Batman logo on top!! 😍