For nearly two decades we’ve seen the rise of the Spider putters, becoming one of the most-known brands in the game today.
Now, TaylorMade are looking to revitalise the essence of the iconic Spider with a new family of putters featuring even more renowned technologies in the ‘Spider Tour’ range.
In this review we're taking a deep dive into the Tour Z putter, a brand-new sleeker shape not seen before in the Spider family, looking to retain the same feel and performance we’re used to with an elevated, sleeker appearance.
The Tech
TaylorMade has removed excess weight to engineer a super stable structure with a thin wall undercut. The Spider putters feature a steel wireframe to better control the weight distribution and CG location, with every Spider Tour model featuring a different CG location to allow for the optimal putter fitting.
We also see the addition of the Hybrar Echo Dampener, which sits behind the face to reduce any unwanted vibrations and give the best sound and feel on every putt. This is combined with grooves angled at 45 degrees for a better sound, feel, and overall roll characteristics.
TSS weighting helps to provide balance and a durable PVD coating gives these putters a high-quality finish.
As usual with the TaylorMade Spider putters, we see the True Path Alignment system running all the way across the top of the putter to help golfers better envision the line to the hole.
To give a soft feel on impact, these putters feature a white TPU Pure Roll insert made from a blend of Surlyn and aluminium. This white insert combines with the white true path alignment to give an overall symmetry to the putters.
Throughout the series we see two different hosel shapes and designs – the small slant for more toe hang, and double bend for a more face balanced design.
Each putter comes finished with a KBS CT putter black PVD stepless shaft and a super stroke Pistol GT 1.0 white grip.
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TaylorMade Spider Tour Z Putter Review
Looks
The Spider Tour Z model features a brand-new shape not seen before in the Spider family. This shape is at the other end of the spectrum compared to the standard Spider Tour putter I tested at the same time. The Tour Z is sleeker, with a smoother shape at the back of the putter where we’d usually see the weights pushing out in the traditonal spider shape.
Previously, we’ve seen some very bold colour schemes throughout TaylorMade’s iconic putters, but not so much in the new Tour series. TaylorMade has opted for a very clean black, white and gunmetal grey finish with only very small, subtle pops of colour.
On the base we see the blue spider design, which also takes centre stage on the headcover alongside the small yellow ‘T’ logo. In my opinion, this colour scheme helps to elevate the putters and flows consistently through the head, shaft and grip for an overall premium and coherent feel.
In general, the Spider putters have never been my favourites in terms of looks with them being very big and bulky. Although this element is still there in the Tour series, the white insert and alignment helps to add a bit more sleekness, even more so in the Tour Z putter as the alignment is a thin strip that doesn’t stretch out at the back, as we saw in the standard Tour model.
The bright white patches on the darker clubhead does makes it really stand out, however given the overall shape of the putter and alignment I think it all ties in nicely together at address and will help players who are struggling to get the correct line to the hole.
Feel
Another thing that makes the Tour Z putter different to the standard Tour model is that we see the weighting closer to the face, with the CG position at 29mm. This made it come out a little hotter and slightly louder, which I didn’t dislike, however, this also meant it provides a bit less forgiveness than the standard tour model.
I felt very confident with the Tour Z putter with lengths around 12 feet and in, and with the ball coming off a bit quicker I could get a nice rhythm going for these shorter putts.
Due to the design of the putter and the forward weight position, the feel with the Tour Z could be somewhat compared more with a blade than a mallet putter, especially when compared to the higher MOI Tour model.
For me, I’ve played with a Scotty Cameron GoLo mallet for the last 10-years, and so I preferred the feel of the standard model overall, especially with longer putts.
Performance
To test out the Tour Z Spider, we trialled a variety of different putts over at Denton Golf Club. As mentioned, I felt great with this putter over shorter lengths and found the alignment aid great for building confidence when standing over the putt. I felt as though the added mass and size behind the face kept it very stable and meant there was very little twisting of the face at impact, allowing for lots of holed putts from 12ft and in.
Due to the position of the weights on the Tour Z, this putter has a lower MOI than we see in some of the other Tour models, which I did notice specifically on longer putts. As we got into the 30-50ft range I was seeing more variety in the dispersion of the putts, which ultimately led to me standing over the ball lacking confidence that I’d be able to get it close.
For me, this is important given I play links golf with huge greens, but that might not be the case for you depending on how your home course is set up.
TaylorMade Spider Tour Z Putter Verdict
I really enjoyed using the Tour Z Spider putter until we took it out on longer length putts. This is the better-looking version of the Spider putters in my opinion, and I especially liked the design of the True Path Alignment.
Coming in at an RRP of £299 the Tour putters do sit slightly below some of their ‘premium competitors’. Because I was struggling with the lack of forgiveness over the longer putts and the more ‘blade-like’ feel to it, the Tour Z putter wouldn’t be the perfect club for me.
That said, I thought it was great from shorter distances which makes me think someone who’s been used to a more bladed, or generally less forgiving putter, might enjoy giving the Tour Z a go.
Would I Use It?
From 12-foot and in, all day long. From anything above the 30-foot mark it wasn’t my favourite. And although I’d love to imagine a golf game where I’m always within 12-foot, realistically I don’t think the Tour Z was the perfect fit for me, especially comparing it alongside the standard Tour model that performed much better in that area.
If I could take the look of the Tour Z and feel of the Tour, we’d be on to a winner!
TaylorMade Spider Tour Z Putter Pros and Cons
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