Breakthrough Golf Technology Putter Shafts
The Breakthrough Golf Technology name shouldn’t be unfamiliar to you if you’re a regular follower of our site. Heck, even if you aren’t, the BGT name has been buzzing over the past two years so there’s a good chance you’ve heard of them anyway if you’re a golf gear super fan. If you want to get caught up on their products, my review for the Stability Tour shaft can be found here, and my review for the original Stability shaft can be found here.
BGT recently announced that the Original Stability putter shaft would be available in “a vibrant red” due to popular demand. This news made me think it was a good time to update everyone on my journey with BGT in my bag. It also “made” me send in another putter to get fitted for the new red shaft.
Breakthrough Golf Technology History Refresher
First a little refresher on the Breakthrough Golf Technology story. Barney Adams, founder of Adams Golf, saw an opportunity to improve a dated golf technology – the putter shaft. Sure, there have been modernized putter shafts over the years, but the general technology hasn’t changed much over the past 50 years. So Adams set out to deliver a putter shaft with updated performance that didn’t sacrifice feel or require drastic changes to technique. This led to the establishment of his new company, Breakthrough Golf Technology.
Fast forward and BGT has had continued success with each of their putter shafts. The shafts are stiffer, better balanced, and more rigid to reduce torque in the putting stroke. Less torque means the putter is less inclined to twist throughout the putting stroke. That reduced torque should improve the golfer’s ability to deliver a square putter face at impact for better accuracy.
BGT In My Bag
Admittedly, the original Stability shaft didn’t stick around in my bag for too long. The reason being, I simply put it in the wrong putter. I suppose that I was cautiously skeptical when I first learned about the shaft so I was hesitant to send in one of my go-to gamers. That said, the impact was noticeable enough in the putter that I realized there was something to it. Installed in a different putter, the Stability started to click and cleaned up my stroke.
When the smaller Stability Tour was later released, I had a better idea of what to expect. I also had the perfect putter to install it in. See, I have my beloved Scott Readman Concepts IKB1 putter that I absolutely adore, but there was one big problem. I putted terrible with it. The look and feel were right, but I just had ZERO consistency with it. That all changed when I had the Stability Tour installed by BGT. My putting stroke become much smoother with better tempo, the feel was still great, and I was much more accurate. The IKB1 was salvaged and now sees regular time in my bag!
An Added Bonus…
When the new “vibrant red” option of the original Stability shaft was announced earlier this year, I thought of a couple other special putters in my collection that I’ve historically struggled to putt with. I kept coming back to a custom Byron Morgan 615 I got from the first batch of heads he ever made of that model. The putter came out great with a handful of symbolic features relevant to that moment in time. I absolutely loved it. The problem was, I couldn’t putt with it to save my life. It hasn’t mattered how many chances I’ve given it over the years! This made my 615 the perfect candidate to see if BGT could perform a miracle for a third time.
Sure enough, my Byron Morgan felt like a whole new putter with the Stability shaft installed in it. So let’s recap. I’ve now taken three putters that I thought were permanently benched and brought them back to life because of BGT shafts. I believe it’s worth mentioning these Breakthrough Golf Technology shafts are a potential solution to resurrect uncooperative flat sticks from the dead. Nevermind the very real performance benefits, you could be saving a multi-thousand dollar investment!
Final Thoughts – Breakthrough Golf Technology
I’m sure plenty of people assume a lot of our (read: “my”) praise for some of the equipment we review is largely hyperbole. Well, hopefully this post about my ongoing use of Breakthrough Golf Technology’s putter shafts helps clear that up a bit. Look, I’m not saying there aren’t alternative options, or that people can’t putt well with a basic steel shaft. What I’m saying is that I feel BGT shafts can be great at enhancing the performance and feel in a putter. They certainly have for me and BGT will continue to get bag time from me moving forward.
Bill, have you tested any other aftermarket putter shafts? Like the KBS CT Tour shaft? I’d be curious about your take on how BGT compares to other shafts (most more affordable) that claim to have the same benefits BGT does.
I will say that I tried a BGT shaft in a random putter (that was all wrong for me) at my local golf shop and I immediately wanted one in my gamer. The feel was instantly noticeable in a very positive way. I ended up winning a KBS CT Tour shaft so I feel I should give that a run before buying a $200 shaft. I haven’t been able to test it yet, so I thought I’d see if you had any experience you could share. Thanks.
Sean,
BGT isn’t going to compare to much because no one else is doing the weight concept they’re doing. They’re very different feels and it ultimately comes down what you feel you putt with. They all have their pros and cons, but BGT is pretty unique from a conceptual perspective to other aftermarket shafts.
Bill
Thanks, Bill. I may have to take the plunge. Given that you are getting another “original” BGT, do you prefer the higher balance point, or was this just a Bulls/Hawks color scheme based decision?
I couldn’t tell you I’m sure. I think it depends putter to putter, but could just be me. The reality is, I THINK I prefer the Stability Tour, but if I didn’t any sort of long-term scientific testing, I may be surprised and data would indicate I’m better with the bigger OG Stability.
It’s sort of a tough sell from me, I’ll admit it. They’re awesome, and are definitely “a thing,” but I understand that people want to really narrow it down when they’re making that kind of investment. I will say this, BGT is very good with customer service. If you wanted to get their perspective on things to guide your choice, they’re very helpful and insightful.