Contrary to what blowhards on social media would have you believe, there are very few golfers out there who are physically capable of hitting a driver over 300 yards because it requires so much speed while still hitting the ball solidly and straight. On the other hand, draining a 30-foot putt is something that any golfer is physically capable of doing. Sure, for inexperienced players and high-handicap golfers, luck can play a big part is holing a long putt, but with practice any golfer can become a good putter.
A PGA of America professional can help you find the ideal posture and ball position, give you drills to improve your distance control and help you improve your stroke, while a well-trained club fitter can help you find a putter that enhances what you do well while improving the parts of putting that give you trouble.
Golfweek asked four representatives from major putter brands to answer questions that many golfers have about putters. After you read their answers, check out some of the most interesting putters you will see in pro shops and specialty stores right now.
Some answers were edited for brevity and clarity.
What are the performance advantages of blade-style putters?
Scotty Cameron Super Select putters. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
“With the better player who has athletic ability, it [blades] get them to be athletes and to use their hands to judge the pace and the direction. And, a lot of times, the way that those players line up, they use the perpendicular alignment of the leading edge or the topline with a little indication of where to put the ball. So it’s using that perpendicular alignment. That works well for those type of players.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
“A blade-style putter can be less distracting to your eye, and a blade-style putter is going to keep the center of gravity closer to the shaft axis than a mallet style putter. That’s going to give you a different feel in your fingers and finger tips as you move the putter.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
“Some people have an easier time lining up blades because there is less going on and they tend to focus or use the the leading edge of the putter to aim rather than sight lines or any other devices on the tops of the head.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
“To me, the performance benefit of a blade style putter is going to be exceptional feel and more control and awareness of exactly where your hands are and where the impact is.” – Nick Jahnke, PXG
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What are the performance advantages of mallet putters?
Ping PLD Milled Oslo 4. (Ping)
“The one main thing that you see in mallets is there’s a lot of real estate on the top of that putter to put nice, big alignment feature.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
“A mallet can give you a lot more different alignment characteristics [than a blade]. You have a bigger platform. We’ve done some really cool studies with eye-tracking glasses to study where people are looking on the putter to create their aim. Mallet style putters can also resist twisting more effectively when you are making your stroke.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
“I think there are a few inherent benefits in mallets. They generally will have higher MOI than blades. Not always, but generally they have larger footprints, so there’s more opportunity to do different things with alignment aids. Most of the mallets on the market, particularly the larger formatted ones, have some type of alignment aid with longer lines, which help a lot of people.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
Over the last decade, the trend on the PGA Tour is to more mallet putters. Why?
Odyssey Versa putters at the Genesis Invitational. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
“I think it’s a combination of a couple things. One is, these players are hyper-aware of their statistics now and all of their numbers. They know their putting stats. They know how important picking up a tenth of a stroke or two-tenths of a stroke can be. So if they can be shown something that they think is going to get them a tenth of a stroke or two-tenths of a stroke, or in some cases more, they’re gonna be open to that. The second is mallets were almost always made with a single bend or a double bend shaft, which made them face balanced, which works really well for certain players and not as well for others. Now, if you’re used to setting up to a blade with a crank hosel, you can get a mallet with that same type of hosel that’s going to be a more comfortable setup for you.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
“We have millions of data points on face rotation and it creates a beautifully-even distribution with about one-third of players putting best with a strong-arc, toe-down putter. Another third of the players need face-balanced and the final third need a little toe hang because they make a slight arc in their stroke. The industry has kind of transitioned and started to say that all mallets don’t have to be face-balanced. We can put some toe hang in there to match the distribution in the market.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
“It’s the forgiveness they get from it and the industry has adapted to shrink that profile down a little bit. So it’s not the “dinner plate” style (mallet), so when you see one it’s not like, ‘Man, that guy’s a terrible putter,’ which in part is an ego thing. Players don’t want to use something where you’re going to get spotted on the green like that.” – Nick Jahnke, PXG
“You know, our putter usage on Tour from 2020 has grown up to a 50 percent mix of blades and mallets. And from a retail standpoint, mallets are about 40 percent of our volume. We see it and we’ve been, you know, largely a blade company in the past and made our success on that. We see that trend, and it’s one of the reasons that Scotty [Cameron] brought me on board, to help strengthen our position on mallets.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
Getting custom fit is the best way to find a putter, but for new golfers looking to buy their first putter, would you recommend a blade or a mallet?
Should new golfers use a blade or a mallet? (David Dusek/Golfweek)
“A mallet, 100 percent. If you take someone brand new to the game and you give them muscleback irons, that’s a disservice to that player, right? I half-jokingly tell people that if you don’t have your name on your bag and you’re not getting paid to play golf, you’re not good enough to be using a blade.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
“This is a little bit of a philosophical thing for me. I worked on our junior products and we put a blade-style putter in that set because I wanted kids to grow up with a slight arc so they could feel a little resistance in their stroke. It’s also going to focus your brain more. For someone who is just starting out and who is developing the skill of putting, I would prefer to have them start with a blade-style putter.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
“I would recommend a mallet first and foremost because those players that are starting out really need to learn where to point the face, how to align that putter. It becomes more difficult in a blade putter, unless you’ve been playing a lot and you really understand that perpendicular style alignment.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
“I would go with whatever head shape is going to give them the most confidence when they’re over it. It has to be, first and foremost, what you’re comfortable with.” – Nick Jahnke, PXG
How do you decide what type of grip to use on a putter?
SuperStroke putter grips. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
When anchoring was banned by the USGA, it felt like counterbalanced putter might become popular. What happened?
Jim Furyk used a counterbalanced Odyssey Versa 2-Ball putter on Tuesday before the 2014 U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
“It definitely worked for some players, and then the one kind of knock on it, if there was one, was that for some players it was really good on short putts, but harder to control on longer putts. It’s sort of like putting with a sledgehammer. If you’ve only got to move it a couple inches to knock in a four-footer, it’s fine. But if you’re trying to finesse a 45-footer with 10 feet of break, that gets harder, so we kind of kept looking at other things.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
“Putters came out where you had basically taking belly putter heads, which were 400 grams, and using those same heads and then having to put an extra-long grip and 50 grams up on the top. They balance really well, but the overall weight got way too heavy. On short putts it was great, but we quickly learned that on long puts, it was harder to control and so that’s where you’ve got these kind of modern counterbalanced putters.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
“When they went into something counterbalanced, if we looked at it on a Trackman and you could study pace, their stroke became faster and less consistent. And at the end of the day, that’s the opposite of what the majority of people need.” – Nick Jahnke, PXG
“I think when players went really heavy, they lost their sense of touch and feel. Especially on lag putts. Now, Viktor Hovland is a great example of this, some players are using a mock-belly putter that is longer, like 38 inches, but they grip it down. That gives you a little of that counterbalanced feel, but the whole putter doesn’t get so heavy that you lose touch.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
A small but growing number of PGA Tour players are using broomstick style putters. What do you think of that style and who is a candidate for a broomstick?
Will Zalatoris putts on the sixth green during the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament. (Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports)
“I would say on Tour, broomsticks have seen a little bit of a surge recently, but they never really went away because when the anchoring ban came in, players basically just took the anchor and moved it off enough so that they weren’t anchoring anymore. You can’t anchor it anymore, but if you can kind of fix it in one spot, then really, that’s the most true pendulum stroke would be the broomstick.” – Luke Williams, Odyssey
“A lot of golfers who have gravitated to broomstick putters have struggled with a word that starts with Y that I don’t want to say. Let’s say they were a little nervy. It’s still a tough skill to learn to putt with a broomstick and learn how to power it. Do you rock your shoulders to swing or flex and pump your right elbow? It can be worth looking into if you struggle on short putts, but you want to experiment with how you power it.” – Marty Jertson, Ping
“Normally, it’s someone that’s searching to solve an issue and to find consistency in a part of their game then someone that is looking at it for any other reason.” – Nick Jahnke, PXG
“I think it works really well for certain players. I think players that are having, you know, that dreaded Y word … the yips. Wanna take the hands out of the out of the stroke — It’s a pretty good method.” – Austie Rollinson, Titleist
Bettinardi BB-1W
At address, the BB-1W has a clean look and a single white alignment aid. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Price: $450 each with Black PVD graphite shaft and Lamkin Etched grip.
Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel
Who It’s For: Golfers who love the classic look of a blade but who want more stability and forgiveness from a milled putter. Read the full review …
Cleveland HB Soft 2 #11
The Cleveland HB Soft 2 11 has a single black alignment line on the topline. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Price: $149.99
Specs: Cast stainless steel heads with grooved faces and counterbalanced shaft
Who It’s For: Golfers who like fang-style mallets and who want a soft feel at impact with budget-friendly price. Read the full review …
Cobra 3D Printed Agera
The Cobra 3D Printed Agera is a high-MOI mallet designed to be forgiving and stable on mis-hits. (Cobra)
Price: $349 each with KBS CT Tour 120 shaft and SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol 1.0 grip
Specs: Carbon fiber crown with 304 stainless steel body, milled 6061 aerospace grade aluminum face insert and 3D-printed features.
Who it’s For: Golfers who want extra stability and modern design with enhanced alignment features. Read the full review …
L.A.B. DF3 putter
The white T stands out against the black aluminum body of the DF3. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Price: $449 (stock) and $559 (Custom)
Specs: 6061 aluminum with steel weights. 69-degree lie angle
Who It’s For: Golfers who struggle to square their putter face at impact or start putts on their intended target line. Read the full review …
Odyssey Ai ONE Rossie S
Odyssey Ai ONE Rossie S. (Odyssey)
Price: $299.99 (Ai-ONE) each with Stroke Lab 90 shaft and counterbalanced grip
Specs: Co-molded aluminum insert with grooved urethane coating (Ai-ONE); Milled stainless steel head with milled titanium face insert (Ai-ONE Milled)
Who They’re For: Golfers who prefer the size and alignment aid that a full-size mallet can deliver, along with improved distance control. Read the full review …
Ping PLD Anser 2
Ping PLD Anser 2. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Price: $447
Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel
Who they’re for: Golfers who demand the ultimate in feel and precision, and who want a putter that looks like it came right off the PGA Tour. Read the full review …
PXG Battle Ready II One and Done
PXG Battle Ready II One and Done. (PXG)
Price: $389.99 each
Specs: 303 stainless steel with internal polymer filling and adjustable sole weights.
Who It’s For: Golfers who want a more forgiving putter that is easy to align, feels soft at impact and produces a consistent roll. Read the full review …
Scotty Cameron Phantom X 11
The Scotty Cameron Phantom X 11 (Titleist)
Price: $449
Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel and 6061 aluminum chassis with steel/tungsten weights.
Who It’s For: Golfers who want a mallet that is easy to align and aim while still getting the sound and feel of Scotty Cameron’s milled blade putters. Read the full review …
TaylorMade Spider Tour
The Spider Tour has a boxy, high-MOI design that has been popular and influential. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Price: $349.99 each with KBS shaft and SuperStroke Pistol 1.0 grip
Specs: Steel body mallet putters with grooved Surlyn insert, internal polymer and steel weights.
Who It’s For: Golfers who want a putter that is easy to aim, offers extra stability and more consistency on mis-hit putts. Read the full review …
Wilson Staff Model MT22
Wilson Staff Model MT22. (Wilson)
Price: $349.99 each
Specs: Milled 304 stainless steel
Who its for: Golfers who want the feel of a milled blade putter combined with a larger alignment line and extra stability. Read the full review …
