TL;DR: Putting has always been more art than science, but that can make the putter the hardest club to find. Everyone has different priorities in their search for a new putter, but whether you’re looking for a mallet or a blade, Bettinardi has a putter for every golfer.

Your putter can make or break a round of golf more than any other club in the bag. A bad day with your driver or your irons can be salvaged by a few long par putts. Conversely, the best round of your life from tee to green can feel entirely wasted if you don’t make a putt longer than five feet.

Putter searches can feel hopeless because of how individualized the putting stroke is. The stroke, the grips, the putter weight — it’s all up to the person. You can use a long putter, a short putter, or even line up the ball on the heel or the toe. As long as you consistently make solid contact with the ball, the rest of the stroke doesn’t matter much.

But there are some tips and tricks to figure out what kind of putter might benefit you the most. In the 15 years since I first picked up the game of golf, I’ve brought dozens of putters onto the course with me. I’ve bought putters, I’ve borrowed some of my dad’s old putters, I’ve been given putters from strangers, I’ve tried every method in the book. I’ve even tested multiple Bettinardi models over the years, which have remarkable feel and touch at impact.

I selected my current putter, a weighted mallet, because I liked the thicker grip and knew I wanted to try a mallet model because the higher moment of inertia (MOI) helped prevent my typical misses. The same day I bought that putter I played a round with it and had just 24 putts at a course that hosts college tournaments.

The confidence I feel now on the greens is something I want to help everyone find, even if what would help them is entirely different from what would help me. The putter search is individualized, but there are some indications of models that might be more effective. If you pair the right kind of putter with Bettinardi’s attention to craftsmanship, you could feel like a new person with a putter in your hand. So let’s find the best Bettinardi model for your game.

Who is Bettinardi Putters?

The Bettinardi putter brand has been on the rise for quite a few years now. Founded by Robert Bettinardi in 1998, the company crafted their putters from single chunks of metal, a common practice in the industry today. The company’s website credits its founder with the verbiage “one-piece technology,” named after the process detailed above. The company is currently based in Chicago, and many of their putters have a shiny double-aged stainless steel finish and clubfaces milled to perfection.

Bettinardi putters have quickly become a mainstay on professional tours as well for their precision and elegance. Matthew Fitzpatrick used a Bettinardi putter to win the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline. Matt Kuchar, who has won nine PGA Tour victories, is also one of the Bettinardi staffers, as are LPGA Tour stars like Georgia Hall and Patty Tavatanakit. The Bettinardi website says the company has amassed 98 professional wins since 1998.

However you came across the golf company, they offer some of the premium (albeit expensive) designs and best putters on the market right now.

What to Think About When Looking for a Bettinardi Putter

Do You Want a Mallet or a Blade Putter?

This is the most critical question to answer when you’re thinking about finding a new putter, so it’s the best place to start. Sometimes the right putter is as simple as finding one that looks cool to you, and there’s no reason to ignore a visually appealing model. But blades and mallets have pros and cons behind their looks, and it helps to know what they are both respectively best for.

The blade putter is the most traditional design in golf. Blades are lighter and thinner than mallets, which offers a tradeoff. They provide soft feel and touch on the greens, perfect for a putter who loves to putt with their hands. If your thought process on the greens is a little more abstract, something more along the lines of, “I just pick a spot and try to putt to that,” or you feel like you approach each putt a little bit differently, the blade will best complement your artistry.

The lighter weight also means you don't have to try as hard to hit the ball firmly, another positive for aggressive putters who try to make everything they look at. However, the lighter weight and lower MOI mean any imperfections in the stroke are amplified. It’s much easier to push a putt to the right or pull the ball left.

Mallets are better models for players more prone to mishits. Their extra weight and wider head shape make it harder for your hands to affect the blade. Large enough putter heads can almost entirely remove your hands from the equation. The biggest sacrifice here is speed. Players who start putting with a mallet after using a blade for a while can find themselves leaving lag putts woefully short or hammering them 10 feet by because they aren’t used to the weight. If you constantly miss short putts left or right and are willing to put in a little extra time from long range on the practice green, the mallet is right for you.

How Much Alignment Aid Do You Want?

Sometimes the top of the putter can provide an extra visual or a boost of confidence. More and more brands have added more prominent aim lines to the top of putter heads, like the one seen above on the Bettinardi Queen B11, one of the famous Bettinardi Queen B models. Some of the mallets in Bettinardis inventory, like the Inovai 6.0, even have three lines across the top of the club for more immediate feedback. If you constantly feel like you don’t know why you’re missing mid-range putts or like you’re consistently missing on a certain side of the hole, an alignment line can provide a little nudge in the right direction.

However, some golfers find alignment aids can be more distracting than helpful. In my experience, I find that I get too focused on trying to line everything up exactly right, taking my concentration away from the ball and the hole. No two golfers want the same thing on the greens, so don’t take my strategy as certainty, but a less prominent alignment aid like the one on the Studio Stock 14 could help the easily distracted golfer stay locked on the task at hand.

Do You Want to Try Any Unconventional Putting Styles?

Most putters are made for the conventional putting stroke. You can change your grip as much as you want, but the length will remain the right fit. There are a few alternative methods out there for those who want to try a little adventure on the greens, however. While it’d be a stretch to call any of these unusual strokes “popular,” there are a few that found their niche.

The broomstick putter has an elongated shaft up to a golfer’s chest, meant to be used in a sweeping motion with your hands held far apart — as the name implies, like a broomstick. There’s also the armlock method, when a putter pins the putter shaft to their forearm with one hand to keep it in place. This is also meant for longer putters, though not quite as long as the broomstick. Bettinardi has putter options for those who wish to experiment, such as the Inovai 8.0 Arm Lock Putter. If you’re thinking of trying one of these putters for the first time, however, the measurements can be overwhelming and difficult to get correct. I’d recommend speaking to one of our Curated Golf Experts to make the process as smooth and easy as possible.

What Different Types of Bettinardi Putters Are There?

Like most putter brands, Bettinardi manufactures both mallet models and blade models for golfers to have a wide variety of options at their disposal. As we went over earlier, both have their benefits and shortcomings on the greens. Here’s a little refresher on the two.

Blades

The traditional, most commonly used putter head shape in the game. Blades have a smaller head than mallets and are usually the lightest models on the market.

Benefits:

• Softer feel
• Much more reliable distance control
• Lighter weight allows for a more aggressive stroke

Be Aware:

• Lighter putters are easier to twist with your hands and more prone to missing right or left
• Less forgiving on mishits

Mallets

A larger, heavier style of putter, the mallet has grown more popular in recent years.

Benefits:

• Less prone to pulls, pushes, or mishits
• More consistently accurate on short putts

Be Aware:

• Heavier clubhead makes distance control harder to gauge
• Increased weight means less feel in your hands

How to Choose the Right Bettinardi Putter for You

Buying a new putter or even knowing the style of putter you should be looking for is such an individualized, personal task. Advice that saves one person’s game on the greens could ruin their playing partner for months. That being said, here are a few anecdotal examples of some hypothetical golfers looking for a boost on the greens. I hope at least one of these examples can point you in the right direction.

Peter: The Beginner Who’s Gotten The Reps

Peter picked up the game of golf about a year ago, using his coworker’s old putter gifted to him. He’s shredding strokes off his game through some extra time at the range after working, but he can’t seem to lower his putts on the green. He can never get any putts longer than 25 feet within tap-in distance, and he often hits three-footers straight through the break to give himself an even longer putt coming back.

Features Peter Should Look For:

• A blade putter will be lighter, making it harder to hit short putts too firm
• The lighter weight of the blade putter will give him a better feel for long putts. With some practice, he’ll quickly be able to gauge how hard to hit his lag putts
• A milled putter face will provide firmer contact on shorter strokes, creating trust inside of three feet

Recommended Bettinardi Putters: Studio Stock 14, BB1

Abigail: The Birdie Seeker

Abigail is an incredible ball-striker who putts right handed. She consistently hits 9-12 greens in regulation per round, but she can’t seem to get over the hump and break par. She doesn’t three-putt often, her lag putting isn’t bad, but she can’t seem to make anything from 10-20 feet and usually misses at least once inside five feet per round. She doesn’t always miss the same direction, but now that it’s become a little mental for her, she’s found herself trying to help the ball move, often pushing putts that break to the right and pulling ones that break across her body to the left.

Features Abigail Should Look For:

• A mallet putter will help make her mid-range strokes more consistent
• A putter with prominent alignment aids on top will help her realize if she’s not aimed in the right place
• A heavier putter will give her a lower MOI, so she doesn’t pull the ball slightly left or push it right during her stroke.

Recommended Bettinardi Putters: Inovai 6.0, Studio Stock 35, Queen B14

Find the Best Bettinardi Putter for You

All these options offer their own promise. If you can’t decide whether you’d like a putter with more touch like the Studio Shock 14 or a heavier putter like the Inovai 6.0, or maybe you’re kind of intrigued by this whole arm lock thing and want to know if it’s worth the effort for you, reach out to one of our Curated Golf Experts today! They’re always on call to provide free, personalized advice to help you find your lowest scores.