(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- The Mezz.1 putter from LAB Golf isn’t a thing of beauty—it looks like a trapezoid in the midst of an identity crisis, something a designer might have dreamed up after an especially fruitful visit to a dispensary.
But don’t be fooled. This ugly duckling, released in 2022, is responsible for one of the most innovative changes in the game since metal drivers.
The simplest of all golf strokes, the putt, is also the most confounding. You’re just tapping the ball so it rolls at the right speed along the right path, but it’s so nerve-racking that even seasoned professionals can crack—developing involuntary wrist spasms, or “the yips,” a condition so dreaded that the Mayo Clinic has a page dedicated to it.
The key, as any club pro will tell you, is for the face of the putter to be square—perpendicular to the diameter of the ball—when it makes contact, because the subtlest shift in your wrists can push the ball off its intended line. For years, manufacturers have tried different methods to remedy this. More than 20 years ago, Odyssey introduced its two-ball mallet putter, which has two golf ball-size white dots on the head to improve aim. Others have turned to aircraft-grade aluminum to promote a better “feel.” Bettinardi has what it calls a “soundslot” that gives golfers audible feedback.
But Oregon-based LAB seems to have cracked the code, finding the optimal place to locate the shaft by measuring players and then drilling a series of customized weights into the head so the club resists involuntary wrist-twisting. Its odd shape comes from accommodating the screws used to fine-tune the balance. The result ensures you hit the ball with a square face, down your target line, every time.
Nick Sherburne, executive vice president for operations at nationwide fitter Club Champion, says what LAB has done is simple but impressive nonetheless. “They’ve built the putter so that the face never rotates,” he says. “There’s no other putter that has been made that does that.”
LAB putters are already his No. 1 sellers, eclipsing traditional brands such as Odyssey, TaylorMade and Titleist. “To have a company come out and take over our putter market share is pretty wild,” he says.
At this year’s US Open Championship, LAB putters could be spotted in the bags of former Masters champions Adam Scott and Phil Mickelson. Same with former US Open champ Lucas Glover, who resurrected his career last year in part because of improvements in his short game with a LAB putter.
The company was born from the mind of Bill Presse, who LAB Chief Executive Officer Sam Hahn says was a master club builder by his early 20s. He tried to play professionally several times but always struggled with his putting. A series of experiments with different putters led him to drill holes in the heads, trying to find a spot where he could stick the shaft out of the putter to stay square.
But that technology came at an aesthetic cost. The original LAB putter was called the DF1, short for Directed Force, and looked like a frying pan.
When Hahn first started using Presse’s invention, he improved his handicap from a one (one over par, on average) to a plus-3.5 (3.5 strokes under par, on average) in six weeks. “Psychotic putting,” Hahn says. “Then the head fell off.”
He went back to have it repaired, but Presse said he was going out of business. “The tech was there,” says Hahn, “but it takes a lot more than tech to get a company going.”
They became partners in the business. Hahn says the company did about $260,000 in revenue in 2018 and has grown anywhere from 100% to 300% each year since. “We got a nice boost during Covid, like everyone in golf, but we were pleasantly surprised to see our growth increase after the Covid boom when everyone else was in decline,” he says. The biggest issue now is simply getting one—current waitlists are an average of four weeks.
The company still only focuses on putters, and there are five models to choose from, including the Link.1, which has the look of a more traditional “blade” style. Hahn admits this is a capitulation to aesthetic preferences golfers crave. He says he still uses the original Directed Force putter, the DF 2.1, but says, “Even to me sometimes, looking down at a satellite dish is uncomfortable. We wanted something that was a little bit more in line with our competitors from a size standpoint.”
Using the $550 Mezz.1 is a little like putting with a brick, although sizes can vary based on length and type. The company’s broomstick putters can weigh as much as 530 grams, well above the 300g range of most putters.
But it is effective. “It feels a bit like cheating,” says Paul Cope, owner of Granville Golfland outside Columbus, Ohio, and a Golf Digest Top 100 Clubfitter. “LAB takes all the human error out of putting.” Even if it looks like a mistake.
The Other Clubs to Improve Your Game
The Driver: Titleist GT SeriesThe No. 1 driver in play at the US Open this year was Titleist’s new GT series of drivers, which will be available to the public this fall. You don’t always need tour validation, but one of things that sets Titleist apart is a two-year product cycle, which makes it easier to believe that the company’s innovations aren’t marketing gimmicks but the result of a lengthy research and development process.
The Irons: Mizuno Pro 245No one will ever fault you for putting a set of Mizuno irons (8 pieces for $1,600) in your bag; in fact, they’ll likely mistake you for a real gamer. The new Mizuno Pro 245s have a smallish, compact head, but they’re actually designed for higher handicap golfers with a ton of forgiveness across the face to help off-center hits fly nearly as far as flush ones.
The Wedge: PXG Sugar Daddy IIAt $500, the cost of these wedges is nearly double that of their nearest competitor, but this is the best product in PXG’s lineup. It offers golfers superior feel on short game shots from a variety of lies, whether from deep rough or greenside bunkers. PXG is expected to release a new version soon.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
