Some Putter Thoughts

[ualtim]

Well, I was out and about the right section of Orlando today after a Doctors appointment and had to go pick up some grips for my recently acquired clubs to match the rest of my set. I ended up visiting Golfsmith, Edwin Watts, and Golf Galaxy and spent some time on their putting greens testing out some of the many putter offerings. Here are my observations.

TaylorMade Putters: They are what I thought they were. I have always tried to like the TM offerings, but they just do not feel right and I have never putted well with them. I do not like the feel of the AGSI insert at all and I find the feedback to my hands poor. I tested the new line Core Classics and the Lambeau version as it meets my specs the closest. Just plane didn't like it. Looks nice, but it just does not deliver the magic. I did not have good distance control with it. I also tried the Itsy Bitsy Spider and that felt even worse. Distance control wasn't there and I can not even say its looks good. They are what I thought they were.

Scotty Cameron Studio Select Newport 2.6: While I normally love Camerons, this one did not do it for me like some of the others I have owned and tried. The 2.6 is the closest to my specs and the distance control was there, but the feel was a bit different than what I expected. It felt a little harsher than I am used to with the Studio Style and Red X2 with the GSS inserts and really did nothing that would get me to part with that amount of cash.

Odyssey White Hot Tour #2 CS: I wanted to like this putter as it is the closest Odyssey has come to producing a putter that fits my specs and eyes. Unfortunately, I still can not seem to find an Odyssey insert that I have felt comfortable with (except maybe the original Black series) and feels too soft. My distance control was better than with the TM's, but it still does not roll like some of the putters I have in stock. The weighting felt better than its White Hot predecessor and could be a great putter if you enjoy that particular feel. Probably the best Odyssey I have putted with besides the Black Series. I really tried to like it, but couldn't.

Guerin Rife Black 2-bar Hybrid: This is a fantastic putter. I was a little concerned about the insert at first, but this putter rolls the ball just like the 2-Bar Mallet that I am currently gaming. Nice feel, great distance control, and good looks; this putter has it all. Give one a roll if you get a chance.

Nike Unitized Putters: Interesting. While they do not have a model that fits into my specs, I did give a few of these a roll. The feel is a bit different than than anything I had putted with before. I like the way the ball came off the face and the feedback that it provided. Distance control was OK, but not as good as the Rife or Odyssey Tour. Since they are blowing these out now for around $100, I would consider picking one up to add to my collection if they made one that fit my specs. Its an interesting and unique putter.

Callaway I-Trax: Rock, how did you ever putt with this thing? :laugh: The I-Trax does not come in my specs, but I putted around with one for a bit and the closest thing I can compare it too is the TEE CB2 fairways: that face is hot. I was blowing putts across the green and by the holes. The I-Trax takes a delicate hand or you will send the ball across the green. Looks, well, you already know my opinion on the looks of these things. It sounds like a metal wood with a ping that I could only imagine the original Ping putter made and gave the company the name. I never could get a handle on distance control, but if you find yourself leaving them short this could be the putter for you. Callaway is clearing these out for $80, so if you want one now is the time to get one.

Cleveland Classic: I wanted to give these a go as I had never seen one in person before, but as usual, they do not produce one in my specs. I guess I would define these putters as a standard putters. No gimmicks, no inserts, no grooves, no milling, just a straight forward putter. They felt like you would expect them to and performed just fine, but there was nothing there that really made me want to continue putting with it. They work just fine and are a good value, but nothing special.

Ping Karsten Series: I would categorize these in the same vain as the Cleveland Classic series. A basic standard putter. No bells or whistles, just a standard cast putter. A good value with a bit more selection that Cleveland when it comes to models, but it feels like a cast putter (which of course, it is.) I probably liked the feel a bit better than its Cleveland counter part, but that could be do to having a model that was close to my specs.

Ping IWI Half Craz-E: An improvement on the Karsten series with the ability to adjust the weighting. I really like the feel on this compared to the Karsten Series, but not enough to shell out an additional $80 for a similar model. Good feel, good distance control, but not a real good value. Want additional weights to adjust it? Try another $70 for a weight kit. Good putter, but overpriced for what it is.

Ping I Series Half Craz-E: I was totally shocked by this putter. I went in expecting not to like it and ended up liking it. Inserts normally scare me, but I liked the feel off the face with this model. Good distance control, decent weighting and balance, and a pretty good value. I went back and hit this a few times after trying some other models and the feel was still there. This was probably the second most consistent putter behind the Rife that I tried today. Definitely worth a roll if you get a chance.

Amazingly enough, I came through the experience without purchasing a club and without a desire to come home and scour the bay to find a better price on one of the days trials. :Laugh: For those Odyssey fans, the White Hot Tour will probably be something you would really enjoy. Odyssey seems to have gotten better as far as head weighting goes and these are some good putters and a decent price. Both the Cleveland Classics and Ping Karsten Series are good value putters. Ping offers more styles, but both have similar feel and feedback and are fine examples of cast putters. The Ping I Series brings in better feel for a bit more money but is still a good value and roll the ball really well. My favorite for the day was the Guerin Rife Black 2-Bar Hybrid, but that should comes as no surprise as I am currently gaming the Black 2-bar Mallet. I have yet to find a putter that rolls the ball as well as the Rife line does and if you have not tried one out for yourself, you could be missing out.

ualtim

 

[Clugnut]

Nice review. I am the same way, always testing new putters and never liking any of them. I am very faithful to putters, for some reason. I'm a slut with the rest of my clubs.

 

[ezra76]

Glad you liked the Rife. The black one looks pretty cool in pics I've seen. Mine is slowly but surely securing a solid spot in the bag.

I lol'd at the TM putter review. "They are what I thought they were!!".

I love those stupid commercials... "Nod if you like the following.... shirts with random triangles".

 

[ualtim]

Glad you liked the Rife. The black one looks pretty cool in pics I've seen. Mine is slowly but surely securing a solid spot in the bag.

I liked the original Rife the first time I putted with it, but of course, it took me another 18 months and several putters to actually buy one. :laugh:

The Rife doesn't quite have the feel/feedback of my Camerons with the GSS insert, but once I loaded up with some weight there as close to perfect that I have found. The hybrid version does have a bit better feel than my black series but not enough to ditch my current gamer and it does not come center shafted (that I have seen) which is my shaft style that I have been sinking more putts with.

 

[ualtim]

Nice review. I am the same way, always testing new putters and never liking any of them. I am very faithful to putters, for some reason. I'm a slut with the rest of my clubs.

Oh, I am a putter Ho too. :laugh: I couldn't even list all the ones I have sitting around from memory.

 

[rolltherock]

Did you try any belly putters? I played a Ping Answer 2 for the past 18 years until last summer. I won a TM belly like the one Serigo used so well at the British. I can see why people want to ban the belly. It has helped me immensely in the 3-6 foot range. Lagging took a bit of time to recalibrate, but I drain a ton more putts in the short/mid range. I have changed equipment rarely in my career until the past year: HiBore XLS Tour with 2* open face angle and the Rossa Corzina. The putter was the home run: I went from 2-3 three putts per round to 3 putting once every few rounds. It was a dead nuts 3 shot average improvement that was no honeymoon....18 months now with it.

 

[chemboy2]

Thorough review, man.

You hit the nail on the head with the Odyssey White Hot Tour series. I picked up a #5 a while ago and it is definitely an improvement over the original White Hot series, both the insert and the head weight. I've tried to make it my gamer on more than one occasion but I keep going back to my Studio Style.

The Rife's are next on my try list but I just can't bring myself to ho another putter. It's not like I've ho'd a bunch of putters or anything, I just need to let the ho dust settle a little bit right now.

 

[Boulder]

Odyssey White Hot Tour

Had a quick stint this past fall with the Odyssey White Hot #2 (scoop back blade) that I got my hands on (i've stayed with my XG #7 though). As others have suggested, a really fine-feeling putter.

 

[NiftyNiblick]

Putters can be really difficult, can't they?

There are two things that I know for sure. The between-the-ears thing is that I don't like inserts. I am not a polymer scientist. I don't know if the insert is getting harder, softer, out of shape, or anything else. I'd rather just not think about it.

The more certain thing is that any offset is out of the question. I'm lucky to keep my stroke on line long enough to get the shaft to the ball. If the clubhead is lagging behind, forget about it.

I tried the hammY approach for a bit. Open stance, split grip. The open stance part worked well, but the hockey stroke didn't. Now I take an open stance with a conventional putter. My stroke is completely out of plane with my shoulders and my skeleton in general. Any prominent short game coach would be in horror at the mechanics, but that's my stroke for now. I just see the line better and feel more comfortable.

I've presently got in the rotation an on-set Dandy Blade, a Yes! Carolyne, a Louisville Stimp ACO, a Never Compromise Z/I Sigma, and a Slighter Auburn, the latter being an Anser-shaped putter but custom made with a non-offset hosel. The Slighter is in the bag now. The Stimp breaks the rule having an insert, but it's a cycolac insert like on an old fairway wood.

 

[ualtim]

Did you try any belly putters? I played a Ping Answer 2 for the past 18 years until last summer. I won a TM belly like the one Serigo used so well at the British. I can see why people want to ban the belly. It has helped me immensely in the 3-6 foot range. Lagging took a bit of time to recalibrate, but I drain a ton more putts in the short/mid range. I have changed equipment rarely in my career until the past year: HiBore XLS Tour with 2* open face angle and the Rossa Corzina. The putter was the home run: I went from 2-3 three putts per round to 3 putting once every few rounds. It was a dead nuts 3 shot average improvement that was no honeymoon....18 months now with it.

For me and my belly, a 35" putter IS a belly putter. :laugh:

I have rolled a few belly putters and long putters in the past to see what they were about, but never met one that rolled the ball any better than the ones I have in my personal stock. I like short putters to tell you the truth. My longest gamer in the past 10 years has been 33 inches and I have gamed one as short as 31.5 inches.

If you want a putter that is money inside of 10 feet, go try a Heavy Putter. Those things are almost automatic inside 6 feet and a high percentage 6-10 feet. The HP is the inspiration behind my never ending quest to find my perfect putter. If the HP had distance control on longer putts and a bit better face feel, it would have never left the bag.

My current gamer has the heaviest weight possible in the head with 150g TLP weight in the grip and its still a touch to light and is missing the face feel of a Cameron GSS inserted putter. The Rifes roll the ball better than any putter I have tried followed closely by the Yes! series and their C Groove faces. If it was not for that fact, my gamer would be the Cameron Red X2 that I have modified the head weight on and put in a 100g TLP weight under the grip. Top notch feel and distance control, but it just doesn't roll the ball quite as good as the Rife. If Rife could make a center shafted, GSS inserted, with the roll grooves, and semi mallet head, my putting Valhalla would probably be achieved.