TaylorMade Spider 5K ZT - In Hand Knee Jerk Review

[Jeff58]

@Kmac, The shop has a series of launch monitor “booths” that are roughly 15 yards deep. The end one is used as a putting demo space. It has about 35’ of putting. Some is open, some is typical mats with alignment lines.

 

As with the subjective testing scheme that’s used by MGS, some models tend to work best at specific ranges. Also, IMO some model’s alignment is more intuitive than others. The test is putting at various distances with and without alignment aids (the tracks on mats). For 4/10/20, the objective is made putts. At 30’, it’s proximity to the hole. 

 

Once you perform the sequence enough times, the strengths, weaknesses, and biasing of various head and grip designs become apparent, often blatantly so. It also somewhat sadly shows the limitations of typical putter fitting, again at least for me.

This not intended as a LAB bash, but… Many years ago I bought a Cameron for about $300, which at the time was considered both arrogant and absurd. In order to not appear arrogant and absurd, I practiced a ridiculous amount of time, until I was a good putter by most metrics. Currently, when I look at those spending a great deal of time on the practice green, a lot of them have LAB’s.

 

[ThomasM]

Finally got a chance to roll my 36” CB today on the practice green. I think I may trim this down to 33” and see how it goes. I like the feel of heavier putter heads and I like the feel of the GPS shaft but just don’t really get along with the length that much. Maybe it’s too much weight at the hands. 
 

I have a DF2.1 broomstick that is at 32” and I love it. I’ll let everyone know how it goes.

[SwingBlade]

Got to hit a cb and a non-cb 5k-ZT today.  The balance of the non-cb was not quite as stable or consistent as I was expecting on 3 to 5 footers.   But, everything seemed to come together nicely in the 35" 5k-ZT CB.   Actually liked the club and it had a good roll.   It's very similar to the LAB DF3 CB but  the standard DF3 with ACCRA to me is just much easier to swing square with a gentle light zero release grip.

Edited June 19 by SwingBlade

[Leftybombs]

Does anyone know the weights on this the stock weight I want to buy heavier ones just want to know what stock is. 

[StoutKing]

Had a chance to try one of these last night.  Felt pretty good.  Different than my DF3 for sure.  Softer.  I much prefer the aesthetics of the LAB.  Surprised Rosie is negative strokes gained in the Open with the ZT.

[Stonewalled]

Kinda stumbled into a 38 CB.  Thought I had my putting  Y--S under control, last year was my best year ever putting wise. Well this year's results are absolutely abysmal. 3 or 4 putt every green, not even fun playing golf. 

 

Was watching a video on YouTube, kinda figured the  arm-lock technique was worth a shot. Went to the local Big Box  store to try a few. One of the workers was assisting me, he handed me the jail break model. I had read good things about the Jail break model, but I didn't have very good results with it. I'm not having good results with any putter at the moment so that doesn't mean very much. 

 

He handed me a TM model, not sure why but instantly it felt good in my hands and after a few putts I told the young man "I'm thinking I could make this one work"  I had no idea what the model was called, without my glasses on the first glance read  TM S--T LOL. The kid laughed when I called it that, but that was the last time I called it that. I could do no wrong with that thing, kind of a revelation from where I had been with my putting woes. Was afraid to look at the price tag, well.... pretty nasty price for these up in the great white north. Holy sugar  was all I said. Probably all I needed to say. 

 

After dropping 4 more putts I sheepishly took it up to the counter and asked Do these ever go on sale???  He said $50 off on everything over $500 today. Kinda slid back onto the putting green thinking  that wasn't  exactly what I was hoping for.  My desperation got the better of me and up to the counter again I went.  Don't think I have ever spent that much on an off the shelf putter before, but I'm glad I did. 

 

Kinda funny that someone who usually researches the heck  out any golf related purchase bought something that pricey without knowing a damn thing about it. 

 

Kinda cool to see I was very lucky to find one of these in the store. Hopefully it works well on the course tomorrow evening. 

Edited June 17 by SheriffBooth
bad wording

[endy]

On 6/11/2025 at 11:25 PM, ThomasM said:

Finally got a chance to roll my 36” CB today on the practice green. I think I may trim this down to 33” and see how it goes. I like the feel of heavier putter heads and I like the feel of the GPS shaft but just don’t really get along with the length that much. Maybe it’s too much weight at the hands. 
 

I have a DF2.1 broomstick that is at 32” and I love it. I’ll let everyone know how it goes.

Did you end up cutting it down? 

[ThomasM]

51 minutes ago, endy said:

Did you end up cutting it down? 

Yeah, cut it down to 33” and I like it a lot better. I’m trying a few different grips with it now just to see how they change the feel. I just prefer heavier putters and it just feels better now. 

[endy]

18 minutes ago, ThomasM said:

Yeah, cut it down to 33” and I like it a lot better. I’m trying a few different grips with it now just to see how they change the feel. I just prefer heavier putters and it just feels better now. 

Nice! I am debating doing the same with my 36” CB down to 35” .. I like the GPS and 0° lean aspects but don’t like the bigger grip 

[ThomasM]

3 hours ago, endy said:

Nice! I am debating doing the same with my 36” CB down to 35” .. I like the GPS and 0° lean aspects but don’t like the bigger grip 

Same reason I bought the 36” CB. I like graphite and no lean. I may end up in a smaller grip but I have the Garsen Max Tour there now and it feels good so far. I’ll spend some more time swapping grips this week. 

[Steelhead]

Having spent hours on the putting green and in four rounds at my club, the soft feel of the club I thought initially would hurt me on lag putts, but after listening to the sound/feel it’s an easy adjustment. It really is point and shoot and if I miss, it’s definitely on me because of my line or speed, but the roll is true and reliable, and having been through several spiders, this seems very familiar, I’m not one for superstoke grips, preferring a lampkin deep etch, but I cannot deny the results of the roll. Are we becoming better putters because we’re spending a lot of time on greens getting used to the zero torque phenomenon? Or is it really a better roll :-)? Either way, works really well. In the bag for the season, it appears. 

[endy]

Made my first putt for birdie (20 footer) with the 35” so it stays in the bag for at least another round ! 

[itsdannyv]

On 6/11/2025 at 9:06 AM, 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.

What have been the top models you have tested in general?

[Jeff58]

17 minutes ago, itsdannyv said:

What have been the top models you have tested in general?

 

Odyssey Ai Milled 7 T

Spider Tour X L neck - Scottie putter

Ping Prime Tyne 4

Cleveland HB Soft 10.5C UST shaft

 

2016 Newport Mallet 1 - Best Cameron

TM Reserve M21 - Best putter used by no one

[itsdannyv]

On 6/9/2025 at 10:56 PM, MattM97 said:

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. 

what length CB did you try? I ordered the standard in 35 and 38 in CB to compare. I'm 5'11 for comparison.

[itsdannyv]

On 6/15/2025 at 10:33 PM, Jeff58 said:

 

Odyssey Ai Milled 7 T

Spider Tour X L neck - Scottie putter

Ping Prime Tyne 4

Cleveland HB Soft 10.5C UST shaft

 

2016 Newport Mallet 1 - Best Cameron

TM Reserve M21 - Best putter used by no one

Thank you for the response, I think I am going to look into trying out the Ai-ONE Square 2 Square Jailbird as the best option for zero torque putters because of your recommendation. When you mention the AI milled 7 T, is this the crank hosel or double bend? Or, is this just user preference and swing arc at this point?

[MattM97]

4 hours ago, itsdannyv said:

what length CB did you try? I ordered the standard in 35 and 38 in CB to compare. I'm 5'11 for comparison.

 

Whatever stock is which is 38 i assume. I'm 6'3" but long arms and have a CB lab at 37.5" 

[Jeff58]

9 hours ago, itsdannyv said:

Thank you for the response, I think I am going to look into trying out the Ai-ONE Square 2 Square Jailbird as the best option for zero torque putters because of your recommendation. When you mention the AI milled 7 T, is this the crank hosel or double bend? Or, is this just user preference and swing arc at this point?

As you correctly noted, any personal ranking, regardless of the objectivity of the test method, is wrong, since it’s applicable to my stroke mechanic, alignment, weight expectations, etc…

 

Most of the models that work best for me have plumber/straight necks. To me, this type of configuration seems best both visually and for feel. Your preferences may vary significantly.

 

[gioguy21]

all i know is - confidence with this putter is through the roof. 

that mentality of "just get me within 20 feet and i can give it a scare" is very real with this putter. 

[TRheezy]

Luckily, I was able to snag one on Father's Day at the local golf store.  I so badly want to pull my TPT shaft out of the DF3 and put it in this (after a 3-putt free round).  Do you think it would mess with the balance? 

[SheriffBooth]

1 hour ago, gioguy21 said:

all i know is - confidence with this putter is through the roof. 

that mentality of "just get me within 20 feet and i can give it a scare" is very real with this putter. 

 

Were you putting well before and the ZT has taken things to a new level?

[Webs3B]

I have the 38 inch CB model and the putter is great but I'm not in love with the grip. Does anyone know if I change to a 17 inch Garsen will I be messing up the balance? 

[BubbaWon]

2 hours ago, Webs3B said:

I have the 38 inch CB model and the putter is great but I'm not in love with the grip. Does anyone know if I change to a 17 inch Garsen will I be messing up the balance? 

I too have the 38” and this TM-branded version of the SuperStroke 3.0-17 is decidedly less “grippy” (and to me, worse) than an off-the-shelf version I installed a month ago on another putter. 

Edited June 17 by BubbaWon

[Eren]

Was able to confirm "my spider" customization will be available for this in September. In terms of what can be customized (color, sightline, shaft, grip, etc) that is still "unknown" 

[gioguy21]

8 hours ago, SheriffBooth said:

 

Were you putting well before and the ZT has taken things to a new level?

Was always a good putter - but the confidence going to this has been noticeable. Always averaged 30 or so putts per round but lately it’s been closer to 26-28

[OldDawg]

Anyone with a 38 inch CB having any luck adding a SuperStroke Counter Weight?  Since mine came with the Tech Port Cap on the stock 17 inch 3.0 Superstore Grip I wanted to try adding the stock SuperStroke 50 gram counter weight.  For me, it will not fit inside the KBS shaft.  I even took the foam off of the tip with no luck.  It appears to me that the inside diameter of the butt end of the shaft is smaller than the outside diameter of the shaft of the counter weight.  Also having no luck with TaylorMade CS about this potential Problem.

[HoganHO]

19 hours ago, SheriffBooth said:

 

Were you putting well before and the ZT has taken things to a new level?

I was putting well with a DF3 and the ZT CB has taken me to a next level of confidence for sure. 

The LAB face simply does not compete with the PureRoll insert on the ZT in my opinion. Both feel and roll are superior.

[HKS350]

4 rounds in and I'm convinced this will be in the bag for a LONG time. I'm tempted to tinker, loved the LA shaft in my Scotty but I'm scared to mess up a good thing....

 

Putting has long been my struggle. Mainly anything inside 8 ft I now feel supremely confident in.

[liamw]

I’m loving the KBS GPS shaft in the CB. Stout but has great feel.

[BubbaWon]

14 hours ago, OldDawg said:

Anyone with a 38 inch CB having any luck adding a SuperStroke Counter Weight?  Since mine came with the Tech Port Cap on the stock 17 inch 3.0 Superstore Grip I wanted to try adding the stock SuperStroke 50 gram counter weight.  For me, it will not fit inside the KBS shaft.  I even took the foam off of the tip with no luck.  It appears to me that the inside diameter of the butt end of the shaft is smaller than the outside diameter of the shaft of the counter weight.  Also having no luck with TaylorMade CS about this potential Problem.

I learned this the hard way: the Superstroke 17” is not compatible with the counterweights, despite having the top.  On their website.  

Edited June 19 by BubbaWon