Golfing News & Blog Articles

It’s one thing to feel like a putter performs better. It’s another to have the numbers prove it.

In our 2025 Most Wanted Zero-Torque Putter Test, the L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i didn’t just lead the category. It dominated it. But we wanted to know something else: How would it stack up against one of the lowest-performing blades from our 2025 Most Wanted Blade Putter Test?

The performance gap wasn’t subtle. It was seven strokes.

Understanding “PuttView handicap”

PuttView handicap is the number behind every score in our test. Think of it like a round of golf, only for putting.

Each tester hits hundreds of putts from five, 10 and 20 feet. The PuttView system tracks direction, speed and proximity to the hole, then converts that data into a handicap-style number that reflects how many strokes a player would gain or lose using that putter.

The words “budget” and “golf” rarely appear together in one sentence but one way you can keep equipment costs somewhat in check is by taking advantage of used equipment trade-in programs. Whether you’re upgrading, downgrading or not sure what clubs you really want, trading in old golf clubs can help you put funding towards another set (or maybe just back in your bank account).

How much you get for your trade-in can vary from retailer to retailer so although it takes effort, comparing each of their estimated values could mean more money in your pocket. To further illustrate this point, we compared the trade-in value of a used, standard flex, graphite shafted, right-handed PING G440 MAX driver with multiple retailers so you can see who may offer you the most bucks for your used clubs.

Trade-in pricing

The retailers paying the most for trade-ins

You can see from the list above how the estimated trade-in value can vary but many retailers offered similar pricing. 2nd Swing was the standout for having the highest value for the PING driver, coming in almost $15 higher than several others. Interestingly, 2nd Swing touts on their website that they have the highest trade-in values in the industry so make of this what you will.

The majority of the retailers listed landed around the $280 trade-in value mark including Golf Galaxy, DICK’S Sporting Goods, Global Golf, Worldwide Golf and TaylorMade. Worldwide Golf was the only one with the language of “up to” $280, leaving us to guess what the real value may be.

Don’t overlook manufacturers

It may surprise you to see Callaway Golf and TaylorMade listed as options since we were trading in a PING driver for this scenario. However, both of these manufacturers (along with others like Titleist and PXG ) allow trade-ins from almost any brand of golf club.

Breaking 90 is the milestone where golf starts to feel under control. You’re finding more fairways, making fewer big mistakes, and starting to see consistent scoring opportunities.

Using millions of recorded rounds from male Shot Scope golfers, the data identifies three areas where players lose the most strokes compared to golfers already scoring in the 80s. None of these requires Tour-level skill, just better contact and smarter decisions.

Shot #1: The 230-yard drive that finds the fairway

Tee shots remain the single biggest difference maker. Shot Scope’s data shows golfers trying to break 90 lose about 1.5 strokes per round off the tee compared to golfers who already score in the 80s.

The reason isn’t just distance, it’s trouble. Penalty strokes, blocked drives and poor recovery positions inflate scores. Players breaking 90 simply keep the ball in play more often.

How to improve:

Every now and then, I skip Amazon’s “recommended for you” section and sort by best sellers instead.

It’s an honest look at what real golfers are buying. Last month, more than 4,000 golfers purchased the SKLZ Golf Grip Trainer.

What it is

The SKLZ Grip Trainer attaches to your club and forces your hands into a consistent position. It’s small enough to keep in your bag and it fits most standard grips.

You use it to build muscle memory so that your hands find the right spot automatically every time you pick up a club.

It’s basic but that’s kind of the point. Small changes in hand placement can create big problems with face control and consistency.

What do you do if a player behind you drives the green — and the ball hits the flagstick you've removed? Rules Guy has the answer.

The post Rules Guy: A long bomber’s ball hit the flagstick we’d removed from the hole. What now? appeared first on Golf.

Skins Games, Golf Channel specials and TGLs, oh my! Golf's silly season is upon us, but will fans follow suit?

The post Golf’s winter of made-for-TV raises a few awkward questions appeared first on Golf.

Sometimes little stories are a big deal. These 10 include Rory, Scottie, the Internet Invitational, an ex-LIV golfer, a brand-new event and more.

The post 10 surprising golf stories flying under the radar | Monday Finish appeared first on Golf.

Mere decimal points in the vote count can separate a course that finishes in the World Top 100 than one that misses out.

The post In World Top 100 course rankings, tiny margins separate the best from the rest appeared first on Golf.

The PGA Tour is returning to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina for the first time in 86 years with a FedEx Cup Fall event in Asheville starting next September.

The game of golf relies on a specific set of clubs, each designed for a different purpose on the course.

These 50 golf courses just missed out on our latest ranking of the Top 100 Courses in the World — but are still worthy of your attention.

The post These 50 bucket-list golf courses just missed our latest World Top 100 list appeared first on Golf.

How should you define a "good" putt? GOLF Hall of Fame Teacher Dave Pelz says it's a matter of distance, not direction.

The post How should you define a ‘good’ putt? Legendary short-game coach explains appeared first on Golf.

Ben Griffin made an under-the-radar equipment change before the World Wide Technology Championship. It paid off.

The post ‘Didn’t have much to lose:’ Ben Griffin’s equipment experiment pays off in WWT win appeared first on Golf.

Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler will headline their respective teams for a primetime event airing on Golf Channel on Dec. 17, 2025.

The post Rosters announced for Rory McIlroy/Scottie Scheffler primetime event appeared first on Golf.

The 2025 DP World Tour Championship odds are out, and World No. 2 Rory McIlroy leads the betting favorites in Dubai.

The post 2025 DP World Tour Championship odds: Rory McIlroy leads betting favorites appeared first on Golf.

The 2025 MyGolfSpy Golf Ball Test presented by UNRL confirmed that while driver spin differences are often subtle, spin becomes a much larger performance separator between irons and wedges. The data below highlights which golf balls produced the highest spin rates at each swing speed in both the driver and mid-iron portions of testing.

A final section covers wedge spin, where the test found the biggest gaps of all.

What does high spin mean (and what does it do for you)?

In MyGolfSpy’s 2025 Golf Ball Test, spin proved to be one of the biggest factors affecting how a golf ball flies and stops. Higher spin creates more lift and a steeper descent angle, helping approach shots land softer and hold the green. It also adds control for players who want to shape shots or manage trajectory.

Off the driver, lower spin can help tighten dispersion and add roll, while higher spin can increase carry and height for golfers who need more lift.

The test confirmed that spin differences are subtle off the tee but become far more significant with irons and wedges. The biggest differences were seen on short shots, where high-spin urethane balls can generate nearly 4,000 more rpm than the lowest-spinning models.

In the 2025 Golf Ball Test presented by UNRL, the Titleist Pro V1 served as our calibration ball and, as expected, it performed exceptionally well. At 5,689 rpm of spin off the 35-yard wedge, it remains one of the most balanced golf balls on the market.

But that doesn’t mean it spun the most.

Several balls in our 2025 test produced more greenside spin than the Pro V1, offering serious short-game bite and control. Here’s a look at the models that topped it in the 35-yard wedge test and how they performed across the rest of the bag.

Maxfli Tour X

The Maxfli Tour X outspun Pro V1 on the 35-yard wedge (5,948 rpm). It also ranked among the fastest off the driver and was the mid-speed driver distance leader. While keeping driver spin on the lower side, the Tour X is a rare mix of speed, distance and short-game stopping power. Tour X stayed stable through the irons, creating a consistent flight without needing a towering launch.

Vice Pro Plus

The Vice Pro Plus beat the Pro V1 on the 35-yard wedge (5,823 rpm). At high speed, it sat firmly in the low-spin driver category. The pairing of low driver spin and above-average wedge spin makes it one of the few balls that can help off the tee and still check up around the green.

My wife and I are expecting our first child about five weeks from now.

One of my first thoughts early on in the pregnancy was, “I can’t wait to get him his first set of golf clubs.”

That had me racking my brain about my first set of clubs as a youngster. They were cut-down PING i2s my dad played back in the day. Even though the height was right, the weight was out of whack. It was like trying to swing a dumbbell.

I would soon get junior clubs but not until nine years old when I confirmed I was interested.

I wonder how many kids have been given hand-me-down clubs and given up golf completely because making contact with the ball was too hard. Fortunately, I kept going, but there must be many who are too frustrated to continue.

I’m a faithful follower of the Groucho Marx School of private clubs.

I would never want to belong to a club that would have someone like me as a member.

That said, I’m not sure how I feel about the private courses in the Southworth stable of golf clubs. The Boston-based golf community developer/operator has recently instituted a formal, written “No A-Holes” policy for its properties.

Yes, you read that correctly. No A-Holes. You can fill in the missing letters.

Why am I ambiguous? Well, if I applied and they let me in, I’d have to apply Groucho’s law. If I applied and they didn’t let me in, well…

We hear so many conflicting stories about the state of the golf industry as we steam toward the close of 2025.

No one is happy about pricing. On that we can agree. However, we hear from industry sources that year-to-date sales are up eight percent through the end of August. We also hear that those numbers reflect dollars, not actual volume.

Depending on with whom you talk and what their angle is, it’s either unicorns and show ponies or that impending doom is right around the corner.

Folks, neither is true.

As you know, we faithfully follow the quarterly reports from Acushnet and Topgolf Callaway, golf’s two biggest publicly traded beasts. The cool thing about reading those reports is that numbers don’t lie. Rosey scenarios aside, the numbers are the numbers.