Putters

Mister Sifter

Arguably the most important club in the bag. It's certainly the one we use most during a round.

Which one do we all use? Do you have a few that you alternate between depending on how your playing etc?

I'm looking at getting a new one at the moment. I currently use the Ping Anser but feel i need to have a change. I no longer like the look of it behind the ball. Think with a putter you have to like how it sits and feels.

Torn between two putters at the moment... the odyssey two ball, white steel or the Ping Tess.

Any advice?

sofireland

I've an Odyssey Two ball and find the ball roles true off the face.
Easy to line up.
Though my Dad has a ping G5i which is a nice putter also. Try a few out is what i'd recommend

Mister Sifter

Where is the best place to try out putters and other clubs?? I live on the North side of Dublin.

Went to McGuirk's on Friday night but they don't have anywhere that you can try them out. Wouldn't like to buy one without trying them first.

Had a go of a friend's odyssey two ball and it felt excellent.

One Cold Hand

Odyssey 2-ball.
Best. Putter. Ever.

But putting is a completely personal thing. You could pick up a completely random putter and love it.

I think most of the golfworks store have a putting area (The one in Deansgrange deffo does, but thats southside).

Adiaga 2

Graeme1982 wrote:

Where is the best place to try out putters and other clubs?? I live on the North side of Dublin.

Try Premier Golf in Santry/Ballymun. They have a little green to try the putters. They also have fitting centre there with launch monitor, etc..

milltown

I've an Odyssey White hot Rossie. Loved it at first and delighted to be averaging less than 2 putts per hole but lately the yips have taken hold. I'm more confident of holing a putt from >15ft than from inside 4ft. Three putting is the norm now. Time to get a lesson and get back to basics I think.

GreenHorn

milltown wrote:

I've an Odyssey White hot Rossie. Loved it at first and delighted to be averaging less than 2 putts per hole but lately the yips have taken hold. I'm more confident of holing a putt from >15ft than from inside 4ft. Three putting is the norm now. Time to get a lesson and get back to basics I think.

All's ya need is for one or two to drop... This game seems impossible some days...

TheDoc

ive the odyseey two ball white steel. Beautiful putter im so confident with it. The weight through the club is perfect, for me anyway.

Id advise either grab that one of the scotty cameron studio classic ( the red grip one) thats a lovely putter too.

But i think a putter is a very personal thing as most people putt in unique styles, so find one that you feel comfortable with, and that you like the look off

I got sergio garcias grip put onto mine and i think it just looks the ****

foxyboxer

using a taylor made rossa mallet. you just can't miss form inside three feet with it...a little iffy from >20 feet mind you..

stringy

mines a 2 ball white hot

nice balance

nice feel off the face

alignment aid helps

3/4 foot putts easier, straight back straight through

great putter. there's a reason why so many people have them, proven quality

however it is personal preference, try them all out and decide

I spent over an hour putting in the golf shop before I decided on the 2ball

these look sexual though! http://www.odysseyblackseries.com

Sandwich

Graeme1982 wrote:

Arguably the most important club in the bag.

Gotta disagree with you there. Even 'arguably' is an exageration.

It is far and away the least important club in the bag. Yes, putting is vital to your score, and the putter will be the most used club, but the implement itself has little or no effect on putting well or not.

All other clubs are more important and it helps if they are correctly chosen; length, lie, offset, shaft type, stiffness, grip, etc (tho not the brand or latest flavour of the month design). These factors do influence how you will hit the ball. Any heal-toe or low MOI putter is as good as the next - its the holder of the putter that matters even more than with the other 13.

Mister Sifter

Sandwich wrote:

Gotta disagree with you there. Even 'arguably' is an exageration.

It is far and away the least important club in the bag. Yes, putting is vital to your score, and the putter will be the most used club, but the implement itself has little or no effect on putting well or not.

All other clubs are more important and it helps if they are correctly chosen; length, lie, offset, shaft type, stiffness, grip, etc (tho not the brand or latest flavour of the month design). These factors do influence how you will hit the ball. Any heal-toe or low MOI putter is as good as the next - its the holder of the putter that matters even more than with the other 13.

absolute bull****. every word of it. so much so, i can't even be bothered to respond properly.

stringy

agreed

One Cold Hand

Yes thats a load of sh1te sandwich.

The putter is without a shadow of doubt the most important club in the bag.
It is vital that you are comfortable with it, as putting is all about confidence.
I'm not suggesting that you have to spend a lot of money on them, but it's probably a good idea to spend some time trying out different ones and finding one you like.

Tar.Aldarion

I have some ridiculously good dunlop one, oh it's great. Dunno the model.

cson

I would try and stick to same putter. Be loyal to it. Its a hallmark of a good putter that they stick with the same putter, Tiger Woods has the same putter for the last 8/9 years afaik.

Marshy

Sandwich wrote:

Gotta disagree with you there. Even 'arguably' is an exageration.

It is far and away the least important club in the bag. Yes, putting is vital to your score, and the putter will be the most used club, but the implement itself has little or no effect on putting well or not.

All other clubs are more important and it helps if they are correctly chosen; length, lie, offset, shaft type, stiffness, grip, etc (tho not the brand or latest flavour of the month design). These factors do influence how you will hit the ball. Any heal-toe or low MOI putter is as good as the next - its the holder of the putter that matters even more than with the other 13.

I agree with some of what you say. As in developing a solid putting stroke is the most important thing. If you're useless at putting in the first place, there isnt a putter that'll save you (although some will argue that the long putter has saved many careers). Its only through developing a good stroke that one will improve.

Sandwich

Graeme1982 wrote:

absolute bull****. every word of it. so much so, i can't even be bothered to respond properly.

A standard tactic from those who cannot back up their own case.;)

Sandwich

One Cold Hand wrote:

Yes thats a load of sh1te sandwich.

The putter is without a shadow of doubt the most important club in the bag.
It is vital that you are comfortable with it, as putting is all about confidence.
I'm not suggesting that you have to spend a lot of money on them, but it's probably a good idea to spend some time trying out different ones and finding one you like.

Feel I am entitled to my point of view. And I tried to explain the reasoning, rather than just tell the OP he was talking bull**** and leave it a that. The route to a very sophisticated discussion!:)

I agree with you about being comfortable with a given putter and the confidence element in putting. And about the cost of it being irrelevant.

However I think its a bit of a chicken and egg thing :
+ are you comfortable with a putter because to you 'comfortable/uncomfortable with a putter' is not an issue - so you focus on the putting itself
+ or do you believe there is such an thing as comfortable/uncomfortable so you are always looking for something else in a putter, or at the back of your mind are the questions ' am I comfortable?', 'is this the right putter for me?', 'should I change to a xxxxx?', 'damn, should I have spent Exx on this thing?' etc. How can you focus on ball-line-swing-hole in such a case?

Someone mentioned the phenomenon above of lifelong putter partnerships from the great putters. Bob Jones, and Ben Crenshaw come to mind similarly. Is part of being a great putter just dismissing from your mind the issue of the implement for the rest of you golfing life, and just focusing on what you do with it?

copacetic

Graeme1982 wrote:

absolute bull****. every word of it. so much so, i can't even be bothered to respond properly.

well if you can't be bothered to respond properly, don't respond at all. You have your opinion, sandwich his. I'd be leaning more towards his viewpoint tbh, it's certainly got plenty of validity. I switched putters a lot until I got my current one about 4 years ago. I wouldn't change it, but once I got my putting into a groove with it then changing to a crappy anser style copy while on holidays made no difference good or bad to my putting. My stroke was in the groove and the putter itself made no real difference after a few practise putts.

I mean few of us would doubt woods, toms or any of the great putters would be 99% as good with any putter you put in their hand.

Sandwich

Not arguing the case one way or another, (and maybe embellished over the years) but there is a good story about Max Faulkener winning the Open with a putter made from a bit of drift wood and a snooker cue. He was said to have been so confident that he declared to all and sundry that he was going to win it, such was his confidence in the putter (and I think signed autographs after the 3rd round 'Max Faulkener, Open Champion'). And that he would never miss a makable put again (needless to say............).

One Cold Hand

Sandwich wrote:

Feel I am entitled to my point of view. And I tried to explain the reasoning, rather than just tell the OP he was talking bull**** and leave it a that. The route to a very sophisticated discussion!:)

I agree with you about being comfortable with a given putter and the confidence element in putting. And about the cost of it being irrelevant.

However I think its a bit of a chicken and egg thing :
+ are you comfortable with a putter because to you 'comfortable/uncomfortable with a putter' is not an issue - so you focus on the putting itself
+ or do you believe there is such an thing as comfortable/uncomfortable so you are always looking for something else in a putter, or at the back of your mind are the questions ' am I comfortable?', 'is this the right putter for me?', 'should I change to a xxxxx?', 'damn, should I have spent Exx on this thing?' etc. How can you focus on ball-line-swing-hole in such a case?

Someone mentioned the phenomenon above of lifelong putter partnerships from the great putters. Bob Jones, and Ben Crenshaw come to mind similarly. Is part of being a great putter just dismissing from your mind the issue of the implement for the rest of you golfing life, and just focusing on what you do with it?

Yeah maybe a bit harshly put, but i did disagree with your first post! And you couldn't tell the OP he was talking bullsh*t cos he only asked for advice! Anyway, handbags.....

I thought from your first post you mean't that you could walk into a golf shop, buy the first putter you see, and it wouldn't make any difference. Which is what I disagreed with.

Oh and I do agree with you that the person taking the putt is far more important than the putter!

One Cold Hand

Sandwich wrote:

a putter made from a bit of drift wood and a snooker cue.

Is that the new Odyssey putter?!?! Saw it in McGuirks for €299!!!

Mister Sifter

My original post said "arguably the most important".

The arguments for, far outweigh the arguments against in my opinion.

It's the club you use most during a round of golf. There's a lot of truth in the old statement "drive for show, putt for dough".

Imagine you played 14 rounds of golf, each time taking a different club out. I'd bet any money that the round in which you took the putter out the bag would be the one that you shoot the highest score in.

cson

Graeme1982 wrote:

Imagine you played 14 rounds of golf, each time taking a different club out. I'd bet any money that the round in which you took the putter out the bag would be the one that you shoot the highest score in.

Obviously enough. I can't speak for him but I think the point Sandwich is making (I touched on it myself too) is that the actual technological benefits of a putter are fcuk all. Finding a putter you feel comfortable with and sticking with it is more important than MOI or any of that $hite. Thats why Tiger has had the same putter (A very conventional Scotty) for the last 10 or so years.

Instead of splashing out on a putter I would reccommend you buy "Putting Out Of Your Mind" by Bob Rotella. You'll save yourself about €150 and your putting will improve immeasurably.

One Cold Hand

True there is probably less 'technology' in putter than other clubs, but there is a difference between different types, MOI putters, Anser type putters etc.
Someone who has used a 2-ball for a while would find it hard to switch to a blade type putter and vice-versa.

Mister Sifter

I'm not talking about the technological benefits of the putter. I'm talking about getting a putter i like again. I no longer like the one i have. I think i need a change. Freshen things up a bit. It's not as though i'm chopping and changing all the time. I stuck with the anser for about 7 years afterall.

150 euro isn't that much really, not in golfing terms anyway. You wouldn't think twice at spending it on a new driver that's for sure.

Sandwich

Graeme1982 wrote:

I'm not talking about the technological benefits of the putter. I'm talking about getting a putter i like again. I no longer like the one i have. I think i need a change. Freshen things up a bit. It's not as though i'm chopping and changing all the time. I stuck with the anser for about 7 years afterall.

150 euro isn't that much really, not in golfing terms anyway. You wouldn't think twice at spending it on a new driver that's for sure.

OK about the 'arguably' qualification on the first post. I think we've proven that it can be at least 'argued'.

Back to the substance. The point Im trying to make is that your approach is already wrong (and believe it or not, Im trying to be helpful here rather than critical:) ). You have in mind that you need to change to have a putter you like, having gone off the one you have. Presumably you no longer like the one you have because you are not putting well (if you were putting brilliantly youd love the putter wouldnt you?). This is just the greener distant fields or hope springing eternal syndromes and wanting to blame something rather than yourself. You are the man holding it - it hasnt 'deteriorated itself since you 'liked' it.

As a previous poster said, read Dr Bob and focus your attention on what you're doing with the putter.


On the 'one club from the bag' question above. Of course having no putter in the bag is going to hurt your score. I presume the question really asked was, if one club in the bag was substituted for a-an-other version of the same club, which would be the least affected by your ability to use it. I would go for the putter (even a blade!). Far easier to give some a wood or iron which would be unsuited to their swing and would cause them great difficulty to match their normal performance.

pwee

Is the putter the most important club in the bag? Well it is if you look at it like this. If you work very hard on your technique and get a putter that is the correct length and lie for you, then there is no reason why you could not be as a good a putter as one of the top twenty putters on the european tour. Therefore the putter can really help your score. The same cannot be said of the swing due to peoples different levels of flexibility, muscle mass etc. so you can make a rapid change to your game with the short stick but it takes work.

From a technical point of view i would agree with most of sandwichs points.

corkandproud

Go to the Fota Golf Academy and use the SAM putting lab. That'll set you off on the right track.

Mister Sifter

Sandwich wrote:

Back to the substance. The point Im trying to make is that your approach is already wrong (and believe it or not, Im trying to be helpful here rather than critical:) ). You have in mind that you need to change to have a putter you like, having gone off the one you have. Presumably you no longer like the one you have because you are not putting well (if you were putting brilliantly youd love the putter wouldnt you?). This is just the greener distant fields or hope springing eternal syndromes and wanting to blame something rather than yourself. You are the man holding it - it hasnt 'deteriorated itself since you 'liked' it.

Nope, putting is still ok. No major problems.... still averaging no more than 30 putts a round. Certainly no need to read a book on getting your head right that's for sure!! Just fancy a change. Looking down at the old anser just isn't the same anymore. Ideally i'd like to have two maybe even three putters to alternate between.

GreenHorn

Graeme1982 wrote:

Nope, putting is still ok. No major problems.... still averaging no more than 30 putts a round. Certainly no need to read a book on getting your head right that's for sure!! Just fancy a change. Looking down at the old anser just isn't the same anymore. Ideally i'd like to have two maybe even three putters to alternate between.

I'm not the sort of fella who should be givin people golf advice, but I can't help thinking this is a bad idea - it's one of the reasons I think Darren Clarke has such putting problems. He's got a clatter of putters and switches them almost daily.

I thin kwhen you have a few, you're never quite sure if you've brought the right one. Then, when you miss a few early on - it's too easy to say "Yep, knew it - I brought the wrong putter today." and mentally 'accept' that you're not making any putts... instead of just grinding it out and trying to hole a few.

Sandwich

Graeme1982 wrote:

Nope, putting is still ok. No major problems.... still averaging no more than 30 putts a round. Certainly no need to read a book on getting your head right that's for sure!! Just fancy a change. Looking down at the old anser just isn't the same anymore. Ideally i'd like to have two maybe even three putters to alternate between.

Average number of putts for most handicap golfers is 32-33 per round. Pros get down to 29 to 30.

Two points :
1. this indicates the little influence that 'expert' versus 'average' putting makes to the score - about 3 shots ( out of about 20 shots difference for a full round)

2. You're already among the best in the world, so if I were you I would leave well enough alone and justy enjoy the game.

Mister Sifter

well, i do play off three.

BillyBoy

Just tried out the Ping Redwood in the Proshop in my club there. It has the best feel of any putter I have ever hit! I'm definitely going to get one. Only problem is its €250 but still going to get it

GreenHorn

BillyBoy wrote:

Just tried out the Ping Redwood in the Proshop in my club there. It has the best feel of any putter I have ever hit! I'm definitely going to get one. Only problem is its €250 but still going to get it

Shop around man...

http://cgi.ebay.ie/BRAND-NEW-PING-REDWOOD-303-ANSER-PUTTER-35-W-COVER_W0QQitemZ330129740889QQihZ014QQcategoryZ115280QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem

BillyBoy

GreenHorn wrote:

Shop around man...

http://cgi.ebay.ie/BRAND-NEW-PING-REDWOOD-303-ANSER-PUTTER-35-W-COVER_W0QQitemZ330129740889QQihZ014QQcategoryZ115280QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem

Didnt even think of e-bay, thanks for the reminder. The only thing is that our pro is going to custom fit (lie, shaft length etc) the club for me so it might be better to go through him..

Obni

At the end of last year my short game was deteriorating badly and my handicap of 18 was about to become 19. I had about €200 in vouchers so I splashed out another €40 on two Vokey wedges (52 + 58 milled). Given that my Titleist driver + woods were €200 second hand, my putter is a Golfworks €30 clone, and my irons were a friends Lynx cast-offs, that represented a cost higher than the rest of my bag's contents put together.
The improvement in my game was instant. I have no doubt that given I had the same pair of hands, and that at a handicap of 18 I couldn't possibly use the clubs to their full effect, the improvement was entirely based on confidence in the clubs. I'm now at 16 and dropping.

Surely if a 3 handicapper can gain an ounce of confidence by splashing a bit of cash, then why not?

I would agree however, that the putter is the club, the performance of which is least influenced by technology. Two-ball putters and their kind certainly make alignment much easier, but whether you spend €299 or €29 on a clone makes very little difference to the end result. Except, of course, that spending €299 raises your expectations, and if you stroll onto a green expecting to putt better than last time, you probably will!!

Mister Sifter

rather start a new thread i thought i'd be better digging up this old one...

I bought the odyssey 2-ball XG a few months back. Shelled out 175 euro for it, but i'm not liking it at all to be honest. Think i might sell it on and buy myself a new one. I've been looking at a few of the pings. So, if anyone is interested in the odyssey one let me know. It's 35 inches and it's in immaculate condition. Headcover and marker are still in perfect condition too.

Any ideas what putters i should try out now?

f22

Used the new odyssey back series no. 3 for a couple of weeks and hated it. Couldn't guage the milled face at all, either short or well long. Back in the boot now and back with the tri hot no. 5 again and loving it.

PhilipMarlowe

I had a putting lesson recently with my PGA pro

Brendan McDermott in Kilkenny

. He put me on the SAM putting lab which is an ultrasound thing that attaches to your putter and basically tells you all the stuff that's going on in your stroke.... my consistency was good but consistently wrong
Tells you where on the clubface you are striking the ball, how much open or closed you are at impact, the path the clubhead takes, open by how much at the back of the swing, tempo (acceleration etc)..... etc. etc...

Based on some of this information, there may be something technically 'wrong' with your putter (in as much as any club is to blame), like the lie angle was too upright for me and he shortened the shaft by an inch....
In other words, get custom fit for your putter.

I also used a neat training aid, the pathfinder which is great for building confidence (mine was shattered when it came to putting....
Check out the pathfinder video on here

stockdam

I've used a Ping Anser for years and although I've tried others I tend to stick with the Anser.

However at times I don't like the way it sits so I went and looked at some others.

I tried the Ping 30th Anniversary one and it just sits perfect for me and feels so right. I didn't look at the price and I'm guessing

In the past as a kid I used and old putter (Bronty?) and people used to offer me money for it (I should have sold it but since it worked me me I kept it). I also used one which looked like a croquet mallet and I gave it up as I thought it looked stupid (now I wouldn't worry).

The two ball ones don't work for me....they don't feel right. I've never had any confidence with Bullseyes either.

Don't be buying a putter because other people putt well with it. Get one which works for you. It needs to sit right and inspire confidence (but your putting stroke is way more important than the putter). The lie and the shaft length are very important.

Mister Sifter

I bought a little short putter in American Golf Discount when i was about 12. I played with it until i was about 16. I used to be great with it and loved it. I walked off the green one ay after missing a putt though and hit the ground with it in anger... the head flew off and that was the end of that!

I then went and bought a Ping Sedona blade putter which i didn't like at all, so 3-4 months later i went and traded it in for anser. I used it up until this summer when i just felt i needed a change. I was never particularly great with it anyway. I bought the 2-ball but i'm not a fan of it at all. I don't know why i bought it to be honest. Just an impulse buy more than anything. 175 notes it set me back.

I have my eye on the Ping Tess which just feels amazing.

http://www.edwinwattsgolf.com/wcsstore/EdwinWatts/images/product/6396-2.jpg

I'm going to head in to the golf shop in a while and try and trade the 2-ball in for it. I'm a bit worried to hear what they offer me for the 2-ball though.

stockdam

I've never taken to the two ball putters either. They just don't sit right for me and I pull a lot of putts with them.

I think there are too many fads in putters to try to get people to think there's magic in the design. A simple putter which is well made and is the right length and lie for you will work much better than following the latest fad.

Golf Pro

I use an odessey white hot and find it great. One mistake people often make when using a putter or testing a new putter is to not hit the ball with the center of the putter. It is impossible to get a proper feel for a putter unless you hot the center everytime...

dak

Practice is the only solution . If you can't read the greens properly it doesn't matter what putter you use!

1916

Odyssey Tri-ball SRT

I wish it would make me a better putter!

1916

Mister Sifter

dak wrote: »

Practice is the only solution . If you can't read the greens properly it doesn't matter what putter you use!

i think my reading of the greens is pretty good. i just have a serious confidence problem when standing over the ball and i hav no faith in the putter. I need to get it sorted out as it's killing my game.

I've even invested in a putting mat!!:D:confused:

PhilipMarlowe

dak wrote: »

Practice is the only solution . If you can't read the greens properly it doesn't matter what putter you use!

You can read the putt perfectly. align the ball perfectly with where you want it to go and then make a bad stroke... this happens a lot to me. Technically, my putting stroke is poor, tendency to strike the ball towards the toe of the putter due to a bad path. Also, I open the face too much in the backswing (15 degrees when 3 or 4 would be the tour standard).

Go get an analysis like I said earlier, the SAM putting lab, shoule be a PGA pro near you that offers this service. It tells you EXACTLY what you are doing (right and wrong).

Reading greens is obviously a huge part of putting but if you are like me and not sure how the ball is going to come off the face, then it's hard to have confidence and confidence is key to holing putts.

Golf Ninja

I use a Scotty Cameroon i cut down to 31 inches and find it great.

stockdam

dak wrote: »

Practice is the only solution . If you can't read the greens properly it doesn't matter what putter you use!

There's more to it than just reading the greens. Many people can't hole a straight 4 foot putt - reading the line isn't the issue.