I can still remember my reaction the first time I saw the original Spider putter from TaylorMade Golf. I thought it looked like a spaceship on the end of a putter shaft. It was radical looking and it was big. I demoed the putter a bit here and there, but I never wound up falling in love with it. The original Spider putter would go on to become a huge hit for TaylorMade. It was such a popular putter that the company decided to ‘ghost’ it last year. Since then, the Ghost Spider has become a rock star in TaylorMade’s lineup full of great putters. Never a company to rest their laurels, TaylorMade set out to redesign a putter that so many people already loved.

From TaylorMade
Extensive Tour testing influenced every detail of the new Ghost Spider S – one of the most stable putters TaylorMade has ever created. In addition to its new, tour-inspired shape, the Ghost Spider S is revolutionary in terms of control and feel.
“To create it, we started with the DNA of our most successful putter franchise and applied more than a year of obsessive feedback from our toughest customers, our Tour Staff professionals. In terms of the two most critical aspects of putting — alignment and stability — Ghost Spider S is the complete package.” Michael Fox, TaylorMade’s Product Line Manager for Putters and Wedges.
Looks and Feel
Looks and feel are very subjective characteristics of a golf club, particularly a putter. Having said that, I think the new look of the Ghost Spider S is outstanding. There are no more distracting curves and lines when you’re standing over this putter. Instead, you have the contrast of the white frame and a newly designed black crown with a single white alignment line. This contrast helps make the Ghost Spider S one of the easiest putters to align that I’ve ever used. The sole of the Ghost Spider S is similar to the original Ghost Spider, but instead of the black spider web graphic, the S features a red sole with a Ghost Spider S badge in the middle. The Ghost Spider S also has a great looking and feeling grip in red, black and white that really ties the overall package together. A putter this cool looking has to come with a slick head cover and that is just what you get here. Primarily white, the spider web and spider graphics of the head cover really make for a nice looking and very easy to use head cover.
One word that I’d use to describe the feel of the Ghost Spider S would be smooth. In fact, TaylorMade could tell me right now that the S stands for smooth and I’d have to believe it 100%. Whether you agree with the shape of the putter or not, you simply can’t deny that this thing just gives back an amazingly soft and smooth feel when you stroke a golf ball. The Pure Roll insert is back, but this one is different to me. I’ve tried multiple Ghost putters with the Pure Roll insert, and while I have always liked the roll of the golf ball, I haven’t always loved the feel off the face. I was expecting something similar this time around, but I was pleasantly surprised the second I rolled my first putt. The audible sound is almost nonexistent and the feel you get is equally soft. In my opinion, smooth perfectly describes both the feel and the sound of the Ghost Spider S putter.
Performance
MOI is something that seems to be talked about more with drivers than it does putters, but to me, MOI is more important on the greens than anywhere else on the golf course. On the putting surface, a fraction of an inch can cost you precious strokes and can be the difference between a one-putt birdie and a three-putt bogey. The Ghost Spider S delivers an amazingly high MOI measurement of 6,030 according to TaylorMade. That number is dramatically higher than previous mallets such as the Ghost Manta (4,900) and Corza Ghost (3,830). I found that the Ghost Spider S was not only incredibly easy to align, but I also felt like I hit my targets more consistently the more I used the putter in my testing.
Prior to testing the Ghost Spider S, I was using a blade-style putter. I’ve been a mallet guy most of my golfing life, but recently decided to make the switch to a blade. I didn’t make the switch because I rolled mallets poorly, but because I just like the looks of a blade putter better. One thing that really took me by surprise was just how little effort it took to get the golf ball to the hole with the Spider S. Even on long putts, I didn’t have to take a big swipe at the ball to get it to the hole. That, in addition to the forgiveness I got from this putter, makes me wonder why I would even think of going back to a blade when this review is over.
The more I rolled putts with the Spider S, the more I really started to love the overall feel of it. By that, I mean the feeling of confidence and the sense that I was going to put a good roll on the ball. That really freed me up and allowed me to pick my line and confidently roll the ball. My putts-per-round stats haven’t immediately dropped down to Tour Pro level, but I do believe that putting this in the bag has made me a better putter and that will ultimately give way to lower scores.
The model of the Ghost Spider S that I tested was equipped with the standard hosel. The putter will also be available with a Tour-inspired “short slant” hosel, which is designed for the player who has an arced putting stroke. Unlike the standard hosel, which promotes a straight-back straight thru swing path, the short-slant is toe-weighted and broadens the scope of players who can benefit from the performance characteristics of the Ghost Spider S.
“Performance Mallet putter use on the PGA Tour has grown during the past decade to where, today, more than 30% of PGA Tour pros use a mallet,” added Fox. “We’re confident that Tour pros and amateurs who favor a mallet will want to explore Ghost Spider S because the performance benefits are impossible to ignore.”
Overall
I’m a firm believer in the saying “the proof is in the pudding”, or in this case, the proof is in the putting. In just its second official week on the PGA Tour at the Wyndham Championship, the Ghost Spider S was already the number one overall putter in play with six. The looks are great, the feel is great, and the performance certainly backs up both extremely well. I haven’t always been the biggest fan of putters with an insert, but with the feel and the roll I got from the Pure Roll in the Ghost Spider S, I definitely believe that this putter could find a permanent spot in my bag.
As I mentioned earlier, the word smooth just keeps resonating in my mind with the Spider S. The multi-material head (aluminum and steel) has such a nice overall feel to it. Hitting my line with this putter is very easy and that equates to holing more putts. The few short weeks the Ghost Spider S has been in my bag have definitely been fun. It took a while to get used to the shape and the size, but the more I did, the more the putts started to drop.
The Ghost Spider S standard model is available on November, 1, 2012 for $179 in standard length and $199 in a belly model. The Ghost Spider S featuring the “short slant” hosel will hit the market a month later, on December 1, 2012.
Great writeup, I agree as a guy coming from a blade that sometimes the larger putters really feel like they take a lot of effort to get the ball, Im glad to see you this club was much easier to use to get it rolling. I’m certainly going to have to give this one a shot.
Nice write up Jason. That MOI number TM provided is pretty incredible. I remember the Original too and it looked like a laptop on the end of a golf shaft. Glad this seems to have helped your putting so far, hopefully you will get those numbers down soon. Hopefully the weights are still interchangeable. I need to give this thing a try and see how it feels.
Nice job Jake. I really like the new looks of this putter. It has some of the same outstanding features of the older version, but with some great updates. I need to roll one of these in the store soon.
Nice writeup Jake – pretty impressive how easily you made the transition from the blade style to this mallet. It definitely looks great at address with the single alignment line. Feel is so subjective but by the sounds of this, it is definitely worth giving a roll.
Great review Jake. I have never been a big fan of the looks of the spider line but I think it’s time I give these another look. For some reason this one catches my eye. Thanks for taking the time to review this.
Great review Jake. I’m honestly very surprised to hear that the sound is dulled and almost nonexistent like you said. I like my Ghost Spider, and if you could make it softer with a full sound, I’ld really love it.
Excellent review, Jake! I had similar first thoughts as you when the Spider first hit the stores years ago, and honestly, I couldnt get one fast enough! I like the progression on looks they have done with the Spider S, as well, the alignment aide brought over from the Vicino Spider is a great look. Like you touched on, when I think of a Spider putter, the first thing I remember was how easy it made longer lag putts get to the hole. Well done!
Good stuff Jake!
I’m like you were, a blade/mid-mallet kind of guy so I’ve typically backed off from the full mallets, for some reason though this one really catches my eye. Its not that monstrosity it was when they first released it, that’s for sure. Plus, I give it up to TM for always tinkering and trying to improve their inserts, it always shows time and time again the R&D they put into it.
great review Jake.
i’ve always liked and gamed blade putters and when the big, square putters first came out…i thought there was no way these could stick around or that i would ever like one. and even being a TM guy, i still didn’t like the Spider. but that all changed when i rolled the Spider Ghost…amazing.
TM does great work with their putters and i always like to hear that they’re growing in popularity on tour.
Great write up Jason. I’m also playing a blade right now, as well as a TM Ghost with Pure Roll insert. This has me wanting to putt this in the near future.
Fantastic writeup Jake!! This putter is awesome looking in every aspect.
Great write up Jake, I remember the first spider putter I saw too…I think I openly laughed out loud at it, of course at that time I was a blade guy would never have thought about a mallet much less a weird looking mallet…fast forward a few years and I had a Corza Ghost in my bag for awhile and the MX 7 I use to drain putts now is not a traditional looking blade…LOL
I like the “smooth’ reference….sound like it would help me make putts…I will definately be trying it out.
Excellent review jake! I have recently found a love for mallets so this is good timing.
I’ve rolled the older model in black in my pro shop a few times and really liked it. I’m interested to see what the new version feels like. I still don’t know if I am a big fan of white golf clubs, but they are turning up evcerywhere!
Great review Jake. You have me very excited to roll this. I’m definitely going to give the tour slant a looksie.
I thought this was an excellent review, Jake. Good blend of tech and your personal feelings about the looks and feel. Glad to hear you’ve found some confidence in the Spider S. I have a feeling this will be a very big hit for Taylormade.
Great review Jake. That putter sure seems to be the real deal!
Nice review Jake.
I do like the changes in aesthetics that Taylor Made put into the putter with the simpler top lines and it appears the changes go far beyond the looks on this one.
Jake, I like the spider and like your review. It sounds like a performer and a smooth delivery. Well done describing your findings
Solid review Jake, thanks for that. Enjoyed reading through.
Taylormade are showing a willingness to learn from feedback and constantly review design with this offering. That’s impressive in its own right. With the performance you’ve seen from this, sounds like they’ve got a winner on their hands here.
Liked the thoughts about the importance of MOI and the subjective notes about the feel too.
Great review Jake! This might be in my bag pretty soon
Great review Jake, I can tell how excited you are about this putter, “the proof is in the putting” says it all.
Great write up Jake! I want to roll one of these very soon!
I got the TM Japanese version of the Ghost Itsy Bitsy about a month ago. Clean lines on the front. Pure Roll is the real deal for me. Not bouncing the ball now.
I had the original spider and loved it. I’m definitely one of those guys who putts a mallet better than a blade though I want to roll the blade. I just picked the spider s up and I am more than happy. Smooth is the first word that comes to mind but stable is a close second. I can tell you it is never going to leave my bag. I also agree with the forgiveness, if only I could find irons as forgiving as these.
Great review Jason. I picked up the Ghost Spider S putter last week. At first I found myself pushing my puts a bit, so I replaced the 2 gram weight in the heel with a 5 gram weight to get the club to release a little more at impact, and now I can hit another golf ball 7 feet away on the green over and over again. Don’t be afraid to pick up various size weights and experimant. I have an old R9 with extra weights I ordered on eBay. The Spyder S weights are the same as ones used in TM’s drivers. Have fun experimenting to find the right weight combination that works for your putting stroke. All in all, I highly recommend giving the Ghost Spider S a try.