The Club Report! – Barber Pole Irish Links Series Putters

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A Trip To The Barber

(Written by Golfspy Dave) Why Barber Pole?  At first, I was a bit confused as to why a golf company would pick Barber Pole as a name.  I know, some of you were quicker to figure it out than I was.  Keep it to yourself for a moment while I help my clueless cohort (or yell the answer at your computer screen if it makes you feel better).  What if I told you to visualize the barber pole as black and white, not red and white?  Now you get it, huh?  For many of us, that black and white barber pole in the middle of the fairway represents a nice target off the tee.  In other words, in the game of golf, the term barber pole is synonymous with targeting and accuracy.

Now some of you may be thinking that you have heard of Barber Pole Putters before.  You have indeed.  However, that previous incarnation putter company offered a single, cast head that couldn’t be more different than the current Barber Pole Putter offerings.  These heads are all 100% CNC milled to produce very precise head geometries.  The milled manufacturing also allows the Barber Pole putter to have a unique face, featuring Barber Pole’s Radius Face Technology.  Also gone is that boring, cast metal.  These putters are milled from billets of C360 brass!  We are talking premium putter construction here.  I think that these definitely deserve looking to so…

Let’s take a trip to the Barber!

General Specs:  Barber Pole Irish Links Series Putters

• C360 Brass (copper and zinc alloy)
• CNC Milled
• Top line alignment dot and back flange sight line
• Radius Face Technology
• Two grip options featuring the Barber Pole graphics
• Four Head shapes (Ballybunion, Waterville, Portrush, & Lahinch)

Ballybunion

The Ballybunion is the first of the two mallets in the Irish Links Series.  Like it’s brethren, it is milled from C360 brass and features the dot and line alignment system.  One interesting design aspect of the Ballybunion (and the Waterville mallet) is that its toe hang is slightly up as opposed to face balanced.  It is similar to the hang on the old Ping Cushin’ or Byron Morgan’s 008x.  I feel that it still matches a straight putting stroke though.

Waterville

The Waterville is the second mallet in the Irish Links Series and it shares many characteristics with the Ballybunion (fitting a straight stroke, upward toe hang, materials, and the dot/line system).  As you can tell from the photos though, there are some definite physical and visual differences between the two mallets.  While the Ballybunion has a valley in the flange that extends from the cavity to the back of the flange, the Waterville’s flange is more uniformly rounded.  Players will notice that the two different head shapes affect how the putter looks to them at address and also impacts performance.  Most of the people who rolled the two mallets definitely preferred one to the other, with the overall likes for each being about equal.

Portrush

The Portrush is a classic heel-toe weighted blade, with a few tweaks.  While the plumbers neck looks a bit longer than standard, its placement gives the Portrush quite a bit of toe hang, likely fitting a slight-arcing putting stroke, or perhaps someone with a slightly more than slight arc.  Of all the putters, the Portrush is the model that players will likely find familiar in appearance.  It is also likely the easiest to square up to target at address, due to the square corners of the head and large cavity.

Lahinch

The Lahinch is the most visually interesting of the Irish Links Series.  The Lahinch reminds me of a low-toe version of the TP Mills Softtail.  Its lines are far more flowing than the Portrush, both at the corners and on the bumpers.  The short flow neck provides the most toe hang in the line and should pair nicely with the strong arcing player.

General Impressions – Looks

The finish on the whole line is outstanding.  The irony, of course, is that there is no finish on these putters.  What we see is the natural beauty of the C360 brass.  I think that you can see the glow of the brass in the photo above.  In the sun, the metal sparkles.  Think Twilight vampire, but attractive.  (Twilight reference? O’rly?)  In spite of this brightness, the heads are not glare producing, appearing far more matte at address.  I think that the heads should also patina a bit over time.  This may reduce some of the sparkle, but many of us love that aged patina look.  I’ll post some aged photos after they have had time to age…

I do have one gripe with the looks of the putter, and it’s not with the putter.  I am not a huge fan of the headcover.  The design is cool, with the identifying barber pole on the top, but the construction of the headcover is significantly inferior to that of the putter.  As one of the local pros was quick to point out to me “You don’t putt with the headcover”.  I know, but as a consumer, the grip and headcover are part of the overall purchase package.  The grips are very comfortable, brightly colored, and with the right amount of tackiness.  The headcover construction just doesn’t match the quality of the putter.  In my mind, Bettinardi is the gold standard for headcovers.  Bettinardi’s covers feel like they are protecting something special.  As a company fighting for premium putter market space, everything about the putter has to be premium.

Feel

These putters are firm faced and put an explosive roll on the ball.  For the uninitiated, explosive is the correct term.  My first comment was “whoa doggy” as I blew a ball well past the hole.  I was ill prepared for the power of Radius Face Technology.  The face geometry on the Barber Pole putter follows a different philosophy than other putters in the rack.  Rather than being milled flat, the face of the Barber Pole putter actually slants from top to bottom.  Barber Pole says that this allows you to strike the ball above its equator, starting the ball on its path quicker and without skid or friction.

I really can’t document where the face is striking the ball at impact, but I will attest to the power of the roll that the Barber Pole putter produces.  Truth be told, it took some getting used to, especially since my natural miss is short, not long.  I found the hot face of the Barber Pole to be very welcome on slower rolling, winter greens.  It was nice to produce appropriate distance with a less energetic, and more controlled stroke.  The Barber Pole putter definitely has the hottest face that I have rolled in quite some time.  Remember that when you are putting downhill…

Alignment

Dots or lines.  That is what we usually find as alignment aids on putters.  All of the Barber Pole putter have both.  As one who prefers naked putters, I asked the folk at Barber Pole changing alignment tools was possible.  They replied that their research demonstrated that the combination of the dot and line provided the majority of golfers with improved accuracy.  I’m down with that.  I do find the white paintfill to be complementary to the brass head.  Much better than black would have been…

Anyway, my understanding of the dot and line system is that when they are both aligned with each other, this then causes the putter head, your eye line, and the target line to sync together.  It is an interesting system.  As you address the ball, you can cause the relationship between the dot and line to change by moving your hands up and down.  At one hand position, they will sync up.  Check the address photos of the putters.  You can see that the dot and line are not always in line with each other.

The alignment point will depend upon a lot of personal characteristics, including how far you stand from the ball at address.  I found myself standing a bit closer to the ball and/or moving my hands a bit further from the body than usual to make the dot and line match up.  The alignment system does seem to work though.  Overall, I feel that I missed putts more often due to incorrect speed rather than line.

The One For Me

I am 100% in the Ballybunion camp for the Barber Pole putters.  I thought that the Waterville would be another option, but it really wasn’t even close.  I think that my eye is more comfortable with the Ballybunion’s extra “lines” in the flange created by the cavity.  I sank more putts with the Portrush and the Lahinch than with the Waterville.  Maybe I need three lines on my mallets…

In Conclusion

The Barber Pole Irish Links putters sit in their own little corner of the putter marketplace.  Their C360 brass construction and Radius Face Technology gives these putters and amazing pop off the face and more than a modicum of good looks as well.  My only real knock is on them is the headcover, and most of you don’t putt with that on anyway.

The $369 price tag on the Barber Pole putter does place it on the big boy stage with the likes of Bettinardi and Scotty Cameron.  Can it compete with these guys?  That’s a tall task.  However, I am sure that the Barber Pole putter’s like cannot be found at any other manufacturer.  These are high quality putters whose roll and feel are unique.  Perhaps this will give them the chance they deserve in the market.

Win A Barber Pole Putter!

To win just leave a comment below telling us which model you like the best and why you think it could go in your bag.