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MGS Tested: 2015’s Most Wanted Mallet Putter

BY Dave Wolfe
Aug 13th 2015
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Most Wanted Mallet Putter 2015

Yesterday you saw the big list of putters we evaluated in our 2015 Most Wanted Mallet Putter Test.

Today we show you how they performed. As with all MyGolfSpy testing, logos and name means nothing. Performance is everything. And our new scoring system is the most accurate way to test performance regarding player putter efficiency.

You don’t likely have the time to test twenty-eight putters, but we do. Our 2015 Most Wanted tests will point you toward the best putters in the marketplace. We’re not talking about the most popular putters, we’re talking about the putters that actually perform.

How We Test

Strokes Gained (developed initially by Professor Mark Broadie of Columbia Business School) putting has been approved by the industry and golfers as the most accurate and important way to present player putter efficiency. This statistic simply measures the average number of putts a player takes over 18 holes.

The final Strokes Gained 18 number you see is the number of strokes you can expect to drop off your score for a 18 hole round of golf. As we mentioned yesterday, MyGolfSpy scoring is based upon the Strokes Gained putting statistic. Like years previous, our testers putted from 5, 10, and 20 foot distances, but rather than measuring radial accuracy, this year we are looking at strokes gained vs. the average.

For more details about the test itself, visit our How We Test page.

The Results

The Most Wanted Mallet Putter will be the one that allows you to put lower numbers on your scorecard. That’s what matters, and that is why this system of assessment was adopted.

*Hover over any column title in the dynamic chart below to enable sort features. If the chart doesn’t load, please click here for a static version.

The Top 10

All of the putters placing in the Most Wanted Top 10 produced positive strokes gained values, ranging from the PING Cadence Ketsch TR Heavy’s 1.8 to the Cleveland Classic 2i’s 0.43. What that means to you is that all of these putters should help you to make more putts.

PING Cadence TR Ketsch Heavy

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MLA Golf Tour Classic

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Bputters Panther

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Kronos Mandala

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Scotty Cameron Futura X5

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Odyssey Works Versa 2-Ball Fang

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PING Cadence TR Rustler Standard

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Edel Golf E1

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Bellum Winmore NOLA

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Cleveland Classic 2i

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The Rest of the Field

Though the first few putters in this section still provided our testers with a strokes gained advantage, here is where we see the putters that provided average performance, or actually performed below average compared to the cohort. Remember, a negative strokes gained value actually means that you are giving strokes back, causing your score to go up!

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Dave Wolfe

Driver TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus	Fairways TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus
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Ball Titleist -Pro V1x

Dave Wolfe

comments

Join The Discussion

Casey

9 years ago

In the preview picture showing all 28 putters what is the one second from the left in the top line?

It has no sight lines? I cannot seem to find it in the list at all….am I losing my mind?

Please help I really want to find it.

Dave Wolfe

9 years ago

That’s the Edel E1.

Sven Hallauer

9 years ago

So, is the PING Cadence TR Ketsch Heavy a more accurate putter than last years winner? Meaning, is it worth to upgrade if I’m enjoying the original Ping Ketsch putter?

Andrew Han

9 years ago

This and along with the blade putter test are interesting and I like it is data driven. Since MGS are testing putters without feel, can we have robots perform the test? Since we have swing machines, I am sure there are machines for putters. Couple that with putts on a true roll mat to have a very controlled environment. Maybe these results should be coupled with the results above with human testers.

BTW, anyway we can get a drill-down on handicap performance or have a Tableau reader file for us that have Tableau reader?

Jason

9 years ago

Great test team. Yes we can all sit here and nit-pick about the testing methodology, putters missing from the test and this and that but as you have limited time, limited budget and limited resources this is the best un-bias, real-world test that is out there on the internet. I was looking forward to see how the Ketsch would perform and it’s good to see the Heavy version was 1st but the lighter version surprised by being so low down the pecking order.

And $560 for the Kronos Mandala putter ?! Does this company think we all have a money tree growing in the backyard ?

Bob

9 years ago

Jason, while I enjoy reading the articles and certainly enjoy the discussion we really can not say the results come close to real world and un-biased when the author has not presented his test method nor setup. All we know from the article is that a number of golfers of unknown abilities hit some number of putts from three distances. We don’t know the kind of surface, the ability nor age nor height of the testers, and we don’t know how the data was complied to get to the strokes gained. Data driven test results is only as good as the method used.

Jason

9 years ago

Having a “number of golfers of unknown abilities hit some number of putts from three distances” is simulating a real world situation in my view.

Does knowing the speed of the greens, the height of the golfer (and I’m assuming you’d want to know the arm length and shaft length to make sure it is fitted properly) and the age (?!) of the tester really affect the results and the interpretation of the data ? I think you are over-complicating and overthinking this whole exercise.

The putter’s main role is to get the little white ball into the hole…pure and simple and this test explores that premise.

Michael

9 years ago

I wish Ping would have sent the Ketsch Mid as well. I prefer the mid size and would love to know how it compares to the full size before I pull the trigger.

SPY ZINGER

9 years ago

Nicely done once again, Dave. I knew the Fang would do well this year. Would be interested to see how last year’s Ketch would perform against this years #1.

Joro

9 years ago

These “tests” are baloney.. It all depends on who uses it and what they do with it. There are many fine mallet Putters but only the new s tuff is tested and we know people change like they change their sox. These tests are nothing but marketing tools. A good Putter is weighted and balanced right, looks good, feels good and has they right grip for you and if that all rings well you have the right Putter.

But many will run right and get one, so it works.

Brute

9 years ago

Interesting approach, but it really only says what the top putter is for that testing day. If they came back tomorrow and some had more or less sugar for breakfast that morning than yesterday, some had more or less coffee, and others had different amounts of sleep from the previous night, the results no doubt would be different. Maybe someone’s stroke is more steady so he putts a certain putter better than previously, or shakier. I think to make this legit, you need to do this over 3 days at least to average out the results and t would be more accurate. But I only test defense systems for the military, this is far more serious and complex… includes the human element!

Seliano

9 years ago

Where is the M of Mati putters ?

Vlaf

9 years ago

Thank you for this test which gives interesting facts. However, the confidence of the player in his putter is the key. Handicap 20, I have been playing the heavy Ping Ketsch for 2 months (8-10 rounds) and I am not performing, for 2 reasons: 1) too much clear lines that does’nt fit with my intuitive approach and 2) weight too heavy that gives me the feeling that I will putt too long (therefore, I play too short). I am going to test the SC Futura X5R, and will compare (and let you know the result).

davo

9 years ago

As a 20 handicap, you may not want to be blaming the clubs. It’s possible there is something else going on….

Gordon

9 years ago

explain which putter will be best suited fora person that always pushes one put .
Please show picture of the putters recomended

Donn

9 years ago

Do you know of any tests that included Musty wood putters? have u ever reviewed or tested a Musty?

Thomas Murphy

9 years ago

Nice day for Ping with Lingmerth having the putting day on the day they are announced as back to back winners here. What is bizarre is the disparity between performance you had for heavy vs. regular and that this wasn’t consistent across even the ping line. I haven’t looked at the data but the blade winner did have a stronger performance than the mallet. What I really want to see with the datacratic approach is to create a little more drill down. How did scoring performance vary by handicap? IE is a specific putter better at strokes gained for higher handicapper and less effective for low handicap? If you have a low handicap is it just a closing of the gaps everywhere or a different club that may be better? And what of putter fitting…you have a bunch of players, I am sure they were not all the same height, same hand size, same stroke style. So what we know at this point is if you pull a “standard” putter of the shelf and hand it to the average golfer, on average the Ping Ketsch heavy and the Carbon are the best choices… data good…but needs some analysis.
One more question are all putts of each length taken from the same location? Are the putts flat, or a mix of up/down/left/right, etc? Were putters used in “random” order? If you hit all the putts from same spots and work in non-random order the data is statistically invalid because it is impacted by learning.

Dave S

9 years ago

I agree, I would like to see more sortable data (I feel like additional data – i.e. sorting by HCP – was available a few years ago in thes MGS MW tests). Don’t get me wrong, I think the new SGP stat is hands-down the best way to measure performance, but like Thomas, I wish we could look deeper into the result. Also, as Thomas notes, it looks like the top blade did better than the top mallet… however, there’s no way for us to really know, since it wasn’t disclosed if the same group of people tested both sets.

Jason

9 years ago

Chiming in on he Ketsch. Interesting that the Heavy won best overall and was one of the best on short puts whilst the “Standard” was worst on short distances. Understand that you are just reporting the results as they occurred but this seems an anomaly. Also, it would have been good to have a “Strokes Gained” from each distance with an average total (as per your final result).

Bernie

9 years ago

Sooo, last year’s winner, the Ketsch standard (my putter), is now -0.46 and out of the top ten while it’s overweight brother, wins the whole shebang at almost 2.0…and the only difference is 33 mgs of weight in the head? Not sure I understand the testing!

Benny Hogan

9 years ago

love the ketsch. best mallet out there!

ParHunter

9 years ago

Just saw the ping ketch normal in the static list (the other list want showing on the iPhone )
The difference between the heavy and the normal one is quite big. SGP +1.2 for the heavy vs about -0,4 for the normal version.

While for the rustler the standard performed better.

That doesn’t sound right to me. I could understand if the heavier versions would always be better than the lighter one or the other way round.

I have the feeling the number of samples is not high enough.

Jamie

9 years ago

Where are you seeing the results for the “normal” Ketsch at?

Jamie

9 years ago

I would have also liked to have seen the Ketsch mid tested.

ParHunter

9 years ago

What happened to the ping ketch normal putter that was in the list as well. I can’t see it anywhere only the heavy version.

I find it strange that the standard version of the ping rustler (7th) is 10 places better than the other version of it.

Clay

9 years ago

People should keep in mind that this statistic is an average of all of the testers combined, it does not mean the Ketsch is the best putter for everyone or that the happy putter is the worst.

The putter that won is not automatically the best putter for everyone, I have tried every configuration of the ketsch and hate it, it does not line up to my eye correctly. Use this as a starting point or a reference tool, but roll a putter before you buy it.

Bob

9 years ago

I’m a bit confused on how exactly your results reflect your test setup. A player putts from 3 distances and continues to putt until the ball is holed. If it is better than average he “gains” strokes. You present us with total putts from various distances, what does this number mean? Total putts to get in the hole by a certain number of players over a certain number of tries? Does the #1 putter shine from 20 feet or from 5 feet?

I’m really not sure how to interpret your data and more importantly how you arrived at #1 putter using this data?.

Pete S

9 years ago

Very interesting results. I’m especially surprised about the discrepancy between the different weights of the 6 PING models. The heavier Ketsch was so much better than it’s std weight counterpart, yet in the Rustler and the B65 the standard weight putter outperformed the heavier model.

Bryan

9 years ago

Some of the putters tested I wouldn’t even call mallets. Seems flawed that certain mallets were left out… No daddy long legs, no odyssey #7, no odyssey v-line, etc.

Dave Wolfe

9 years ago

Though you may not see some of these as mallets, the companies that make them do and that is how we classified them. As for any missing models, submission was up to the companies. They submitted the models that they felt would be most accurate. Feel free to ask TaylorMade about the DDL, or check last year’s test when the DDL did participate.

In terms of Odyssey, who chose not to participate this year, the most iconic of their mallets was selected. Though the #7 is also a strong mallet, it does not have the longevity of the 2-Ball.

Matt

9 years ago

I have the Happy Putter blade and it is the best putter I have ever used. Further, a friend had the mallet and he also claimed it was the best putter he ever used. I don’t understand how it could be at the bottom of this list unless testers did not adjust the putter to their benefit.

Dave Wolfe

9 years ago

The Happy Putter is one of the most adjustable putters in the market. Seriously, lots of possible adjustments. They even have an app to help with those adjustments. I have no doubt that it could be fit to many individuals and perform well. This test is not about custom fitting all of the testers though.

The companies are asked to submit their most accurate putter(s), and I hand them to the testers the way that I receive them.

Who makes the best custom fit putter is an interesting topic as well, but not what this is all about.

Matt

9 years ago

That makes sense. Thanks for your response.

Scott

9 years ago

Very interesting although I wonder if more data is needed. For example, the heavy ketsch wins over last year’s winner which was the standard model. But the standard weight version of two other PINGs bested their heavier versions.

I’d also be interested in seeing if they replicated the test, would we get the same results.

Michael L. Fults

9 years ago

I concur with Tom on a previous post. Bellum Winmore has indeed made great strides. My two putters by them are great. Keep up the good work.

Greg

9 years ago

I find it interesting you wouldn’t include an Odyssey #7, but would include the Cameron #7 knockoff.

mygolfspy

9 years ago

Callaway once again declined to participate.

If you are not seeing a company or a putter model represented that you like, feel free to encourage them to participate more next year.

ThinkingOfGolf

9 years ago

The Odyssey 2-Ball Fang is a Callaway putter and was included so #7 should have as well.

Tod

9 years ago

How could you leave Bobby Grace putters out of this test?

Fozcycle

9 years ago

This is great!

I am gaming the Ping Ketsch from last years’s model…..

Very interesting to see the Happy putter not smiling.

Apprenti23

9 years ago

Another awesome test guys! Thanks for always giving up the cold hard FACTS!

I knew that stupid happy putter BS was going to finish DFL!

Dave S

9 years ago

I purchased the Ping Cadence TR Ketsch Heavy this year and it’s the best putter I’ve ever used. Not one bit suprised by the outcome.

Imanoff

9 years ago

Interesting to see the Ketsch won the 2014 and 2015 mallet putter.

Tom

9 years ago

Great work out of Bellum Winmore this year! Love their putters. Did well in this and the blade testing.

dave

9 years ago

Great work. Keep it up.

Scott

9 years ago

Curious why so many Ping and Cleveland putters were tested, but only 1 Odyssey and 1 Scotty Cameron?

Kenny B

9 years ago

Great test as always! I love the testing approach and honest evaluation using real data. Keep up the good work and Thanks!

Interesting that the top putters are heavier than what we have had in the past. It seems to be trending that way. I would be curious how they decided how much weight should be used in the head and how much counterweight is required. Why did the choose 388 or 370? Why not 390 0r 400? My question really is: “If these heavier putters are better performers, would people putt even better with an even heavier putter?” The answer for me is Yes. I have been playing the Boccieri Heavy Putter for several years and it’s much heavier than any of these. I am currently building a 32in Cleveland Classic putter from their belly putter because its head weight is 400g.

dan

9 years ago

I’m curious…what was the height range of the tester?

SPY ZINGER

9 years ago

It wasn’t me but if it were, it would be 5’Perfect.

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