0Yes, it’s crazy looking. And… there is a legion of golfers around the world who think the Directed Force is the Mona Lisa of mallets. But they didn’t think that until they started making putt after putt with it.
Our Founder is Bill Presse, a former mini-tour player who had the idea to create a putter that would allow him to drastically simplify his stroke. He wanted to be able to count on a square putter face every time, which led him to invent Lie Angle Balance.
Bill also wanted to create a putter head that would give him as much forgiveness as possible, so he developed the radical shape of the DF 2.1 as a way to maximize consistency on off-center hits. Yes, it looks like a branding iron… but it works!
The DF 2.1 can do amazing things other putters can’t because of Lie Angle Balance, or L.A.B. for short. Lie Angle Balance gives every golfer the ability to consistently repeat the putting stroke with far less effort than with other putters. And it does this by eliminating torque.
As a side note, our MEZZ.1 and MEZZ.1 MAX also have Lie Angle Balance. MEZZ.1 and MEZZ.1 MAX look a lot like the most popular mallet putters. If forgiveness isn’t a leading concern or you prefer the enhanced feedback of a smaller putter, you might want to consider MEZZ.1 since it’s a lot smaller than DF 2.1 and about 20% smaller than MEZZ.1 MAX.
Torque is an industry problem. Golfers have been battling torque in their putters throughout the history of the game — the majority of which never realize they’re doing it at all. Most golfers have learned to adjust for torque by adding uneven hand pressure to the putter, introducing yet another variable into their putting stroke.
Even today’s largest club manufacturers have acknowledged the issue of torque, marketing putters with a variety of balance types — different levels of toe hang, counter-balance, face-balance, etc. — yet none of these products actually solve the problem. Lie Angle Balance does.
Thankfully, it’s not hard for us to do. Before Bill Presse dreamed up Lie Angle Balance and the Directed Force, he developed a device called “The Revealer” to help him better understand the torque created by different kinds of putters so he could remedy the issue. If you watch the video below with our CEO Sam Hahn, you’ll see the benefits very quickly. It’s night and day.
Lie Angle Balance doesn’t read greens. It doesn’t line you up at your target. You’ll have to figure out those things on your own. But Lie Angle Balance will help with distance control because your putter won’t want to flop around during your stroke like a fish out of water. It works with your stroke, not against it.
And if you do happen to contact your putt off-center with the DF 2.1, it won’t really affect the result. That’s the benefit of playing a putter that looks like Darth Vader.
DF 2.1 is not always an off-the-rack magic worker. If the putter sole lays flush to the ground at address and the length feels comfortable, you’re in business. Go ahead and buy it. If not, we want you to go through a fitting, which is fast and easy to do. And there are two ways to do it.
We developed what we call a “Remote Fitting” to make sure we’re making a putter that’s perfect for you. And you can do a Remote Fitting from just about anywhere.
So go ahead and start building your putter here, and when you get to the step about Lie Angle just select “I Don’t Know It.” After you complete your purchase, we’ll send you a video with instructions on how to make a 5-6 second smartphone video that will allow us to nail in your length and lie angle.
If you prefer to get your specs before purchase, you can watch the Remote Fitting instructional video here and submit your Remote Fitting video to [email protected]
You can go through an in-person fitting at a L.A.B. Golf Fitting location near you. Find your nearest store here.
Our craftsmen use a formula we developed to anticipate the two main factors of Lie Angle Balance:
In the case of DF 2.1, there are three weight ports. We add CNC milled weights and tungsten powder to these weight ports — a balancing process that can take up to 30 minutes or more — to achieve a putter that’s Lie Angle Balanced at a golfer’s exact requirements.
If you’re anti-fitting for whatever reason, we do offer a DF 2.1 Stock option with our most popular build configurations. Same putter. Same everything. Just a little lower price because they’re more straightforward to build.
We sell more 34-inch, 69-degree putters than anything else. This spec often works for golfers who play clubs that are fairly standard. All DF 2.1 Stock putters come with a Press II 3-Degree grip and Alignment Aid #1.
With DF 2.1, we absolutely recommend that golfers use a Press Grip. Press Grips work on any putter, but they’re most effective with DF 2.1 because they allow golfers to position their hands directly over the ball at address, a setup most golfers prefer.
When choosing a Press Grip for the DF 2.1, we generally recommend the Press Grip II 3 Degree. It has a flat front section that most golfers feel comfortable using.
The Press Grip 1.L (barrel-shaped) and the Press Grip OG 3 Degree (all rubber) are also great picks and are available on the DF 2.1 Custom.
If you have questions about our grip models, visit our grips page or drop us a line here.
We offer a ton of different shafts with the DF 2.1 Custom: some cost extra, some don’t. Not sure about your shaft? This article might be helpful.
We offer 36 different alignment aids for DF 2.1 Custom, and we can put them on all three DF 2.1 putter colors (black, red, and blue). You can build your putter with your custom alignment aid here.
Have an idea for your own alignment aid? We often get these requests from golfers, and we may be able to add them to your putter for an added charge (it takes a lot of work!) Contact us about that here.
Every Lie Angle Balance putter has to be made by hand. There’s just no way around it. Building a Lie Angle Balance putter requires an incredibly high level of precision and a lot of time. And the DF 2.1 is made from the good stuff: 6061 aircraft-grade aluminum that’s 100% CNC milled.
We wish we could sell the DF 2.1 Stock and DF 2.1 Custom at a lower price, but we simply can’t. Lie Angle Balance is influenced by just about everything that makes up a putter: putter head shape, putter head material, putter length, and a golfer’s desired lie angle. That’s why each of our putters is built by hand by one of L.A.B. Golf’s skilled craftsmen at L.A.B. Golf Headquarters.
