Nike Unitized Putter Review

Some golfers are skeptical of Nike Golf’s ability to match the highest levels of quality and performance delivered by more established putter brands.

Yet with the launch of its innovative Unitized putters last year, Nike Golf sought to prove the skeptics wrong by entering the rarefied air of the ultra-premium putter category, in which the baseline price is essentially $250. And now the company is introducing three new additions to its Unitized lineup.

Is Nike Golf just going farther out on a limb with its new Unitized models, or is the company putting down serious roots in the high-end soil? Following is PutterZone.com’s review of the new Unitized Leo model ($249).

The Storyline
The ultra-premium putter category exploded in 2007, as evidenced by the introduction of PING’s Redwood series putters ($249) and Odyssey’s Black series putters ($249), both category firsts for their respective companies. The new Mizuno Bettinardi Black Carbon putters ($249) further attest to the phenomenon.

The market for such putters is growing as the average golfer becomes more sophisticated and discriminating when it comes to putting, seeking an extra edge in terms of feel and confidence on the greens.

Nike Golf is hardly a latecomer to the ultra-premium party, having introduced its first Unitized putters in November of last year. Like virtually all putters in the category, the Unitized putters are 100-percent milled and promise exquisite detail and quality. The real hook, however, is Nike Golf’s proprietary “unitized” technology.

According to Nike Golf, its Unitized putters “hold the distinction of being the only putters in the marketplace that have the head and shaft designed and engineered as one piece.”

The 303 stainless steel Unitized heads are initially forged, then precision CNC milled into their final shape and detail. The heads are laser welded to the shaft and nickel plated as a single unit, with no bonds or joints to interfere with the goal of pure response.

According to the company: “The seamless construction creates an express line straight from the putter face to the grip, with no stops along the way to interrupt frequencies between the putter head and the golfer’s hands. This delivers a pure response and unparalleled feel.”

The View from PutterZone.com
My role at PutterZone.com affords me the unique opportunity to compare and contrast a wide variety of putters, and to obsess over attributes like feedback—the very thing that Nike Golf aspires to master with its Unitized technology.

On that note, I believe that Nike Golf has loaded the bases and knocked it out of the park with the Unitized Leo. When the sweet spot of this putter meets the ball, the result is sensory purity. The effect is buttery smooth, yet also crisp and resonant. It’s a perfect balance of soft and firm, yielding an immensely responsive and pleasurable putting experience.

Can I say for certain that this remarkable sensation is attributable to the Unitized technology? No, I can’t. But nor can I come up with any other explanation, so consider me a believer.

True to its name, the Leo is “unitized” as a one-piece, uniformly hued unit of head, hosel and shaft. In addition to tactile harmony, this technology offers the added advantage of visual unity when you address the ball, similar to Nike’s IC series putters, but within a more traditional color palette.

The shape of the Leo is what I might call “neo Anser,” maintaining the visual familiarity of the classic Anser shape while achieving a sleek, modern profile. The color of the nickel finish could be described as storm gray or dark metallic—it’s definitely darker and more distinctive that the product photos would suggest. The face is elegantly milled with arced crosshatching. The sole is brightly polished, adding just the right touch of luxury to the ensemble. The nicely textured grip is tastefully stylized in black and gray with accents of yellow. The Unitized Leo ultimately oozes class and quality, two attributes that contribute to putting confidence.

My only quibble with the presentation is the accompanying headcover, which is not up to the quality or the price point of the putter itself. This same headcover issue plagues Nike Golf’s IC and Ignite putter lines as well, so it now qualifies as a pattern. The Leo’s faux suede headcover has a wrap-around Velcro enclosure and ultimately fails the style test. I just don't get it. Whoever designed the Leo itself needs to walk down the hall to the headcover department and administer some tough love.

I have no quibbles with the putter’s performance, however, as the Unitized Leo works ample magic on the greens.

When you combine exquisite materials and workmanship with the proven Anser-style shape, the results are bound to be good. What puts the Leo over the top, however, is the aforementioned purity of feedback. This, in turn, enhances touch and feel, which ultimately improves control and accuracy. My distance control was at its peak when using the Leo. The threat of three-putts was minimized while my putting enjoyment was maximized. I can’t ask for more than that.

My gushing about this putter doesn’t necessarily mean that you should rush out, spend $250 on a Unitized Leo and expect it to magically and immediately transform your game. There are no training wheels on this putter, such as overt alignment aids, special inserts or adjustable weighting. In fact, the Leo is so minimalist that it doesn’t even have a sightline or sight dot.

However, if you are comfortable with a traditional Anser-style blade, and if you’ve seasoned your putting game to the point of investing in the next level, the Unitized Leo demands consideration.

The Bottom Line
Nike Golf’s Unitized Leo ranks comfortably among the most elite putters to come along in recent years, at least on the broad retail market. This putter offers top-to-bottom excellence, from visuals to materials to performance, and it is particularly remarkable in matters of feedback and feel. Nike Golf’s Unitized Leo ultimately belongs on the short list of any golfer seeking a world-class putter that will raise his or her game.

In Review: Nike IC Putter

Yes, it’s true—the new Nike IC series putters are totally green, from head to shaft to grip.

When word leaked a few months ago that Nike Golf was poised to release a series of all-green putters, the news was met with some skepticism. When photos of the new putters started circulating, the skepticism mounted. Let’s just say that the traditionalists weren’t jumping for joy.

The IC putter, however, isn’t merely a radical fashion statement. Rather, it’s an outgrowth of optical engineering by the folks at Nike Golf. So, will the Nike IC putter make you green around the gills, or will it make your friends green with envy?

Following is PutterZone.com’s review of the Nike IC 2010 blade putter ($139), one of five models in the new IC series.

The Storyline
In a recent article about Nike Golf, Golfweek Magazine documented the company’s unapologetic pursuit of the cutting edge: “Undaunted, the company continues to push one unconventional creation after another, which some purists describe as an affront to their golf sensibilities.”

As far as such affronts go, the all-green IC putter might be Nike Golf’s biggest yet, judging by some of the knee-jerk jeers that accompanied its arrival.

According to Nike Golf, however, there’s a method to their alleged madness: “With the putter’s head and shaft color blending into the background of the putting green, the Nike IC Putter eliminates ‘visual noise’ and mutes the areas of the club that aren’t critical. Instead, the eyes are focused on what is critical—alignment.”

Playing on the words “I See,” the IC Putter was developed by Nike Golf in collaboration with Dr. Alan W. Reichow, the global research director of Vision and Science for Nike, Inc., and Tom Stites, director of club creation for Nike Golf.

In the words of Nike Golf: “After much testing, they meticulously came up with the white, triangular shape alignment aid that is a key feature of the Nike IC Putter. The optically engineered alignment aid helps square the face in relation to the hole and starts putts on the line.”

Additionally, says Nike Golf, “The face of the Nike IC Putter is milled to precise tolerances to enhance accuracy, predictability and distance control across the putter face. With a high moment of inertia (MOI), the head is stabilized throughout the stroke and at impact for greater confidence and improved accuracy.”

In terms of pricing, the IC putters are positioned between Nike’s value-priced Ignite putters and high-end Unitized putters.

The View from PutterZone.com
I don’t belong to the anti-Nike camp. I can’t help but admire the company as a force of sports nature and I count a few of their products among my favorite golfing gear. This doesn’t mean that I’m a fan of everything that Nike Golf produces (I’m not impressed by the Ignite putters, for example), but it does mean that I will take an unbiased view of the company’s products. That’s not too much to ask, is it?

On that note, I am happy to report that the IC putter is not the first sign of the Golfing Apocalypse. In fact, it’s a pretty slick instrument that, while a bit alien in appearance, is quite effective in matters of performance.

The first thing I noticed about the IC putter is that it looks more sophisticated in person than in its product photos, which somehow make the putter look a bit drab. The green hue—which is seamless from the head through the grip, including the entire shaft—is rather rich and calm. The milled face, which looks white in the photos, is actually metallic silver.

As for the optical concept itself, it would be impossible for me to prove or disprove its efficacy. There’s certainly merit in the concept of minimizing visual noise, however. I’ve commented before about how certain putters can be distracting at address because they’re overloaded with bevels, cuts, decorations or other noisy flourishes. Thus, by achieving visual calmness and blending in with the putting green, the IC design certainly won’t hurt, and very well might help the average golfer.

More importantly, the IC blade simply rolls a beautiful ball. The putter has a nice heft and feels quite balanced, which aids smoothness in the stroke. The sweet spot is small but supple, providing ample reward for precision and consistency. On miss-hits, the metal face can yield quite a clang, but I don’t have a problem with that—it just makes me really focus on consistently finding that sweet spot.

If you’re a fan of spongy insert putters, the IC might rattle your cage. But if you enjoy the firmness of metal, you will appreciate this putter's substantive feedback. Also, while the IC blade can sound and feel punitive on miss-hits, it’s actually fairly forgiving in terms of where the ball ends up.

I do have a few quibbles with the peripherals of the IC 2010 blade putter. The grip has a light green design flourish that wraps around the back, and this flourish is much slicker than the rest of the grip, which creates a tactile dissonance that will be amplified during the summer months, when sweat becomes more of an issue. Also, the headcover is a bit flimsy and not up to the standard of the rest of the putter.

In parting, the IC 2010 blade earns points simply for being one of the most unusual putters among the many here at PutterZone.com headquarters. People gripe about Nike being a big corporate global brand that’s allegedly all about marketing, then complain when the company doesn’t play it safe and produces products with inherent marketing challenges, such as an all-green putter. I’m not saying that the IC putter is a total home run, but I appreciate the fact that Nike Golf is swinging for the fences instead of simply trying to put the ball in play.

The Bottom Line
The IC 2010 blade putter will earn converts among edgier souls who don’t mind standing out from the crowd, and who seek an effective putter at a nice price. The IC 2010 particularly appeals to those suffer from focusing issues when addressing the ball, as it minimizes visual distraction and can therefore enhance concentration. As a daring design with a scientific purpose, the IC 2010 blade putter ultimately hits the mark.

Nike Ignite Putter 001: In Review

PutterZone.com recently got intimate with the new Nike Ignite 001 model putter, and I'm afraid it was a one-night stand.

Now, I am not a Nike Golf basher. I like a lot of their products, and I admire the company as a force of sports nature. But, unfortunately, the newly released Ignite putter ($90) feels more like a mere line extension than something born of true effort or creativity.

The Storyline
The Ignite 001 blade is one of four Ignite putter models. Here’s what Nike Golf has to say about it on its web site: “Nike Golf’s Ignite putters offer a soft responsive feel with a full-face polymer insert that is 85% lighter than steel. The weight savings realized from the polymer face is redistributed to the heel and toe for more stability in every stroke. Four different putter styles are available to accommodate player preferences.”

Silence…Oh, were you waiting for more? I was, too. But that’s all you get from Nike Golf about their new putter: two sentences about the putter’s features and benefits, and one sentence informing you of other models. At an average retail price of $90 (the company’s stated retail is $109!) for the Ignite putter, that breaks down to $45 per sentence regarding actual features. At least that’s one way you can measure the effort they are investing in earning your business. It might be true that there’s nothing more to say about the putter, in which case it would be true that the putter shouldn’t cost you $90.

I had to search elsewhere for more information. Here’s what I found on one retailer’s site: “Full-ace polymer insert enhances feel and increases the putter head's MOI (Moment of Inertia) for a truer roll. Each putter face is CNC milled flat to precise tolerances to enhance accuracy and predictability across the clubface. Winn Advanced integration Pistol Grip.” Better, but not great.

The View from PutterZone.com
The Ignite 001 feels insubstantial in the hands. At impact, the response is a bit tinny, with limited feedback. I could forgive this putter’s lack of heft if it offered some measure of ingenuity. I could forgive its lack of craftsmanship if it cost $40 less. Unfortunately, I’m just left wanting. If you’re a fan of cheap putters, then you can do better for cheaper. You can also do a lot better for just a bit more. At close inspection, the finish work of the Ignite 001 appears rough and inexact. The model name 001 sounds lazy, as if it was decided during a quick corporate meeting, and I’m not really feeling the whole burnt orange vibe of the Ignite line, which is incorporated into the grip and head cover. The head cover fits awkwardly over the offset design of the 001, and is not easy to get on or off. This putter does boast a classy and classic profile, with the black polymer insert mirrored by a sleek black swoosh in the cavity. From the neck up, at a distance, the Nike Ignite 001 putter looks relatively slick.

The Bottom Line
Nike seems to have failed the price point test with its Ignite putters. My conclusion is that, in order to make the Ignite putter a smart buy, Nike needed to offer more for a little more, or the same for less. The savvy shopper will discover that, for just $10 more than the Ignite, they can get a Taylor Made Rossa Putter on sale at this very moment. Or, consider the Ping G5 Anser Putter for just $25 more at full retail. I’m not saying that you should write off all Nike Golf putters (their new Unitized putters look pretty intriguing). I am saying, however, that you can do better than the Ignite putter for the price, and that Nike can do a lot better in terms of marketing and defining the Ignite putter’s features and benefits.