what is the golf industries fasination with offset putters?

[garyinderry]

what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

pretty much every putter I own or have owned has been an offset putter? check the racks in American golf and you may struggle to find a putter without offset.


I have a seemore and bullseye putter which is the closest I have to no offset. I don't particularly like to have shaft lean with the putter. I seem to putt best with a no offset straight shaft putter.


So what is this fascination with offset all about then?

 

[tsped83]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

It helps the majority? Not sure mate but having tried all manner of putters from inserts to milled, centre shafted to plumbers neck, blade to mallet, I find that offset helps me square the putter face and keeps my hands ahead. I have done rigourous testing (read "ebaying") on this front and I have proved a point.

Each to their own of course.

 

[Three]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Keeps the hands ahead I guess.

So ideal for most people except Thaworn Wiratchant, Zach Johnson and Gary in Derry

 

[GG26]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

I use a cheap non-offset bullseye Fazer putter, which I bought back in the 1980s. Personally I prefer it to offset ones.

 

[garyinderry]

Keeps the hands ahead I guess.

So ideal for most people except Thaworn Wiratchant, Zach Johnson and Gary in Derry

Rebels

 

[delc]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

pretty much every putter I own or have owned has been an offset putter? check the racks in American golf and you may struggle to find a putter without offset.


I have a seemore and bullseye putter which is the closest I have to no offset. I don't particularly like to have shaft lean with the putter. I seem to putt best with a no offset straight shaft putter.


So what is this fascination with offset all about then?

Probably because it helps the majority of players. Same thing with offset irons. I personally hate offset, being a player who tends to draw or hook the ball, but unless you go for blade type clubs, that is all you can buy! My other bugbear with putters is their length. Generally they only come in 34 or 35 inch lengths, which is fine if you six feet or more tall, but not so good if you are a bit shorter. Of course you can cut them down, but that generally involves fitting a new grip and the swing weight is reduced. Why can't properly weighted putters be available off the shelf at 32 and 33 inch lengths? I am 5'10" tall and use a 33" long putter BTW.

 

[Three]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Probably because it helps the majority of players. Same thing with offset irons. I personally hate offset, being a player who tends to draw or hook the ball, but unless you go for blade type clubs, that is all you can buy! My other bugbear with putters is their length. Generally they only come in 34 or 35 inch lengths, which is fine if you six feet or more tall, but not so good if you are a bit shorter. Of course you can cut them down, but that generally involves fitting a new grip and the swing weight is reduced. Why can't properly weighted putters be available off the shelf at 32 and 33 inch lengths? I am 5'10" tall and use a 33" long putter BTW.

33 is a standard length too, plenty available.
If you buy from a pro shop it shouldn't take them 10 minutes to cut any putter down to 32 or whatever you want.

 

[BubbaP]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Ever tried a centre shafted putter?

 

[delc]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

33 is a standard length too, plenty available.
If you buy from a pro shop it shouldn't take them 10 minutes to cut any putter down to 32 or whatever you want.

33" putters are usually Ladies ones, which is fine if you want a small diameter, pretty pink grip! There is still the swing weighting and balance issues if they are cut down!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Nope. Look online at many internet retailers and you can order 33" without a problem without it being a ladies putter.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Never had an offset head putter. Don't like look of them. Started with a Golden Goose; then an Acushnet Bullseye, and recently changed to an Odyssey White Hot Pro #2 Center Shaft. And in 40 yrs that's my lot. Offset? Whassat?

 

[Three]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

33" putters are usually Ladies ones, which is fine if you want a small diameter, pretty pink grip! There is still the swing weighting and balance issues if they are cut down!

No, plenty of men's come in 33. I'm 6ft 2 and mine is about 32.5".

And please, don't perpetuate this myth about swing weight and balance cutting down a putter.....

 

[tsped83]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

33" putters are usually Ladies ones, which is fine if you want a small diameter, pretty pink grip! There is still the swing weighting and balance issues if they are cut down!

If you can tell the difference in swing weight between 33 & 34 inch then you're a fine judge of subtle balance sir. However, I doubt that.

 

[garyinderry]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Ever tried a centre shafted putter?

Yes the see more and bullseye are centre shafted.

Once tried a mates odyssey backstrike putter which is fully onset. frightfully ugly putter which put me off it. would certainly like to try some off the nicer onset putter.

 

[delc]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

If you can tell the difference in swing weight between 33 & 34 inch then you're a fine judge of subtle balance sir. However, I doubt that.

I once cut an old Ping Anser putter down from 35" to 31". The swing weight went down from D2 to A0, checked on my club pro's swing weighting machine. It then felt so light that it was almost unusable, even with quite a lot of lead tape stuck on the head!

 

[Crow]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

I once cut an old Ping Anser putter down from 35" to 31". The swing weight went down from D2 to A0, checked on my club pro's swing weighting machine. It then felt so light that it was almost unusable, even with quite a lot of lead tape stuck on the head!

Did you cut the head end off by mistake?

 

[Robster59]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

I once cut an old Ping Anser putter down from 35" to 31". The swing weight went down from D2 to A0, checked on my club pro's swing weighting machine. It then felt so light that it was almost unusable, even with quite a lot of lead tape stuck on the head!

Well if you are starting with an old Ping Anser then you're starting off with a pretty light head anyway.

I putt with a 33" putter and have never experienced issues.

I have to agree with the comment about the backstryke. Looked so weird from above but I played with one bloke who had one and he putted like a demon.

 

[delc]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Did you cut the head end off by mistake?

No, it was definitely shortened at the butt end. Even taking half-an-inch off a golf club makes a surprisingly big difference to its swing weight, because this is actually the moment arm between a point near the bottom of the grip and the club's balance point. A number of tour pros use shorter than standard putters, and often have lead shot or tungsten powder added to the head or the base of the shaft to weight them back up again.

 

[Maninblack4612]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Amazing to me how almost every manufacturer has a Ping Anser almost identical lookalike. Why didn't Mr. Ping patent the design when it was first made? This kind of putter, with beautiful square lines, is the type I feel most confident with. I have three different makes and putt well with all of them (some of the time!)

 

[delc]

Re: what is the golf industries fascination with offset putters?

Amazing to me how almost every manufacturer has a Ping Anser almost identical lookalike. Why didn't Mr. Ping patent the design when it was first made? This kind of putter, with beautiful square lines, is the type I feel most confident with. I have three different makes and putt well with all of them (some of the time!)

The original version did have a US patent number on it, but I guess this has either expired, or other manufacturers have found ways round it.