TaylorMade TP Reserve B13 Putter Review
For golfers wanting a more elegant flat stick in their bag, TaylorMade has created the TP Reserve line of putters. Every millimetre of these premium precision milled putters, TaylorMade says, has been carefully scrutinised and perfected in order to offer not only near flawless visuals, but also a sound and feel you would expect from a milled putter.
I tested a few of the six head shapes, which are split evenly between blades and mallets, but kept going back to the B13. With its small slant hosel, it offers the most amount of toe hang of any putter in the range (57°) and consequently seemed to match up with my rotational stroke nicely.
The first impressions get this putter off to a good start. The leather magnetic head cover certainly has a premium look and feel and when you slide it off, the silver dune finish gets your attention. The particular shade of green used, you could argue, has a first major of the year feel to it, which places it among the best putters for looks. At address, the dimensions were spot on to my eye - I like the softened corners, the milled lines in the mid section of the flange and the black sightline standing out vividly for alignment. Often less is more when it comes to premium putters, and the sole strikes a good balance of tech with the two weight ports and the subtle inscribing.
Strike your first few putts and the different feel versus the insert of a Spider GT putter is obvious, although to what degree depends on what ball you’re using. With the Tour Response Stripe, the sound was louder than I expected, but when I switched to a TP5 this softened to where I’d want it to be - providing enough feedback without overpowering the ears. This is, of course, a subjective area of assessment but the design of the grooves looks to have been perfectly optimised to create a premium impact experience. For me, it is comparable to the most recent Scotty Cameron, if anything a fraction softer.
For a blade, there’s a decent amount of perimeter weighting to provide the stability required to minimise face twisting. It isn’t the most forgiving putter in the world, but you’d have to seriously miss-strike a putt to see notable drop off in distance or direction. It rolls the ball well and the speed off the face matches the feel perfectly, neither coming off too hot or spongy to the point where you feel you have to consciously hit putts harder.
The stock grip will divide opinion. I’m not a fan of the Black Lamkin Deep Etched pistol grip as I would opt for something softer and thicker in my hands, but I’m sure there will be as many of golfers out there that prefer it. The retail price is £379 and to be honest, I was expecting them to be closer to £400. Admittedly the number of head shapes is fairly limited, but TaylorMade is clearly just testing the water initially in a relatively niche market. That said, there are enough options when you factor in the four different hosels across the range to suit every visual preference and stroke type. If you’re looking for one of the best TaylorMade putters to offer something a little more substantial than a typical insert, the TP Reserve line is well worth trying.
