Ping Golf founder Karsten Solheim turned the putter category on its head when he introduced the Anser putter in 1966.
The heel-toe weighted cavity-back blade featured an offset hosel, making it easier for a golfer to square up the face at impact. To this day, Solheim’s design is still being used in some form or fashion by nearly every major equipment manufacturer.
Before this week, Tony Finau didn’t have much in common with Ping’s visionary, outside of the gear currently in his bag. But that officially changed Wednesday afternoon, at the Masters, with a small presentation on Ping’s Tour truck.
Finau can now add “putter designer” to his list of golf accomplishments after his name was included on a utility patent, along with Ping president and CEO John A. Solheim and principal designer Tony Serrano.
If you’ve ever watched Finau work on his putting, you’ll notice he occasionally putts with the toe of his wide-body Ping PLD Anser 2D blade from the rough. Using the toe of the putter is another way to dislodge the ball from the rough, which made Finau and Ping designers wonder if they could come up with a version for practice purposes.
Finau collaborated with Serrano on the design, and the mini PLD was born. The putter features a single white alignment line and the same face milling as Finau’s gamer.
Ping confirmed Finau’s creation isn’t likely something they’ll introduce to the masses; it was merely a project that allowed the design team to work directly with one of its high-profile staffers on a fun creation.
According to a Ping representative, Finau is the first Ping staffer to have their name added to a utility patent. It’s been a week of firsts for the 34-year-old, especially when you include the two Ping G430 LST drivers he’s playing at the Masters.
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