Is Putter Tech a Myth? We Tested Models From Three Different Eras To Find Out

Golf equipment has slowly but surely undergone a revolution, with technology making every club - from the best drivers to the best wedges - more forgiving than ever before. But does this technological advancement hold true for the putter?

WATCH: Joe Ferguson compares three putters with very different levels of technology

For decades, the mantra has been that putting is all about feel, instinct and creativity. To test this theory, I purchased two of the most iconic putters of all time from GolfClubs4Cash - the elegant Wilson 8802 and the game-changing Ping Anser - and put them head-to-head against the modern phenomenon of the L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max zero torque putter.

My mission: to see if nearly 60 years of R&D can really be quantified into performance gains on the green…

The Contenders and The Technology

The three putters represented three distinct eras of design philosophy:

Wilson 8802: A true heel-shafted blade with precisely zero perimeter weighting first launches in 1962. This putter comes with a seriously heavy toe hang.

Ping Anser: The original heel-toe weighted putter. Its core technology is perimeter weighting, which increased the sweet spot and added forgiveness, a revolutionary concept when first introduced in 1966, although the model we tried dates back to roughly 1973.

L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max: This utilizes Lie Angle Balance (L.A.B.) technology to eliminate torque, aiming to keep the clubface perfectly square to the path without requiring any manipulation from the golfer’s hands.

Test 1: Short Range

To test the difference these designs made, I decided to check their holing out performance from eight feet. This distance is crucial because it’s statistically the range from which PGA Tour pros hole 50% of putts. I hit ten putts with each model to give me a total.

The Wilson 8802 managed to hit the PGA Tour average, holing 5 out of 10 putts. While relatively functional, in truth, I found the heavy toe hang and its associated torque quite difficult to manage in terms of keeping the face square, requiring precise timing to try and return the blade to square at impact.

The Ping Anser fared a little better, managing a solid 7 out of 10. The extra stability on offer over the 8802, provided by a little perimeter weighting, was truly noticeable and felt very beneficial to the consistency of my start line on these short putts.

The modern test came with the L.A.B. Golf putter, and in truth, it felt almost bulletproof from the eight-foot range, managing a hugely impressive 9 out of 10. The clubface just felt so easy to keep square, which is an incredible feeling to have from this range, especially under pressure.

This performance was, in my opinion, a clear testament to the effectiveness of modern zero-torque technology, albeit over a relatively small sample size.

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Test 2: Lag putting

Next, I moved on to some longer-range testing, hitting six putts with each model on a difficult 80-foot uphill sloping putt to test lag performance. The idea was to add up the cumulative distance from the hole of the six putts, obviously with the lowest score being the winner. I mixed up the order, starting with the Ping Anser this time.

I really enjoyed the lively feel of the Anser on these long putts, offering a little extra 'pop' off the blade at impact over its two competitors, and the cumulative distance I managed from the hole over my six efforts was 38.5 feet.

Not really knowing if this was a good number at this point, I moved on to the L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max to repeat the process, and it snuck into the lead with a final total of 32.5 feet cumulatively. I really noticed the benefit of the extra MOI on offer here, being somewhat flattered on some questionable off-center strikes, which was very welcome!

Finally, I finished the test with the Wilson 8802 and was fully expecting it to really struggle due to its diminutive size and perceived lack of forgiveness.

Surprisingly, it performed brilliantly, comprehensively outperforming the other two on the longer putt test. It's simple, no frills design and heavy toe hang delivered a total cumulative distance of only 27.5 feet.

While I was expecting it to struggle from this range with penal mishits, I found that the awareness I had of the head was increased by the clear torque I could feel throughout the stroke. Although I didn't love the feeling, it gave me a clear reference point for where the head was at all times during the stroke.

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Conclusion

It was certainly fun to pit these very different putters from different eras against one another, and the results are definitely thought-provoking. The performance of the L.A.B. Mezz.1 Max from the eight-foot mark was incredibly impressive and a testament to some modern technology, suggesting that advanced engineering could absolutely help many golfers on short putts.

However, the Wilson 8802 was a big surprise on the longer putts, proving that pure head mass, simple feel, and classic design still have a place. The Anser was consistently solid through my session, finishing middle of the pack throughout.

In conclusion, it was inconclusive! Putter optimisation can be very subjective and player dependent. Golfers are able to manipulate different putters in different ways and the way a putter looks can really influence how you aim. There is credibility in the argument for technology to have a positive impact on performance, especially over a longer time period. But the old classics, like the ones I got from golfclubs4cash, can certainly still hold their own in the right hands.