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Is putting an art or a science?
This question has divided some of golf's greatest players and thinkers for decades. In a game that requires players to cultivate a wide variety of different skills, putting is the most maddening. Rolling the ball towards the cup consistently requires some alchemical mix of feel, perception and mental fortitude. Even the greatest putters don't always fully grasp why they're so great. Struggling golfers will typically put up with any number of tee-to-green maladies. But even excellent players have quit the game because of one too many missed putts.
Because putting leaves so much to the sureness of a golfer's hands and head, the putter has evolved less over the centuries than any other genre of golf club. Materials have improved, but the heel-shafted putter that Ben Crenshaw used to win the 1984 and 1995 Masters is remarkably similar in overall design to the flatsticks that the earliest golfers wielded. PING has innovated over the years, establishing iconic perimeter-weighted head designs like the Anser, which practically every other company has copied and adapted. Odyssey's 2-Ball putter, introduced in 2001, legitimized larger mallet-style putter heads that prioritized alignment for all users. Less-common varieties like broomstick putters and arm-lock grips have popped up but have failed to hit the mainstream, especially since the USGA and R&A banned anchored putting in 2016.
In the last couple of years, a new type of putter has emerged, sweeping across the golf equipment industry like a tsunami. 'Zero-torque' putters and other similar designs promise the thing that has eluded golfers on the greens for most of a millennium: the ability to roll the ball on one's intended line more often, leading to more holed putts.
What is a zero-torque putter?
Generally, torque is a measure of an object's tendency to twist when force is applied to it. Pertaining to golf club shafts, stiffness and torque are typically inversely correlated - the stiffer a shaft, the lower torque. For high swing-speed golfers, lower shaft torque is important for stability through impact.
In putting, torque represents the overall tendency of the putter head to twist during the stroke and at impact. It is dictated by the weighting of the putter, as well as the putter head's center of gravity. Various head shapes and hosel configurations can have a significant effect on these characteristics of putters.
One shorthand way of assessing the weighting of a putter has been to balance it on a couple of fingers and observe the direction in which the toe of the putter is pointing. Traditional putters - think Arnold Palmer and Ben Crenshaw's famous 8802 putters - balance toe-down. Typically, these putters have favored golfers who swing along an arc, with a decent amount of face rotation during the stroke. The shafts of these putters feed somewhere into the heel-side of the face of the putter, placing the strike point toe-side of the center of gravity.
Conversely, putters historically described as "face balanced" - think the Odyssey 2Ball and TaylorMade Spider, among others - will balance face-up. These putters are typically said to favor golfers who do not rotate the clubface much, if at all, during a straight-back-straight-through stroke. When attached to the heel of the putter head, face-balanced putters' shafts typically feature double-bends, such that the straight portion of the shaft lines up into the center of the putter face. Or, they will be center-shafted, with the shaft beelining more or less straight into the middle of the putter face.
"Zero-torque" is a relatively new concept in putter physics. It has sat at the periphery of the equipment industry for several years before entering the mainstream in the last two to three years. A zero-torque putter is weighted such that the shaft axis points into the precise center of gravity of the putter head, which almost always sits slightly behind the center of the clubface. As a result, these putters appear slightly on-set, because of the shaft's slight rearward entry point. Performing the traditional balance test with a zero-torque putter will see it balance with its toe pointing straight up. Proponents of zero-torque putters point to this characteristic as the key to their effectiveness. Unlike heel- or face-balanced putters, they say, zero-torque putters are truly agnostic to a golfer's stroke tendencies; the face of the putter will always stay square to the target during the stroke. This purportedly leads to fewer off-center misses and more accurate putting thanks to a squarer putter face at all times.
Because of the central point into which many zero-torque putter shafts enter the head, some companies that make them use special grips, which have a degree or two of built-in offset, in order to simulate a more traditional hand position at address to counteract the non-traditional physics of these putters.
In the vanguard of the zero-torque putter movement this time around is L.A.B. Golf, which actually posits a slight variation of zero-torque, which they call "Lie-Angle Balance." A truly lie-angle balanced putter does not balance in any particular direction. Their contention is that because the shaft is so locked in on the center of gravity, it truly does not matter what the golfer does in his or her stroke. The putter will return to square more often than other putters. L.A.B. has gained significant adoption among pros and amateurs alike. 2025 U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun is one of dozens of touring pros to use a L.A.B. in competition. The company has had such success that in late July of 2025, L.A.B. Golf sold a majority stake to private equity firm L. Catterton for a reported $200 million.
Which golf equipment companies make zero-torque putters?
The success of L.A.B. Golf has prompted numerous golf equipment manufacturers to add low-torque and zero-torque putter models to their offerings as well. Other companies have their own twists on this concept. Here is an extensive if not quite exhaustive list of zero-torque putter models:
Major brands and their zero-torque putter models
L.A.B. Golf: With both stock and fully customizable offerings, this Oregon-based manufacturer has enjoyed a meteoric rise, ushering in the current zero-torque putter trend, although they refer to their putters as "lie-angle balanced." The half-hourglass-shaped DF2 and DF3 ("directed force") head styles have been joined by others, including a more traditional-looking mallet, the OZ.1. GolfPass managing editor Jason Scott Deegan tested and reviewed the new L.A.B. OZ.1 HS (heel-shafted) model this summer.
Odyssey: The Callaway-owned putter giant has rolled out several models under what it calls Square 2 Square, which includes technology from its Ai-ONE and TRI-HOT product lines.
TaylorMade: With years of success and equity in the Spider putter name, TaylorMade introduced the Spider ZT putter in late May of 2025.
Scotty Cameron: Titleist's in-house putter brand recently stepped into the alternative-balance game with two OC (onset center) putter models which it is calling "low torque," rather than zero-torque. The Phantom 11R OC and Studio Style Fastback OC putters adapt familiar Cameron head shapes to this new trend.
PING: PING Has not formally announced a zero- or low-torque putter model yet, but rumors swirl that it might happen in 2026. Earlier this year, PING's PLD custom putter department circulated a limited "Ally Blue Onset" model with three degrees of loft, a 70-degree lie angle and shaft hole bored straight into the mallet-shaped putter head, behind the face and slightly heelward of center.
PXG: After rolling out the Allan putter, named for founder Bob Parsons' late brother in 2024, the Scottsdale-based company has followed up with three more alternative-balance options: the Bat Attack ZT, Hellcat ZT and Mustang ZT.
Bettinardi: Calling its zero-torque offering "The Antidote," Bettinardi offers four models: SB1, SB2, SB3 and SB5.
Other zero-torque and alternative-balance putter brands and models
Axis1 has made alternative-balance putters, which it now terms "torque-free," for a decade, with Justin Rose being the most recognizable pro to game their unusual-looking flatsticks. The forward-mounted shaft, the company claims, makes it a truly zero-torque putter because it places the center of gravity directly in line with the axis of the grip and shaft.
I have gamed an Evnroll ER5 putter since 2018, and the company helmed by engineer Guerin Rife recently unveiled its own zero-torque putters in four different head shapes and six overall configuration combinations, including onset heel-shafted options.
Breakthrough Golf Technology (BGT) is best-known for making high-end, low-torque putter shafts, but it recently debuted the Paradox, a two-model line of putters with wedge-shaped heads that the company calls Swing Balance Technology, purportedly with "self-aligning" powers due to the interplay between the weighting of the clubhead and the baked-in lie angle.
Another company that, like Axis, was ahead of the curve on low-torque putters that balanced toe-up was Edel, whose Brick putter model was used by Bryson DeChambeau to win the 2015 U.S. Amateur and NCAA Championship. The company has released a new edition of the model, along with a zero-torque E-T01 model that uses a familiar "fang" shape.
Zero-torque putters: one golfer's opinion
Equipment manufacturers and their marketing agencies will seed new product to media from time to time for feed back, review and editorial consideration, and it is clear that the zero-torque movement has kicked off an aggressive PR blitz. Over the last year, I have been sent and tested half a dozen different models of zero-torque or alternative balance putters by different brands (prices as of this writing; putters listed from left to right per the above photo):
Incred Golf RFB SK1 ($799)
Evnroll ZERO Z5cs HATCHBACK ($489)
L.A.B. Golf MEZZ.1 MAX (from $469)
BGT Paradox Mallet with Stability Tour shaft ($699)
PXG Hellcat ZT ($199.99)
PXG Bat Attack ZT ($359.99)
An early verdict on zero-torque putters
I'll go ahead and spoil things for you right now. Even though all of the above putters were built to my specs, across a few hours of in-home and on-course testing, none of them impressed me to the point of dislodging my trusty gamer, an Evnroll ER5 that I've had for more than seven years, from my bag. Here are my notes on various aspects of these putters:
Looks: To me, the relationship between shaft and putter head is the biggest hurdle zero-torque putters will have among potential converts. Hundreds of thousands of golfers have been able to overcome any initial bewilderment at looking down and seeing the face of the club jutting out in front of the shaft. I applaud them; I don't believe I have it in me. As much as engineers have endeavored to use geometry to put golfers at ease, I have had a hard time feeling confident in my alignment when addressing these putters. The "easiest" putters to align have been the ones with special grips that build some forward-press into the golfer's hand position. More on this overlooked piece of putter tech below. As for head designs, at this point I don't know how possible it is to build a zero-torque putter that golfers will fairly believe is beautiful. At best, they have an interesting industrial look to them. At worst, they look like broken branding irons.
Sound and feel: Golfers can overcome a strong-performing if odd-looking putter if it feels and sounds good. But if looks, sound and feel are all red flags, there's little point to trying to use it for long. In my opinion, the sound and feel of the zero-torque and alternative-balance putters I've tested range from decent to unpleasantly blocky and clicky. While I understand the physics-based reason for it, I have come to believe that when the shaft of a putter enters the head very close to where contact is made, feel suffers significantly; for the record, I have felt this way about most traditional center-shafted putters, too. So it does not seem like a coincidence that the best-feeling zero-torque putters I tested were the two PXG models, whose shafts run into the heel of the putterhead via a double-bend that still maintains the key balance relationship. Of these, the Hellcat ZT felt the most like normal putters, with a pleasing slight bounce off the face that felt very similar to my Evnroll.
General performance: I came away from months of intermittent testing of these putters with the same issues that I have had for years with center-shafted putters, namely a stronger-than-usual tendency to push putts. The tendency of zero-torque putters to stay square to the arc of a putting stroke is touted as a benefit, and while I don't doubt that in the case of golfers with a more mechanical, mainly straight-back-straight-through stroke, I have a few degrees of toe flow in my stroke, and any slight contact miss towards the toe resulted in weak pushes. Anecdotally, the zero-torque putters I tried negated some of the gear-effect that can sometimes compensate for a slight mishit.
To me, the most interesting feature to come out of the zero-torque putter movement is the advent of grips with built-in forward press. I have always felt comfortable with a bit of forward press because it feels as though creating a bit of forward shaft lean stabilizes the putter throughout the stroke. Whenever I see old videos of Jack Nicklaus putting, the crook in his right wrist always seemed to create a similar effect. The zero-torque putters I tried that leveraged these interesting grips - the L.A.B. and the two PXGs - felt easier to align and swing than the others.
Top choices: If I did have to ditch my current gamer for one of these putters, two choices stand out. The first is the PXG Hellcat ZT, which, in addition to its superior feel relative to its peers, has the advantage of looking most like my current fang-shaped gamer. Runner-up is the L.A.B. MEZZ.1 MAX. I'm not in love with its looks, but the forward-press grip makes it more user-friendly.
Design-wise, I am intrigued by the Incred Golf RFB SK1, which has an interesting difference from the others: it balances face-down. Founder and CEO Nakul Sood has published a considerable amount of material arguing for the advantages of this weighting approach, including robotic testing that suggested Incred having advantages over other putters in forgiveness and purity of ball roll. Sood has taken his putters all over the world in order to get them in the hands of as many elite golfers as possible on a trial basis; it remains to be seen whether they are adopted, but the technology may be something for gearheads to monitor.
Should you use a zero-torque or alternative-balance putter on the golf course?
In the end, the best putter is the one that makes you the most excited to get onto the green. It may be an uber-traditional head shape, or it may indeed be a zero-torque putter. My takeaway from testing this new genre of putter is that the less face rotation your current putting stroke has, the better a match you might be for one of these putters. In that case, if you already use a face-balanced putter, and especially if that face-balanced putter is center-shafted, you may well be a candidate for one of these putters. Conversely, if your putting stroke has been honed by decades of heel-shafted putters with considerable toe-hang, I'm not sure how compatible you will be with a zero-torque putter, at least at first.
As has always been the case, some subtle changes to your putting stroke or stance might cause you to click with one of these putters. Custom-fitting might be especially important to determining whether a zero-torque putter is going to help you hole more putts. As for me, this experiment was a reminder of just how different golfers' tastes can be, and that innovation can still cause interesting ripples through the equipment space. I remain skeptical that zero-torque putters are a better mousetrap overall. But if you're unhappy with your current flatstick, they might be a viable option.
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