MEMBER REVIEWS: L.A.B. Golf Putters! Read What Members Are Saying Now!

[caniac6]

Has anyone bought one of these off the rack, and seen an improvement in their putting, or is a proper fitting essential?

[labgolf]

43 minutes ago, caniac6 said:

Has anyone bought one of these off the rack, and seen an improvement in their putting, or is a proper fitting essential?

If you are able to set the putter down and be comfortable and the putter is lying flush on the ground without a fight, then you have a good fit. All we are trying to do with our fittings is get folks comfortable. Its not a big fancy digital crazy process or anything. Comfort is king.

 

[dlow206]

14 minutes ago, labgolf said:

If you are able to set the putter down and be comfortable and the putter is lying flush on the ground without a fight, then you have a good fit. All we are trying to do with our fittings is get folks comfortable. Its not a big fancy digital crazy process or anything. Comfort is king.

 

 

And many folks fit into the bell curve covered by the stock options.

 

I'm special because i need a 31" putter.

[PT1911]

10 hours ago, caniac6 said:

Has anyone bought one of these off the rack, and seen an improvement in their putting, or is a proper fitting essential?

Absolutely. I bought one at 2nd Swing because they had a bunch on the rack to try. Tried a few until I just felt comfortable setting it down and putting.

 

I’ve increased my putting percent so much, guys at my club are seriously asking me if the putter is illegal. Seriously…..

[Bunkersarebigcups]

3 hours ago, PT1911 said:

Absolutely. I bought one at 2nd Swing because they had a bunch on the rack to try. Tried a few until I just felt comfortable setting it down and putting.

 

I’ve increased my putting percent so much, guys at my club are seriously asking me if the putter is illegal. Seriously…..

 

My dad is a die-hard "indian > arrow" believer, but is seriously thinking about a DF 2.1 after we played two rounds together lately.

That would make his putter more expensive then the rest of his bag... including the bag. Just to put things into perspective on how he thinks about buying golf equipment.

 

I also had one guy wanting to report me for using one in a tournament lol. He too thought it was illegal. He was calmed down by the photo of Adam Scott trying one at the Master

Edited July 28, 2021 by Bunkersarebigcups

[KensingtonPark]

On 7/26/2021 at 11:17 PM, Bunkersarebigcups said:

 

Give it some time, I really struggled with distance control early on. But after some practice time, my lag putting has really become a strength again. The forgiveness certainly helps once you're used to the weight and make a proper length of stroke.

Totally my expectation; I definitely was not trying to suggest it was a disappointment of the putter. I had simply not appreciated how similar all of my past putters were in that respect so that distance control never really was impacted.

[5baytjd]

On 7/26/2021 at 4:34 PM, KensingtonPark said:

OK, so I have now been on the course multiple rounds with the putter. It is everything I expected, both good (GREAT) and bad (expected).

 

The GOOD:

As I was hoping, I have never had this much confidence in the line that I am hitting the ball. As background, I am generally regarded as a very good putter, and I have used Anser style putters for over 30 years. My frustration is largely with short putts (6 ft and less), especially those that are breaking left to right on really fast greens. A frequent reason that I sometimes miss these putts is that I have always managed torque with Anser style putters with my hands, and that is delicate and practiced. I was hoping the DF2.1 would eliminate that, and it has!

 

The BAD:

My putters have always been heavy (350-360 grams). The DF2.1, while perfectly balanced, is a little lighter than my historical profile. So distance management is going to take more practice for me to get right. I hit a few perfect online putts that stopped short of the hole. (I am a hit past the hole kind of person, so I generally like to finish a round leaving no more than 2 putts short.) 

 

All in all, I am very happy with this experiment so far.

What works for me, because the 2.1 is so forgiving of toe or heel strikes, is to look at the target while making my stroke -- REALLY helps me with distance control.

I liken it to tossing a bag at a corn hole target, you don't look at the bag, you focus on the hole and let your eyes and brain calculate the required force to apply.

Give it a try.

[Mych]

I'm sure it has been addressed somewhere in the pages of this thread, but how much goodness would I be sacrificing if I chose the blade rather than the 2.1?

Edited July 29, 2021 by Mych

[KensingtonPark]

I saw a LAB DF2.1 in play in the Olympics today. Does anyone know who it was? I couldn’t figure it out. It was in the Hurly Long, Yechun Yuan, Gavin Green group. Thanks!

[labgolf]

9 hours ago, KensingtonPark said:

I saw a LAB DF2.1 in play in the Olympics today. Does anyone know who it was? I couldn’t figure it out. It was in the Hurly Long, Yechun Yuan, Gavin Green group. Thanks!

It was Gavin Green. I beleive its his 2nd tourney with it. His coach is Chris O'conell who has been using it for a while

[labgolf]

11 hours ago, Mych said:

I'm sure it has been addressed somewhere in the pages of this thread, but how much goodness would I be sacrificing if I chose the blade rather than the 2.1?

Quite a bit. The lab tech in the blade doesn't feel quite as obvious. And the forgiveness factor is big.

[ThinkingPlus]

15 hours ago, Mych said:

I'm sure it has been addressed somewhere in the pages of this thread, but how much goodness would I be sacrificing if I chose the blade rather than the 2.1?

You really have to hit the sweetspot or else your distance control will suffer.  The torque balancing is not really affected.  Putts will still start online as long as you swing along the lie angle path, but clank some off the toe or heel and you won't get the ball to the hole.

[bogey69]

Over 48 hrs since my fitting video and no response. Just wondering how long it usually takes (website claims within 48 hrs).  Thx. 

[burns9304]

On 7/27/2021 at 12:33 PM, caniac6 said:

Has anyone bought one of these off the rack, and seen an improvement in their putting, or is a proper fitting essential?

I have a buddy that bought one off the rack at PGA Superstore that was 34" 69* lie coming from a Ping Anser 2 at 35" 72* lie and it has helped his putting 4 strokes a round minimum!  I always told him his Ping was not a good fit and that he should look somewhere else, but he never listened till he putted with the DF 2.1.  His average putting before was 36 per round with the Anser and he averaged 30 per round with his first 3 rounds out with it.  I'm not looking for a new putter since I love my Bettinardi, but the results and the ease I am seeing from my friend have me very intrigued in my own DF 2.1.

[bunta]

13 hours ago, labgolf said:

Quite a bit. The lab tech in the blade doesn't feel quite as obvious. And the forgiveness factor is big.

 

even if the lab b.2 is much less forgiving than the DF2.1, are they still more forgiving than your run of the mill blade putters of the rack ??? or perhaps a regular milled putter like scottys and etc...

[labgolf]

18 hours ago, bogey69 said:

Over 48 hrs since my fitting video and no response. Just wondering how long it usually takes (website claims within 48 hrs).  Thx. 

Just slammed. I bet you'll have it by the end of the day.

[labgolf]

14 hours ago, bunta said:

 

even if the lab b.2 is much less forgiving than the DF2.1, are they still more forgiving than your run of the mill blade putters of the rack ??? or perhaps a regular milled putter like scottys and etc...

Marginally, yes.

[bogey69]

Got it about an hour ago, thanks!

[JA17]

On 7/27/2021 at 8:38 PM, PT1911 said:

Absolutely. I bought one at 2nd Swing because they had a bunch on the rack to try. Tried a few until I just felt comfortable setting it down and putting.

 

I’ve increased my putting percent so much, guys at my club are seriously asking me if the putter is illegal. Seriously…..

Which 2nd swing? Hopefully the one in Scottsdale. I love my long LAB putter but would like to demo a few shorter versions. 

[PT1911]

3 hours ago, JA17 said:

Which 2nd swing? Hopefully the one in Scottsdale. I love my long LAB putter but would like to demo a few shorter versions. 

Sorry man, it was the one in Minnetonka MN. But, I think all locations have a decent amount of them.

[spacetime]

Had a bunch of difficulty getting the ball to the hole on spongy shaggy greens yesterday. This was the direct opposite of putting the ball off the green at the country club the round before. Any tips or just work on drills? 

[labgolf]

3 hours ago, spacetime said:

Had a bunch of difficulty getting the ball to the hole on spongy shaggy greens yesterday. This was the direct opposite of putting the ball off the green at the country club the round before. Any tips or just work on drills? 

Use gravity/length of stroke to control speed. longer putt, longer stroke. In general, it can be tough to take a long stroke for fear of the mishit but A, less likely to mishit with a balanced putter and B, doesn't really matter if you mishit it.

[KensingtonPark]

I have also discovered that moving the ball back in my stance from the traditional forward position really helps. You can kind of get away with the forward position on the faster greens. When they slow down, I feel like the putter face needs to be in the center of my stance.

[Humble]

Is it possible to upgrade the shaft on a 2.1 with a kbs steel shaft? 

[dlow206]

3 minutes ago, Humble said:

Is it possible to upgrade the shaft on a 2.1 with a kbs steel shaft? 

Which 2.1 version do you have? 2.1, 2.1T, etc.

[iceman1118]

Hey @labgolf, question for you from probably your most satisfied customer. (DF all season, started broomstick, picked up a standard in my specs a short while back, handicap down from 4 to 2 and average putts per round down just above 4!) 

 

Is there anything in the pipeline to put together a comprehensive user guide to how to best use the DF? I know the old youtube channel with the ball position, revealer demos, etc, but I am thinking maybe some videos or a page on your website with some instruction going over all the basics? Maybe some info on certain types of misses and potential fixes? I know a while back in this thread you personally mentioned a grip change. Things of that nature. 
 

I would also bet if you need some thoughts from users as well as to what works best for them maybe that could be part of the manual as well. 
 

Just some food for thought. And by the way, love that post you put together in the neutral balanced putters thread. Nailed it!

[Humble]

5 minutes ago, dlow206 said:

Which 2.1 version do you have? 2.1, 2.1T, etc.

2.1 regular 

[dlow206]

1 minute ago, Humble said:

2.1 regular 

@labgolf - that version still uses the interference fit plus powder in the shaft right?

 

@Humble - if LAB confirms the above, i would not recommend changing the shaft out yourself. trust me, i have done it haha

[labgolf]

9 minutes ago, iceman1118 said:

Hey @labgolf, question for you from probably your most satisfied customer. (DF all season, started broomstick, picked up a standard in my specs a short while back, handicap down from 4 to 2 and average putts per round down just above 4!) 

 

Is there anything in the pipeline to put together a comprehensive user guide to how to best use the DF? I know the old youtube channel with the ball position, revealer demos, etc, but I am thinking maybe some videos or a page on your website with some instruction going over all the basics? Maybe some info on certain types of misses and potential fixes? I know a while back in this thread you personally mentioned a grip change. Things of that nature. 
 

I would also bet if you need some thoughts from users as well as to what works best for them maybe that could be part of the manual as well. 
 

Just some food for thought. And by the way, love that post you put together in the neutral balanced putters thread. Nailed it!

Gonna start filming in 2 weeks!

[Humble]

5 minutes ago, dlow206 said:

@labgolf - that version still uses the interference fit plus powder in the shaft right?

 

@Humble - if LAB confirms the above, i would not recommend changing the shaft out yourself. trust me, i have done it haha

Definitely not trying to do it myself. Wanna send it back to lab and let them do it right.