Michelle Wie Wins the CN Canadian Women’s Open Using a Nike Method Putter
Tournament: CN Canadian Women’s Open
Winner: Michelle Wie (Wikipedia | LPGA Tour Profile)
Key: Three consecutive birdies on the back nine on Sunday. Interviews (Thu Fri Sat Sun) | Final Standings
Quote: “I made a lot of crucial putts out there today. I made a lot of putts, but at the same time I made a lot of really crucial putts.”
Putter: Nike Method #5 (source) Adopted on Tour and proven by two Major victories in 2009, the revolutionary new METHOD putter was born of innovation and fueled by the demands of our Tour athletes. The Polymetal Groove Technology provides a faster, positive forward roll at impact for the kind of accuracy and consistency Tour professionals demand. (from manufacturer).
Matt Kuchar Wins The Barclays Using a Rife Barbados Putter
Tournament: The Barclays
Winner: Matt Kuchar (Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Tournament leader Martin Laird three-putts on 18 forcing a playoff with Kuchar. PGA Recap | Helen Ross Column | Interview
Quote: “The greens were so firm and so fast today. It was just completely different. It was amazing the transformation they made in a matter of a day. So it was hard to get balls close. It was hard to make putts. Just the greens were so firm and fast and almost crusty on top that I knew if I could hang in there, make a few more birdies I had a chance because there was potential to move backwards.”
Putter: Rife Barbados (source) Like all putters from Rife the Barbados is Tour driven. Since its introduction on the PGA Tour late 2006 this oversized mallet putter has found its way into the bag of three of the top 50 players on the PGA Tour whom have enjoyed immediate success (winner of the 2006 Australian Masters). The Barbados is designed to have a pleasing shape wrapped around a three line center cavity section creating a strong alignment aid. By moving the mass to the outer edges of the putter, the Barbados is extremely stable. It also features both RollGroove and LieAline technologies. As with all Rife putters the Barbados is 100% milled and made of mild 304 stainless steel. (from manufacturer).
Visit Puttistry’s Manufacturer’s Cup Every 2010 tournament winner plus what putter they had in their bag!
Ai Miyazato Wins the Safeway Classic Using An Odyssey White Hot XG Teron Putter
Tournament: Safeway Classic
Winner: Ai Miyazato (Wikipedia | LPGA Tour Profile | My favorite things)
Interviews: Sat Sun
Quote: “I would say my short game is so much improved than when I came to the U.S. Because, like, when I came on the tour like first couple years, I try to — well, the first couple years I tried to get more distance off the tee, and as a result I didn’t really work too much on my short game. But after that I worked harder on my short game and maybe that’s why my game improved….The last couple weeks I just trying so hard to make it happen, like trying to — like trying to go in like almost every time. But then right now I really stay in the present and really focus on my stroke, so it’s more less tension. So that’s why my putting feels good.”
Putter: Odyssey White Hot XG Teron Putter (source) The Odyssey White Hot XG utilizes a multi-layer insert for phenomenal performance with any golf ball. Inspired by high-performance, multi-layer golf ball technology, the White Hot XG insert takes two materials with different properties and combines them to take the level of feedback and feel to an all-new high (from manufacturer).
Arjun Atwal Wins the Wyndham Championship Using a Ping Karsten Series Craz-E Putter
Tournament: Wyndham Championship
Winner: Arjun Atwal (Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Atwal led the tournament in total putts with 109. AP Recap | Golf Magazine Recap | PGA Notes (Interviews: Thu Fri Sat Sun)
Quote: “You know, you always — until you do it, you don’t know and I’m just so glad that putt went in. I was really nervous over that putt. It was the most nervous I’ve ever been in my whole entire life…My heart rate was probably like 150 at the time but my caddy told me that, you know, hey, listen, you made enough putts to win. I have. The last European Tour event that I won in Malaysia, I holed about a 20-footer on the last hole to get in a playoff. I went back to that and couple other putts that I’ve made in my life and kind of calmed myself down before I hit it.”
Putter: Ping Karsten Series Craz-E (source) For golfers preferring the performance of a steel face with an insert feel, the Karsten Series meets the criteria. An elastomer insert in the cavity provides enhanced feel while maintaining the solid response of a steel-faced putter. Weight savings from the new cavity shapes were redistributed to the perimeter to increase each putter’s moment of inertia for added forgiveness. Multi-level alignment aids are designed into most models. (from manufacturer).
Editor’s Note: Ping putters have been winning at a torrid pace the last half of the PGA season.
Visit Puttistry’s Manufacturer’s Cup Every 2010 tournament winner plus what putter they had in their bag!
Martin Kaymer Wins the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits Using a Ping Karsten Anser 2
Tournament: 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits
Winner: Martin Kaymer (Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Two clutch 15 foot putts: par save on 18 and birdie on the second playoff hole to tie it up with runner-up Bubba Watson. (Recap | Recap 2)
Quote: (on 15 foot par save on 18 to maintain tie) “It took me a long time to read that putt. I can remember from Monday and Tuesday, I made that putt a lot of times in the practice rounds, and I was sure it didn’t break that much but my caddie, he brought out this little book with how much the putt will break, and it took us a while to figure out where my target is going to be. But then I just decided on where I wanted to go and I hit a pure putt and I knew once I hit it, it has a good chance; and when it was a foot or two foot short of the hole, it was always in the middle of the hole. Obviously it was a very important putt, but for me, for my future, I think it’s very important that I know whatever happens, I can make those very, very important putts.”
Putter: Ping Karsten Anser 2 (source) For golfers preferring the performance of a steel face with an insert feel, the Karsten Series meets the criteria. An elastomer insert in the cavity provides enhanced feel while maintaining the solid response of a steel-faced putter. Weight savings from the new cavity shapes were redistributed to the perimeter to increase each putter’s moment of inertia for added forgiveness. Multi-level alignment aids are designed into most models (from manufacturer).
Bill Lunde Wins the Turning Stone Resort Championship Using a Ping JAS Craz-E Moment Putter
Tournament: Turning Stone Resort Championship
Winner: Bill Lunde (Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Closing with three rounds in the 60s. AP Recap (Interview)
Quote: “I went from scrambling to make pars to having 9-irons that I could hit close. So first part was driving the ball well. That really gave me the opportunity to make birdies and get myself in position to have a good putt at birdie.”
Putter: Ping JAS Craz-E Moment (source) JAS putters rely on multi-metal technology and a lightweight nano-nickel insert to improve feel and forgiveness. The Craz-E Moment model is also designed with multi-tiered alignment systems to improve accuracy. Engineered with a stainless steel outer body and urethane inner section to maximize the perimeter weighting, the putter provides an extremely high MOI to keep putts on line. The polymer insert is coated using nano-nickel technology to produce a solid sound and feel. (from manufacturer).
Hunter Mahan Wins The Bridgestone Invitational Using the Ping IWI D66 Putter
Tournament: Bridgestone Invitational
Winner: Hunter Mahan (Twitter | Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Two clutch putting par saves over last four holes. Recap (Lesson | Lesson 2) | Golf Digest: 10 Rules From Hunter Mahan | Press Release
Recent Quote: “…I’m a streaky putter. I’ve really been working hard on that part of my game for last year or so. Now I actually feel pretty comfortable on the golf course. What’s been difficult is taking some of the changes I’ve made in practice to tournament golf. I think not having a bogey over the last 36 holes at Phoenix is a sign that my short game is coming around.”
Putter: Ping IWI D66 (source) The iWi Putter Series puts customization in your hands. Instead of changing putters, just change the weight to your desired feel. Want more mass towards the heel or toe to match your stroke, insert a 20- or 28-gram tungsten weight. In all, there are nine weight combinations when you choose the optional weight kit (sold separately). Each putter in the iWi line comes standard with two 12 gram stainless steel sole weights and a two-piece 304 stainless steel/elastomer insert to give you the feel and performance found in PING putters for nearly 50 years (from manufacturer).
Videos
- In the Bag: Hunter Mahan
- What I Play: Hunter Mahan
- Hunter Mahan At Home
- PING G15/i15 irons commercial: Hunter Mahan
- Hunter Mahan – Golf Town Commercial – The Game: Game Changer
Stuart Appleby Wins The Greenbrier Classic Using the Odyssey White Hot XG 330 Mallet Putter
Tournament: The Greenbrier Classic
Winner: Stuart Appleby (Twitter | Wikipedia | PGA Tour Profile)
Key: Shoots a 59! on the last day.
Putter: Odyssey White Hot XG 330 Mallet (source) (from manufacturer: The Odyssey White Hot XG utilizes a multi-layer insert for phenomenal performance with any golf ball. Inspired by high performance, multi-layer golf ball technology, the White Hot XG insert takes two materials with different properties and combines them to take the level of feedback and feel to an all-new high. And with numerous Tour-proven head shapes to choose from, every level of golfer can find just the right putter to make life on the greens that much easier.)
Videos
- Stuart Appleby Putting Lesson (scroll to bottom)
- In the Bag: Stuart Appleby (note: different putter than Greenbrier)
Oosthuizen dominates Open Championship
Press Release:
Pronounce him the winner of the Open Championship.
The odds stacked against him, Louis Oosthuizen (WHUST’-hy-zin) baffled pundits — and anyone trying to pronounce his name. Instead, he smiled his way across the Old Course at St. Andrews, posting a 16-under total for a commanding seven-shot victory. Fellow PING staff player Lee Westwood finished solo second at 9 under. The world’s third-ranked player has finished in the top three in four of the past five majors.
Oosthuizen moved to 15th in the world with his 1-under 71 playing a new set of S56 irons and Tour-S Rustique wedges. In winning his first major at age 27, nothing could unnerve the smooth-swinging South African. “My biggest goal of the week was to keep calm,” said Oosthuizen, who led the tournament since early in the second round.
On the pivotal par-4 ninth on Sunday, standing over a 50-foot putt for eagle, the only thing flapping in the St. Andrews gales were his trousers. He drew back his Redwood Anser putter and calmly rolled it in. “That got me started.” For the Open, he tied for third in putting.
He sealed his win on the 12th, where his closest pursuer drove into the gorse and made triple bogey. Meanwhile, Oosthuizen found the fairway, hit the green and rolled in one of his 20 birdies for the week. The four-shot swing gave Oosthuizen a dominating eight-stroke advantage.
The man his friends affectionately call “Shrek” led the field in driving accuracy and tied for fourth in driving distance. He was dialed-in with his new irons and wedges, tying for eighth in greens in regulation.
Oosthuizen’s flawless execution with his Rapture V2 driver over 72 holes prompted one TV commentator to enthuse, “It was one of the finest displays of driving I’ve ever seen in a major tournament.”
Luke Donald (not Joe Ogilvie) is the best putter in the PGA
Luke Donald. Source: PGA
The Wall Street Journal (A Stat Is Born: Golf’s New Way to Measure Putting | Putting Rankings) recently profiled a fascinating new putting methodology co-developed by the PGA and MIT Sloan School of Management (see HOW TO CATCH A TIGER: UNDERSTANDING PUTTING PERFORMANCE ON THE PGA TOUR).
MIT has developed a mathematical performance model that takes into account the limitations of traditional putting metrics (ie. Putts per Round, Putts per GIR). Essentially, it controls for factors that bias putting performance. For example, approach shot wizards like Steve Stricker (#1 Putting Average) would naturally score higher in putts per round because they simply had more shorter putts to sink. In addition, not all greens are created equal, but the old method treated them as such:
Through a working agreement with the PGA TOUR, we have obtained access to proprietary “ShotLink” data that pinpoints the location of every shot taken on the PGA TOUR. Using these data, we develop distance-based models for two components of putting performance: the probability of making the putt and the remaining distance to the pin conditioned on missing.
The MIT paper further describes using “logistic regression”, “gamma regression”, and “Markov chain.” Since I’m no Norman Einstein, I will have to take these researchers for their word. When all the statistical dust settles, the new measure is called “putts gained per round relative to the field.” The WSJ puts it into English:
This metric, which evaluates each putt a pro makes based on distance and compares the result to the expected average of pros hitting putts of the same length, eliminates biases that distort other statistical putting measures and better identifies pure putting skill.
The PGA plans to publish these new statistics as well as previously unpublished numbers such as percentage of putts made by distance (ie, 5 footers holed) next month.
Puttistry has been publishing its own putter rankings using the available data on the PGA website. Unlike the advanced MIT model, Puttistry has used a simple weighted average of (1) Putts Per Round (2) Putts Per GIR (3) Birdie Conversions.
For fun, here is a 2009 comparison of the new MIT putts gained per round score versus the Puttistry weighted average. There are some surprising similarities and differences, but at the end of the day, I’ll go ahead and defer to the quant geeks in Cambridge:
| Rank | Player | Putter | Puttistry Rank |
| 1 | Luke Donald | Bettinardi BB1 | 6 |
| 2 | Tiger Woods | Titleist Scotty Cameron Studio Stainless Newport 2 TW Prototype | 7 |
| 3 | Ben Curtis | Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport 2 SS | 131 |
| 4 | Bryce Molder | Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport | 89 |
| 5 | Brad Faxon | Titleist Scotty Cameron Prototype | 41 |
| 6 | Jim Furyk | Odyssey White Hot XG #7 | 25 |
| 7 | Brandt Snedeker | Odyssey White Hot XG Rossie | 47 |
| 8 | Brian Gay | Mizuno Bettinardi Prototype | 19 |
| 9 | Matt Kuchar | Rife Barbados | 17 |
| 10 | Aaron Baddeley | Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport | 11 |
| Rank | Player | Putter | MIT Rank |
| 1 | Joe Ogilvie | TaylorMade Rossa Lemans | 15 |
| 2 | Daniel Chopra | Ping Anser 2 w/tungsten heel-toe weighting | 61 |
| 3 | Anthony Kim | Titleist Scotty Cameron Studio Style “button back” Newport prototype | 63 |
| 4 | Steve Stricker | Odyssey White Hot #2 | 69 |
| 5 | Jason Day | TaylorMade Rossa Suzuka | 18 |
| 6 | Luke Donald | Bettinardi BB1 | 1 |
| 7 | Tiger Woods | Titleist Scotty Cameron Studio Stainless Newport 2 TW Prototype | 2 |
| 8 | Greg Chalmers | Unknown | 11 |
| 9 | Charlie Wi | Unknown | 23 |
| 10 | Kevin Na | Titleist Scotty Cameron Newport | 21 |
