If a dodgy flat stick is dragging down your game, the new Odyssey Stroke Lab Black line-up might just be the panacea to your putting woes.
Two new premium putters – the Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten and Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Bird Of Prey - kick-start the Stroke Lab Black range and both offer unprecedented levels of forgiveness through their unique high-MOI designs (Moment Of Inertia, or resistance to twisting).
Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten
Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Bird Of Prey
Buy Stroke Lab Black Bird Of Prey
Odyssey's goal with the new Stroke Lab Black line-up is simply to help all golfers hole more putts and the early adopters out on Tour have already enjoyed immediate success.
Even Phil Mickelson, who owns one of the best short games on the planet, was so impressed with the feel and performance of the Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten he immediately put it straight into his bag at this month’s Shriners tournament in Las Vegas and proceeded to drain putts from seemingly everywhere.
The Tech
Both the Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten and Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Bird Of Prey are extreme-MOI exoskeleton putters that push weight to the outer limits of the putter head.
The putters are constructed primarily from robust stainless steel but also feature a lightweight block of polymer in the centre of the sole plate, which enables more mass to be distributed to the perimeter of the putter head to boost MOI.
In real terms that means the new Stroke Lab Black putters are more stable and forgiving; the putter head won’t twist on off-centre mis-hits, boosting the consistency of roll, distance control and accuracy and, inevitably, translates into more putts being made on the greens.
The Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten is similar in appearance to the popular Spider putters and also comes in an Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Ten S, a slant-hosel variant for players who prefer toe-hang in their putters, while the Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Bird Of Prey has a more triangular head shape.
And as the name suggests the new putters are finished entirely in black, with a vivid single white alignment line framing the ball at address to aid alignment.
New Microhinge Star Insert And Stroke Lab Putter Shaft
After feedback from players, Odyssey have re-jigged their famous pure-rolling White Hot microhinge insert to provide a firmer feel and a louder, more distinct sound at impact - something that is increasingly desired as golf balls get progressively softer.
The new Microhinge Star insert was instituted after Odyssey realised players often link strike volume to speed off the face and it is designed to help players hear and feel their way to improved distance control.
The premium Stroke Lab shaft, which is graphite at the top and steel at the tip, is employed to great effect on the new Odyssey Stroke Lab Black putters.
It saves 40g of weight which is subsequently spread to other areas of the putters to optimise balance, with 10g added to the Odyssey Stroke Lab Black putter heads via twin 5g sole weights while the remaining 30g is used as a counterbalancing weight on top of the grip.
The Stroke Lab shaft creates the perfect balance point in Stroke Lab Black putters to help golfers achieve the perfect combo of a consistent tempo and smooth putting stroke.
Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Specifications
Hand: RH/LH, Ten S RH only
Shapes: mallet
Loft: Ten, Bird Of Prey: 2°; Ten S: 3°
Lie Angle: 70°
Shaft: Odyssey Stroke Lab
Lengths: 33", 34”, 35”
Face balanced models: Ten, Bird Of Prey
Toe Hang models: Ten S (24°)
Offset: Ten, Bird Of Prey: full shaft; Ten S: three-quarter shaft
Grip: oversize, pistol