When PGA professional Phil Michelson started using a belly putter, the golf world took notice. In fact, during the last several months, Lefty has been joined by fellow golf pros Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman, and Stuart Appleby who have all tried using a belly putter on tour. The belly putter craze had an additional shot in the arm when Keegan Bradley because the first major champion to use a belly putter when he won the 93rd PGA Champion in mid August.
Though critics say that using a belly putter is not in the true spirit of the game, the popularity cannot be ignored. Callaway Golf Company recognized that fact and recently introduced its new Odyssey White Hot XG Sabertooth Belly Putter to the public. Available since November, the Odyssey White Hot XG Sabertooth Belly Putter is the same exact putter Bradley used to win his first major golf event. , Odyssey introduces the Sabertooth putter on its web site (www.odysseygolf.com/sabertoothbelly) with an introductory price of $189.99.
“In 2011, interest in belly and long putters has brought tremendous excitement to not just the putter category, but the golf industry as a whole,” said Chris Koske, Global Director of Odyssey Golf. “Odyssey has seen a 400 percent increase in sales of our mid and long putter offerings over 2010, and we are not expecting it to slow down any time soon.”
Featuring one of the most radical head shapes in golf, the White Hot XG Sabertooth Belly Putter utilizes a Dual Fang design to position more weight to the outer-most limits, helping keep the putter on line for increased accuracy. Aiming Channels inside the fangs make lining up putts easier. The multi-layer White Ice Insert allows weight to be shifted to the perimeter of the head for stability, while also delivering enhanced feel, sound, responsiveness and resiliency, adding up to consistent distance control and ultimate feel on the green. The belly model features a mid-length, double-bend shaft with a full-shaft offset.

Rick Stedman is an avid golfer, RVer, and writer who lives in Olympia, Washington. Rick writes a golf column, “The RV Golfer,” which is published every month in rvlife.com. He can be reached at rstedman@gmail.com.
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