Equipment
Kuchar makes tweaks to his Bettinardi Arm Lock putter
Chances are you’ve seen it. Matt Kuchar holed out a bunker shot for birdie on his last hole to win the 2014 RBC Heritage at Harbor Town.
After a rare three-putt miscue on No. 17, Kuchar didn’t even need to pull his flatstick out of the bag to finish the job. That putter model, a Bettinardi Kuchar Model 1, has served him well since he put it in play in 2013, but this year at the Masters, Kuchar felt like he needed to make some minor changes.
Kuchar and Bob Bettinardi started working with prototypes of the current putter back at the 2012 BMW Championship. There were some 15 different “experiments” before the Model 1 was born. Kuchar rolled to victories at the 2013 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship (def. defending champ Hunter Mahan) and the 2013 Memorial Tournament.
The Model 1 is a face-balanced blade with a wide body, which offers more stability than traditional Anser-style putters. It also has Bettinardi’s F.I.T. Face (Feel Impact Technology), a milling process that removes 55 percent of the face material for a softer feel at impact. Ahead ofTthe Masters, Kuchar asked Bettinardi for some visual changes to his trusty arm lock model. After his Friday round at Augusta where he shot 71, Kuchar decided it was time to give the new Model 1 a go. It’s a nearly identical Tour Stock Model 1, with a 17-inch Bettinardi grip, Tour Stock shaft band with a black oxide finish that Bettinardi applied in house.
Overall, the Model 1 has served Kuchar well. He’s had four consecutive top-10 finishes, the most on the PGA Tour since 2013. Kuchar’s miss from 4 feet this week was particularly rare, as he has ranked no worse than 14th on the PGA Tour in 3-putt avoidance the last five years.
Neal Shipley was the first to admit that he enjoyed his food while in college. But since his days at Ohio State, he’s slimmed down and earned a PGA Tour Card.
That hasn’t stopped him from having fun with his wedge stampings, though it’s led to some misunderstandings.
On the 54 (degree), we have ‘Big Fudge,'” Shipley told GolfWRX. “It was supposed to be ‘Big Fridge,’ so this happened a little while ago. ‘Big Fridge’ was a nickname between my college teammates and I, with ‘fridge’ meaning stomach, a big stomach.
“We told the Ping guys to put … ‘Big Fridge’ on it, and I think maybe some bad cell service or something, and they thought I said ‘fudge,’ so they put fudge on it.”
On Shipley’s 50-degree he also continues the food theme, this time with his go-to order at the “Golden Arches,” and his stamping “DONS 7.”
“The number 7 meal, the two cheeseburger meal, that was my McDonald’s order, back when I would have McDonald’s frequently,” Shipley shared.
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, @raw10628 has a L.A.B. DF3 putter and Masters putter cover up for grabs.
From the listing: “Some great items here today, time to thin out and make room for next set of gear. All prices include shipping.
LAB DF3 Purple 33.5” 68° lie with TPT – $725. LAB Masters release DF3 cover – $150.”
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
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 5-M4
3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
5-wood: Ping G440 Max (19 degrees @18)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
Hybrid: Ping G440 (23 degrees)
Shaft: Oban Isawa Red Hybrid Shaft 04 Flex 70 Gms
Irons: Srixon ZXi7 (5-P)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i80
Wedges: Cleveland RTZ (50-MID, 54-FULL, 58-MID)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i105
Putter: L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i
Shaft: ACCRA Putter Shaft
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
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david
Apr 25, 2014 at 7:43 am
its such a brief article, i’m embarrassed to say i missed what the change are….. can anyone help me out?