By now you know that here at THP we review everything that we can in an effort to spread the word on some companies and products that you might not have otherwise had the opportunity to hear about. Sometimes there are some excellent products that we just know will be successful and helpful to golfers everywhere. We also occasionally get products in for review that simply does not meet the company’s bold claims and almost certainly seem destined to fall short of expectations. The latest piece of equipment sent over for testing pleasantly surprised us. It isn’t for everyone but it’s worth checking out.
I’ll admit, upon receiving the Belly Putt in the mail I was extremely skeptical. I have never really been a belly putter kind of guy but I will admit this little gadget intrigued me. In the tube package was everything I’d need to convert my TaylorMade Rossa mallet into a belly putter. Because curiosity had gotten the best of me I honestly couldn’t wait to get started. The package arrived on my night to cook for the kids, so as dads typically do I popped in a frozen pizza into the oven and turned my attention to the installation required to make this 35 inch putter of mine a bona fide belly putter.
Typically the pizzas we buy at home take roughly 16 minutes to cook; will this be enough time needed to get this conversion from standard putter to belly putter? Let’s find out. In the tube you find the Belly Putt, Cutting Tool, Allen Wrench and Replacement Plug along with easy to follow instructions on installation. The first step is to use the cutting tool to create a bigger hole in the end of your putter to fit the Belly Putt in. About 16 seconds after starting I was done and the hole was ready. Next you simply insert the Belly Putt into the end of the putter and decide where you’d like to lock it in. Quickly and easily adjustable it took another 30 seconds in and I had my length and I was ready to use the included Allen Wrench to secure the Belly Putt in place. A quick tighten of the bolt at the end locked this thing in place and just like that I was ready to start rolling putts! So the pizza is approaching the halfway stage by now and I’m already setup with a completely different putter than I had just 5 minutes ago.
So I’m rolling some putts back and forth across my living room carpet both waiting for the pizza to be done and just testing the sturdiness and functionality of the Belly Putt and almost as if on cue my doorbell rings and it’s my dad. His eyes immediately lit up when he saw what I was playing with. See, dad has been looking for an answer for his streaky putting all season and had actually been contemplating a belly putter for some time now. Little issue, dad’s a lefty and couldn’t really get a sense for the Belly Putt while it was installed on my right handed putter. Within about 6 seconds dad was out to his car and back with his lefty putter and ready to install the Belly Putt to give it a try. Remember that whole 46 second process of installing the Belly Putt into my putter? It took no more than 20 seconds to take it out and pop in the Replacement Plug into the new hole created in my grip. Having already been through the whole process once I quickly installed the Belly Putt in dad’s putter and he was set. He was rolling putts across the carpet and loving what he was seeing. All this took place and it was just now time to take out the pizza.
While my dad was ready to leave my house with this Belly Putt I had to wrestle it away so that I could complete my testing. I quickly and easily installed the Belly Putt back into my own putter and continued to roll putts around the house off and on the rest of the evening. The next day I took my new belly putter to the golf course and worked it out quite a bit on the practice green. While I was honestly starting to get the hang of putting with a belly putter I never really could dial them in to where I felt that I wanted to go this direction full time. Still having some questions on whether or not the installation of the Belly Putt would withstand constantly being pulled out and shoved back into my bag I left everything installed as is for about a week while I played one casual round of golf with my daughter and another round with the boys in the Men’s Club. Not having my best putting days didn’t really bother me because after all I was completely changing putter styles and for me the change just took a bit to get used to. Throughout a full week and 2 trips to the practice green, 2 trips to the golf course, and multiple trips in and out of the back of the Yukon the Belly Putt remained completely sturdy and just as locked in place as it was the day I installed it. I even purposely carried and handled my putter by the Belly Putt extension and it actually stayed in place much better than I expected. Well done guys!
So in the end I did remove the Belly Putt from my club, but that should not be the focus of this review. The first question that needed to be answered was, did the Belly Putt live up to the claims of the company? The company claims to offer a way for you to take control of your putting stroke by easily and inexpensively converting your own putter into a belly putter. The answer to my first question then would be yes, definitely. At just $39.95 you can convert your existing putter into a belly putter, much cheaper than the price of a brand new belly putter, I can promise you that. The next question I had to answer was, did the product perform as promised? Again, yes. Quick and easy installation was certainly a plus but for me what really impressed me was just how sturdy the Belly Putt was and remained to be the entire time I had it installed in my putter.
So as I said, the Belly Putt was not a product that I personally need, but my dad loved it. After my review was complete I let him use it in his lefty putter and after some adjustment period he found that a belly putter was definitely something that he could benefit from. As I said earlier, some products that come through THP will be successful and some will not. The fact that the Belly Putt clearly lived up to the company’s promises tells me that this product will most certainly find success. It’s really simple, why pay up to $200 or more for a new belly putter when for $39.95 you can convert your own putter into a belly putter and still have the option of quickly and easily going back and forth? I think it’s a great concept and just because I don’t need a belly putter doesn’t mean that a lot of golfers out there won’t find this product to be the stroke saver they’ve been looking for.
Great review Jason! Next time I am looking for a belly putter this will no doubt be where I go. Sounds like a quick and easy installation and something belly putter fans will love.
nice review Jason! This seems to be the answer for people who are toying with the idea of switching to a belly putter. It’s nothing permanent and can be installed very easily. Glad to hear your Dad was a fan of it.
Interesting product. I like that you focused on the company’s claims as opposed to whether or not a belly putter works for you. Looks like this product is a good alternative to spending a bunch of money on a new putter. Thanks, Jason!
Thanks for the great write up Jason. Hope the pizza turned out well!
I appreciate your honesty about the extent you will continue to use the product, and your insight to where in the market it fits as a whole. I wonder how long I can continue to putt poorly before I have to try this!
great review buddy, I am not one to try a belly putter but it sounds like a great product for someone wanting to give it a shot. Much easier than re shafting the putter
Thanks for the great review!! Did you find that once the extension was installed the putter needed a lie adjustment?
Hi, doesnt this mess up the weighting of the club head? It won’t be as balanced then no?
Great review JK!!! Totally agree with you in that this is a great option to go with instead of getting a whole new putter
Sitting here watching “Burn Notice” and reading this review – “when a spy needs a belly putter…”
I love things like this !
I saw this before but at the time I had zero interest. No way would I ever use that! But I am going to be trying this thing out in a couple of days. Thanks, Thainer!
Nice write up Jason, is this Belly Putt sturdy enough to leave in a putter long term, or is it simply to be used to determine if you want to go belly putter all the way?
Smallie I know you will be posting your thoughts for all of us too.
Great review Jason. I think I might pick one of these up to see how it a belly putter would work for me.
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This product is cool but i don’t recommend it even thou i have never used it. I seen it advertised and looked in to it as i was considering a belly putter. You could buy a belly putter for the same price. I have found them at a big box sports store for $40 and better used ones at the flea market for $20 or as I did just go to a store and try one. The belly put dose not conform to usga rules 4-1 and 4-2 and using a club with the belly put will result in disqualification.