As more and more players gravitate toward mallet putters, the category has evolved.
While most options still fall in between, new options are coming out, hitting the poles of being more like a blade and pushing MOI to the maximum.
Scotty Cameron’s latest additions to its Phantom line of mallets — the new Phantom 3.2 and Phantom 12 putters — cover both ends of the spectrum.
“The mid-mallet category is really popular on Tour, and the 3.2 was basically designed to blend together different iconic Cameron shapes from the past,” Scotty Cameron Senior Director of Putter R&D, Austie Rollinson, said in a release.
Meanwhile, the Phantom 12 solves what Rollinson described as a hole in the Scotty Cameron lineup until this point.
“We are missing a deep center-of-gravity mallet in our line,” he told GOLF. “We found that the deep center of gravity changes the way people can stroke the ball. It gives them the feeling of stability when they’re swinging it.”
Both new shapes should look familiar to gearheads. The Phantom 3 shape originally launched on the PGA Tour last July at the 3M Open and was in the bag for Ryan Gerard as he secured his Masters invite at the end of last season in Mauritius. Ludvig Aberg also recently added the Phantom 3.2 after months of testing.
The Phantom 12 first appeared on Tour in February and Lydia Ko shot 60 in her first round using it. Rollinson said the reason for the late-season launch of the new shapes was to gather Tour validation.
Keep reading below for more on the Scotty Cameron Phantom 3.2 and 12, including my take on the release.
What’s actually new with Scotty Cameron Phantom 3.2 and 12 — and why you should care
A blending of designs
The 2025 Studio Style blade and mid-mallet line did not include a new GoLo shape. The round-back mallet shape is still very popular on Tour, with Gary Woodland and Bud Cauley winning this season with center-shafted GoLo 7 putters, as well as Rickie Fowler using the same putter all season.
But the GoLo is a rare example of Tour usage and success not translating to retail for Cameron, Rollinson said.
“We wanted to bring out something new, but we didn’t want to just do another GoLo because of how the market reacted to it,” Rollinson said. “So I started to say, ‘Why don’t I kind of try to blend a GoLo and some of the features of Phantom?'”
Several other memorable Scotty Cameron mallet putters actually inspired the final design. The overall footprint is similar to the GoLo 6, while the face profile was taken from the Red X, Cameron’s mid-mallet concept in the mid-2000s. The slots that can help frame the golf ball at address were borrowed from the Kombi, the mallet design Adam Scott used to win the 2013 Masters. They also removed mass from the middle to increase forgiveness.
Lastly, the top T-alignment feature is copied from the current Phantom 9, which allows the putter to feature three full-length sight lines. Alignment was a design priority for the Phantom 3 as a way of bringing the front-to-back alignment themes from the rest of the Phantom line to a mid-mallet.
For now, the shape will only be offered with “.2” plumber’s neck, but that was intentional with the focus on giving blade-players a mallet option.
“It fits a lot of players because it gets your hands in a height that’s kind of neutral,” Rollinson said. “I think the geometry of that plumbing neck doesn’t obscure the view like some single bends, double bends and jet necks do. For players that have grown up using blades, it’s easy to transition into this.”
Like the rest of the Phantom 2026 lineup, the Phantom 3.2 sports the soft Studio Carbon Steel insert on the face with a chain-link milling pattern to fine-tune sound and feel.
Filling the high-MOI gap
The new Phantom 12 was designed specifically to meet the growing trend of high-MOI, deep-CG putters. It has both the deepest and the lowest CG in the lineup created through increased use of aluminum in the center of the putter with a steel ring around the outside and rear.
In addition to the added stability, Scotty Cameron’s research shows players react to deep CG putters by hitting up on the ball more and producing better forward roll.
That pushes MOI to around 5,000 g/cm2, but Rollinson was quick to say they made no performance concessions to get there.
“Anything over 5,000 [MOI], you’re just bragging. You’re making concessions to get that number,” Rollinson said. “If you look at the actual data, performance starts to plateau. You have to be careful about not chasing an inertia number because when you chase that number, you just start pulling the CG farther and farther back.”
The Phantom 12 also notably does not use the Studio Carbon Steel face insert like the rest of Scotty Cameron’s in-line putters, with the exception of the Phantom 11R OC. Instead, the aluminum from the center of the putter extends to the face and is milled with the chain-link pattern.
The use of the lighter aluminum allows the CG to stay deep and low in the putter, while preserving the milled feel Cameron is known for.
“The marketing guys will say, ‘Let’s have some synergy,'” Rollinson said. “But you’re sacrificing the performance of this to do that. I’d rather have each one perform as best as it can. I think it’s okay that it looks a little different.”
Cosmetically, the 12 also looks different from the rest of the Phantom lineup with a different space gray finish, the word Phantom is inscribed on the inside of the aluminum and a single large cherry bomb on the heel. That was a deliberate choice to align the retail release more with the putters out on Tour.
The new Phantom lineup
Phantom 3.2 will be offered in both right- and left-handed options, while the Phantom 12 will be right-hand only.
Phantom 3.2
What is it: A compact mid-mallet with a rounded profile, plumbers neck and several alignment aids.
Who it’s for: Blade players who are looking for a mallet that strokes more similarly to a blade and features lots of alignment aids.
Phantom 12
What is it: Scotty Cameron’s highest MOI and lowest CG putter in the Phantom lineup with a milled aluminum face. The Phantom 12 features a single-bend shaft for face-balanced performance.
Who it’s for: Players seeking ultimate stability while still keeping a familiar milled feel.
My take: Bookending the Phantom lineup
The putter market is undergoing a makeover and Scotty Cameron is getting ahead of it. Scotty Cameron’s mallet line is now more important than ever.
On Tour, behind the TaylorMade Spider’s rabid success, many players are opting for high-MOI mallets, while any of the remaining blade holdouts want something that feels familiar.
There’s still a place for Cameron’s flagship Phantom 5, 7 and 9 models (see Cameron Young, Justin Thomas and Russell Henley), but now Cameron has options for players on the poles of the spectrum within their Phantom lineup.
It’s really interesting to look at the Phantom 3.2 and wonder what the need is when the Fastback and Squareback kind of occupy the transitional mid-mallet space in Cameron’s current lineup. But with the Phantom 3, you now have options for players who want parallel alignment aids, not just perpendicular, like Fastback and Squareback.
And with Phantom 12, not only does Scotty Cameron finally have a clean-looking high-MOI mallet, but it also gives them an option for players who want a slightly firmer feel. Although the thickness of the aluminum and chain-link milling does dampen vibrations somewhat, it’s not to the level of the SCS insert.
Scotty Cameron already has one of the most popular mallet platforms both on Tour and at retail. Now they have options to satisfy everybody.
Price, Specs and Availability
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Scotty Cameron’s new Phantom 3.2 and Phantom 12 putters are available for pre-order starting June 16. Phantom 3.2 RH will arrive at retail locations on June 25, while the Phantom 3.2 LH and Phantom 12 (RH-only) will be in shops on July 23.
Both putters will cost $499.
Like the rest of the Phantom lineup, the 3.2 and 12 will come in stock loft of 3.5˚, lie angle of 70˚ and length options will be available from 33″, 34″ or 35″ with Scotty Cameron’s gray Full contact grip.
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