Let it be known that Odyssey Golf listens. They listen to their Tour staff, their professional staff, sales team, and they listen to us. Why do I lead with this? Because finally, the company is giving us what so many have asked for, the White Hot is back!
That said, in the immortal words of one LL Cool J, “Don’t call it a comeback, I been here for years”.
For 2021 Odyssey Golf is officially releasing the White Hot OG lineup of putters, and this putter nerd who has been screaming from the rooftops for years about officially bringing the greatest putter insert of all-time back couldn’t hold back the excitement even if I wanted to.
Let’s dive in.
Legend of the White Hot
Before we get to the White Hot OG line, it is worth diving into just what makes the re-release of this insert such a big deal. Normally, if a company goes back to the well then there will be keyboard warriors and squeaky wheels whining until the cows come home, but the White Hot isn’t just tech, its legend, and from THE #1 putter company on Tour for the last decade that is saying a lot.
I realize writing this, that though some will fondly remember the White Hot and hold it in the same regard as so many of us do, after all Odyssey admits to hearing a desire for this insert to come back for years upon years, others may not have been around to experience the heyday. If that is the case, I bet you have still seen the insert either on a course somewhere or just on TV as over half of the company’s Tour staff uses the White Hot insert retrofitted into their modern putter head-shapes.
The White Hot insert came about when Odyssey’s putter designers were looking for insert materials and had a conversation with Callaway’s golf ball engineers. In that conversation they were lead to the also legendary Rule 35 golf ball and its urethane material. The material itself is a two-part urethane that is firm to the initial touch, but under impact performs much softer and these traits allow it to have better rebound and faster speed compared to other soft feeling options. This is what gives the White Hot insert its legendary feel and roll combo.
For years now, the company has tried to replicate the feel of the White Hot while improving the roll, and to do that they continuously tried to match the hardness as closely as possible, but even as they have accomplished that, something was still off feel and sound wise. Turns out, when they looked at the flex of White Hot compared to their other inserts, though the various designs may have had the same hardness, none of them compared to the White Hot in how it flexes. What does it mean? Basically, that the White Hot was the perfect storm, and though they have designed many inserts since that put a better overall performance roll on the ball, the White Hot remains the be-all for many.
So here we are, 20 years later, and the White Hot is back. Not only is it back, Odyssey wants it made clear, this isn’t a new take on the original, this is the original. The formula, composition, processes, and the way it is cast into sheets and then cut for the models is all the same. It is truly the OG.
Odyssey White Hot OG
While the insert is clearly the star of the show here, Odyssey didn’t want to just throw it into any old head design, nor did they want to miss on the looks. So, they went through their arsenal and selected some of their most popular designs, then they focused in on milling the heads and finishing them with a classic satin silver PVD. With major attention paid to the edge radii of the putters as well as fine milling marks, the company vehemently believes when combined with sole weights, clean graphics, as well as an all-new Stroke Lab (SL) shaft and popular DFX grip in grey, that they will make a lot of golfers incredibly happy.
While the putters will be available with steel shafts for a lower price, the new Stroke Lab is sure to turn some heads. Some of you have spotted a couple on Tour already and the Candy Apple Red upper section is a major departure from the stealthy black of the previous iteration. The new SL has a shorter stepless steel section, is 7 grams lighter, and is a stiffer overall profile which has led to Odyssey’s testing to show 6% more consistent time to impact, 9% more consistent impact location, and a 6% more consistent swing arc.
As for the head shapes, the ever popular #1 and #1 WS (wide sole) make up the blade models alongside the classic #5 SB (single bend) for the mid-mallet option. For mallets, the Rossie with a thinner topline and modernized overall flow is returning in a double bend and slant neck, and naturally their most popular shapes of all time the 2-Ball in double bend, #7 in double bend, and slant neck are also coming to the party.
The Odyssey White Hot OG putters will drop on 1/28/21 and come in at $219.99 for steel and $269.99 with the new Stroke Lab. Do not miss our THP Showcase next week featuring testing of each of these new putters and so much more.
i bought a 2 ball blade from a guy back in 2006. He asked for it back so I sent it to him
In 2014. We both loved that putter!
There is no time like the present.
Red shaft or no red shaft?
Red shaft all day long. I’ve seen the pictures. I’ve talked the tech. Go with the red shaft. Looking down on it at address it turns deep red. from the side its candy apple red like a hot rod. And its a step forward stability wise to the black SL shaft.
Why can’t it be blue? The red makes it too Ohio for me
Especially with the grey grips. I suppose nothing a can of spray paint and a new grip won’t fix.
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i found this one from one as well. They look really good.
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Looks really nice but I think I prefer black.
looking forward to trying this.
I would have liked it with the black OWorks putter better myself.
I get the nod to the original that they are doing here. I do think there are a lot of people that will have a soft spot for these and they’ll sell well. Hopefully, we’ll see this insert as a possible option in some of the releases from the past year or two.
I have no doubt they will sell a ton of these. I know locally at the course I go to, I see a lot of the older WH putters and I would imagine they grab a new one.
They’ll sell extremely well. I’d place a large wager on that.
not sold on the red shafts especially with all the classic shapes.
Mentioned it in the article, but they have admitted it’s their number one request from Tour, fitters, stores, and just average golfers.
The improved stability though in the new SL will more than make up for any color issues for most imo. Plus, red is classic Odyssey for a classic Odyssey design imo.
That new Rossie looks amazing with the thinner topline.
Truly appreciate you taking the time to read the whole article my man. Truth.
Talked about that in the piece, it’s such a fun story to tell!
Ok this has me really excited
Okay. Well. Where to begin.
FANTASTIC write up @Jman!
Hi, I’m xThor and I’m an Odyssey putter addict.
I am so thrilled to have the OG white hot insert back! Combine that with the new updated Stroke Lab shaft, and this is going to be a winner. Lots of buzz words can be thrown around with this line: flex modulus and powerline impact modifier, come to mind. But what will stand out is the white hot insert coming back. Well, as stated, it never truly left, but wasn’t available to us mere mortals and internet golfers.
I believe that the white hot insert is going to overshadow the shaft here, unfortunately. The stroke lab shaft was something I really fell in love with in 2020; loved the weight, feel, and stability. The stroke lab shaft in the White Hot OG isn’t just a superficial color change, it has seen an update to be better balanced, and more stable. It’s new, and it’s beautiful.
The DFX grip is one of my favorites that Odyssey has offered, and currently have one on a couple different Odyssey putters, so I am VERY excited to have that back as a standard offering, and in a grey color that is going to complement the red quite well.
I agree. The white hot is in legendary status.
That’s in the article too!
I can almost see you giggling with excitement while you typed this ?
There’s not a 9 in this release, which is honestly a bit surprising.
yeah sad to see the omission in the pictures… kept searching online.. thanks for clarifying
I’m sure @Tevenor @Muchmore18 @93civiccpe @JB and the Callaway guys on the zoom session when we talked about this, all saw the giant goofy grin I had on my face the whole time. I went from this -> to this -> And back and forth many times.
I am pretty sure you had a couple of seizures as well. Especially when we talked about that other thing. <redacted> </redacted>
I remember not being a fan at the time. But, tastes change over time and I for sure will roll some to see if that is the case.
My thoughts exactly! Maybe the Rossie S. But first I need to figure out if I can exist without triple track! I fear it may have ruined me!
It’s cool that they touched on that. It was actually a “feel” thing in the original SL since it was actually stiffer than their standard steel shaft. The fact that they were able to address that feel concern for people while still improving on everything was pretty cool to hear!
Thanks for this, getting information straight from the source is always fun and easier to help share with the community. I know you probably were swimming with information when you sat through the presentation, do you recall how long they have been working on this new version?
I’m so glad slant necks have become a true option over the last few years. All the 7 heads (versas, tanks, Las Vegas) that I have owned have been double bend / face balanced. I’m very excited at 7s with this insert.
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Looks like specs are listed on Callawaygolf.com (but can’t find on Odyssey). Rossie looks to be 355g. #1 is 350g. #1WS 350g, 2-ball 355g, #5 355g, #7 355g
I don’t like the 3 dots either. The line is so much easier to use in my opinion
Doesn’t look like they have the shape I’m looking for (1W double bend) in this release, but hopeful they’ll either extend this line at some point or keep this insert going for multiple releases like they did with the microhinge star. I expect this insert paired with the new SL shaft is going to be something special.