When Is it Time to Purchase a New Putter?

[Carl3]

On 10/4/2021 at 6:26 AM, thegolfhackr said:

But am still interested to know from some more experienced players when they decided/ the right time would be to purchase a new putter?

About 12 years ago I was at the the golf shop with my wife and my youngest son who was on his HS golf team. I was trying out an Odyssey putter for fun while my son was shopping thinking "it would be sure nice to have something like this, but they are soo expensive". A few minutes later my son walks by and says "I have that same putter". I say "WHAT?". He says that yes he has one, "mom bought it for me". So guess what I did? I bought the putter. I still have it although I have regripped it a few times. Not as bad looking as this one:

The Tri Ball does not look like a bad putter. The problem these days is that the putter has become almost as expensive as the driver. 12 years ago I paid $110 for my putter. Entry level today is at least twice that. I have seen good serious golfers playing much older putters. 

Try some out at the shop and see how they feel, but I think putters have better longevity than other types of clubs in the bag.

[Bonvivant]

On 10/5/2021 at 1:06 PM, Typhoon92 said:

Watching Phil putt with what looked like a short putter piqued my interest.  I’m not tall and being fit for length helped tremendously.

Just curious, cause I'm not tall either: How tall and what length? I know that it is different for everyone, but I have a couple of putters I could play with and try different lengths.

[gg194]

Some putters just seem to work better but too many three putts or a four putt and they are usually gone or at least in time out for a while. If I completely lose confidence in one it's gone, try to always have a couple spare putters just in case. 

[Esox]

Newest putter on my rack is a 1990's Mizuno. Well, actually it's in my bag. My 21 year old son is playing an old 1970's Ping Anser he pulled off the rack and liked. I bought a lot of putters in the 70's through 90's, still have most of them.  Probably will never buy another one.

 

[Typhoon92]

On 10/8/2021 at 1:57 AM, Bonvivant said:

Just curious, cause I'm not tall either: How tall and what length? I know that it is different for everyone, but I have a couple of putters I could play with and try different lengths.

I’m 5’6” and my putter is 32”.  It lets my arms hang naturally and gets me close enough to have my eyes over the ball.  I once heard that putters were made at 35” with the intention of people cutting them down.  Don’t know how true that it is but 35” is long. 
 

My putting improved a lot and was more comfortable once I did that.

[boogielicious]

1 hour ago, Typhoon92 said:

I’m 5’6” and my putter is 32”.  It lets my arms hang naturally and gets me close enough to have my eyes over the ball.  I once heard that putters were made at 35” with the intention of people cutting them down.  Don’t know how true that it is but 35” is long. 
 

My putting improved a lot and was more comfortable once I did that.

The ‘natural’ stance is key. I’m 5’ 10”, but my putter length in 35.5” because my natural stance has my arms there. I was fitted to that length from 35”. Shorter putters strain my back. 

[Typhoon92]

15 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

The ‘natural’ stance is key. I’m 5’ 10”, but my putter length in 35.5” because my natural stance has my arms there. I was fitted to that length from 35”. Shorter putters strain my back. 

As long as your natural position has you set up correctly your good to go!

[Zippo]

On 10/4/2021 at 3:26 AM, thegolfhackr said:

I've just started to take lessons, and I'm definitely starting to feel more confident striking the ball around the course - but lately my scores haven't reflected any improvement because my putting has been shocking.

First step for me is definitely to spend more time on the putting green. But am still interested to know from some more experienced players when they decided/ the right time would be to purchase a new putter? Seems an intriguing one to me as once you've practiced enough with one putter, surely changing becomes an adjustment.

For context, I'm currently a 21 HCP and the putter I'm using is the Odyssey Tri-Ball SRT Putter. It's a bit of a beast!

https://thesandtrap.com/b/clubs/odyssey_white_steel_tri-ball_srt_putter_review

Thanks in advance!

Have you analyzed your putting? Are you missing consistently to one side or the other or leaving them short or long? Can you start the ball on the line you want but are maybe misreading the greens? If I were you (and I am you as you'll learn here shortly) I'd make sure to spend some time on analysis before spending money. Of, course, as @Vinsksaid, if you want to spend your money then you should. Shiny new things are fun!

Putting has been a a very big problem for me this year and has only gotten worse no matter how much I try to practice. For example, I played a round last week at a local course that has pretty nice greens. Most of my putts were pretty flat with little break. Managed to putt really badly. 4 putted 1 hole. 3 putted 14 holes. 2 putted 2 holes and 1 putted 1 hole. Stinks but pretty much the way it's gone this summer with me and putting.  Many of the 3 putts were from 3 feet. I'd do a nice job chipping the ball close for birdie or par then 3 or 4 putt the hole. It's been very frustrating.

Thinking about what to do to change it I considered lessons - but I didn't think it was a lesson type of problem. I thought about a new putter but didn't really want to spend all that money on something that might or might not help. The problem was my lack of control over the putter head. When I swing it back it doesn't go straight back and I'm sure it's the same when I swing it forward to the ball. The path back and forward was more like a randomly crooked line. And I'd miss putts all over the place. It was like I was putting on that randomly bumpy green from another thread. My face to path was different every time and I'd often hit the ball off either the toe or heel of the putter Very frustrating.

 

I tried everything I could think of over the course of this year - changed my grip on the putter in many different ways. Tried holding arms and wrists stiff or loose or anywhere in between. Bent over more or bent over less. Tried a shorter backswing and a longer backswing. I tried focusing on a particular spot on the ball or a spot on the green on my line. Nothing really helped and I continued to 3 putt.

 

It seemed to me to be a problem with the connection between my hands and the putter head. I had changed to one of those oversized SuperStroke grips a year or so ago and, thinking about it, it seems like my problems began sometime afterwards. So I went and had it regripped with a smaller diameter grip. I've gotten out to with it once and it's been much better. I know that's a small sample size but I was able to make a straighter backswing. I only 3 putted 1 hole out of 12 I played and I did start quite a ways away from the hole on that 3 putt. My misses were all short but were on the line I'd chosen so no more toe or heel hits - so far.

 

In any event, I'm just suggesting you try and ascertain where your putting weaknesses lie before making a plan for fixing them.

 

 

[Double Mocha Man]

52 minutes ago, Zippo said:

3 putted 14 holes

Zippo, you are snake-bit.  Stop thinking (though your thinking on the matter is very sound).  See hole, putt at hole.  Be 15 years old again.

[Zippo]

2 hours ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Zippo, you are snake-bit.  Stop thinking (though your thinking on the matter is very sound).  See hole, putt at hole.  Be 15 years old again.

Verily thou speakest wisdom, oh my guru! Being 15 again is about the only thing I haven’t tried! 😁

[Double Mocha Man]

50 minutes ago, Zippo said:

Verily thou speakest wisdom, oh my guru! Being 15 again is about the only thing I haven’t tried! 😁

And remember, being 15 means you have no fear...  (You would probably take that cart path on #1, on you-know-which-course, as a fun challenge)

[WilliamB]

When I find a putter that fits better, usually due to new technology, I consider going for it. Although, I usually get an Odyssey from CPO.

[uitar9]

I have not been fitted and started out with a Wilson putter in a starter set. After two or three years started going to a local golf town and would putt for an hour on Sundays, in winter, almost every week. My putting got much better. I tried every left hand putter in the store until I discovered a comfort letter with any mallet style, 34 inch with an offset. It just felt more comfortable and fit my eye. Been using a Monte Carlo ghost for quite some time.  Putting seems very unique to the individual and doesn't require much athletic ability, just a bit of practice. 

[tomvk77]

The putter is the most expensive club in my bag, simply because that club I use the most in my round. and it makes or breaks my round as well. I did get fitted into this one and it makes a huge difference for me. I have the Scotty Cameron Phantom x 8.5 in 35 inch with a superstroke pistol gt 2.0 grip

[DCCarpenter]

I started playing with a hand me down set of clubs, I had a Bullseye putter and an older Taylormade with a frayed grip. Both had been fit for the gentleman who gave them to me who was 5'9 while I am 6'3.

I struggled really badly with them, even while doing some putting practice. I went to 2nd Swing golf ,a used club store ,and they had an area where you could try out hundreds of putters. Not wanting to spend much I tried a few less expensive ones , I had good results there with a Ping Anser 3 bronze putter and bought it for $45 or so. It made a big difference right away over what I was using. 

I am a wrist putter so a blade style putter works better for me. You might want to read up or watch some videos to see who your putting style looks like to see if a mallet or blade is a better choice for you.  

[ChetlovesMer]

On 10/4/2021 at 6:26 AM, thegolfhackr said:

I've just started to take lessons, and I'm definitely starting to feel more confident striking the ball around the course - but lately my scores haven't reflected any improvement because my putting has been shocking.

First step for me is definitely to spend more time on the putting green. But am still interested to know from some more experienced players when they decided/ the right time would be to purchase a new putter? Seems an intriguing one to me as once you've practiced enough with one putter, surely changing becomes an adjustment.

For context, I'm currently a 21 HCP and the putter I'm using is the Odyssey Tri-Ball SRT Putter. It's a bit of a beast!

https://thesandtrap.com/b/clubs/odyssey_white_steel_tri-ball_srt_putter_review

Thanks in advance!

I'm not sure where you are located. But looking at putting together a group to come have an AimPoint lesson in Erie, PA in late March. AimPoint would probably go a long way towards improving your putting. 

Here's the link to the lesson discussion.

 

[phan52]

On 10/4/2021 at 6:26 AM, thegolfhackr said:

I've just started to take lessons, and I'm definitely starting to feel more confident striking the ball around the course - but lately my scores haven't reflected any improvement because my putting has been shocking.

First step for me is definitely to spend more time on the putting green. But am still interested to know from some more experienced players when they decided/ the right time would be to purchase a new putter? Seems an intriguing one to me as once you've practiced enough with one putter, surely changing becomes an adjustment.

For context, I'm currently a 21 HCP and the putter I'm using is the Odyssey Tri-Ball SRT Putter. It's a bit of a beast!

https://thesandtrap.com/b/clubs/odyssey_white_steel_tri-ball_srt_putter_review

Thanks in advance!

You appear to be focused on your score so One thing I would tell you is, don't give yourself putts. Make them all. I see many casual golfers swipe away a 2-3 footers and, when they have to make it in a competition, they actually have no experience making them. A three foot putt is not a gimme, you have to be focused to make it, let alone 5-10 footers. Practicing longer putts is useless until you start making the three footers all the time. 

As far as what putter to use, get fitted for one. You use it more than every other club in your bag so it may as well fit you.

[WilliamB]

On 10/14/2021 at 4:58 PM, WilliamB said:

When I find a putter that fits better, usually due to new technology, I consider going for it. Although, I usually get an Odyssey from CPO.

I will add to my previous post that it is time to change putters when I want a new "toy" to try. It's one of the pleasures of golf to try new clubs, specifically drivers and putters.