TaylorMade have freshened up their flagship Spider collection in 2022 with three new models of their best-selling putter.
Known as the Spider GT collection, the trio of putters offer plenty of what you’ve come to expect from TaylorMade’s famous high-MOI line-up, with a few big surprises thrown in for good measure.
SHOP THE RANGE OF SPIDER GT PUTTERS
WHY THE GT BADGE?
Before unpacking the new Spider line-up, it would be pertinent to address what will certainly be a frequently asked question: why the GT badge and what does it mean?
Placing a GT badge on just about anything is a convenient way to convey ‘high performance sophistication’.
And while there have been some serious crimes against the GT label (like a Toyota Corolla GT) it’s an entirely appropriate label for the new Spider line.
The trio of Spider GT putters are the embodiment of high-performance sophistication and TaylorMade have clearly done the hard yards in order to bestow the GT emblem on the new Spider range.
SPIDER GT
The Spider GT’s shape is unmistakably Spider-esque, with perimeter weighting the key driver of performance in this modern high-MOI design.
A lightweight aluminium top plate, embossed with a short alignment line, shifts weight to the putter’s extremities (just 18 per cent of mass is located in the centre of the putter).
But it’s the GT’s twin wings, loaded with steel side weights (a hefty 160g in total), which lead to a highly stable head and superb forgiveness.
And the Spider GT can be either toe-hang or face-balanced depending on which of the three hosels is selected.
A Super Stroke GT grip is standard and the Spider GT putter comes in four colour schemes – Silver, Black, Red and Light Blue.
SPIDER GT NOTCHBACK
The GT Notchback is the most traditional of the three new Spider GT putters, but it has some serious sting within its curved mallet stylings.
Huge tungsten weights are hard to miss, wrapping around the toe and heel (172g of it in total), working together with the Notchback’s lightweight aluminium body to provide a highly stable and forgiving putter head.
A single sightline runs the length of the putter and the Notchback can be face balanced or provide 30˚ of toe hang depending on which hosel is selected.
A Super Stroke GT is the standard grip.
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SPIDER GT ROLLBACK
In a visual sense, the new GT Rollback brings something entirely new to the Spider line-up.
The Rollback’s dome-shaped top (called, of all things, a Rollback top) serves as an alignment aid, with a ball-width track providing feedback on stroke path and face position.
Like the other Spider GT putters, the Rollback has a central aluminium body paired to high-mass peripheral tungsten weighting, which in this case extends along the entire curved rear section of the putter.
But there’s another twist on the sole of the Rollback. Three distinct angular surfaces (called a Tri-sole) make the putter lie square and flush with the ground without altering the angle of the putter face.
A face-balanced or toe hang Rollback are both available and the putter also comes in a silver or silver/black finish with a Super Stroke GT grip.
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PUREROLL INSERT AND FLUTED FEEL SHAFT
A newly formulated PureRoll insert and TaylorMade’s Fluted Feel shaft appear on all three Spider GT putters, with both components doing their bit to enhance feel and performance.
TaylorMade have moulded the Spider GT PureRoll insert from malleable black TPU urethane, with raw aluminium beams - running diagonally across the insert - set into the urethane.
What’s that mean?
It provides a firmer feel off the face and will impart more topspin off every part of the face, which makes putts start, and stay, on line for longer.
Meanwhile, the Fluted Feel shaft delivers responsive feel in the Spider GT line-up.
With a more flexible segment of shaft just before the tip, the ability to sense where the putter head is during a stroke is enhanced – a sensation subjectively known as feel.
But improved feel doesn’t come at the expense of stability - the Fluted Feel shaft actually narrows dispersion off the face.
TAYLORMADE SPIDER GT SPECS
- Hand: Right/Left
- Loft: 3°
- Lie angle: 70°
- Grip: Super Stroke GT 1.0
- Hosel options: Small Slant (#3V), Single Bend (SB #7), Centre Shaft (CS)
- Toe Hang configuration: Small Slant 21˚ (GT, GT Rollback); 30˚ (GT Notchback)
- Face Balanced configuration: Single Bend (GT, GT Notchback, GT Rollback); Centre Shafted (GT)