Who is the most underrated putter designer

Northerner

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Many come to my mind (I have owned one or more from all of these fellows):

Tad Moore
TP Mills
Kevin Burns
Bobby Grace
Kirk Currie
Other


To me - and while every one of those guys have produced putters as good or better than RJB or Cameron et al - Kirk Currie was doing things some of these guys couldn't have even imagined until he implemented them.


Who do you think is/was the most underrated putter engineer/manufacturer/designer?
 
Ken Giannini could be on the list...
At Artisan is John Hatfield
 
Lajosi putters are quite good also hand crafted beautiful appearance , and they use , Jerusalem metal ( quite flavour of the month sometime ago ):)
 
Ken Giannini could be on the list...
At Artisan is John Hatfield
Yes. He should. I've owned a few Giannini through the years as well. Great putters
 
I agree with Tad Moore (having previously owned 2 of his putters) and TP Mills (with 2 currently in my stable and having owned quite a few others previously). I don't have any experience with the others listed in the OP or any other "boutique" putter brands.
 
For large OEM the designers and manufacturers at Cobra are currently hard to beat. For just coming into the putter scene they are legit with the Sik face and 3d printing.
 
TP is both underrated and overrated all at once. I wish the Odyssey collab had worked out.

Burns leads this for me, he’s won a major, and continues to innovate with shapes that are unique. The milling is top notch.

Slighter needs to be mentioned because Tom is a legend.

Olson, James, and Lamb make pretty putters, but what differentiates them other than name or looks.

Giannini’s slot technique is brilliant.

Artisan is too industrial.

MACHINE used to lead this.

I can go on for days.
 
Austie Rollinson and Sean Toulon because until recently nobody knew their names in the general public and the amount of copies and wins in the modern era is staggering for a current designer.
 
Austie Rollinson and Sean Toulon because until recently nobody knew their names in the general public and the amount of copies and wins in the modern era is staggering for a current designer.
This is true, but I can’t call anything Odyssey underrated, even with all the love I have for Austie. Now Sean I can get behind because he was turning Toulon into something special even had Odyssey not acquired them. Plus, spider.
 
This is true, but I can’t call anything Odyssey underrated, even with all the love I have for Austie. Now Sean I can get behind because he was turning Toulon into something special even had Odyssey not acquired them. Plus, spider.
True based on sales. I struggle with lists like this because there are some great craftsman out there for sure, but that list in the OP doesn’t have too many designers in my opinion.
 
True based on sales. I struggle with lists like this because there are some great craftsman out there for sure, but that list in the OP doesn’t have too many designers in my opinion.
That’s kinda where I was going with my post.

Currie, yeah. Giannini, yeah. Both from features within designs.

Burns makes unique shapes and criminally under appreciated for the face and insert milling styles.

Truett was an innovator, David Mills kinda isn’t.

Lamb, Olson, James, Swag, etc are just pretty CAD models of classic shapes that are still excellent putters, but not true feats of design.
 
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I've got a Cameron now but have had a TP Mills that I thought was just as good. Always keep an old Ping around just in case.
 
Piretti is great as well.
 
There aren't a lot of original putter designers at all, are there? They all have basically been doing the same models for the last 60 years, haven't they?


I guess you could look at companies like Seemore (the 'With Ground Plumb' and FGP are original in nature) and then Odyssey's 2-Ball was definitely original (and I think I would easily put the 2-Ball on my "Mount Rushmore" of putter designs, next to the 8802, BullsEye and Anser).


Then you have Axis1, and the company that produces that extremely weird looking thing that Justin Rose usedprior to hiscurrent Axis1 (their name escapes me). Certainly a number of others, but not a lot.


But most makers have all been doing the same thing - every one ripped off Odyssey"s "7", for example, more or less. They will change the look slightly, but they are all ripping off that design.



Kirk Currie - correct me if I am wrong - was the first (and for a long time, the only) one who added removable weights in the head, in the grip. Kirk Currie even has went as far as adding removable/interchangable top sight-lines (his Wilson Staff IV model).
 
There aren't a lot of original putter designers at all, are there? They all have basically been doing the same models for the last 60 years, haven't they?


I guess you could look at companies like Seemore (the 'With Ground Plumb' and FGP are original in nature) and then Odyssey's 2-Ball was definitely original (and I think I would easily put the 2-Ball on my "Mount Rushmore" of putter designs, next to the 8802, BullsEye and Anser).


Then you have Axis1, and the company that produces that extremely weird looking thing that Justin Rose usedprior to hiscurrent Axis1 (their name escapes me). Certainly a number of others, but not a lot.


But most makers have all been doing the same thing - every one ripped off Odyssey"s "7", for example, more or less. They will change the look slightly, but they are all ripping off that design.



Kirk Currie - correct me if I am wrong - was the first (and for a long time, the only) one who added removable weights in the head, in the grip. Kirk Currie even has went as far as adding removable/interchangable top sight-lines (his Wilson Staff IV model).

Not too much is original but you can probably say "evolutionary" fits.

As to the Two Ball (and Three Ball), Dave Pelz did the original work and patented it. Callaway/Odyssey purchased the patent just two weeks before they introduced the two ball. I guess they had a deal with Pelz and were waiting for the lawyers to finalize it.

As to Artisan, @Jman, I agree as to the utilitarian/industrial look, especially in its version of the #7 and the wide anser/mallet. The wide anser is less appealing (not appealing/bulky) to me. At the same time, I'd like to take that industrial #7 plain vanilla looking fang and beat the hell outta someone on the greens with a Scotty Futura X Whatever with it.... :ROFLMAO: But nice milling on those Artisan putters - tight, tight roll. I also looked at Kevin Burns 9309 (#7) last week and emailed them - that is a handsome putter.

I have a TP Mills DelMar type putter but in a more balanced look in GSS Burnished Gold. Just haven't played it at all.
 
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Many come to my mind (I have owned one or more from all of these fellows):

Tad Moore
TP Mills
Kevin Burns
Bobby Grace
Kirk Currie
Other


To me - and while every one of those guys have produced putters as good or better than RJB or Cameron et al - Kirk Currie was doing things some of these guys couldn't have even imagined until he implemented them.


Who do you think is/was the most underrated putter engineer/manufacturer/designer?
Im going to say probably TP Mills. Ive owned a few TP Mills Mizuno putters and theyre every bit as good as anything Scotty Cameron has put out, if not better.
 
Most underrated?

I'm not qualified to vote - there are so many putter designers.

I like the guys who design and make the putter and fit you personally.
 
Whoever makes the most 1/4 toe hang designs get my vote
 
Byron likely deserves a nod...
 
Arnold Palmer. Wilson Staff 8802 is Arnie's design.
 
I immediately said Mills in my head, but I guess it's because on the grand scheme platform, he hasn't garnered the full hype he deserves - more like enthusiast obsession.

@Jman showed off a pretty cool Burns shape that was a nice take on the 7 prong. I'd like to see more of what he's about.
 
I immediately said Mills in my head, but I guess it's because on the grand scheme platform, he hasn't garnered the full hype he deserves - more like enthusiast obsession.

@Jman showed off a pretty cool Burns shape that was a nice take on the 7 prong. I'd like to see more of what he's about.

I looked them up after getting back from the Experience.

 
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