Equipment
Rose breaks through with a counter-balanced putter
To the untrained eye, the putter Justin Rose used to win the 2013 U.S. Open looked much like the black-and-white blade putters he’s used in the past. But even though it looked almost the same, it was the most distinct putter he has ever used.
Rose used a TaylorMade Spider Blade putter to win his first major championship at Merion Golf Club, TaylorMade’s newest putter that has a heavier head and heavier grip to give the putter more stability than the company’s standard putters.
According to Brian Bazzel, TaylorMade’s product creation manager, Rose loves the look and the feel of the Spider Blade. But what he likes more is the ease with which he can “release,” or square up the putter at impact.
To fine tune the release, Rose had the putter made to 37 5/8 inches. But Rose doesn’t play the putter at that length. He does what he likely did the first time he ever picked up a putter as a child; he chokes up.
According to Bazzel, choking up on a counter-balanced putter gives the putter more stability, as the added weight of the grip and shaft above the hands raises the putter’s balance point. Since Rose prefers standard putters that measure 34.5 inches, he chokes down about three inches, which makes the putter feel normal to him.
The last thing Rose needed to do before putting the Spider Blade in play was deciding on a neck for the putter. TaylorMade offers two different necks for the Spider Blade — an “L,” or “plumber’s neck,” which is better for straighter strokes, and a “short slant” neck that is better for strokes with more face rotation. Rose’s putting coach, David Orr, said that Rose needs the added rotation that the short slant neck provides because it improves the consistency of his release.
Rose feels more confident with the Spider Blade than his other putters, Orr said, because instead of trying to release the toe of the putter during the stroke, he feels like he can “release the entire putter.”
“We’re really pleased with the putter,” Orr said. “It made his posture better, so he can see his line better. And it lets his stroke flow a little better.”
According to Bazzel, Rose’s U.S. Open-winning Spider Blade is the most off-the-rack putter that Rose has used in his career. It features the same PureRoll Suryln insert available on the retail Spider Blade, and aside from a slightly different graphics scheme, the same 15-inch, 130-gram grip.
For golfers seeking even more stability than the Spider Blade can provide, TaylorMade offers its Daddy Long Legs putter (Click here for our full review). The Daddy Long Legs is larger, and has a heavier head than the Spider Blade. It is not available with a short slant neck, however, meaning it is best for straighter strokes. Both putters cost $199, and are available in 35- and 38-inch lengths.
Rose’s Spider Blade Putter Specs:
- Loft: 3.5 degrees
- Lie: 70.5 degrees
- Head weight: 358 grams (3 grams heavier than retail)
- Shaft: 122 grams (TaylorMade tour-only matte black shaft finish)
- Grip: 130 grams
- Total Weight: 610 grams
Click here to see the specs of all the clubs in Rose’s bag.
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Equipment
Why Rory McIlroy will likely use the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper at the RBC Heritage
Although we spotted Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper last week during practice rounds at the Masters, he ultimately didn’t decide to use the club in competition.
It seems that will change this week at the 2024 RBC Heritage, played at the short-and-tight Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head.
When asked on Wednesday following his morning Pro-Am if he’d be using the new, nostalgic BRNR Copper this week, McIlroy said, “I think so.”
“I like it,” McIlroy told GolfWRX.com on Tuesday regarding the BRNR. “This would be a good week for it.”
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According to Adrian Rietveld, the Senior Manager of Tour at TaylorMade, the BRNR Mini Driver can help McIlroy position himself properly off the tee at the tight layout.
Here’s what Rietveld told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday:
“For someone like Rory, who’s that long at the top end of the bag, and then you put him on a course like Harbour Town, it’s tough off the tee. It’s tight into the greens, and you have to put yourself in position off the tee to have a shot into the green. It kind of reminds me of Valderrama in Spain, where you can be in the fairway and have no shot into the green.
“I’m caddying for Tommy [Fleetwood] this week, so I was walking the course last night and looking at a few things. There’s just such a small margin for error. You can be standing in the fairway at 300 yards and have a shot, but at 320 you don’t. So if you don’t hit a perfect shot, you could be stuck behind a tree. And then if you’re back at 280, it might be a really tough shot into the small greens.
“So for Rory [with the BRNR], it’s a nice course-specific golf club for him. He’s got both shots with it; he can move it right-to-left or left-to-right. And the main thing about this club has been the accuracy and the dispersion with it. I mean, it’s been amazing for Tommy.
“This was the first event Tommy used a BRNR last year, and I remember talking to him about it, and he said he couldn’t wait to play it at Augusta next year. And he just never took it out of the bag because he’s so comfortable with it, and hitting it off the deck.
“So you look at Rory, and you want to have the tools working to your advantage out here, and the driver could hand-cuff him a bit with all of the shots you’d have to manufacture.”
So, although McIlroy might not be making a permanent switch into the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper, he’s likely to switch into it this week.
His version is lofted at 13.5 degrees, and equipped with a Fujikura Ventus Black 7X shaft.
See more photos of Rory testing the BRNR Mini here
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It seems like the RBC Heritage is full of new gear to be spotted, and you can add TaylorMade’s P-UDI utility irons to that list.
We spotted a 17-degree P-UDI 2-iron in Nick Dunlap’s bag yesterday, and now have some photos of both the 3- and 4-irons. Nick has his P-UDI 2-iron setup with a Project X HZRDUS Black 4th Gen 105g TX shaft.
From what we can tell, this new P-UDI utility iron looks to have some of the usual TaylorMade technology as we can see the Speed Slot on the sole of the club for additional face flexibility. A toe screw is usually used to close off the hollow body design that will probably be filled with a version of TaylorMade’s Speed Foam that is present in the current iron lineup. This hollow body, foam-filled design should offer additional ball speed, soft feel, and sound, as well as an optimized CG for ball flight.
“Forged” is etched into the hosel, so we can assume that either the face, body, or both are forged for a soft and responsive feel. The club looks good from behind and at address, where we can see just a little offset and a topline that I would consider medium thickness. We don’t have the full details on what is under the hood or how many loft options will be available yet.
TaylorMade P-UDI 3-iron – 20°
TaylorMade P-UDI 4-iron – 22°
- Check out the rest of our photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage
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- Collin Morikawa what’s in the bag accurate as of the RBC Heritage. More photos from the event here.
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 LS (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 60 TX (45 inches)
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (13.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80 TX
5-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80 TX
Irons: TaylorMade P770 (4), P7MC (5-6), P730 (7-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Mid 115 X100 (4-6), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (7-PW)
Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (50-SB09, 56-LB08), TaylorMade MG4 TW (60-TW11)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: TaylorMade TP Soto
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Tour 2.0
Grips: Golf Pride Z-Grip Cord
Ball: TaylorMade TP5x
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PuttingDoctor
Jun 20, 2013 at 3:41 pm
Glad to see so many now jumping on what I’ve been doing for the past six years. I use a 32.5″ putter but due to a need to let folks putt with my stick I left it at 34″. I have had a 75G counterweight in it for about five years.
As great as the putter is in and of itself Justin made some stroke changes to accommodate the David Orr tells me.
We’ll look for more success from Justin as he and David tweak this setup for even better results as they test and train on their SAM PuttLabs.
It really is about the #1 club in the bag….the putter!
Dolph Lundgrenade
Jun 28, 2013 at 11:08 pm
@Gulpeg and PuttingDoctor
Not only did I invent counter-balancing in the 20’s, I invented the first version of golf to the native Americans before vacationing in Scotland and explaining it to them. Of course, before all of this I created energy and then made it blow up causing all the matter in the universe to randomly configure itself into the world you all enjoy today. So, I guess you are all very very welcome and no thanks is needed. The journey was the reward.
Ric Flair
Mar 19, 2014 at 4:29 pm
That is absolutely hilarious. A+
Hootiecrash
Jun 20, 2013 at 3:18 pm
it appears in the article that the putter grip itself and his gripping down is what causes the counterbalance. is Rose using a backweighted putter grip? if so, how much weight is being added in the grip?
gulpeg
Jun 19, 2013 at 9:02 pm
oh, the new revelation of a counter weighted grip. sorry, been doin’it for almost 8 years already. i guess some of the personal custom fitters are way ahead of the big boys. but it works
Juan
Jun 19, 2013 at 2:16 pm
So how is this different from the Heavy-putter series?
Dolph Lundgrenade
Jun 28, 2013 at 11:04 pm
Oh, didn’t you get the memo? It’s got DragonBall-Z graphics that your kid will enjoy! AND its fortified with Vitamins A,B and C! Yay!
…that was sarcasm. Its not different. It just won the US Open though so maybe the only good clubs are those that win majors.
Dave
Jun 19, 2013 at 1:23 pm
How much is TM paying all of these golf blogs/websites?! Every single one has an article about this new putter. It’s as if Justin Rose, the #5 ranked player in the world, just came out of no where to win the US Open b/c he switched putters. He also hit a ton of fairways (4th in FIW) and his ballstriking was suburb (9th). His putting was actually only ranked 16th so you could argue it was the least important of these stats (esp at Merion where a missed FW accounted for approx .6 of a stroke lost (the highest of the last 5 US Opens). But for some reason (hmmm) we’re all talking about this putter… the TM PR machine is running at full steam apparenently…
Blanco
Jun 19, 2013 at 2:34 am
what makes this works is despite the counterbalancing, neither side of the club is overly heavy… plus the stepped shaft is extremely soft to flex for a putter shaft.
Joe Golfer
Jun 19, 2013 at 2:08 am
Sounds like a great putter. Thanks, GolfWRX for the new info on this little beauty.
I like that it is counterbalanced.
I’ve tried a counterbalanced driver shaft and a slightly heavier grip, and I like the results. Makes it easier to control the head.
I think this idea will catch on with a lot of other companies also.
Sean
Jun 18, 2013 at 10:46 pm
I’ve been using one for five weeks. Great balance, weight, and feel. It almost putts itself. Nothing is forced.
Harrison
Jun 18, 2013 at 8:25 pm
I just got the putter – switched from a custom shop scotty – I took most of the loft off and made it more upright. It sets up extremely flat, however, all in all sweet putter!
Tate
Jun 18, 2013 at 11:43 am
Bet those 3 extra grams of headweight made all the difference.
DenverB
Jun 18, 2013 at 11:38 am
Please tell me TM is going to release a “JR” version of this putter, with the black shaft and red/yellow grip!
Chuck
Jun 18, 2013 at 11:37 am
He is not anchoring this putter.
Liz | Breaking Eighty
Jun 18, 2013 at 11:12 am
Was curious about this myself, if the counter weighted putter is something that will be deemed illegal down the road.
Brockohol
Jun 18, 2013 at 10:31 am
Yes he was…at least to my interpretation of the new stupid rules.
This thing will fly off the shelves this summer just like the 2 Ball, Ghost, etc…Its a weird feel but I have tried the longer ones and they do feel great choked down like Rose does. Almost impossible not to have a smooth pendulum motion. Now we just need a putter that reads the break and how hard to hit it.
cnitty
Jun 18, 2013 at 11:18 am
Wait… how was he “anchoring” it?
Brockohol
Jun 19, 2013 at 11:16 am
I meant yes, he was using in accordance to new rules.
Mat
Jun 17, 2013 at 11:59 pm
Just for clarity, was he using it in a 2016-legal way?
G
Jun 18, 2013 at 2:54 am
Jack
Jun 18, 2013 at 4:52 am
Why not? He wasn’t anchoring it I don’t see.