Putter alignment aids: Here’s what the top 15 players in the world are using

Putters lacking an alignment aid of any sort still exist, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find them in the wild, especially when it comes to the highest level of professional golf.

Scroll through the names listed in this story and you’ll find just one golfer (Jon Rahm) ranked inside the OWGR (Official World Golf Ranking) top-15 using something without a single line, multiple lines or dot. If you’re unfamiliar with the term “alignment aid,” it initially consisted of either a single line on the back flange or a single sight dot, like the one found on the topline of Tiger Woods’ Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter. For a while,  that was pretty much it.

Then along came Odyssey’s 2-Ball to break the mold of a conventional alignment aid. Nowadays, it’s possible you could see a player with a line that extends from the topline into the flange, a combination of dots, or the “T-line” alignment Dustin Johnson used in 2018. It’s gotten to the point where somewhere in the neighborhood of just 5-10 percent of the players on the PGA Tour use something with a “naked” crown.

Here’s a closer look at what Rory, Brooks, Tiger, Tommy and other high-profile names rely on when it comes to the alignment aid on their putter.

1. Rory McIlroy

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X Copper

Alignment aid: Black line (crown)

2. Jon Rahm

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X Chalk

Alignment aid: None

3. Brooks Koepka

Putter: Scotty Cameron Teryllium T22 Newport 2

Alignment aid: Black line (flange)

4. Justin Thomas

Putter: Scotty Cameron X5 Flow Neck Prototype

Alignment aid: Black line (topline)

5. Dustin Johnson

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X Copper

Alignment aid: White line (crown)

6. Adam Scott

Putter: Scotty Cameron Xperimental Prototype Rev X11

Alignment aid: Single black line (topline) and two white lines (flange)

7. Patrick Reed

Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Rat 1

Alignment aid: Single black line (topline) and line with no paint fill (flange)

8. Patrick Cantlay

Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS Prototype

Alignment aid: White line (flange)

9. Webb Simpson

Putter: Odyssey Tank Cruiser V-Line

Alignment aid: Three white lines (flange)

10. Tommy Fleetwood

Putter: Odyssey White Hot Pro #3

Alignment aid: White line (flange)

11. Tiger Woods

Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS

Alignment aid: Red sight dot (topline)

12. Xander Schauffele

Putter: Odyssey O-Works Red #7 CH

Alignment aid: Single white line (topline) and two white lines (flange)

13. Bryson DeChambeau

Putter: Sik Pro C Series

Alignment aid: Black line (topline)

14. Justin Rose

Putter: Axis1 Rose

Alignment aid: Single black line (topline) and two white lines (flange)

15. Marc Leishman

Putter: Odyssey Versa #6

Alignment aid: Sight dot (topline)

To hear more gear insights from Jonathan Wall and True Spec’s Tim Briand, subscribe and listen each week to GOLF’s Fully Equipped podcast: iTunes | SoundCloud | Spotify | Stitcher