News
Sizemore Expands Beyond Copper Stix
The average golfer probably has not heard of Bruce Sizemore. But, they probably have heard of COPPER STIX putters. Putters designed by Bruce Sizemore (including the Copper Stix line) have appeared in the hands of many PGA players and have racked up over six million dollars on the PGA Tour (including 1 Victory, 3 Runner-Up and 1 Third Place finish) with no endorsement fees paid.
On the heels of that success, Bruce Sizemore has launched his new line of putters, the Sizemore Collection, using his Total Club Approach (TCA) to design and manufacture his finest putters. The Sizemore Collection is comprised of the Signature Series and the brand new Player Series. The Signature Series includes 2 blade style putters (XB-1 and XB-2) and 2 face balanced mallet putters (XM-1 and XM-2). All Signature Series putters feature the IND-X cross-milled faced finish. And, the mallets have the integrated Alignment Insert Management (AIM) technology. AIM technology is Sizemore’s patented interchangeable weight and alignment system that allows golfers to self customize their putting game to address the two major components of putting, the line and distance control. The Player Series will consist of 2 solid (no face insert) stainless steel blades (Sb-1 and SB-2), 2 aluminum and stainless heel shafted mallets (SM-1 and SM-2) and 2 aluminum and stainless center shafted mallets (SM-1 CS and SM-2 CS). I hope to try one as soon as they are released in the Spring.
A Closer Look
The XB-1 and XB -2 are milled from billets of 11L17 carbon steel and the face insert is made from 99.9% pure 110 annealed copper. The standard putter finish is nickel-plated, which gives it a very similar feel to 303 stainless. Some custom finish options include dark nickel, black jack, blue torch, oil can, antique copper, purple haze, gun metal, antique brass, chocolate bar, gold-plated, and copper-plated. The XB-1 is a ¾ to 80% toe down face and the XB-2 is about ¼ face down. The XM-1 and XM-2 mallets are milled from 6061 aluminum and 99.9% pure 110 annealed copper. The XM-1 and XM-2 are face balanced because of their double bend shaft.
In the Field
Although the XB-1 and XM-2 are their most popular models, at my request Sizemore Putters sent me an XB-2 and an XM-1 for review and inspection. I prefer a face balanced putter so the XB-2 blade was sent to my specs with an Iomic grip to try while the XM-1 had the stock Sizemore grip. The XB-2 is not face balance – but, it was the least toe down of the two Sizemore blades. If you are a traditionalist, the face of the putter may turn you off. However, the milling (in 27 different directions) has a purpose. According to Sizemore, the CNC cross-milled finish ensures the flattest and most accurate face which eliminates deflection and improves mishits outside of the sweet spot. I did notice a little more forgiveness on toe hits. But, the main difference for me was the feel off the face. The copper combined with the nickel plating provides very good feedback with the ensuing roll distance. A lot of putters will feel great but the roll is inconsistent with the stroke. With the XB-2, the stroke and distance were much more in tune and mishits more forgiving. If you watch the Champions Tour each week, keep an eye out for them as they are regularly in play there.
The real winner for me was the XM-1. This is an MOI mallet putter and while the looks aren’t its greatest attribute, it does achieve its main goal of getting the ball in the hole. Feedback and feel were excellent and roll was true. I can see how Christa Johnson sunk the putt that won the BJ’s Charity Championship this year on the Legends Tour with such confidence. If you can get over the look, it’s a clear winner that needs to be put on the list to try before you buy a new putter.
Conclusion
Bruce Sizemore is a proven Industry veteran that is taking a totally modern approach to putter design in today’s premium market. His experience as a PGA Professional, Professional Instructor, and Professional Golfer allow him to approach putter design from unique point of view. You never hear or see him in the headlines because he is not aligned with a major manufacturer and his putters are put into play without endorsement fees. However, Sizemore Putters are worth a shot if one of their models fit your eye and you are seek a premium putter not everyone else has. The designs are original and thus a little outside the “norm” of today’s putters. An unconditional money back guarantee is a testament to the craftsmanship of Sizemore Putters.
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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.
The timing of Lowry’s putter changeup was curious: Was he just using a Spider putter because he was paired with McIlroy, who’s been using a Spider Tour X head throughout 2024? Was Lowry just being festive because it’s the Zurich Classic, and he wanted to match his teammate? Did McIlroy let Lowry try his putter, and he liked it so much he actually switched into it?
Well, as it turns out, McIlroy’s only influence was inspiring Lowry to make more putts.
When asked if McIlroy had an influence on the putter switch, Lowry had this to say: “No, it’s actually a different putter than what he uses. Maybe there was more pressure there because I needed to hole some more putts if we wanted to win,” he said with a laugh.
To Lowry’s point, McIlroy plays the Tour X model, whereas Lowry switched into the Tour Z model, which has a sleeker shape in comparison, and the two sole weights of the club are more towards the face.
Lowry’s Spider Tour Z has a white True Path Alignment channel on the crown of his putter, which is reminiscent of Lowry’s former 2-ball designs, thus helping to provide a comfort factor despite the departure from his norm. Instead of a double-bend hosel, which Lowry used in his 2-ball putters, his new Spider Tour Z is designed with a short slant neck.
“I’ve been struggling on the greens, and I just needed something with a fresh look,” Lowry told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. “It has a different neck on it, as well, so it moves a bit differently, but it’s similar. It has a white line on the back of it [like my 2-ball], and it’s a mallet style. So it’s not too drastic of a change.
“I just picked it up on the putting green and I liked the look of it, so I was like, ‘Let’s give it a go.’”
Read the rest of the piece over at PGATour.com.
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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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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.
…The Jailbird craze hasn’t really slowed down in 2024, either. According to Odyssey rep Joe Toulon, there are about 18-20 Jailbird putter users on the PGA TOUR.
Most recently, Akshay Bhatia won the 2024 Valero Texas Open using a broomstick-style Odyssey Jailbird 380 putter and Webb Simpson is switching into a replica of that putter at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.
Now, Fowler, who essentially started the whole Jailbird craze, is making a significant change to his putter setup.
Fowler, who has had a couple weeks off since the 2024 RBC Heritage, started experimenting with a new, custom-orange Jailbird 380 head that’s equipped with a standard 35-inch putter build, rather than his previous 38-inch counter-balanced setup.
According to Fowler, while he still likes the look and forgiveness of his Jailbird putter head, he’s looking to re-incorporate more feel into his hands during the putting stroke.
He told GolfWRX.com on Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Championship that the 38-inch counterbalanced setup “served its purpose” by helping him to neutralize his hands during the stroke, but now it’s time to try the standard-length putter with a standard-size SuperStroke Pistol Tour grip to help with his feel and speed control.
Although Fowler was also spotted testing standard-length mallets from L.A.B. Golf and Axis1 on Tuesday, he confirmed that the custom Odyssey Jailbird 380 is the putter he’ll use this week at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.
Head over to PGATour.com for the full article.
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OakieISI
Mar 10, 2008 at 11:01 am
As a player of the XM-1 model, I can say that this putter really does swing itself. I have only had some limited time with the putter, mostly on the carpet in my home, but the feel off of the face is outstanding.
While the weights and alignment aids are changeable, and take some time to try and figure out which one works best for you. I have presently settled on the Stainless Steel End Cap and the 3 line interchangeable piece, which I believe that Scott at Sizemore brings the weight up to 380 grams.
I cannot wait to get in some quality practice and rounds with this putter. Looks are in the eye of the beholder, and they get better with every putt made! =)