Equipment
Bettinardi to release 10 new putters for 2015
Don’t think of it as a new putter line. Think of these putters as distinct models that just happen to be released at the same time. That was my takeaway from a conversation about Bettinardi’s new putter line with Sam Bettinardi, vice president of sales and marketing for Bettinardi Golf, and it’s not a hard conclusion to reach.
Last year, Bettinardi took a more conventional strategy with its 2014 line of BB Series putters. It included several different models, and every putter (sans the BB55) had the same finish, face milling, paint fill and headcover.
Demand for Bettinardi’s putters was greater than ever in 2014, which led to the company’s expansion of its Chicago-area production facility from 20,000 to 40,000 square feet. But for 2015, the company wanted to do something different.
“We don’t just want to change the paint fill every year,” Bettinardi says. “We want to be innovative and creative.”
This year, the company will release 10 new putter models, each of which is unique in some way or shape. Putters such as the iNOVAi (pronounced in-o-vey) and Kuchar Model 2 are completely new models, while the others are classic Bettinardi shapes that have been refined for 2015.
The putters will be available through Bettinardi.com and at select retailers on Jan., 15, 2015.
The iNOVAi is a high-MOI mallet with a 6061 aluminum body and a stainless weight located on the back of the putter that pushes its center of gravity rearward to improve its forgiveness. It’s available in both a standard-length and a counter-balanced model that has a heavier putter head and a longer-length, back-weighted grip to improve overall MOI.
The Kuchar Model 2 (above) was designed specifically for Matt Kuchar, who asked Bettinardi to make him a halfmoon-styled Arm Lock putter that had no offset. The putter is available in a standard-length model, as well as the Arm Lock model used by Kuchar.
The Queen B Model 6 and Model 7 putters have the company’s new Savannah Blue PVD finish, which emits hues of purple, orange, yellow, turquoise and aqua, depending on how the light hits it.
The Studio Stock 2 and 16 putters have an Olympic Bronze PVD finish that fits somewhere between chocolate, bronze and oil can.
Several of the putters also have have Bettinardi’s new Super Fly-Mill Face, which offers a slightly different feel than the company’s Honeycomb and F.I.T. Face milling patterns.
[quote_box_center]”All our tour players are using our F.I.T. Face, which has our softest feel,” Bettinardi says. “But people were asking, ‘Can you make something a little firmer?’ The Super Fly-Mill is a nice middle ground between our F.I.T. Face and our firmer Honeycomb Face.”[/quote_box_center]
Bettinardi’s Signature Series 9 and 10 putters are the most exclusive in the line, limited to 1000 pieces. They’re stamped with the initials of company founder Robert J. Bettinardi, and milled from what the company calls D.A.S.S., or double-aged stainless steel.
To create D.A.S.S., 303 stainless steel is cooked to a temperature of 600 degrees fahrenheit, cooled, and then re-heated to a temperature of 375 degrees. The “double-aging” process creates a softer-feeling putter, Bettinardi says.
The putters will be available through Bettinardi.com for pre-order starting Dec. 17 and in stores on Jan., 15, 2015.
Learn more about each of Bettinardi’s new putters below, and click here to see what GolfWRX Members are saying about the putters in our forum.
iNOVAi ($299)
Face Balanced, Super Fly-Mill and F.I.T. Face Milling. Also available in a counter-balanced model ($350).
- Weight: 358 grams
- Material: 6061 Aluminum (body), Stainless Steel
- Finish: Black Anodized
- Grip: Black Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: iNOVAi Black
- Dexterity: RH and LH
Kuchar Model 2 Halfmoon ($375)
1/4 Toe Hang, F.I.T. Face Milling. Also available in an Arm Lock ($375).
- Weight: 350 grams
- Material: Mild Carbon Steel
- Finish: Meridian Blue
- Grip: Gray Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Kuchar Signature White/Blue
- Dexterity: RH and LH
Queen B Model 6 ($375)
Face Balanced, Micro Honeycomb Face Milling
- Weight: 360 grams
- Material: Mild Carbon Steel
- Finish: Savannah Blue
- Grip: White Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Queen B Royal Purple
- Dexterity: RH Only
Queen B Model 7 ($375)
1/4 Toe Hang, Micro Honeycomb Face Milling
- Weight: 360 grams
- Material: Mild Carbon Steel
- Finish: Savannah Blue
- Grip: White Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Queen B Royal Purple
- Dexterity: RH Only
Click here to see what GolfWRX Members are saying about the putters in our forum.
Studio Stock 2 ($399)
1/4 Toe Hang, Super Fly-Mill Face
- Weight: 358 grams
- Material: Mild Carbon Steel
- Finish: Olympic Bronze
- Grip: Blue Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Studio Stock Legend Blue
- Dexterity: RH Only
Studio Stock 16 ($399)
Face Balanced, Super Fly-Mill Face
- Weight: 358 grams
- Material: Mild Carbon Steel
- Finish: Olympic Bronze
- Grip: Blue Pure (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Studio Stock Legend Blue
- Dexterity: RH Only
Signature Series 9 ($495)
Face Balanced, Super Fly-Mill Face
- Weight: 348 grams
- Material: Double-Aged Stainless Steel (D.A.S.S.)
- Finish: Tour Blast
- Grip: Red Leather Gripmaster (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Signature Red
- Dexterity: RH Only
Signature Series 10 ($495)
1/4 Toe Hang, Honeycomb Face Milling
- Weight: 348 grams
- Material: Double-Aged Stainless Steel (D.A.S.S.)
- Finish: Tour Blast
- Grip: Red Leather Gripmaster (standard or midsize)
- Headcover: Signature Red
- Dexterity: RH Only
Click here to see what GolfWRX Members are saying about the putters in our forum.
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Whats in the Bag
Matthieu Pavon WITB 2024 (May)
- Pavon’s WITB accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Ping G430 Max (9 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 6 X
3-wood: Ping G430 LST (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 7 X
Hybrid: Ping G430 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 10 X
Irons: Ping i230 (3-PW)
Shafts: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 X
Wedges: Ping Si59 (52-12S, 58-8B)
Shafts: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 X
Putter: Ping Cadence TR Tomcat C
Grip: SuperStroke Claw 1.0P
Grips: Golf Pride MCC Align
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Check out more in-hand photos of Pavon’s gear here.
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Equipment
Spotted: Tommy Fleetwood’s TaylorMade Spider Tour X Prototype putter
Tommy Fleetwood has been attached to his Odyssey White Hot Pro #3 putter for years now. However, this week at the Wells Fargo Championship, we did spot him testing a new putter that is very different, yet somewhat similar, to his current gamer.
This new putter is a TaylorMade Spider Tour X head but with a brand new neck we haven’t seen on a Spider before. A flow neck is attached to the Spider head and gives the putter about a 1/2 shaft offset. This style neck will usually increase the toe hang of the putter and we can guess it gets the putter close to his White Hot Pro #3.
Another interesting design is that lack of TaylorMade’s True Path alignment on the top of the putter. Instead of the large white center stripe, Tommy’s Spider just has a very short white site line milled into it. As with his Odyssey, Tommy seems to be a fan of soft inserts and this Spider prototype looks to have the TPU Pure Roll insert with 45° grooves for immediate topspin and less hopping and skidding.
The sole is interesting as well in that the rear weights don’t look to be interchangeable and are recessed deep into the ports. This setup could be used to push the CG forward in the putter for a more blade-like feel during the stroke, like TaylorMade did with the Spider X Proto Scottie Scheffler tested out.
Tommy’s putter is finished off with an older Super Stroke Mid Slim 2.0 grip in blue and white. The Mid Slim was designed to fit in between the Ultra Slim 1.0 and the Slim 3.0 that was a popular grip on tour.
- Check out the rest of our photos from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
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Equipment
Club Junkie WITB, league night week 4: Some old, some new
We enter week 4 of Thursday night men’s league feeling a little more confident in the game. BK is hoping to go a little lower and reduce the mistakes out there with these clubs in the bag. Watch the video for the full breakdown of why these clubs are getting the starting nod this week!
Driver: Titleist TSR2 (10 degrees, neutral setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana WB 63 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: UST Mamiya Lin-Q M40X TSPX Blue 7F5
7-wood: Ping G430 Max (-1 degree, flat Ssetting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 S
Iron: Mizuno Pro Fli-Hi 4
Shaft: Aerotech Steelfiber hls880 S
Irons: PXG 0317 Tour (5-PW)
Shaft: LA Golf A-Series 105 Low (4)
Wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10 (50-08F)
Shaft: UST Mamiya Dart V 105 F4 Wedge
Wedge: Ping S159 (56-10H)
Shaft: Ping Z-Z115
Wedge: Ping S159 (60-08B)
Shaft: Ping Z-Z115
Putter: PXG Battle Ready II Brandon
Shaft: BGT Stability Tour Spec One
Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour X
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FTWPhil
Dec 18, 2014 at 12:34 pm
Haters gonna hat.
Andy
Dec 17, 2014 at 4:31 pm
Putters look amazing, those that are upset are scared Bettinardi is on the up and up. Those new finishes, I mean, how do they get those colors!
T-MAC
Dec 17, 2014 at 2:09 pm
Need a Newport and/or Newport 2 style head with a flow neck Betti!
Love the 3 different milling patterns though.
Preston
Dec 17, 2014 at 2:03 pm
Are these carbon steel or SS? The craftsmanship looks good, but not paying those prices for SS. I don’t even buy new Scottys (thank you ebay)…
John
Dec 17, 2014 at 1:30 pm
Same old crap being relabeled “New”. Overpriced and poorly marketed.
dot dot
Dec 17, 2014 at 12:19 pm
releasing 10 pieces of crap just makes a bigger pile of crap
Bryan
Dec 17, 2014 at 11:44 am
Worst looking putters ever lol
Matt
Dec 17, 2014 at 10:33 am
Ouch! My wallet!
Bubba Watson
Dec 17, 2014 at 10:14 am
Sexy putters. Wish they would help me get the ball home.
Jonny B
Dec 17, 2014 at 10:09 am
LOVE. I like how they explain the different feels of the various milling patterns on the face. Reminds me of what Ping has done with their stroke arc fitting based on hosel length/offset – they are aiming at the variety of golfers out there by creating products for individuals, not mass producing one-for-all like many equipment companies do.
Henry
Dec 17, 2014 at 12:53 am
Why no flow neck or #9 style!!! You’re killing me Betti
Josh
Dec 17, 2014 at 11:54 am
Looks like a funky little flow neck on the Queen Bee #7, but I would bet you’re looking for a blade with a flow neck and more toe hang than 1/4?
TheBrokenTee
Dec 17, 2014 at 12:47 am
Each one of these putters are starting to really grow on m . They looked funky at first but I’m starting to really like how the iNOVAi looks. Might have to grab tha .
other paul
Dec 16, 2014 at 9:14 pm
Is the arm lock in LH?
chad ryan
Dec 16, 2014 at 9:06 pm
Mother of god…..the studio stock will be mine