Used & Pre-Owned Putters: The Best-Kept Secret in Discount Golf

When golfers talk about buying pre-owned clubs, the conversation almost always circles back to drivers and irons. Everyone wants the latest titanium face, the newest forging, the freshest tech. But there’s a quieter corner of the used market that gets less attention, and it might just be hiding the best deals in golf: pre-owned putters.

Yep, the putter is one of the most-used clubs in your bag, and it can be one of the smartest pre-owned buys you can make. Putters typically see much less wear than full-swing clubs, and a well-kept used putter can often deliver very similar performance to a new model at a meaningful discount.

Let’s break down why pre-owned putters are such a steal, look at a few solid options currently sitting in our pre-owned section, and walk through how to pick the right one for your stroke.

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Why Putters Are Different from Every Other Club

Here’s the deal. A driver gets walloped at 100+ mph thousands of times. Wedges get scraped through bunkers and chunky rough. Irons take divot after divot out of hard turf. All that abuse adds up, and over time it does affect performance.

Putters? They tap a ball, on a flat surface, at maybe 5 to 8 mph. That’s it.

A few key things flow from that:

1. The face typically wears much more slowly than the faces of full-swing clubs. Whether it’s a soft insert or a milled face, the impacts are gentle enough that the surface stays consistent for years. A well-kept putter from 2018 can still perform very similarly to the day it was made.
2. The shaft and hosel usually see much less stress than those on full-swing clubs. No high-speed flexing, no turf interaction, no torque from rough. The shaft is essentially along for the ride.
3. Putter design tends to evolve more slowly than driver or iron technology. Drivers and irons get major tech overhauls every couple of years. Putter design moves more slowly, and the fundamentals (alignment, balance, feel) haven’t changed dramatically. A great putter from 5 years ago is still a great putter today.

Translation: when you buy a pre-owned putter, you can often get very similar on-course performance to a new model, often at a substantial discount versus new, sometimes around 30 to 60% less depending on the model and condition. That’s a value equation no other club can match.

4 Pre-Owned Putters Currently in Our Lineup

We’ve got a deep selection of pre-owned putters at any given time, but here are four worth a look that show off the variety you’ll find. These all represent different styles and design philosophies, so there’s something here for just about every stroke type.

Compact Mallet · Arc Stroke

Pre-Owned Scotty Cameron Super Select Del Mar

A heel-shafted compact mallet made from solid 303 stainless steel. The dual-milled face is designed to deliver a consistent feel and roll, and customizable stainless steel sole weights let you fine-tune head weight. Built for players who like toe flow and a compact mallet shape.

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Rounded Mallet · Arc Stroke

Pre-Owned Odyssey Ai-ONE Rossie S

A rounded mallet with bold alignment lines and a short slant hosel that provides significant toe hang. The Ai-ONE insert uses an aluminum backer and White Hot urethane striking surface to help reduce ball-speed loss on off-center hits. Includes interchangeable front weights and a navy PVD finish.

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High-MOI Mallet · Straight Stroke

Pre-Owned Evnroll ER10 Outback Mallet

An oversized, ultra-high MOI mallet built for forgiveness. The lightweight aluminum body and stainless steel rear wing help move mass for added stability, while Sweet Face Technology is designed to help improve consistency on off-center hits. Face balanced and well suited to a straight-back, straight-through stroke.

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High-MOI Mallet · Slight Arc

Pre-Owned TaylorMade Spider Tour X Black #1 L-Neck

A high-MOI mallet with an L-neck hosel that delivers toe hang for an arcing stroke. The True Path alignment system helps with aiming, and the white TPU Pure Roll insert, made from Surlyn and aluminum, features 45-degree grooves designed to promote forward roll. Black PVD finish.

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Different shapes, different stroke fits, different price points. That’s the beauty of shopping pre-owned: you can experiment with styles you might not have tried at full retail.

How to Pick the Right Pre-Owned Putter

Before you click “add to cart,” there are a handful of things to think about so the putter actually fits you and your stroke.

Mallet vs. blade. Mallets are generally more forgiving, with bigger heads, easier alignment, and higher MOI (so off-center strikes still roll out). Blades are more compact, offer better feel, and reward a player who consistently strikes the center of the face. Neither is “better.” It comes down to what suits your eye and your stroke.

Length. Most putters come in 33, 34, or 35 inches. The wrong length will throw off your posture and your eye position over the ball. As a rough guide, 34″ is a common starting point, but fit depends more on posture, setup, and eye position than height alone.

Toe hang vs. face balanced. This is a big one. If your putting stroke arcs (the face opens on the way back and closes through impact), you’ll generally want a putter with toe hang. If your stroke is straight back and straight through, a face-balanced putter is your match. Forcing a stroke type onto the wrong putter is one of the fastest ways to lose strokes on the green.

Headcover and grip. These are easy to swap if needed. A pre-owned putter with a worn grip is a non-issue, since a fresh grip costs $15 to $25 and takes 10 minutes to install.

What to Look For (and What Doesn’t Matter)

Buying a pre-owned putter online can feel intimidating if you don’t know what’s normal wear vs. what’s a red flag. Here’s the cheat sheet.

Doesn’t matter:

• Light scratches on the sole
• Faded paint fill in the alignment lines
• Minor scuffs on the bumpers or back cavity
• A worn grip

Does matter:

• Visible dents or dings on the face (rare, but possible)
• A bent shaft
• Cracked or chipped insert (on insert-faced models)
• Loose hosel or wobbly head

Good news: at Rock Bottom Golf, every pre-owned putter goes through our condition rating system (Like New, Excellent, Very Good, or Value), so you know exactly what you’re getting before you buy. The cosmetic stuff is graded honestly, and the structural stuff is checked by our team of experienced golf pros.

Pre-Owned Putters: Frequently Asked Questions

Are pre-owned putters as good as new ones?

For the most part, yes. Putters take far less abuse than other clubs (no high-speed impacts, no turf interaction, no shaft stress), so a well-maintained pre-owned putter performs almost identically to a new one. Putter design also moves slowly compared to drivers and irons, so a model from a few years ago still rolls a ball just as consistently as today’s release. You’re getting near-current performance for 30 to 60% less.

How do I know what condition a pre-owned putter is in before I buy?

At Rock Bottom Golf, all pre-owned putters are graded by our team of experienced golf pros into one of four conditions: Like New, Excellent, Very Good, or Value. Each rating describes typical wear so you know what to expect, and product photos give you a clear visual reference. Most RBG Certified Pre-Owned putters also come with a 30-Day Playability Guarantee, so if the condition doesn’t match the rating, you can return it.

What stroke type fits which putter?

It comes down to toe hang. Putters with significant toe hang (slant-neck or heel-shafted designs) fit golfers with a moderate to strong arc in their stroke. Face-balanced putters work best for players with a straight-back, straight-through stroke. L-neck or short-slant designs typically fit golfers with a slight arc. Matching toe hang to your natural stroke makes the putter much easier to square up at impact.

Should I buy a mallet or a blade?

Mallets generally offer more forgiveness, higher MOI (resistance to twisting on off-center hits), and easier alignment thanks to their larger heads. Blades are more compact, offer better feel and feedback, and reward consistent center-face contact. Neither is “better” overall. It depends on what looks right to your eye, what fits your stroke, and what feels best in your hands at address.

What’s the right putter length for me?

Most putters come in 33″, 34″, or 35″ lengths. As a general guide, golfers between 5’9″ and 6’1″ tend to fit a 34″ putter. The real test is setting up over a ball: your eyes should sit directly over the line, and your posture should feel relaxed without crouching or reaching. If your eyes are inside or outside the target line, the putter length is probably wrong.

Can I return a pre-owned putter if I don’t like it?

Yes. Most RBG Certified Pre-Owned putter comes with our 30-Day Playability Guarantee. If the putter doesn’t perform the way you hoped or doesn’t match its condition rating, you can return it within 30 days for store credit.

Why Pre-Owned Putters at RBG Just Make Sense

Here’s the thing that separates buying pre-owned from us vs. taking your chances on the wide-open used market: many RBG Certified Pre-Owned putters come with our 30-Day Playability Guarantee. If the putter doesn’t perform the way you hoped or doesn’t match the condition rating, you can return it within 30 days for store credit.

Try getting that from a random listing online.

So if you’ve been holding off on upgrading your putter because the price tag on a new one made you wince, do yourself a favor and take a stroll through our pre-owned putter section. The most important club in your bag doesn’t need to come with a brand-new price tag.

Roll into your next round with more confidence (and more cash in your pocket).

Shop Pre-Owned Putters at Rock Bottom Golf →

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Got a favorite pre-owned putter you’ve picked up over the years? Drop a comment below and let us know what’s in the bag.

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Last Updated on May 7, 2026 by Danny Kapp