50 Words Or Less
The unique design and heavy head weight of the Lateral Line by L2 Putters is geared to help golfers establish a consistent putting stroke, leading to more accuracy and lower scores on the greens.
Introduction
The L2 Lateral Line was first brought to market at the 2016 PGA Show in Orlando, Florida, where it was named to the Best New Putters and Best New Products lists for 2016. The technology behind the Lateral Line has been developed based upon the physics of making a consistent, smooth, pendulum putting stroke. Unlike a tradition putter head, which is around 350 grams, the Lateral Line boasts an enormous 620 gram head. The MOI (moment of inertia) is the highest of any putter in the industry and, combined with a 3.5 inch impact zone, creates a much larger sweet spot. This should allow the golfer to focus more on the length of their stroke for determining distance without giving up accuracy.
Looks
The Lateral Line putter has a very unconventional look compared to your standard flat stick, but that is completely by design. The look of the putter is not going to be for everyone, but it may present an easy transition for those who currently have a larger mallet putter in the bag. The first thing that will stand out about its appearance is the oversized club head. The club head has a steel frame that comes in a few different finishes and sports a plastic composite insert. The grip is also unique in that it is completely square and adds an additional 200 grams of weight to the butt of the club.
From address, the putter has parallel alignment lines to square up to the ball and your line, and the club sets up very easily. The face of the putter is 25% larger than the average putter, providing a larger sweet spot for improved distance control. While the Lateral Line will look different than any other putter you have seen before, it is all done for good reason: technology improvements to lower your scores.
Technology
The founders at L2 know that their putter designs are unlike any other in the marketplace, but they have good reasoning behind it. Every aspect of the putter was created around the physics of a perfect, repeatable putting stroke. The number one reason behind the 620 gram head is to increase the Moment Of Inertia (MOI) of the putter. For those who are not familiar with MOI, it is the amount of resistance a putter has to twisting on an off-center strike. What does that mean for you? More consistency. To give the Lateral Line putter the highest MOI in the industry, L2 had to increase the weight of the putter as the heel to toe length expanded. This creates more perimeter weighting, giving it a much larger sweet spot with a higher resistance to twisting.
In addition to the higher MOI, the Lateral Line also has one other extremely unique feature: it stands up by itself. That’s right, if you sole the Lateral Line on flat ground, it will stay standing up on its own. The length of the putter is customizable, but is designed to set up like a counter-balanced putter with a portion of the shaft and grip extending a few inches past your hands.
Put all of these things together, and you get a perfect down-the-line, repeatable stroke that leads to more consistent ball-strikes, on-line putts, and better distance control.
Sounds & Feel
This is the department that was the hardest for me to adjust to with the Lateral Line. The putter is way heavier than anything I have used before, including a Heavy Putter. While the club does essentially “swing itself,” I found myself struggling to adjust to the feel off of the face. Due to the weight of the putter and the plastic composite insert, well struck putts lacked the feel that I generally associate with a good stroke. While the club provided a lot more feel that I initially anticipated, it left me wanting a bit more. While hitting everything on the sweet spot is great, I personally prefer more feedback from the club face.
While the club head did not have a distinct, firm feel, the sound would make you think otherwise. The club head gives off a much louder, higher pitched sound that one would associate with an extremely solid putter construction.
Performance
The Lateral Line delivers on quite a few of their promises. The weight of the putter is definitely a big adjustment, however, it helps keep my putter path on line, creating a better, more consistent stroke. Off-center strikes also traveled further than a traditional off-center hit with my current gamer (Scotty Cameron Newport). The ball came off of the face much “hotter” and quicker than I would have expected with a plastic insert, and the ball also seemed to get rolling very quickly off of the face. The massive alignment aids helped with squaring the putter face and aligning to my putting line, and the ball came off the face on the right line a majority of the time. While it did take me some time on the practice swing to adjust, the club performed as advertised in regards to a larger sweet spot with a more consistent swing.
While the overall performance was good, there are a couple of features to be wary of. The bevel on the sole of the putter allows for a dynamic loft on the putter face of two to four degrees, depending on setup. With that said, it is very easy for the users to unintentionally increase or decrease the loft of the club face, leading to an inconsistent roll. The size and 620 gram weight of the head was also very hard to get adjusted to, and caused a few problems in terms of distance control. The look and weight gave me the impression that I actually needed to swing softer, for fear of smashing the ball past the hole.
Conclusion
Being one of the PGA Show’s 2016 Best New Products and Best New Putters will draw immediate interest in the L2 Lateral Line, the benefits of the technology in the club are nothing to be overlooked. While it won’t kick my gamer out of my bag, there are definitely golfers out there who will see a ton of value in the club. If you find yourself struggling to hit the sweet spot, having an inconsistent putting stroke, or just like a larger, heavier putter head, the L2 Lateral Line is definitely worth a try.
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Good review, I really like the pictures! Crazy how it stands on its own.
L2 Putters are very heavy and very large. Purchased the face on putter version, but returned it after hitting a lot of putts indoors on my putting mat. Could not get used to the large and heavy head and the putting style John Ambrose shows in his videos which is to hold the putter across the waste. Mailed the putter back and they charged me a $25 restocking fee. Pretty high for just having to open the box and replace the putter in their inventory. I don’t recommend this putter. :-(
HE PUTTER IS TOO HEAVY. AND I WANTED TO MAYBE ADD 6 INCH LENGTH TO IT.
how do you figure the length you need. 5′ 6″
Dennis,
Putter length depends on height but also a few other factors. My advice would be to get a fitting or go a golf store and try different lengths until you find one that’s comfortable.
-Matt