Blade vs All other putters

[doctoro]

Why the fuss over the mallet and 2 BAR, long putter etc?

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.
The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.
The greats never used them.
But mortals will try anything I guess.
I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.
Not a lot but enough for me at least.

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.
Get with the program and go back to the blade.
Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

The Doctor is Out!

[oregongolf]

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.

The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

 

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.

The greats never used them.

But mortals will try anything I guess.

I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.

Not a lot but enough for me at least.

 

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.

Get with the program and go back to the blade.

Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

 

The Doctor is Out!

Hmm. I hope I'm reading enough sarcasm in this post.

 

I agree though, blade-style putters look and feel sweet. However most people would agree putts go in the hole because your technique and your putter work, not because of how they look.

 

Most pros don't find enough benefit from using a mallet style putter because they have the best strokes in the world. But being that they play on a new course with different greens weekly, most prefer the feel of a blade-style putter (as well as the look).

 

Nicklaus and Palmer can thank all the people who use blades because they look nice. Me and the rest of the world will be thanking those who use anything that rolls the ball in the hole well because ultimately I won't have to wait for that group in front of me to finish 10 putting altogether.

 

I think I'll continue to subscribe to the whole "use whatever works" theory. i'll putt with a shoe stuck to a stick if it puts the ball in the hole.

 

That being said, I do have a question, for the sake of argument. If someone gave you a Ping Doc 17 and you had 18 putts a round, would you put it in play?

[gentles]

Mate, what's your problem? If mallets are THAT bad, then why do you see champion golfers using them? Unless you are implying that you are a better putter than the likes of Jim Furyk and Sean O'Hair? In that case, continue to bash.

 

That being said, I do have a question, for the sake of argument. If someone gave you a Ping Doc 17 and you had 18 putts a round, would you put it in play?

 

Agreed, I myself have tried, more than once to get rid of the mallet in my bag for a more "elegant" blade , but everytime I go back to It, the putt's start dropping...and It's not going anywhere.

 

I hope that you can come to the realisation that there are "different strokes for different blokes", and accept that as long as there are mallets on the market, people, hacks and pros alike will play them.

[Superman]

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.

The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

 

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.

The greats never used them.

But mortals will try anything I guess.

I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.

Not a lot but enough for me at least.

 

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.

Get with the program and go back to the blade.

Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

 

The Doctor is Out!

Hmm. I hope I'm reading enough sarcasm in this post.

 

I agree though, blade-style putters look and feel sweet. However most people would agree putts go in the hole because your technique and your putter work, not because of how they look.

 

Most pros don't find enough benefit from using a mallet style putter because they have the best strokes in the world. But being that they play on a new course with different greens weekly, most prefer the feel of a blade-style putter (as well as the look).

 

Nicklaus and Palmer can thank all the people who use blades because they look nice. Me and the rest of the world will be thanking those who use anything that rolls the ball in the hole well because ultimately I won't have to wait for that group in front of me to finish 10 putting altogether.

 

I think I'll continue to subscribe to the whole "use whatever works" theory. i'll putt with a shoe stuck to a stick if it puts the ball in the hole.

 

That being said, I do have a question, for the sake of argument. If someone gave you a Ping Doc 17 and you had 18 putts a round, would you put it in play?

 

First of all, the Doc series from ping has a great feel and if anyone wants that classic ping feel and is willing to carry a tank around in their bag should. The point of any club in your bag is to get the ball into the hole. If you played with a guy who putted with a driver and had 18 putts a round you wouldnt be able to say ANYTHING.

[502 to Right]

Is this a joke?

[cbae]

Contrary to popular belief, many blade-style putters have higher MOI and more forgiveness than "traditional-sized" mallets and even some mallets that are considered high MOI.

 

Below are some figures published by Maltby after conducting MOI tests on a variety of putters. These are measured MOI values--not theoretical.

 

Mallets:

2-Ball (mallet) - 3553 g-cm^2

2-Ball White Steel (mallet) - 3336 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Red X - 3101 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa Monza - 3414 g-cm^2

Yes! Victoria - 3412 g-cm^2

 

Blade-style:

2-Ball Blade - 4115 g-cm^2

Ping G2 Anser - 4268 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport 2 - 4071 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport Beach - 4049 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa CGB Daytona 1 - 4425 g-cm^2

Yes! Tracy - 4316 g-cm^2

 

Golfers, even touring pros, use whatever putter works best for them. They don't pick putters with lower forgiveness just to stroke their own egos.

[hattrick3518]

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.

The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

 

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.

The greats never used them.

But mortals will try anything I guess.

I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.

Not a lot but enough for me at least.

 

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.

Get with the program and go back to the blade.

Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

 

The Doctor is Out!

 

im on your side with this one, could not agree more,

theye are just god ugly, and the only reason the older guys use them, is because the cant bend down any more

[DRGJR72]

Vijay won many tournaments using the belly putter.......Just as an FYI

 

It is within the rules as they stand right now.....and the belly putter/long putter did not come into popularity until after most of the greats (Nicklaus, Palmer, etc...)were pretty much done.

 

Tiger does not need the belly putter.....he rolls it to purely.

 

As long as it is within the rules of golf, it should not "take away" from the game.....although I think that they will be banned at some point...as they are anchoring something to the body, and I am sure the inventors of the game did not envision putting like that, although I am sure they did not envision 460 cc titanium/graphite potato mashers either.....

 

I actually don't see the big deal....If they were causing people to win every week, that might raise some concern....but for the most part they are not even on the radar......

 

As far as mallets and all of the weird designs.....that is technology and progress.....I am sure that is the tip of the iceberg with regard to putter design as they will only continue to get more and more technologically advanced....

 

The bottom line is...use whatever it is that allows you to putt it the fewest times as long as it is within the rules of golf.....

 

DG

[doctoro]

I agree with points in all these posts, but I thought the argument is there for debate.

So I put it out there.

I say go with what rocks the Golf Gods in your favor.

But I still will take my lumps with the blade putter.

 

I just cringe when I see Vijay and Rocco Mediate playing stellar golf until they get to the greens, and they lug those

god awlful looking sticks, and ram them into their bellies and pray to the ghosts of Hogan and Jones for a little love...LoL.

BTW, I never have seen Vijay make a clutch putt with tourney on the line with the belly putter, I could be wrong though.

[502 to Right]

Contrary to popular belief, many blade-style putters have higher MOI and more forgiveness than "traditional-sized" mallets and even some mallets that are considered high MOI.

 

Below are some figures published by Maltby after conducting MOI tests on a variety of putters. These are measured MOI values--not theoretical.

 

Mallets:

2-Ball (mallet) - 3553 g-cm^2

2-Ball White Steel (mallet) - 3336 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Red X - 3101 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa Monza - 3414 g-cm^2

Yes! Victoria - 3412 g-cm^2

 

Blade-style:

2-Ball Blade - 4115 g-cm^2

Ping G2 Anser - 4268 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport 2 - 4071 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport Beach - 4049 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa CGB Daytona 1 - 4425 g-cm^2

Yes! Tracy - 4316 g-cm^2

 

Golfers, even touring pros, use whatever putter works best for them. They don't pick putters with lower forgiveness just to stroke their own egos.

 

CBAE - Where did you get the Maltby measured MOI's? I'm a big fan of Ralph Maltby and have his MPF irons book. I heard he was going to be coming out with an MOI putters book but haven't seen anything on the golfworks.com web site yet.

[cbae]

Contrary to popular belief, many blade-style putters have higher MOI and more forgiveness than "traditional-sized" mallets and even some mallets that are considered high MOI.

 

Below are some figures published by Maltby after conducting MOI tests on a variety of putters. These are measured MOI values--not theoretical.

 

Mallets:

2-Ball (mallet) - 3553 g-cm^2

2-Ball White Steel (mallet) - 3336 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Red X - 3101 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa Monza - 3414 g-cm^2

Yes! Victoria - 3412 g-cm^2

 

Blade-style:

2-Ball Blade - 4115 g-cm^2

Ping G2 Anser - 4268 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport 2 - 4071 g-cm^2

Titleist/Cameron Newport Beach - 4049 g-cm^2

Taylormade/Rossa CGB Daytona 1 - 4425 g-cm^2

Yes! Tracy - 4316 g-cm^2

 

Golfers, even touring pros, use whatever putter works best for them. They don't pick putters with lower forgiveness just to stroke their own egos.

 

CBAE - Where did you get the Maltby measured MOI's? I'm a big fan of Ralph Maltby and have his MPF irons book. I heard he was going to be coming out with an MOI putters book but haven't seen anything on the golfworks.com web site yet.

 

An employee of GolfWorks used to post on another forum, and he made it available to download in an Excel spreadsheet. PM me if you want the link.

[Montrove]

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.

The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

 

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.

The greats never used them.

But mortals will try anything I guess.

I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.

Not a lot but enough for me at least.

 

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.

Get with the program and go back to the blade.

Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

 

The Doctor is Out!

I am using a blade putter, so you can't call me biased here. What are you tired of being beaten by mallets? Do you flat-out suck with them or something? Just because Arnold Palmer used a blade doesn't mean everyone has to. Also, are you still using a persimmon driver? Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer used them, so why aren't you? :D

[cbae]

I feel like if you really are a complete golfer, why use the crutches provided by the "belly" putter.

The Mallet, the 2 ball, the hexagon, etc. etc.http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/russian_roulette.gif

 

Mickelson nixed it, Tiger never used it, Vijay can't win with it.

The greats never used them.

But mortals will try anything I guess.

I just think it kind of degrades the game a bit.

Not a lot but enough for me at least.

 

I just think you're selling yourself short by putting one of those ridiculous things in your bag.

Get with the program and go back to the blade.

Nicklaus and Palmer thank you.

 

The Doctor is Out!

I am using a blade putter, so you can't call me biased here. What are you tired of being beaten by mallets? Do you flat-out suck with them or something? Just because Arnold Palmer used a blade doesn't mean everyone has to. Also, are you still using a persimmon driver? Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer used them, so why aren't you? :D

 

If he does suck with mallets, it might be understandable, depending on the model that he might have used. Some old-school mallets are very unforgiving--even more so than a typical blade-style putter. In terms of MOI/forgiveness, most heel-toe weighted, blade-style putters fall somewhere between traditional-size mallets (4" or less from heel-to-toe) and large-size, high-MOI mallets. IOW, you're not some kind of stud for using a blade-style putter, because, in reality, you are getting a decent amount of forgiveness. There's a reason why the Anser putter was considered so innovative in its day. It really is a rather forgiving putter. OTOH, if you can putt well with an original Bullseye putter (MOI=2404 g-cm^2), you may very well be a stud. :censored2:

 

When it comes to irons, there's always a trade-off between the workability of blades and the forgiveness of cavity-backs. When it comes to putters, there really is no need to trade forgiveness for anything except for, maybe, appearance. You should use the most forgiving putter that suits you.

[Sean2]

Personal preference thing. I like blades because I forward press (my putter has 4-degrees of loft, which is perfect for me). When I do it with the mallet the back end of the putter comes up and it's too distracting...it comes up with the blade too, but I don't notice it.

[Superman]

If you want to bash techonlogy that much than use blade irons, and a hickory shafted persimmon head driver. And crry around mashies and brassies instead of those 14 clubs that everyone carries around and only use half of.

[doctoro]

I don't think I'm a stud for putting with a blade putter, and you can't really make the same comparison

between cavity back irons and forged.

All I am saying is that, long putters and some of these new mallet putters with the bars and bolts and circles are a little over the top.

I can picture some poor pro battling the yips, one day pulling out a putter like Rodney Dangerfield used in Caddyshack.

 

But I think I just posted to get a dialogue started. And I accomplished that, but I wasn't by no means trying to be a chest thumper.

I mean come on now.

Some of those things look ridiculous.

Ciao!

[trek1500]

Personally I prefer a blade style putter but I am intrigued by some of the new shapes and technology emerging in putters...

 

A good example is the 2 bar by RIFE...the first time I saw this putter I was a bit put off by the appearance...but after trying it out was pretty impressed with the balance and feel...

 

In the end..I feel it's personal preference...and the feeling of confidence you get when you putt with your putter of choice...

[cbae]

I don't think I'm a stud for putting with a blade putter, and you can't really make the same comparison

between cavity back irons and forged.

All I am saying is that, long putters and some of these new mallet putters with the bars and bolts and circles are a little over the top.

I can picture some poor pro battling the yips, one day pulling out a putter like Rodney Dangerfield used in Caddyshack.

 

But I think I just posted to get a dialogue started. And I accomplished that, but I wasn't by no means trying to be a chest thumper.

But you called "all other putters" besides blades a "crutch". That sounds like chest thumping to me. I already pointed out (twice) that many heel-toe weighted, blade-style putters (including the one that Tiger uses) is more of a "crutch" compared to some mallets out there--including the 2-Ball mallet. The MOI figures that I presented were measured using a very expensive piece of equipment, and the tests where conducted by a very reputable person in the golf equipment business. These numbers are indisputable. I can model these putters using CAD/CAM software and arrive at similar numbers.

 

My point is that you shouldn't assume that the touring pros play equipment that don't have any "game performance" features. They do. One might consider a putter with heel-toe weighting as a "game improvement putter" when comparing it to the original Bullseye putter. And I just showed that a heel-toe weighted blade-style putter is more of a "game improvement" putter than even a 2-Ball mallet. Furthermore, the numbers that I listed were measured from retail samples. We all know that many pros use heads that are heavier than retail. These custom heads would have even HIGHER MOI figures.

 

So at what point do you draw the line between a putter that's simply "high performance" from one that you would consider a "crutch"?

 

I mean come on now.

Some of those things look ridiculous.

Ciao!

 

People thought the same of the Anser when it first came out.

[johnj]

So at what point do you draw the line between a putter that's simply "high performance" from one that you would consider a "crutch"?

 

If you could T-mount some padding on top of the shaft and walk around with it...I think that it would pass the "crutch" test.

 

The original post actually should be split into two topics, blade design versus mallet, et al and belly putters and other ridiculously elongated shafts.

 

On blade vs. mallet...the "whatever works for you" school of thought will win out...and that, not what one previous post stated...is the "bottom line".

 

On the belly putters, etc...For an amateur who has a back problem or other disability, I sympathize and they should be allowed, it might be the only thing that still lets someone in that category enjoy golf regularly, just like using a cart. For professionals...I think it is an embarrasment. I believe that allowing the long putter shafts to creep in has mocked the competitive nature of the game. Of course not every pro that has used/experimented with one is a whale like Kevin Stadler but he of course would be the poster boy for the arguement against their use as a young man who is clearly obese. As for other professionals who may resort to ridiculously long putter shafts out of desperation to continue their game post back or other injury, again I sympathize but in their case too bad...This is an elite sport played by golfers at the peak of their prowess, or should be, not someone looking for a "crutch" when their competitive days are clearly over. As long as the rules of golf allow them though, we will see players use them of course seeking every advantage (not to dominate as one poster pointed out-Vijay excepted they certainly haven't even been consistently competitive) but merely to survive at that level...which of course is always enjoyable viewing for the golf fan...J