A putter with grooves?
When I first picked up a putter from Guerin Rife, I thought the grooved face was a gimmick -- certainly not something that would make such a difference on the greens. But as tour professionals and amateurs alike have found, the Horizontal RollGroove putter face really does help keep putts on line.
The putter's grooves help maintain contact with the ball for a split-second longer than a smooth-faced putter. When you watch a Rife putter make contact with the ball in slow motion, you see that the ball starts out right away with a true roll. Getting the ball rolling quicker translates to better forgiveness and the grooves themselves put less surface area on the ball for softer feel.
"RollGroove technology eliminates the negative effects of loft by allowing us to use less loft as the extra friction created by the grooves hold the ball through the depression," said Matt Molloy, Rife Putters COO. "As the putter moves upward it releases the ball into a forward roll immediately as there is no force other than gravity on the front of the ball. This allows the ball to receive the forward roll faster than with standard putters."
Looking at the putters offered, I noticed that the RollGroove technology isn't the only feature the putter maker promotes. The 2-Bar putter offers stability and speed weighting, and lie alignment. How much do these features appeal to the average golfer and does one feature seem to resonate more strongly?
"Since the 2-Bar putter combines several compelling technologies we did a large focus group early on to determine which technology should be the focus of our marketing efforts," Molloy said. "Surprisingly, the result was that there was no one technology that stood out above another.
"Some people liked the two bars because the weight was adjustable while an equal amount liked them simply for alignment. Some loved the better roll the grooves on the face produced, while others loved the softer feel they created. The preferences were very individualized."
That's why you will see Rife promote all these features with equal intensity. There are a lot of messages about the Rife line to absorb, but the strategy also ensures that each golfer can personalize the putter to his needs.
For example, the LieAline Fitting system appealed tremendously to me.
LieAline allows each golfer to bend the lie of the putter to perfectly match his setup, and makes lining up each putt easy. A tiny vertical notch on the back edge of the top line matches up with an alignment stripe on the back of the putter to ensure proper setup.
Best of all, you can use the included lie bender tool to make your putter best match the lie you need - with minimal time and effort.
"We have some of the top club fitters in the country selling our product line because of the flexibility our LieAline system offers," Molloy said. "(LieAline) will allow you to get a truer understanding of what your natural setup position really is and then lock it in for good."
The adjustable weighting also permits customization. Nine different weight configurations change either the overall weight or the heel-toe weighting of the 2-Bar putter. If you're consistently hitting to the right of the hole, a lighter weight in the toe might help -- you can experiment with what works best for you.
Not only are the putters gaining popularity among amateurs, but pros are attracted to the line. The company regularly comes in second in the Darrell Survey for the Champions Tour, and has racked up a win and two runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour already this year.
"Since our win with a prototype Aussie Blade at this year's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, the players are gravitating towards our tour bag more and more," Molloy said. "It is the ultimate compliment."
The Aussie Blade, a heel-and-toe blade putter, joins the mallet-style Mr. Beasley model as the company's newest offerings. Both are made from CNC-milled stainless steel, feature the patented RollGroove technology and include alignment features. Molloy notes that several additional models will hit the market in the next couple of years.
"Right now we are trying to make sure we have a wide variety of models that incorporate our current technologies so that we can accommodate the very selective tastes of the tour players," Molloy said. "If you can give them something they are used to looking at but with better feel and better roll performance they will make the switch. The same holds true for the golfing public as putting is so personalized. We currently have putters designed through the 2008 season but we will be rolling them out slowly so as to not flood the market with too many models."
As with any putter, a test drive is vital to determining if a Rife model putter is for you. When testing, remember the many customizable features -- a small change could make this the ideal putter.
