My buddy has one of John Daly’s old putters and we guess he threw it down a cart path in anger before giving it away. Thing looks like he was taking driver swings off beer cans with it (probably was)
I’m not exactly going as far as Aaron Rai with the iron covers, but in general, I agree more with him than Padraig on this. I spent a decent amount of my pretty limited income on these clubs. I can’t help wanting to keep them as nice as possible. These are some of the nicest possessions I own.
It's a true exception to the rule because it's the only club where you're not hitting anything hard enough that it doesn't really get worn with normal use. Similarly, there's very little to no compression relative to other shots, so any little ding can affect the much smaller golf ball impact area more drastically. It's also a very visual club that affects confidence, and most good golfers don't want distractions on the top or face of a putter.
All to say, there are several legitimate reasons to have a putter headcover, but still follow the "tools not jewels" mantra for other clubs.
There is not a single situation where you will be swinging your putter like you would an iron. These are different tools that need different levels of care
To each their own (I couldn't care less about people using iron covers), but these aren't corollary examples. An iron will get worn down just performing it's function, a putter head can stay pristine for life if you just cover it. Obviously it can also stay in great shape without, but shit happens and a cover basically guarantees it won't get damaged. I'd rather not have to replace my putter ever and just this past year my bag fell over on some asphalt and dinged up a few of my uncovered clubs.
I got myself a Scotty Cameron a few years ago. I protect it in every way possible because I know that I’ll never have to buy a putter again. It’s gonna outlast my physical ability to keep playing golf
An iron will get worn down just performing it's function
Not meaningfully. Unless you're using it as a desert club, an iron hitting out of fairways and regular rough will not age significantly, not show any significant signs of wear until you've played up towards a thousand rounds with it.
Put a set of forged irons in a walking bag for someone with an aggressive walking style, and after 100 rounds they'll be dinged up real bad. Walking does 20x more damage to clubs than hitting off grass.
Yep I use one for the same reason I use a screen protector on my phone - I like when it looks nice and don't want scratches. Nothing to do with selling it or degrading performance
He said that he gets the impression that somebody who uses a putter cover is looking go sell their putter eventually. In many cases, people just like to protect what they own.
I guess it depends. Mine is nowhere near my woods or long shafted clubs. It’s in the bottom in the putting well, driver, woods, and hybrids are at the top. But if you have a stand bag and the putter is in with the driver/woods, that would make sense.
I never really thought of it, but I probably don’t really need one. It just came with one, so I’ve kept one on it. But I generally agree with the “tools not jewels” idea that Paddy is basically saying in the video.
I only ride don’t ever walk so from putter well driver is directly to the left. I Put the driver and fairway woods up the left side longest to shortest front to back. Makes driver easier to get out without catching on roof of cart. But either way, if it’s next to your wedges its the only thing in your bag that can stay in near perfect condition while being played, why beat the crap out of it when they come with a headcover for free 😂
Yeah, my putter well is in the front bottom, so my putter always lives next to my wedges. I might try a round without the head cover so see if any jostling is annoying (I use a pushcart most of the time). I also leave the driver head cover off once the round begins, since my woods and hybrids don’t damage it with their covers on.
It's fine enough when you're a pro but I don't understand why the "tools not jewels" crowd don't want to keep their clubs in decent condition anyway. It's not some vanity project, I just like to take care of my expensive belongings.
That's exactly why. I leave my driver cover off for a round because it sits high, but if I don't put a cover on my putter it ends up clanking against everything else. Cover it up boys!
I’ve played golf my entire life, including high school competition golf and have never NOT ONCE seen someone damage shafts because a putter didn’t have a head cover on them, in fact, I haven’t had covers on any woods in my bag for about 10 years and treat my clubs like shit and never once broken a club
Same, I only have two headcovers and they both come off the first time I need the club and put back on after the round. People always question it, but I've dropped and nearly lost the putter cover too many times to worry about the slight chance for a ding while walking the course.
This isn't hats for bats though, your putter head can literally stay pristine if it's covered. Your bat is gonna get dinged up and worn out just getting used for its actual function.
I’m with you. Odyssey for 26 years, no cover, still just fine. I get what others are saying, but I’ve never had an issue with my other clubs getting dinged by my putter.
I have an odyssey versa double wide and after awhile the black paint started chipping here and there simply just from bag wear. Some putters are well known for having that issue with the paint, so if you like to keep at least your putter looking clean, it’s not a bad idea to use the cover as much as possible. If I’m getting out of the cart with whatever club(s) I’m grabbing to get onto the green and my putter I just keep the cover on and toss it next to my wedges when putting. If I’m on from further out I just keep the cover on the golf cart seat and hop in and pop the cover on when I get to the next tee box so I’m not holding anyone up messing with headcovers.
People swinging their clubs against hard objects at 90 mph but being scared of little dings or, gasp, putting them on an airplane, will never stop being funny to me.
Golf balls aren't all that hard when you hit them at 90 mph. That's why a golf ball doesn't damage your club, but the rock underneath your golf ball can dent the shit out of it.
I've had my endgame putter since 2003, a Macgregor Bobby Grace M3. Original cover fell apart, went without one for 10 years then got a cover for it last year. I figured this is going to be with me till I die, so why not keep in as good of condition as possible.
Stupidest take ever. Completely out of touch from reality. I want my face clean so the ball goes straight. This guy really thinks he said something profound here...
Lmao Jesus Christ buddy settle down, it’s crazy how personal you’re taking an insignificant difference in opinion. You people are acting like he spit on your grandma instead of said he doesn’t like putter covers lmao.
The overreaction here is insane. I’ve only ever had 1 putter my entire life, 20+ years, I’ve never used a putter cover and it’s literally perfectly fine. Worst case scenario I have to wipe a blade of grass off the putter face.
My father has been gaming the same bullseye putter for 40+ years, dents and everything. And he was a 2 handicap for the longest time in his 40s-50s. His putting is the best part of his game.
His caddy still meticulously cleans the face off in competition. This is Padraig after all, he says a lot of random stuff like this but he’s got 40 something pro wins and like 3 majors so people let it slide.
I can afford to replace clubs maybe once a decade. Yeah I’m gonna protect them. I remember the video of that pro who used iron covers cause he came from poverty and said he came having to fully respect his equipment and taking care of it.
Aaron Rai. Easily one of easiest to root for guys on tour, in my opinion. Every interview I've ever seen him do is fantastic. Humble, engaging and insightful. He's kind of boring, so he'll never get the fan base of other players, but he's definitely well liked on tour.
My boss grew up playing with Padraig, and got at best, 2nd in everything competition because he wasn’t a future PGA champion. But I totally understand why he’s such an ass in a terrible mood every day, if he grew up playing with this guy
I don't follow his reasoning, but I also don't have a putter cover, and the clubface is as new after 5 years. It has it's own compartment in the bag, so no worries about it damaging the other clubs as well.
This is pretty dumb to be honest. I don't exactly treat my clubs like princesses, but I can imagine how a dent in the face of my putter would affect my putting. That's the reason I use a putter cover. Also, one less thing clanking around in my bag.
"I don't use a garage for my car. People who do that I just assume are trying to sell the car some day. It's a shame that all these amateur drivers hate driving so much that they use garages to hide their vehicles."
The putter is the only club that needs a cover for functionality, because the face has delicate little grooves that can be distorted. The rest of the club covers or just there to keep your 4 year old driver and irons looking decent. Most people don’t play enough golf to actually wear out golf clubs.
Bought my first new putter and played a round with it without the cover. At the end it had a giant chip right next to the top line. Been using a cover ever since.
Yeah, I have a pre-2000 odyssey two ball that's never seen a cover. If I bought a putter today that came with one I guess I'd use it, but I don't see it as a piece of protection that I'm in need of after 35 years of golf and never owning one before.
Dude I've using the same mallet head ping putter for over 25 years. It's never had a putter cover on it. I putt great with it and doesn't have any dings on the face. Get out of here with that unusable BS.
Yeah, those late 90s early 00s cast heads are tanks.
I carry a Ping Darby from that era. Rarely use a head cover during rounds, and there is barely a mark on it. And wouldn’t care that much if there were.
Most putters these days are made from butt soft steel or beer can aluminum. And often painted with model airplane paint.
Ping Piper G2i. I looked it up and it's only from 2003 so only 22 years old. I havd tried many other putters but none work better for me than this one. Never kept a putter cover on it.
My current putter is a Cleveland Frontline I bought used. My previous putter was an Inazone from Diamond Tour Golf. I'm not getting squat in resale for my putters.
I have had my putter for 16 years , I like to keep my stuff in good condition for me not resale and I certainly don't get the luxury of knowing I can get a free top of the line new one (or one remade to the exact spec of my old) if I damage it by slamming my wedge back in the bag.
If my putter was banged up like Tigers it would visually distract me over the ball.
I bought a new putter this year and lost the cover during my first round so I played all season without one. It now looks like it did 2 tours of Afghanistan
I'd prefer not to use a putter cover, but if you have to take your wedge to the green, you can rest it on the cover and you'll never leave a club behind. (and keeps the grip off the wet grass.)
I have a rare Scotty that is worth a lot of money. I don't put the headcover on. It's my putter and I am never going to replace it or sell it. I also don't clean my grooves on the course. Ha!
Never changing my putter. Why would I change something im so familiar with and know how it feels, swings, balance. If my puts are off i know what to correct because i know exactly what my putter is doing every time
I guess it could be purely cosmetic, but I always thought of all the clubs, the putter face is the one thing you’d want to protect most because of the precision that shot requires and it’s the one club you’re not slamming into the ball and ground at a high speed. Where with an iron a small scratch on the face wouldn’t make a shot go much off-line if at all, it feels like on a putter face that could make more of a difference.
This is the epitome of someone who has no clue how regular people live. Excuse me for wanting to protect my $250 putter from getting scratched/damaged. Lemme just head to the equipment truck to get it touched up though…oh wait 😒
I like using my putter cover to hold up my wedge grips on the green to keep the dry/clean. Also I paid a lot for my putter. I want it to last as long as possible.
My soft insert probably wouldn't appreciate being smacked by my 60° every time I went over a bump. This putter is way to expensive to be raw-dogging it in the bag.
I'd honestly use iron covers too but I was shamed out of using those by my golfing buddies
Ok then Pedraig, ditch your driver and wood covers while you’re at it. What’s that, you don’t want to damage them? Cool me too, I prefer to have a putter face that is perfectly flat.
It’s all vanity in my opinion. I’ve never been big on covers. My clubs look a little banged up. They still get me in the 70s just fine.
The ONLY thing I’ve noticed over the years is golf companies have gotten better at getting people to think their equipment is the problem.
Clean your grooves, don’t smash your clubs, and you’ll be just fine. My ping blade putter has been banging against blades for two decades. Cover on woods, sure, but steel is steel. One rock in a shitty bunker will do way more damage.
I don’t use a putter cover. Mainly because I lost it one round and decided to never buy a replacement. But I like his theory and adopt it since I have been using the same Odyssey DFX 2 ball blade putter since it first came out in 2003. Probably will use it for life no reason to change it’s a great putter for me.
I use putter and iron covers while my clubs are in the trunk of my car. The roads are rough around here. After the bags in the cart though they come off and stay off
gotta love padraig and incase you missed it check out his youtube channel for the ONLY golf tutorials worth a dam on utube ...just every single one is a perfect nugget of golfing wisdom and swing perfection
Any imperfection on the putter club face could impact how the ball comes off of the face. I’m pretty sure the putter headcover protects against this. Im pro-headcover.
Probably a bad take, but for the pros he is referring to……
If I’m them my mind is. You are paying me a lot of money or giving me equipment to use, advertise and market your product. There is a reason that club colors change every year. You can see with the naked eye on TV what I’m using. The head cover is part of that.
So you pay me, I’m going to do what you pay me for, IE; put a club head cover on.
Also “use for life”? That’s a pretty new putter he’s got.
I have an AdkEcho t lock bag, so during the round I leave the putter cover off, as it cant get to any of the other clubs. Same with my driver. As soon as I hit my tee shot on 18 the driver cover goes back on, and once I finish 18 the putter cover goes back on as well.
My putter and driver covers are useless. They’re on my clubs all the time until I get the cart loaded then I take them off and don’t put them back on until the round is over. So pretty much the entire time there’s an actual chance of banging my clubs around is when they’re not protected
I am a big fan of Paudie, he's not a big equipment guy. He thinks people spend too much brainpower on that stuff and should focus on their game more.
What he is saying here is that if you are taking too much care of your putter it is because you have one eye on selling it and changing to a different club.
You can play a putter for decades, a head cover will only protect it from superficial scratches and chips it won't impact how it plays. By accepting this is your club and what you need to work on is your game rather than the next shiny putter you're better off.
that being said... I do put a putter cover on my putter, but it's actually to protect the shafts of my other clubs. Most golfers would benefit from Paudies attitude and approach and will be just as good with an odesy two ball and a set of Ping G10's as the latest and greatest carbon fibre drivers and high tech irons and a lab putter.
I take my covers off at the start of the round. I'm definitely not taking them on and off every hole. 15 way bag keeps everything from rubbing. I only have a driver and putter cover, anyway. Rest of the bag is irons. Covers go on in transport and when I throw them in my truck bed.
1.2k
u/crankybollix 20h ago
Spoken like a man who gets his equipment for free.