Equipment

Bettinardi Kuchar Model 1 Putter: Editor Review

Published

11 years ago

Jun 4, 2013

Pros: Very stable during the stroke, and unbelievably good looking at address. The F.I.T. Face feels soft, and the Pewter PVD finish is both beautiful and durable.

Cons: With arm lock putters, length is flexible. But golfers will need to make sure they custom fit the loft to putt their best.

Bottom Line: Users will gain a lot of confidence knowing that this putter was developed specifically for the arm lock putting style by the PGA Tour’s best arm lock putter, Matt Kuchar. At $375, it’s not cheap. But it’s a “must-have” for golfers who want the highest-quality arm lock putter.

Overview

Bettinardi’s Kuchar Model 1 putter was designed by … you guessed it, Bob Bettinardi and Matt Kuchar. According to Sam Bettinardi, vice president of sales and marketing at Bettinardi Golf, Kuchar started working with prototypes of the putter at the 2012 BMW Championship in September. He experimented with 15 different variations before deciding on what became the Model 1, which is the same model he used in victories at the 2013 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and the 2013 Memorial Tournament.

The Kuchar Model 1 is a face-balanced blade putter with a wide body. According to Bettinardi, the wider body adds to the putter’s heel/toe weighting, which makes the putter more stable during the stroke. It also has Bettinardi’s F.I.T. Face (Feel Impact Technology), a milling process that removes 55 percent of the face material for a softer feel at impact.

The entire putter is 100 percent milled from soft carbon steel at Bettinardi’s headquarters in Tinely Park, Ill., and has a Pewter PVD finish. It’s available in two different versions — arm lock and standard.

Above: The F.I.T. face of the Kuchar Model 1 putter is milled over Bettinardi’s Honeycomb finish to create a soft, solid feel at impact.

The Kuchar-style, or arm lock putter has a 2.5 shaft offset and 7 degrees of loft that Bettinardi says is necessary to “keep the ball from diving into the ground.” It’s sold with a standard length of 42 inches, a lie of 71 degree and a head weight of 400 grams.

The standard model (not reviewed) measures 35 inches, and has a 350-gram head with 3 degrees of loft. Like the arm lock, it has a 71-degree lie angle and costs $375.

That’s legal?

Arm lock putting isn’t for everyone. For a right-handed golfer, an arm lock putter is anchored on the left forearm, so golfers who use their right hand/wrist/arm to dominate their stroke will likely struggle with the putting style. But for golfers who dominate the stroke with their leading side, the arm lock putter makes sense. It’s also a natural for golfers who are reeling from the decision by golf’s ruling bodies to ban putters that are anchored to the chest and midsection in 2016.

The new rule, 14-1b, states that a golfer must not anchor the club, either “directly” or by use of an “anchor point.” Yes, technically the arm lock putting style anchors the putter grip against a golfer’s lead forearm, but the USGA doesn’t view it that way.

The reason for the loophole has to do with the fact that a golfer’s forearm is not a fixed axis point like a golfer’s midsection or chest. So even though the grip is “anchored” against the forearm, the forearm remains mobile, unlike the belly and long-putting methods that have static anchor points.

Performance

As a long-putter user who is trying to find a way to get a jump on the anchor ban, I was curious to test the Kuchar Model 1 arm lock. I did so against a short putter on a SAM PuttLab, and during several rounds on the course.

On SAM, I noticed that the path of the putter face was much more square-to-square than with my short putter, and it remained square for a longer period of time before and after impact. That resulted in much more directional consistency. On the course, the security of the arm-lock style eased my tension over short putts, and the stroke felt much more stable and repeatable.

To get the best results from a Kuchar Model 1 arm lock, the sole needs to rest reasonably flat on the ground at address.

My biggest problem with the Kuchar Model 1 was getting the putter to sit correctly at address. The lie angle was fine, but when I played the ball in the middle of my stance the putter had too little loft. That meant the back flange of the putter was raised too far off the ground. When I played the ball more forward in my stance, which added loft and lowered the back flange, my shoulders opened to the target and I had a tendency to pull my putts.

The solution for me was adding 2 degrees more loft to the putter. That gave the putter enough loft for me to play the ball in the center of my stance, and allowed me to use the same setup and mechanics as I would with a short putter. But because the arm-lock style stabilized the grip and positioned my hands much farther in front of the ball, my wrists stayed solid and my stroke had a straighter path with less face rotation.

Tips from Kuchar

According to Kuchar, the arm lock putting style works best when (right-handed) golfers dominate the stroke with their left arms. The best way to practice this, he says, is to take the right hand off the putter and hit putts with the left arm only.

Since Kuchar is 6-foot 4-inches tall, he uses a Model 1 arm lock that is 44.75 inches. That gives him what he considers to be the ideal length, with the grip resting about 2 inches below the crook of his elbow. While length isn’t as critical as loft or lie in the arm-lock style, golfers might want to look at adjusting the putter’s length based on their body type.

Kuchar also recommends a ball position that is in the center of the stance, which I found to be the most natural way to use the putter as well. Don’t be surprised, however, if a centered ball position requires a loft adjustment. Everyone’s arm length and posture are a little different, so the 7 degrees of loft and 71 degree lie angle that works perfectly for Kuchar may or may not work for you.

Looks and Feel

The strangest part of the Kuchar Model 1 arm lock putter is the 2.5 shaft offset, which Bettinardi says works with the added loft of the putter to launch the ball correctly at impact. While it’s a shock to the system at first, the offset looks a lot more natural once the putter is soled.

Once golfers get used to the offset, they’ll enjoy the putter’s clean, classic shape. They’ll probably also enjoy its Pewter PVD finish, which has hints of blue that blend beautifully with the blue paint fill on the sole and on the face. That theme is carried over on the grey 19-inch belly putter grip with blue letters, and on the head cover as well, which is white and blue.

Both the sole of the putter and head cover have designs that include Matt Kuchar’s signature. While most golfers will think it’s cool to play a club that receives an endorsement from one of the best golfers in the world, I can’t imagine that tour players or aspiring tour players who may be competing against Kuchar are wild about it.

They might change their tune (or switch head covers and buy lead tape) when they try the putter, however, because it’s one of the best-feeling 100 percent milled putters I’ve ever tested. Unlike other manufacturers, Bettinardi is not claiming that its F.I.T. Face does anything to enhance performance. But it certainly provides the soft, solid feel that the company says it does.

The Takeaway

Golfers will know pretty quickly if arm lock putters are right for them. All it takes is a few strokes on a practice putting green to find out if they’re on to something or not.

If they’re willing to give arm lock putting a try, they can’t go wrong with Bettinardi’s Kuchar Model 1, which is the most premium arm lock putter on the market. If they want a slightly different look, they can also try Bettinardi’s Kuchar Model 2 arm lock, which has the same specs but has a wider, rounder pear shape with a longer sightline that’s a little easier to aim.

If you buy one, don’t forget to spend the extra time and money to have the putter fit to you. It will enhance the consistency of your setup, alignment, stroke and ball roll. Most importantly, it will give you the confidence and peace of mind to hole more putts. Isn’t that why you decided to try the arm-lock style in the first place?

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Equipment

Masters gear roundup: Limited-edition bags, balls, and more

Published

8 mins ago

Apr 9, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

The Masters in itself is a huge tradition in the world of golf, but it also brings its own traditions with it. One of the big ones for us golf equipment fans is the limited edition gear that is influenced by the season’s first major championship.

Around tournament time, companies big and small offer bags, balls, and accessories that are designed with the colors and history of the Masters Tournament.

Here is some of the gear that we will see this weekend out on the lush, green grass of Augusta.

Callaway

The land Augusta National sits on was once a nursery. Callaway looks to be celebrating that history this year. Colorful flowers are used all over the side panels on the staff bag and on top of the headcovers. Callaway also did some limited edition Chrome Tour golf balls with azalea patterns.

Mizuno

There might not be a green bag here for Mizuno, but they know how to celebrate the Masters! This year, Mizuno is offering Mizuno Pro 241 “Azalea” irons to a limited number of lucky customers. A new green iridescent finish is applied to the heads and some beautiful colored ferrules bring some floral color to the irons. If you are lucky enough to grab a set, you will be impressed by the green display box the irons come in as well!

TaylorMade

This year’s staff bag goes a little heavier on a metallic green color to pay homage to the first major of the year. If you look closely at the details, you will notice shiny gold accent pieces, a small Amen Corner, and an inner lining with Georgia peaches. The headcovers are made from matching metallic green fabric and feature “88th” embroidery for the number of Masters tournaments that have been played. TaylorMade’s TP5x Pix golf balls come in a case that looks, and feels, like a peach!

Srixon

Srixon’s bag for the 2024 Masters goes heavy on green and white with a more simple and classic design on the outside. When you unzip the pockets you will treated to a hidden inner lining that has Georgia’s state fruit, the peach, printed all over. Heck, Srixon even included the pit! Headcovers are matching white and green but have a look that reminds you of the iconic Masters scoreboard.

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Whats in the Bag

WITB Time Machine: Tiger Woods’ winning WITB, 2019 Masters

Published

2 hours ago

Apr 9, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

At the 2019 Masters, Tiger Woods famously ended an 11-year major championship drought. When Francesco Molinari faltered during the final round, Woods pounced. With a Sunday 70, he captured his fifth green jacket and 15th major championship.

Check out what Tiger had in the bag below.

Driver: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ White 60 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade M5 (13 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ White 70 TX

5-wood: TaylorMade M3 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ White 80 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P7TW (3-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind Raw (56, 60)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS

Ball: Bridgestone TourB XS

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

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Equipment

Best irons in golf of 2024: Pure enjoyment

Published

5 hours ago

Apr 9, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

In our effort to assemble the 2024 best irons, we have again compiled an expert panel of fitters to help you find out which of the 2024 irons is best for your game.

Ultimately the best way to find your personal best iron set is to work with a professional fitter using a launch monitor. The difficult part is a lot of people don’t have easy access to fitters, launch monitors, and club builders — so at GolfWRX, we have done a lot of the work for you.

We are in the era of not just maximizing distance but also minimizing the penalty of common misses for each player — this applies to irons just as much as it does with any other club in the bag. And of course, proper set makeup and gapping is essential. This is why, now more than ever, custom fitting is essential to help you see results on every swing you make.

We want to give you the tools and information to go out and find what works best for you by offering recommendations for your individual iron set wants and needs with insight and feedback from the people who work every single day to help golfers get peak performance out of their equipment.

Join the discussion about best irons 2024 in the forums!

Best irons of 2024: The process

The best fitters in the world see all the options available in the marketplace, analyze their performance traits, and pull from that internal database of knowledge and experience like a supercomputer when they are working with a golfer.

It’s essentially a huge decision tree derived from experience and boiled down to a starting point of options—and it has nothing to do with a handicap!

Modern iron sets are designed into player categories that overlap the outdated “what’s your handicap?” model, and at GolfWRX we believe it was important to go beyond handicap and ask specific questions about the most crucial performance elements fitters are looking at.

These are the best iron categories we have developed to help you determine which category is most important for your swing and game.

Best irons of 2024: The categories

Overall performance
Easiest to launch/Slower swing speed
Pure enjoyment
Shotmakers
Most technology-packed
Best blade

2024 Best irons: Pure enjoyment

We continue to see an overlap in the way fitters in this category define the top irons. The most playable irons are the most likely to be higher launching, and shots that fly higher make the game more enjoyable for everyone. This reiterates our belief that your iron selection should not be defined by your handicap but instead by what gives you the best opportunity to play your best — and most enjoyable — golf.

Join the discussion about best irons 2024 in the forums!

Ping G430

Their story: Billed as Ping’s “longest iron ever,” the G430 irons combine a lower CG with stronger, custom- engineered lofts and a thinner face that delivers up to two more mph of ball speed, per the company. At the heart of the new addition is the PurFlex cavity badge, an innovation that features seven flex zones that allow more free bending in design to increase ball speed across the face. In combination with a lower CG, the badge aims to contribute to a solid feel and pleasing impact sound.

Fitter comments:

“The best G.I. iron on the market. Easy to hit and launch while making great ball speed for distance.”
“The best iron in the game improvement category. High launch and packed with forgiveness on those off-center hits. It’s one of the easiest irons to hit. So easy to hit and look at for the average golfer.”
“Yeah, I mean, that’s definitely a go-to and in the matrix for sure. I mean, it’s just super easy to hit, super forgiving. They don’t mess that iron up.”
“Ping does a great job of building golf clubs. Their design is fantastic and it’s not for everybody, you know, it’s not the lowest-spinning club…but it sure is one of the most forgiving golf clubs and most consistent golf clubs. Ping G430 in that category of club, you can have something that a good player who needs a little help maybe can use because it’s consistent across the face, and you can’t do that with some of the other clubs because they’re not as consistent across the face for the ball speeds. It is a monster for us.”
“The best iron in the game improvement category. It’s one of the easiest irons to hit.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

TaylorMade P790

Their story: Engineers utilized the variables of tungsten weighting, SpeedFoam Air, and internal mass — with an assist from AI — to precisely give golfers what they need in each iron. For example, launch and forgiveness in the long irons. More specifically, TaylorMade is using what the company calls FLTD CG (flighted CG) to strategically position CG throughout the set (lower in the long irons, higher in the short irons). CG is positioned almost a millimeter lower in the long irons compared to previous generations. In the shorter irons, the higher CG positions allowed engineers to dial in spin and promote accuracy.

Fitter comments:

“Best combination of everything. The amalgamation of all irons on the market blended into one mathematically perfect design.”
“I think people recognize the name. It’s a very popular club. It stands up to every model in a category.”
“That’s the staple in the players distance category. It’s year-in, year-out. It’s tough to beat TaylorMade — they don’t go wrong with that iron, for sure. They make little refinements, but it’s almost like, yeah, just keep making little refinements. Don’t kind of mess that up just because the, I mean, it, it fits such a wide range of players and it’s just such a good iron that fits a wide, wide range of handicaps.”
“I think where TaylorMade kind of struggled over the past is getting that spin on the golf club, and I think each generation it just keeps getting better. I think they did an awesome job.”
“If it’s not our best-selling iron in the fitting center, it’s always like number two. It’s such a great, great performer across the board. And yeah, it just keeps getting better every year. It’s really awesome; crazy distance on that thing too.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Srixon ZX5 Mk II

Their story: MainFrame v2 was developed with an Automated Intelligence process, flex-maximizing variable thickness pattern of grooves, channels, and cavities carefully milled into the backside of Z ZX5 iron faces for high ball speeds. Not only does MainFrame boost COR, but it also repositions mass away from the face and into the toe and sole for a lower CG for easier launch, more consistency, and forgiveness.

Fitter comments:

“I’m a big believer in the V-Sole. For high-speed guys who want a little forgiveness and are steep, it just doesn’t stick in the ground. Super soft and high launching. Not a ton of offset. It’s also been a good fit for moderate-to-high handicappers.”
“So I would say it, it kind of stands out in its category because it does launch higher than its competitors. It also sits in between some of the models, like, it doesn’t directly compete with a hollow cavity and it doesn’t compete with, like the Cobra King Tour. Like, it’s a degree stronger. For a forged iron, it performs great for us. The only problem is that it is a little bit light in a swing weight, so we have to be careful of who we fit.”
“It’s definitely one of our more popular irons for sure. You know, you get a guy who wants to play something small but still wants something more forgiving, and they don’t want kind of that full hollow body iron. I mean, that’s definitely one of our best sellers for sure. We’re seeing that a lot of combos — that’s a one iron that you can definitely combo with the ZX7 for sure.”
“I think a lot of guys like the concept of the V-Sole with them…If you’re talking an overall package, you know, for the guy that is looking for something clean. That’s a spectacular golf club. Good looks and good feel and great, you know, great performance, and it fits a lot of categories.”
“I think the one struggle a lot of companies have with that category is getting something to spin, so to try and give like guys so they don’t get those knuckleball shots or that fly out of the rough that goes 20 yards longer. I kind of think that that’s what I think makes that item so good is you get some spin on it, and I think it, it looks and feels good enough that like it, a guy that’s a mid-single digit can play it and be like, yeah, that’s good enough for me. But it’s also forgiving enough that a guy that’s in that kind of 12-to-15 kind of category if he wants to reach a little bit and play something that might look a little bit better. It just fits such a huge, huge range of players. I think it’s just awesome.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Mizuno JPX923 Hot Metal

Their story: “With the JPX923 Hot Metal, Mizuno introduces “4355 nickel chromoly,” which is 35 percent stronger than the original Hot Metal material and allows for an eight-percent thinner clubface. Cup face construction works in tandem with a deep center of gravity for high launch with stopping power. Mizuno developed Hot Metal Pro, Hot Metal and Hot Metal HL (High Launch) from 175,000 real golf swings recorded via Mizuno’s Swing DNA system.”

Fitter comments:

“These are great for a player who flips at the ball but also needs some help and forgiveness. The strong lofts help reduce a player’s launch and spin.”
“Great forgiveness with the feel that Mizuno is known for.”
“Great looking and great feeling irons.”
“If I had a player come in, that’s just your, you know, your average golfer. It’s one that is like, “Hey, this is, this is one to try.” This is gonna produce a lot of ball speed and is super forgiving. You can combo it really well. Mizuno does a great job where you can do combo sets just with lofts.”
“It’s very good. It’s one of the most popular. Always in the mix of game improvement irons when people come in and they want to hit something that’s forgiving and that also still feels less clicky.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Titleist T200

Their story: If there were gripes about the previous generation of T200 irons, it was probably because of feel and sound at impact. Titleist heard your feedback on the previous T200 irons, and it listened. The new 2023 T200 irons have a reengineered chassis to create a stiffer structure and create a more stable feeling and muted sound. They also refined the Max Impact Technology within the head to sit closer to the L-face, further solidifying the feel.

Fitter comments:

“Best overall for us. Great looks, workability. Plenty of forgiveness.”
“I like the great look of these and they are easy to play for the average golfer.”
“That’s a big combo iron for sure, especially, but it’s also, you know, in that player distance category, it’s one of the higher launching ones, and it’s gonna spin a little bit more. I would say some of those irons in that category they launch, you know, they’ve launched a little bit lower and they don’t spin, which it is great for some players, but also some still want to play a smaller package.”
“I think it was definitely a big jump from the previous one. Yeah, I mean, one thing I’ve noticed is compared to some of the other irons, even kind of equal loft, it tends to get a little bit more height on it.”
“It’s great for one of those guys that if I get in there that’s kind of hitting a little low. It’s one to kind of throw in my hands…you’re seeing that initial launch kind of pick up a little bit compared to some of the other ones.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.