By Brian Chipper

GolfWRX Contributor

Currently my putter and I have a Facebook Status of “It’s complicated.” In other words, I only use it when I’m on the course and don’t think of if it except then. I am currently on the journey to find a better putter, one that can restore confidence in my short game.

I’ve been on a few speed dates with some putters recently. I’ve met some nice ones at the local cookie cutter box sports stores. I even thought I felt a spark with one at one of my local family owned golf stores, but the putter seemed to be a bit too high maintenance (the $350 price tag) to justify to everyone I know.

I got called in to one of the local Ma & Pa stores with news of a new model they just got in. They even let me bring the putter home for a few days and I showed it off to my friends. However, at the end of the day, something just didn’t look or feel right and I returned it.

I tried out one of my old friend’s putters as well. But again, I felt empty inside using it, and didn’t want to have to listen to my friend tell everyone “that’s my old putter.” It would have been unbearable after about the third round.

My journey continues where everyone turns to in the 21^st century: the internet.  I checked out all the major websites that specialize in golf equipment, but alas, most of these clubs I had already looked over in the stores or couldn’t find enough information about them (dimensions, weight, offset, lie, etc.)

At this point, I was beyond desperate. I did the one thing I regret the most. I visited EBAY.  A cornucopia of putter pornography was less than five clicks away. “14,529 results found for putter in Golf Clubs: Putter, Right Handed.”

Now, I have never been burned by EBAY when it comes to golf clubs, but the fear of counterfeits, last-second bid bots, fake users and of course the putters that are very photogenic but not pretty in person were all reasons to drive me back to my old putter.

It has been a week since I’ve started looking on EBAY and I am still in my current relationship.  Here is the list of why I’ve been unable to pull the trigger:

1. That isn’t a putter… That is an Adams IdeaPro 5 iron or a complete set of crappy clubs.
2. How can you put up an ad with only one or two pictures of the putter?
3. Hey, that is a great deal… Crap, picture No. 9 shows the face is completely worn out. Why don’t you throw it away?
4. $2,000 for a “tour custom prototype?”  Are you kidding me?  I would only buy one like that at a tournament from a rep’s hands on the putting green after watching a PGA Tour pro play around with it.
5. Hey, that’s a great putter!  In the comments: “I added a homemade grip that has an 11-inch diameter.”  That translates to, “I screwed up this putter with an expensive grip and can’t get it off properly.”
6. $24.99 shipping anywhere in the lower 48, 3-5 day priority.  That is a bit shady for me.
7. Rare.
8. Stock photos for a “lightly used” putter.

I could also check out Craigslist and hope that when I pick it up the person doesn’t turn me and my bones into a rare novelty putter.

It has been a long, empty journey so far. I have a round in a few hours. I’m not going to lie, I will probably swing by my local Ma & Pa store and grab a random putter and try it on the putting green and if it feels good bring it along for a round. But let’s face it, I’ll probably be back online tonight looking for Ms. Perfect.

From Putter Purgatory,

Brian Chipper

Click here for more discussion in the “Putter Forum.”