Want a putter like Tiger's?
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Almost half of the shots in your round are played with the same club - the putter. But often it's the part of the game we spend the least of time practising and on which we tend to spend the least amount of cash.
However, finding the right putter can be the key to lower scores and it's worth spending both time and perhaps, a little more money, on the right investment.
Surely we don't need more than one standard grip on a putter?
Putter grips are available in different styles to suit a variety of ways we hold the club as well as to suit the club itself.
Ping, for instance, has several different grips on its putters including the standard Ping grip with a flat edge at right angles to the blade, textured and cord spiral grips and a Palm lock. The Palm lock for example, is designed to help minimise wrist action and maximise control and alignment for players using a pendulum action, either conventional or cross-handed. Deeper and thicker than standard, it prevents the player from wrapping fingers around the entire circumference of the grip.
How vital is shaft length?
While most golf shops rarely stock more than standard length 35-inch putters, many golfers are not aware of the difference in posture a shorter or longer putter shaft can make.
Golfers with back problems may prefer longer shafts that encourage an upright posture, while golfers who prefer to crouch or to let their arms hang vertically, may benefit from a shorter of 28-30 inches.
Belly putters have become more fashionable with both pros and amateurs - fitting neatly into the tummy as an anchor point, while broomhandles can be as long as 48 inches and are anchored under the chin or against the breast bone.
Are there various types of shaft?
The type of shaft you have in your putter is far more important than you would imagine. Though its flexibility may not seem as vital as in an iron or a metalwood, because of the lack of bend at impact, it's still a conductor of feel into your fingers and palms to allow you to judge pace and distance.
The shaft, usually made of steel but occasionally in lightweight graphite, will dictate the speed of the clubhead and by experimenting with different putter shafts and heads, you will eventually find one that transmits a good feeling to your fingers on the grip.
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| Custom-fitting is vital.
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Is there such a thing as custom-fitting a putter?
Certainly. Just as irons and metalwoods can be custom-fitted for individual swings, so putters should, ideally, be individually tailored to the customer. A properly fitted putter, where the way it looks to the golfer at address, cannot be overstated. The right feel can have a dramatic effect on performance. Leading manufacturers have been custom-fitting leading pros and amateurs for many years and now Ping has introduced a do-it-yourself custom-fitting service online called Specify.
How important is the lie angle of the putter?
Too many players have the heel of the club on the ground and the toe in the air, which encourages a closing of the clubface at impact. A custom-fitter uses a gauge to determine the ideal lie angle, where the sole of the putter sits parallel to the ground.
Look for a hosel on a putter in which the shaft goes directly into the clubhead to match your preferred posture and hand position and which allows the sole of the club to rest flat at address. If you're looking to adjust the lie by bending the shaft, remember that the Rules of Golf, do not allow it to bend more than five inches from the heel of the club.
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| Ping's different colours and lies.
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Why do we need loft on a putter?
Every putter has a certain amount of loft on its face, the angle between perpendicular and the clubface. Usually each putter has between three and five degrees of loft, to get the ball rolling along the proper line.
Golfers who play on slower greens may benefit from putters with more loft, while hand position in relation to the ball can also be important. For example a player with a pronounced forward press or who keeps his hands ahead of the ball at impact, may need a putter with more loft to counteract the de-lofting which can force the ball into the ground and cause it to bounce towards its target.
Most manufacturers recommend a standard three to 3.5 degree loft on the putter face because the ball comes off at a higher angle when struck firmly and lower when struck lightly.
Will certain putters suit different putting strokes?
Golfers who prefer a pendulum-type stroke, where the path of the putter is straight back and straight through, tend to benefit from a face-balanced model of putter, easily identified when the putter shaft is balanced on one finger at its fulcrum and the putter face tends to face upwards.
Players who prefer an inside-to-square-to-inside stroke may benefit from a more heel-shafted putter that resists closing during the stroke.
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| The famous centre-shafted Bullseye.
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A right-handed player who tends to miss putts to the right and needs help closing the clubface at impact and should aim for a face-balanced model. If the tendency is to miss to the left, a heel-shafted putter that resists closing may do the trick.
Blade, heel-toe-weighted, mallet, centre-shafted? What's the difference?
A blade putter is one like Ben Crenshaw used to use so effectively, a traditionally rounded extension of the shaft like an ice-hockey stick. Heel-toe weighted has the shaft grafted on to the hosel, usually at an angle (eg. Ping Anser, Titleist Scotty Cameron, Never Compromise).
A mallet putter is a more solid-looking model, with the weight behind the clubface, like the striped Zebras of the 1980s and the modern Odyssey White Hot 2-ball.
Centre-shafted putters like the Bullseye or Golden Goose are more traditional but still much in evidence on the professional Tours.
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| The Rossa's insert face.
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Why would I want a putter with an insert face?
While many putter heads were made from manganese bronze to produce a distinctive feel and sound from the clubface, many models today include an insert face.
Ping's IsoForce 2 model, for example, consists of hexagonal-shaped copper pixels manufactured into a cavity in the face to improve feedback and solid feel.
An elastomer compound is poured into the cavity of the Isopur model for a soft feel and gives it a satin finish.
Many manufacturers are switching to insert faces on their putters, Odyssey was the first to reproduce the skin of its latest ball in a bid to improve feel. And many top players prefer an insert-faced putter to help them judge distance and pace and gain more consistency using balls which have a softer, spin-inducing skin.
Amateurs using a harder-skin ball for extra distance off the tee, may also benefit from an insert face putter which generates more feel.
So how much should you pay?
You can pick up a second hand putter in a car boot sale or second hand shop for as little as £5 - but will it improve your golf? I doubt it. Alternatively for little more than £20 -£30 a shop will sell you a cheap, cast model.
However, our advice is to look to spend around £50 - £100 for a good quality, branded name and have it custom fitted to your grip, stance and action.
Eventually you can pay £150-£300 for a super-duper Tiger Woods look-a-like model but unless you're prepared to spend a few hours a day practising holing putts it won't appear good value for money.
