Best Putters For High Handicappers 2023

Why is it that the list of the best putters for high handicappers always is a lineup of the most expensive gear on the market? The truth is when buying a putter you do need to spend a certain amount to get quality (around $100-120), but over that threshold, it is mainly about your preference.

Once you have reasonable quality as a constraint a high handicapper next needs to think about forgiveness and ease of aiming. That’s pretty much it…

Recently, we tried out some of the best putters for high handicappers. We made sure to look at both mallet putters and blade putters to try and find something that has the right feel and fit for a wide range of players. We’ve also tried to cover a range of putters in different budgets. Here is what we found.

Best putter for high handicappers

• Odyssey White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab (Best Overall)
• Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft Premier 4 (Best Blade)
• Cobra King Vintage Torino (Best Classic Mallet)
• Odyssey Eleven Triple Track S Stroke Lab (Best Premium)
• Wilson Staff Men’s Infinite Buckingham Putter (Best Value)
• TaylorMade Spider Black Tour (Most Forgiving)

Odyssey White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab

• Feel 10/10
• Forgiveness 9/10
• Alignment 10/10
• Value 7/10
• Longevity 10/10

The Odyssey White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab putter took the top spot as the best putter for high handicappers. This is a mallet-style putter, it offers some of the best forgiveness on the market and has a legendary status as one of the easiest putters to aim. There is a reason that this putter was a huge deal when it first came to the market and why it continues to stand out as one of the best.

The newest White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab putter is not quite the same as the original. However, as Odyssey moved away from the original 2 Ball through the years, golfers started getting slightly upset about it. The feel and the sound were just too pure, and people were interested in getting the original formula back.

This newest model has premium milled surfaces and a cleaner, more Tour-approved look, but the original insert formula has been returned to the putter head. Sometimes with all the changes we see in the market, we have to sometimes go back to the clubs that hit the golf ball the cleanest, and that certainly was the White Hot OG 2 Ball.

The shaft in the Odyssey White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab is partially steel, partially graphite. This combination of materials brings some great consistency and feel. Odyssey was one of the first companies to take a look at how and why having the proper shaft in your putter can change your golf game.

Golf Insider verdict

We love the White Hot OG 2 Ball Stroke Lab Putter for any golfer that can afford it. The mallet style is super easy to aim, very forgiving and feels great.

Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft Premier 4

• Feel 9 /10
• Forgiveness 8/10
• Alignment 6/10
• Value 9/10
• Longevity 8/10

Some higher handicap golfers are told to stay away from blade-style putters as they lack forgiveness. This is a bit of a myth, most blade putters have the majority of their mass placed in the heel and toe, creating a highly forgiving putter that resists twisting on off-centre hits.

The Cleveland brand flies under the radar for many of their golf clubs, but with the putters and wedges, they should never be overlooked. The Huntington Beach Soft Premier is among the best putters for both feel and consistent roll for high handicap golfers.

With the new Huntington Beach Soft Premier, there is a Gray Satin PVD Finish that helps the putter stand out as a much cleaner looking putter with almost a higher-end design. It’s also offered at a price that is more affordable than something like an Evnroll or Scotty Cameron putter.

The Speed Optimized face technology allows for consistent ball speed, regardless of where on the putter face you hit the ball. Most higher handicappers are used to missing the center of the club head with a driver or five iron, but it also happens with a golf putter. If you are known to miss the center, you still have a chance of making it with the Cleveland HB Soft Premier.

Alignment lines are the only thing we don’t love with a blade style putter like this. Some higher handicappers struggle with alignment, and if you can’t get this putter head lined up with a shorter line, you may want something from the same collection in the mallet head design.

Golf Insider verdict

A precision milled face, speed optimized face technology, and the gray satin PVD finish for a fair price, sign us up! Cleveland did a great job adding value to this putter while also making it forgiving and ensuring that there is a soft feel. For those that are new to the game and don’t know where to start with putter technology, this is a perfect option to consider.

Cobra King Vintage Torino (Best Classic Mallet Putter)

• Feel 9/10
• Forgiveness 9/10
• Alignment 8/10
• Value 8/10
• Longevity 8/10

The Cobra King Vintage Torino has done well in product testing this year (along with quite a few of the new Cobra golf clubs). This particular putter is a classic-looking mallet. Even though options like the TaylorMade Spider Putter and other large putter head options have grown in popularity, there is something to be said for the functionality and impressive feel of a classic mallet head design.

With the Cobra King Vintage Torino, you get a forgiving putter perfect for the player with the straight back straight, thorough putting style. This putter offers a range of loft options, from 1º to 4º (depending on what your retailer stocks). We’d suggest opting for 4º (the standard for putter loft), unless you have a real reason to go for less.

We love the adjustable weights in the putter head, as you can really fine-tune this to be a putter for your game. The mallet head design is incredibly stable and encourages you to make a straight back-straight-through putting stroke.

Golf Insider verdict

The Cobra King Vintage Torino putter is a great putter for those looking at a standard mallet, a simplified design with an incredible feel and adjustability. We love how Cobra tried to keep the club classic while also giving it a modern look we have come to expect in a golf putter.

Odyssey Eleven Triple Track Stroke Lab

• Feel 9/10
• Forgiveness 9/10
• Alignment 9/10
• Value 7/10
• Longevity 7/10

The Odyssey Eleven Triple Track is one of the most consistent putters on the market, and it’s not just one of the best putters for high handicappers. Many mid-handicappers, lower handicappers and pros have found this to be a very impressive design. When I hit this putter, it felt almost like a mix between a putter and a training aid to be completely honest. The design of the putter itself almost sets you up for what you need to do on the greens.

When you first set up with the Odyssey Eleven Triple Track, the putter head may feel a bit confusing. However, once you get used to it, you can see that the lines are there to guide you and can really lock in your vision on those shorter strokes.

With the addition of the Stroke Lab shaft, Odyssey also makes this a great putter when it comes to feel. There is tremendous MOI, and the center of gravity is pushed even further forward than we saw in other models of the Odyssey. Keep in mind that anytime you go with the Stroke Lab shaft, it’s really important that you choose the proper putter length; retrofitting is not quite as easy.

The new Eleven shape is one of the heavier putters on our list, and that should not scare high handicappers. With a bit more weight in the head, it can be easier to control the distance and eliminate those pesky three puts from your game.

Finally, the white hot insert in the face of the Odyssey is the classic design, and the Micorhinge technology is in place to improve overall consistency. This is one of the best putter choices on the list for making more one putts as you can learn to work with it and improve overall confidence on the golf course.

Golf Insider verdict

If you are not the most confident putter and are not sure what to focus on as you stand over the ball, the Triple Track putters are the best option to consider. Your putting stroke will feel simplified, and the feel and consistent roll of this Odyssey Eleven will make this one of the best golf putters you can invest in.

Wilson Staff Infinite Buckingham Putter

• Feel 8/10
• Forgiveness 8/10
• Alignment 9/10
• Value 9/10
• Longevity 6/10

The Wilson Staff Infinite Buckingham Putter is the best putter for high handicappers and beginners that are looking for a great deal. Some of the best putters on the market will be well over $400. Although they may come with a custom putter grip and your initials on the putter head, is that really what you are looking for?

With the Wilson Staff Infinite Buckingham Putter, you will benefit from a double milled face, incredible alignment lines, a really soft feel coming off the clubface, and some of the best overall consistency you will find in a lower priced putter.

Sometimes Wilson gets the name of being just a value based company, but there are some great clubs put out by Wilson that dial in both feel and forgiveness for golfers. This particular style of the putter was made with a dark anti glare finish that holds up quite well and makes the sight lines stand out.

Most of the time, when you purchase the Wilson Infinite, you also have an option for a larger Super Stroke grip to help keep your hands a little less active in the putting stroke. Combining the counterbalanced technology with a putting stroke that uses arms and shoulders instead of hands and wrists should help you sink a few more putts.

One thing to look out for with the Wilson Staff Infinite Buckingham putter is that it feels like it sets up just a little open on shorter putts. This is more of an illusion than fact, but it might be a big confidence boost if you tend to drag your putts left.

Golf Insider verdict

Money if often tight when you’re trying to up-level your golfing gear. However, it makes sense to at least spend enough to get yourself something that could benefit your game, and the Wilson Staff can undoubtedly get that done.

TaylorMade Spider Tour Black

• Feel 8/10
• Forgiveness 10/10
• Alignment 9/10
• Value 7/10
• Longevity 8/10

Forgiveness in putting is just as important as it is in the long game. One of the mistakes that some high handicap golfers make is choosing a putter that doesn’t have a lot of forgiveness. Eventually, you may learn to get consistent with that putter, but it could take some time. However, putters like the TaylorMade Spider Tour Black are some of the most forgiving putters on the market.

This is a modern mallet putter design you have likely seen used on the PGA Tour. Although there are several other models of this putter, including the popular TaylorMade Spider X Putter, they all have very similar stability and control at impact.

The X Shape design allows for a higher MOI and ensures that the face of the putter stays square to the path. This Spider X putter also has vibration damping PU foam in the club head that helps to improve the sound and the feel of the putt that you take. If you are playing with a blade style putter that is slightly outdated, this Spider putter will be considerably different.

Most of the Spider putters come with the SuperSTroke GTR 1.0 Grip; we noticed that this grip only improved forgiveness and consistency and kept the golf ball on the proper path. The great thing about the TaylorMade Spider putter is that they are not just built for the high handicap golfer. In fact, the average golfer and even low handicapper find these to be a good fit for their game. This means you could end up using this club for years to come.

Golf Insider verdict

Any golfer looking for more stability and forgiveness at impact will enjoy what the TaylorMade Spider putters have to offer. This is a high MOI putter that will stay square at impact when blade putters tend to open or close through the hitting area.

Tips For High Handicappers Looking For A New Putter

Now that you have some of the best blade putter and mallet putter options on the market for high handicappers, it’s time to narrow down which of these could make playing golf more fun for you. There are a few tips that can help you not only narrow down the proper putter choice but also choose one that will be the easiest putter to work with for years to come.

Mallet vs. Blade Putter Head

The question that we are most frequently asked about the best putters for high handicappers is whether or not a blade putter or a mallet putter is better.

Histrorically, these two putter designs were quite different, but the truth is there is now a lot of overlap. In general, mallet putters are larger, more fogiving, have a longer alignment line and are face balanced. They are more suited to straight back anf through strokes.

Whereas, blades are smaller, toe weighted are more suited to golfers that putt on an arc. However, we now have large, face-balanced blade putters, toe-weighted mallet putters and many other inbwtween options.

The key take away, don’t over think this. Try out both types and go with your prefernce.

Offset design worth it?

An offset putter can help golfers that struggle to square the face up. In addition, if you are a player that likes a little bit of a forward press in the putting stroke, the offset putter is good for that. We find a little offset in the putter head to be an excellent choice for high handicappers.

In fact, high handicappers often have a bit of offset throughout their entire golf club set. This makes it considerably easier to keep the left to right ball flight under control. Keeping that same look with a slight bit of offset in all clubs throughout the set is a smart idea.

It’s not a must, but feel free to opt for one if it fits your eye.

Think about longevity

We know you are a high handicapper today, but what will you be next year? Sometimes playing golf is about getting better; other times it’s about having fun. Don’t take the putter decision lightly as a high handicapper; putters will last longer from a technology standpoint than any other golf club in your bag.

This means that throughout the life of this putter, you may no longer be a high handicapper. If you can choose a club that helps with your distance control and feel and encourages you to make more putts, you may slip into the “average golfer” category.

Don’t just choose a putter for today; think about where you are headed and which new putter will get you there.

Alignment –––– more is not always better

There are some highly complicated designs on the market trying to help players with alignment. From the top down, these alignment lines can get busy and sometimes confusing for players. We love a good alignment line that you can trust and even incorporate into your pre shot routine.

However, not all players want to think like that when they stand over the ball.

As a younger player, I would line up the putting alignment line on my blade style putter with a line on the golf ball and then think about that line as I made my putting stroke. It turns out, that this was too much for me and made me too rigid in my stroke. Instead, I had to find a blade style putter with a short alignment line, almost like an arrow, and use the all white side of the golf ball when I putt.

Something like the Odyssey Eleven putter with the Triple Track can also be ordered with just a single alignment line, and you won’t have the three lines to look at. Don’t assume that all high handicappers need alignment help on the top of the club head.

Putter grip selection for high handicappers

The putter grip is another large part of this putter selection process for high handicappers. With many of the options on our list, there are choices for a large or wider putter grip that allows for more movement of the shoulders and arms and less action in the hands. Some of these putter grips get very large, and players can feel like they are more consistent with striking the golf ball.

It’s important to remember that hand size will play into this. For golfers with very small hands, a midsize grip may be all that is necessary. Using an incredibly large grip could make you feel like you are less in control and cause you to miss a few putts. As larger grips weight more and affect the balance of the putter.

Timing on replacement

How often do you need a new putter? This is a great question and one that will vary from one golfer to the next. Some players will switch putters after a year or two if they find they weren’t having a lot of success. Other golfers will keep the same putter for 20 years.

Golf putters don’t change quite as quickly in technology. Where we look at irons and drivers and think it would be best to upgrade every five or so years, with putters, the timeline is not as concrete.

We recommend testing out new putter technology every two to three years. If you find that there is a big difference in what you are currently putting with, it makes sense to change. For golfers that are confident in what they are doing, keeping the putter you have for a few more years is not going to hurt your game.

Frequently asked questions

Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about the best putters for a high handicap golfer. It’s hard to go wrong with any of the putters on the list, but golf putters are a very personal decision, and you must choose something that you love.

How much should a high handicapper look to spend on a putter?

Putters for high handicappers can range from less than $100 to more than $500. We have found that there are some high quality putters for high handicappers in the $120-$300 range. If you think something like the Titleist Scotty Cameron Phantom putters will help you make more putts, it’s certainly worth going with. However, the Wilson Infinite that we talked about is also a great option, and it comes at a fraction of the price.

Do expensive putters make a difference?

Expensive putters can make a difference when it comes to feel. This is typically where an expensive putter will show that it is a bit more high performing than a cheap putter. Putters for high handicappers that are a bit more expensive sometimes feel better on those slightly off-center hits. Remember that the putter is the club in the bag you will use the most, but if you don’t want to spend $500 on a putter, you certainly don’t need to.

What style of putter is most forgiving?

The mallet putter is the most forgiving putter because of its high MOI design and impressive stability at impact. Many high handicap golfers also believe that the mallet is easier to work with when it comes to distance control. Between the extra stability at impact and the longer alignment lines, it’s no wonder the mallet putters are represented more heavily on our list of the best putters for high handicappers.

Is a lighter or heavier putter better?

When golfers talk about light and heavy putters, they often mean how heavy a putter feels. This is to do with the swing weight (where the centre of mass is), as well as the total weight of the putter.

The best answer is to test out a range. On slow greens heavy feeling putters can help you make a smooth stroke from distance. Lighter putter can be useful on quick greens. However, there are other factors that are important besides weight.

Some golf putters come with adjustable weights that can help you dial in the feel you need. In addition, it’s important for the high handicapper and beginner golfer to know the difference between putter total weight and the putter’s swing weight.

Check out this article for our best putters for beginners.

How do I pick the right putter?

The best putters for your game will be the right length, have the proper feel, and have a general club head design that helps you repeat your putting stroke. Just like other golf clubs in the bag, the putter that wins the best for the year is not always the best for your game. Many local golf courses and fitting centers allow for a complete putter fitting. However, simply going to an area where you can test out putters on your own can allow you some idea as to which high-quality putters are the best for your game.

What putter is best for straight back and through stroke?

A face-balanced putter, which is typically easier to find in the mallet style, is the best for the straight back and through stroke. The putter head will remain square and stable throughout the putting stroke, making it easier for high handicappers to return the putter to square. It makes sense to look at something like the Cobra King Vintage Torino if you need an excellent club for the straight back and through style.

Summary

We hope you now feel as though you can choose a putter geared towards high handicappers that will help your consistency and overall performance on the greens.

Spend enough to get a high-quality putter. Then more towards a forgiving deisgn and a putter that is easy to aim. The Odyssey Stroke Lab 2 Ball putter has impressive MOI, easy alignment, and some of the best feel on the market; this is an excellent choice for players serious about making more putts this year.

Happy golfing.