First Look: Evnroll ER10 Outback

I think it’s fair to suggest we’re at the point now where the putter conversation can shift toward design categories as opposed to individual templates. Whether you call it a Spider, Phantom X, Black Ten, or Frankly Frog, the debate over who designed it first can be shoved off into the corner and deposited into the ol’ circle file. That said, what critics should be noting is the very existence of multiple models in a similar space is an affirmation that the design has merit and efficacy across a broad range of handicaps, abilities, and preferences.

I mean, if the auto industry is good with “full-size” trucks, golf can evolve as well, right?

With that, Evnroll is announcing the launch of its ER10 Outback, an ultra-high MOI, winged-mallet design, which offers a footprint similar to the aforementioned competing models.

As is the case with all Evnroll putters, the Outback features Sweet Face Technology, which arguably serves as the industry standard in putter face technology. At the very least, it’s noteworthy that as Evnroll’s patented face grooves have stayed consistent, other OEMs have incorporated alternate versions of similar technology, many of which have been tweaked and modified along the way, seemingly to try and dance around existing patents.

In terms of specifics, the body of the face-balanced Outback (named for the boomerang-looking 3030 stainless steel rear wing) is crafted from light-weight 6061 aluminum and coated with a Black Armor finish.  The stainless steel wing is CNC milled to a specific weight based on the finished putter length (33”@ 385g, 34”@ 370g, 35”@ 355g), which comes stock with a 90-gram black pistol grip. As one would expect, the stock loft (2°) and lie (70°) can be adjusted as needed.

CONSIDER…

High MOI is becoming something of a “fat-free” designation in that it only means something if you understand what it measures. Then, there’s the possibility it might not measure what you think it does. And for good measure, at least one company (Cleveland) has taken the position that less MOI is preferable.

Make sense? It’s a topic which no doubt warrants a longer and more detailed conversation, but for now, ponder this – Assuming MOI is a measurement of a body’s resistance to angular acceleration (say when a clubhead twists when it makes off-center contact with a ball), would you prefer that number factor in the shaft’s location relative to the CG or not? Basically, should MOI take into account what the golfer actually experiences or just the native design of the clubhead?

I’ll hold off on my position…for now, though, you can likely see where this is headed.

Because the standard MOI measurement is taken without regard to where the shaft accesses the clubhead, a 370-gram standard Anser-style head has an MOI of roughly 4600 gr/cm2. So too does TaylorMade’s Spider X, and any number of popular designs on the market. Even super or ultra-high MOI mallet putters produce a standard MOI number in the mid-5000s, which isn’t vastly different than the MOI of a generic blade-style putter.

So, why is it then that many players (tour pros included) state a preference for the increased stability offered by high-MOI designs, when the standard MOI measurements don’t empirically tell exactly the same story?

Is everyone falling victim to some marketing placebo? Not at all. The answer lies in effective MOI, which accounts for how a putter behaves when a golfer is well, actually putting and in the case of the ER10 Outback, generates an MOI nearly 70% greater than its standard MOI of 5,700 gr/cm2.

Kind of makes you wonder if we’ve been going about this MOI thing all wrong. What do you think?

PRICING & AVAILABILITY:

The ER10 Outback has an MSRP of $399 (pistol grip) and $419 (Gravity Grip).

Available at selected US retailers November 1, 2019 and to distributors worldwide early 2020.

For more information visit Evnroll.com