Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2022 - 12

Building Back Better
2nd Swing clubfitter and renowned clubmaker Larry Bobka
looked to past inspiration for his new putter design.
I
magine learning to use a new tool from its creator. The tool
designer can impart the right way to use it and how to get the
best from it. Well, that's possible with the new BOBKA putter, a
limited-release club from 2nd
Swing designed by clubfitter/putting
instructor Larry Bobka.
" I wanted to make something that when a person puts it
down, they say 'wow, that looks and feels really good' and it
becomes a functional piece of equipment, " Bobka says. " My
favorite saying is 'they're tools, not jewels.' I'm not trying to
make a diamond ring; I'm trying to make a golf implement
that's going to help you make more putts. "
Simon Kallal, the owner of 2nd
Swing, wanted his company
known for more than just selling used equipment and asked
Bobka, a seasoned clubmaker, to create something new with
2nd
Swing's partner Handmade Stix. In 1991, Bobka famously
designed The Whale driver (the largest wood-headed driver
ever made), but hadn't designed any new clubs since he had
created wedges for Titleist in the mid-1990s. So, he reached
back in time to some early influences as his inspiration for the
BOBKA putter.
" When Payne Stewart won the 1991 U.S. Open at Hazeltine,
he had a Whale in the bag-but also a Ping Anser putter, "
Bobka says. " So, it's reminiscent of his victory at Hazeltine that
I brought this putter out. The inspiration came from Payne,
Tiger Woods and Mark O'Meara: three talented players I have
thoroughly enjoyed working with throughout my career. "
Form Meets Function
Bobka's putter design draws from the Anser putter-as does the
Scotty Cameron that Woods uses and the Odyssey putter that
O'Meara plays. But Bobka then incorporated years of experience
as a clubfitter and putting instructor to create his unique design.
" The Anser was the basis for my design, " Bobka says. " It's
arguably considered one of the best putters designs ever, but
also from a functional standpoint. I wanted to make a cool club,
but also something very functional. There's not a lot of flash
to it. "
With a design idea in mind, Bobka contacted Meridian from
Germantown, Wisc., to mill the putter. Meridian put him in
touch with Joshua Boggs, a former club designer from Nike who
now has his own design business called Rally Studios. Bobka
gave him his putter specs and Boggs created the CAD drawing.
Meridian then milled the prototype for Bobka to examine for
12
Larry Bobka is following up his putter
with a new BOBKA wedge design.
alterations, but he required none.
" They nailed it right off the bat, and it was go time! " he says.
Bobka's design incorporates features derived from what he's
learned from a lengthy career in golf and what he teaches on
the putting green. He kept the basic shape of the Anser putter
but stamped his own mark on the design. He began by changing
where the plumber's neck aligns on the putter head so it is
square to the line of the putt.
" The hosel needs to be square to the line that you're hitting
it to, " Bobka says. " Sometimes putters are a little open or a little
closed and it draws your eye to that. So, I tried to make all the
lines on the putter very square, very simple. I also moved the
* BY JOSEPH OBERLE *
MINNESOTAGOLFER Summer 2022
mngolf.org
PHOTOS: MATT SEEFELDT
http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2022

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