By Jason Bruno
One & Done. That’s a bold name for a putter, it implies that you’ll never need another… when all is going well on the greens you feel like that flatstick is the only one you’ll ever need. The putter unlike any other club in the bag can produce an emotional connection with your journey as a golfer, afterall it’s the flatstick that finishes most every hole (unless you hole out from off the green). It’s the club that for better or worse takes the credit or blame for the result. Is PXG’s One & Done ZT (Zero Torque) putter the latest and greatest thing on turf? Possibly, and like most product reviews, it likely comes down to the test subject (in this case yours truly), and does this new technology fix any flaws in the stroke or alignment?
The intangible skill of reading greens is an entirely different topic (that certainly plays its part) but we’ll discuss that another day.
If you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years and aren’t familiar with Zero Torque putter technology, in layman’s terms it’s an engineering innovation with the intention of keeping the putter face square through the entire stroke (the object is to remove hand manipulation). In this particular case, PXG club engineers accomplished this by placing the center of gravity just below the shaft axis, therefore minimizing twisting in the putter head, resulting in a stroke that’s as close to square to square as humanly possible. Putts that start on the intended line is the goal here (assuming the green was read correctly), leading to more made putts.
Many Zero Torque putters feature these monstrous sized clubheads that can be tough to look at, the One & Done ZT is a more compact profile that features a centershaft position, three alignment lines, and interchangeable weights in the sole (that are available through PXG).
The ultra-thin face technology features a milled pyramid face pattern that interacts more consistently with the ball’s dimples to produce a more uniform roll across the face.. The .055 face thickness is possible because of the 303 stainless steel hollow-body construction – filled with an S-COR polymer – which provides a soft feel, consistency and forgiveness.
Features & Benefits
- Zero Torque Design
- 303 Stainless Steel Hollow Body Construction
- Pyramid Milled Face Pattern
- S-COR Polymer Injection
- Two Interchangeable Sole Weights
- Thinnest Face in Putters (0.055″)
- Onset Hosel with Integrated Forward Press
- Right- and Left-Handed Availability
Shaft features:
The PXG M16 Putter Shaft is an upgrade (+ $99) a multi-material shaft designed to reduce face rotation and get the ball rolling true faster than traditional steel shafts. PXG Slant Putter Grips are designed with a 1.5° slant (forward hand position), moving the hands into a natural playing position for zero-torque putters, supporting a stable, repeatable stroke.
- Lower Section: Made of steel for precise feedback and weight near the clubhead.
- Upper Section: Blends high-modulus 60T carbon fiber with two layers of rubber and 22 strategically placed steel wires running down the outer ring.
- Stiffness: Measures at 386 CPM (butt frequency), making it roughly 26% stiffer than a standard steel putter shaft (307 CPM) to minimize twisting.
- Stability: Reduces unwanted shaft deflection and twisting during the stroke and at impact.
- Truer Roll: PXG testing shows the M16 gets the golf ball into a zero-skid roll 2.5 inches faster than traditional steel.
- Feel: Despite the high stiffness, the internal rubber layers absorb harsh vibrations, maintaining a soft yet solid feel at impact.
According to PXG, it’s 26% stiffer than a standard steel putter shaft that. If you waggle the putter, you’ll see the putterhead does not lag behind the shaft and grip. Where your hands go, the putterhead goes. If you’ve been putting with a traditional steel shaft your entire life, this will feel foreign to you – but if you understand that there’s corrective technology built into this putter, then the M16 shaft allows you to be “All-In” on the Zero Torque concept.
Fitting
A few weeks before the new putter arrived, I went through a fitting session with PXG’s Master Club Fitter Tyler Rawson at Fort Lauderdale’s indoor golf club – Loop 19. It’s a members only facility that might be the coolest golf hang anywhere. If you’re a golf sicko who lives in South Florida, and is tired of the afternoon thunderstorms (or just wants to have an amazing place to go work on your game that just happens to also be a great vibe) this place may be for you. Loop !9 features full hitting bay simulators, sports bar, 60 ft synthetic putting green, and more. https://loop19.com/
The fitting revealed a few things immediately, 34″ length is the correct length for me – where the putter sole sits flat to the ground (eliminating the need to fidget with the head position at address), also I like to grip down a bit on short putts (it’s a feel thing) and the 34″ shaft gives me that option. The stock 10 gram sole weights were spot on, but we ordered a set of 15 gram weights for times where the greens may play significantly slower (fescue greens across the pond, and summer on grainy Bermuda here in South Florida are two cases where that may come into play). Appearance wise, I prefer a blade… but if we’re gonna go Zero Torque mallet to help performance, the compact shape, triple alignment lines and matte black finish all works for me.
Testing:
Impact brings a more muted sound with almost no vibration, and although I prefer it, takes a bit of getting used to. I’ve gamed a solid milled face blade for the past 20+ years… so this review was not a one session deal, it organically evolved over several weeks of testing. Remember, consistent success on the greens begins with hitting your starting lines over and over again (if you’re reading the greens correctly then it’s a jackpot).
On short putts is where I wanted to see the tech of the One & Done ZT provide quick results. Get the putter aimed correctly, and watch the stability of the One & Done ZT do the heavy lifting. Trusting the instrument’s lack of face rotation is the key, especially on those very makeable attempts inside 8 ft. An important thing to note for me was the ball does not jump off the face with this putter, it’s a softer muted feel that suits me. Before this review, I was dabbling with a huge headed ZT putter (from another brand… wasn’t a media review sample) that had an insert, and my speed (that I never struggled with) was all over the place. That was the big difference, my speed has always been reliable… but for the last year I’d been missing way more putts inside 6 ft than I’d like to admit, hence the dabbling with ZT mallets. Instantly with the One & Done, my speed was back to where it had always been, if I missed a mid range putt it might come up within a foot short or past… but that’s always been my M.O – I don’t wanna see 16 ft putts running 5 ft past the cup. I like to see the ball fall in the cup at proper speed… two-putts are fine from that range, three putts from that distance drive me nuts.
Lag putting with the PXG feels easy, you don’t need to be as flawless with your stroke, the Zero Torque technology lets the club do the work for you. I put in several sessions over a few weeks time before taking the putter on the course with a match or some game time pressure on the line.
Summary:
When judging any putter, I have 4 solid baseline questions/elements that must be met:
1 – At address does it look square to the target, or do I get fidgety trying to make it appear so?
2 – Does the ball consistently start on my intended line when it comes off the face?
3 – How does it feel at impact, is it buttery soft, springy, or loud and clicky?
4 – Does the ball come off with a pure roll or is it skidding excessively the first few feet? If you don’t have a high speed camera, go putt early in the morning on a green with dew on the ground – the line in the dew provides instant evidence.
After a couple of rounds with the One & Done ZT here are the answers to those 4 baselines with a few added items of note:
1 – This putter looks absolutely spot-on square at address (and the alignment lines certainly help).
2 – This putter better than any other we’ve tested starts the ball rolling on the intended line.
3 – This putter feels soft and slightly muted at impact. This took me a few sessions to get used to, I wasn’t sure about it at first… but because the head is a hollow body construction (injected with a COR polymer) and the shaft is multi-material, it is a big departure from what you might feel from your typical steel head and shaft.
4 – The ball rolls as pure as anything that we’ve ever tested.
To elaborate via some on course thoughts: Time after time the ball was on the intended line without the dreaded, “Oh I pushed it, or I pulled it.” That’s a nice feeling, is it a honeymoon thing, or will that be the new norm? Time will tell, but for the time since we’ve been gaming the One & Done ZT, this has been the case. The second thing that I saw in gametime mode – long and mid-range putts that were slightly miss hit, still rolled the intended distance. Lastly, if you prefer a loud clicky putter feel at impact, this may not be for you. With all of the tech built in, polymer in the putterhead, multi-material shaft this is almost as quiet as a putter with a non-metallic type insert.
Overall, I’ve seen really good things with PXG’s latest, the One & Done ZT has displaced my longtime gamer to the bench for now, go for a fitting and see if it does the same for you.
