Bille Presse IV started what you know today as L.A.B. Golf when he decided to build himself a putter that could pay off his ball-striking efforts. Presse, then a teaching pro, club builder, and mini-tour player, realized there was something to removing the torque from a putter (specifically, removing it from one specific axis).
If you’ve ever seen a video of a L.A.B. putter or a putter from another company in a revealer, that revealer was actually Presse’s invention, and it helped lead to the first Directed Force putter, not the other way around, as many players assume.
I’ve alluded to it enough, but what is now L.A.B. Golf was originally called Directed Force, and the putter now known as the L.A.B. Directed Force (DF) 2.1 was originally called the Reno. That explains why the first putter in L.A.B.’s history is the Directed Force Reno, even though it’s – aside from what’s engraved on the bottom – more or less indistinguishable from today’s DF 2.1.
Presse had some traction with Directed Force putters but lacked the resources needed to grow. Or, as it turned out, blow up.
That’s when, in 2017, Sam Hahn pulled together some cash to buy a stake in Directed Force and partner with Presse to grow the brand. By 2018, the deal was done, and Directed Force was rebranded as L.A.B. Golf.
With tech it believed in and designs that needed some persuasion, L.A.B. and Hahn relentlessly marketed the putters. Golfers curiously tuned in to social media demonstrations, which helped L.A.B. build some momentum. But when Lucas Glover won back-to-back PGA Tour events using a L.A.B. putter, consumers busted down L.A.B.’s doors.
In just a couple of short years, L.A.B. grew to nearly 300 employees, and its biggest problem shifted from selling golfers on the performance to keeping up with the demand.
In 2025, private equity firm L. Catterton acquired a majority stake in L.A.B. Golf, freeing up the company to not only scale to meet consumer demand but also fund the research and development needed to continue to expand L.A.B.’s offerings.
And that’s how you go from struggling startup to industry giant in a little over a decade. A giant that maintains an underdog mentality, perhaps. But a giant nonetheless.
