TaylorMade Ghost Spider Si Putter Review Thread

[golfinFF]

Is anyone seeing any hot spots from the insert?

What are your thoughts on the grip? Feel? Holding the putter in the same spot?

 

[OITW]

Is anyone seeing any hot spots from the insert?

What are your thoughts on the grip? Feel? Holding the putter in the same spot?

The ball comes off the insert very consistently every time for me.

Set first I wasn't a fan of the grip and the texture especially when my hands were a little wet/sweaty. It's grown on me a lot though and I've grown very comfortable with it now.

I'm pretty consistent with my grip two inches down with my right hand and on inch down with my left.


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[Mmaynard11]

Is anyone seeing any hot spots from the insert?

What are your thoughts on the grip? Feel? Holding the putter in the same spot?

The ball comes off the consistently across the face. Today I had a putt of 25' and hit the putt closer to the toe and still only came up 2' short.

As far as the grip, it has the same feel as a SS. Not overly hard but not to squishy. I find when I place my left thumb on the spider's abdomen (~2.5 ") I see the best results of the putters counterbalance.

 

[bhilln]

Played 18 with the Spider Si in the bag today and it lived up to what has been mentioned already in this thread. I had 32 putts today, which is about average for me but wasn't putting myself in good positions on the green as well. As I said before, in the 7-10 foot range I'm very confident. I miss hit a few shots today with it and the ball seemed unaffected in both distance and how it comes off the face. The ball starts rolling quickly on the line with no jumping off the face.

I have not noticed any hot spots on the insert... and have hit all over the face of this thing. I am gripping down about 1 /12 inches which is close to my standard putter stance; I don't really notice the extra weight of this putter as the balance is one of the best CB I've tried. The paint still remains in good shape, no knicks or paint coming off. There is green marks from the greens on the bottom of the putter but easily wipes off with a damp towel.

Ball off the face is just so consistent and the ability to line up the face and ball on the line just plain works. Not overly large like some of the mallets of it's type and great feel and performance... do yourself a favor and give one of these a roll next time you see one.

 

[PhillyV]

Got to watch Michigan Slice use this putter yesterday. He made some awesome putts. And if he didn't make one, it was very close. It seems like he had every ounce of confidence you could have in a putter. Really cool to watch

 

[Drumdog]

Is anyone seeing any hot spots from the insert?

What are your thoughts on the grip? Feel? Holding the putter in the same spot?

I played Thursday - 12 putts on front - 15 putts on back
Saturday - 14 putts on front - 13 on back (including a 35 foot bird)
Sunday - 12 putts on 9 holes.

I don't see any hot spots on the insert. In fact I think the consistency across the insert is quite good.
I am thinking of trying a larger grip on mine, but I keep making putts, so this is still under consideration.
As far as gripping the same spot, I use the logo as a reference to get my hands at the same height.
I really do like this putter and it will be in my bag for quite some time.

 

[OITW]

Took the Ghost Spider Si out today to compare it to my Nead Custom Putter "Nead1"

Specs:
The Ghost is 35" and the Nead is is 36" with a standard leather grip, the Nead is not a CB putter, however the head is very heavy, with a bronze milled face.

Conditions:
Dry and VERY windy (again with the wind, just one day no wind!)

I putted for an hour and from these specific distances: 10', 15' and 38'.

I used five balls for each putt, I used 3 Hopkins VL Pros, an E5 and a Wilson FG Tour

(The distance above is from 15')

(15' with the Nead)

From 15' the putters were very similar in performance, in the pictures above the Nead performed very well, most putts were close to the hole, the sound off the face of the Nead was a louder click than than the Pure Roll insert in the Si. Putts were pretty tight here, my off putt was about 3-4 ft passed the hole.

(15' with the Ghost Spider Si)

From 15' the Ghost was great on these five balls (only four are visible because the other one is in the hole :act-up The misses here were all within 2 ft of the cup. On one of the strokes, the closest ball in the picture I was affected by the wind.

The difference between the two from 15 ft is definitely noticeable though, I can feel mishits a lot more significantly with the Nead and I felt myself stopping several times to redo a putt or correcting mid putt because the feel was not consistent and stable like the Si.

(The putts in the pic above were with the Ghost Spider Si from 38')

I left the first putt way short with the wind and didn't give it a full stroke. The 2nd putt was getting a feel for the distance, the third putt I holed out and the other were beautiful lags that were within a foot, nice little gimmes.

I love this putter from distance it's so stable, it's one of reasons why I need to get it out on a day with no wind (I know you play golf in bad weather, but I just want to game it in perfect conditions to see how well it will shine, without me or anything else holding it back). The Si really separated itself from the Nead from this distance.

(The putts in the pic above were with the Nead from 38')

The Nead from this distance was only as good as it's user. I did not perform well with the Nead, I couldn't get a feel of the distance down, without even a line at the top, I feel that my alignment was off when I addressed the ball. Also, the blade was not as stable on the long powerful strokes that I used for this distance. I did not have any problems with it jumping off the face like I did with the Tank.

(The putts in the pic above were 10 putts with the Nead from 10')

From 10 ft the Nead redeemed itself, I sunk 4 out of 10 putts, however distance was a little hot and four of my remaining putts went a little farther than I would have liked.

(The putts in the pic above were 10 putts with the Si from 10')

I feel really bad for my Nead though, same result with the Si, however the six that didn't go in the hole would be definite gimmes if we were in a THP event (depending who your playing partners are ).

Recap:

1)The Nead gave the Ghost Si a run for it's money from 10 to 15 ft with the slight edge going to the Si. The Si really opened the gap with distance putts.

2)The Pure Roll insert held it's own against the milled face of the Nead. Sound of the Si isn't as clicky as the Nead. The Si, with the insert has a softer feel off of the face.

3) The stability of the Si is amazing. Every stroke felt smooth and miss-hits were minimized or not felt at all. I could feel the mishits in the Nead, especially when putts weren't hit clean and stability just wasn't there for me on the long distance putts.

4) Alignment easily goes to the Si, three white lines, the contrasting white and black.
5) The Si has the claws to pick up the ball, whereas the Nead doesn't (not a knock at all because the Nead is an amazing flatstick, but should be mentioned in this review)
6) In terms of grip, I do give the edge to the Nead, because it's a leather grip and I really like the feel of that in my hands, the Si feels a bit squishy when comparing it to the leather of the Nead.

Based on overall performance though I would have to give the edge to the Ghost Spider Si.

 

[Michigan Slice]

Got to watch Michigan Slice use this putter yesterday. He made some awesome putts. And if he didn't make one, it was very close. It seems like he had every ounce of confidence you could have in a putter. Really cool to watch

Let me give a quick update and a couple thoughts.

This last Saturday a group of THP'ers came together in southern Michigan for A scramble at the Legacy.
As Phil said, I had a good deal of confidence in this putter, But I am unhappy to report that I didn't make a ton of putts.
My speed and distance control was however spot on for the most part, I narrowly missed a handful of putts, and while I did make a chutt from around 20 feet, I did somehow miss a few to mostly the high side.
The Greens at the Legacy golf club were surprisingly quick on that warm windy day, but consistent and had a good deal of slope.
I never had a problem with a skidding , or hopping golf ball I missed some alignments or reads, but the ball rolled very nicely, and as I have said I had very good speed and distance control.

I was generally the first to putt in our group, and I think I would have made a great deal of the second putts. While I didn't make a ton of the one putt opportunities, I bet I would have made a lot of the follow ups, If I had to guess I was generally within 3'.


My Second round this week came at the Emerald Golf Club in St. Johns,MI and is a place I have wanted to play for some time.
The temperature was a warm 71 degrees with light winds.

I found these greens to be on the smallish in size, but rolled very true, and with a consistent speed.
I finished the front nine with 17 putts, One 3 putt that I missed the original from 20' uphill, and left the uphill 6' putt 1' short. I also had 2 one putts and they were decent length putts (8' and 14') and while my approaches were not great this putter really was coming through for me carding 6 2 putts heading out on the course.

Coming in, I cut my putting strokes down to 16, but is a little misleading due to 2 hole outs, when in fact I had zero one putts, and 2 3 jacks on this nine. (One being from a stupid hard 4 tiered green, and I was on the top putting down to the bottom) the other 3 putt, I have zero excuses, and is totally on me! I chipped up to within 10' and missed too aggressively speed wise, blowing my ball through the break, and rolling past the hole and to a slope, the ball continued to roll, and roll, and roll stopping some 15' later on a very quick putt. I missed that come backer 3' long, but thank goodness history didn't repeat itself and I sunk the third stroke on the green.
I 2 putted the rest, leaving many right at the hole.
Finishing a round with 33 putts is a strong showing for me, and while I made mistakes, the putter flat bailed me out!

This putter given the chance will do the same for you! It will bail you out of some of your mistakes.

The Pure roll insert is money! The face is incredibly stable, the Counterbalance is a treat! I wasn't sure what exactly to expect with this offering, but the TaylorMade Ghost Spider Si has really opened my eyes to the worlds of Counterbalancing and Mallet putters.

I again want to thank THP and TaylorMade for this testing opportunity.
And as always, if you have any questions please feel free to ask.

 

[salisboss]

I played Thursday - 12 putts on front - 15 putts on back
Saturday - 14 putts on front - 13 on back (including a 35 foot bird)
Sunday - 12 putts on 9 holes.

I don't see any hot spots on the insert. In fact I think the consistency across the insert is quite good.
I am thinking of trying a larger grip on mine, but I keep making putts, so this is still under consideration.
As far as gripping the same spot, I use the logo as a reference to get my hands at the same height.
I really do like this putter and it will be in my bag for quite some time.

Obviously by your handicap you can putt but those are phenominal numbers. Are those putts per round better than your other putters or has there been a noticable improvement?

 

[salisboss]

Do you guys all have the slant or straight neck?

 

[OITW]

Do you guys all have the slant or straight neck?

I have the single bend shaft, not the slant.


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[Tadashi70]

It's been a minute since I liked a TM putter. I like this one from what I saw over the weekend. Great look, weight and feel (soft yet firm) off the face.

 

[War Eagle]

It's been a minute since I liked a TM putter. I like this one from what I saw over the weekend. Great look, weight and feel (soft yet firm) off the face.

Should have let you roll it for a bit longer, but i understand why you havent moved away from your current gamer, that thing is so money for you.

 

[Tadashi70]

Should have let you roll it for a bit longer, but i understand why you havent moved away from your current gamer, that thing is so money for you.

The only thing that would make me switch is just cuz I can. I love my gamer! But this could be something I could used to in a hurry

 

[jhstew1]

The only thing that would make me switch is just cuz I can. I love my gamer! But this could be something I could used to in a hurry

I like it, I was messing w/ it at Golfsmith earlier, it has a really nice feel & weight

 

[War Eagle]

I find myself getting more and more comfortable with the Spider Si each time I have it out on the course. For me, the heft of this one being CB and the length at 35" is a really good setup. I find that it allows me to force myself to put my "normal" putting stroke on the putt without trying to overthink it as I have done with other putters in the past. The CB tech gives me a certain confidence that my putter face will be absolute square at impact and will give me a true roll on the ball. Having struggled a bit in the past with coming through with an open face and missing off to the right, I am pleased to see that miss virtually dissapear with the Spider Si. Sure, I still have my misses, but more often that not it's due to a poor read or just being slightly off.

No 3jacks with this one my last few rounds is a great sign of what is to come the more time I work with this one. This past weekend I had numerous putts that suffered a terrible lip out, including one that did a complete 360* and came back out of the cup. When those start dropping, I am definitely going to be staring at sub-30 putts/round.

One putts stands out to me from my round on Saturday, and that is one that was from nearly 90 feet away. It was from the front of the green, all the way uphill and right/left to the back of the green. It was a putt that typically I am hoping to just lag close. Before I stepped up to the ball, I joked across the green to Freddie and said "These are the ones that I like to drain". I put a solid, firm, stroke on the ball and trusted the putter, ball rolled true and perfect. It started tracking dead at the hole and Freddie tended the pin, ball was looking dead at the front of the cup as it curved from left to right, dropped and bounced on the back edge of the cup and hopped right out and stood on the edge of the cup. I took my time walking up hoping it would fall in, but it did not, but regardless I was pretty stoked at the result of that LONG putt.

This one isnt going anywhere.

 

[Michigan Slice]

Ryan, Excellent thoughts there!

That monster putt would have been something to see!

I tend to agree on your point about seemingly missing on mostly bad reads or slight misses.
I also find myself getting immediate positive feedback if my takeaway is too much hands, and it is such a strong feeling helped by the counterbalancing that i can reset my stroke.

Good stuff here! I look forward to my next round or practice session!

 

[blugold]

I really would like to try the slant neck.

 

[Mmaynard11]

John you should have used it more the time we got out for our round.

I like it, I was messing w/ it at Golfsmith earlier, it has a really nice feel & weight

 

[v.man]

I went to Dick's today hoping to roll this putter some. They didn't have one in stock yet. I'm sure the PGA SS will have it, but didn't have time to go the extra 25 miles. I will find one soon though.

 

[Drumdog]

Obviously by your handicap you can putt but those are phenominal numbers. Are those putts per round better than your other putters or has there been a noticable improvement?

I've worked very hard to be a good putter because I've had to. If I could dial in my approach shots, I think I would be a scratch golfer or better.
Those numbers are better than my typical amount of putts though. I will usually average around 30-32 putts per round.

 

[jhstew1]

John you should have used it more the time we got out for our round.

i used it once, which is what got me interested. I move slowly when it comes to new equipment

 

[Mmaynard11]

Testing Review Update:
I would like to provide an update on the TaylorMade Spider Si from over the last week or so. While I've had time to put my thoughts on paper.

Grip:
The grip on the Spider Si has continued to impress me. The feel of the grip in my hands is very pleasing to me and somewhat different than the feeling I receive from my normal gamer (SuperStroke). The feel of the grip can be considered to feel almost velvety and soft, yet firm at the same time. This is compared to that almost plastic or laminate feel of the SS. IMO feel is very important in selection if the numerous grips provided these days. TaylorMade was able to select a grip that can tend to provide a feel that, for me did the trick.

At first I was curious as to how the width, weight, and length of the grip would affect my putting stroke. After my knowledge transfer session, which was provided by golffinff, on how to grip a CB all was well. The grip fits well on the pads of my fingers, while at the same time providing that feel of stability.

So far the durability of the grip has stood up to the various playing conditions it has been subjected to. (Humid, Wet, Dry, and Cold). After roughly 7 rounds and nearly as many if not more practice putting sessions appears practically brand new.


Performance:
Over the last several weeks I have seen my miss right become almost non-existent. I attribute this to the weight provided by the CB features and the ability for the putter face to be square on impact. Not only has my miss right disappeared, I am finding more tap in putts when a lag is necessary. My confidence level has increased, knowing I don't have to feel as if I am over hitting on longer putts. A flaw that was pointed on in my putting stroke, by Robman7, of jabbing at the ball is no more.

For those of you who feel you lack that pendulum putting stroke...definitely find a place to get the Spider Si into your hands.

StayTuned...

 

[bhilln]

After a crazy work week with no playing, I'm looking forward to a long weekend and getting this out on the course again.

 

[JPR1959]

Stupid question, but why do some of these have 36 on the bottom, and some have 72?