The Mallet Putters Golfers Are Buying—And How They Performed in Our Testing

What golfers buy and what performs best don’t always match. We asked PGA TOUR Superstore for their best-selling mallet putters and compared that list to our 2025 and 2026 testing data to see where they line up—and where they don’t.

One quick thing to pay attention to: PGA TOUR Superstore doesn’t separate zero-torque putters as their own category but we did in testing. That means some models, especially from L.A.B. Golf, show up in a different test group if you look through our results.

Putters golfers are buying and that performed well

A few brands show clear overlap between retail demand and testing results.

TaylorMade Spider Series

The Spider lineup shows up all over the PGA TOUR Superstore best-seller list and it has real support in testing. If you’ve noticed, it’s also in many bags of the top players on the PGA Tour. Models like the Spider Tour X performed well in our mallet testing while zero-torque versions like the Spider 5K ZT also finished near the top of that category.

Not every Spider performs the same but the depth of the lineup is part of the story. There are enough strong options here that it’s no surprise golfers keep buying them.

PING Scottsdale Series

PING’s Scottsdale models are another strong match. Multiple versions showed up as top performers in our 2025 testing, including the Prime Tyne 4. Even in newer data, Scottsdale models continue to hold their own.

L.A.B. Golf

Once you separate out zero-torque putters, L.A.B. becomes one of the strongest alignment stories in the entire dataset. The OZ.1i was one of the top performers in testing and the DF3, one of the most popular retail models, also posted solid results.

Putters that deserve more attention based on test results

Some brands performed well in testing but the specific models golfers are buying aren’t always the ones that stood out at the top of the PGA TOUR Superstore’s best-sellers list.

Cleveland Golf HB Soft 2 Series

Cleveland had multiple strong finishes in testing including the HB Soft 2 models. These putters performed well across distances, especially on longer putts.

They’re available at PGA TOUR Superstore but they don’t generate the same level of attention as some of the bigger names. Based on the data, they’re worth a closer look and their pricing is typically fair.

Odyssey Ai-One Lineup

Odyssey is well represented at retail but the model golfers are buying the most isn’t necessarily the one that stood out in testing. The best-seller list leans toward models like the Ai Dual Tri Hot, while our testing highlighted options like the Ai-One #7 and Ai-One Milled Seven T as stronger overall performers.

That doesn’t make the popular option a poor choice. It just means there may be better-performing alternatives sitting right next to it. Make sure you are testing models that fit your stroke.

Putters golfers are buying despite the results

This doesn’t mean these putters are bad. It just means the testing data doesn’t show them as the highest-performing mallet putters we’ve seen over the past few years.

The Scotty Cameron Phantom lineup continues to sell at a high level which isn’t surprising given the brand’s reputation. In our 2026 testing, models like the Phantom 9 and Phantom 5 delivered solid results, particularly on longer putts, but they didn’t separate themselves from the top performers in the field.

This looks more like a case of strong brand confidence carrying into purchasing decisions. Golfers know the name, trust the feel and keep coming back to it—even when the data suggests there are a few higher-performing options available.

The takeaway

When you line everything up, a few things stand out:

• Brands such as TaylorMade, PING and L.A.B. show both retail demand and testing support.
• Some strong performers aren’t getting the same attention on the sales floor that they should be.

Best-seller lists tell you what golfers are choosing. Testing tells you how those choices perform. The overlap is where the real insights are.