Equipment
Scotty Cameron tells the story behind the TeI3 “dots,” and his USGA battle
Shortly after the audio stopped rolling on our recent TG2 Podcast with Scotty Cameron, Cameron broke out the pen and pad to explain a few additional stories that were nothing short of fantastic.
He explained the ever-recognizable dots on the back of his Teryllium putters — and how he initially filled them with bathroom caulk — his bout with the USGA over his new wrap-around face inserts, and how swinging an axe in a Home Depot led to the Pistolero grip design.
Below are each of the stories in more depth.
The Caulk Dots
Scotty Cameron’s Teryllium putters were made famous when Tiger Woods won using a Newport 2 TeI3 putter to win the 1997 Masters. The putter is instantly recognizable because of the 32 white dots on the back — Cameron was 32-years old when he designed the putter, thus, the number of dots.
But what you didn’t know, I presume, is that Cameron filled in those dots with caulk that he found at Target while shopping with his daughter.
There were 5 screws in the back cavity of the TeI3 putters; one in each corner, and one right in the center that he used during the milling process. The problem was, the screw in the center was making the putter feel too hard at impact, Cameron said. So he needed something to soften up the feel, and fill in that dot to replace the hole left from the screw. While he was shopping with his daughter at Target, Cameron says he picked up five different types of caulk. After trying each of them out on the putter head — some too soft, some too hard — he found the one that was effective: GE Tub and Tile Silicone caulk.
The company now uses a 3M dampening material made specially for Cameron, but who would have thought the same stuff you would use on your bathroom floor helped make one of the most iconic putters of Tiger Woods’ career?
The USGA battle
One of the biggest hurdles for golf club makers are the USGA limitations… and some of the rules make more sense than others. Scotty Cameron, after designing and manufacturing his new wrap-around insert that was first introduced in his 2016 Scotty Select line, had a particular issue with the parallel groove rule. As Cameron explains, after he manufactured a warehouse full of putters, the USGA took issue with the fact that the insert extended below the putter face, and left grooves on the sole that sat parallel to the target line. Cameron says the rule is in place to keep from companies putting grooves in the sole of woods and irons to help the golf club remain square through impact; but what effect do parallel grooves really have on a putter, Cameron questioned.
So, with ready-for-retail product sitting in a warehouse and fighting a rule that didn’t make sense to him, Cameron said the lawyers got involved. He didn’t explain what happened from there, but the putters with the inserts that wrap around the face hit retail in 2016.
The Axe
Picture this: You’re walking through Home Depot looking for, well, whatever it is you’re looking for in Home Depot. You turn down one of the aisles, and there’s Scotty Cameron swinging an axe like a golf club.
Yea, this really happened. Cameron says he developed the Pistolero putter grip — with the big knob on the end of it — based on the grip of an axe he found while shopping at Home Depot.
The next time Cameron decides to run some errands, to Home Depot, or maybe to Bed, Bath and Beyond (IDK if there’s gonna be enough time), look out for a new putter design.
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Driver: TaylorMade Qi 10 (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 70 TX
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi 10 Tour (15 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black 80 TX
Irons: TaylorMade P790 (3), TaylorMade P7MC (4-6), and TaylorMade P730 (7-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (50-09SB, 54-11SB, 58-08LB)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: TaylorMade TP Reserve Juno
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: TaylorMade TP5x
Check out more in-hand photos of Pierceson Coody’s WITB here.
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Ben Griffin might be a little too young to remember some of the iconic Maxfli golf balls that won on tour, but that isn’t stopping him from putting the newest Tour X ball from the brand in play. Today, Maxfli and Griffin announced an exclusive partnership that will see the PGA Tour player using the company’s four-piece golf ball.
While Griffin might be the first PGA Tour player to put a new Maxfli golf ball in play, he isn’t the first profesional golfer to do so. Lexi Thompson has been playing the Maxfli Tour golf ball on the LPGA Tour since the beginning of the 2024.
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We caught up with Ben at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in Texas this week to ask him about the new ball switch.
“I was able to finally get my hands on some and try it and immediately I saw faster ball speed with the driver, which is always something every golfer wants to see.
“Then I had to test a lot around the greens and test irons, test spins, test everything like that. Basically, I came to the conclusion that I thought this was probably one of the best golf balls for my game.
“And so I decided to make it official and partner with them and very excited to help kind of launch this golf ball and see where it takes us.”
Griffin’s ball of choice is the Maxfli Tour X, a four-piece golf ball that is made for highly skilled players that want consistent distance off the driver and spin around the green. An updated core design helps add the ball speed that Griffin mentioned and two ionomer mantle layers separate low spin driver shots from higher spin iron and wedge shots. Maxfli uses Center Of center-of-gravity balancing to ensure each ball has consistent flight in the air and roll on the green. Like all golf balls on tour, the Tour X features a cast urethane cover for maximum performance, and it has a tetrahedron dimple pattern to enhance aerodynamics.
It is exciting to see a golf ball at a lower price point — $39.99 at Golf Galaxy — being used by a top 100 ranked player in the world like Ben Griffin, and equipment junkies will be keenly watching his performance with the new ball.
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The tournament bearing the name of one of golf’s all-time greats is now known as the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Back in 2017, it was still the AT&T Byron Nelson and Billy Horschel was still a full-bag PXG staffer. The Florida Gator leveraged those wares to a playoff victory over Jason Day securing his fourth PGA Tour win in the process.
Check out the clubs Horschel had in play seven years ago in Texas.
Driver: PXG 0811X (9 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Atmos Tour Spec Black 6 X
3-wood: PXG 0341X (15 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black 75 6.5
5-wood: PXG 0341 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black 75 6.5
Irons: PXG 0311T (3, 5-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: PXG 0311T Milled (52-10, 56-10, 60-07)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: PXG Bat Attack
Grip: SuperStroke Flatso 1.0
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Check out more in-hand photos of Billy Horschel’s gear from 2017 here.
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Baba Booey
May 7, 2019 at 12:12 pm
I like the Old School reference. You’re my boy Blue!
Scotty Cameron
Jan 30, 2018 at 11:11 am
Tiger used a NEWPORT TEI3 (sole stamp), not a NP2, to win the Masters in 97. And this was written by the Editor and Chief of Golfwrx? SMH
Whistle Dick
May 7, 2019 at 12:22 pm
How about the parallel groove rule? Didn’t TaylorMade put grooves on the soles of their irons and drivers? Love your work Scotty, big fan. Thanks! ????
Baba Booey
May 7, 2019 at 12:41 pm
Big fan Scotty, love your work. Doesn’t TaylorMade use parallel grooves on their irons and woods?
Joey5Picks
Jan 29, 2018 at 11:10 pm
Good Old School reference. “We’re going streaking!”
james
Jan 29, 2018 at 9:49 pm
That pistol grip is exactly the same as the one wilson used on the TPA, it was a great grip then and is now but there’s no need for that lame story!
Robert Parsons
Jan 31, 2018 at 11:49 am
Don’t let the facts get in the way of a good fairytale!
Benny
Jan 29, 2018 at 6:30 pm
Or when he made Tigers NP2. The weight was slightly over and Scotty drilled a couple holes both on the heel and the cavity. He knew they would rust as he drilled past the finish and into the carbon. So he filled the holes amd paintfil with Red printers ink. This all started the Tour Dot…
DaveyD
Jan 29, 2018 at 6:24 pm
I get a kick out of those “off the cuff” stories.
Ben
Jan 29, 2018 at 5:08 pm
Just another Karsten putter knock-off with minor features that have little to no effect on putting stroke or ball impact. It’s all about name, graphics and bought reputation. Gearheads love their fancy toys and Cameron dishes it out to the full.
WhistleDick
May 7, 2019 at 12:46 pm
Rack Him
Bettinardi
May 7, 2019 at 12:47 pm
Rack Him
Andrew
Jan 29, 2018 at 3:39 pm
Thanks. This is WRX material, not some silly videos in a golf dome.