Hey everyone, thanks for stopping by. Today we’ve got a review of the brand new Bettinardi BB1F putter to share with you today. We don’t often do putter reviews on this website, as for the most part, putters can be very subjective. With that said, this new line from Bettinardi is definitely worth a close look.
Pros: Weight, pure roll, great look, precision quality
Cons: Price, toe weighted which will only work its magic if your putting stroke is an arc (i.e., inside the line, online, and then back inside the line). If you putt straight back and through this one may disappoint you. Not available in left-hand!
Tech Specs: On the putter I tested – flow neck, 353g, standard lie and loft with a 35” length. Grip is a Pure BB series red, standard size. Comes with a cool red, white and blue head cover.
What you need to know: The BB1F is an Anser-style putter with a sleek, grooved flow neck and a three-quarter toe hang. You can check the Bettinardi web site out for the details on this concept but basically the toe is heavy relative to the heel. Just hold the putter in the palm of your hand and see what happens to the face of the club to determine if yours is face-balanced, toe weighted etc.
The BB1F looks like a pro putter, feels solid and rolls the ball better than any putter I have owned. You have to be a materials engineer to get excited about the milling process, the one-piece carbon steel, the ridge-milled neck or the hyper-honeycomb pattern on the perfectly flat, high-polished face but any golfer will appreciate that this putter sends the ball exactly where you aim it. Quite simply it will make you as good a putter as your alignment, green reading and stroke allow. In other words no way can you blame the equipment if you miss a putt…well, maybe that’s a negative.
Bettinardi even puts a non-glare finish on the top of the putter to not bother your eyes on sunny days. The finish on the face increases durability but keep using the head cover to protect your investment.
In my tests (at the ASU Karsten golf course practice green in Tempe, AZ), the ball started rolling immediately with very little skid. Off center hits still had a chance of going in (although deliberately producing an off-center hit is different than missing the sweet spot for real) and the momentum provided by the putter weight almost made up for deliberate decels through the ball. My non-professional test subjects loved the BB1F compared to their own flat sticks.
No one has to tell you that putting success is about confidence. Owning a putter with superb construction characteristics that produces pure roll and delivers a satisfying sound at impact builds confidence. Even so, with various lengths (33-35 inches), lies and grips size (std, mid-size, large) some pre-purchase fitting is recommended. Off-the-rack models may not suit your size and stance.
I am as patriotic as anybody and I love that this putter is made in the U.S.A. but not everyone in Canada, Britain, and Australia etc. may want their putter to scream “Go USA” especially during the Ryder or President’s Cup. Bettinardi might rethink that look a bit in their international marketing. One hopes that golf club theft is a rare phenomenon but the head cover leaves no doubt that you have an expensive piece of equipment in the bag.
I don’t know why the BB1F is unavailable in left hand models. Lots of us lefties out there. Perhaps they feel fewer golfers are opting for the toe-weighted designs. There is no weight adjustment either on this model, Bettinardi feels that playing with the weight balance is going to cause more problems than it solves. I tend to agree, if the engineering of this model works for you buy it, if not, get something else rather than try to tweak the specs of the BB1F.
Conclusion: The list price ($299.00) is high but easily rationalized given the price of other top-of-the-line putters and the cost per shot of the flat stick. Likely 40% of the shots you take in a round will be with your putter so it is not unreasonable to spend a few bucks on one that gave me the sense that every putt was makeable.
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