Unofficial Review: L.A.B. Golf Directed Force 2.1 Putter

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

1 hour ago, edingc said:

Adding my "final" (for the 2020 season at least) review here and will also update the main post:

Looks - 4/5 Stars

There is no doubt the DF 2.1 is funky looking. Bottle-opener shape aside, the biggest thing you notice is the size of the head. The DF 2.1 makes my Spider X look tiny in comparison. After a few rolls, however, the head’s size feels more and more natural. 

The combination of the black grip, black Stability Tour shaft and black head is very pleasing. The head finish is matte, and L.A.B.’s updated branding on the sole of the club looks better compared to previous iterations of the putter. Since the finish is matte, there is no issue with sun glare or reflection.

I’m very happy L.A.B. was able to accommodate my request to combine sightline options. I like having lines both parallel and perpendicular to my aim line. I also like that the outer lines frame the golf ball at address. I have a tendency to set the face too open and put the ball toeside, and these lines provide a nice reference for me to address the golf ball.

Sound and Feel - 4/5 Stars

The adjustment period has been relatively painless, with the biggest change being how light the head feels throughout the swing compared to my previous gamers. 

The sound of a putter is strongly correlated with feel for me. Having played the Spider line of putters, this is my first non-insert putter in some time. The DF 2.1 has horizontally milled lines on the aluminum face. Keep in mind I am gaming the DF 2.1 with the BGT Stability Tour shaft. I chose this shaft specifically because L.A.B. recommended it to achieve a “softer” feel. 

Putts struck out of the middle have a soft, muted sound and feel. As you move more to the heel and toe of the putter face (of which there is a lot to hit!), the sound becomes more metallic and pingy. This leads to those putts feeling firmer than ones out of the middle. 

I’m thoroughly enjoying the sound/feel of this putter.

Basic Characteristics - 5/5 Stars

The strength of this putter is its outstanding distance control. Given a few minutes to get a feel for the greens, I’m confident I will leave almost all of my putts within a 2-3 foot circle of the hole (that is, if they don’t go in!). It does not seem to matter if I don’t hit a putt just right - distances are repeatable and insulate against my stroke being imperfect.

There is definitely something to the lie-angle balance technology, but you have to be careful not to manipulate the club with your hands. Coming from a standard putter, it took a few practice sessions to eliminate my hands from causing rotation of the face.

I went up to a 36 inch putter to alleviate some of the stress on my lower back. This has been a resounding success. I have practiced a lot since receiving the putter (much more than I had all season up to that point) and have no back pain whatsoever. I am more upright in my stance and my eyes now rest about one-to-two inches inside the ball at address.

Miscellaneous - 5/5 Stars

The included leather headcover is very high quality. It has very strong closure magnets but is still easy to put on and take off, appears to be made from quality materials and the embroidered L.A.B. logo is top notch. 

To attach my Arccos putter sensor to the Press II grip, I had to take a small drill bit and deepen the hole at the end of the grip. I’ll admit it was a little unnerving to take a power tool to a brand new $700 putter.

On Course Performance - 5/5 Stars

With the nice fall weather holding on as long as it has this year, I’ve had more opportunities to play than I anticipated when starting this post. I ended up squeezing in a total of four rounds (54 tracked holes) with the L.A.B. The results were very promising.

 

The four rounds were the best putting performances of my season! And that was despite playing courses I hadn’t previously played more than once during the year.

In 54 holes I tallied only two three-putts, for a three-putt percentage of 3.7 percent. In comparison, my final 54 holes with the Spider X yielded five three putts, and I recorded 11 three-putts over 36 holes at one point during the last week of the #CobraConnect challenge.

Although I have no on course data to support this claim, my second putts are also of much more makeable distance. It would have not been uncommon in the past for my second putt to be four feet or longer. With the L.A.B. so many of my second putts are tap-ins.

“Early” Overall Score - 4.5/5 Stars

Yeah, the L.A.B. DF 2.1 is an expensive piece of golf equipment. However, if current trends hold, the L.A.B. will be a major reason for me finally staying in the single digits. I have not tried/tested/purchased another piece of equipment that has made such a dramatic change to my game in such a short period of time.

Solid.  Numbers speak for themselves!

[edingc]

21 minutes ago, yungkory said:

Sick early review! I took your advice and went to the shop yesterday while da wife and MIL were shopping at a nearby store. I think I'm gonna go back up to 34" as it allows me to be just a little bit more up-right, and I feel like my elbows are in a better position.

Either of you guys got your fitting vids up on YT by chance? I watched the "how-to" but seeing a real-life example that seemingly worked out well would help put my mind at ease.

Here's what I sent over:

 

[edingc]

No affiliation with them (although I have sold clubs to them in the past), but Golf Club Brokers has a good selection of L.A.B. DF 2.1s in various lengths, lies, colors, etc. for ~$335. Still pricey, but a ~$90 discount from a brand new one straight from L.A.B.

https://store.golfclubbrokers.com/collections/all/brand_lab-golf

[Josh Ross]

New USA themed headcover coming soon! He said it'll be on the website for purchase on Thursday. 

[yungkory]

3 hours ago, Josh Ross said:

New USA themed headcover coming soon! He said it'll be on the website for purchase on Thursday. 

Not really a fan of USA themed stuff typically, but this is kinda cool

[Rtracymog]

By far my biggest concern (besides the price) would be getting the wrong lie and being unable to bend it. I tried a few in the shop before and never gave them a chance, but you might be forcing me into giving one a serious look based on your results. Thanks for the review!


Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

[yungkory]

4 hours ago, Rtracymog said:

By far my biggest concern (besides the price) would be getting the wrong lie and being unable to bend it. I tried a few in the shop before and never gave them a chance, but you might be forcing me into giving one a serious look based on your results. Thanks for the review!


Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

I think they do free adjustments after the fact?

Also, they just teased a Black Friday deal. I might be diving into the shallow end head first!

[edingc]

10 hours ago, Rtracymog said:

By far my biggest concern (besides the price) would be getting the wrong lie and being unable to bend it. I tried a few in the shop before and never gave them a chance, but you might be forcing me into giving one a serious look based on your results. Thanks for the review!


Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

 

5 hours ago, yungkory said:

I think they do free adjustments after the fact?

Also, they just teased a Black Friday deal. I might be diving into the shallow end head first!

I do not believe the lie can be adjusted after the fact because (to my understanding) the shaft port is milled into the head at the specific lie angle.

Again, I had the luxury of both the in person and remote fittings to double-check my specs, but even they were 1-1.5 degrees different from each other. I would guess one or maybe even two degrees of lie aren't going to dramatically alter the results, but that's totally just speculation. I would have been alarmed if my in-person fitting had said 67 degrees and the remote said 71 degrees or something like that. They were upfront with me that changing the length of the shaft after it was built (one of my concerns since I went with a longer length) might throw the balance off a little bit not enough to matter. Same with changing out grips, etc. 

Not that it really matters, but Peter Finch is gaming one now and Rick Shiels came to the conclusion that he was putting very well with it but couldn't get over the looks.

[dlow206]

4 minutes ago, edingc said:

 

I do not believe the lie can be adjusted after the fact because (to my understanding) the shaft port is milled into the head at the specific lie angle.

Again, I had the luxury of both the in person and remote fittings to double-check my specs, but even they were 1-1.5 degrees different from each other. I would guess one or maybe even two degrees of lie aren't going to dramatically alter the results, but that's totally just speculation. I would have been alarmed if my in-person fitting had said 67 degrees and the remote said 71 degrees or something like that. They were upfront with me that changing the length of the shaft after it was built (one of my concerns since I went with a longer length) might throw the balance off a little bit not enough to matter. Same with changing out grips, etc. 

Not that it really matters, but Peter Finch is gaming one now and Rick Shiels came to the conclusion that he was putting very well with it but couldn't get over the looks.

Yep , the shaft hole is just a hole drilled directly in the head

[yungkory]

4 hours ago, edingc said:

 

I do not believe the lie can be adjusted after the fact because (to my understanding) the shaft port is milled into the head at the specific lie angle.

Again, I had the luxury of both the in person and remote fittings to double-check my specs, but even they were 1-1.5 degrees different from each other. I would guess one or maybe even two degrees of lie aren't going to dramatically alter the results, but that's totally just speculation. I would have been alarmed if my in-person fitting had said 67 degrees and the remote said 71 degrees or something like that. They were upfront with me that changing the length of the shaft after it was built (one of my concerns since I went with a longer length) might throw the balance off a little bit not enough to matter. Same with changing out grips, etc. 

Not that it really matters, but Peter Finch is gaming one now and Rick Shiels came to the conclusion that he was putting very well with it but couldn't get over the looks.

Oh I thought they had some 30-90 day guarantee so they would either refund you or build you another one to spec, but you guys would know better than I would . Thought that was why they had so many factory seconds.

[dlow206]

6 minutes ago, yungkory said:

Oh I thought they had some 30-90 day guarantee so they would either refund you or build you another one to spec, but you guys would know better than I would . Thought that was why they had so many factory seconds.

I still haven't figured out why a company of their size has so many factory seconds. Something is off in that regard.

[Berg Ryman]

If that deal tease is what it appears, gonna be hard to pass up

[yungkory]

2 hours ago, Berg Ryman said:

If that deal tease is what it appears, gonna be hard to pass up

LETS DO IT! I need a degenerate brother in arms to spend money with

[dlow206]

17 minutes ago, yungkory said:

LETS DO IT! I need a degenerate brother in arms to spend money with

I am constantly a degenerate

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

3 hours ago, Berg Ryman said:

If that deal tease is what it appears, gonna be hard to pass up

oh no what deal tease!!! I shouldn't be hearing these things!!!

 

EDIT: I see it now, oh no.  This cannot be happening!!!!! The question is, how much would i have to sell to cover it, I now have a shaft, a 3w I could sell since I prefer a 3H and DI and a Toulon Las Vegas. Should that do the trick??

Edited November 25, 2020 by rbsiedsc

[dlow206]

I think i am slow, i see the numbers on the code to decipher but don't know what the code means.

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

34 minutes ago, dlow206 said:

I think i am slow, i see the numbers on the code to decipher but don't know what the code means.

one guess is maybe 50% off

Lets say, i just submitted a remote fitting just in case

Edited November 25, 2020 by rbsiedsc

[dlow206]

11 minutes ago, rbsiedsc said:

one guess is maybe 50% off

Lets say, i just submitted a remote fitting just in case

Seems like too much off, i was thinking maybe $50.

[Berg Ryman]

Admittedly I'm hopeful that it's 50%, if it isn't and if it's still reasonable still might to have to jump on it.

[yungkory]

7 hours ago, dlow206 said:

Seems like too much off, i was thinking maybe $50.

I'm hoping for 4005% off

[joen]

I have been wanting to try the blade model....if this is a big discount they are giving then I am all in!

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

Anyone figure out the code yet

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

Besides the Finch video, has anyone compared these to the axis1 putters which supposedly do the same thing?

[Berg Ryman]

Time to disappoint, it's a bundle, not a huge discount. You get your choice of the putter, the compact version of the perfect practice perfect putting mat, a sleeve of Oncore's new Vero X1, and a Lab Golf Hat.

Retail value is 610, you can nab it for 500, so 500 for 4 items. Upcharges still apply on the putters though.

[yungkory]

1 minute ago, Berg Ryman said:

Time to disappoint, it's a bundle, not a huge discount. You get your choice of the putter, the compact version of the perfect practice perfect putting mat, a sleeve of Oncore's new Vero X1, and a Lab Golf Hat.

Retail value is 610, you can nab it for 500, so 500 for 4 items. Upcharges still apply on the putters though.

Boooooooooooo (I'm still probably buying one)

[Berg Ryman]

27 minutes ago, yungkory said:

Boooooooooooo (I'm still probably buying one)

I hope you do my man! Since I'm not seeing a course for like 5 months I'm gonna keep pocketing the cash 

[dlow206]

You guys should email Matt from LAB and get a deal on a factory second.

[Berg Ryman]

Maybe @dlow206, but I'm so far away from a new season, plus a birthday in March, maybe I'll treat myself then 

[joen]

6 hours ago, Berg Ryman said:

Time to disappoint, it's a bundle, not a huge discount. You get your choice of the putter, the compact version of the perfect practice perfect putting mat, a sleeve of Oncore's new Vero X1, and a Lab Golf Hat.

Retail value is 610, you can nab it for 500, so 500 for 4 items. Upcharges still apply on the putters though.

I feel like Ralphie on Christmas Story learning that the decoder ring is just an advertisement!

They saved me a lot of money....so I got that going for me.  

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

I might do the factory second thing if my remote fitting comes back with something they have. Hard to say. I do like there idea. That combo deal isn’t terrible although I’ve read the vero ball is for really fast swings