PING Karsten Anser Putter Review

It sounds too good to be true—a classic putter made by a legendary company for under $100.

Indeed, with its new Karsten Series putters, PING Golf has released several of its beloved designs at a street price of just $89. So is there a catch, or do we truly have a steal on our hands?

Following is PutterZone.com’s PING Karsten Anser putter review.

The Storyline
No company has played the putting game like PING over the past 40+ years. PING putters have won more than 2,300 professional tournaments around the world since the 1960s.

Founder Karsten Solheim crafted his first putter in his garage in 1959, igniting a revolution in putter design. At the time, he worked for General Electric. It wasn’t until 1967 that he resigned from GE to start Karsten Manufacturing, the parent company of the PING brand, so named for the “ping” sound of the putter upon contact. That was the same year that Julius Boros helped cement PING’s credibility, winning the Phoenix Open with a PING Anser model putter.

According to the lore, Solheim initially sketched his “answer” on the sleeve of a vinyl record album. The putter featured a cavity-back design for heel-toe balance, as well as an offset hosel. At the suggestion of his wife, he removed the ‘w’ from “answer” so it would better fit on the club.

Today, the Anser is the most-copied design in the putter market, a testament to its enduring genius. PING was also a major force in iron design, and today offers a full range of clubs and accessories. The company remains a family affair, with Solheim’s son running the show.

In late 2006, PING unveiled its Redwood Series putters ($249), its first foray into the high-end milled putter market. A year later, PING launched the Karsten Series, an affordable yin to the Redwood’s luxury yang. In addition to the Anser model, the Karsten Series includes other classic PING designs, such as the Piper and Zing.

According to PING: “For golfers preferring the performance of a steel face with an insert feel, the Karsten Series meets the criteria. An elastomer insert in the cavity provides enhanced feel while maintaining the solid response of a steel-faced putter. Weight savings from the new cavity shapes were redistributed to the perimeter to increase each putter‘s moment-of-inertia for added forgiveness.”

The View from PutterZone.com
I’ll never forget my father buying me a PING Anser in the late 1970s or very early 1980s (I can’t recall the exact year). I was over the moon. This was the ultimate putter at that time.

Playing the new Karsten Anser inspired me to dig that old Anser out of storage as a point of comparison. The new Karsten version is just a bit thicker, but otherwise looks identical in shape. Of course, there are points of difference, such as the older version’s darkened bronze finish, sound slot and lighter weight. But in terms of overall profile, the Karsten Anser is true to its roots.

The Karsten Anser is the real deal in matters of performance, too. While dozens of companies have produced countless iterations of the Anser, PING knows this design better than anyone else, enabling them to deliver the Anser’s classic playability at even the Karsten’s remarkable price.

I wouldn’t say that this putter has an “insert feel,” and that’s just fine with me. I don’t want my Anser to feel like an insert putter (ie: a face that isn’t metal). However, the elastomer insert behind the face (which doubles as a PING logo in the center of the cavity) does seem to add a bit of fullness the feel, which I find appealing. It’s still steely, but with a nice plumpness, too.

The color scheme of the putter is silver and black with accents of gold for a sleek, sophisticated look. The included head cover is equally sweet. Silver piping separates panels of black canvas and gray pleather, with the PING logo is embroidered in gold and white. There’s even a magnet sewn inside the top of the cover that gently grabs the putter for a cozy fit.

My only quibble is that the putter is a bit wordy. From head to shaft, grip to head cover, the words PING and Karsten appear a total of 15 times. Of course, some of these instances are minor (such as the little Karsten on the butt of the grip), but it’s still a tad indulgent.

Wordy or not, however, the Karsten Anser rises well above its price point in terms of performance and presentation. It seems like nothing is a deal these days—gasoline is going up, stocks are going down and money is tight for many folks. In that context, the Karsten Anser is a particularly welcome sight.

The Bottom Line
Rather than simply stooping to the under-$100 price point, PING raised the bar on it with the Karsten Series. The Karsten Anser delivers proven performance in an attractive package, making a serious value statement in the process. If you want bang for your putting buck without breaking the bank, you can’t go wrong with PING’s Karsten Series putters.