Feedback on Taylor Made Putters

[neonlew]

I am looking at a few Taylor Made mallet-type putters.. Very interested in the TaylorMade Japan ST-72 Stingray Ghost Putter, the Manta or Spider S. Would appreciate anyone who has had any experience with any of these three putters and looking forward to your comments.

Lew

[Beachcomber]

Hi Lew,

I currently use a 34" length, TaylorMade Ghost Spider from 2012.  The Spider S is simply the 2013 version.  The primary difference, as far as I can tell between the 2012 and the 2013 model, is that the paint/alignment system on the top of the putter.

The head is 360g - which comes with two removable 4g weights.  One on the toe and one on the heel.

I recently replaced these two 4g weights with two 10g weights.  So my putter head is now weighing in at 372g (uplifted from the default factory stock spec).

In addition, I have an aftermarket Jumbo Winn pistol grip installed which is 124g.  This is heavier and thicker than the standard stock pistol grip the putter comes with, which is a 57g pistol style.

So my setup is heavier than the stock putter you will get from TaylorMade.  And I recently just purchased a Opti-vibe counterweight kit from Tourlockpro - to counterweight the grip of the putter and make the setup even heavier.  See this thread for details.

Here is a picture of my putter head.

I haven't received the counterweight installation kit yet.  But my goal is to increase the weight of the putter to help me smooth out my putting stroke.  As I have been struggling with lag putting lately, and received input that I should perhaps investigate getting a heavier setup to help me conquer this part of the putting game.

I'd like to tell you this putter had solved all of my putting woes... And that I'm a beast and syncing everything I see.  But that simply would be a lie.  My previous 20 rounds, according to my stats tracked on Golfshot, I've hit 1.8 putts per hole and 2.0 putts per GIR.  Not exactly stellar as that is an average of 32 to 33 putts per round.

Outside of wanting to add the counterweight setup to the grip... I'm also thinking about going and getting the putter cut down an inch from 34" to 33".  As I've really been experimenting with my setup (amount of bend in my back from my waist) and believe my arms could hang a little more naturally - without placing so much stress on my wrist to grip the club by lowering the grip (reducing the length of the club).  Ultimately, enabling me to have more of a linear alignment from my arms, into my wrist and into my hands and finally into the putter grip.

Overall, the Ghost putter is pretty solid.  I like the alignment system.  I'm a mallet guy - so that looks good to.  And the feel - especially when hit well is very nice.  But I still don't have the setup exactly like I'd like from the weight and length perspective.  Therefore, my goal is to have it tweaked here in the next month, and really use this putter as my gamer for a long, long time.

Not sure if this helped answer any of your questions on the Ghost Spider S?  But I think it is a pretty decent putter.  And can be a great putter if you get it fitted from the length and weight side.

[neonlew]

Beachcomber, many thanks for your input. I will be making a decision on one of these Taylor Made mallet putters soon.

Lew