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Funnel Golf

Putting Is Fun

A Golf and Sports podcast

#38 in Golf · 🇦🇪 #104 in Golf · 🇺🇸
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About the show

Everybody who's ever tried it knows putting can be fun. It can also break your heart. This show takes the fun road. Putting Is Fun is a weekly conversation between Brian Manzella, a Top 100 teacher who spent 44 years coaching golf and will happily tell you he's a poor putter, and John Ortega, the putting guru who has coached PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp since he was 8 years old and co-founded John Byron Putters back when Scotty Cameron was still Scott. No systems. No gimmicks. Just two lifers who love this part of the game, telling the stories behind putters, putting greens, and the people who obsess over both, and teaching you something real along the way. New episodes weekly from Funnel Golf. Be your own coach.

Newest episodes

Jake Knapp Used 10 or 11 Putters This Season. His Coach Says Keep Switching | Ep. 17

30 min

The first of two shorter episodes closing out Season 1. Brian Manzella and John Ortega argue putter switching. Faxon, Toms, and Sam Burns played one style forever; Jake Knapp, John's player and a top 20 putter on tour, used 10 or 11 different putters on Thursdays in 2026, nearly all Scotty Camerons with tiny changes to milling, offset, and toe hang. Brian's case: get propositioned by seven to ten putter companies every Tuesday and you'd switch too. John's verdict for club golfers: two or three, maybe. The receipts: Nicklaus with the George Low, White Fang, and the Response, Trevino and his TP-A Blade, Steve Pate who couldn't look at his putter anymore, Crenshaw winning his last Masters without the 8802. Plus John's Arnold Palmer story and the signed putter he bought back off eBay for almost $500, Brian's borrowed Odyssey Jailbreak Zero Torque, and Jake's old Concept M2. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 0:37 The last two shows of Season 1 1:14 Faxon, Toms, and the one-putter players 2:11 Trevino kissed his TP-A Blade 3:28 What tour players actually change 4:30 Jake Knapp: 10 or 11 putters in 2026 5:25 What a top 20 putter is looking for 6:29 Face milling and feel 7:58 Twelve putters at English Turn vs the tour van 9:11 Seven to ten companies on a Tuesday 11:05 The Argument: putter switching, good or bad? 12:26 The average golfer: keep it to a minimum 13:00 The house framer and his Circle Ts 13:30 Nicklaus, George Low, White Fang, the Response 14:16 John's Arnold Palmer putter story 16:04 The detriment: who should not switch 18:45 The Putter: the Odyssey Jailbreak Zero Torque 20:51 Don't set up toe up or heel up 23:59 Crenshaw won his last Masters without the 8802 27:33 Jake's Concept M2 and the Golo

Wrist Putting Is Always Bad? Tell Brandt Snedeker and Billy Casper | Ep. 16

53 min

Bill Smittle sent Brian Manzella and John Ortega a list of putting rules, they added their own, and then they threw out all of them: eyes over the ball, straight back and straight through, shoulders square, face square through the stroke, accelerate through impact, hit up, keep your head still, rock the shoulders, match the putter to your stroke, never putt with your wrists. The names behind the argument: David Orr's tour captures, the Tom Jenkins father and son, Bobby Locke, Stricker, Loren Roberts, Michael Block, J.T. Poston, Snedeker, Casper, and Horton Smith. The Putter is Dan Caraher's Damascus 8802. Brian's Pelz years at Protek Golf and Ben Doyle's I'd rather miss it. The best putters Brian ever saw, none of whom looked like Jake. The Fix on John's groove board, and the three things you do have to do. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 0:38 John's $50,000 putting platform 2:55 The Putter: Dan Caraher's Damascus 8802 6:48 Bill Smittle's myth list: eyes over the ball 7:24 David Orr: 90% of tour players have eyes inside 11:02 Myth: straight back, straight through 11:57 Raised on a Pelz track 14:18 Brian's Pelz years at Protek Golf 17:53 Ben Doyle: "I'd rather miss it" 20:14 Myth: shoulders square 22:33 Myth: the face stays square 23:44 Tiger: 7 open, 7 closed? 24:27 Tom Jenkins Sr. broke all the rules 26:41 The best putters Brian ever saw 32:15 Michael Block's rock 34:49 "They all went to the same putting school" 39:34 Myth: your putter must match your stroke 42:21 Myth: wrist putting is always bad 46:13 The Fix: a college player on the groove board 49:21 The three things you do have to do

A $69,000 Scotty Cameron Is Baloney. Here's the Collection Worth Building | Ep. 15

53 min

John Ortega and Brian Manzella build the ultimate putter collection: Copilot's 10 most iconic putters, Brian's Grok list from the Schenectady (so dominant the R&A banned it until 1951) to the Ping Anser, and 20 obscure ones worth hunting. John's own John Byron story, from the first Tour Angle in 1989 to the 415 Frank Sinatra Invitational Dale Heads. Jim Furyk buying a putter at a retail shop and winning the FedEx Cup with it. Why you skip the LAB DF3 and find an original Directed Force. The eBay listing that sets Brian off: a Scotty Cameron 009 made for Sam Burns at $69,000, which he calls baloney. And the fix: how a 320 gram putter turned a right miss into a dead-left putt, and the Jacobs 3D reason why. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 1:01 Copilot's 10 most iconic putters 1:58 The Teryllium Tiger won with 3:42 John's additions: Zebra, IMG5, Rossie II 6:13 Jim Furyk's retail putter wins the FedEx Cup 6:57 The Schenectady, banned by the R&A 8:56 The Anser on a record sleeve 9:44 What makes a Dale Head 14:44 Skip the DF3, get the original Directed Force 16:14 Tony Manzoni and the Callaway Purist 20:45 The Fix: a 320 gram putter fixes a right miss 22:05 Grok's 20 obscure putters 29:53 Did weight kill the classics? 33:07 The Putter: John Byron, 1989 35:00 The Frank Sinatra Invitational Dale Head 38:02 The $69,000 Sam Burns Scotty Cameron 39:23 Forgotten greats: TP Mills, Ram Zebra 46:19 How Scotty Cameron started 49:45 How to get into the putter business 52:25 Go look for a Schenectady

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All episodes

Jake Knapp Used 10 or 11 Putters This Season. His Coach Says Keep Switching | Ep. 17

30 min

The first of two shorter episodes closing out Season 1. Brian Manzella and John Ortega argue putter switching. Faxon, Toms, and Sam Burns played one style forever; Jake Knapp, John's player and a top 20 putter on tour, used 10 or 11 different putters on Thursdays in 2026, nearly all Scotty Camerons with tiny changes to milling, offset, and toe hang. Brian's case: get propositioned by seven to ten putter companies every Tuesday and you'd switch too. John's verdict for club golfers: two or three, maybe. The receipts: Nicklaus with the George Low, White Fang, and the Response, Trevino and his TP-A Blade, Steve Pate who couldn't look at his putter anymore, Crenshaw winning his last Masters without the 8802. Plus John's Arnold Palmer story and the signed putter he bought back off eBay for almost $500, Brian's borrowed Odyssey Jailbreak Zero Torque, and Jake's old Concept M2. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 0:37 The last two shows of Season 1 1:14 Faxon, Toms, and the one-putter players 2:11 Trevino kissed his TP-A Blade 3:28 What tour players actually change 4:30 Jake Knapp: 10 or 11 putters in 2026 5:25 What a top 20 putter is looking for 6:29 Face milling and feel 7:58 Twelve putters at English Turn vs the tour van 9:11 Seven to ten companies on a Tuesday 11:05 The Argument: putter switching, good or bad? 12:26 The average golfer: keep it to a minimum 13:00 The house framer and his Circle Ts 13:30 Nicklaus, George Low, White Fang, the Response 14:16 John's Arnold Palmer putter story 16:04 The detriment: who should not switch 18:45 The Putter: the Odyssey Jailbreak Zero Torque 20:51 Don't set up toe up or heel up 23:59 Crenshaw won his last Masters without the 8802 27:33 Jake's Concept M2 and the Golo

Wrist Putting Is Always Bad? Tell Brandt Snedeker and Billy Casper | Ep. 16

53 min

Bill Smittle sent Brian Manzella and John Ortega a list of putting rules, they added their own, and then they threw out all of them: eyes over the ball, straight back and straight through, shoulders square, face square through the stroke, accelerate through impact, hit up, keep your head still, rock the shoulders, match the putter to your stroke, never putt with your wrists. The names behind the argument: David Orr's tour captures, the Tom Jenkins father and son, Bobby Locke, Stricker, Loren Roberts, Michael Block, J.T. Poston, Snedeker, Casper, and Horton Smith. The Putter is Dan Caraher's Damascus 8802. Brian's Pelz years at Protek Golf and Ben Doyle's I'd rather miss it. The best putters Brian ever saw, none of whom looked like Jake. The Fix on John's groove board, and the three things you do have to do. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 0:38 John's $50,000 putting platform 2:55 The Putter: Dan Caraher's Damascus 8802 6:48 Bill Smittle's myth list: eyes over the ball 7:24 David Orr: 90% of tour players have eyes inside 11:02 Myth: straight back, straight through 11:57 Raised on a Pelz track 14:18 Brian's Pelz years at Protek Golf 17:53 Ben Doyle: "I'd rather miss it" 20:14 Myth: shoulders square 22:33 Myth: the face stays square 23:44 Tiger: 7 open, 7 closed? 24:27 Tom Jenkins Sr. broke all the rules 26:41 The best putters Brian ever saw 32:15 Michael Block's rock 34:49 "They all went to the same putting school" 39:34 Myth: your putter must match your stroke 42:21 Myth: wrist putting is always bad 46:13 The Fix: a college player on the groove board 49:21 The three things you do have to do

A $69,000 Scotty Cameron Is Baloney. Here's the Collection Worth Building | Ep. 15

53 min

John Ortega and Brian Manzella build the ultimate putter collection: Copilot's 10 most iconic putters, Brian's Grok list from the Schenectady (so dominant the R&A banned it until 1951) to the Ping Anser, and 20 obscure ones worth hunting. John's own John Byron story, from the first Tour Angle in 1989 to the 415 Frank Sinatra Invitational Dale Heads. Jim Furyk buying a putter at a retail shop and winning the FedEx Cup with it. Why you skip the LAB DF3 and find an original Directed Force. The eBay listing that sets Brian off: a Scotty Cameron 009 made for Sam Burns at $69,000, which he calls baloney. And the fix: how a 320 gram putter turned a right miss into a dead-left putt, and the Jacobs 3D reason why. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 1:01 Copilot's 10 most iconic putters 1:58 The Teryllium Tiger won with 3:42 John's additions: Zebra, IMG5, Rossie II 6:13 Jim Furyk's retail putter wins the FedEx Cup 6:57 The Schenectady, banned by the R&A 8:56 The Anser on a record sleeve 9:44 What makes a Dale Head 14:44 Skip the DF3, get the original Directed Force 16:14 Tony Manzoni and the Callaway Purist 20:45 The Fix: a 320 gram putter fixes a right miss 22:05 Grok's 20 obscure putters 29:53 Did weight kill the classics? 33:07 The Putter: John Byron, 1989 35:00 The Frank Sinatra Invitational Dale Head 38:02 The $69,000 Sam Burns Scotty Cameron 39:23 Forgotten greats: TP Mills, Ram Zebra 46:19 How Scotty Cameron started 49:45 How to get into the putter business 52:25 Go look for a Schenectady

Scottie Scheffler's Putting Coach Built an App. Will You Use It? | Ep.14

54 min

Two of the more notable putting instructors on tour are coming out with apps: Phil Kenyon, who helped Scottie Scheffler go from around 100th in strokes gained putting to the top 10, and Derek Uyeda. Brian Manzella and John Ortega on what the apps do, and the real question: out of 100 golfers, how many will actually set one up on the practice green? John says two. Plus the do-it-yourself version with a level and a chalk line, the high side game for anyone who keeps missing low, how David Toms won $49 million aiming at the hole and pulling it, two putters from Evnroll (a zero torque model and the reverse torque EZPZ), and what John does with the yips. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Chapters 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song 0:38 New Orleans and Costa Mesa 1:03 Two tour putting coaches, two apps 1:56 Derek Uyeda and the Carl Welty family tree 2:52 The app is called Woosh 3:26 Nominate your read, then see what happened 4:45 You could do a lot of this yourself 5:12 Phil Kenyon and Scottie Scheffler 5:44 What strokes gained putting doesn't tell you 6:41 Harold Swash and the C-Groove 7:47 Why David Orr's opinion carries weight 8:18 Edoardo Molinari and Captured 10:00 Neither app is out yet 10:32 What a lesson with them costs 11:07 Will the regular golfer use an app? 11:38 Does it matter where you hit it on the face? 12:26 Heel and toe, not blade 13:05 The DIY version: a level and a chalk line 13:56 The alignment stick on the high side 14:17 Two of the top five putting coaches in the world 15:20 Apps that track the putter 16:18 The meat of the show: 2 out of 100 17:17 The first recommendation is putt 17:29 What tour players practice with 19:05 If you like structured practice, give one a whirl 19:37 The practice green at Shinnecock 20:51 How big is a big putting green? 21:43 The left to right putt 21:58 David Toms aimed at the hole and pulled it 23:27 Does Jake use an app? 24:2...

The USGA Said Heck No. Version Five Is in Tony Finau's Bag | Ep. 13

45 min

ohn Ortega is back with The Putter, a Ping Ally Onset, and the story of what Tony Finau has sticking out of the top of his. A hockey player from Wisconsin put a hockey stick in a Scotty Cameron Newport 2, started making a lot of putts, asked the USGA if it was legal, and got a heck no. The fifth version is a conforming square grip, and it's on the PGA Tour. Brian Manzella and John on whether it's more than a look, Scotty Cameron's new $800 low torque putter with the bat wings, and the idea underneath all of it: taking the twist out of the stroke. Plus John's anti-twist ruler, the longer backstroke on long putts, and what Cam Smith means when he says he hits it with his backstroke. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp.

A $750 Putter Shot 125. Hubert Green's Cost $5 (with Kieran Harris) | Ep. 12

1 hr 2 min

John is out this week, so Kieran Harris of Good Misses sits in the Ortega chair from his mother-in-law's basement in Toronto. Brian Manzella, Top 50 teacher, starts with the putter in Kieran's bag: a 20-year-old Ping Zing 2, the putter Curtis Strange won two US Opens with, and the putter Brian's dad Basil Manzella putted the best of his life with after banging the pin so many times he took the loft off. Then the big question: do regular people putt better than they did 20 years ago? Kieran caddied in the Toronto city championship and watched a grade 8 kid with $6,000 custom clubs and a $750 zero-torque putter shoot 125. Brian says the Nunez Tour putts better now, but the tour stat everybody recycles on the socials is lying: greens are slopier and faster and they're playing for more money. Also: can you teach the modern tour stroke to Mr. Faversham, the 65-year-old accountant? Never up, never in is out. The 25-handicap stroke, described. Tiger, Crenshaw, and the putter head behind the hands. Vic Harris and the conveyor belt stroke. Freddie Haas, who hit down on it and ended Byron Nelson's streak. Why plumber's necks bend if you lean on them. Name 20 famous putting instructors, and why they all look the same. The Norman Playground putt-putt experiment. Hubert Green's $5 barrel putter, Isao Aoki's 38-inch loaner, and Buddy Reno, who cut every putt and knew it. Chapters 0:00 Putting Is Fun 0:37 John is out. Meet Kieran Harris 2:20 Putting Is Fun is an attitude 3:45 The putter wall at Golf Town 4:44 Edwin Watts and the 3 wood that almost made an ace 6:38 Kieran's 20-year-old Ping Zing 2 7:40 Curtis Strange, and Basil Manzella banging the pin 9:12 What a $70 putter cost in 1983 10:57 Do people putt better than 20 years ago? 11:42 $6,000 clubs, a $750 putter, and a 125 13:12 The Nunez Tour putts better now 15:13 The tour stat recycled on the socials 15:52 TifEagle Bermuda: a different sport 17:34 The kid who shot 66 in the rain 19:44 Can you teach the modern tour stroke to...

Nicklaus's White Fang and the Putter Karsten Never Glued | Ep. 11

57 min

Tricked-out putters, all the way down. Brian Manzella and John Ortega on the first putter covers, $800 headcovers, black oxide and Cerakote, flipping a beat-up Scotty for profit, how Karsten swedged the Anser shaft with a ball bearing, the marble in Tom Watson's putter, Jack Nicklaus painting a Bullseye white, and why a black shaft on a black putter ruined Brian's putting. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Be your own coach. Chapters 0:00 Putting Is Fun 0:37 New Orleans and rainy Costa Mesa 2:36 When did putter covers show up? 4:17 The John Byron Play Ball Series and the Straight Flush cover 6:30 $800 headcovers 7:39 Never game a Piretti without a cover 8:24 Black oxide and gunblue 10:15 8620 carbon steel and Cerakote 11:55 The first refinishers 13:17 A beat-up Scotty Cameron Studio: what it's worth 17:19 Pete Mata and Ohana Golf 18:05 $300 putter, $150 refinish, sells for $500 plus 20:02 Two guys by the beach making putters 21:20 Bailey Boo and custom headcovers 22:16 Tricking out the shaft 23:16 Karsten swedged the Anser shaft with a ball bearing 27:30 Tom Watson, the 8802, and Turnberry 28:58 The only game you can peak at 70 30:28 The black putter, black shaft problem 31:44 Lines, dots, and how a putter looks on the ground 34:22 Big Don and the Teaching Summit tangent 37:02 Tiffany green and the White Fang story 39:23 Bead-blasted Circle Ts and the Crenshaw silversmith story 41:50 Tungsten in an 8802 43:40 Why put an insert in a 303? 48:15 Smooth face vs. milled: smash factor 49:41 Garsons, Runyon, and the peak 52:52 Wish-list grips 55:28 The Spider song IOU 57:11 Putting is fun

The Training Aid Episode: Putting Platforms, the Smittle Stick, and Se Ri Pak's 81 Putts | Ep. 10

52 min

Brian Manzella and John Ortega go through the training aids that actually work. The motorized putting platforms with projected break lines, why John is buying a Zen, and why Brian thinks every studio should have one. Bill Smittle's Smittle Stick for matching face rotation to your arc. Matt Bryda's Gimme Towel for speed. The origin of John's Groove Board, from kitchen slats to Se Ri Pak's 81 putts over 54 holes, and the first board off his new 3D printer. Plus the best aid you can't buy anymore. Putting Is Fun is a Funnel Golf show. Golf without the spin. Chapters0:00 Theme song 0:37 Intro: Brian and John 1:07 Putting platforms and projected greens: how we got here 3:56 The Dream Green, 30 years ago 7:57 The big players: WellPutt, Platform Golf, Zen, PuttView, Tour Putt 9:22 Why every studio should have one 10:13 Why John is buying a Zen 12:22 Sizing your platform 14:46 Would you go with a non-green surface? 17:37 What the projected lines teach you 19:32 Kids, early exposure, and the Drive, Chip and Putt flex 21:27 Does the putter's shape change your stroke? 25:35 The under-curl stroke: square face, curved path 27:48 The Smittle Stick 34:04 Center strikes only 34:44 The Gimme Towel by Matt Bryda 40:42 Origin of the Groove Board 43:27 Sold out at the trade show 45:36 The first board off the 3D printer 47:45 Se Ri Pak's 81 putts and Gloria Park 48:47 Favorite training aids that aren't made anymore 51:21 Outro

Side Saddle Putting with Sam Osborne: Snead, Bryson, and the Stroke the USGA Tried to Kill | Ep. 9

59 min

Sam Osborne (No More Lies) joins Brian Manzella and John Ortega for the first three man Putting Is Fun. Sam has putted side saddle for eight years and makes the case that it is technically superior. Brian covers how one comment from Bobby Jones got Sam Snead's croquet stroke banned, John tells the inside story of the putter he built for Bobby Schaefer and Bryson DeChambeau, and all three dig into putter length, anchoring rules, and why non-golfers learn it faster. Ends with a challenge: try it for half an hour on the practice green. 0:00 Putting Is Fun intro 0:38 Sam Osborne joins the show 2:44 Tour tip: pack a full change of clothes 3:50 Why side saddle putting today 4:51 Sam's story: sick of being in his head 6:40 John tried it too: the Bryson connection 9:20 Brian's dad, the Wilson Augusta and Johnny Miller 11:28 Sam Snead, croquet style and the Bobby Jones rule change 15:01 Who else did it: K.J. Choi and Bryson on tour 17:53 The coffee cup putter: how the Bobby Schaefer putter got built 19:26 Why Bryson quit: USGA and PGA Tour pushback 20:36 Rock or stay steady: different ways to putt face on 22:01 Brian's Langer stroke and the Ben Doyle story 24:30 Equipment: putter length and the Bobby Grace F22 28:35 Design by Bobby Schaefer: titanium heads and a square shaft 32:09 Technique: point your body at the hole 33:40 Loft, anchoring and how Bryson changed the stroke 35:45 Isn't that illegal? Croquet putting in the 30s to 50s 38:05 Did the USGA target Bryson because he is different? 40:07 Would you teach a kid to putt side saddle? 41:05 Better speed control facing the hole 41:40 The putt-putt booth: non-golfers learn it faster 44:59 What John would build now: the GP Dion putter 46:54 The ten minute fix 48:20 What the anchoring rule actually allows 48:54 How to try side saddle this week 50:14 Other weird methods: one handed, the claw, the double saw 51:56 The upside down grip that ended up with K.J. Choi 56:25 Don't go down like a punk: try something 57:32 Wrap up: 14...

They Called Scotty Cameron "The Copycat Kid" | Ep. 8

1 hr 5 min

They called Scotty Cameron the Copycat Kid. His original designs shut that down for good. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher and runs his Studio in the Sky in New Orleans. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters, runs the Ortega Golf Lab in Costa Mesa and is long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. This week the two of them go all the way down the putter rabbit hole: why a third of golfers who show up for a fitting are playing something that grossly doesn't fit them, how Cameron busted through the Copycat Kid nickname with the Futura, the Phantom, and the Teryllium insert in an Anser, why the Circle T (the tour only version of his retail putters, some of them one-off designs for particular players) has the gravity it does, the Tour Championship putter count that ended in a dead tie between the TaylorMade Spider and the Camerons, Michael Kim's 59 with a zero torque Spider, the 8802 Gary Koch talked John out of making, forged vs. milled, welded necks vs. one-piece, and why the big box putter wall is quietly costing you strokes. If you've ever paid too much for a putter, or too little attention to the one you have, this one's for you. Be your own coach.

Blade Putters Are Disappearing | Ep. 7

54 min

Mallets are winning on tour by a landslide, blades are vanishing from the racks, and after 20 years of better equipment and better data, tour putting stats have barely moved. This week on Putting Is Fun, it's the trends episode. Brian Manzella, Top 50 teacher, and John Ortega, co-founder of John Byron Putters and long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp, break down why mallets keep winning, whether a blade can steal the mallet's advantages, the truth about zero torque putters, and the one stat that should make everybody in golf wonder why. John also pulls out a Millennium X John Byron putter, number 14 of 100, and tells the story behind it. Watch the full video episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@funnelgolfx Chapters: 0:00 Putting Is Fun intro 0:53 This week: putting trends 1:21 Mallets vs non-mallets: the tour win count 2:01 Why mallets win: grooves, MOI, and aiming systems 3:28 Can a blade steal the mallet's advantages? 4:24 The John Byron Millennium X: number 14 of 100 6:24 Zero torque putters: mallet mania's next wave 10:14 Why tour pros skip zero torque: Jake Knapp's feel 12:00 Would John Byron Putters ever make a mallet? 13:20 Mallet city: the Roger Dunn story 15:04 Ping, Ryan Fox, and blade-style MOI 17:18 Big grips: has SuperStroke peaked? 21:09 The Apollo hump shaft and modern graphite 23:57 Johnny Miller, Daiwa, and graphite shaft history 28:00 Stroke curve, shoulder rotation, and the robot 35:49 The putting ruler under 150 dollars 37:35 3D printed putters 40:04 The Putting Package: rigid vs flexible strokes 43:11 Trackman 4 for putting lessons 49:16 The wrap-up stat: putting stats haven't improved in 20 years 53:39 Outro

You Can Become a Great Putter Without Ever Playing Golf | Ep. 6

1 hr 3 min

Brian Manzella and John Ortega build a putter from scratch. Not a club, a person. Ep. 6 is for two kinds of listeners: someone who has never held a putter outside of a mini golf course, and the golfer who has been doing it wrong long enough that the only fix left is starting over. Jack Nicklaus asked his teacher to reteach him golf from the beginning every year, so there is no shame in the reset. What to buy and what to skip. Why $50 on the used rack plus $15 for a grip beats most new purchases, what a brand new Ping Anser runs off the shelf, and whether the line on the putter and the line on the ball are worth anything. Then the first lesson itself: the reverse overlap grip nearly every great putter used, how much wrist is too much, what a gravity powered putting robot reveals about the arc of a stroke, and where your neck and eyes belong. Then break. Why putts curve, why architects build the tilt into every green on purpose, and the two dollar yardstick drill that teaches green reading with no system, no fingers in the air, and no math. Finally, the honest timeline. How often to practice, and how long before you stop embarrassing yourself. Chapters: 0:00 The Putting Is Fun song and intro 2:01 Becoming a putter: beginners and the great reset 3:55 The first putter: what to buy and what to skip 13:14 What a brand new Ping Anser costs off the rack 18:17 Lines on the ball and lines on the putter 20:06 Your first session: lesson, YouTube, or the putting green 25:08 The reverse overlap grip 32:10 The gravity powered putting robot and the stroke arc 35:20 Wrists: how much is too much, and the flying wedge 39:35 Neck parallel to the ground, and where your eyes go 43:11 Finding a straight putt and why putts break 51:58 Learning to read break: the yardstick drill 58:09 How often to practice and the honest timeline 61:19 The whole plan in one minute Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher and runs his Studio in the Sky in New Orleans. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putter...

Aimpoint vs Vector Putting, and Grok's 25 Best Putters | Ep. 5

1 hr 1 min

Aimpoint took over the PGA Tour and never made it to your Saturday game. Brian Manzella and John Ortega break down both green reading systems, the lawsuit between them, and the reason amateurs quit before either one starts working. Then a drill for anyone who is never going to learn a system: an alignment stick, a repeatable image, and enough repetitions to build an internal GPS. In the second half, Grok hands over its 25 best putters of all time. Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Crenshaw, Bobby Locke and Brad Faxon lead it. Billy Casper is not on it anywhere, which is where the argument starts. Also: the putters who lifted the club off the ground before impact, David Toms opening the Tour School finals with six straight bombs, and the practice green money game called 11. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher and runs his Studio in the Sky in New Orleans. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters, runs the Ortega Golf Lab in Costa Mesa and is long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp.

Are Zero Torque Putters Already Fading on Tour? | Ep. 4

1 hr 0 min

Brian and John are back from the US Open at Shinnecock with a report from inside the ropes. John's student Jake Knapp returned from six to eight weeks off with a thumb injury and posted 190 mph ball speed on his first day back. Wyndham Clark signed a putter-only deal with Ping on Wednesday and won on Sunday. And the zero torque putter revolution some predicted? It's quietly stalling on tour. Also in this one: how the USGA tamed Shinnecock's domed greens, the real differences between Bermuda, Poa annua, and bent, why every putt at Pebble breaks toward the ocean, the digital level calibration tour players swear by, John's "Zen Point" aiming stick drill, and the origin story of the Arnold Palmer 8802. Brian Manzella is a Top 50 teacher and runs his Studio in the Sky in New Orleans. John Ortega is co-founder of John Byron Putters, runs the Ortega Golf Lab in Costa Mesa and is long time coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp. Respect the three-footer. Putting is fun.

The Putting Stroke Stopped Evolving 50 Years Ago, Ep. 3

58 min

The golf swing changed. The equipment changed. The putting stroke? Stuck in 1975. Brian Manzella (Top 50 teacher) and John Ortega (co-founder of John Byron Putters, LONG TIME coach to Jake Knapp) trace the stroke from wristy Bobby Jones flicks to the semi frozen-wrist modern era, and ask why 50 years of tech has barely moved it two degrees. Plus: Tiger's misleading SAM PuttLab data, the Nicklaus right arm stroke, Brent White's bag room to boardroom story, Freddy Haas ending Byron Nelson's streak, and the 12 year old who beat John for $22.

Arnold Palmer Asked John for a Putting Lesson, Ep. 2

57 min

Brian Manzella (Top 50 teacher) and John Ortega (co-founder of John Byron Putters, coach to PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp since he was 8) share the stories only guys who've spent decades around putters can tell: Arnold Palmer asking for a lesson, a 13-year-old Tiger Woods ordering a putter, and the $600 Scotty Cameron that would be worth $5,000 today. Plus: Brian's Langer-style arm lock experiment, the putters winning on tour right now (TaylorMade Spider, Ping Scottsdale TEC Ally Blue Onset), and part one of the Five Elements of Putting: The Golfer.

He Needed a Baseball Bat. Golf Got Him Instead. | Putting Is Fun Ep. 1

54 min

He needed a baseball bat. Golf got him instead. In the first episode of Putting Is Fun, Brian Manzella sits down with John Ortega, the man who has coached PGA Tour winner Jake Knapp since age 8, to hear the whole story: three rounds of caddying to earn a bat, teaching lessons for $12 an hour, co-founding John Byron Putters in the era when Scotty Cameron was still Scott, tour wins with Trevino and Floyd, the Spalding deal that got away, and the lifetime of putting knowledge that came out of all of it. Brian brings his own honesty: 44 years of teaching, a stack of 27-putt rounds, the nerves that still test him, and the Langer-style stroke that works some of the time. Together they lay out the five elements of putting that this show is built on. Dedicated to Biv Wadden. Putting Is Fun is part of Funnel Golf, alongside No More Lies and The Brian Manzella Show. New episodes weekly. Be your own coach.

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