Bobby Grace's new NYC Tour Ass Kicker putter

Bobby Grace burst on the scene some 20 years ago as a small, independent putter maker. You’ll recall that Nick Price used a Bobby Grace Fat Lady Swings mallet to capture multiple majors in the early 1990’s.

I caught up with Bobby Grace at the Westchester (N.Y.) Golf Show last weekend. Grace was his typical passionate self when talking about his latest baby, the NYC Tour Ass Kicker.

The putter bears some resemblance, due to a rear-entry shaft, to the Odyssey Backstryke. (Grace is quick to point out that J.L. Lewis won $4 million on the PGA Tour using a similar Grace design years before the Backstryke reached market.)

Regardless, the shaft design shifts the club’s center of gravity more rearward (compared to a heel-shafted NYC Tour). In addition, putts feel a bit softer and, according to Grace, roll 10-percent farther. The aluminum-headed Ass Kicker has a radial face—its furthest protruding groove is higher than the equator of the ball—to get putts rolling with topspin. Its polymer face insert is more lively in the heel and toe so off-center strikes roll similar distances as center hits. Lastly, the "onset" putter (opposite of offset) causes your hands to set up behind the ball. Expect a period of adjustment before you’re fully comfortable over the ball.   

(Photo: Rob Sauerhaft)