New Kronos Putter Review.
New Kronos Putter Review. A New Player in the Putter Market?
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Golf Blog by the Mel Sole Golf School.
Gary Player and Bobby Locke.
Growing up in South Africa, my two golfing heroes were Gary Player and Bobby Locke. Bobby Locke won 4 British Open Championships and won 15 times on the PGA Tour and was regarded as one of the greatest putters of all time. He won a total of 75 tournaments worldwide. I was very fortunate to play many rounds of golf with Bobby at Observatory Golf Club just outside Johannesburg.
He was always the gentleman, and I have never seen anyone who had the skill to read greens as well as he did. Reading this report by Sean Weir of the Putting Zone took me on a journey back into my past. I also played many practice rounds with Peter Beams while we were both young 20 something's trying to make a name for ourselves on the South African Tour back in the late '60s.
To see such a great project honoring the late Bobby "D'Arcy" Locke is thrilling, to say the least, and I hope you all enjoy this piece!
Kronos Golf.
Kronos Golf has come a long way since we first encountered them as a newborn putter brand in Las Vegas, with its young founders sharing prototypes from the trunk of their rental car during the 2012 PGA Expo.
Today, Kronos Golf remains a small artisan outfit, but wind is gathering in its sails. Kronos is now led by co-founder Philip Lapuz, who has made particular headway into the Japanese market, which is a known hotbed of cultish golf equipment.
One of Kronos Golf’s latest creations is the D’Arcy putter ($650), crafted in collaboration with Linksoul. The D’Arcy putter is a throwback blade, eschewing the tech-heavy talk of most contemporary putters in favor of something more high minded: “Rarely do art, history, and technology combine to create a truely unique take on a classic putter. Paying homage to a head style that won major championships in a bygone era.”
Does the Kronos D’Arcy putter live up to its lofty aspirations (and equally lofty price)? Following is PutterZone’s Kronos D’Arcy putter review.
The Storyline.
The D’Arcy is nod to the toe-down blade putters of yesteryear—the Calamity Jane in the hands of Bobby Jones, the Wilson 8802 made famous by Arnold Palmer, and most specifically, Bobby Locke model putter named after the four-time British Open champion.
The story behind the D’Arcy spans generations, sparked by a moment of unforeseen generosity and motivated by a spirit of remembrance.
Peter Beams.
It begins back in the day, in the early 1970s, when a young South African golf professional named Peter Beames lost his left eye in a swimming accident in Australia. When Beames returned home to South Africa, he was surprised to get a phone call from Arthur D’Arcy “Bobby” Locke, who was already a legend at the time, having won his first British Open in 1949.
Beames suspected it was a prank, because he thought that a British Open champion “was not the sort of person to call a player such as me with no standing.” But it wasn’t a prank, it was Locke graciously stepping up to refer Beames to an expert eye surgeon. Beames continues, “After I got through all of that, I found at my locker two clubs—a wedge, and a beautiful Bobby Locke putter.” They were a gift from the legend.
Phillip Lapuz.
Fast forward to a few years ago, when Kronos co-founder Philip Lapuz was playing a round of golf with his friend John Ashworth, of golf attire fame, most recently under the banner of Linksoul. You can see where this is headed…
Redesign.
Lapuz told Ashworth that he planned to make a classic blade putter, and Ashworth told him about Beames’ Locke putter, and challenged him to use it as his inspiration. Lapuz took possession of the Locke putter and played golf with it for three months. “The sweet spot was almost where you have to shank it so I knew I had to change that,” Lapuz says. “I flared out the toe a bit and bored deeper in to the neck. I want to make the neck shorter, I said. But John was completely against it because he said it is sexy! I ask him what sexy has to do with putting and golf and he said everything. If you stand over a putt and have no confidence then the ball is not going in the hole. And confidence comes from liking the look of your putter.”
Lapuz deconstructed the Locke putter and rebuilt it in his mind, developing an advanced version that became the D’Arcy.
Beames himself describes the D’Arcy as “a nothing putter today, there are no bells and whistles.” He doesn’t mean that literally, of course. He’s simply drawing a contrast between the tech-stuffed putters of today, and the lean, elegant flat sticks of yesteryear.
The D'Arcy.
And while the D’Arcy may be an anachronism from a fundamental standpoint, there are plenty of modern qualities under the hood.
For starters, they mill the putter from a single piece of stainless steel. The face features a milled “compass scored” diamond groove pattern, the design of which is to achieve precise face uniformity. The head is connected to a stepless shaft by an aluminum lathed ferrule. They make the grip from kangaroo leather.
Kronos Golf has come a long way since we first encountered them as a newborn putter brand in Las Vegas. With its young founders sharing prototypes from the trunk of their rental car during the 2012 PGA Expo.
Today, Kronos Golf remains a small artisan outfit, but wind is gathering in its sails. Kronos is now led by co-founder Philip Lapuz. He has made particular headway into the Japanese market, which is a known hotbed of cultish golf equipment.
Linksoul.
One of Kronos Golf’s latest creations is the D’Arcy putter ($650), crafted in collaboration with Linksoul. The D’Arcy putter is a throwback blade. Eschewing the tech-heavy talk of most contemporary putters. In favor of something more high minded. “Rarely do art, history, and technology combine to create a truely unique take on a classic putter. Paying homage to a head style that won major championships in a bygone era.”
Does the Kronos D’Arcy putter live up to its lofty aspirations (and equally lofty price)? Following is PutterZone’s Kronos D’Arcy putter review.
The Storyline
Source: Putter Zone Sean Weir Mel Sole Golf School
Pictures: Kronos Golf
Thanks for reading - New Kronos Putter Review. I really like this putter!
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