Would you pay the same for a putter as you would for a driver?

[slowhand]

I have always hankered after a Scotty Cameron putter. I love the yway they look, the way they sit and feel (i've never properly tested one on the putting green) but always been put off by the price. However, with the cost of a driver at about £450, and only using it at most 14 shots a round, actually less around my home course, I was wondering if in fact they are as relatively expensive as they seem. So I was wondering if forumers would pay driver money for a putter, (Scotty, Toulon, Ping Vault etc.)? Would it depend on your perceived ability at golf (high/low handicap)?

 

[robinthehood]

No problem here, I find it strange some will scoff at spending hundreds on a putter, but no problem with the same on the latest TM driver.

 

[Orikoru]

Well I wouldn't pay £400 for a putter no, because there's a vast array of good putters that cost considerably less than that.

But generally speaking, I believe there's a lot more technology going into the top drivers than you'd really see in putters. For drivers you've got forgiveness of the face/head, the shaft in it, aerodynamics etc etc. Whereas with putters I feel that you just need one with the right length and weight (and look) and you're good to go, irrespective of how much it costs.

 

[ger147]

Yes.

I currently have a Scotty Cameron which is my 3rd Scotty. It was cheaper than my driver but not by much.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Well I wouldn't pay £400 for a putter no, because there's a vast array of good putters that cost considerably less than that.

I think this is the issue. If you want a decent new driver you don't have much choice unless you are prepared to spend upwards of £300 but you can get get lots of very good putters for £150 or less.

 

[jmf1488]

I bought my Scotty Cameron about 6 years ago. 250 brand new was the going rate in them days. Its the oldest club I have in the bag. I do find it tough to spend 400+ on a new driver for it to be sold second hand for 150 quid a couple years later.

 

[slowhand]

I bought my Scotty Cameron about 6 years ago. 250 brand new was the going rate in them days. Its the oldest club I have in the bag. I do find it tough to spend 400+ on a new driver for it to be sold second hand for 150 quid a couple years later.

Scottys do see mto hold their value quite well. I am looking at a second-hand one, so I shouldn't be too much out of pocket if I move it on.

 

[Siolag]

Yes, because the fact there is little to no “tech” in most of them means it won’t be out of date any time soon. I plan to have my Scotty for many years to come.

 

[garyinderry]

I've decided to buy older, almost new putters for a fraction of their original price.

Waiting on delivery of a 2013 ping putter which has barely been used.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Yes, bought my putter 8 yrs ago and have no intention of changing or looking for another one.

The putter is the most important Club in the bag for me.

 

[Imurg]

I think this is the issue. If you want a decent new driver you don't have much choice unless you are prepared to spend upwards of £300 but you can get get lots of very good putters for £150 or less.

And just to back this up..a quick look on Clubhouse golf shows 1 driver at less than £200, 4 between 200 and 250, 8 between 250 and 300 and.....19 over 300.
With putters they have 80 under 200 quid and 85 over 200.
There are a lot of quality putters out there for less than 200 quid...there's not many drivers for the same money...
Personally I've never seen the attraction of Scottys...but they do hold their value
My putter would have been about 149 new and I got it 2nd hand for 80..
No thoughts of changing...

 

[Deleted member 21258]

Yeah paid more for the evnroll putter(approx 200 iirc) than my M2 driver(approx. 140 iirc).

Both second hand tho

 

[robinthehood]

Well I wouldn't pay £400 for a putter no, because there's a vast array of good putters that cost considerably less than that.

But generally speaking, I believe there's a lot more technology going into the top drivers than you'd really see in putters. For drivers you've got forgiveness of the face/head, the shaft in it, aerodynamics etc etc. Whereas with putters I feel that you just need one with the right length and weight (and look) and you're good to go, irrespective of how much it costs.

Yeah i'd probably not pay 400 for driver or a putter.. But tbf i've only has 2 putters in the last 15 years and I sold my scotty for more than I paid ??? Now happily using a TM spider mini I bought of a mate for 120

 

[Orikoru]

Yeah i'd probably not pay 400 for driver or a putter.. But tbf i've only has 2 putters in the last 15 years and I sold my scotty for more than I paid ??? Now happily using a TM spider mini I bought of a mate for 120

Yeah, further to what I was saying about technology - once you find the right putter there's no real need to change, because it's not going to be superseded by some new tech in putters. It's just about getting the weight and feel right. I was fitted for my putter 3 and a half years ago and I've had no thoughts of ever changing it. Whereas with drivers they reckon it's worth getting one every 4 years or so due to the advances made.

 

[Springveldt]

Paid £120 for my putter (Ping Karsten TR Anser 2) which I've had for 4 years now. Would I pay £400 for a putter? If it came with a proper fitting and was proven to be better than my current one then yes, as a putter isn't something you really need to change that often.

I've never paid full price for a driver though, not sure I ever would either. I'll happily try out new ones and see what shaft suits me then buy it the next year when it's half the price.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Never been drawn to Scotty's and got a milled face Odyssey at a fraction of the Scotty price. If I was going to go for something akin to their Newport style (anser type) I'd look at the Ping milled face version first as I think that would be a cheaper option. I get the reasons why Scotty's are so expensive (think Mark Crossfield did some videos at the Scotty HQ 4-5 years ago which were really interesting) but even when I tried a host of them at a GM day at Silvermere none jumped out as being any better than what I had. However in answer to the original question I would be prepared to pay as much as I pay for a driver but again, I never buy the top priced drivers out there at c+£400 but I would pay say £300 if a putter really worked for me

 

[pendodave]

Yep, but I wouldn't pay more than £150 for either.

 

[Chico84]

I’ve always wondered how a putter can command such a high price given the relative lack of technology that goes into them. I’m assuming that with a Scotty it is more about the craftsmanship that it takes to mill them and you pay for the privilege of using a work of art to do the job another putter could do for a fraction of the cost. Just my view.

Whilst I realise a lot of hype surrounds driver development on the whole there does seem to be a reasonable performance increase every four or five years that would warrant spending the money (or buying second hand a year or so behind the curve). I do wonder if this may become a longer interval in the future though - almost an inverse of Moore’s law if you will.

 

[patricks148]

why not... TBH none of the scottys have cost me more the £200, but if it worked and helped my putting i'd pay what the cost was

 

[AdamC28]

Yes, because the fact there is little to no “tech” in most of them means it won’t be out of date any time soon. I plan to have my Scotty for many years to come.

Exactly this, I am happy to spend money on a putter as it is likely to be in my bag for a lot longer than a driver. Driver tech chenges so quickly that you would expect to see a reasonable increase in performance if bought 5 years apart, not so much with putters.