R/golf user is about to learn what a brand sponsorship is. (This is not a statement on if LABs are good or not).
The absurdity of OPs conclusion is like saying Mizuno irons can’t be good because they don’t have staff pros.
aloysiusthird
All these guys came of age before LAB. They all learned how to square the face with whatever blade or mallet putter they felt comfortable with back in the day.
We’ll start seeing more and more face balanced and near-zero torque putters as time goes by. Just like we’re seeing more and more pros hit up on driver. Give it time.
AltruisticRespect21
It’s almost as if those guys are already good putters. Or get paid to use the clubs. Do you think a shitty player who sucks at putting, would benefit from a Scotty?
Relative_Steak_1099
Just like everything else in this sport it’s preference. What works best for you won’t work well for others.
kingkeef97
As a LAB owner I can confirm. It is the putter that’s broken, not the putter.
HighLifeGoods_LA
This post gives Steve Ballmer laughing at the iPhone vibes
Pros also use harder to hit drivers and irons too, what the pros play doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best option for all golfers.
And I use an old blade putter, I’m not a LAB fanboy.
hpizzy
More interesting is the number of mallet style putters vs. blade style putter.
Mr_MoseVelsor
Maybe it’s just me— but when I play against someone with a LAB putter it goes one of two ways. They’re either a PLAYER or they’re absolutely lost around the greens and desperate for improvement
stan-thompson
because either A: lab doesn’t pay them or B: whatever contract they have with club manufacturers already covers putters.
will also add that putters and fairway woods are the least changed clubs in pro bags. they stick with what works.
mathster33
None of the top 10 use putters that are available to the general public. A putter isn’t going to be a magic solution that works for everybody, each player has different needs and thus requires different putters.
GladiusDave
Mate of mine plays a bettinardi queen bee.
Had a go the other day and it was lovely.
I’m using an odessy double wide.
I can three putt with anything though.
Close-Approach
Maybe they’re scared of their raw power
oldschoolto
Use the one that you are most comfortable with. If the ball is going in, it doesn’t matter the brand, right?
shWa1g
What’s LAB’s sponsorship budget look like?
Golf is a funny industry. People care a whole bunch about the name stamped on their clubs, when in reality, how different can one hunk of metal be from another hunk of metal.
ShaveitDown
Lab can’t afford top pga tour pros yet
LurkerKing13
1. Golfers are creatures of habit 2. Many of these golfers have sponsorship deals that would prevent them from changing
WeirdlyCordial
none of those guys mizuno irons either i guess mizuno sucks
Fishnshoot
These guys don’t need a zero-torque, AI-face putter technology.. they can taaap it in, with the back of a teaspoon. (well, except maybe Rory)
Nashtyone
It has a lot to do with who is paying them to play their clubs
BoopinSnoots24-7
If I had to guess, LAB putters are advertised to solve a problem that the best players in the world don’t typically have to the same degree as an average hack. In theory, a LAB will benefit a weekend warrior vastly more than a pro that has practiced their putting stroke for years and has no problem keeping the face properly aligned.
Also, brand deals. The big guys have far deeper marketing budgets than LAB. If a LAB is saving you .5 putts per round, yet would cost you a great deal of money in endorsements, there’s some thinking to do before making a change.
And while the 25 you listed don’t play a LAB, there are 11 PGA Tour players that do (or have) from late 2023 to today:
Phil Mickelson
Rickie Fowler
Adam Scott
Grayson Murray
Will Zalatoris
JJ Spaun
Garrick Higgo
James Hahn
Lucas Glover
Byeong Hun An
Camilo Villegas
Edited to include disclaimer: I was fitted into, and still game, a SeeMore Model T after testing LABs and not liking them as much.
drdrillaz
LAB putters make terrible putters better. They don’t make really good putters great. There’s definitely evidence that players who switch see improvement
BIGTEXLDCB
Everything about golf is a gimmick unless it is properly fit for you and meant for your type of game. This is almost like saying why don’t they all use PXG irons if PXG claims they have the best clubs in the world. Every company has a thing they sell off of, LAB is that funky putter. It works for those who need it
pheldozer
If LAB wasn’t onto something, the major brands wouldn’t all be releasing center shafted/face balanced models this year by coincidence
Straightouttacultin
Sort of flawed logic. A better test would be how many guys in the top 250 in the world WITHOUT sponsor deals are playing LAB putters. This is also a better test for all clubs. If your livelihood is golf and you don’t have a brand paying you, then you will be playing the best clubs without question.
matttinatttor
They’re essentially game-improvement putters.
There is no need for that technology when you’re at a high level like them. The weight distribution of LAB Putters is probably the opposite of what a tour player would like (with a handful of exceptions; i.e. Phil).
smackfrog
I asked this exact question to a former pro last week, he said that LABs are great for golfers who don’t know how to putt properly. The lie angle balance tech is great but there’s some sacrifice of feel that comes with it.
rwb12
Bro just discovered what money is.
mvangler
Here are my putting stats before and after LAB. Note that my GIR % is about the same, so there shouldn’t be a big difference in proximity to the hole that would cause these changes.
Old Putter:
Putts per round: 33.7
Three-Putts per round: 1.7
LAB:
Putts per round: 30.5
Three-Putts per round: 0.6
The big difference is that I am much better at hitting my line, so I’m making more putts over 5ft. I was previously terrible at hitting my line over 5ft and had to rely on good speed to 2-putt.
Also, this is flawed logic because the top players are sponsored. There aren’t a lot of players with Mizuno irons because they don’t sponsor, but it’s universally known that Mizuno makes some of the best irons in the game.
29 Comments
R/golf user is about to learn what a brand sponsorship is. (This is not a statement on if LABs are good or not).
The absurdity of OPs conclusion is like saying Mizuno irons can’t be good because they don’t have staff pros.
All these guys came of age before LAB. They all learned how to square the face with whatever blade or mallet putter they felt comfortable with back in the day.
We’ll start seeing more and more face balanced and near-zero torque putters as time goes by. Just like we’re seeing more and more pros hit up on driver. Give it time.
It’s almost as if those guys are already good putters. Or get paid to use the clubs. Do you think a shitty player who sucks at putting, would benefit from a Scotty?
Just like everything else in this sport it’s preference. What works best for you won’t work well for others.
As a LAB owner I can confirm. It is the putter that’s broken, not the putter.
This post gives Steve Ballmer laughing at the iPhone vibes
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eywi0h_Y5_U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eywi0h_Y5_U)
Pros also use harder to hit drivers and irons too, what the pros play doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best option for all golfers.
And I use an old blade putter, I’m not a LAB fanboy.
More interesting is the number of mallet style putters vs. blade style putter.
Maybe it’s just me— but when I play against someone with a LAB putter it goes one of two ways. They’re either a PLAYER or they’re absolutely lost around the greens and desperate for improvement
because either A: lab doesn’t pay them or B: whatever contract they have with club manufacturers already covers putters.
will also add that putters and fairway woods are the least changed clubs in pro bags. they stick with what works.
None of the top 10 use putters that are available to the general public. A putter isn’t going to be a magic solution that works for everybody, each player has different needs and thus requires different putters.
Mate of mine plays a bettinardi queen bee.
Had a go the other day and it was lovely.
I’m using an odessy double wide.
I can three putt with anything though.
Maybe they’re scared of their raw power
Use the one that you are most comfortable with. If the ball is going in, it doesn’t matter the brand, right?
What’s LAB’s sponsorship budget look like?
Golf is a funny industry. People care a whole bunch about the name stamped on their clubs, when in reality, how different can one hunk of metal be from another hunk of metal.
Lab can’t afford top pga tour pros yet
1. Golfers are creatures of habit
2. Many of these golfers have sponsorship deals that would prevent them from changing
none of those guys mizuno irons either i guess mizuno sucks
These guys don’t need a zero-torque, AI-face putter technology.. they can taaap it in, with the back of a teaspoon. (well, except maybe Rory)
It has a lot to do with who is paying them to play their clubs
If I had to guess, LAB putters are advertised to solve a problem that the best players in the world don’t typically have to the same degree as an average hack. In theory, a LAB will benefit a weekend warrior vastly more than a pro that has practiced their putting stroke for years and has no problem keeping the face properly aligned.
Also, brand deals. The big guys have far deeper marketing budgets than LAB. If a LAB is saving you .5 putts per round, yet would cost you a great deal of money in endorsements, there’s some thinking to do before making a change.
And while the 25 you listed don’t play a LAB, there are 11 PGA Tour players that do (or have) from late 2023 to today:
Phil Mickelson
Rickie Fowler
Adam Scott
Grayson Murray
Will Zalatoris
JJ Spaun
Garrick Higgo
James Hahn
Lucas Glover
Byeong Hun An
Camilo Villegas
Edited to include disclaimer: I was fitted into, and still game, a SeeMore Model T after testing LABs and not liking them as much.
LAB putters make terrible putters better. They don’t make really good putters great. There’s definitely evidence that players who switch see improvement
Everything about golf is a gimmick unless it is properly fit for you and meant for your type of game.
This is almost like saying why don’t they all use PXG irons if PXG claims they have the best clubs in the world.
Every company has a thing they sell off of, LAB is that funky putter. It works for those who need it
If LAB wasn’t onto something, the major brands wouldn’t all be releasing center shafted/face balanced models this year by coincidence
Sort of flawed logic. A better test would be how many guys in the top 250 in the world WITHOUT sponsor deals are playing LAB putters. This is also a better test for all clubs. If your livelihood is golf and you don’t have a brand paying you, then you will be playing the best clubs without question.
They’re essentially game-improvement putters.
There is no need for that technology when you’re at a high level like them. The weight distribution of LAB Putters is probably the opposite of what a tour player would like (with a handful of exceptions; i.e. Phil).
I asked this exact question to a former pro last week, he said that LABs are great for golfers who don’t know how to putt properly. The lie angle balance tech is great but there’s some sacrifice of feel that comes with it.
Bro just discovered what money is.
Here are my putting stats before and after LAB. Note that my GIR % is about the same, so there shouldn’t be a big difference in proximity to the hole that would cause these changes.
Old Putter:
Putts per round: 33.7
Three-Putts per round: 1.7
LAB:
Putts per round: 30.5
Three-Putts per round: 0.6
The big difference is that I am much better at hitting my line, so I’m making more putts over 5ft. I was previously terrible at hitting my line over 5ft and had to rely on good speed to 2-putt.
Also, this is flawed logic because the top players are sponsored. There aren’t a lot of players with Mizuno irons because they don’t sponsor, but it’s universally known that Mizuno makes some of the best irons in the game.