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Charles Howell III Q&A: Putter testing, being a “gearhead” and his favorite putting drills

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This week at the 2022 Waste Management Phoenix Open, 42-year-old Charles Howell III is making his 600th career PGA Tour start. Chucky Three Sticks, as he’s called, has been one of the most consistent golfers on Tour for the last two decades, amassing over $40 million in on-course earnings.

He’s also a massive gearhead who loves to test and switch equipment. While the full-time Titleist staffer is currently set with 13-of-14 of his clubs, he still enjoys testing putters – everything from Scotty Cameron’s to putters made from other manufacturers. As he discusses below, he just likes to keep things interesting.

A look at Howell III’s Titleist setup at the Phoenix Open.

On Tuesday ahead of the WM Phoenix Open, I caught up Howell III following a putter testing session on the TPC Scottsdale practice green. I noticed he was testing a bunch of different putters, and the session lasted for hours. I couldn’t help but talk to Howell III for a few minutes following the session to pick his brain.

Happy 600 to Chucky Three Sticks, and enjoy the quick interview below!

Tursky: So I just saw you grinding for hours, doing a little putter testing. What are you looking at? What are you seeing?

Howell III: So, for some reason I’ve putted my best historically with more of a Newport style putter with some amount of toe hang, but my eye always wants to go to a mallet putter. So I’m always in that… it’s why we’re golfers I guess. We’re strange creatures. But I’ll end up with a Newport style putter. I love the way the others look when they sit down. And then Tim Suzor, who helps me with my putting and I’ve known forever, he’s…none of it’s rocket science but we play so much we fall into these bad habits and weird stuff, it’s nice to have another set of eyes there to get your attention to go in [the right direction].

I feel like you had the same putter for a few months in a row there and ended up switching it out.

Three months is just way too long. It’s just way too long.

Is that a thing where you just can’t help yourself? Like you just have to look at something different?

I don’t switch anything else…I’ve played the same driver and driver shaft forever now. I’ve played the same 3 wood, etc., so you have to switch something. There’s also part of it, too, that it keeps it interesting and exciting. When you’ve played golf as long as I have, sometimes it’s just part of the fun of it to look at something else. It’s why we’re all gearheads, right? You don’t need any more reason to it than that.

I’m not a guy that can look at the same putter forever. I’m just not.

What are you working on technique wise?

A lot of posture and balance stuff. We’ve actually introduced quite a bit of games to make it more of a competitive environment on the practice green, similar to how you feel and what you do on the golf course.

It’ll be a certain amount of block practice, some setup and posture stuff, and then some games for the competitive side of it.

What are some of the games?

Well, we do a lot of holing a certain amount of putts before you can leave the green. We’ll do a lot of speed drills where you have to get a certain amount of balls between the front edge of the hole and a rod, let’s say 3 feet behind it. All different things like that just to make it a little bit competitive.

So how many putts in a row will you need to hit?

We’ll go from 8 feet and you have to make 5 in a row from both sides of the hole, so that would be 10 in a row. That game at times can take for-absolute-ever, and then you just give up and say, ‘The hell with it, I’m going to the driving range.”

But as long as there’s a balance between a certain amount of block practice for what we’re trying to do, and a certain amount of practice of like, let’s get out of that and into results and a little bit of competitiveness. So it doesn’t really matter what the game is, it just matter that it’s more a performance game as opposed to like a block game.

And you’re only doing putter testing, you’re not testing anything else?

No, it’s just putters. See it’s boring. See, it’s all boring. Just putters, because everything else is fine.

He played on the Hawaii Pacific University Men's Golf team and earned a Masters degree in Communications. He also played college golf at Rutgers University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Pingback: TOUR REPORT: Bryson DeChambeau’s new “LA Golf” prototype putter, and Collin Morikawa makes a big change – GolfWRX

  2. V

    Feb 12, 2022 at 1:13 pm

    Thank you for this. I always like reading CHIII’s interviews. Fun perspectives on equipment that many of us can relate to.

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Equipment

Tour Edge unveils all-new Exotics mini driver

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Tour Edge Golf has today introduced the all-new Exotics mini driver, engineered to deliver a powerful combination of speed, control, and versatility in the long game. 

The Exotics Mini combines a titanium face with a stainless-steel body in design to balance ball speed with stability and control, creating a versatile option at the top end of the bag. 

At the core of the design is Tour Edge’s proprietary Combo Brazing technology, a high-precision thermal bonding process that seamlessly fuses a titanium cup face to a stainless-steel body into a single, continuous structure. By eliminating energy loss found in traditional multi-piece constructions, Combo Brazing is designed to deliver faster face response, more efficient energy transfer, and a uniquely powerful yet controlled feel.

The multi-material construction also allows mass to be positioned lower and deeper in the head in a bid to increase stability, while the thin titanium face is engineered to maintain ball speed across a wider impact area.

“While the initial goal was to enhance control and versatility in the long game, Combo Brazing ultimately drove measurable gains in ball speed and distance within the mini driver category. In robot testing, we’ve documented higher ball speeds, higher launch, reduced spin, and increased carry and total distance compared to leading models.” – Vice President of R&D Matt Neeley

In addition to distance performance, the Exotics mini emphasizes forgiveness through a heavier stainless-steel body that shifts mass toward the perimeter. This configuration increases MOI relative to traditional all-titanium mini drivers, helping preserve ball speed and directional stability on off-center strikes. Paired with Pyramid Face Technology from the Exotics metalwood line, the design is intended to support consistent speed across the face.

To further enhance MOI, a lightweight carbon fiber crown frees additional mass that is strategically repositioned low and deep in the head in design to improve stability and promote optimal launch with controlled spin.

“We designed the Mini to be about five millimeters shallower than other mini drivers on the market. That change improves playability off the deck. From a clean fairway lie, it can function as a strong 3-wood alternative while still providing control off the tee.” – Tour Edge CEO David Glod

An adjustable hosel system allows for loft and lie tuning to dial in trajectory and shot shape, while a fixed 13-gram rear weight helps stabilize the head through impact to improve dispersion consistency. The Exotics Mini Driver is available in 11.5 and 13.5-degree lofts in right-handed models.

Pricing & Availability

The Exotics Mini Driver is available for pre-order beginning today for $399.99 USD at touredge.com, and will be available for purchase at retail outlets worldwide on May 22, 2026. 

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Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, our members have been pitting a Srixon ZXi combo against a TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo. WRXer ‘edutch22’ is on the hunt for a new set of irons and kicks off the thread saying:

“Looking at picking up a new set of irons and think I’ve narrowed it down to Srixon ZXi combo or Taylormade P7CB/770 combo. I am currently a 5 cap and allbeit I feel irons are my weakness. My miss is a little to the toe side. I am decently steep at 4-5 down. Always thought I am high spin but recently on trackman my 7 was spinning at 5800 roughly. 

My question or looking for thoughts on which one would benefit me more from a forgiveness standpoint? Or is there another iron is should be looking at entirely? I only get to play about once or twice a week, if I am not playing a 2-3 day event. Thanks in advance.”

And our members have been sharing their thoughts and suggestions in response.

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

  • manima1: “You just can’t go wrong with Srixon ZXi7.”
  • MattM97: “You have to hit them to know, the V-Sole on the Srixon can be make or break for many.”
  • dmeeksDC: “P7CB is more forgiving for me than ZXi7 because my main miss is low middle and the P7CB still flies and spins great on that miss. These are both really nice irons but I like the P7CB more than the Zxi7 and the P770 (or P790) more than the Zxi5. The Srixons are larger so if that gives you confidence that is the way to go. I don’t feel like I get any benefit from the V-sole and the P7CBs live up to their high Maltby forgiveness rating so the TaylorMades have been great for me.”

Entire Thread: “Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss”

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Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo

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At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @pianoman0123 has a 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo up for grabs.

From the listing: “2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade Combo.  4-8 irons are CB’s and the 9,PW are Blades.  5-PW have Project X 6.0 Shafts and the 4 Iron has a Steelfiber CW110 Stiff Shaft.   Standard Length, Lie and Lofts.  These are in very good condition the shafts just don’t work for me.  Like new Lamkin Grips on the 5-PW and a stock Golf Pride on the 4 Iron. $525 OBO.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules

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