Just received my Edel Putter

[kurisu]

During my week in PA at Golf Evolution academy , I was fitted for an Edel putter by Erik (iacas).

It was the first time I was going through any type of club fitting. The process was fun, and very informative.

After checking length, loft and lie angles, Erik had to determine my aim and which head type, hosel type, etc, made me the most accurate. Once this was found, he made me hit different variations of weights/counterweights to find which gave me the best distance control.

We then ordered the putter to Edel.

I just received it today, and it looks and feels awesome! I just took a few pictures with my iPhone:

Thanks Erik! (and thanks to the Edel guys too)

[Mr. Desmond]

Kewl!

Great looking with the pixls...

Love mine ... I'm sure you'll love your Edel, too.

[Stretch]

Edel makes beautiful stuff for sure. Even the head cover is classy. Enjoy!

[MiniBlueDragon]

*is jealous*

Congrats on the putter and also having someone close enough to fit you for it. Alas I need to fly/drive/train to Scotland for a fitting (500 miles if I could go in a straight line) so it bumps the price of the putter up by far too much. :(

[LankyLefty]

Ive never swung one but if those things work half as good as they look...

[shades9323]

If you look at his other thread he flew 6500 miles from Tokyo for that fitting! That is some serious dedication.

Nice putter BTW!

Originally Posted by MiniBlueDragon

*is jealous*

Congrats on the putter and also having someone close enough to fit you for it. Alas I need to fly/drive/train to Scotland for a fitting (500 miles if I could go in a straight line) so it bumps the price of the putter up by far too much. :(

[kurisu]

Thanks guys!

Well, I didn't fly from Tokyo -just- for the fitting It was the icing on the cake, though!

I just love the sound and feel of this putter. I putted for almost an hour on my carpet yesterday evening, making my girlfriend jealous in the process. (mission accomplished!!)

While I like the Scotty sound/feel, compared to the Edel, my Scotty putters sound "clicky-er". The Edel head sounds more "full". (for lack of a better adjective)

About the Pixls "insert": I've never been an "insert" guy, and initially I was really thinking of going without it, but I tried Erik's putter, which has the pixls as well, and I found that:

1) it doesn't feel mushy like all other insert putters I've tried (even my Teryllium Newport although it's better than most),

and

2) it doesn't change the sound (to my ears at least)

So I went for it and I'm glad I did.

Boy I can't wait to use it on a real green

[IrishMaggie]

I was fitted for an Edel putter at Totally Driven in St. Paul, Mn a month ago by Andy. Turns out I was aiming a foot to the right from 8 feet out with my Rife Two Bar Mallet Hybrid putter. No wonder I consistently missed putts to the right. For the next hour and a half we tried several different combinations of putter heads, loft, lie angle, grip counter weights and alignment markings. It was a fun and interesting process which also included reviewing some solid putting fundamentals. We finally got it narrowed down to the Columbia head (which is a mallet style), 68 degree lie angle and 5 degrees of loft. Next came the grip weighting and when we got that nailed down my distance control was perfect. I went with the Basic set up and did not get the variable weights. I might regret that but we'll see. I did get the Pixel insert.

My putter arrived earlier this week and I've played three rounds with it and so far I'm very impressed. The putter itself is beautiful. I chose the blue paint fill and it looks great. I can really tell a difference in the 8 to 15 foot putts - I'm sinking them or burning the edges. The short putts are better too in that they feel easier - I know I have the putter aimed correctly and that adds confidence. As for the long ones - so far so good. I've made a few and left the others a comfortable distance for the two putt. My guess is I will become a more aggressive putter because of the increased confidence in my aim as well as in making the come backer if I miss. This should translate to making more birdies and par saves.

I've been as low as an 8 and as high as an 11 handicap over the past two years so time will tell as the numbers don't lie. Stay tuned. I'll report back.

Finally, I want to give a shout out to Andy at Totally Driven. He was a pleasure to work with and very professional and pleasant. There was no hard sell. After he got me all set up I putted 8 balls from 30 feet. I made 3 of them, burned the edge with 2 and left the other 3 within a few feet. At that point I was sold and handing over the credit card was no problem.

[ajschn06]

To be honest I don't understand Edel's "aiming" thing.  From what I've heard is that they believe a lot of golfers mis aim their putts, which is true.  I probably don't aim exactly where I think I'm aiming, but my main goal is to feel comfortable in my alignment and get the ball rolling on the line I want, which I'm able to do for the most part.  I think if someone said I was always aiming 6 inches to the right or left and I tried to fix it, it would really mess with my head....although, if I could afford it I would probably have to try it....

[MiniBlueDragon]

Originally Posted by ajschn06

To be honest I don't understand Edel's "aiming" thing.  From what I've heard is that they believe a lot of golfers mis aim their putts, which is true.  I probably don't aim exactly where I think I'm aiming, but my main goal is to feel comfortable in my alignment and get the ball rolling on the line I want, which I'm able to do for the most part.  I think if someone said I was always aiming 6 inches to the right or left and I tried to fix it, it would really mess with my head....although, if I could afford it I would probably have to try it....

I believe that's where the putter comes in; if you aim six inches right al the time then you can continue to do so but the putter itself will correct the problem if fitted to do so.

I think.

[Clambake]

Originally Posted by ajschn06

To be honest I don't understand Edel's "aiming" thing.  From what I've heard is that they believe a lot of golfers mis aim their putts, which is true.  I probably don't aim exactly where I think I'm aiming, but my main goal is to feel comfortable in my alignment and get the ball rolling on the line I want, which I'm able to do for the most part.  I think if someone said I was always aiming 6 inches to the right or left and I tried to fix it, it would really mess with my head....although, if I could afford it I would probably have to try it....

Ah, but this is exactly what the whole Edel fitting thing is about!    Instead of having you try to fix your natural misaiming tendency and having that mess with your head, Edel takes advantage of your your eyes and brain perceive you're aiming and corrects for that.    By playing with the head shape, aiming lines, and hosel, they create a putter that actually is aimed slightly different from where you perceive it.     So instead of having to fix your aiming perceptions yourself, you just line up in the way that makes you comfortable.

In a prior thread, Iacas posted the following picture which I think demonstrates Edel's concept perfectly.     They don't look like they're lined up the same, but they are.    Using the shape that best counteracts your aiming bias means you don't have to consciously or subconsciously correct - just aim as you'd like and then concentrate on making a good stroke.

[IrishMaggie]

Originally Posted by ajschn06

To be honest I don't understand Edel's "aiming" thing.  From what I've heard is that they believe a lot of golfers mis aim their putts, which is true.  I probably don't aim exactly where I think I'm aiming, but my main goal is to feel comfortable in my alignment and get the ball rolling on the line I want, which I'm able to do for the most part.  I think if someone said I was always aiming 6 inches to the right or left and I tried to fix it, it would really mess with my head....although, if I could afford it I would probably have to try it....

Here is the deal. Edel's theory is that while you may think you are aimed at the target with the putter you use, in fact you are not because how it all looks to your brain, eye and body is not how it actually translates in reality.  Andy attached a little mirror to my putter and put a ball down.  The target was a laser about eight feet away with a black background behind it.  Once I got in position and aimed at the laser with my Rife putter, Andy removed the ball and the reflection from the mirror back on to the black background was a foot to the right of the laser and six inches higher. I was shocked because to my eye I was aimed right at it. From there the process began to determine which putter head, hosel style, loft angle, lie angle, and combination of aiming lines or dots worked for me to be aimed right on the mark.  It took a while to narrow it down through trial and error.  Even something as simple as the configuration of aiming lines or dots made a difference for me of a few inches. With the putter configuration we ended up with, I felt as though I was aiming it the same as my old putter but instead of being a foot to the right I was dead on the target.  I even tried it again with my old putter and although I thought I was right at the target, I was still a foot to the right.  I can't explain the physics and eye/brain mechanics involved in why that is, but I can tell it works.  It hasn't messed with my head at all - I still aim the same way I always did but now I am actually aimed at the target.  I've practiced now on 6 foot putts with no break and the ball is going in the cup where I'm aimed unless I put a bad stroke on it and pull it to the left.  I'm not missing any to the right, that's for sure.

I'm not sure what I would do if I was still using my old putter and knew I was aiming it a foot to the right, but didn't have the bucks for the Edel. I would probably take the measurements from the Edel fitting and try to find a stock putter out there on ebay with that type of putter head (including the aiming lines) and hosel and then have it adjusted to the loft degree and lie angle, put a new round tacki mac grip on it and add the counterweights to the grip. I could probably do that for around $150.00 and I would be way better off than using the old Rife. I brought a couple of my old putters to the fitting and we measured those those to figure out which was the best one to use in the interim while waiting for my new Edel. Andy didn't tell me how far off I was with the interim putter because I didn't want to know - I did know I was aiming it too far right.  In the interim I have to say I putted better and really tried to focus on finding a spot six inches in front of me on the line and just focusing on that instead of looking at the line closer to the cup because when I did that, it looked like I was aimed too far to the left. With the Edel I still do the same thing only now when I look up and look at the line closer to the cup it looks like I'm aimed directly at it.  Pretty cool.

[xprostylex]

Man! That putter looks awesome!!

[johnclayton1982]

I'm expecting my putter mid-next week.  With my Taylormade Rossa Spider on their system I was aimed about 8" left on a 10 foot putt.  I used to miss putts left constantly - my pro even had me go to a different swing to compensate because we both assumed I was pulling the putts.

The theory behind Edel is pretty simple: you eliminate as many variables as you can before you swing.  Edel wants to eliminate the aim variable - so you are always aimed where you think you are and you just have to hit straight putts, as opposed to compensating for putts.  Also, the weighting is pretty neat, and how they weight both the shaft and the head.  After trying out tons of different combinations with my fitter (Ben LaVergne at Rob Noel Golf in Abita Springs, La. - who was great) I found one I loved.  I can't wait to see how the putter comes out.  Also, 35" putters always seemed too long and 34" too short.  When ben put a 34.66" shaft in my hand it was honestly like "ahhhhhhhhhhhh..."

[mathews42]

So what does a process like that Cost?  Sounds interesting, there isn't a fitter here In NM but I'm heading to Baltimore next month for a week and might check it out.  I love my Scotty but that Edel put's my 2.6 to shame by means of looks.  GREAT looking Putter!!!!

[iacas]

Originally Posted by mathews42

So what does a process like that Cost?  Sounds interesting, there isn't a fitter here In NM but I'm heading to Baltimore next month for a week and might check it out.  I love my Scotty but that Edel put's my 2.6 to shame by means of looks.  GREAT looking Putter!!!!

Every fitter does it a bit differently, but most will tend to:

a) charge a hundred bucks or so for your fitting.

b) if you buy an Edel, the fitting cost is rolled in to the cost of the putter, so you effectively pay no fitting cost.c)

c) if your current putter fits you already, your "fitting" lasts about ten minutes and they won't charge you much if anything at all.

[mathews42]

Thanks for the info iacas.  I really like the insert on the edel putter I guess my question was really what would one pay for a Edel Putter.

[snowman0157]

How many strokes could good ball striker, below average putter save with  properly fitted Edel flat-stick, you think?     Do they have a good size Mallet model?

I am intrigued by this Edel "thing"..... I Know it has a lot of merit. How do I know?   Because I am certain that I (and everyone I play with regularly doesn't aim properly about 98% of the time (with Putter and Full Swing!)   Why am I certain?  Because I have observed and it doesn't take a very keen eye to see that folks are making significant compensations in their strokes and swings trying to get the ball to go at the selected target vs. where their eyes told them align.... (something like, the brain takes over in mid swing/stroke to correct the misinformation the eyes fed to the body at address).  This all has something to do with eye dominance and the fact that golf is a "side on" sport which causes visual distortions when trying to aim/align.   There have been some scientific studies done on this.     I have another theory as well from my experience.... You know those shots where you just "know' you are going to hit a good one before you swing or the putt you 'know' you are going to make???? Well, I believe that has a lot to do with your eyes and brain being in sync.(by accident in many cases) and getting you aimed and aligned properly..... your subconcious mind senses that you are in.sync, it takes a lot of the compensations out of your swing, and frees you up to hit a good shot down your target line.   If I could start all over again as a beginner, I would emphasize  aiming and alignment (full swing and putter) over every other fundamental.   I work on it now, but I have a lot of years of bad habits and compensations  that are hard to over come.

We need an Edel process for full swing, not sure how that would work..... Alignment lines on Drivers, FW woods, Hybrids, Irons?