TaylorMade Spider 5K ZT - In Hand Knee Jerk Review

[Steelhead]

On 6/7/2025 at 4:02 PM, Eren said:

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. 

That’s a pretty fair assessment, as at first, I was leaving uphill putts a bit short with the ZT. Even though it already has one degree onset, now I put a baby forward press on it on uphill putts and hardly ever leave it short now. 

[Cooper408]

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

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

 

On 6/9/2025 at 4:24 PM, Eren said:

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

I was reading this online as well, that TM is actually balancing each putter (as best they can with only three ports), and that is what is why orders aren't shipping until August at the moment. With that said, mine came ever so slightly toe-closed. I have a bunch of OEM TSS weights on-hand, so I swapped the 6g "middle" weight for an 8g weight and now it's perfect. I wouldn't suggest doing much more than that, though.

[Cooper408]

On 6/13/2025 at 3:41 PM, Leftybombs said:

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

This varies from club to club due to the balancing. From what I understand, their baseline is three 6g weights, then they adjust from there to get it balanced.

[HKS350]

On 6/18/2025 at 11:49 AM, HKS350 said:

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.

This putter confirmed what I’ve suspected for a while—putting has been holding me back. Finally broke through and posted an under-par round at my club.

 

The rest of my game has been solid, but there’s always been pressure knowing every shot had to be tight and every chip needed to finish inside 2 feet. That strain trickled into everything else.

 

Now, with confidence on the greens, that pressure’s gone—and the results are showing.

[HKS350]

On 6/18/2025 at 11:49 AM, HKS350 said:

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.

This putter confirmed what I’ve suspected for a while—putting has been holding me back. Finally broke through and posted an under-par round at my club.

 

The rest of my game has been solid, but there’s always been pressure knowing every shot had to be tight and every chip needed to finish inside 2 feet. That strain trickled into everything else.

 

Now, with confidence on the greens, that pressure’s gone—and the results are showing.

[jeffrey r]

This is a darn good putter, definitely in the conversation with LAB. My first foray into ZT putters was the OZ.1i, which was quite good. When I saw the Spider ZT at PGATSS, I returned the LAB to give this one a go.

 

Took me a few rounds to get used to the Spider, but it has been excellent as of late. Great to see more solid options in this segment.

Edited June 21 by jeffrey r

[liamw]

I’ve just played my first round with the 36” CB coming from a super fine milled face (almost flat) short putter. Love how stable the 5K ZT is and it’s so easy to hit your line. I sucked with my distance control with the 5K ZT though. Left everything well short and really felt like I had to hit everything hard. That could’ve been the result of playing west soft greens (it’s the middle of winter here in Australia and had 47mm of rain the past 24 hours). The insert is very soft. Would love a firmer feel insert. 

[Hollisticgolf]

I want to get one, but I have too many putters. 

[dyd12]

1 hour ago, liamw said:

I’ve just played my first round with the 36” CB coming from a super fine milled face (almost flat) short putter. Love how stable the 5K ZT is and it’s so easy to hit your line. I sucked with my distance control with the 5K ZT though. Left everything well short and really felt like I had to hit everything hard. That could’ve been the result of playing west soft greens (it’s the middle of winter here in Australia and had 47mm of rain the past 24 hours). The insert is very soft. Would love a firmer feel insert. 

I went from a Newport 2 to a pure roll insert and it took a bit of time to get used to the softer feel. Have been putting with a single bend spider for almost a month and my speed control has never been better. Just got a Spider ZT CB because I think the zero torque is gonna take my putting to the next level. Give it some time to get used to the insert and I think you will be happy you did

[TheMoneyShot]

11 hours ago, Hollisticgolf said:

I want to get one, but I have too many putters. 

I tell myself the same thing all the time.  What’s one more putter though, right😜

[jeffrey r]

6 hours ago, TheMoneyShot said:

I tell myself the same thing all the time.  What’s one more putter though, right😜

 

That’s why I just traded in a bunch of nice putters that were collecting dust. The cycle of [a club ho’s] life… 🙂 

[TheMoneyShot]

10 minutes ago, jeffrey r said:

 

That’s why I just traded in a bunch of nice putters that were collecting dust. The cycle of [a club ho’s] life… 🙂 

My problem is I have a hard time letting clubs go, so I just turn into a hoarder😂

[OldDawg]

Anyone having any luck putting a different grip on a 38 inch CB model.  I cut the stock 17 inch 3.0 Tour SuperStroke grip off and trying to install a SuperStoke 17 inch 1.0 pistol.  I have installed many of these in the past on other putters like my Jailbird Cruiser 38 inch.  This grip will not slide all the way on regardless of how much grip solvent I used.  It is so tight it even pushes all the adhesive off of the grip tape!!!  Any suggestions/advise appreciated.

[jeffrey r]

56 minutes ago, TheMoneyShot said:

My problem is I have a hard time letting clubs go, so I just turn into a hoarder😂

 

Yup, I hear ya. I am not getting rid of my classic Scotty Camerons, Bettinardis, Byron Morgans, etc. But now that I am on the ZT train, I simply did not need the PXG mallets, Odyssey randos, etc. anymore. Good trade fodder.

[BiggErn]

On 6/4/2025 at 7:02 PM, felipz24 said:

Maybe an unpopular take here...but I think that headcover and the turquoise color overall are quite ugly. I like the shape quite a bit, but I find that flashy colors like this on putters never end up being 'timeless' and in fact look pretty dated pretty quickly.   

it won’t be long before you’ll have a mySpider ZT option for $100 extra. 

[Webs3B]

5 hours ago, OldDawg said:

Anyone having any luck putting a different grip on a 38 inch CB model.  I cut the stock 17 inch 3.0 Tour SuperStroke grip off and trying to install a SuperStoke 17 inch 1.0 pistol.  I have installed many of these in the past on other putters like my Jailbird Cruiser 38 inch.  This grip will not slide all the way on regardless of how much grip solvent I used.  It is so tight it even pushes all the adhesive off of the grip tape!!!  Any suggestions/advise appreciated.

I put a 15 inch winn on mine with no issues 

[dmeeksDC]

Cannot find the standard versions right now. They’re selling immediately whenever stores get them in stock. 

[dyd12]

11 hours ago, dmeeksDC said:

Cannot find the standard versions right now. They’re selling immediately whenever stores get them in stock. 

was tough to find any versions online. I was lucky enough to just find a CB version on here for a good price so I had to jump on it. took me about 2 weeks of looking to finally get one. demand is through the roof

[Cooper408]

My buddy really wants one so I keep checking eBay for him. I finally told him to just preorder one from TM. This is becoming totally bonkers. I love mine, and wouldn’t sell it at this point, but I don’t understand the amount of impatience people have to spend 2x retail instead of wait 6 weeks. And this isn’t an isolated event. The putter is REALLY good, but it’s not THAT good lol

Edited June 23 by Cooper408

[OldDawg]

20 hours ago, Webs3B said:

I put a 15 inch winn on mine with no issues 

Thanks for the reply

Took mine over to the PGASS where I bought it and with a little extra effort they were able to put my new SS 17 inch 1.0 grip on the putter.  Love this grip so much more than the stock grip that came with the putter.

[TheMoneyShot]

11 hours ago, Cooper408 said:

My buddy really wants one so I keep checking eBay for him. I finally told him to just preorder one from TM. This is becoming totally bonkers. I love mine, and wouldn’t sell it at this point, but I don’t understand the amount of impatience people have to spend 2x retail instead of wait 6 weeks. And this isn’t an isolated event. The putter is REALLY good, but it’s not THAT good lol

It’s like the JB craze all over again…

[dyd12]

20 hours ago, Cooper408 said:

My buddy really wants one so I keep checking eBay for him. I finally told him to just preorder one from TM. This is becoming totally bonkers. I love mine, and wouldn’t sell it at this point, but I don’t understand the amount of impatience people have to spend 2x retail instead of wait 6 weeks. And this isn’t an isolated event. The putter is REALLY good, but it’s not THAT good lol

this is so insane. I'm happy I found one from someone on here who gave me a normal price on it lmfao. paying 1k for it now makes no sense to me

[cflo2382]

I just bought one of these. The 38 CB model. Not sure why. But I did. 🙃

[redshirtgolfer]

1 hour ago, cflo2382 said:

I just bought one of these. The 38 CB model. Not sure why. But I did. 🙃

because you hate money, like almost everyone else around here?

[cflo2382]

1 hour ago, redshirtgolfer said:

because you hate money, like almost everyone else around here?

Precisely.

Truth be told, I've been wanting to test a ZT putter. Haven't been a big fan of the looks of some of the others on the market and the Spider looks great to me. Plus, I'm a ho, fo sho.

[cmrl1986]

Well the marketing and hype on zero torque finally caught up with me. I'm not a fan of the way L.A.Bs look and feel, and couldn't do the 2* shaft lean, but I was lucky enough to grab a 34" Spider 5K ZT today (it pays to have a buddy with a custom shop!). Coming from a conventional putter its much easier to line up and much more comfortable to look at. I much prefer the clean lines and simplicity vs some of the other ZT offerings. I'll see if it lives up to the hype this weekend!

 

 

Edited June 24 by cmrl1986

[Andy55]

Quick question on the Taylormade ZT putter   I have the standard model but am not too keen on the Super Stroke grip.  Will changing the grip affect the balance or playability of the putter given the offset of the SuperStroke grip 

[JJensen22]

On 6/15/2025 at 12:43 PM, 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. 

Did it stay balanced? I cut my 34 down to 33.5 and it seems to sit a smidge open. I also put a pencil grip on it. Could also be a factor.

[cmrl1986]

**Not Hijacking the thread, just adding my experience!**

 

Got this out on the putting green today for the first time during a quick lunch session and here's my reaction: 

 

1. ASTHETICS. Coming from a conventional putter user, I've never really looked at the other ZT options and considered them because they either setup really funky with crazy shaft lean, or have a wild head/hosel combination that just doesn't look right. The 5K ZT sets up very easy and frames the ball really well. Since it only has 1* of shaft lean, it's barely noticeable. One of the other big factors in choosing this one over the others was the grip honestly. I play the same SuperStroke on other putters in my arsenal, so it feels right at home in my hands. I also don't notice the offset in the grip, which again makes the transition into a ZT very easy with the Spider. 

 

2. SOFT. This isn't necessarily a bad thing and I really didn't struggle from 15-20ft plus as many have reported. Honestly it was uphill inside 10-15ft (speed critical putts) where it seemed to have the most affect. You really have to be intentional with your stroke and make sure you're getting it to the hole here. Obviously this was only the first practice session and I know this will improve with use as I get comfortable with it. 

 

3. ZT IS FOR REAL. I'm a 0-3 handicap and generally putt decently well with maybe 1 three-putt every 2-3 rounds (depends on the alcohol consumption). The only reason I decided to give this a go (outside of being an equipment ho) was to see if it would truly improve the make percentages on the 10-20ft putts. These are the 1-3 extra shots that can make a round go from a good day to a pretty great day. I will say that this thing is point and shoot when it comes to hitting a line. I didn't really believe it would make that much of a difference but I'll be damned if it doesn't hit the line every time I roll it. I'm excited to see if the results from the practice sessions translate to that 1-3 less shots on the score card.

 

Over all, very pleased with the results from the first session with it, and I'm excited to see if it makes the bag full time. 

 

Finally, the headcover is sick!

 

[dyd12]

3 hours ago, cmrl1986 said:

**Not Hijacking the thread, just adding my experience!**

 

Got this out on the putting green today for the first time during a quick lunch session and here's my reaction: 

 

1. ASTHETICS. Coming from a conventional putter user, I've never really looked at the other ZT options and considered them because they either setup really funky with crazy shaft lean, or have a wild head/hosel combination that just doesn't look right. The 5K ZT sets up very easy and frames the ball really well. Since it only has 1* of shaft lean, it's barely noticeable. One of the other big factors in choosing this one over the others was the grip honestly. I play the same SuperStroke on other putters in my arsenal, so it feels right at home in my hands. I also don't notice the offset in the grip, which again makes the transition into a ZT very easy with the Spider. 

 

2. SOFT. This isn't necessarily a bad thing and I really didn't struggle from 15-20ft plus as many have reported. Honestly it was uphill inside 10-15ft (speed critical putts) where it seemed to have the most affect. You really have to be intentional with your stroke and make sure you're getting it to the hole here. Obviously this was only the first practice session and I know this will improve with use as I get comfortable with it. 

 

3. ZT IS FOR REAL. I'm a 0-3 handicap and generally putt decently well with maybe 1 three-putt every 2-3 rounds (depends on the alcohol consumption). The only reason I decided to give this a go (outside of being an equipment ho) was to see if it would truly improve the make percentages on the 10-20ft putts. These are the 1-3 extra shots that can make a round go from a good day to a pretty great day. I will say that this thing is point and shoot when it comes to hitting a line. I didn't really believe it would make that much of a difference but I'll be damned if it doesn't hit the line every time I roll it. I'm excited to see if the results from the practice sessions translate to that 1-3 less shots on the score card.

 

Over all, very pleased with the results from the first session with it, and I'm excited to see if it makes the bag full time. 

 

Finally, the headcover is sick!

 

What did you come from before the pureroll insert

Edited June 26 by dyd12