Equipment
Odyssey 2012: Interview with Austie Rollinson
When Keegan Bradley raised his arms to celebrate his first major championship victory at the 2011 PGA Championship in August, he reached higher than any major champion had ever before — literally.
Along with his arms, Bradley also raised his 46.75-inch Odyssey White Hot XG Sabertooth putter, making him look more like Patrick Ewing than his aunt, Pat Bradley. It was a life changing moment for the 25-year-old PGA Tour rookie, but possibly even a bigger moment for the putter industry.
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Bradley’s win was the fuel for the vast long putter migration that has occurred during the final months of the 2011 season, a trend that has carried over to the retail side as well. Since Bradley’s win, Odyssey has seen a 400 percent increase in demand for long putters from consumers, which has caused the company to fast track release of the retail version of the White Hot XG Sabertooth belly putter. But there’s much more to building successful line of long putters than shoving an extra-long shaft in a putterhead, according to Odyssey Principal Designer Austie Rollinson.
Because of the extra weight necessary for a long putterhead, most companies including Odyssey have opted to use mallet-styled putterheads that better accommodate the added bulk. But there’s another reason for the use of mallet-styled heads in long putters.
“When players use a belly or long putter, they tend to stand more upright,” Rollinson said. “They’re farther away from the ball, so they need to have a bigger head looking down. Some of our bigger mallets, including the new D.A.R.T. we just came out with – they lend themselves better to long and belly putters.”
There are many different ways to add extra weight to a putter. Both TaylorMade and Titleist have introduced putters with removable weights that allow a player to fine tune the weight of a putter to their liking. Another approach is to increase the size of the putterhead, as a way to keep the putter’s proportions in check when the extra weight is added. But Rollinson and his crew came up with a different approach for the White Hot XG Sabertooth, one that allowed them to keep the popular dimensions of the standard-length putter, but also add the necessary weight needed to balance its longer length.
Instead of casting the White Hot XG Sabertooth belly putters from stainless steel, Odyssey cast them out of a denser material called tunnite. For that reason, the putter Bradley used to win the PGA Championship had the exact same dimensions as the standard-length White Hot XG Sabertooth, but a heavier head weight because of the tunnite casting.
Odyssey will release the White Hot XG Sabertooth belly putter Nov. 18. It will be available in a 43-inch length, and feature the same tunnite construction Bradley uses in his putter.
ProType Tour Series Putters
While a lot of Odyssey’s focus has been on its long putter offerings, the company has also been hard at work with its new standard-length putter line, the ProType Tour Series.
The ProTypes are a departure from what has been Odyssey’s bread and butter in putter design, insert putters. The ProTypes are milled from 1025 carbon steel and feature the deeper, sharper milling marks on the face that have gained popularity among tour professionals for their softer feel and truer role.
In Europe and Japan, Odyssey’s high-end insert putters have thrived because of high use on foreign professional tours. But in the United States, where purchases are highly influenced by what consumers see Tour players using, one-piece putters have risen in popularity, which has shifted Odyssey’s U.S. strategy.
The ProType models will include Odyssey’s No. 2, 3, 6, 7 and 9, as well as a Two-Ball mallet that will be released without an insert for the first time.
“For the 2012 line, we chose models by what’s doing well on Tour,” Rollinson said. “A former Callaway staff player won the U.S. Open using the No. 7, and the No. 6 model is a lot like the TriHot TriForce No. 2 shape that K.J. Choi and Steve Stricker have been using for years.”
The ProTypes will be released Feb. 17 in with a slew of custom options. They will feature a dull, milky white chrome plating and a Lamkin 3Gen Pistol Grip, available in six different color options that can be matched with the putterhead paintfill for an added charge. All models will be available in 33-to-35-inch lengths. They have an MSRP of $335, with the exception of the Two-Ball Mallet, which has an MSRP of $375. The No. 2, No. 3, No. 9 and Two-Ball Mallet will be available in left-handed models.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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