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Since switch, Ernie Els is the Tour’s best putter

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En route to this weekend’s fifth-place finish at the Quicken Loans National, Ernie Els gained 1.99 strokes on the field thanks to his work on Congressional’s greens.

Of course, it wasn’t long ago that Els agonizingly took six putts from within three feet on the first green at Augusta National, and several videos of other painful misses from close range made their rounds on the internet.

In what is perhaps the equipment story of the year so far, since switching to a SeeMore mFGP Deep Flange Nashville Studio Series (with SuperStroke Flatso 1.0 grip, left-hand low) during the third round of the RBC Heritage, Ernie Els has effectively led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Putting.

That’s right. Els went from a golfer so heartwrenchingly yippy from close range that some speculated his career could be over, to tops on the PGA Tour in putting.

Amazing stuff.

In 20 measured rounds with the SeeMore mFGP in the bag, Els has gained 24.08 strokes with his putter. And his average SGP over that time is 1.204, which is better than PGA Tour leader Jason Day’s work this season (1.145).

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An incredible turnaround, and strong support for the ever-tinkering ways of WRXers: Finding the right putter, and one which inspires confidence on the greens, can truly make a difference.

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

9 Comments

9 Comments

  1. Pingback: 2016 Open Championship Preview - The Fried Egg

  2. graymulligan

    Jun 29, 2016 at 9:51 pm

    There’s no question that the Seemore putters work for a ton of people, but I can’t get past the looks. Great stuff, but it just doesn’t fit my eye.

  3. RP Jacobs II

    Jun 29, 2016 at 2:10 pm

    Great to see the Big Guy back in the game. They don’t come any classier. Nice article Ben!! Stay well My Friend and Have a Great and Safe Fourth

    All the Best,
    RP

  4. Zeek

    Jun 28, 2016 at 10:59 am

    Great putter company. Great customer service!

  5. cody

    Jun 27, 2016 at 5:50 pm

    glad to hear it. Wish he had figured this out 3 years ago. Would probably won at least 3 events.

  6. ooffa

    Jun 27, 2016 at 10:25 am

    It has nothing to do with the type of putter. What he switched was his flawed thinking. Go get em Ernie. Time to own the second putt!

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Equipment

Putters that never made it: Check out some of the best tour builds that didn’t make the cut

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Arguably, the best perk of being a professional golfer on the PGA Tour is the ability to request or even just be handed pretty much any club you could think of. It happens more often than you think, usually with putters around the practice green from one event to the next. Come Wednesday, the Tour bags lining the edge of the putting surface become resting places for fallen flatsticks that never made the cut.

So let’s take a look at some of the best we’ve seen out on Tour this year that never made it to the competition. (You may notice none of Hideki Matsuyama’s custom Scotty Cameron putters made this list. There are too many.)

Let’s start with this custom Damascus Milled Odyssey Rossie made for Ryo Hisatsune. Featuring a single line and the short-slant hossel, we’ve seen plenty of Number 7 and jailbird heads featuring the Damascus Milled insert, but this is the first and only one we’ve spotted in a Rossie. Hisatsune primarily putts with an Odyssey Black Series iX #9, but we have seen him recently with a TaylorMade TP Collection SOTO, so there could be potential that the Damascus Milled Rossie could end up in the bag. 

Everyone wants to be Cameron Young right now. We’ve had Justin Thomas and Tom Hoge both game the Scotty Cameron 9.5R prototype. Well, for the PGA Championship, Brooks Koepka nearly joined that list after requesting the same style of putter, with the full-length alignment line. But the Scotty Cameron reps took the request a step further and made one specially for Koepka with a Teryllium insert, similar to one in his previous Newport 2 gamers. The reason why this one didn’t go into play, though? Because it was too heavy. 

Harry Hall was the third-best putter on Tour last year, so when Bettinardi made him a custom proto, you know it was going to be good. The custom BB28 blade features VDF face milling, a custom-welded single-bend shaft, and the owner’s initials – HH – on the sole of the putter.  Hall, who usually games an Odyssey O-Works #7 W, has dabbled with a TaylorMade Spider Tour X already this year. Maybe there’s a chance this Bettinardi might make his bag. 

Honestly, this one doesn’t need a description. It’s Kieth Mitchell’s custom Scotty Cameron Napa. One Scotty Cameron face stamp, two Scotty Dogs, two Scotty Cameron 7-Point Crowns and one Circle T. That is all. Oh, except for the Cashmere Cameron headcover.

Finally, and just for fun, how about we pour one out for this TaylorMade Spider Tour X made for Scottie Scheffler in its new torched finish. It’s unlikely we’ll see a putter change anytime soon from the best golfer in the world. In fact, he hit just two putts with it on the Harbour Town practice before going back to his trusty gamer.

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Whats in the Bag

Patrick Reed WITB 2026 (May)

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Driver: Titleist GT3 (9 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Aldila Rogue Silver 130 M.S.I. 70 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi35 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 7 X

7-wood: TaylorMade Qi35 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 8 X

Irons: Grindworks PR-202 (4), Grindworks PR-101A (5-PW)
Shafts:  True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Cleveland RTX6 Tour Rack (52-10 Mid), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (56-08M), SM11 (60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Rat 1.5 Tour Prototype

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

See more photos of Patrick Reed’s clubs here.

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Equipment

Which of Tiger’s major winning irons are your favorite? – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, our members have been discussing their favorite major winning irons used by Tiger Woods. WRXer ‘golferdude54’ kicks off the thread saying:

“Mizuno MP 14/29. Titleist 681T. Nike Forged Blades. TaylorMade P7TW.

Among these irons that helped Tiger win 15 majors, which is your favorite in terms of looks?”

And our members have been naming their favorites and why in response.

Here are a couple of posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • SwingBlade: “I prefer the early blades he played and the more recent TM TW’s especially because after Tiger had his major behavioral setbacks, part of Nikes support payback was making Tiger play a Nike putter and cease using his beloved uniquely customized Scotty putter.”
  • ProjectX: “This (Nike Forged Blades) and there’s not even a close second.”

Entire Thread: “Which of Tiger’s major winning irons are your favorite? – GolfWRXers discuss”

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