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Everything You Need to Know About the New Odyssey Ai-ONE Putters
Today, Odyssey Golf unveiled their Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putter lines. Yes, I, too, had to make sure it was November and not January. Usually, we don’t see this type of significant release until the PGA Show in January.
Well, our calendars are correct. Odyssey is releasing two new putter lines in November.
The real story of this release is not the new date but rather the incorporation of new artificial intelligence technology. Though I am occasionally prone to putter hyperbole, this is not one of those times.
What Odyssey has incorporated into their new Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putters is the most significant putter performance technology of the decade. Now that they have done this, it will be nearly impossible for them to make putters like they did in the past.
Yes, it’s that big of a deal.
Fast Facts
Odyssey Golf brings artificial intelligence to their new Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putter lines. Each putter features an AI-designed face insert. The new face design improves speed consistency and leaves the ball “21% closer to the hole” compared to a standard milled putter. Available Nov. 3 with suggested retail prices of $299.99 (Ai-ONE) and $449.99 (Ai-ONE Milled).Odyssey Brings Artificial Intelligence to the Putterverse
Using artificial intelligence to solve problems is not a new thing, not even in golf. In fact, Callaway has used AI for a couple of cycles now in their driver face technologies. You may remember that AI helped Callaway to run about 15,000 combinations of face configurations before developing the one that ended up in the 2019 Epic Flash.
Without AI, there would be no way for an engineer to design that many driver faces.
Now Odyssey is using their AI technology in putter design. However, that task is not as easy as typing “Make the best putter” into ChatGPT. The first thing Odyssey needed to do was identify how golfers mishit their putts, what happens when they mishit the putts and then figure out how to fix the problem.
The Odyssey Supercomputer Needed Human Data
Those of you who have used ChatGPT or other AI tools know the output is only as good as the question. For Odyssey, the initial question of “Why do Tour pros miss putts?” was relatively simple in nature but critical if they were to feed the correct information into their artificial intelligence designer.
The answer was perhaps a bit surprising to those of us who watch Tour-level golfers hit amazing shots week after week. As it turns out, like us, Tour pros miss putts because they miss the center of the putter face. These misses, be they toward the heel or the toe, influence speed.
After crunching all of the Tour data, Odyssey determined that speed control is the most important indicator of putting success.
It’s simple when you think about it. You have two players, each with 30-foot putts. By the way, 30 feet is the Tour average proximity to the hole. If Player 1 lags the putt to three feet, a distance from which Tour pros make 99 percent of their putts. Player 2 lags the putt to six feet, where the make percentage is closer to 70 percent. Player 2 now is in danger of three-putting, whereas Player 1 is not.
Odyssey calculated that Tour players collectively lost more than $25 million last season because of three-putts.
If a player can control speed better, the missed first putt will be closer to the hole and three-putt scenarios should be reduced or eliminated. Understanding this, Odyssey now had the question to feed into the computer.
How can constant speed be produced across the face?
Once speed variation was identified as the main culprit for missed putts, Odyssey’s engineers worked with the AI to develop a face that would minimize speed variations across the face—keeping in mind that the face also needed to sound and feel good, otherwise nobody would use it.
And that brings us to the new inserts in the Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putters. Both of these inserts, though made of different materials, reduce the speed variations that come from off-center hits.
Now this may sound like a story you’ve heard before in the context of face grooves. Indeed you have. Many of the groove schemes were designed with the same intention. The new Ai-ONE face differs in a few key aspects.
First, the Ai-ONE face does not make the center of the putter slower. Some groove designs boosted the edges and deadened the center to make speeds more uniform. For some, the dead-feeling center was a deal breaker.
The other interesting difference is that, while most groove schemes normalized speeds horizontally across the face, the Ai-ONE face addresses speed inconsistencies horizontally and vertically. Wherever you may roam on the face, the Ai-ONE design should keep the speed of the putt more consistent compared to a standard milled putter.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Insert
Let’s start with the putter that you may have already seen in the bags of some Tour pros, the Odyssey Ai-ONE. Jon Rahm, four-time winner and Masters champion this year, changed to the Ai-ONE Rossie for the Ryder Cup.
Yes, a Tour pro who is at the top of his game made the switch to the Ai-ONE before a major competition. Why? Because Odyssey engineers explained that three-putts cost him $2.5 million last season. Hypothetically, if he improved his distance control by the 21-percent average value that Odyssey observed during development, three-putt frequency is reduced and he jumps way up in Strokes Gained putting.
We all saw Rahm’s amazing putting at the Ryder Cup. Rumor has it that this bomb for a near eagle was actually a mishit. That’s the Ai-ONE insert in action.
For the Ai-ONE series, the insert is made of two layers. The underlayer is aluminum and features the AI-designed topography. (By the way, how cool is it that Odyssey included clear portholes in the putter head so you can see the insert shape?)
The surface of the aluminum insert is then coated with the White Hot urethane polymer. It really is the best of both worlds. You get the performance boost of the AI-designed aluminum insert and the performance and feel of White Hot.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Putter Models
The Odyssey Ai-ONE line features four models, five if you include the two neck options on the Ai-ONE Seven. Each model features the new Ai-ONE polymer/aluminum insert, a Stroke Lab 90 shaft, blue PVD finish, removable front weights and a Odyssey-branded grip.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE One
The Odyssey Ai-ONE #1 is the classic Anser design in the line. Of the models in the Ai-ONE line, this #1 is the most traditional design. In some ways, that makes it the most interesting one for testing the Ai-ONE impact.
Multitudes of players use a putter of this design, be it an Odyssey putter or a similar putter from another company. Players use it because they are comfortable with it and because the design works. With the new Ai-ONE insert, this classic design should work even better compared to a milled version or a version with a different insert.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Double Wide
Not to be confused with the mobile home that doesn’t move, the Odyssey Ai-ONE Double Wide is the other blade putter in the Ai-ONE lineup. Yes, it is a beefy blade but with the heel- and toe-weighted profile, it still qualifies as a blade.
The popularity of the Double Wide has grown since its introduction in the first Stroke Lab series. Odyssey had produced wide blades prior to that but I think the Double Wide name was introduced with that line. Regardless, the theme continues as the Ai-ONE Double Wide takes everything that you liked in the Double Wide and adds to it, getting balls 21 percent closer to the hole than a traditional milled putter.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Rossie S
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Rahmssie S, sorry, Rossie S is the classic round mallet in the cohort. I know that I keep saying “classic” but that is part of the story here. All of the heads in the Ai-ONE line are Tour-proven classic Odyssey designs.
Sure, the Rossie S is famous these days because it is the putter Rahm is using but the first version of the Rossie was made about the time when he was born. Odyssey has a huge stable of successful putter head designs that the Ai-ONE insert enhances the performance of, making good putters even better.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Seven S and Seven CH
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Seven is Odyssey’s interpretation of a classic fang-shaped putter. No, Odyssey’s #7 is the classic fang design. This is a larger-profile #7 and it comes in both slant and crank hosel (plumber’s neck) configurations.
Though Rahm’s switch to the Ai-ONE Rossie S gets most of the fanfare, other Odyssey pros have made the switch as well. Sam Burns, who supposedly had never changed his putter, switched to the Ai-ONE Seven S immediately after trying it.
Don’t think Tour pros are switching because Odyssey cut them checks to do so. LOTS of Tour players play Odyssey putters without any compensation from Odyssey. Most pros don’t want more money; they have lots of that. What they want is more wins. That is why they are switching to the Ai-ONE line.
Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Putters
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled putter line combines the supercomputer-generated Ai-ONE insert with precision-milled putter construction. The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled putter represents Odyssey’s latest attempt to cut out a larger slice of the milled putter market pie.
Odyssey dominates the majority of putter categories, including Tour wins and retail sales. The one place where they do not dominate is milled putter sales. Odyssey is hoping that the precision milling, coupled with the performance-enhancing Ai-ONE insert, separates the Ai-ONE Milled putters from others in the milled putter category.
The insert for the Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled putter line is titanium. That’s why each one has a “T” at the end of their names. Unlike the non-milled version, these putters do not feature a window that shows you the variable shape on the underside of the insert.
The Ai-ONE tech is there, though. While the face of the insert features a cool tuna-milled pattern, the underside is still a computer-generated jumble of lumps. Again, the insert’s job is to improve ball speed on off-center strikes.
Many milled putters are all looks, no substance—at least when it comes to assistive putting technologies. The Ai-ONE Milled putters have the milled putter looks and an insert to help you make more putts. Will that be enough to increase Odyssey’s milled market share?
Let’s check out the seven Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled models.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled One T
The Ai-ONE Milled One T is a dale head-type heel/toe weighted design. The rear bumpers are curved as are the rear corners of the head. The overall effect of this design is to guide the eyes forward at address.
The Ai-ONE Milled One T also features a top edge sight line. This element also draws the eye toward the ball side of the putter and should aid in targeting. I like that Odyssey mixes in elements like this rather than always having the sight line in the cavity.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Two T
The Ai-ONE Two T is a hot putter. Not just hot-looking. When you move from the urethane/aluminum insert of the Ai-ONE putters to the milled titanium insert of the Ai-ONE milled line, you can feel the difference at impact.
The Ai-ONE Milled insert delivers a crisp pop at impact. It feels similar to what you would expect from a fully milled putter but not quite the same. Most importantly, it feels like a milled face. It feels firmer than a deep-milled face but softer than a fly-milled face.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Three T
For those of you familiar with the Toulon Design-branded Odyssey putters, the Ai-ONE Milled Three T would be the Toulon Atlanta. This is a great-looking compact mallet whose slant neck gives it a bit of toe hang and more of a blade-like feel.
The Ai-ONE Milled Three T is a symmetrical head. Those looking for a #9 replacement should try it but will likely find the toe hang insufficient. I am curious to see when a true #9 will return to any Odyssey putter line.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Six T
The Ai-ONE Milled Six T is a new head for Odyssey. It looks a little like the Toulon Memphis but it is more compact than that large-profile mallet. That said, I think this is the model that someone who played the Memphis would be most interested in trying.
The double-bend shaft and rounded shape of the Ai-ONE Milled Six T should feel very familiar to small mallet players. The subtle “T” shape made by the front edge and the cavity makes this putter very easy to aim.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Seven T
This version of the #7 is smaller than the one in the Ai-ONE line. The Ai-ONE Milled Seven T retains the geometries of the #7 but it looks to be compressed about 20 percent compared to the larger version.
The Ai-ONE Milled Seven T is available in both crank-hosel and double-bend configurations. Those of you needing a slant neck will need to go with the non-milled Ai-ONE model. Perhaps there will be a slant-necked Ai-ONE Milled Seven T in a future release or maybe we will see it as an option in an Odyssey Ai-ONE Garage type of program.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Eight T
The Toulon Design Daytona Beach enters the Ai-ONE Milled line as the Eight T. This model is the largest of the round mallets. The Eight T looks like what you would get if the Memphis and the Indianapolis had a baby.
Though, at address, it looks like the weighting would be rearward, the Ai-ONE Milled Eight T’s adjustable weights are toward the front as they are with the other Ai-ONE putters. Forward weight position moves the center of gravity forward, promoting a better roll on the ball.
The Odyssey Ai-ONE Milled Eleven T
If you are looking for something big and square, look no further than the Ai-ONE Milled Eleven T. Admittedly, it is not really square but that central rectangle is truly all I see when I look at the putter at address.
Look at all of those deliciously long alignment lines. If you can’t point the Ai-ONE Milled Eleven T at the target, then maybe it’s time for a trip to the optometrist. Sure, you still need to make the stroke but the Eleven T’s subtle-as-a-brick targeting system should delete aiming correctly from your putting concerns.
Final Thoughts on Odyssey Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled Putters
Are we witnessing the next great revolution in putter design with the Odyssey Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putter lines? Perhaps. Anything that comes from artificial intelligence is only as good as the questions fed into the supercomputer. Was Odyssey’s focus on speed control the right question?
If Jon Rahm cuts his three-putt percentage and makes a couple of extra million next year, his answer would be “yes.”
I think early adopters of the Ai-ONE putters will be those already playing Odyssey putters. Like Rahm, you know the Odyssey putter you are currently gaming is a good fit. When you add in the new Ai-ONE design, now your good-fitting putter also corrects for your mishits. How could you not swap in the new model?
One of the toughest cohorts for Odyssey to sell a new putter to is to people already playing Odyssey putters. I suppose that is a penalty for making good putters year after year. When someone buys one, the performance makes them stick with it.
Odyssey staffers, and non-staffers, are switching to the new Ai-ONE models almost as soon as they try them. It will be interesting to see if this swapping phenomenon will translate to the retail market.
Production of the Ai-ONE insert represents an inflection point for Odyssey. If their research has truly produced an insert so helpful, I don’t see how they can ever return to non Ai-produced inserts again.
Find out more about the Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled putter lines at OdysseyGolf.com
FAQ: Odyssey Ai-ONE and Ai-ONE Milled Putter Lines.
Why did it take longer for an AI putter to be produced than an AI driver?
The cynic in me says “because there is more money in drivers.” Really, though, it may have to do with the putter “question” being harder to identify.
Drivers just need to go far from all spots on the face. As I mentioned, Odyssey needed to first figure out why putts were missed and then address the issue. The irony was that “go fast from all parts of the face” was not that far off for putters as well.
Aren’t you even going to mention that they are blue?
Fair question. The big story is obviously the Ai-ONE inserts but the navy-blue PVD finish is worth discussingl. There are a couple of probable reasons why Odssey went with blue. First, it stands out in the putter corral at the shop. This is especially true for the Ai-ONE Milled putters where all other putters are silver. The blue color speaks to the fact that these are different, possessing assistive technologies that the other milled putters do not have.
It’s an interesting shade of blue. Depending upon the light, it can look almost black or deep blue.
For those of you worried about the durability of the finish, I asked Odyssey about that. They said this is the finish that was previously used on the Japan-only Odyssey Tri-Beam putter line. Those putters have been out for a while and they have received zero complaints about finish durability.
Does the Ai-ONE corrective technology mean that any golfer can now use any putter and have the same results?
Wouldn’t that be a hoot? Grab whichever putter catches your eye and the insert will compensate for everything! Unfortunately, that is not the case. You will still want to start with the putter that best fits your stroke. That is the big step. Once you have that, the Ai-ONE insert technology improves your mishit results with that fitted putter.
How do we know that this AI stuff isn’t just another putter gimmick?
Nothing wrong with skepticism. Especially when it comes to golf. Just yesterday, I received an email promising to fix my swing faults in five swings (and $100). Naturally, Odyssey is in the putter selling business. However, I’ve known the people behind the Odyssey brand for years. I’ve seen how passionate they are about making putters that perform.
If you don’t want to take my word for it, think again about the Tour pros. These are the most competitive golfers on the planet. They want to win. Why else did we see so many Jailbirds this past season? Successful Tour players, especially those who already putt well like Rahm and Burns, would only make the switch if the new putter was better than their current one.
The post Everything You Need to Know About the New Odyssey Ai-ONE Putters appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
