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TaylorMade TP Black Collection Putters
Surlyn insert.
MSRP $199.99
Just when you thought the 2024 putter release season was over, TaylorMade announces their new TP Black line of putters. At least it is only seven new putters this time.
Shops are going to expand the putter corrals.
With so many new putters out there this year, what sets TaylorMade’s TP Black Collection putter line apart from their competitors? Many of the build specifications sound familiar:
Milled 303 stainless steel KBS 120 Chrome Stepped putter shaft Lamkin Sink Fit Skinny grip $199.99I told you. It’s all the usual things that we find in a milled putter offering. Wait, did that say $199.99? TaylorMade is launching a milled putter line for only two hundred bucks?
TaylorMade, you now have my attention, and my curiosity.
An Inexpensive Milled Putter?
With other companies are racing toward the $500 mark for their milled putters, how can TaylorMade possibly roll out the TP Black Collection line at $199? Consider that their own TP Reserve line of milled putters costs $400.
Well, there is milled, and then there is 100 percent milled. The big difference between the TP Black Collection and other lines of milled putters is that these putters begin their lives as cast putters. That means molten metal is poured into molds. Once they cool, the rough shapes are finished with a mill to clean up the geometries.
In contrast, putters that are 100 percent milled start as a block of metal and then the milling machine cuts away the metal until the final shape is revealed. It’s like finding the sculpture in a block of marble.
So what is the advantage of 100 percent milled versus cast and then surface milled? It comes down to the consistency in the metal. The casting process will not produce the same uniformity in the metal that you would find in a solid billet of steel.
There is debate as to whether the inconsistencies in the cast putter’s metal are enough to affect the roll of the ball. It seems logical that if a section of the face is harder or softer, then the roll will vary with impact location. If the steel billet from which the milled putter is constructed is uniform in consistency, then the face will be consistent as well.
On the other hand, cast putters did log a whole bunch of Tour wins before milling putters became a thing in the 1990s.
The TaylorMade TP Collection Milled Black Pure Roll Insert
For argument sake, let’s say the casting and surface milling production process produces inconsistent faces. What’s a putter company to do to correct that?
Add an insert to the face, of course.
This new TP Black Collection putter line features TaylorMade’s iconic Pure Roll Surlyn polymer insert. This is the insert that was previously used in their Spider X mallet putters. It’s a great-feeling insert whose 45-degree downward grooves are designed to improve roll.
Is it odd to have an insert in the face of a milled putter? In a fully milled putter, sure it is, but not so much if the putter is only surface milled for cosmetics. Adding an insert, especially one that people like, is a great way to remove any issues with casting imperfections and make the putter feel great at impact.
The TaylorMade TP Black Collection Models
The new TaylorMade TP Black Collection includes seven putter models. Three are blades and three are mallets. The seventh, the wide-body Del Monte, lives somewhere between the blade and mallet camps.
Yes, I do realize there are only six putters in the above photo. One of the Juno neck variants is not in that group photo.
Here are the specs for the various models.
All of the putters are offered for right-handers in 34- and 35-inch lengths.
The three left-handed models, the Juno #1, Soto #1, and Palisades #3, will only be offered at 35 inches, so hopefully you lefties out there are tall.
Final Thoughts on the TaylorMade TP Black Collection Putters
With golf getting more and more expensive, it is refreshing to see a company offering new putters for under $200. Yes, it is only a penny under $200, but that still counts.
The TaylorMade TP Black Collection putter line is a solid offering at that price point. No, they are not 100 percent milled but the surface milling produces a very clean putter. The texture on cast putters that are not surface milled can look a bit rough.
Overall, the TP Black Collection’s plan is sound. The milling makes the putter look nice and the Pure Roll insert makes the putters competent ball rollers. Spider players should appreciate the insert. Those looking to move from a Spider X into another putter should find the TP Black Collection new, yet familiar.
Find out more about the TaylorMade TP Black putter line at TaylorMadeGolf.com
FAQ: TaylorMade TP Black Collection Putter Line
Like I said, the casting/surface milling construction could produce inconsistencies in the metal when it is heated and molded. Adding the insert provides the putter with a very uniform ball striking surface.
This I do not know. When they launched last summer, my understanding was that the TP Reserve line was the first release of TaylorMade’s new milled putter program. Since then, it has been a bit quiet on the milled front. Maybe we will see something new in the summer.
If we are just talking about materials then, arguably, yes, milled putters have more uniform construction and fewer imperfections than cast putters. Will you putt better with a milled putter than a cast putter? That’s a whole other question. (Notice me avoiding that question on purpose.)
Yes. No. Maybe. I have no clue. It seems like all of the major players have shot their wads of newness but I also would have said that a week ago. It’s probably safe to go buy a new putter now. If a company with a short new-release refractory period discharges a new putter that you also like, just buy that one as well. You deserve to have as many putters as you want.
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