Putter Technology

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• Main Menu
• Putter Design Evolution
• Moment of Inertia and Center of Gravity
• Sole Design and Lie Angle
• Putter Balance and Weight
• Putter Grip
• Putter Shape and Face Treatment
• Putter Shaft Location and Offset
• Putter Styles
• Rules Governing Putters
• Impact: Ball Launch
• Face Angle at Impact
• Face Loft and Horizontal Head Path
• Forward Press Effect On Impact
• ASSESSMENT

Putter Shape and Face Treatment

Putter Head Shape:

Putter heads come in various shapes, and just by looking at them, you can normally tell how the weight of the club is distributed and what that means for playability. An example of a true blade is a Cash-In or a Bulls Eye putter. These have relatively thin heads from face to back (about ½ an inch) and are about 4 ¼ inches long. They generally have two faces, and if so, the lofts and other characteristics of each must be the same. This style of putter has a low MOI (about the vertical axis) and is not forgiving on miss-hits.

A popular shape putter for many years has been the toe - heel weighted putter such as the Ping Anser, which has been copied many times with slight variations. This putter has a higher MOI about the vertical axis than the true blade and is forgiving in miss hits in the toe - heel direction. When struck on the lower leading edge, however, these putters lose a sweet impact feel and the ball speed is significantly affected.

The mid-mallet putters are relatively broad from face to back and have more weight distributed to the outer perimeter and a c.g. farther back than the toe/ heel weighted blades. The head weight of these mid-mallet putters is about the same as the toe - heel weighted blades, between 330 and 380 grams.

The true mallet has a larger head, with the weight distributed as far as possible from the c.g., which is about 1 ½ inches behind the face (half way to the back of the head). The better mallets have extreme weight distribution while still being pleasing to the eye. In some cases, a heavy metal such as tungsten (twice the density of lead and the same as gold) is used to maximize the balance and dynamic properties of the putter but maintain the good looks.

Putter Face Treatment:

The Rules of Golf do not allow any treatment to the club face that will unduly influence the movement of the ball. This means that the putter face must in general be hard and rigid. Some exceptions, however, may be made for putters.

This is why we see inserts in putter faces to dampen the sound and lower the COR of the impact. In many cases the newer, harder balls will have a harsh sound off a steel putter face, so putter manufacturers have inserts to dampen the sound. Some manufacturers have created putter faces with grooves to do the same thing, and have claimed that this reduces backspin on the ball. These claims are worthy of challenge and may be contrary to what is permitted under the Rules.

In the past some putter faces have had a mirror -like polished finish, because it was felt that a slight roughness in the putter face would deflect the ball. This is not true. In fact, there is a certain amount of roughness required to prevent the possibility of slippage on the face during impact.