When it comes to shaving strokes off your golf game, there is no better place for amateur golfers to look than on the green. We will break down the best putters for beginners, focusing on affordability and ease of alignment.
Overall, we recommend the Wilson Staff Harmonized M5 Putter. It’s a no-frills putter with three long guidelines that allow for easy alignment and consistent putting. You can learn more about its pros and cons below.
Jump to Putter Recommendations
What to Look For When Choosing a Beginners Putter
1. Ease of Alignment
Ease of alignment is the most important, and most confusing to beginners when choosing a putter. Most new folks to the sport think all putters are the same, minus some marketing features and high-design.
While there is some truth in that, the alignment design does vary from putter to putter. It’s generally a solid colored line in the middle of the putter face that signifies the exact place to make contact with the ball for a straight put. It can also be a thick line, a dot, or a triangle. The angle and location of this line do vary from putter to putter.
For a beginner, a long line indicator on your putter is better since it’s easier to line up with the hole. Beginners using a dot or triangle indicator may have more difficulty lining up the ball.
See the below photo from golf.com that provides different types of indicators. The top two feature the line indicator, which is what we recommend.
A putter that easy to align will have a comfortable angle that allows beginners to consistently set up their putts with the indicator set centered on the face. An alignment marker that is too off-centered does tend to confuse beginners and leads to curved putts. Generally, the less beginners have to consider when putting the better.
2. Putter Weight
Many beginner golfers struggle with applying the correct swing speed when putting, usually swinging too fast causing them to overshoot the hole. For this reason, we usually recommend a heavier putter for beginners.
3. Affordability
An obvious one, but it’s still worth mentioning – many new golfers can get carried away with fancy putters. If you’re just starting out, your putter should be one of your cheapest purchases. For a novice, there are not massive performance increases between $75 and $400 putter – this money is better spent elsewhere.
We’ll put it bluntly, a new golfer doesn’t need to spend much more than $150 on their first putter.
The Best Putters For Beginners – Product Recommendations
- Mallet style putters
- New larger diameter grip size
- Multiple density areas in the Micro injection face insert
- The soft feel grip is designed exclusively for Wilson
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Wilson M5 Staff Harmonized Putter
- Length: 35 inches
- Weight: 1.83 lbs
- Alignment Indicator Type: Line
- Hand: Right
Our top choice for the best putter for beginners is the M5 Staff putter by Wilson. It’s a no-frills putter at an extremely affordable cost. The putter has an extra thick grip for comfort and control when putting.
One of our favorite features is the two flat triangular points in the back of the putter, which allow you to scoop up the ball without bending over. This isn’t an uncommon feature, but it’s fantastic that it’s included on a putter at this price point.
What We Love about the Wilson Staff M5
The putter features three straight indicator lines to help center your put: one white center guide and two red lines that mark the exterior of the ball. The two red exterior line design makes it far easier for a beginner to center the ball.
Where the Wilson Staff M5 is Lacking
This putter is definitely on the lighter side, which isn’t recommended for beginners. While we believe that the ease of alignment makes up for this con, it’s something to consider.
Since the white alignment line is set up on a light silver club, it can be difficult to see. This line is engraved into the club, so this can be solved by running a fine-tipped sharpie in the grove to provide better contrast.
Pros:
- The three guidelines offer unmatched alignment for beginners
- Extremely affordable
Cons:
- A bit light for a beginner
- Slightly off balance
- White alignment line can be difficult to see
Callaway Odyssey White Hot Pro 2.0
- Length: 33 inches
- Weight: 1.5 lbs
- Alignment Indicator Type: Single white line with high contrast on the black face
- Hand: Right or Left
Odyssey is one of the most trusted brands in the game when it comes to putters and the Odyssey White Hot Pro 2.0 is no exception. This specific version in the White Hot series is very affordable coming in well under our max recommended cost.
Alignment is easy because of its great contrast between the white center ball alignment line and the black clubface. The club has two grip options: jumbo or standard. It also comes with a headcover.
The crank-neck hosel and rounded heel allow for a smooth, consistent stroke of the ball. Golfers can simply focus on their swing, rather than worrying about the putter itself which is a must when trying to improve on the green.
Although simplistic in design, you can’t ask for much more when looking for a putter to kickstart or simply improve your golf game.
Cleveland Golf Huntington Beach Soft Premier 3
- Length: 33, 34, or 35 inches
- Weight: 1.3 lbs
- Alignment Indicator Type: Low Contrast black on black line
- Hand: Right or Left
While not usually known for putters, Cleveland knocks it out of the park with this one. The Huntington Beach Soft Premier 3 putter is affordable, simply designed, and soft at impact. The diamond CNC milling pattern on the face allows for increased friction on the ball, reducing sidespin and other ball variations common in amateur putting.
The speed optimized face technology also ensures consistent speed control and distance performance, allowing golfers better control even on off-center putts.
Similar to other putters on this list, the Huntington Beach Soft Premier 3 comes in three length options, ranging from 33 – 35”.
Pinemeadow Golf PGX SL Putter
- Length: 34 inches
- Weight: 1.01 lbs
- Alignment Indicator Type: unique 2 orb alignment design
- Hand: Right
By far the most affordable option on the list, the Pinemeadow Golf PGX SL putter is the true no frills flat stick for beginners.
The two-ball pattern helps golfers to focus on distance control by providing a true visual aid for stroke alignment. The slightly offset hosel also helps from a visual point of view, allowing the golfer to ensure solid contact with the ball.
The face and grip are both simple, standard designs that put the focus on what you see from the top down when lining up a putt. All in all, this affordable putter is a must-try for brand new golfer or those looking to change things up without breaking the bank.
TaylorMade Spider Tour Black
- Length: 34 or 35 inches
- Weight: 1.4 lbs
- Alignment Indicator Type: Single high contrast line
- Hand: Right or Left
If you disagree with our max price point for the best putter for beginners and want something to show off on the green, the Spider Tour Black from TaylorMade is for you.
With single sightline alignments and a double-bend shaft, the Spider Tour Black putter is ideal for the straight back, straight through putter. The balanced face is a great feature for rookie golfers who are focusing heavily on line of sight and making solid contact with the golf ball.
The weight of the putter does the work here, minimizing the need for a longer backswing and increased potential for misalignment.
Once you’ve chosen the best putter for yourself as a beginner, we recommend checking out which golf ball is best as well.
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