Serge Deschamps HCOG Blade Review

Lord Thomas · March 14, 2006

Upon Further Review

I’ve gotten a chance to play the Serge Deschamps HCOG putter in a couple of competitive rounds, so here is a lengthier review of the putter.

Feel:
Because brass is a softer material than steel, it took me a little adjustment to correct my speed to the softness of the putter. The putter feels better to me with a firmer golf ball (such as a Pro V1X) rather than a softer golf ball (such as an HX Tour). This is probably because I am so used to the feeling of a steel putter / soft golf ball combination, and the brass putter / firm golf ball combination seems to replicate a similar feel, with a greater amount of “crispness” than the soft golf ball allowed.

Results:
The course we played had very undulating greens with a lot of subtle breaks. I played three rounds there, the first was a practice round, and the second and third rounds were tournament rounds.

During the practice round, I didn’t make a putt over about 10 feet, which was more a result of me not reading the subtle breaks than the putter not putting a great roll on the ball. During the first round of the tournament, I made a number of long putts, including a 50 foot snake on my 18th hole to close with three pars in an otherwise mediocre round. During the second round of the tournament, every putt I hit had a chance to go in, and I made two or three putts over 20 feet.

After the tournament, my team played Lynchburg College in a Ryder Cup-style match. The putter kept me in it the match for much longer than my ball striking that day should have. As a result of the very tight roll the putter puts on the ball, every putt I struck had a legitimate chance to go in, and a few of the longer putts went in keeping the match alive.

Opinions of Others:
A number of my competitors made comments about the putter, and most of them were positive. Our #1 player tried the putter during our practice round and putted better than I have ever seen him putt – accrediting it all to the putter. One of the players from another school I played with tried the putter out on the practice green after the first round, and loved the roll it put on the ball so much that he offered to buy it from me on the spot.

The only negative comment came from one player who said the putter looked like a “knock off”, and if anyone would know what a knock off putter looks like, I guess it would be him (since he used a knock off two ball). I convinced him to try it, and even though he initially did not like the putter, he too loved the roll that was put on the ball.

Overall:
This putter is in the varsity bag; she feels great and puts a tremendous roll on the ball. With the putter I have the confidence that every putt I hit has the chance to go in, and since so much of putting is confidence, I would be foolish to switch away from the hot hand. I cannot recommend Serge enough, he is a joy to work with and his attention to detail is tremendous.

If anyone has any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask,

-Thomas

Note: I have a few more pictures of the putter that should be going up in the next day or so.

The original review is available here for your reading pleasure: http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/Serge-Descha...iew-t21770.html

illinikyle · March 14, 2006

Nice review.

My putter arrived yesterday and it will be in the bag for my trip to Orlando later this week. Lots of pics and a review from me to come.

Lord Thomas · March 14, 2006

Kyle,

I hope that yours treats you as well as mine has treated me.

-Thomas

sergizmo · March 15, 2006

Thank you very much for all the feedback in the review Thomas. :lol:

I'm glad to hear that the roll was nice and tight. The fairly high COG combined with 2.5* of loft works as well in reality as it did in theory. :tongue:

I hope the putter continues to work well for you in College, and I'm really glad you like it. Be sure to keep me updated on any more tournaments you play.

I look forward to the pics.

Kyle; Have fun on your trip to Orlando (lucky guy! :ok: ), I look forward to the review and pics.

Serge

Sakman · March 15, 2006

Nice review LT.

sergizmo · March 16, 2006

Are those pics coming Thomas?

cpa49707 · March 16, 2006

Very nice and informative review.

Yea where are those pics at :tongue:

Way-to -go serge you are on your way, Look out scotty her comes the "SERGE"

Mark my words..........."you heard it here first"

Serge will have his putters on tour in the future :lol::):ok:

Lord Thomas · March 16, 2006

Sorry about the delay in posting pictures guys, hope you enjoy them:

-Thomas

sergizmo · March 17, 2006

Very nice and informative review.

Yea where are those pics at :tongue:

Way-to -go serge you are on your way, Look out scotty her comes the "SERGE"

Mark my words..........."you heard it here first"

Serge will have his putters on tour in the future :lol::):ok:

Thanks for the complimets Terry! The milling on the proto is done, it should be shafted and pics posted on Saturday. Then the testers will be made.

Serge

tickyboy · March 17, 2006

Serge, are all your putters center shafted or wo you make heel or mid shafted too?

sergizmo · March 17, 2006

Serge, are all your putters center shafted or wo you make heel or mid shafted too?

They're all center shafted. All designs are symettrical and designed for a pendulum type stroke. This is easier to repeat for most players.

I feel that center shafted putters are easier to align, sit square, and naturally want to remain square during the putting stroke. Having the shaft enter the head right behind the ball also gives very immediate feedback.

Being a one-man operation I also have to limit my scope and specialize a little.

Thanks for you interest,

Serge

kklick · March 17, 2006

Very nice and informative review.

Yea where are those pics at :tongue:

Way-to -go serge you are on your way, Look out scotty her comes the "SERGE"

Mark my words..........."you heard it here first"

Serge will have his putters on tour in the future :ok::):tongue:

Thanks for the complimets Terry! The milling on the proto is done, it should be shafted and pics posted on Saturday. Then the testers will be made.

Serge

Can't wait to see the new proto Serge. I've been gone most of this week (had our first baby on tues night :lol: ) thought I missed it so I've been reading through the posts looking. Still waiting on my mill to get here so I can start playing around.

I'm glad to hear such great reviews about your putters as well. Its nice to know a handmade from an individual can knock some name brand stuff out of the bag.

Grimace45 · March 17, 2006

Serge,

Any chance that these may one day make it to a long (48") version? I would be interested in giving one a shot if this is possible.

sergizmo · March 17, 2006

Very nice and informative review.

Yea where are those pics at :yahoo:

Way-to -go serge you are on your way, Look out scotty her comes the "SERGE"

Mark my words..........."you heard it here first"

Serge will have his putters on tour in the future :tongue::):tongue:

Thanks for the complimets Terry! The milling on the proto is done, it should be shafted and pics posted on Saturday. Then the testers will be made.

Serge

Can't wait to see the new proto Serge. I've been gone most of this week (had our first baby on tues night :ok: ) thought I missed it so I've been reading through the posts looking. Still waiting on my mill to get here so I can start playing around.

I'm glad to hear such great reviews about your putters as well. Its nice to know a handmade from an individual can knock some name brand stuff out of the bag.

Congrats on the little one bro! :lol: Boy or girl? Name?

Hopefully the clear skies will hold for tommorow so I can take some good pics. I'll be installing the UST freq. fil. shaft in a couple of hours. Then the long wait while the 24 hour epoxy cures.

sergizmo · March 17, 2006

Serge,

Any chance that these may one day make it to a long (48") version? I would be interested in giving one a shot if this is possible.

What kind of weight would you be looking at for a putter of that length? I could make it longer heel-toe to bump up the weight and drill the shaft hole at any angle.

Thanks for your interest,

Serge

Grimace45 · March 17, 2006

Serge,

Would be looking in the 370 to 380 gram head weight with a lie angle of 71*.

sergizmo · March 17, 2006

Serge,

Would be looking in the 370 to 380 gram head weight with a lie angle of 71*.

That would be no problem at all.

It will be a while before I will be ready to start selling putters. The prototype of the second model will be up tommorow, I'll make testers for 4 Golfwrx members and they'll all post reviews.

There are still 3 reviews coming of this first model (beruo, Illinikyle, Teetogreen86).

At the end of April I'll be ordering a CNC and start work on the aluminum MOI putter with adjustable weighting I've designed. Once that's done I'll probably have another test session for that model and then will register as a business, start a website, get some covers made etc... I'm thinking by the end of the year it will be up and running.

Serge

Grimace45 · March 17, 2006

Serge,

That sounds good to me. Keep me in mind if you would like someone to try out the MOI putter in a long length. I will keep up with your posts and get back with you when you are ready to go to market.

kklick · March 17, 2006

Congrats on the little one bro! Boy or girl? Name?

We had a little girl. Abigail Olivia. She was born about 4 1/2 weeks early!! We were all a bit surprised. She is healthy and at home with us. Weighed 4lbs 14 oz and was 18 inches long. We are all pretty excited right now.

I'm tring to convince my wife now would be the perfect time to buy me a scotty cameron my girl putter to commerate the occasion. She said it was a sweet thought but didn't really buy into it. Maybe a new custom to commerate the little one is the way to go. :lol:

Geo · March 27, 2006

We had a little girl. Abigail Olivia. She was born about 4 1/2 weeks early!! We were all a bit surprised. She is healthy and at home with us. Weighed 4lbs 14 oz and was 18 inches long. We are all pretty excited right now.

I'm tring to convince my wife now would be the perfect time to buy me a scotty cameron my girl putter to commerate the occasion. She said it was a sweet thought but didn't really buy into it. Maybe a new custom to commerate the little one is the way to go. ;)

Hey, we had an Abigail that was born a little early--must be the name. Glad that everything is ok, and I highly recommend buying a putter to commemorate the occasion but suggest you buy it for your daughter. I'm getting a little somethin' somethin' for my Abigail's third birthday--It will be her putter if she takes up golf, and my putter if she doesn't. That's what's called a win-win. :tongue:

Anyway, great review LT. But it's kind of odd seeing pictures w/ the shaft coming out all weird-like. Kind of like mine, but . . . different. Sorry, I get all kinds of "backward sticks" comment in my WITB, that some turnabout's fair play. ;) I am curious on the ease of transition from the Lord Thomas Proto to the HCOG Blade and what your dad had to say about the change. :) I definitely agree with you on the roll though--feels pure each time. And Serge is absolutely great to work with. Good luck in your future tournaments.

beruo

Lord Thomas · March 27, 2006

Beruo,

Thank you so much for the kind words.

I was debating making a comment about Serge making your putter backwards....

The transition between the Lord Thomas Proto and the HCOG Blade was much easier than I expected. With the larger MOI mallet, it can be easy to get somewhat lazy, whereas when you are dealing with a much smaller putter, you must stay very focused on line. My first experience with the HCOG on the practice green took a little bit of adjustment to line her up where I wanted, but after some practice on the practice green and my practice round, I think that she and I understand each other.

As for my dad; when I saw Serge's thread about putter reviews, I gave my dad a call and asked if he would be offended if I contacted Serge about doing a review for him and he thought that would be a great idea, both to ensure the best putter is in my bag at any given moment, and to compare the David Cameron putters with a newer player in the milled putter marketplace.

-Thomas