Equipment

Golf legend Bob Murphy’s new putter insert

Published

14 years ago

Jan 20, 2012

GolfWRX

If you ask any of the great players that have played golf with Bob Murphy, they will tell you that he is one of the best putters that ever lived. His tempo and putting stroke are like the movement of a fine Swiss timepiece, and were the fuel for his win at the 1965 U.S. Amateur, his 1966 NCAA Championship individual title, and his five wins on the PGA Tour.

Because great putting is important at every level, Murphy continued to win tournaments as a member of the Champions Tour. On the Champions Tour, he notched 11 tour victories, and missed only nine cuts in the 366 events he played in.

Arthritis has slowed his playing career, but not his passion for putting. He and his team have created a putter insert that they believe to be the next big thing in putting. Enjoy this story from Bob Murphy about the new insert that is being kept under type wraps … for now.

High Friction Insert Technology

By Bob Murphy with Craig Dolch

“‘Old Murph’ could make a putt or two”– that statement was spoken by Johnny Miller on many television broadcasts we were doing fro NBC. I did make “a few” and learned a lot by watching and listening to fellow PGA Tour professionals, including Miller, Nicklaus, Stockton, Watson, Floyd, Trevino and Colbert. We were obsessed with improving our putting.

Most of our work was on the putting stroke. But there was always concern regarding the putter, too. Did it look good? Did the lie have the sole flat when placed behind the ball? Was the loft correct? Was there a nice “sound” or “click” when struck? Did it “feel good” giving feedback to the hands and brain?

Today, we have a new consideration — the ball itself and the large dimples. Try taking a new Titleist or Callaway and roll it easily and softly by pushing it with your finger and it will veer directions, rock and then come to a halt quickly — all on a flat surface. The new golf ball is simply not perfectly round. The dimples are arranged in various patterns and the ridges of the dimples do protrude. A ball struck on a ridge point can easily impart spin and misdirection. This distortion varies greatly, of course. But the fact is it does happen.

My group is working to develop an insert with high friction to absorb the strike of the ball. The result is that the ball is on the face for a slightly longer time. It may seem infinitesimal, but the ball begins to true roll faster and leaves incredibly straight off this insert. My showing this to PGA Tour and Champions Tour pros Nick Price, Robert Allenby, Ken Duke, Olin Browne and Jay Sigel brings a similar response from each of them. They can see the ball rolls with no bounce and no spin. With this true roll, they notice how straight it takes off, especially on putts of 2 to 5 ft. How many of those have we seen missed on TV in the last three years — by the best in the business?

In trying these putters with the insert installed, these pros realize they can play less break on short putts. That becomes an advantage to them to trust that the ball is leaving so straight and rolling so purely.

Click here for more conversation in the forums

I am not the “mad’ scientist” who concocted this insert material. I am the voice of experience from golf assisting our group in filing the patent pending and obtaining the approval stamp of the USGA. We have that approval — it is legal.

This high-friction insert is ready to play. You will be watching television soon and Johnny Miller will say, “Old Murph has come up with something special here!”

More to come,

Bob Murphy

Equipment

Interesting clubs at top of bag – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

10 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, users are talking about top of bag setups that are non-traditional or thought-provoking in some way. Original poster @SuperSpurs106 inquired about other members who might use unorthodox set-ups to help with gapping issues or weak spots.

They wrote:

“I currently have a PING G430 driver, TM Qi35 3W and a TM Qi4D 7W. Driver and 7W are fine but can’t get on with my 3W and have always struggling with this club over the years. Thinking of adding a 2H which I know would look odd. Just wondering if anyone else had a weird set up at the top of their bag?”

Our members in the forum have offered up their thoughts and personal experiences with non-traditional top of bag set-ups, and their reasoning for thinking outside of the box to begin with. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

BowMain42: “Don’t worry about what “looks” odd. If the club does what you need it to do, it’s the right club.”
scooterhd2: “I cant hit 3 woods either. Thats why I roll with a unicorn XL Hibore 2 wood. 400 cc head at 16 degrees of loft and its just a monster 3 wood off the tee. Off the deck, we are playing the f6 baffler. 5 wood at 41.75 inches and its easy to control.”
phizzy30: “I had driver, 3 metal, 2/4 hybrid once upon a time as a higher ss player. 4 hybrid is gone and in place is a driving iron nowadays. I don’t think what you’re proposing is weird in anyway, however the yardage gap might be glaringly huge between driver and 2 hybrid. What is it about your 3 metal that has got you all messed up? You could always go 4 metal with shorter shaft and see if that works.”

Entire Thread: “Interesting clubs at top of bag”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

Equipment

Members of the Mini Driver Club – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

10 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user has gone searching for fellow users of a mini driver. In a post, @TightFade asked for other mini driver users to chime in with their weapon of choice, the reason for employing a mini, and what club follows it in the bag.

@TightFade asked:

“What mini are you playing? What spot in the bag did it take over? What’s the next club after it? For me: Elyte mini 13.5. Replacing 3w. Next up club looks like it’ll be 5w.”

Our members in the forum have been sharing their own bag setups featuring the mini driver, and the various reasons they purchased one in the first place. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

RCGA: “Ping G430 Max 12* ‘Thriver.’ Next club is a 4w and 2i (I play a weird course).”
JMB3: “R7 at 12.75 with Diamana BB 63s. 3w replacement. Next Club: Elyte Ti 5w at 17*.”
ColdOkieGolf: “R7 15.5 turned down to 13.5 It replaces the 3w. I found it surprisingly easy to hit off the deck, and it’s very rare that I need or want to hit something beyond 250 from the fairway, so next club is my 7w.”
ChaosTheory: “I’m sub-90 MPH with driver. But I’m able to hit DOD. I have been wanting something like the R7 15.5, so I just ordered one. I have a spot in the bag so nothing has to go. But I could see it replacing my trusty 4 wood, which I never use for approach shots. Just tee shots and lay ups. If I drop the 4 wood, I will turn my 7 wood down to ~20 degrees and will have good gaps. I recently tried a thriver build: 12 degree driver turned to 14, with a heavier 44 inch shaft and added head weight. I hit it great. Very accurate and not overly high, but the problem was that it sometimes went as far as a typical drive. And that’s not what I needed. So I will probably turn the 15.5 up to 16.5 or even 17.5. It’s all theoretical at this point. ?”

Entire Thread: “Members of the Mini Driver Club…Check In.”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

Whats in the Bag

Chris Gotterup WITB 2026 (June)

Published

10 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Chris Gotterup had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.

Drivers: TaylorMade Qi4D (8 degrees), Ping G440 LST (9 degrees @8), Ping G440 LST (7.5 degrees)
Shafts: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS T1100 Handcrafted 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g