WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Tour Edge gets in on the “zero-torque” putter design trend with the launch of its Zero T line of four mallets. Each of the four wide-body, high-stability designs feature a shaft position that joins the head at the location of the center of gravity. The intent is to produce a more consistent putting stroke that requires little hand manipulation to return the face to square at impact.
PRICE: $200. ZT-1, ZT-2, ZT-3, ZT-4 in 34, 35 and 38 inches.
1. “Zero” interest. While so-called zero torque putters have generated significant interest in the last few years as a newfangled approach to how the flatstick should be designed, the actual construction that fuels the theory is relatively straightforward: align the shaft axis with the putter head’s center of gravity. The intent is that because of the balancing of the weighting and shaft position, the face of the putter will remain square to the arc of the putting stroke.
Of course, that weighting, lie angle and the arc of the stroke are difficult variables to unite. But Tour Edge is hoping to solve the challenge with four models that essentially align the shaft axis with the CG, leading to what looks like four distinct designs with varying shapes and CG locations. But in reality those CG locations vary by only a quarter of an inch, said Tour Edge’s Matt Neeley, vice president of product development, and it led to a more unified design for forward shaft lean. That atypical forward shaft lean can be a sticking point for many golfers when trying to adopt to a “zero torque” design.
“Shaft lean is one degree on all the models,” he said. “Since front-to-back CG locations are within one-quarter-inch on all models, we found one-degree to be the sweet spot where we could get the look and feel we wanted at address while also allowing us to stick with a standard grip versus off-axis. Increasing the shaft lean any more than one-degree resulted in player testing feedback that the face was looking closed even in the square position.”
By comparison, L.A.B. putters are offered in both two-degree forward shaft lean and zero-degree shaft lean, TaylorMade’s Spider ZT features one-degree shaft lean and Odyssey’s S2S Tri-Hot putters also come with zero-degree shaft lean.
2. Stable mates. The four mallets in the Zero T lineup reflect varying levels of forgiveness based on their shape and constructions. The most forgiving is the ZT-4, which uses an oversized shape similar to the now-iconic L.A.B. DF-3 model. It is constructed of aluminum and features a weight-saving TPU face insert to redistribute more of the mass to the perimeter. It has the highest measurement of moment of inertia at nearly 5,800 grams-centimeters squared. The other models are constructed of cast of soft 304 stainless steel. The ZT-1 and ZT-3 feature open windows in the perimeter that help push mass to the perimeter for relatively high MOIs, while the more compact ZT-2 features the most forward CG location.
3. Cost basis. Certainly, one of the challenges of the “zero torque” trend has been the higher price for putters that embrace this technology. Neeley believes that Tour Edge’s use of single materials helps to keep their price low, 50 percent or more less than most rivals. “Moving to a one-piece casting on all models definitely helps us out from a cost perspective, but ultimately the pricing on the majority of the zero torque putters out there is extremely inflated and unnecessary,” he said. “At our price point, you might not get the extreme flexibility and adjustability of those other putters, but you still get all the help that is needed in a zero torque putter design.”
The lineup also includes a 38-inch option on all the models. Neeley said all the models maintained a 365-gram head weight to better lineup with player testing results. “The grip weight on the 38-inch putters is actually less than the standard length (103 grams versus 95 grams), so we did not go with a heavier counterbalanced grip on these,” he said. “We did test both standard and heavy heads in our player testing trials and found the feedback and performance to be better using the standard head weight for all. Using the heavier head simply felt ‘too heavy.’ If we had opted to go with a heavier, counter-balanced grip, we would have gone with the heavier head design on the 38-inch.”
