Spider X: TaylorMade's best putters ever?

When it comes to putters, Odyssey, PING, and Scotty Cameron would be considered by many to be the most recognized brands in golf.

In the last couple of years, however, TaylorMade has been closing the gap in the putter market and for significant stretches during that span had the most play on Tour.

That success has been driven most recently by Spider Tour putters, which have been in the bags of some of the best players in the world, including Jason Day and Dustin Johnson, among others.

While the success that TaylorMade has had with its Spider putters has exploded in recent years, the Spider franchise has been around for well over a decade.

And I would know. I still own one of the original center-shafted Spider putters that TaylorMade released years ago, and it inevitably makes at least a couple of cameo appearances in my bag each year.

The reason that I and so many others have turned to Spider putters through the years has been the incredible stability and forgiveness that they provide. When you struggle on the greens like I do at times, those attributes are invaluable. But they’re valuable as well to anyone who plays this challenging game, as speed control is so crucial when it comes to being a good putter.

So when I heard whispers from people I trust that the new Spider X putters were going to be the best that the Spider franchise had ever seen, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a few of the new models to do some testing.

That testing started during a visit to TaylorMade headquarters in early January in the putting lab at the Kingdom and continued locally outside on a rare warm day at my home club.

My initial impression was (and remains) that these putters are stunning visually. The red and black colors that have been staples in the Spider Tour line have been replaced in the Spider X lineup by copper and navy. Both look sharp but the navy is a true standout in my view.

Complementing and completing the beautiful aesthetics are the way the various white alignment features that players can choose from flow seamlessly into a white face that features black grooves, as well as each putter’s black shaft. In a word, these putters are gorgeous.

Also of note, the new construction approach used for Spider X allowed TaylorMade to develop these putters with a slightly more compact shape, which offers a look that’s more in line with a traditional mallet.

More specifically, TaylorMade has utilized lightweight carbon fiber to construct the sole. That approach created significant weight savings, with the end result being perimeter weighting that offered higher MOI than Spider Tour in an even smaller footprint.

Personally, I never had any issue with the shaping of past Spider models, but I do think the smaller size and more traditional mallet shape of Spider X will entice blade users who are in need of more forgiveness to give these putters a try.

While I was thrilled with how the Spider X putters looked, at the end of the day what I most wanted to see was how they would perform, and they didn’t disappoint.

First and foremost, the stability and forgiveness that the Spider franchise has been known for was readily apparent. I went out of my way both inside and outside to hit putts from across the face and my distance control rarely suffered regardless of where I struck a putt.

I also could feel a sense of balance with the putter, as the 320-gram steel frame was noticeable in its weight and left me with the feeling that the putter was almost swinging on its own without me having to generate any hit, which in turn provided the sensation of a smoother stroke.

Also impressive was how quickly the ball started rolling after impact, which is a result of the Pure Roll insert and grooves that have been angled at 45 degrees to promote topspin. It wasn’t as noticeable on a synthetic putting green indoors, but on the putting green at my home course it was evident immediately just how quickly the ball started rolling and how true the roll was was.

The other standout feature for me was the sound and feel that these putter provided. There was a noticeable but not unpleasant click at impact, which I enjoy in terms of feedback, but in my hands the feel was still soft with no unwanted vibrations of any kind.

As for the different models available, that would probably be where my only complaint would exist. Personally, based on all the testing I did, I would have opted for the Spider X Navy but with a single bend hosel that’s only available at present in the copper finish.

The single bend hosel works better for me given that I have minimal arc in my stroke. The slant neck hosel that is available in the navy models, meanwhile, offers 30 degrees of toe hang and will work best for players with more arc.

Hopefully, TaylorMade will create a line extension in time or add the single bend hosel as a custom offering, and a center-shafted version would be a nice option as well.

For now, however, I think I could get used to the copper pretty easily; it certainly seems to be working quite well for Rory McIlroy to start 2019, as he strings together one top-five finish after another.

In summary, as more players continue to move away from traditional blade putters to reap the rewards that higher MOI mallets can provide, TaylorMade continues to stay ahead of the curve.

Spider X was impressive in all areas and I expect that it will enjoy significant success on Tour and with recreational players in 2019.