Mallets Versus Blades: What The Best Putters On Tour Use

Mallet versus blade putters: one of golf’s most debated topics. But we don’t deal in subjective opinions at MyGolfSpy; data is our deal. So we decided to look at actual performance and see what the best putters on the PGA Tour are using. We pulled the top 10 PGA Tour players in Strokes Gained putting and investigated what putters they’re using. If anyone has figured out if mallet or blade takes the cake, it’s them.

Top 10 PGA Tour putters and their putter models

Player	Putter Model	Type
Sam Burns	Odyssey Ai-ONE 7S	Mallet
Harry Hall	Odyssey O-Works #1 Wide / Ai-One DW	Blade
Brandt Snedeker	Odyssey White Hot XG Rossie	Mallet
Danny Willett	Scotty Cameron T-5 Tour Prototype	Blade
Sam Ryder	Odyssey White Hot Versa Seven S	Mallet
Nico Echavarria	Odyssey Tri-Hot 5K Seven	Mallet
Denny McCarthy	Scotty Cameron GoLo N7 (Tour-only)	Mallet
Jacob Bridgeman	Bettinardi DASS BB Zero Tour	Blade
Sami Valimaki	Odyssey Ai-One #1	Blade
Cameron Young	Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype	Mallet

Blade versus mallet: What the data shows

Of the 10 best putters on Tour:

Six are using mallet putters
Four are using blade putters

For a long time, blade putters were thought to be the most popular choice for professional golfers but we have seen a shift. The shift all comes down to data and what works and this aligns closely with Shot Scope’s amateur data which showed that mallet users:

Make more putts inside six feet (82% vs. 75%)
Three-putt less often (2.3 vs. 2.6 per round)
Perform worse on lag putting but make up for it with better short-putting conversion

For the top 10 percent of putters in the Shot Scope database, it was even more lopsided:

93% make rate inside six feet
Just 0.7 three-putts per round

What does it all mean?

Looking at these top 10 players, as well as the new data on blade versus mallet putters for amateurs, there are a few things we can determine:

Tour players still mix blade and mallet designs. While mallets dominate the top 10, blades are still used by high-performing putters.
Odyssey is the most popular brand. Six of the 10 players are using an Odyssey putter in some form.
Mallets are gaining ground—even at the highest level. From Ai-One to Phantom to Tri-Hot, modern mallets strike a balance between forgiveness and precision that is good enough for PGA Tour professionals.
Your best bet might not be a blade. If you’re struggling from inside six feet or losing strokes with three-putts, the amateur data strongly points toward trying a mallet.

Final thoughts

If you’ve been sticking with your blade putter because “it’s what the professionals use”, it’s time to choose what works for your game instead. Blades and mallets can work but you should get fitted and test the putter that makes it easier for you to make more putts.

The post Mallets Versus Blades: What The Best Putters On Tour Use appeared first on MyGolfSpy.

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