Equipment

Odyssey Officially Launches Red and Black O-Works Putters

Published

7 years ago

Jul 17, 2017

When we spotted Odyssey’s Red and Black O-Works prototype putters at the 2017 Dean & DeLuca Invitational, we assumed TaylorMade’s Tour Spider Red and Black putters had at least a shred of influence on Odyssey’s new putters. Of course, the Spider has become one of the most popular putters on Tour given the success of Jason Day, Sergio Garcia, Jon Rahm and Dustin Johnson with the putters.

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So ahead of the official launch of Odyssey’s new O-Works putters, we spoke to Sean Toulon, Senior VP of Callaway and the General Manager of Odyssey, who didn’t shy away from the influence TaylorMade had on the decision to make its new putters red and black.

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“TaylorMade has had a great success and they have a great product with [the TaylorMade Spider Red and Black Putters],” Toulon said. “Don’t think for a second Tour players aren’t just golfers like the rest of us… they’re influenced by what other golfers do. The red thing looks pretty cool. We thought we could do a different type of red: a different shade. We tried [the red] with the 2-Ball and the #7, and they looked awesome.”

As golfers and equipment enthusiasts ourselves, we certainly understand. See a playing partner hole a bunch of putts with a putter, it’s only natural to want to try that putter. Toulon admits, however, that there’s no hard evidence that a red or black putter will perform better on the greens. “It just looks cool,” Toulon said.

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Toulon said the technology in the new putters does offer improved performance, however. He was speaking specifically about Odyssey’s Tour-proven Microhinge inserts, which reduces skidding better than Odyssey’s other putter inserts by “hinging” at impact to create top spin. Acoustically, the insert also create a better sound, Toulon said, especially in mallet putter heads. Instead of a muted sound that provides little acoustic feedback, the insert produces a slightly higher-pitched sound in mallet putters that golfers tend to prefer.

You’ll notice that most of the putters available in this release (listed below) are mallets. Toulon believes that the trend of golfers moving toward mallets putters and away from blade-style models will continue, both with weekend warriors and PGA Tour players. When Jordan Spieth experimented with a mallet putter earlier this year, nine of the top-10 ranked golfers in the Official World Golf Rankings were using a mallet-styled putter. He attributed this trend to golfers ever-increasing use of data-capturing technology, especially on the greens.

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O-Works Black options: #2W, #3T, #1, 330M, #2M CS, #7S
O-Works Red options: 2-Ball, #7, #7S

Odyssey’s Red and Black O-Works will be available August 4. They will sell for $199 with a stock Winn grip, $219 with a SuperStroke Mid-Slim 2.0 grip.

Discussion: See what GolfWRX members are saying about Odyssey’s red and black O-Works putters.

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Equipment

A shocking Backstryke putter appearance + 7 interesting gear photos from the Zurich Classic

Published

17 hours ago

Apr 25, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to New Orleans, where TPC Louisiana plays host to the 2024 Zurich Classic. In between breakfast beignets and nightly Creole feasts, PGA Tour players are also competing in the unique two-man format at the Zurich this week.

Although the vibes in Nawlins are a bit lighter-fare than the recent back-to-back competitions the Masters and the RBC Heritage signature event), the gear news was no less serious this week.

We spotted some recent changes from Rory McIlroy, a very rare Odyssey Backstryke putter, dove into the bag of legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and spotted Patrick Cantlay continuing to test new equipment.

Get your beads out and crack your crawfish, because it’s time for an equipment rundown from The Big Easy (meaning New Orleans, of course, not Ernie Els).

See all of our photos from the Zurich Classic here

Rory’s on-and-off lob wedge

Since the end of 2023, Rory McIlroy has had an on-again, off-again relationship with a Titleist Vokey K-Grind lob wedge. In his last start, it was on, and the wedge is back in the bag again this week. We got a great look at the complicated grind that McIlroy uses.

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A full look into McIlroy’s bag above also shows that he switched out of the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper that he used at the RBC Heritage, and he’s back into the Qi10 core 3-wood. As we discussed last week, McIlroy will likely keep the BRNR around as a course-specific club, trading it in and out for the 3-wood.

See Rory McIlroy’s full 2024 WITB from the Zurich here

Turning Back the clock

Unless Tommy Gainey is in the field, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Odyssey’s Backstryke technology make an appearance on the PGA Tour.

But then, when you least expect it, Russ Cochran shows up.

For more than a decade – since the 2013 Sony Open in Hawai’i – Cochran has been stuck on 599 PGA Tour starts. This week will be his 600th.

Cochran is in the field at the Zurich this week playing alongside Eric Cole, whose regular caddie is Reed Cochran, Russ’s son.

The Backstryke putter was first released back in 2010, and its unique design helps shift the axis point of the putter closer to the CG of the head. And, the putter is getting a nod this week at the Zurich Classic, thanks to Cochran’s 600th career PGA Tour start.

The putter is certainly awesome, but don’t forget to check out Cochran’s full WITB from this week.

Drew Brees with a Super Bowl winning Scotty Cameron putter

Drew Brees, a legendary retired quarterback for the hometown New Orleans Saints, made an appearance at the Zurich’s Wednesday Pro-Am, playing alongside Zach Johnson, Ryan Palmer, and current Saints QB Derek Carr.

Brees’ bag included a TaylorMade Stealth2 Plus driver, a BRNR Mini 13.5-degree, a Stealth 5-wood, a mixed set of P-790 and P-760 irons, Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedges, and a custom Scotty Cameron “New Orleans Saints” putter, which Scotty made for Brees following his Super Bowl MVP-winning performance in 2010.

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It should also be noted that Brees has his Venmo QR code as a bag tag.

If you’re gambling with Brees on the course, just know that not having cash won’t work as an excuse.

Brilliant.

See Drew Brees’ full WITB from the Zurich here

Stricker’s unrecognizable putter

Steve Stricker has made numerous upgrades to his bag recently, including a new TSR3 driver and T100 irons, but his longtime Odyssey White Hot No. 2 putter is still going strong. It’s the most recognizable unrecognizable putter ever.

Here’s a better look at Stricker’s flatstick, which he started using back in 2007.

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Patrick Cantlay has opened the equipment-switching floodgates

Over on the PGA Tour’s Equipment Report this week, we covered Cantlay’s recent switch into Ping Blueprint S irons, and a Titleist TSR2 driver.

Cantlay hadn’t switched irons for about seven years, so the iron switch he made at The 2024 Masters came as a shock to the norm. He simply isn’t one to change gear very often, so anytime Cantlay makes a switch, it’s news.

It seems the floodgates of equipment testing have opened up a bit for Cantlay, who was also spotted testing a custom Scotty Cameron blade putter on Tuesday this week. By Wednesday, Cantlay was back practicing with his familiar Scotty Cameron T5 Proto mallet, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.

Daniel Berger’s custom Jailbird site lines

Berger, who’s currently using Odyssey’s Ai-One Mini Jailbird mallet putter, has a unique 3-dot, 2-line alignment on the crown of his navy-white-navy-white mallet putter. Looking down at the putter, it’s easy to see why this alignment system would help; it just seems impossible to set up to the ball off-center, or misaligned to the target.

Also, for anyone worried, you can rest easy. Yes, he’s still playing the 2013 TaylorMade TP MC irons, which we highlighted in our recent “Modern Classics: Old vs. New” video testing series.

FitzMagic teams back up

Brothers Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick are teaming up once again at the Zurich this year, and Bettinardi Golf hooked them up with some festive “FitzMagic” headcovers to match this week.

See what else is in Alex Fitzpatrick’s WITB here

And, with that, we say goodbye to the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, including 30 unique photo galleries full of equipment photos.

We’ll see you next week in Texas for the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson!

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