Scotty Cameron, whats the big deal?

[PBCgolfer]

I've hit almost all the Scotty Cameron putters, my friends have them, but I still do not understand what the big deal is about them. Is it just a marketing ploy to make us "think" they are worth $300. I'll take my spaulding putter over one any day, thoughts?

[asianpsuation]

im kinda 50/50 on your thoughts. I borrowed my friends Newport Stainless while he was on vacation, and took it to the course a couple times. I had no problems with my putter at the time (TM corza monza), but hell why not try the scotty. I gotta say i didnt notice any dramatic improvement in my putting, which didn't suprise me. But it looks incredible, and you just feel like your putting with a bently or somethin like that. So is it worth 3hundo? hell no, but its a beautiful looking paper weight... for 100 bucks id get one tho.

[test123123]

I have tried them in store and they are nothing special. It does not deserve high price mark.

[iacas]

  PBCgolfer said:

I've hit almost all the Scotty Cameron putters, my friends have them, but I still do not understand what the big deal is about them. Is it just a marketing ploy to make us "think" they are worth $300. I'll take my spaulding putter over one any day, thoughts?

This thread pops up from time to time, and it always boils down to this: if you think they're worth the price, they are. If you don't, they aren't.

Clearly they are "worth it" for enough people, as Scotty and Titleist are doing just fine with their business. It's rare to see me putting with anything BUT a Scotty Cameron putter, not because of name but because his designs are more innovative, his materials better, and his quality control higher than most other putter companies, and CERTAINLY higher than a Spalding putter.

[mstuk]

PBC golfer I tend to agree with you about his mass produced putters a little emperors new cloths I cant help feeling . Iacas have you tried Whitlam or Yes putters both of which I feel are of superior design and craftsmanship imho.

[beung]

I just bought a Newport 2 (the older one) for $200.
I used to use a 2ball blade2 putter and while the putter is good I wasn't a big fan of the steel insert. I didn't have much touch with the 2 ball so I have been looking for a putter with a bit more feel.
I have been looking for a good blade putter but couldn't find one I liked. I tried the new Ping 303 stainless (which looks pretty much the same as the Newport 2), it was a bit heavy feeling and was way more then the Newport.

Also think of it this way....

How much did you spend on your driver, I bet it was more the $300. How many times do you use it per hole or in a round, I know it's less then 14. Now, how many putts do you have in a round and how many times do you use your putter per hole? How many strokes does your driver cost you vs. how many strokes your putter saves?

[jb1982]

I have a Cameron, Newport. I was struggling with my putting last season and demoed some putters. This one felt the best of everything I tried and it made puttting feel easy for me. If I can stand over a 7 footer with the confidence that I'm going to make this putt, it's worth $300 to me!! I still don't make them all, but at least I'm confident in putting again.

[beung]

I would have to say that if your putter was a tree branch or a putter made of gold it wouldn't matter as long as YOU made putts with it. It's so personal of a tool that you never know until you try it, if it doesn't work for you move on and try another. This is my 4th putter in the last 3 years, still haven't found one that feels the way I wanted it to. My 2 ball was definately the most consistant so far but also gave me the least amount of feedback, hopefully the Newport is going to give me the same consistencey but with a bit more feedback.

[iacas]

  mstuk said:

PBC golfer I tend to agree with you about his mass produced putters a little emperors new cloths I cant help feeling . Iacas have you tried Whitlam or Yes putters both of which I feel are of superior design and craftsmanship imho.

A quick search would have revealed that I've tried Yes! putters, and by no means are they anywhere near as well crafted or built as Scotty Camerons. He'd never let a putter out the door that sounded like the one I reviewed.

[i-Guy]

All I can say is PGA TOUR . I know there are a lot of sucessful putters on the Tour but when ever I watch a tournament it seems like almost each group has at least one person putting with a Scotty. Tiger Woods does. Anyway I have tried quite a few putters over time (Ping B60, Odessey 2 ball, Cleveland blade putter etc.) and nothing seemed to be any different wth my putting. It is the Indian and not the arrow! So I decided to stop blaming my putting on the putter and decided to buy a putter that was well know as " iacas " said for its craftsmanship and reputation and make a commitment to becoming a really good putter. So I started looking for the best with price not being an option. See my signature for what I purchased. I like the style (which is personal) but I like the consistency in which the ball comes off the face even when I feel like I am not putting well. I think that is related to the incredible craftsmanship.

Also I am a numbers guy (accounting geek ) and I keep my own stats. I am a 14 handicapper but I am averaging around 31-32 putts per round. It is the rest of my short game that is questionable right now or I would be single digit. And as someone said on an earlier post you hit 14 drives but even a single handicapper hits an average of 32 putts per round so price should not be an issue. I know that most look at putting as a personal thing but I think you should make sure you have the right tool for the job. If you do and it is not a Scotty then good for you. Just my 2 cents...

[BaronV]

So does Scott Cameron personally inspect each putter?

[Mr. Doug]

Couple of quick points...

#1 - Nobody is making you spend $250 on a putter. If you don't want to, don't.

#2 - The putter is used 2X as much as any other club in your bag during EVERY round of golf. Spending $400 on a driver and balking at $250 for a putter is laughable.

#3 - Putters are 90% confidence. If you feel that one putter is better than another one, use it. No matter what it costs.

#4 - (And this one is important.) PUTT WITH WHAT YOU LIKE! The putter is the one club that has remained pretty much the same since the inception of golf. I play regularly with a T.P. Mills Handmade that was made in 1962...and I can putt your lights out with it. (A putter that cost $200 in 1962...talk about expensive!)

[Fourputt]

IMO, and this is strictly my opinion , Scotty's are over priced and over touted. I'm a pretty decent putter, and while I can usually feel the difference between various putters, I can use a Scotty side by side with my Odyssey and I can detect no appreciable difference. I can do the same thing with a TM of a similar design, and it feels the same as the Scotty for 1/3 the price.

As has been stated so many times, much of success in golf is based on confidence, and putting is no exception. I have supreme confidence that I have a good putter that suits me with my Odyssey. I could have the same confidence with a Scotty or a Taylor that gave me a similar feel when I stroked it, both of which I have tried and been tempted with. Given that, I'm going with the the one that is the best buy, currently my 8 year old Odyssey. That just seems to me to make good fiscal sense.

For someone with unlimited funds, I guess that the Scotty is as good a choice as any, but if you are trying to keep the costs at a reasonable level, then in my opinion there are more affordable choices that will get you the same results.

As for comparing it to the driver... it's not a fair comparison. While you may take more strokes with the putter, the fact that you are taking full swings and are hitting the driver 250+ yards makes it far more critical that you make solid contact. If you spend your life playing from the forest on your approaches, having a $300 putter doesn't mean that much.... again, IMO.

[jb1982]

  Fourputt said:

As for comparing it to the driver... it's not a fair comparison. While you may take more strokes with the putter, the fact that you are taking full swings and are hitting the driver 250+ yards makes it far more critical that you make solid contact. If you spend your life playing from the forest on your approaches, having a $300 putter doesn't mean that much.... again, IMO.

The one way it is REALLY like a driver is it's all about personal opinion and confidence. The best golfer in my league (+1) still plays an 8 year old Titelist driver with a steel shaft. I played 9 holes with him last week and he didn't miss a single fairway. I also watched him hit driver, 9 iron into a par 5 for a 4 ft eagle putt!! I asked why he stays with the outdated driver. His response "When I have it in my hands, I KNOW I can hit a great shot with it, why change?". Same with a putter. If you have a putter that you're that confident in, it doesn't matter brand or price! It's all about feel.

My thoughts on my Cameron...... I feel confident standing over a putt with it, so I love it. If my old Ping had made me feel the same way I never would have bought the Cameron.

[mrbillinoc]

I use a Scotty "Red-X" mallet and there is NO question you can feel what a difference there is when you are using a well-balanced putter!

[ragontona]

Both a BMW and a Hyundai get you from Point A to Point B.

It's up to you which one you want in your garage.

[lamebums]

  PBCgolfer said:

I've hit almost all the Scotty Cameron putters, my friends have them, but I still do not understand what the big deal is about them. Is it just a marketing ploy to make us "think" they are worth $300. I'll take my spaulding putter over one any day, thoughts?

It all comes down to how confident you feel standing over the ball. It doesn't matter if you use a 30 year old noname piece of junk that was worth three dollars or a ten thousand dollar putter used only by a few pro's. As long as you can get the ball in the hole on a regular basis, everything else is irrelevant, really.

(Although sometimes the wallet does come into play--I tried the Scotty Camerons myself and thought they were good, just not worth the wallet-wounding $300.)

[iacas]

  Fourputt said:

Scotty's are over priced and over touted.

I understand how someone might feel the first, but how can you feel the second?

  Fourputt said:

I'm a pretty decent putter, and while I can usually feel the difference between various putters, I can use a Scotty side by side with my Odyssey and I can detect no appreciable difference.

Define "appreciable difference," because last time I checked, almost every Odyssey had face inserts and all sorts of stuff going on. And, I can tell the difference quite easily, as can others.

  Fourputt said:

I can do the same thing with a TM of a similar design, and it feels the same as the Scotty for 1/3 the price.

Let's not exaggerate to make a point now. There aren't many $79 TM putters out there. Most are $119 to $159.

  Fourputt said:

For someone with unlimited funds, I guess that the Scotty is as good a choice as any,

I find this "anti-assumed snobbism" to be rather distasteful. I don't have unlimited funds, and a lot of people don't who own Scotty Cameron putters. Lines like this bug me because they come off as "they must think they're rich, they have a Scotty Cameron" as if owning one makes you some sort of snob. For some, I'm sure it's a way of making peace with the fact that they can not afford one (not saying this applies here, but I've run into it).

  Fourputt said:

As for comparing it to the driver... it's not a fair comparison. While you may take more strokes with the putter, the fact that you are taking full swings and are hitting the driver 250+ yards makes it far more critical that you make solid contact.

You can make solid contact with a driver from four years ago, too. And did you happen to read

this article ? At 300 yards, you can mis-hit the ball +/- 2.67° and still find a narrow, 28-yard wide fairway. Mis-hit a putt 2.67° offline and you won't make a five-foot putt. So no, I would in fact argue that it's more important to make solid contact (and be sure of your line) with a putter rather than a driver. 300 yards versus five feet. One finds the fairway, one misses the putt. Both add one to the scorecard.

  Fourputt said:

If you spend your life playing from the forest on your approaches, having a $300 putter doesn't mean that much.... again, IMO.

If no driver can cure you - why throw money at a driver? If you rely on getting up and down after said trips to the forest, a putter becomes more important.

C'mon, to each his own - you either think they're worth it or they're not - but let's stop short of pushing our particular points of view on others, okay man?