Giveaway! – 2015 SuperStroke Grips

By Dave Wolfe

SuperStroke – Now Available EVERYWHERE

SuperStroke is arguably the golf equipment success story of the past five years. Sure, some other companies like Callaway and Wilson Staff have improved their position in the golf market, but nobody has basically come out of nowhere to the extent that SuperStroke has.

In the span of just a couple of years, SuperStroke has gone from a small company making a couple of oversized grips, to a company with a significant golf presence, both on tour and in the retail marketplace.

Not only is SuperStroke is the stock grip for several major putter manufacturers, but Odyssey’s new Odyssey Works Tank Versa putters feature SuperStroke grips as well.

That’s a significant number of putters outfitted with SuperStroke grips, and stock on an entire Odyssey line, well, that’s arguably the pinnacle of exposure for a putter grip manufacturer considering Odyssey’s position as the #1 putter in golf (global retail sales).

What’s a SuperStroke?

Though the golf gearhead can’t fathom that question, I’m willing to bet that some of you reading this are hearing about SuperStroke for the first time. If you’ve seen the large, coloful grips on TV, and didn’t know what they are or what they’re about, well, now you do. Those are made by SuperStroke.

Before we look at the 2015 additions, let’s take make sure the uninitiated are up to speed. Here is what Greg Sabella, SuperStroke’s Vice President of Marketing, had to say about introducing someone to the SuperStroke brand.

That gives the SuperStroke rookie some information about what they are about. Here are two other questions answered on the SuperStroke site:

What makes SuperStroke work?

Oversized grips take away the tendency to squeeze too tightly; at the same time, most unnecessary wrist action is eliminated. In addition, the patented non-tapered grip promotes even grip pressure in both the right and left hands. Together, these characteristics contribute to create a smoother and more consistent putting stroke, a more-square putter face at impact, and a better feel for distance. Electromyographic testing of golfers at the Milwaukee School of Engineering found a 32% reduction in grip tension with the SuperStroke versus a conventional smaller putter grip.

What level of golfer can benefit from SuperStroke?

Any type of golfer, regardless of handicap, male or female, right-handed or left-handed, tall or short, amateur or professional can benefit from the SuperStroke Putter Grip. The SuperStroke Putter Grip is designed to “make any putter better.”

We could delve much deeper into what SuperStroke is all about as a company and their products, but that should be enough information to get most of you to a place where you can see why it’s worth paying attention to this year’s batch of SuperStroke products.

New For 2015

In 2015, SuperStroke has tweaked their existing lines with new graphics, materials, and textures. They have also expanded upon existing lines, like 2014’s popular Flatso. Here is a comparative shot of the Flatso 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 grips. Spieth is earning his millions with the Flatso 1.0, but you may prefer to earn your tens of dollars with a larger grip.

While growing existing lines should keep current SuperStroke users happy, the real story here is the unique new products that SuperStroke has unveiled this year.

New to the SuperStroke line-up are the TX1 club grips, the Plus Series putter grips, and the SS2R Squared Putter grip.

TX1 Club Grips

With the TX1 SuperStroke is made a play to find itself on the rest of the clubs in your. The TX1 is a multi-material grip available in five color combinations The top section of the grip is “soft, tacky cord for increased club control” while the bottom half is “soft, non-cord rubber for enhanced feel and feedback”.

Now right away, some of you (all of you?) are thinking that the TX1 looks (and sounds) a whole lot like Golf Pride’s New Decade Multi-Compound. So how exactly is the TX1 different?

As a long-time GP NDMC user, I was very curious about the TX1. I regripped a few clubs to find out if the TX1s should be mentioned in the same conversation as the New Decades.

Short answer, they should.

While I have not had extensive play time with the TX1 grips, I will say that they are a comfortable replacement option for the New Decade users. For me, it’s a nearly-seamless transition.

The most notable difference is that the New Decades are a bit more aggressive in the cord. Whether that’s good or bad depends almost exclusively on user preference.

The lower section is soft and tacky, and cleans easily. Durability remains an unanswered question, but what I’ve seen suggests they’ll hold up as well as anything else.

Overall, I found that the TX1 was able to give me the play that I have come to expect from multi-material grips. If you play NDMCs, the SuperStroke TX1s may be worth exploring when next you need to regrip.

Plus Series

With the Plus Series, SuperStroke brings the golfer a simple system for counterweigting his existing putter. That anchoring ban is coming fast, and for some counterweighting may be a viable post-anchoring option. If you are unfamiliar with counterweighting, you can learn more about it HERE.

Other companies such as Tour Lock, have been making weights that you can insert into your putter’s shaft for years, but to the best of my knowledge, SuperStroke is the first to pair it with a retail grip offering.

It’s a simple task to insert the 50 gram weight into the grip, requiring only the provided hex key and a bit of pressure.

What I like about the Plus Series grip is that it makes it easy for someone to determine the actual impact adding the weight makes to his or her putting. It takes just a few seconds to add or remove the weight, which means it’s easy to tinker while you’re on the practice green.

The Plus Series grips are a bit longer than the standard SuperStroke offerings. For example, the Flatso 2.0 is 10.50 inches long and the Plus Flatso XL is 13.75 inches. The extra length should provide a few options for finding the hand position that works best for you.

The Plus Series grips come in three different sizes: Plus 2.0 XL, Plus 3.0 XL and Plus Faltso 2.0 XL.

SS2R Squared

How about a square putter grip? Yep, square. The SS2R is new SuperStroke product that I was most curious about. What could possibly be the rationale behind making a square putter grip?

This SS2R Squared is an interesting grip. First, it is WAY more comfortable than I expected. Square implies harsh corners, but that’s not the case here. My rounded palms really seem to mesh well with the shape of the SS2R.

It’s funny, but what putting with the SS2R Squared grip actually reminds me of putting with a round grip. I have an Edel putter grip that is 100% round, and that is what I first thought of when I used the SS2R Squared. Maybe it’s the symmetry of the sides on the SS2R Squared, and the uniform diameter. It’s hard to say, but it’s definitely comfortable.

As for the putting benefit of the SS2R Squared, I don’t have the data to make any claims one way, or the other. I wouldn’t quickly dismiss the SS2R Squared as folly though. Lots of people did that when SuperStroke first hit the scene and I bet many of those same people are playing SuperStroke grips on their putters today.

When EF Hutton Talks…

Do you remember that old ad campaign? Some of you knew immediately that when EF Hutton talked that people listen. That’s how I feel about SuperStroke. When SuperStroke changes something, or makes a new product, it’s worth paying attention. They are a moving forward, and constantly improving type of company that puts real effort into making each year’s products better than the last’s.

Can one of these new SuperStroke products help your game?

Maybe.

They are certainly helping quite a few of your fellow readers play better golf.