Critics of L.A.B. Golf’s center-shaft only designs now have one less excuse not to try their putters.
After being released on the PGA Tour back at the Rocket Classic, L.A.B. Golf is formally launching the OZ.1i HS, the company’s first heel-shafted design.
“Lie Angle Balance is so much more than where the shaft goes into the head, and golfers are going to feel that when they try OZ.1i HS,” said L.A.B. Golf CEO Sam Hahn in a press release. “It looks a lot like a traditional putter, but it performs like a L.A.B. This is a huge step toward our mission of helping every golfer putt better.”
L.A.B. Golf shook up the putter world in 2018 with its radical zero-torque (or “onset”) designs, basically creating a new product category. Now, with the release of the OZ.1i HS, the company is branching into a more traditional-looking profile. It’s also the first new model since L.A.B. secured a $200 million investment from a private equity firm, signaling a new chapter for the brand.
Here’s what the new L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i HS is, who it might be for and what I think about the new putter.
What is the L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i HS?
Since coming onto the market in 2018 with its original Directed Force 2.1 putter, L.A.B. Golf has convinced people to choose function over form, that is go with the best results over best looks, with their putters. Designs like the DF 2.1, MEZZ.1, MEZZ.1 Max and DF3 all defied what conventional putters looked like, but followers were convinced they could help them get the ball in the hole.
But the release of the original OZ.1 putter late last year started to change that idea, as it proved the company’s Lie Angle Balance technology could be applied to more conventional putter shapes.
Now, with the OZ.1i HS, L.A.B. has removed yet another common sticking point for its critics: the center-shafted design.
The OZ.1i HS features the same shape as the OZ.1 and OZ.1i, but has a heel-shafted long neck hosel. The OZ.1 is L.A.B.’s most conventional mallet shape and it was designed in collaboration with 2013 Masters Champion Adam Scott.
The zero torque properties are created through a proprietary aluminum riser that still places the shaft axis through the CG of the putter and a hand-balancing process like L.A.B.
“Designing a heel-shafted putter that stays balanced to the lie angle presented us with a unique challenge,” said Brian Parks, L.A.B.’s vice president of engineering. “The result is our custom, proprietary aluminum riser, a key feature of the OZ.1i HS that lets us offer multiple lie angles without compromising the signature feel and balance golfers expect from every L.A.B. putter.”
The riser comes in 10 different configurations for lie angles between 65 and 74 degrees.
Who is the L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i HS for?
The answer here is simple: Any golfer who has been unwilling to try a zero torque putter because of the center-shaft design.
While the OZ.1i HS’s aluminum riser neck doesn’t provide the same visual as a traditional plumber’s or slant neck, it does stop before the golf ball at address, allowing you to have an uninterrupted view of the center of the putter behind the ball.
Golfers who have previously only putted with more traditional hosels will find the OZ.1i HS looks much more like a traditional mallet than L.A.B.’s previous offerings.
My thoughts!
I am one of the golfers who’s been waiting for L.A.B. to offer up a more traditional-looking model, as I despise center-shafted putters. That said, the OZ.1i was the first shape that L.A.B. put out that caught my eye, so I’m not surprised that they kept the shape for their first heel shafted option.
While I am still attached to blade-style putters, the OZ.1i HS certainly has me intrigued, and my early results with it have been quite interesting. I’ve needed only a small adjustment period to transition from a blade putter.
Despite having a pendulum stroke that could theoretically work with a zero-torque putter, I’ve typically struggled with a left miss. But I never saw that in my first round with the OZ.1i HS.
I still contend that zero torque putters aren’t going to work for everyone because of the onset style, but for those who have stayed away because of the center shaft, it’s time they give the LAB concept a true try.
Looking ahead, with more flexibility thanks to their new private equity investment, will L.A.B. take the heel-shafted technology and apply it to a blade putter? That’s what I’m still hoping for.
Price, specs and availability
L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i HS Custom Putter
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