{"id":435974,"date":"2025-07-24T21:02:51","date_gmt":"2025-07-24T21:02:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/?p=435974"},"modified":"2025-07-24T21:02:51","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T21:02:51","slug":"the-putter-problem-why-tom-kim-cant-find-the-right-fit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/the-putter-problem-why-tom-kim-cant-find-the-right-fit\/","title":{"rendered":"The Putter Problem: Why Tom Kim Can\u2019t Find the Right Fit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tom Kim has changed his putter<\/a> again just days before the start of the FedExCup Playoffs. The 23-year-old tested a new Scotty Cameron mallet putter at the 3M Open, marking yet another switch in a season filled with equipment changes. It\u2019s the latest move in what\u2019s becoming a troubling trend for Kim, who still can\u2019t seem to find the right putter.<\/p>\n

Kim Changes Putter Again Ahead of FedEx Playoffs<\/h2>\n

Kim started the 2025 season using the same putter he finished 2024 with \u2014 a Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.2 mallet. He stuck with it through the Sony Open in Hawaii and The American Express. However, he made a change at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, switching to a Scotty Cameron Studio Style blade putter with a new face design.<\/p>\n

The 23-year-old then made another switch at The Players Championship<\/a>, opting for a Newport-style putter with a bronze finish and a milled face. But Kim’s search for the right fit didn’t end there. At the Valero Texas Open, Kim changed his putter again, but this time the new putter stuck around for a while. He went with a Scotty Cameron Fastback 1.5, featuring a silver and black design on the top, which he used for the next 11 events, including major tournaments like the Masters, the U.S. Open, and the Genesis Scottish Open.<\/p>\n

But the run didn\u2019t last. When Kim arrived at Royal Portrush for The Open Championship<\/a>, he began testing putters from different brands. He eventually settled on a TaylorMade Spider Tour X \u2014 the same model that Scottie Scheffler has used successfully for over a year. But after missing the cut at The Open, Kim showed up at the 3M Open in Minnesota to try even more putters.<\/p>\n

The issue of Kim\u2019s putter came into the spotlight again this week at the 3M Open, where Kim was seen testing yet another new putter ahead of the FedExCup Playoffs-a new Scotty Cameron mallet made specifically for him-the Xperimental 3.2 \u201cTK 1 PTYPE.\u201d He also tried another TaylorMade Spider Tour model, this one with a single white alignment line on top.<\/p>\n

Kim Still Searching For a Putter he Can Trust<\/h2>\n

While most top players settle on a model they like and stick with it for years, Kim continues to tinker. His putter choices change from one event to the next \u2014 and sometimes even during a tournament. So why can’t Kim find the right fit after so many changes?<\/p>\n

\"\"
Jun 12, 2025; Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA; Tom Kim plays his shot from the ninth tee during the first round of the U.S. Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kim currently occupies the No. 94 spot in the FedExCup standings. He’s under pressure to perform and at risk of losing his PGA TOUR card. Kim has been honest about his putting struggles. While he continues to work on his stroke, he\u2019s admitted that he hasn\u2019t yet found a setup that gives him complete trust.<\/p>\n

Main Photo Credit: \u00a9 Bill Streicher-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tom Kim has changed his putter again just days before the start of the FedExCup Playoffs. The 23-year-old tested a new Scotty Cameron mallet putter at the 3M Open, marking yet another switch in a season filled with equipment changes. It\u2019s the latest move in what\u2019s becoming a troubling trend for Kim, who still can\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5425,"featured_media":435979,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15,19],"tags":[8156,97,8158],"class_list":["post-435974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf","category-pga","tag-3m-open","tag-fedex-cup","tag-tom-kim"],"modified_by":"Ajayi Segun","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5425"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435974"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435974\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":435981,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435974\/revisions\/435981"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435979"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}