Gripes About the Putter Market

[jda]

I think that everybody hates putter flippers and stuff, but what are your gripes about the putter market?  Mine are:

 

• Wanting top resale dollar without an original grip and/or head cover.
• Paid back for your custom shaft or grip, or any custom work.
• If a pro wins a tournament then putter does not suck anymore.
• Seller thinks that ever putter over 5 years old is rare.
• Wish that companies would let you "rent" a putter to use for a few weeks - like it, you send it back and they send you a brand new one, hate it and you send it back for refund.

 

I don't mind custom paint or stamps.  I am still deciding how I feel about initials or catch phrases like Money Maker or Putt for Dough.

 

What are your grips and irritations about the putter market?

[MattM97]

Last point Global Golf has a U-Try program you can get a club for 14 days. 

[getitdaily]

My biggest gripe is the sites that don't include the headcover when you buy a used putter. Looking at you 2nd swing and global golf.

[BigBlue7]

Premium putter manufactures that still use Velcro on their head covers

Edited August 6, 2023 by BigBlue7

[jonradus]

Scratchy Velcro headcovers.

$600+ custom putters that aren’t perfect upon opening. 

 

3+ month turnaround times on custom putters.

 

 

[Putter Addict]

No gripes because the market is saturated with great options at all different price points, new and used. If a brand has some of the issues listed here and the issue bothers me enough, I'll buy something else. Same with individual sellers. Items are only worth what people will pay for them.

[JohnBrew]

My gripes reside with being fitted for a putter and then to receive the putter with an incorrect build. A colossal waste of time and money. I'm back with the stick I used before ever starting the fitting process.

[golfbuddy]

4 hours ago, Putter Addict said:

No gripes because the market is saturated with great options at all different price points, new and used. If a brand has some of the issues listed here and the issue bothers me enough, I'll buy something else. Same with individual sellers. Items are only worth what people will pay for them.

Agree with you!!

[domdomdom]

There’s a lack of blade putters with top-line alignments (especially for left handers like myself). 95% seems to have flange lines.

[tatertot]

I'm amazed at high cappers who are more concerned with buying the perfect putter than actually improving their putting.

 

Or is that not what we're complaining about?

[jonradus]

8 hours ago, tatertot said:

I'm amazed at high cappers who are more concerned with buying the perfect putter than actually improving their putting.

 

Or is that not what we're complaining about?

I think Twitter is the correct forum for this complaint. It’s my understanding that Golfwrx is a fantasyland for people who read about and spend money on new golf equipment attempting to improve their scores. 

[MattM97]

10 hours ago, domdomdom said:

There’s a lack of blade putters with top-line alignments (especially for left handers like myself). 95% seems to have flange lines.

 

Gotta go custom or semi custom for that unfortunately. 

[North Butte]

1 hour ago, jonradus said:

I think Twitter is the correct forum for this complaint. It’s my understanding that Golfwrx is a fantasyland for people who read about and spend money on new golf equipment attempting to improve their scores. 

I think you are seriously misreading the room.

 

Golfwrx is a fantasyland for people who like to read about and spend money buying golf equipment, period. For 99% of the hard-core Golfwrx posters, improving scores has nothing to do with it. 

 

I'm sure there some poor deluded soul out there among the tens of thousands of people on Golfwrx who hopes his 17th custom, boutique putter is The One which finally gets him under 40 putts per round. But I've never encountered him and I'm on the forum just about every day. Most of the folks here (myself included) are just addicted to golf-club buying. 

[5hort5tuff]

Custom putter  not coming as ordered.

 

Custom putters without branded grips and headcover. 

[jda]

I love that people buy and try so many putters.  This means for me to try and buy on the secondary market.  This has been hard since COVID with folks wanting near retail for their used stuff, but prices have started to come back to earth lately.

 

Does anybody know why AM&E and others cannot put magnets in their covers?  Velco hate is a good call.

[MattM97]

2 hours ago, jda said:

I love that people buy and try so many putters.  This means for me to try and buy on the secondary market.  This has been hard since COVID with folks wanting near retail for their used stuff, but prices have started to come back to earth lately.

 

Does anybody know why AM&E and others cannot put magnets in their covers?  Velco hate is a good call.

 

AM&E does make a magnetic cover. I think I have one from them. 

[jda]

I looked after I posted that and I have on too from a clubhouse.  I guess that I need to complain to the putter manufacturers then.  Add this to my list of gripes as a dumb way to save a few bucks on an already expensive putter.

[Chopper Dave]

Second hand putters with mint condition headcovers.  As soon as you remove that cover you know the putter is gonna look like it’s been through hell.

[Triple Lindy]

5 hours ago, jda said:

This means for me to try and buy on the secondary market. 

But the secondary market is nuts. I was in a 2nd Swing store yesterday and every putter I picked up was $300+. Glad I wasn’t actually in the market.

[Mw1991]

40 minutes ago, Triple Lindy said:

But the secondary market is nuts. I was in a 2nd Swing store yesterday and every putter I picked up was $300+. Glad I wasn’t actually in the market.

It really is. I've seen used Scotty's(newports and phantoms) that are all beat to s*** with a putter grip that's falling off and they will still want 375 for it. The used club section of golf Galaxy is a wild place. 

[Misc1600]

Selling a Scotty and having the seller ask for a massive discount so they can send it back to Scotty to refinish or redo the paint. 

Edited August 5, 2023 by Misc1600

[chip75]

Folks ruining OTR putters by going nuts with their stamps. Odyssey putters don't need coloured snow.  Of course do what you want with your putters, but once you get those little hammers out your Rossie's not worth three figures when you tire of it.

[tatertot]

4 hours ago, Chopper Dave said:

Second hand putters with mint condition headcovers.  As soon as you remove that cover you know the putter is gonna look like it’s been through hell.

Most of my putters have mint headcovers ... because I don't like stock headcovers. I use the same headcover no matter which putter is in the bag, so when I ditch the putter (which is often) the cover is always brand new.

[tatertot]

8 hours ago, 5hort5tuff said:

Custom putter  not coming as ordered.

 

Custom putters without branded grips and headcover. 

Personally ... I don't like branded grips or headcovers. I'd rather not pay for a grip I'm going to either rip off, or in the case of a custom putter, ask for something different. As for covers, I'm going to use one I already have no matter what.

[5hort5tuff]

8 minutes ago, tatertot said:

Personally ... I don't like branded grips or headcovers. I'd rather not pay for a grip I'm going to either rip off, or in the case of a custom putter, ask for something different. As for covers, I'm going to use one I already have no matter what.

 

If I spend $800 on a custom ..I want a branded cover and grip. If you spend $250 on an odyssey, different story imo. 

 

I have all personal off brand covers for my clubs...but putters are different. Nothing hurts me more than seeing a superstroke on a TP mills. 

[tatertot]

9 minutes ago, 5hort5tuff said:

 

If I spend $800 on a custom ..I want a branded cover and grip. If you spend $250 on an odyssey, different story imo. 

 

I have all personal off brand covers for my clubs...but putters are different. Nothing hurts me more than seeing a superstroke on a TP mills. 

Different strokes ... If I can't get the grip I want when I order, I give the branded grip a shot, but 99% chance it's being replaced with a SuperStroke or a Pingman. That's part of being custom.

[ae1985]

On 8/4/2023 at 3:47 PM, getitdaily said:

My biggest gripe is the sites that don't include the headcover when you buy a used putter. Looking at you 2nd swing and global golf.

They gotta be selling them separately and that makes me mad. How is a used like new putter gonna be missing a HC? 

[getitdaily]

8 minutes ago, ae1985 said:

They gotta be selling them separately and that makes me mad. How is a used like new putter gonna be missing a HC? 

They do sell them separately. 

[jda]

You find perfect head covers with my used putters if I ever get rid of them.  The original head cover goes in the drawer so that I do not lose it... or it gets stolen.  As a guy with several putters stolen over the years, nobody even looks if there is a Pro Shop, KC Royals or Mizzou head cover on my nice putter.

 

Our local marketplace has come down in value a lot.  Good, nice, used Camerons and Bettis are about 60% of what they were last year.  There are still some wanting more than retail, but they sit out there.

 

I don't mind seeing off-brand stuff on putters, but if you want $600 for your high carbon oil can classic putter, then it better have all of the original stuff or else it is worth $200-300 to me, and many others who have to find an original grip, shaft band (as if, yeah right!) and head cover.  Without all of this, it is not collectable, but a great gamer.

[MattM97]

Actual gripe with customs: 

 

When a neck other than a plumbers neck is an extra $100-200 to weld on. 

 

I'm not even going to consider that brand honestly when there are others where any neck is included in the price.