12 Elite Custom & Boutique Putters of 2024

It’s rare to hear a golfer bragging about a new driver from a brand nobody else has ever heard of. From woods through wedges, golfers flock to the most popular brands. Putters, however, are a different animal. The more custom, lesser-known, and more unique your putter is, the cooler it is. And therefore, the cooler you are, right?

We could probably make a list of 100 custom and boutique putters that are truly awesome, and still leave out some good ones, but we are focusing on 12 fascinating custom putters from putter brands you should know.

Pros:

• Tried and true improved performance from using a putter built to your exact specs
• Extra confidence that comes with using a putter you know is dialed in
• Premium look and feel

Cons:

• Not built for forgiveness across the face

I not only tested the new Astral Putter – which just launched in early 2024 – but I put it through a nearly two-month exam and penned a thorough review. The nuts and bolts of it are that the Astral Putter really is a unique and effective putter.

Building the Astral putter to your own specifications improves both performance and confidence, which is a combination we could all use more of on the greens. I also love the way it looks and feels in your hands. It’s got a very sturdy and all-business feel at address.

If you’re looking for a custom putter, you can’t find one that’s more custom than the Astral putter that you dial in to fit your very own stroke.

Pros:

• True to the classic Zebra Putter look
• Industry-leading alignment system
• One of the best-feeling putters we’ve tested
• Five total head shapes across two styles
• Adjustable weight system

Cons:

• Striped alignment aid doesn’t suit all players

Zebra Putters are back. These putters may be a throwback to the famous flatsticks that won multiple majors and spent decades in the bags of amateur golfers, but they’re a throwback in appearance only. The performance and feel of the new Zebra Putters are definitively modern, and after testing both the AIT and Milled Series lines, I can confirm that the feel and performance is top-notch.

Zebra hired Austie Rollinson to design the AIT line of putters, Zebra’s re-introduction to the market that launched in 2023. Rollinson spent nearly 30 years at Callaway, including 15 as Odyssey’s Chief Designer. Given the heritage and Rollinson’s design experience, the superior look, feel and performance of the new Zebra’s should come as no surprise.

“(Rollinson) worked for nearly a two-year period to get the product right,” said Simon Millington, President of Golf Brands, Inc., which acquired Zebra in 2020. “We started off with 3D modeling of it, went through several versions of trying to get the weight right, the center of gravity right, the insert. We went through a ton of work and research and development on it with the focus that we want people to pick it up and know it’s a Zebra.”

Zebra followed-up that launch with a more premium Milled Series in 2024, which offers four head shapes in a more elevated package that replaces the face insert in the AIT line with a milled face.

At first glance, the new line of Zebra Putters are unmistakable. Zebra’s classic half-moon shape, along with a blade and fang-style head are available in both lines. The AIT lineup also features a full, wing-style mallet while the newer Milled Series offers a wide blade option. Each head has the unmistakable alignment stripes, and while most are face-balanced, the Milled Series 001 (half-moon mallet) is available in toe-hang or face-balanced options.

Each putter also has two weights in the head, allowing golfers to swap out the stock weights with lighter or heavier options to dial in feel, stability and distance control.

Pros:

• Sleek black styling
• Maximum forgiveness
• Excellent feel
• Unique, attractive look
• Descending Loft Technology in the face
• Extremely stiff LA Golf graphite shaft
• Fully customizable colors and engraving available all over the putter

Cons:

• $600 is expensive even for a boutique putter

The carbon body finish on LA Golf putters makes them among the best-looking putters I’ve seen and tested. After stroking a few putts, it’s easy to report that the feel and performance certainly match its stellar appearance.

It wasn’t until after I held the Bel-Air model putter head and perimeter tungsten weighting separately that I truly appreciated how unique this putter is.

Holding the carbon putter head by itself felt as light as a couple pieces of mail. The tungsten weights, on the other hand, felt like a roll of quarters. LA Golf Chief Design Officer Jeff Meyer sums it up in more precise terms, telling GolfLink that the carbon-fiber body weighs just 1.5 grams per cc (cubic centimeter), while the tungsten heel and toe weights weigh 17 grams per cc.

On the Bel-Air putter, those weights plug into the very end of the heel and toe. That means that somewhere around 85% of the weight of the putter head rests on the extreme perimeter of the putter head, resulting in insanely high MOI.

In addition to the unique build of the Bel-Air putter, the face features descending loft technology, with 4, 3, 2, and 1-degree of loft on the face, from top to bottom, ensuring a consistent roll. 

“Whether you hit an ascending or descending blow, it’s going to launch at the same angle,” Meyer said.

You may know LA Golf for its shafts, which are popular on the PGA Tour. LA Golf putters come with extremely stiff graphite shafts that resist twisting and are arguably some of the best-performing shafts in golf.

Pros:

• Find the perfect putter for your stroke
• Ability to adjust your Fine-Tuned Putter as needed in the future (instead of buying a new one)
• 30,000-plus putter combinations allows you to dial in every spec of your putter

Cons:

• Access to a Fine-Tuned fitter could be a challenge

You don’t simply walk into a pro shop and snatch a Fine-Tuned Putter off the rack, and you certainly don’t pick one up from Amazon, or anywhere on the internet for that matter. 

No. 

You set up a custom putter fitting, and let Fine-Tuned’s Quintic Ball Roll Research System and high-speed camera analyze your putting stroke to guide you to the ideal putter configuration – from over 30,000 options – for your stroke. Your fitter then builds that putter, then re-evaluates your stroke using the same technology, and continues to fine-tune your putter until you’ve found the perfect fit.

It doesn’t get much more custom than that.

The Fine-Tuned system includes various options for head shape, alignment lines, weight, neck offset, rotation axis, loft & lie, length, and grip. Once you dial in each of these specs, you’ll wonder how you ever used an off-the-rack putter to begin with.

Pros:

• Supreme distance control
• RCFT face for pure roll
• Customizable weight system to suit every golfer
• Screw-in hosel system gives golfers adjustability
• Easy to set up and align
• Satisfying yet minimal black & white design

Cons:

• Limited in-person fitting locations

Makefield packs a whole lot of technology into its putters, and most of it is geared towards giving golfers the best possible roll for maximum distance and line control. After testing the whole 2024 lineup of Makefield Putters, I can confirm that there is some serious performance behind all the tech.

“The three main pieces to our putter are the weight system, which is parallel to the ground at the equator of the golf club as opposed to being at the sole of the golf club,” said Nick Biglasco, Makefield’s Director of Brand Development. “We are a low-loft putter. The combination of those two increases forward roll and decreases spin, so you’re going to see improved distance control and improved line control with the technology that’s in our putter.”

With nine interchangeable aluminum and tungsten weights in Makefield's V-S putter head, spanning three weight ports, golfers can customize their Makefield Putter to fit their stroke, tendencies, and typical course conditions. Makefield also offers a screw-in hosel system that allows golfers to change the shaft or putter head without replacing the entire putter.

Pros:

• Several different head shapes, colors, and shaft options available
• One of the most satisfying rolls of any putter we’ve tested

Cons:

• Unorthodox looks

You won’t mistake an Incred Golf putter for a L.A.B putter, but the two fall into the same outside-the-box category. Maybe that’s because like L.A.B putters, many Incred putters are center-shafted and only somewhat resemble a traditional shape.

It could also be because they both throw tradition out the window to come up with a shape that more functional than fashionable.

That’s not to say you can’t find an Incred Golf putter that you like to look at. There are enough shapes, sizes and colors that most any player should be able to pinpoint one they could imagine putting in the bag.

I had the chance to roll a few different Incred putters at the PGA Show, and the thing that stood out the most – besides the looks – was the way they roll. I’ve never experienced a more satisfying roll in a putter than with these flatsticks. The ball just comes off the face so pure and smooth, it’s almost addicting.

Pros:

• Classic style and look
• Optional Oil Can finish will never go out of style
• Premium feel
• Accessible price
• Customizable milling and finish options are rare at this price point

Cons:

• Limited selection for left-handed golfers

As I made my way through the putting green at the PGA Show, I snagged a Meridian Putter and began hitting 10-footers, with no context on the brand, price, or technology in the putter.

Given the classic look and premium feel of the Meridian Putters I tested, I knew the brand appealed to the traditional golfer. Players who want the blend of a classic look and top-of-the-class feel would naturally gravitate towards Meridan Putters, and I assumed I had just tested a $400-plus putter. 

When I wandered over to Meridian’s booth, I was shocked to see an MSRP under $250 on their most popular heads.

Even more surprising is the fact that for that accessible price, golfers can add several customizations. When you order a Meridan Putter, you can choose from three finish options, including raw unpainted, black coated, or blue coated. You also choose your face finish from three multiple milling options to pick your preferred look and feel (yes, the different milling patterns return a unique feel at impact).

Further customization options include your preference of top line, and stamps and logos on the toe, heel, sole, and back of the putter.

Pros:

• Extremely forgiving on off-center strikes
• Sets up and aligns easily
• Superior distance control
• Variety of head shapes and toe hang options

Cons:

• Sharp lines and bright accent colors may not suit every golfer’s taste

Indi Golf putters feature an ultra-light body made of aircraft aluminum, book-ended with heavy tungsten weights to create maximum forgiveness and the largest possible sweet spot.

“We put the weights on the end and that really prevents the head from twisting and is going to give you a really consistent distance,” Zane Breier of Indi Golf told GolfLink. ”If you’re looking at typical one-piece putters or typical milled putters, you’re going to probably lose 20 to 25 percent of your distance if you miss the center. With our putter, you’re going to get a lot more distance control, you’re only going to be 5-10 percent short if you hit it off the heel or toe.”

Testing the Indi Golf putter was a treat. On top of being easy to set up and stable through the stroke, it gave great feedback at impact.