A recently leaked photo of the “probably” upcoming Odyssey Square to Square MAX putter has set golf social media ablaze.
The putter in question bears a striking resemblance to L.A.B. Golf’s DF2.1 or DF3 (take your pick)—so much so that many in the golf community are already calling it a blatant knockoff. While Odyssey has yet to officially announce the putter, history suggests it will make its way to retail. And, with that, the inevitable debate begins: Is this just another example of golf’s copycat culture or is Odyssey stepping over the line like a drunk trying to navigate the ropes at the Phoenix Open?
Join me, won’t you, in the dark recesses of my mind as I argue with myself over whether Odyssey seemingly egregious L.A.B. copy is a step too far.
“Dude, Odyssey just ripped off L.A.B.”
Did they?
(Yes)
The resemblance is pretty damn obvious. But the better question is does it actually matter? Let’s not pretend the guys who jumped on the L.A.B. bandwagon after years of gaming counterfeit Scotties they bought off eBay are suddenly concerned with intellectual property.
Two years from now will anyone but the most hardcore gear nerd remember?
Nah.
“Of course, it matters! L.A.B. created something unique.”
Golf is a copycat industry. Always has been, always will be. Unique comes with a 10-minute timer.
Take a look around—10K drivers are everywhere, nearly every ball manufacturer has a Pro V1 knockoff … and putter companies?
Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick.
If you don’t have a fang and a spider-style mallet, are you even trying? Wilson’s 8802 has made more rounds than the drink cart at your member-guest and the number of Anser reimaginations is rivaled only by a count of Tiger’s surgeries.
“This isn’t just another mallet—it’s L.A.B.’s whole concept.”
L.A.B. has built a recognizable visual identity in a crowded market but their hands aren’t entirely clean. One might suggest that the L.A.B. OZ mallet looks like center-shafted version of Jon Rahm’s Odyssey OG Rossie milled by a machine that can’t cut curves. If we’re going to call the Square to Square Max, as some commenters have, a Temu version of a L.A.B., then shouldn’t we also acknowledge the resemblance of the OZ to the Odyssey (even if you can’t get the Odyssey in pink)?
And while we’re at it, while L.A.B.’s LINK.1 might still maintain the company’s design fundamentals, it’s also just another take on the Anser.
How long does a putter shape need to be on the market before it’s considered fair game? I really don’t know.
“Fine. But Callaway is a billion-dollar company. They don’t need to steal from the little guy.”
To quote my brother and probably someone before him, “monster truck don’t give a fuck.” And Callaway (Odyssey’s parent brand) is absolutely a monster truck. Also, my brother drove a Tacoma at the time, hardly a monster truck, but I suppose that’s neither here nor there.
Anyway, Callaway is a behemoth doing apparently big bully behemoth things but L.A.B. isn’t operating out of CEO Sam Hahn’s basement, either.
L.A.B. is the No. 3 putter brand in dollar share ahead of names like TaylorMade and PING. They’ve gone from niche to mainstream faster than Patrick Reed went from Captain America to social pariah.
Success invariably comes with a target and, right now, L.A.B. is wearing a giant neon fucking bullseye.
“And wasn’t PXG’s Blackbird kind of the first L.A.B. copy that nobody noticed?”
Now that you mention it (I said to myself like a crazy person), yeah, flip that bad boy over and there’s definitely some L.A.B.-inspired shaping. You might even say that all of that zero-torque, lie angle balancing stuff aside, PXG made a version of the DF3 before L.A.B. (or Odyssey) did.
Nobody said a word.
Can I get a KABOOM, BABY!?
“But how bush league was that cease-and-desist Callaway’s legal team sent L.A.B. over its use of ‘Broomstick’?
Bush-league AF. Golf industry absurdity at its absolute finest. There should be an awards show for this sort of thing.
The irony here is rich. Callaway threatening L.A.B over the “Broomstick” name only to turn around and have Odyssey recreate what certainly looks a whole like a L.A.B. design is the kind of corporate hypocrisy that deserves an eye roll or three.
FFS, Callaway.
You can’t copyright shapes (apparently). You can trademark common household words when used in specific context.
It’s stupid but I suppose Callaway didn’t create the system.
At least L.A.B. had the creativity to flip it into a marketing win by rebranding their long putters as “Sweepers.” (I’d have gone with “cheater sticks.”)
It’s all part of an industry game played for no other reason than for legal teams to justify their existence as full-time employees.
“This is dumber than the red putter war between Odyssey and TaylorMade.”
My god, was that ever forgettable (and somehow I can’t)? Those two spent the better part of a season trying to out-red each other’s putters in a contest that was as petty as it was pointless. It was peak golf industry—all ego, no substance.
At least there’s real tech involved this time.
“And doesn’t it look like Odyssey is borrowing from L.A.B.’s grip as well?”
Yeah, that’s absolutely some bullshit. L.A.B. has patents around their unique grip designs and Odyssey’s version sure looks like it borrowed more than a little inspiration. L.A.B. may actually have some legal teeth (though I’m sure Callaway’s equally toothy lawyers are confident they’ve sufficiently nibbled around the edges).
Perhaps oddly, this is the one part of the story that feels over the line to me.
It’s probably only a matter of time before Callaway gets a cease-and-desist of their own—circle of life, baby. It’s like karma, except it costs $50,000 in legal fees.
“So you’re saying this is might actually good for L.A.B.?”
I didn’t actually say that but now that you mention it, there could be a silver lining for L.A.B.. If Odyssey’s putter performs, doesn’t that validate L.A.B.’s design concept? More people asking, “What’s this L.A.B. thing all about?” isn’t a bad outcome. It’s free marketing courtesy of the competition’s R&D budget. Nothing sells new putters like FOMO.
“So everything is just fair game in the golf equipment world?”
More or less, yeah. Shapes get copied and tweaked. They always have. The fang, the spider, the Anser and perhaps the OG Rossie. Sure, there’s something less palatable about a giant corporation gratuitously and unapologetically borrowing designs from smaller companies but the reality is that golf equipment has always been a game of “follow the leader” with an occasional genuine innovation mixed in.
And guess what, it’s always the real innovators that get copied.
“So, in the end, does this even matter?”
Everything worth its salt gets copied. You notice the first couple of times and then you stop caring. Does anybody remember the first or second company to steal inspiration from the Anser?
Golf equipment lives in a world of iterations and inspirations. And if L.A.B. is really onto something, this won’t be the last time we see another company borrow from their designs.
Bringing this back full circle: Is Odyssey copying L.A.B.?
Hell, yeah. I cannot be convinced otherwise but that’s also just business as usual in an industry where originality is as rare as a scratch golfer who forgets to mention his handicap or a country club that actually wants to be accessible.
The golf industry loves to talk about innovation but it loves a sure thing even more. Maybe instead of getting outraged about who’s copying whom, we should be asking why the big companies with all the resources pushing boundaries in the first place. But that’s a conversation for another day, preferably after I’ve had a nap and a dose of anti-psychotics.
What do the rest of you think?
Dale C.
3 weeks ago
The comment ” nothing sells more putters than FOMO. I think nothing sells more putters than a golf pro winning a professional tour event with a proto type putter. (See Brian Harmon winning Valero Tournament yesterday using a TaylorMade 5K-ZT putter.) How fast do you think TM has production expediting that putter today???