Phil Mickelson turned the heads of early risers on Thursday at the Detusche Bank Championship when he showed up with a belly putter in the bag.
Mickelson said he will ‘probably’ put the putter into play during the second leg of the playoffs that start Friday.
According to Tim Sweeney at Callaway Golf, Mickelson’s latest toy is an Odyssey Sabertooth with a White Hot XG insert. The putter is 45.25 inches long with a lie of 70 degrees.
Mickelson worked with Odyssey’s principal designer, Austie Rollinson, on the putter this week in Carlsbad, Calif. Rollinson consulted with Odyssey PGA Tour representative Johnny Thompson, who developed the specifications for the putter used by Keegan Bradley to win twice this season. Having played a number of practice rounds with Bradley this season, as well as together at The Barclays last week, Mickelson knows the putter the PGA champion wields well.
While Bradley’s putter was an influence, the one Mickelson has is not an exact replica. The putter Mickelson is using is about an inch and a half shorter and two degrees more upright than what Bradley uses.