It’s time to raise the curtain on Cleveland Golf’s new Huntington Beach SOFT Premier putters and its expansion of the successful Huntington Beach SOFT line. Cleveland Golf has consistently proven that you can make high-quality milled putters with absolute attention to detail and face technology at a really competitive price point. If you haven’t been paying attention to Cleveland putters, it may be time you perked up because you may just be surprised with what you learn.
Milling technology is the big story with both lines, as the new Huntington Beach SOFT Premier and the Huntington Beach SOFT putters are built on the same underlying technology, SOFT. SOFT, or Speed Optimized Face Technology, is face milling technology that is designed to help golfers with one of the biggest problems plaguing amateurs: speed and distance control. Cleveland Golf’s proprietary Speed Optimized Face Technology is designed to normalize ball speed across a larger portion of the face, including impacts that stray from the center.
According to Cleveland, SOFT works by creating a non-uniform milling pattern on the face. Specifically, SOFT putters feature a condensed and concentrated milling pattern in the center of the face, which effectively decreases the amount of direct contact between the face and the ball at impact, and a more spaced out milling pattern as you get further away from the center that increases direct contact with the ball. As a result, center strikes have less direct contact with the ball, and off center strikes have more direct contact with the ball, but with SOFT the inherent lower speeds caused by off-center strikes is effectively normalized with a center strike. All told, you get better, more consistent speed control regardless of impact location. If you are anything like me, having more consistent speed control will directly translate to more confidence on the greens, more aggressive strokes, and shorter second putts.
Another thing to love about SOFT is that it is technology you can see. And if you take a look at multiple different models, you will clearly see that Cleveland’s SOFT design is not once size fits all. Indeed, Cleveland has carefully optimized a SOFT milling design for each putter, so you will have an optimized milling regardless of which shape you use.
Huntington Beach SOFT Premier
The new Huntington Beach SOFT Premier putters are designed with a premium, sleek appearance as compared to the successful Huntington Beach SOFT line. Each putter in the Premier line features a Grey Satin finish that limits glare and adds a quality finish and high-end look. The dark Grey Satin finish is paired with a black shaft and an all-black grip, which gives the putter an aggressive and modern look. Although the darker finish won’t technically make you a better putter, there is something to the idea of “look good, feel good; feel good, putt good.”
As the photos above show, the face of the Huntington Beach SOFT Premier putters has a uniquely crafted, deep diamond-shaped CNC milled pattern in the 340 Stainless Steel head. This type of milling design produces a soft sound and feel at impact that Cleveland putters are known for.
Not only is the SOFT milling design unique to each head shape, the stock putter grip is also optimized depending on the shape of the putter. Face balanced Premier putters, which favor a straight back-straight through stroke, come standard with an all-black Lamkin SINKFIT Pistol grip. Toe Hang Premier putters, which favor a slight to strong arc, come stock with an all-black Lamkin SINKFIT Skinny Pistol. Matching your grip type to your stroke is a fantastic thing because a better fit means better performance.
The Huntington Beach SOFT Premier will be offered in lengths of 33, 34, and 35 inches and in the following eight shapes at launch:
Huntington Beach SOFT
In addition to the Premier line, Cleveland Golf is expanding its successful Huntington Beach SOFT line of putters to include the same shapes as the Premier line.
The new Huntington Beach SOFT putters feature the same SOFT technology described above with the same deep CNC milled diamond pattern in the same soft 304 Stainless Steel. As a result, the technology that is packed into the Premier line is also available in a Satin finish. The Huntington Beach SOFT putters that are face balanced come stock with the Cleveland Golf Huntington Beach SOFT Oversized Grip, whereas putters with a slight to strong arc come stock with a Huntington Beach SOFT Pistol Grip.
As was the case with the original Huntington Beach SOFT putters, Cleveland offers customization and paintfill for a very small fee on both lines of putters directly through its website. Plenty of golfers have already discovered the quality of Cleveland’s putters, and these new lines continue to show that just because it is one of the best deals on the market doesn’t mean it can’t dominate and stand out from the crowd, too.
You can learn more about these new putters and other club offerings by visiting their webstie at www.clevelandgolf.com.
The Details:
Huntington Beach SOFT Premier
Available: August 21, 2020
Price: $159.99
Heads: # 3, 4, 8, 10.5, 10.5C, 11, 11S, 14
Grips: SINKFIT Skinny Pistol or SINKFIT Pistol
Huntington Beach SOFT
Available: August 21, 2020
Price: $129.99
Heads: # 3, 4, 8, 10.5, 10.5C, 11, 11S, 14
Grip: Huntington Beach SOFT Oversized Grip or Huntington Beach SOFT Pistol Grip
