Opinion & Analysis

Can a trashed putter save your stroke?

Published

10 years ago

Apr 28, 2016

Nothing in the world could be easier than a 6-foot putt; you just nudge it forward and it falls into the hole, right?

As Adam Scott said after the Honda Classic, “You can’t hit it as hard, high and far as me, but you can play as well as me on the greens.” But for those who have played the game of golf for as long as I have, you have to factor in all the considerations that enter into your head as you stand over that putt.

Is this putt for an eagle, to win a match or stop me from losing a bet? Have I cleared my head or am I still thinking about breakfast, the football match last night, or the shanked wedge three holes ago? Am I focused and concentrating on the task in hand? Have I considered the grain, slope, wind, break and speed of the greens? What about the pitch and spike marks en route? Have I lined myself up correctly? Have I gone through my pre-shot routine? Am I using the big muscles, keeping my head still, accelerating through the ball, holding the follow though? That’s the easy stuff.

Then I have to entertain the demons: Don’t leave it short. Don’t blow it past. Drop it in the hole with dead weight. Smash it into the hole! Have the greens gotten slower as the day has progressed? Agghh, my shadow is in the way.

Occasionally, after missing a few putts, the thought comes into my head: “It can’t be me; it must be my putter!” Is the loft, lie, length, weight and grip all optimized for my tour-like stroke?

Many hundreds of putters have passed through my hands over the years. Each one showed a spark of brilliance and created hope that holing putts would be like shelling peas. I’ve had some of the top-performing models — Odysseys, Pings, Scotties and Byron Morgans — and in fact I still have more putters than I care to admit hoarded in my locker. I’ve tried blades, mallets and perimeter-weighted putters: face-balanced, toe-balanced, heel-shafted and center-shafted hosel offsets. I’ve tried various polymer inserts, groove inserts, and diamond-etched faces. I’ve gone down the road of trying out the short, mid, belly and long putters. I’ve also rolled heavy, mid-weight, changeable-weight and ultra-light putters, all in an attempt to become “boss of the moss.” In fact, my next book will probably be titled, “Everything you need to know about putters by a Three Jacker!” So it may surprise you to learn that my gamer over the past three years or so is something I found quite by chance.

I was dropping garbage off at the recycling center a few years ago when I spied a few clubs lying on the ground. My eye was immediately drawn to a beaten-up blade. The shaft was in poor condition, and the leather grip was all but hanging off it, but I took it home and gave it a quick scrub-up. Low and behold it turned out to be a Henry Cotton/Nicoll putter. Later that day, I took it up to the practice green and rolled it, and the feel was lovely. So I put a new grip on it and decided to take her out for a spin. Low and behold I had found my new “Billy Baroo.” And over the last three years, it has been a constant in my bag when most other things have been jettisoned.

I’ve tried doing some research on it and the key is the Nicoll marking. George Nicoll was a Scottish blacksmith who turned his hand to club making as the sport started growing in popularity at the end of the 19th Century. He designed many clubs, including some novel goose-necked blade putters. Amongst Nicoll’s many staff players was three-time winner of The Open Championship, Henry Cotton. The putter I have was hand-forged in Leven in Fife, Scotland, probably sometime in the 1950s. Hundreds if not thousands were made, so I have no delusions of having a rare or valuable flatstick. But it is kinda old and very cool.

It’s interesting comparing it to an Odyssey Black Series Tour Design Blade #8 (on the right) from a few years ago. It’s not a technical comparison, but you can see that putter design can be timeless. It has a tiny sweet spot, but when you are rolling that thing well it feels like butta! At best I’m a streakish putter, but to me the blade keeps it all very simple and honest. It makes me really concentrate on putting a good stroke on the ball.

Remember it’s not the putter, it’s the putter! That said, I am an idiot and I will keep buying putters and eventually putting them in my locker.

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Mark Donaghy

Mark Donaghy is a writer and author from Northern Ireland, living in the picturesque seaside town of Portstewart. He is married to Christine and they have three boys. Mark is a "golf nut," and is lucky to be a member of a classic links, Portstewart Golf Club. At college he played for the Irish Universities golf team, and today he still deludes himself that he can play to that standard. He recently released Caddy Attitudes: 'Looping' for the Rich and Famous in New York. It recounts the life experiences of two young Irish lads working as caddies at the prestigious Shinnecock Hills course in the Hamptons. Mark has a unique writing style, with humorous observations of golfers and their caddies, navigating both the golf course and their respective attitudes. Toss in the personal experiences of a virtually broke couple of young men trying to make a few bucks and their adventures in a culture and society somewhat unknown to them... and you have Caddy Attitudes. From scintillating sex in a sand trap to the comparison of societal status with caddy shack status, the book will grab the attention of anyone who plays the game. Caddy Attitudes is available on Amazon/Kindle and to date it has had excellent reviews.

15 Comments

Mat

May 4, 2016 at 9:13 pm

I have 3 Pings. A Redwood blade, a centre-shafted mid-mallet (gamer), and a full mallet. All are 36.25″. Maybe one day I’ll need to replace a face, but until that day, I’m not buying putters. I feel sad for those guys that say they have 30 of them. I can’t imagine the golf trips they could have purchased with that money…

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George

Apr 29, 2016 at 12:24 pm

I have a putter model that Arnold Palmer used to win the 1979 Southern open, I am sure it is not the one he actually used to win but sure they made more than one
has dents on face like some kid might have been hitting rocks maybe I will take it out for a spin and try it

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Gmoney

Apr 29, 2016 at 11:33 am

It’s not the putter, it’s the puttee! Nicely said.

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RAT

Apr 29, 2016 at 10:08 am

I have switched to new W/S 8802 and it is great. AFTER MALLETS BLADES it all comes back to basics.

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PDP1

Apr 29, 2016 at 8:05 am

I’ve had the same original Odyssey 2 ball putter in my bag since the year they first came out. I don’t even remember when that was. I’ve been fitted for Pings and others but this one just stays in the bag. I’ve gone through other sets of irons, hybrids, fairway woods, drivers, you name it, but it’s stayed.

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Shallowface

Apr 28, 2016 at 6:34 pm

My Zebra putter, now in its 6th year without leaving the bag (average about 100 rounds per year), cost me one dollar at a thrift store, plus the cost of a new Crossline putter grip I installed myself.
All we are trying to is hit the center of the club with the face square. When you find a putter with which you can do that, you’ve done all you can when it comes to the equipment. The ball has no idea who designed your putter or how much you paid for it.

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tlmck

Apr 28, 2016 at 5:06 pm

I still miss my old Spalding Cash-In blade. First putter I ever owned. I got it brand new in ’79, but it got stolen from my bag a few years later. I keep saying I’m going to replace it, but just never get around to it.

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gdb99

Apr 28, 2016 at 5:01 pm

This article may have just saved me $159! I have been toying with the idea of putting my old Bullseye back in the bag for awhile. I guess I’m holding off on buying that new Odyssey putter for another week….

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- Winmac
  
  Apr 28, 2016 at 10:34 pm
  
  LOL. That’s what happens to me.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Gary Mackin
  
  Apr 29, 2016 at 12:23 pm
  
  I’ve tried 50 putters in 50 years, but haven’t found one better than my bullseye… my playing partners marvel at haw accurate I am with it!!!
  
  Reply Report comment
That guy

Apr 28, 2016 at 3:33 pm

Switched to a bullseye last year and haven’t looked back. Some things just work.

Reply Report comment
- Philip
  
  Apr 28, 2016 at 3:50 pm
  
  I’m currently using an old LaFemme – the feel is so good when you hit the ball properly that I find I try even more to make a good stroke so that I can enjoy the feel more often.
  
  Reply Report comment
Weekend Duffer

Apr 28, 2016 at 11:28 am

Clowns spend $350 on a Scotty and still get torched by the old fogie using a $6 kmart putter.

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- TCJ
  
  Apr 28, 2016 at 8:55 pm
  
  Some old fogies have all the luck!
  
  Reply Report comment
- Winmac
  
  Apr 28, 2016 at 11:28 pm
  
  No class man. Winning with a Scotty or Spalding didn’t matter. Somebody just wanted more from the game. To enjoy time with buddies and to have / take little banters when you duff. So lay off those Scotty-ers. They wanted better sticks to enjoy the game. You can now go use that old fogie to also hold one of your table.
  
  Reply Report comment

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Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

6 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

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Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

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7 days ago

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GolfWRX Staff

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Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

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On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

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