The Club Report: PING Anser TR 1966 Putters

Any time that a company introduces a modern take on a classic, it’s risky. Risky because classics are classic for a reason. Perhaps they are classic just because of an emotional attachment that people have for things gone by, or perhaps the older things really were better than what we have today.

If you are of a certain age, I’m willing to bet that some of your earliest golfing memories have a PING putter in there somewhere. I’m not talking 21st century PINGs here, but the older ones. Cushins, Zings, My Days, and Ansers all likely have stories attached to them.

Did you make your first birdie with an Anser 2, or inherit your Pal from a favorite uncle? Odds are some kind of PING putter thread weaves through the fabric of your golfing history.

Companies know that we consumers have emotional attachments to nostalgic products, and as such, they reintroduce these products to profit from said attachments. It’s not unscrupulous, it’s a good marketing plan, and likely giving the consumer what he or she wants anyway.

With PING though, the story is a little different. PING is definitely playing the nostalgia card. That’s why there is a 1966 on these two putters. It’s the 50 year anniversary of the Anser. However, this is also PING, who, in my opinion, is one of the most engineering-driven companies in golf.

If they are releasing something new, by PING’s own standards, it should perform better than what came before it.

That’s the coolest thing about these new putters. PING figured out how to keep the nostalgic elements that tug at our fond memories, while at the same time making these true 2016, not 1966, editions.

Key Elements: PING Anser TR 1966

Old School Style

With the Anser TR 1966 line, you can see right away that PING has made the effort to have these look like their famous ancestors.

One of the most common remarks to come up when we discuss putters is that BRAND X’s new putter is just another Anser clone. We all see the Anser inspiration, but in many cases we almost automatically forgive the copying because PING’s design is just so darn functional. Designs persist because they work.

From the back, and at address, these could very easily have rolled out of the mold decades ago. Not to say that the manufacturing is not modernly precise (of course it is, it’s PING), these just have that vintage look. You won’t find multi-material madness, adjustability, or even any paint color other than white (my orange fitting dot excluded).

Homage to the classics was the intent, and PING has done a solid job of maintaining the classic vibe.

New School Grooves

As I said before though, PING is an engineering-driven company. Sure, they could have just released these as two exact replicas of the old putters, but why not also include some of the modern PING in there?

For the past few seasons now, PING’s TR grooves have been a staple of the new lines. Like the iconic design of the Anser, these grooves keep showing up in new PING putters because they work. The idea of the TR performance, unifying putt distance across the face, may have been developed by other companies before PING, but I don’t remember any other shop being as all in with the tech.

PING’s TR grooves started with the inserts of the 2013 Scottsdale TR line, continued into the Karsten TR line in 2014, and then in the 2015 Cadence TR line.

Along the way, there was also this little mallet called the Ketsch that had the TR grooves, and we all know how that TR putter dominated Most Wanted Putter competitions for the past two years.

And so it stands to reason that PING would also include the TR grooves with these putters. Why not give these the modern tech treatment? The grooves are cut directly into the face, so no insert is required, and the grooves are hidden from all non face-on angles, maintaining the classic look.

It’s like a classic car that has a modern engine under the hood. You would never know until you drive it.

The Grips

While the main story is naturally about the new Anser TR 1966 putters, it’s worth making a quick detour into the grips for a bit.

Do you remember when a whole lot of players, pros included, were using a PING putter grip, even though they were sponsored by someone else? The most famous of these would be the PING Blackout grip used by early 2000’s Tiger Woods. I speculate that the grip came into existence as a compromise between Tiger and Titleist. Something along the lines of “you can use that grip on your putter, but take out the paint fill, and keep winning tournaments”.

The stock midsize PP58 is a great grip, but I think that the real PING grip story this year will be the PP62. The PP62 is the grip that people who traditionally go SuperStroke need to check out. For reference, I typically game a SS MidSlim 2.0, and I love the shape and feel of the PP62. It really fits my hands well, and the texture is comfortable yet responsive. If you see these on the PING putters in your shop, take a few minutes and try out the grip.

I bet that quite a few of these are going to be installed on non-PING putters before the season is over.

Specifications: PING Anser TR 1966

• Models: 2 (Anser and Anser 2)
• Weight: 340g
• Material: 17-4 stainless steel
• Length: 35″ as standard
• Face Milling: True-Roll face technology
• Fit: slight arc stroke type
• Finish: Manganese bronze PVD (Anser)/Blast (Anser 2)
• Shaft: PING Stepped shaft
• Lie: angle adjustable +-4º
• Grip: PP58 midsize black grip
• Price: U.S. MSRP: $162.50

Anser

Original. Iconic. Classic.

Any one of those terms could be used to describe the PING Anser. The cynic could also add often copied to that list, without actually being that cynical.

The Anser has old school charm for days. The look is not polluted with any silly alignment lines. Though not actually manganese bronze, the finish does bring you back to the days when PING worked in the exotic metals as well. It looks like what you could find on the rack in the 70’s or 80’s.

This one does have the TR grooves, which combined with the sound slot create quite the click when striking the ball. Of the two models, the Anser feels firmer when compared to the Anser 2. Feedback is excellent, letting you know if you have wandered the face, but if you wander, the grooves will get you pretty close to where you were trying to get the ball to go.

The lack of the line is a huge plus for me, and actually a market-cornering feature for PING now that the new 2016 Cameron Anser Newport has a sight line. To the best of my knowledge, the Newport was the only other naked putter out there…

Anser 2

To my eye, the Anser 2 always appears much longer heel to toe than the Anser. I also always feel like the cavity is larger too. This time, I broke out the tape measure and much to my eye’s surprise, the measurements are nearly identical.

Maybe it’s because the Anser 2 reads more visually square than the Anser. The topline is thinner in the Anser 2, and the bumpers are more squared off. I find it interesting that what amount to really subtle differences are enough to divide players into distinct Anser or Anser 2 camps.

Sure, the presence or absence of a sight line helps separate folk too, but I really think that we just look down at them, and prefer one shape over the other. Likely without even really being able to explain why.

Only Two Choices, But They’re Good Ones

I think that both of these are going to do quite well for PING this season. If I was going to predict which one would sell better, I’d go with the Anser 2, as the lack of a sight line and/or the bronze color could put off some potential players. Regardless of selection, I think that you will be pleasantly surprised at how PING was able to keep these classic, and at the same time update them with their modern groove tech.

Remember too that PING is happy to custom fit these putters to your length, loft, and grip needs. Upgraded grips may cost you a bit more, but that’s the only price jump. Your shop should be able to put in a custom fit order for you, no problem. These two are 2° flat (orange dot) as that’s what suits my stroke, but you can go +/- 4° should you need to.

Those colored dots have been a part of the PING story almost as long as the Anser, and like everything PING, the dots represent a commitment to getting something in your bag that fits your game.

Find out more about these at HERE