REVIEW: Odyssey EXO Rossie S Putter

Odyssey Golf has long been known as the No.1 putter in golf, and their new Odyssey EXO line is testament to that designation. I had the chance to review the Odyssey EXO S putter during a round of golf recently and was extremely impressed with its performance and playability.

What's New in the Odyssey EXO Series

The folks at Odyssey simply want to help golfers make more putts. That's nothing new. If you've played the game for more than five minutes, you know that these folks put out great products year after year.

The new EXO series is a brand new take on what a putter should be, spanning everything from face construction, weighting, visuals and feel. They've taken what they learned from the success of past White Hot putters -- including technology that gets your golf ball rolling as soon as possible -- and added more forgiveness to arguably the most important club in your bag.

Yes kids: forgiveness is just as important in your putter as any other club in your arsenal. Sadly, I'd argue it's the most overlooked quality in equipment.

The result is a culmination of updates to proven technology that has helped golfers of all skill levels for years. But how will it perform?

Appearance and Feel

Usually a fan of lighter blade putters, I was skeptical of how the EXO Rossie's mallet design would look at address. Too much bulk behind the golf ball is distracting; however this design was anything but.

I'm a huge fan of the open designat the back of the putter head, which makes the Rossie look smaller than it is. The grey, black and red coloring may be an acquired taste for some, but will be familiar to longtime fans of the brand. I especially loved the alignment markers on the putter's crown which frames the ball nicely and instills confident that you'll remain true to your line.

At impact the EXO Rossie feels soft, but exudes a sound that I'd attribute more to a firmer insert. It's a little odd, to be completely honest: the insert is very soft to the touch, but the ball makes a small CLICK at impact.

Weighting was absolutely perfect for my taste. The club's lower MOI and multi-material construction yields a putter that isn't too heavy nor too light, making the Goldilocks in the world smile with joy.

Performance

There's really only one metric that matters when it comes to putting: did the ball go in the hole or not?

I was pleasantly pleased with the EXO Rossie's performance on the course, especially on lag putts. While I played like hot garbage on a blustery April day in Chicago, my putting was on-point and the EXO Rossie helped me avoid a single three-putt all day.

The alignment lines took a little time to get used to -- I'm accustomed to having little to no markings whatsoever -- but in time I found them to be extremely helpful with both long and short putts.

I also noticed the ball found a true roll faster than usual for me, which helped me gauge the speed of all putts. Off-center hits seemed to lose a little speed, which is to be expected, but the roll remained true no matter where I made contact. Many a par-save putt was made thanks to these characteristics.

Overall Opinion

Players who are comfortable with using a mallet putter and who struggle with putts skidding along the green need to buy an Odyssey EXO Rossie S putter immediately. The relatively high retail price ($299) is well worth the gains you'll notice from one of the game's best putter brands.