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PXG Allan Putter
The PXG Allan putter is going to make some people angry.
Golfers getting mad about new equipment is commonplace these days. Don’t like the new shape of an iron? Rage type about it! Is a company’s Ventus stock shaft not a Velocore model? That slight must be addressed! Should a club cost more than it did in 2008? Someone has some explaining to do!
Those enraging situations are just minor irritants compared with what PXG has unleashed with the Allan putter.
PXG design elements
At first pass, the PXG Allan looks like the other mallet putters in the PXG lineup. Specifically, the Allan’s build is akin to the PXG Battle Ready II putters. The Allan is constructed from milled 6061 aluminum and 303 stainless steel. The stainless steel front of the putter is hollow with a very thin face.
Unsupported, this extremely thin face would feel and sound very unpleasant at impact. To address this, PXG filled the empty space in the head with their S COR polymer, thus improving the sound at impact. Subsequently, they found the addition of the polymer also improved strike uniformity across the face.
That’s a non-ringing endorsement for the PXG design plan.
Replacing the steel with polymer also allowed PXG to position more of the relative head weight near the perimeter of the head. Increasing perimeter weighting boosts the MOI of the putter and the stability of the putter.
Another thing that continues with the Allan is PXG’s commitment to precision construction. Though it won’t be listed as a key selling point for the Allan, the milling quality of this putter is top-notch.
PXG adds milled elements that are functionally unnecessary but aesthetically pleasing. Check out the milled ridges on the underside of the aluminum top piece. They remind me a bit of louvers cut into the hood of a hot rod. They do not need to be there but they make the putter look that much cooler.
But I’m not mad about the Allan yet …
I hear you. It seemed important to rehash the noncontroversial parts of the PXG Allan design before we got to the main event. Let’s take a look at the Allan’s neck.
First of all, the neck is supposed to attach there and be shaped like that. The PXG engineers didn’t get halfway through building the Allan and then, all of a sudden, feel like destroying something beautiful. The neck position and shape are atypical and built as intended. Unlike the cosmetic milling, the neck system was created not for looks but for function.
The PXG Allan is a zero-torque design
The shape and position of the PXG Allan’s neck makes the shaft axis sit just above the center of gravity of the putter. Imagine if the shaft continued down in a straight line to the putter head. That’s the shaft axis.
This positioning gives the putter a “toe-up” toe hang. Additionally, this design creates a putter that has zero torque during the stroke. This means the putter will not open or close relative to path during the stroke, making it easier to return the putter square to the ball and to the target line.
Something about that zero-torque design plan seems familiar.
Addressing the elephant in the L.A.B.
Are you starting to see why the PXG Allan is going to put bees in bonnets? L.A.B. Golf putters also are designed to be free of torque. That’s the big deal about L.A.B. Golf putters and the effectiveness of their Lie Angle Balanced design is the reason that their popularity on professional tours and amateur bags has soared in recent years.
Is PXG is trying to tap into some of L.A.B. Golf’s success?
My first thought when I saw the PXG Allan was that L.A.B. Golf was going to be pissed off. Their anger would be justified, having fought so hard to have people see that their unusual-looking putters were something special. Now that they have some traction, here comes a larger company to lure away potential customers.
There is another way to look at the situation. The fact that a larger company like PXG is making a L.A.B. Golf-inspired design means that what L.A.B. Golf has done is revolutionary in terms of putter design. Bad ideas don’t get copied. Amazing ideas get copied by everyone.
It would take all day to count the number of PING Anser-inspired putters out there.
I totally get how PXG releasing the Allan could be frustrating for L.A.B. Golf but I think that it should also be validating.
Maybe the PXG Allan sucks (it doesn’t)
If the PXG Allan was a terrible putter, most of the controversy would quickly go away. Unfortunately, it is spectacular.
I took the PXG Allan out on the course and made nearly every putt I looked at. If I did miss, it was caused by a speed or read error. Not once did the ball travel down an unintended line.
My previous experience with L.A.B. Golf putters undoubtedly made me feel immediately comfortable with the zero-torque Allan. I found swinging the DF3 and Allan putters to be similar experiences.
I really like how the Allan sits at address behind the ball. The neck quickly fades from notice with the aluminum top element and long sight line, making alignment very easy. Never once did I question where the Allan was aimed.
Impact feel is muted. It’s tough to know for sure if you missed the center or not. It didn’t seem to matter too much, though, since the ball seemingly always ended up heading toward the target. Though subjective, I definitely prefer the impact feel of the L.A.B Golf DF3.
As a bonus, the milled ridges on the bottom of the PXG Allan will allow you to pick up the ball with the “Pick-Up Pocket” on the bottom of the putter. Odds are you won’t need to use them very often, though.
Final thoughts on the PXG Allan putter
The PXG Allan is probably the best putter that PXG has produced to date. Yes, I am including the Most Wanted winning PXG Battle Ready Bat Attack in that ranking. This putter is that good.
Will the PXG Allan lure customers away from L.A.B. Golf? Maybe, but I’m not totally sure that the Allan will prove harmful to L.A.B. Golf. L.A.B. Golf has carved out a very unique market space. They make putters with atypical shapes that undeniably outperform other putters in the current marketplace.
Remember, 8802-loving Phil Mickelson is using a L.A.B. Golf putter.
I can see the PXG Allan being a gateway to L.A.B. Golf. Customers, especially PXG loyalists, will try the Allan without knowing anything about all the zero-torque stuff. Now that they are familiar with the technology, they feel more comfortable and curious about exploring what L.A.B. Golf has to offer.
That’s assuming that anyone would ever want to move on from the PXG Allan. Like I said, it’s a solid flatstick.
Find out more about the PXG Allan and the other PXG putters at PXG.com.
FAQ: PXG Allan Putter
The Allan I tested had PXG’s M16 putter shaft in it. The shaft is made of graphite and steel and is 26 percent stiffer than steel. PXG says robot testing shows the M16 shaft to be 37 percent more accurate than traditional steel.
The Allan is named after Bob Parsons’ younger brother who passed after battling cancer back in 2020. If you are wondering, the Alan Parsons from the Alan Parsons Project was a different person.
I’d say that is a safe bet. The design works and is hot in the marketplace. Expect other companies to release some.
It’s possible. They do run sales here and there. Remember that they also have a PXG for Heroes program where current and past military, veterans and first responders get a discount.
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