TaylorMade Spider 5K ZT - In Hand Knee Jerk Review

[dyd12]

it also is probably one of the best looking ZT putters out there, obviously this is subjective though

[zelmo12]

Sold my lab to get the money for this (and probably two more clubs with the price I paid for lab) ha. But this thing looks amazing. Lab will probably feel better in the stroke but I would have putts come out dead with the lab. Like hit it dead Center and it just doesn't get to the hole. Way too soft of a putter for where I play. Plus I tried to convince myself for awhile that the looks were not a big deal and I'd fall in love with it. This spider is proof that looks do actually matter. To me at least. Will get back on after a few rounds and let you all know!

[sbolitho]

I managed to get the 36' CB model and was very impressed with its first run on course today. I own two LABS (DF3 and MEZZ Max both 36' with the TPT shaft) and have to say it was so close to them it was not funny. Very impressed. The balance (makes it better for me as I was fit for a 70 degree lie angle for the LABS and this is also 70) feel and weight all felt perfect.

[DocBrown3887]

I picked up the ZT long/sweeper/broom yesterday on a whim because I hate money. 

 

Initial comparison w/ Mezz Max with ACCRA shaft: the LAB feels more stable/on rails for sure. Allegedly the head of the ZT is heavier but the Mezz feels heavier in the stroke, this is likely due to the stock KBS shaft being very stiff and likely heavier than the ACCRA (and 1" longer than my LAB). I haven't been able to use a TPT so I cannot compare to that. The ZT face seems a little hotter which is what I need and the little mill marks and contrast seem to be good for alignment without having to rely on the ball line. 

 

Once I take the new ZT outside to a green I will make a new thread with a review. If this doesn't work out I may try the OZi. Cheers!

[redshirtgolfer]

5 minutes ago, DocBrown3887 said:

I picked up the ZT long/sweeper/broom yesterday on a whim because I hate money. 

Jesus Christ 😂😂😂

[King_Slender]

Have and OZ.1i I'm going to return for the ZT since I switched to the DF3.  Love the DF3, but like options.

[Steelhead]

On 6/4/2025 at 2:46 PM, Urb said:

$500 for a putter with a plastic face is a tough sell.  

 

"Plastic" Face Details:

• Blend Ratio: Spider ZT, Pure Roll™ insert is crafted from a mix of approximately 80% Surlyn and 20% aluminum flakes. This ratio enhances the soft feel while maintaining a structure that supports the groove design for optimal performance.
• Groove Design: The insert features grooves angled at 45 degrees downward, a hallmark of the Pure Roll™ technology. These grooves are molded into the Surlyn-aluminum blend to impart topspin, encouraging a consistent end-over-end roll to improve distance control and keep putts on line.
• ...and a Milled body
• KBS Shaft
• Killer Head cover
• Just sayin'
• 

Edited June 6 by Steelhead

[Mike_C]

Stopped by Edwin Watts again right after lunch today.  They still have a CB and Long, but no standard versions available.   While I was in there, I heard a store employee on the phone calling around to other stores to try and find a standard 35 inch model, wasn't having any luck.....

 

But there are a bunch of Odyssey SqTSq models laying around.....

[Shaffer_C]

On 6/4/2025 at 1:46 PM, Urb said:

$500 for a putter with a plastic face is a tough sell.  

This. While I think it might be the best looking ZT putter model out there with a nice shaft/grip/headcover combo... that price is outrageous for a surlyn insert putter.  

[Pnwpingi210]

4 hours ago, Shaffer_C said:

This. While I think it might be the best looking ZT putter model out there with a nice shaft/grip/headcover combo... that price is outrageous for a surlyn insert putter.  

I went to 3 locals stores and none of them had 35 inch putters.  They had a total of 15 - 35 inch putters on release day and sold them all the same day.  Said they haven’t seen anything like it since the jailbird. 

[taylorcreek]

Rolled the CB at Scheels today and somehow managed not to get it. Ordered it about 20 min ago. I’m a weak…. weak…. man. The putter felt and looked amazing. Sits so nice on the ground and I automatically loved how true it sat. The putter being milled and the blasted 303 on the front was a huge bonus. Hopefully the paint chipping is a thing of the past. 

[redshirtgolfer]

I might give this one a try when it’s available in custom and with a firmer insert. 

[Fish mojo]

Just ordered my ZT in a 38” counter balance. $75 off for those using veterans or first responders discount through id me on the TM site. Shipping estimated August 1.

[Urb]

16 hours ago, Pnwpingi210 said:

I went to 3 locals stores and none of them had 35 inch putters.  They had a total of 15 - 35 inch putters on release day and sold them all the same day.  Said they haven’t seen anything like it since the jailbird. 

This is why they're $500 and regular spiders are $350.

 

 

[TheMoneyShot]

All the stores in my area are completely sold out too!  Crazy…

[Eren]

Cross post from other TM ZT putter thread below:

 

Course was super slow so I played 2 balls tee to green. One with the LAB and other with the TM. Initial thoughts are this is not going in the bag for a couple weeks until after our member guest happens. The head felt heavier in the swing them my Oz with insert and ever so slightly more stable, but less stable than the DF3. The ball also comes out much softer (and shorter) than the Oz1.i - There is going to be some minor adjustments/getting used to putter and I would rather not do that so close to tournament time. 

 

Pros

- SS pistol grip felt really good and gave me more feel than the bigger LAB press pistol 

- really nice end over end roll on the ball and provided a nice subtle click (i don't like the softness though)

- Putts inside 6-8 feet felt point and shoot, outside of that had some issues as written below

- the subtle milling on the face really does help frame the ball  - i really like the single line they went with

- feels/looks very high quality and the headcover really is a piece of art in terms of quality. Other OEMs can learn from this

- minimal onset compared to other ZT options made this feel a lot easier to adjust to from a traditional putter looks wise 

 

Cons

- the insert was so soft and something I am not use to, so it felt like anything outside of 15 feet was left short. Had 3x 3 putts I can attribute all to leaving the first lag putt way too short.

- 70 degree lie angle made me feel like I really had to hug the ball and choke down a little to get my eyes over the ball in a natural position

- like the lab, will take time to get used to. 

 

Playing again tomorrow, 50/50 if I take the TM out with me. I will give it ample time in the bag post tourney season, but for now im making too many putts and too confident with the LAB. 

[Urb]

The front of the putter is already SS.  It actually costs more to mill out a pocket and add that insert.  Could have just face milled the front.  

 

Even lab is adding SS inserts to help their putters feel better.  

[SVTM5]

Curious if anyone knows the weights on the bottom? I know they are interchangeable. Any information would be appreciated.

[gridironesq]

On 6/4/2025 at 9:35 AM, Kmac said:

@Need4spd How did you find the roll when you were putting on the real greens? Was it a pure roll and pretty consistent and easy to get that end over end going? How about alignment? I think they went a little understated with the alignment but I suspect that so they can offer the "My ZT" version later.

 

Good feedback!

You mean an alignment aid like this…

[gioguy21]

i bought a ZT counterbalance and love the thing so far. had to fix how i setup a little (slightly open stance to target line) to alleviate slight misses left but once i corrected it -- lights out. feels good - can't wait to put it in play in the state open qual thursday. 

[Cooper408]

On 6/7/2025 at 11:15 AM, Urb said:

This is why they're $500 and regular spiders are $350.

 

 

I would bet that it's also because TM is doing their best to balance them, so production is slower and requires more manpower. Obviously they're not the handcrafted perfection you get with LAB, but they perform/balance better than any of the zt options from the major OEMs. They essentially sold out on TM in 24 hours, and then they released a presale for the "August Batch" and all of those have sold out as well. Then came the retail release. Good luck finding one in the specs you want if its not a broom (although there are a few shops that have a few 35" standard models in stock. Some major retailers are quoting 11-13 week backorders and still taking people's money.  Can't remember the last time there was a product this hot. Once I saw the trend I got serious FOMO and picked one up because I can't imagine they're going to be going for much less than retail on the BST until TM catches up with demand sometime this fall.

[Cooper408]

On 6/7/2025 at 6:18 PM, Urb said:

The front of the putter is already SS.  It actually costs more to mill out a pocket and add that insert.  Could have just face milled the front.  

 

Even lab is adding SS inserts to help their putters feel better.  

Milled SS is definitely superior feel-wise. The issue with this is weight distribution. The hallmark of the Spider family is high MOI by pushing weight back and the the perimeter. The PR insert is only 10g and it replaces 25-30g of steel. 15-20g is a ton of weight for the engineers to play with, and the pure roll tech is proven and has literal championship pedigree now. I've been a spider guy for 6 years now, and the PR is the best insert in the game, and it isn't really close. With that said, I've been gaming the Spider Proto with the milled face for the past 18 months and its UNREAL. But I still go back to the OG every now and then, and the pure roll definitely has noticeably better roll off the face.

Edited June 9 by Cooper408

[houseoftk]

When they dropped, they walked into a Roger Dunn store at 9 am, and there were 7 guys on the putting green. Testing them out.

Guess they had them on the floor two days before the launch date, and they already sold 15+

[Eren]

On 6/8/2025 at 7:27 AM, SVTM5 said:

Curious if anyone knows the weights on the bottom? I know they are interchangeable. Any information would be appreciated.

When I asked about this I was told not to mess with the weights. 

[jeffrey r]

Question for anyone who has picked up one of the standard TM ZT putters. And yes, this is a serious question. 🙂

 

Do you think there is a separate headcover for LH and RH putters? I returned a LAB putter to PGATSS under their playability, and picked up their lone LH ZT 35” putter instead. As you may know, at PGATSS, they keep their headcovers separate, and just grab one and slap it on when you buy a club.

 

Maybe I am crazy, but the headcover seems like it is made more for the shaft angle of a RH ZT putter as opposed to my LH ZT putter. It needs a slight bit of maneuvering to get the headcover on.

 

Just trying to get a sense of whether I should head back to the store to try to track down a correct headcover, if there is a difference. Thanks in advance.

 

Otherwise, I like what I am seeing putting indoors, and looking forward to getting this out on the course. I tried out the CB ZT putter as well, but it just seemed clunky to me—YMMV on that.

[tarrantian]

On 6/6/2025 at 3:13 PM, Steelhead said:

 

"Plastic" Face Details:

• Blend Ratio: Spider ZT, Pure Roll™ insert is crafted from a mix of approximately 80% Surlyn and 20% aluminum flakes. This ratio enhances the soft feel while maintaining a structure that supports the groove design for optimal performance.
• Groove Design: The insert features grooves angled at 45 degrees downward, a hallmark of the Pure Roll™ technology. These grooves are molded into the Surlyn-aluminum blend to impart topspin, encouraging a consistent end-over-end roll to improve distance control and keep putts on line.
• ...and a Milled body
• KBS Shaft
• Killer Head cover
• Just sayin'
• 

 

 

Excellent reply to yet another TM hater...

 

Wonder how many guys playing with these so-called  'plastic' faces have won on tour since it was first released, let's see, DJ, JD, Sergio, Rors, Scottie, etc. I'm sure I'm missing a few...

Edited June 10 by tarrantian

[MattM97]

I rolled the standard length before they were officially released and it was ok to me. For some reason felt really flat on the lie angle when the stock specs are not. Recently rolled the CB version and much better, I seem to like a ZT putter in a CB setup for some reason. 

 

I liked that I didn't have to forward press it much compared to my DF3-CB. Probably similar to like a Mezz or OZ with onset. Insert felt decent, I'm not much of an insert guy but if you like more medium to soft feeling putters this would be a solid choice. 

 

First impressions off of what i rolled in the store. The standard for me, meh. The CB, better for me. 

[TheBiles]

Man, I had one in my cart this morning and decided to think about it for a couple hours, and now they’re all sold out until August. 

[Jeff58]

I use a “putting studio”. The Money Ball test is 4/10/20/30’ with and without alignment aids.

 

No LAB putter has ever been competitive here. My general thinking has been that LAB is correct in their position that fitting is critical for this type of putter, and that you must utilize an appropriate technique, which takes time and effort to develop.

 

The Odyssey Jailbird S2S behaves differently than the LABs that I’ve tried, in that it doesn’t seem to require a specific alignment and stroke mechanic. For those looking to try this type of putter without committing to change a potentially life-long mechanic to do so, the S2S are a choice. The drawback of the S2S group for me is alignment ambiguity. This may be purely a matter of acclimation, but for a demo where the unit must perform in a group of conventional models, IMO it is a factor.

 

The standard Spider ZT, at least for me, removes the S2S’s alignment issue and can be instantly used with a conventional mechanic. Its ability to make putts is as good as the best I’ve tried, and there have been many. The downsides are price, availability, and that it is not, at least to my metric, actually better than the best conventional models. Overall though, this is “the real deal”, and deserving of the current popularity.

[Kmac]

2 hours ago, Jeff58 said:

I use a “putting studio”. The Money Ball test is 4/10/20/30’ with and without alignment aids.

 

No LAB putter has ever been competitive here. My general thinking has been that LAB is correct in their position that fitting is critical for this type of putter, and that you must utilize an appropriate technique, which takes time and effort to develop.

 

The Odyssey Jailbird S2S behaves differently than the LABs that I’ve tried, in that it doesn’t seem to require a specific alignment and stroke mechanic. For those looking to try this type of putter without committing to change a potentially life-long mechanic to do so, the S2S are a choice. The drawback of the S2S group for me is alignment ambiguity. This may be purely a matter of acclimation, but for a demo where the unit must perform in a group of conventional models, IMO it is a factor.

 

The standard Spider ZT, at least for me, removes the S2S’s alignment issue and can be instantly used with a conventional mechanic. Its ability to make putts is as good as the best I’ve tried, and there have been many. The downsides are price, availability, and that it is not, at least to my metric, actually better than the best conventional models. Overall though, this is “the real deal”, and deserving of the current popularity.

Can you go into more detail about the "studio"? And the Money Ball test.. just curious

 

I've found most of what you said to be pretty accurate. LAB requires a pretty big adjustment, the LAB guy even put out some videos about "how to putt with a LAB". And the Jailbird S2S was pretty much point and shoot. The TM ZT was the best of the bunch, for me.