People often say that putting is a 'game within a game', and for 2024 Odyssey are looking to change the putting game again with the use of Artificial Intelligence to produce their putters for the first time.
I've got my hands on the new AI-One Milled Six T DB model, which is a friendly half-moon shaped mallet. It's not the catchiest name in the world, but can it provide a performance which makes it memorable?
Who Is It Aimed At?
With an RRP of £449 these putters won't be for everyone. Odyssey already have their Toulon putters which are pretty high-end, but the Ai-One Milled is going one step further and will be aimed at golfers who don't mind paying for ultra-premium quality.
The Tech
The Ai-One putter range for 2024 consists of the standard Ai-One putters, and the Ai-One Milled.
These putters feature a milled stainless steel head along with a milled titanium insert designed using Artificial Intelligence to create a unique contoured pattern on the back surface of the insert.
Odyssey say that it is this design which should help you to maintain ball speeds across the face on off-centre hits to improve your distance control. The insert comes in a unique 'champagne' finish, compared to the white finish of the insert on the standard Ai-One putters.
Like the standard Ai-One models, the Ai-One Milled putters feature a Stroke Lab 90 shaft and interchangeable front weights.
There are seven models available in the Milled lineup, ranging from classic blades to high-MOI mallets: One T, Two T, Three T, Six T, Seven T, Eight T, Eleven T.
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Odyssey Ai-One Milled Six T Putter Review
Looks
Callaway smashed it with the Paradym range earlier this year, and it seems like their sister company Odyssey took notice and have used a similar navy blue finish for this new putter, which looks fantastic in my opinion.
The quality of the finish is excellent and everything feels so premium, from the classy champagne insert right down to the detailing on the headcover.
The one issue I suppose you could have with a finish like this is that the durability might not be as good as with a standard chrome head, as coloured club heads to tend to show up signs of wear and tear more easily.
To be honest, I'm usually more of a 'less is more' kind of person when it comes to golf club design but I thought that the gold/bronze insert looked cool and the milling pattern is really interesting. I use an Odyssey Metal-X putter which has a milled-style face, and so this instantly felt quite recognisable to me which was nice.
The Six T is a rounded mid-mallet which is all about stability and forgiveness - it's perfect for golfers who are low on confidence and looking for something which will help them out. It's also face-balanced which makes it ideal for golfers who have less arc in their stroke.
It's not usually a shape I would gravitate towards, but it definitely looked friendly down by the ball and I liked the way that it sat both square to the ball and nice and flat to the ground too, which gave me the feeling that my eyes were more 'over the ball'.
Feel
The milled face of the Six T produced a slightly softer feel from the face insert compared to the Ai-One #1 putter which I also tested, and the sound was slightly more muted which I liked too.
As mentioned earlier, the Stroke Lab shaft has had a bit of a revamp this year and my first impression was to wonder whether that was a bit of a shame, as a silver and navy multi-material finish might have complemented the head nicely. Having said that, I can see the new standard steel finish appealing to a wider range of golfers.
As I've said before in Odyssey reviews I find it very hard to tell whether Stroke Lab shafts do actually help with performance, although I did feel like the weight balance in this putter was great - the head didn't feel too heavy despite the size.
Performance
As with the standard Ai-One putters I was really impressed with the roll from this new Ai face, as there was no skidding or bobbling despite the wintery conditions on the greens.
I didn't find it to be the easiest putter head to line up, but I was impressed with just how consistent the performance was across all different lengths of putt.
The stability provided by the Six T head was excellent, as you might expect from this large, high-MOI design. I played a few holes with this putter and I found that it was really good for holing out from short range (within 6 feet), as the head was just so stable that there was no concern over twisting.
My distance control on longer putts was probably a little better than usual, which might in some part be down to the fact that the new technology was helping with more consistent ball speeds across the face.
I didn't see the big drop-offs in distance when I didn't quite catch the putt out of the middle, and this really helps with your confidence on those longer approaches where you're just trying to get the ball to tap-in range.
Odyssey Ai-One Milled Six T Putter Verdict
Whilst the performance between both the Ai-One and Ai-One Milled putters was very similar I did prefer the softer feel from the milled face, and I was a big fan of the premium looks and feel. It's definitely an eye-catching putter.
For me, a milled putter is something that is preference over performance - it looks and feels great but I don't think it actually helps you hole any more putts.
That's where Odyssey's new technology might come in though. I did genuinely find that my consistency was better with these new putters when it comes to distance control and performance on off-centre strikes, so perhaps they really are on to something with their new Ai insert.
So is it really worth the £449? Or perhaps more importantly, is it worth £160 more than the standard range? In terms of performance I'm struggling to see that, but if you've got the extra cash and you want something special that gets you excited every time you take the headcover off, it may well be worth the extra investment.
Would I Use It?
The Six T isn't the shape I would go for but I really enjoyed the look and the feel of the milled head, and the gains in consistency across the face speak for themselves. I'd love to try one of the smaller models instead, although I really would struggle to see many people being able to justify the £449 price tag.
Odyssey Ai-One Milled Six T Putter Pros & Cons
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