REVIEW: Breakthrough Golf Stability Putter Shaft

The Stability Shaft by Breakthrough Golf Technology (BGT) was designed to help you make more putts by squaring the putter's face more consistently, lowering excessive vibration and noise at impact. Distance control and predictable roll is the result, making the Stability Shaft an intriguing enhancement option for your game.

Company Background and Technology

I'm going to bet that you've never thought about the shaft in your putter for more than five seconds. Why would we? You don't swing your putter like the other clubs in your bag, so factors like torque, flex, launch and weight aren't top-of-mind.

Dallas-based BGT wants to change that perception through the development of the Stability Shaft. CEO Barney Adams -- the same man who founded Adams Golf -- brings decades of engineering experience to BGT and is confident that putter shaft stability is the answer to an emerging problem in golf equipment.

As putter heads have increased in weight, the importance of counterbalancing that weight with a stable shaft has also increased. Even a small, slow putting stroke can cause the head to oscillate and twist prior to impact, which will send your putt off-line. As with most errors, this is especially true with amateur golfers.

"When I first learned about the product I knew that it could be significant,” Adams said in a press release. “It’s a step forward in golf equipment technology.  What has been rewarding for me is that the Stability Shaft works better for amateurs. Pros are great putters and while the shaft does help them, it’s the inconsistency of the amateur that it corrects most.”

Eight layers of carbon fiber, a 22-gram aluminum insert, a tapered design down toward the putter head and consistent wall thickness equates to a putter shaft that is not only stable, but definitely more "involved" than stock shafts.

But does it work?

Performance and Feel

To say I was skeptical going into this review is an understatement. Not only did I question how a $199 shaft was going to help me make more putts, but how was I going to test this piece of equipment? We aren't measuring ball speed or spin rates, I'm not looking for more distance on putts, and "stability" might be the most subjective descriptor for a product ever.

But at the end of the day, if more putts are dropping, the product is performing as advertised. That's exactly what happened with the BGT Stability Shaft.

I had the shaft installed on the Odyssey EXO Rossie putter I recently reviewed this spring. A putter already optimized to get the ball rolling as soon as possible, I thought this was the best combination to see a significant -- and noticeable -- change in putts made.

The Stability Shaft felt extremely solid and soft with every putt, which was likely enhanced by the EXO's soft face insert. However, the heavier putter head seemed lighter with the new shaft, making it easier to control through the stroke. Putts absolutely stayed on line more often than my previous experience with the club, and I definitely seemed to make more putts.

Short putts within five feet were almost automatic using the Stability Shaft. There is never going to be a club that can help you make a good stroke, but I honestly felt like the putter face stayed square longer during my test. Without the appropriate lab testing equipment to show face angle data, all I can say is that the putter was extremely easy to control thanks to whatever magic the Stability Shaft provided.

Distance control on lag putts was especially impressive. The counter-weighting provided by the Stability Shaft helped me gauge speed and line easily, which can save a handful of strokes during my round.

Overall Impression

I'm not an engineer and I'm not going to pretend that I know how the Stability Shaft technology works... it just does.

Based on what my eyes told me, I made more putts more often using a putter with the Stability Shaft installed. Further testing and rounds played will validate what I saw during my test, but putts just seemed easier using this technology.

As I've said hundreds of times, the only metric that matters is score, and that will be the final judge on the BGT Stability Shaft.