Equipment
This French company is selling an $1,100 putter
Move over Scotty Cameron and your $379 retail offerings… French luxury putter manufacturer, ValGrine, is introducing the $1,100 Caesar mallet.
What’s so special about this flatstick? In passing along key product details, ValGrine emphasized the putter’s alignment lines, which allow a golfer to position the ball centrally with his or her eyes positioned directly over the two lines, claiming such a setup “generates stability” and “manages the kinetics of the swing.”
The company also emphasized the Caesar’s insert, which is backed by a hollow cavity for a precisely honed sound at impact and feel. ValGrine indicates the insert cavity creates a “subwoofer” effect, amplifying the sound at impact so a player knows exactly how a putt was struck.
Yet none of this would seem to justify a price point in excess of $1,000.
Moving onto the Caesar’s specs
- 71-degree lie
- Grip: Neoprene, silver cotton stitching
- Putter head: Aluminum 2024
- Micro-pearled finish
- Polished finish on bottom, sides
- 270 grams
- 3.5 degrees of loft
- Aluminum 2017 insert, cross-engraved
- Red/black/pink
And what of this $1,000-putter producing ValGrine golf? As best we can determine from the company website, the ValGrine line, which includes at least five other similarly priced putters, seems to be the brainchild of a Gregory Morea, a “mechanical engineer” with “a passion for golf” and “beautiful objects.”
Apparently dissatisfied with market offerings, Moreau sought to “mix the utilitarian with the pleasant, and marry elegance with performance.” And the resultant putters are the “answer for golfers looking for refinement, comfort and novelty.”
With inspiration and technology from the aeronautics and marine industries, Formula 1 racing and watchmaking, the company’s putters are presented as “hand-made in France … chiseled like real aerodynamic sculptures.”
“It takes 1,000 operations and 18 to 22 trades to make a single putter, which takes two to three months of work. Each manipulation is thoughtful, precise and controlled, to provide putters of indisputable quality,” the ValGrine website states.
If you’re wondering why the ultra-premium price point, then, it seems the answer has mostly to do with labor costs (“two to three months of work”).
So, what do you think? Compelled to drop more than a grand on the Caesar?
This week, we have our Tour Photographer, Greg Moore, on the ground at the OccuNet Classic at Tascosa Golf Club in Amarillo, Texas, for the 14th event of the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour season. With that, we see some great things in the Lead Tape Report as we roll into Amarillo.
Joel Thelen
Monday Qualifier, Joel Thelen is in the field this week. He has played on the Korn Ferry Tour for a full season in 2023, and he is back in action this week. A couple of clubs caught my eye this week in his bag.
First off: His trusted Titleist 816 H2 hybrid. This club came out in October of 2015, and it still remains strong in the bag. Also, take a look at this Odyssey White Hot OG 7, putting a capital S in the 7S model. This custom neck has some impressive lean for an arm-lock-style putter. The bottom of the putter is covered in tape for optimal weighting.
Mitchell Meissner
Taking a look at Mitchell Meissner’s bag this week, we have some great lead tape coverage. Top to bottom working from fairway metals, irons, and wedges. We can see on the short irons and wedges that there is tape at the base of the grip, adding a little counterbalance. Along with that, some tape on the short irons and wedges as well. Moving to his putter, he rolls the Odyssey 7 Bird putter. Meissner putts left-handed and strikes the ball right-handed.
Bud Cauley had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.
Driver: Titleist GTS2 (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: Titleist GTS3 (15 degrees, B1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 70 TX
7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 80 TX
Irons: Titleist U505 (3), Titleist 620 MB (4-9)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 8 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F), WedgeWorks (60-K*)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putters: Scotty Cameron Tour Prototype, Scotty Cameron GOLO 6.3 Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
In our forums, one user has offered up a prompt for the true sickos, inviting fellow forum members to share every set of irons they’ve ever owned. As to be expected, this is a lengthy forum topic.
@Lamosteve began:
Can you name every set of irons you’ve owned? Here’s mine
Spalding Dots
Spalding Eclipse
Ram Lazer FX
Lynx Parallax
Mizuno EZ Comp
Ben Hogans
Cleveland CG Red
Taylor Made R9s
PING i20
PING iE1
Taylor Made M6
Our members in the forum have been offering up their own collections. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.
- macedan: “Started with a hand-me-down Golden Bear set from my brother when I was in high school, never really played more than once a year or got into the game until about summer of 2017. First purchased a set of Cleveland CG4’s (I actually really miss this set sometimes, soft & not terribly large for a GI iron), moved into Nike Vapor Fly’s by the end of the year. Those lasted until spring of 18 when I decided I wanted new, so I traded them in for TM Rbladez. Honestly, although I liked the Rbladez, poor decision on my part, I think this was really about the only time so far that after a week or two I was kicking myself for not staying with what I had. Rbladez stayed with me until late last summer when I switched to P790’s and (knock on wood) I am hoping this will be my longest lasting set.”
- JimmyC59: “MacGregor Jack Nicklaus Triple Crown. Palmer The Standard. Still play these.”
- jgrzask: “Tommy Armour 845u
Mizuno MP-32
Mizuno MP-33 (2 sets)
Bridgestone J33cb – still own
Srixon i-302 (2 sets) – still own
Tourstage X-Blades – still own
Mizuno Hot Metal – still own
Nike Forged Blades – still own
Titleist 714 AP1 – still own
Cobra Forged SS – still own”
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Bud Cauley had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament. Driver: Titleist GTS2 (8 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura...
Hannah Green WITB 2026 (June)
Driver: Titleist GTS3 (10 degrees, D4 SureFit setting) Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Diamana RB 53 S 3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees,...
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Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 S 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (16.5 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue...
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Driver: Callaway Quantum Triple Diamond (9 degrees) Shaft: KBS PGW 3-wood: Callaway Elyte Titanium (15 degrees) Shaft: KBS PGW 5-wood:...
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Gaby
Apr 27, 2016 at 8:59 am
Come on. Try the club first.
I came from France, I love golf and I’ve got a ValGrine blade model since february. Maybe you hate french people but seriously these putters are worth it !!! I’m a big putting fan, I’ve almost 10 putters at home and yet I’ve never seen that before. It significantly improve performance, technologies are smart, the sweetspot is huge and feeling is amazing. I’m pretty impressed by what french people have done in this company, so I couldn’t allow you to say this without reply. Believe me they’re not putters’ specialists for nothing… Anyway, to each his own!
chris
Apr 20, 2016 at 11:12 am
i’ve seen this before……
8thehardway
Apr 16, 2016 at 6:08 am
Well Supersize my Freedom Fries and call me exceptional, but they’d have been better off moving to central Africa and creating a line of Cameroon putters.
Let’s be franc, it takes two months to build a Rolls Royce Phantom but they need 3 months to stick a hunk of metal on the end of a shaft? That’s some fishy vichyssoise right there. I hear next year’s line of ANGST putters is demo’ing well with focus groups; that figures ’cause these guys are just out to focus.
Who puts the GRIN in ValGrine putters? Whoever buys one.
Large chris
Apr 15, 2016 at 8:23 am
1000 operations… Hahaha
I tried that sort of line with a customer once and it didn’t fly.
:-p
Apr 15, 2016 at 3:09 am
The French are so weird. Why do they want to play golf anyway? It doesn’t suit their personality
Ezra
Apr 16, 2016 at 7:12 am
Yeah Yeah strangers in general are so weird… Why we Americans should even care of what’s happening outside the US? Our country is obviously the Alpha and Omega of everything 😉
:-ppp
Apr 17, 2016 at 3:50 am
No, truly, the French are weird and should not be playing golf.
D Louis
Apr 14, 2016 at 2:03 pm
If you search, they actually have putters between 13,350 and 30,350 euros…crazy stuff
Scooter McGavin
Apr 14, 2016 at 1:24 pm
All of the 65 year-old, pudgy, Asian businessmen will be thrilled. And they’ll try to haggle and buy it for $600 and pay with an envelope of twenties.
Jamie
Apr 17, 2016 at 5:19 pm
Racist stereotypical comments are not needed.
Mark
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:56 pm
Looks like it should be on sale in Walmart. The standard of workmanship looks awful.
eva
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:48 pm
If I’m going to spend over $1000 for a putter I rather have one of those gold Majesty putters. $1000+ putters are nothing new, lots of them in Korea and Japan.
Philip
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:21 pm
What? No jewels, gold or platinum? Maybe I can get the company to invest in my idea to build a golf course on Venus – after the planet is terraformed, of course.
Nolanski
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:18 pm
Just bought one and I got the shaft pured…
Just kidding. Smiley face.
B Hock
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:12 pm
The title is misleading….because I doubt they have actually sold any! 😛
Fug
Apr 14, 2016 at 11:35 am
Please make it uglier. Thank you.
steve
Apr 14, 2016 at 10:55 am
For his sake I hope they are made to order. Other wise he will be stuck with a lot of inventory. This has zero chance of succeeding.
Richard
Apr 14, 2016 at 10:54 am
I wouldn’t pay $10 for that out of a bargain bin.
AllBOdoesisgolf
Apr 14, 2016 at 10:53 am
Could be $5 and I wouldn’t buy it or anything French for that matter.
Ezra
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:05 pm
May we know why?
slider
Apr 14, 2016 at 12:57 pm
soft
Tim
Apr 16, 2016 at 10:36 pm
French fries?
ca1879
Apr 14, 2016 at 9:20 am
Someone will but them – we golfers have proven that we’ll fall for just about any half-baked idea.
George
Apr 14, 2016 at 8:59 am
http://www.kramski-putter.de/en/putter.html
bill
Apr 14, 2016 at 8:51 am
Ridiculous sub-par paint fill from the top view. Have French people fall so far back behind to do this? So lazy but want to make money by calling ridiculous prices.
Weekend Duffer
Apr 14, 2016 at 8:43 am
Trash
$1.1K for a no-name putter that’s not even milled. I’ll stick with my $30 odyssey 2 ball.