You guys already know how much I enjoyed my putter fitting at True Spec Golf in Beverly Hills a few months back. It was on the same trip we did the Play With Pete Invitational for the first time at Pasatiempo Golf Club. And if all that wasn't enough we had something extra going on as well.
I wanted one of you to experience what I did at True Spec, and so we opened it up on twitter and Instagram to pick someone to get fit for a new putter as well. That winner was @JensenCollins3 (on twitter), and Jensen had himself a day, "I was ecstatic with the results and my best interests were always at the front of my fitter's mind."
Jensen was also one of the first (maybe even the first) to experience a putter fitting at the new True Spec Chicago WEST, which opened up about the same time as his fitting. Here's how it all went in Jensen's own words, and the putter he wound up hitting best.
After a restless night knowing what lay ahead, I awoke at 5 for the journey.
Here. We. Go. @PGAPappas pic.twitter.com/clI2yq9Ga4
— PAWGfaced Gremlin (@JensenCollins3) August 19, 2022
I arrived in the greater Chicago area around 10am central due to forgetting that time zones existed. Had lunch at a great little diner in Geneva, aptly named the “Geneva Diner.” Try the Bill’s Special.
Swinging back around to my comment about time zones, I ended up about half an hour early when all was said and done. The building is almost secretive when you arrive. Housing a few other businesses along with the David Impastato Golf Academy, True Spec resides in a building that doesn’t scream GOLF, but houses quite a lot of it. Through the front door you almost think you walked into the wrong building. House plants and furniture abound, it’s quite the zen setting to put your mind and body at ease for a fitting.
As you turn the corner you are greeted by the True Spec sign hanging next to a set of French doors that lead to a golfer’s toy store. Upon entering I was greeted by Cale Glover, my Master Club Fitter for the day. The fitting got off to a bit of a rocky start due to a technical difficulty that True Spec was experiencing with the GCQuad’s putting software.
But being the accommodating folk that True Spec are, I was able to pass the time by hitting some iron shots. Cale set me up with clubs as close to my gamers as possible and IMMEDIATELY let me know my swing speed (96mph~) was not sufficient for what I currently play. Then got me into a set up (Srixon ZX7/KBS120 Taper) that saw my 6i numbers increase from 155-160yd to 175-180yds. But…
We’re here for a PUTTER FITTING! Just as I was getting comfortable with the irons the putting system came up online and we were ready to go! Cale began the fitting by asking me which putter I would play a tournament with tomorrow (because of course I brought two putters), and to grab that one. The putter I’ve been gaming with is a knockoff 2 Ball Blade made by Powerbilt. It’s a hideous hunk of steel that somehow helped me drop strokes this year.
We started by checking length, loft, and lie with the devices they have on site. Cale was exceptionally thorough in his descriptions on the machines and reasons they are used to fit clubs. (DISCLAIMER: I asked to go into this as thought I knew nothing about the fitting process or any of what club specs mean. I wanted the full fitting effect). After figuring out I was using a 34’ club with very minimal toe hang with a standard loft and VERY minimally effected lie, we were ready to gather some data.
After around 8 rolls we gathered some very useful data, that number geeks like myself salivate over. The PB 2 Ball was causing me undesired backspin along with a slight push and a bit of skid, outside of the desired fitment range. Cale explained that they look for something less than 28 on the skid numbers and this putter came in at 30.0 with a slight 0.7 degrees to the right push. Lie and face angle were the other part of the equation, With this putter coming in at 7.6 degrees on the lie and a respectable face angle of 0.3.
My only hard requirement was the presence of a sight line along the top of the putter. This lead to the Taylormade Spider GT being the first head we tried. Fitting the need for a sight line, about 8-10 rolls and I was dialed into what to expect. I believe this was the first putter we tried due to the insert on the face.
Trying to eliminate “Pop” off the face was a big key for me, and right off the bat we had a strong competitor to come home. The backspin was gone, I was into the desired forward roll. Skid was in the right range and push hadn’t changed. But my lie angle came down over a full degree to 6.5, which was BIG in regards to comfort level. (I forgot the grip we used with this, but we’ll come back to it).
So setting the Spider GT aside, we moved on to an Odyssey Triple Wide in our quest to find the best putter for my stroke. Full admission, I used to HATE mallets. So picking up what I’d call a fat blade felt a little more comfortable in my hands until I realized how… bad it was. Now this is just a personal opinion, But I didn’t have near the confidence in my stroke that I did with the GT.
But the numbers weren't terribly off, however they were not as good as the Spider in all but one regard. And that was the ever present lie angle, which dropped from 6.5 with the Spider to 5.7 with the Triple Wide, for a total drop of 1.9 from the original. With a slight pull on this, but still within a degree of center.
The big change between the first two putters was the move to a P2 Tour Classic grip. This assists in lie angle, which is a reason for the continued drop. The grip is flat on three sides and lends itself to my putting grip. (Standard grip with index fingers extended down the grip on both sides.) This also near eliminates the want to turn the club head during the stroke.
The Spider GT was the frontrunner at this point, but something that still irked me was the visual aspect. The alignment mark was only about ⅓ of the length of the head, and from about the head shape is that of Batman’s cowl. Just sort of off in visual appeal. Enter, the Toulon Le Mans.
Coming from Odyssey’s boutique putter craftsmen, the Toulon Le Mans is a mallet putter with a full length alignment mark and a visually appealing slight trapezoid shape from above. But the real difference was the move from an insert to a milled face and a heavier feel. Continuing the use of the P2 Grip, the Le Mans was outfitted with a double S bend neck. After the standard 8-10 putts to gather data, Cale and I reconvened to gush over what we’ve seen.
The Le Mans was head and tails above the competition in the tangible categories of Face Angle (an ABSURD 0.0), Launch Spin (90F almost doubling the GT), 26.7 on the skid, but maybe the most marked improvement, 2.5 degrees on the lie! That is a 5.1 degree drop from the start, which is MASSIVE when extrapolated out. Along with the intangibles including, visual appeal, I was able to just let the putter do the work.
Not to brag, but I got the “Many people would pay to putt that well” compliment. And I’ll take it as this is the best part of my game, so might as well just make it elite. (Had to do this Jensen, grin).
After this session Cale and myself were absolutely ecstatic with the results. But we still wanted to be ABSOLUTELY sure, so we picked out 2 more putter heads to try, along with rerolling the GT with the P2 grip for a 1 for 1 comparison. The other two heads we picked were the Triple Track 2-Ball blade from Odyssey and the Piretti 303 Bosa. I’ll spare you the details, The 2-ball wasn’t worth touching for me. The Piretti didn’t perform as I would have liked, HOWEVER, I would like to give a shout out to the lightly milled face, as the contact on the Piretti is such a buttery smooth contact.
In the end, the winner was the Toulon Le Mans and only one other putter even came into the conversation with the GT. If there is anything I would have to say was a drawback about the location in itself was the inability to try any of the Scotty Cameron Phantom X putters. This may have been due to it being a new location, I am unsure. But at the end of the day this is a minimal hiccup and I feel I was ultimately fit into the best club for my stroke and eye.
Cale was an outstanding fitter. Both with his knowledge and flexibility when things went awry early in the day. I highly recommend a fitting to anyone who has a need for numbers and/or desires to get the best bang for their buck. At no point did I feel like I was being tracked towards one brand/design/sales tactic or anything. I believe my best interests were always at the front of my fitter’s mind.
Once again I’d like to thank Pete for this amazing opportunity, True Spec for their hospitality, and everyone here for their congratulations and support. It was truly a memorable experience and I have one hell of a souvenir to keep for the rest of my life. The chocolate cake shake from Portillo’s was a temporary gift.
Love it Jensen! Thanks for a really great review and thrilled you had such a pheromonal time at your True Spec Golf putter fitting in Chicago. Now the hard part, waiting for your Toulon Le Mans to show up.
Anytime any of you want to write a guest review about something you've won, just shoot me a DM or email and we'll get it done. Loving absolutely everything about these. All our different personalities, all our different opinions. And of course all of us having a lot more fun on the course as well.
Cheers all!
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