I have two of these putters, and use them both left and right handed. This putter has a soft feel and nice balance. It just is magnetized to the flag hole...or it seems to be... Why do I have two?.... well I have one with the stock straight shaft and grip... the other has a straight shaft and super stroke grip. Depending on what day it is and how I feel I use it. Do I recommend it, damn straight I do, the best putter ever designed and marketed.. now you can buy one that was made in Redwood City by Karsten in 1958 for arround 7K or you can buy a genuine Ping 1-A today for under $200.00 delivered. Your choice, but I do not think you will find any difference between the two...
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Ping putters date back to 1959, in Karsten Solheim’s garage, located in Redwood City, California, where Solheim, a Norwegian-born mechanical engineer for General Electric, invented the Ping 1-A putter. He combined his theory of heel-toe balance with the concept of reducing the twisting of the putter head at impact. The original putter that Solheim designed and crafted was named Ping because of the “ping!” sound it made upon ball contact. The putter has a bent shaft to make it soley a zero-offset putter for a left- or right-handed golfers, or there is a model with a straight shaft that allow for the putter's use by either right or left-handed golfers. I have both, and can't detect a difference in performance, so I lean toward the design that can be used by both right- and left-handed players. The club's sound is LOUD. You can make it "ping" brushing away a leaf, plinking it with your finger, removing the head cover. The putting performance is good; having front and back blades perpendicular to the ball path makes it easier to align than just having a single leading edge. The design is sturdy in its manganese bronze casting. Bright MnBronze darkens into a dull dark brown patina with age, and is coveted by some. It makes no difference to me, as neither reflect sunlight nor affect a putt's performance. At this stage of its half century of life the putter design is more a novelty than today's best performing putters. There are certainly putters on today's market that get the ball rolling faster, have more heel/toe weighting, better alignment features, and better distance modulation. But it is a good conversation piece, a functional implement, and a great "retro" club. And you can't scoop up a "gimmie" with the flange of the putter because there isn't one. I have a half-dozen pinging putters of brass, bronze, or steel, and the simplicity of the 1-A is my favorite. Of course, any of the Redwood or Scottsdale Pings (see the manufacturing city on the bottom) command hundreds of dollars on the collector's market. There is a 2-A model that has an additional split in its sole; it is expensive also.Read full review
I had a Ping 1-A putter about 8 years ago. I liked the sound but right handed putting was terrible. Gave it away and then an Old Old golfer said try left handed putting. I did and now putt left handed which you can do with this putter without any problem. I now listen to the famous PING be-fore I move my head. The results have been somewhat better. My alignment is off but getting better each round. The 1-A putter is good on slow greens for me.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Got it 1 day before expected delivery. My grandfather had this putter when I was growing up and wanted it for years. My father now has it and I loved the feel so much of it I couldn't wait for it to be passed down to me so I had to buy this one till that time.. Thanks for bringing a childhood dream come true.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Very user friendly.Very nice , soft feel . It also feels like you have a piece of history in your hands . I only wish they would have used serial numbers or some concrete way to date them . I like vintage ping . The only way I've seen is to use zip codes . (85029 mid-late 60's pro-only grip )(85020 70-75 pro-only grip )(mid 70's to early 80's PING grip ).These are just the Phoenix putters . There is also Scottsdale and Redwood City . All of these if original ,the grip will be slick and/or cracked . If it's a collectable and you don't plan on using it I would suggest leaving it on . It is like a certificate of authenticity . They have new ones now that are made from the same cast as the old ones .