Cheap knockoff of PuttOUT putting trainer doesn’t pass the smell test

UPDATE, 4/27/2021: After I informed the “customer service representative” that I was unable to delete the review because I am obligated to post reviews on products which I receive through the Vine program, they asked if I would, for the same compensation previously offered, change it to five stars. Unbelieveable…

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UPDATE, 4/26/2021: One week after posting a review of this item on Amazon, and this article, I received an e-mail message from a “customer service representative” at the company which manufactures and markets this product. I was offered a $50 Amazon gift card or a direct payment in the same amount if I would delete my negative review.

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It is almost a given, in today’s world, that a successful product will be counterfeited and cheap knockoffs sold—sometimes through legitimate outlets—by parasitic quick-buck manufacturers. I ran across one such item recently, on Amazon.com: a Made-In-China knockoff of the popular PuttOUT trainer called the Amolabe Pressure Trainer.

Side-by-side visual comparison of my well-used and slightly grimy
original PuttOUT (left), and the Amolabe knockoff copy (right).

Maybe you have seen my review of the PuttOUT device, which I received as a Christmas gift three years ago (after giving it pride of place on my wish list…). I have used my PuttOUT almost daily since I got it—especially in the last year, when my home office has been my full-time daily workspace—and it has definitely improved my putting; for proof I offer my four one-putt and eleven two-putt greens at Pebble Beach in U.S. Open knick at the pre-event USGA Preview Day for the 2019 Open.

As for how I came into possession of an example of this knockoff copy of the PutOUT: I am a member of a product review program on Amazon.com called Amazon Vine. Vine members can choose products of all sorts from a list posted on the website, and receive those products at no cost (sort of…*) in exchange for posting a review on the site. I am always on the lookout for golf-related products in the Amazon Vine list, and have obtained and reviewed quite a few over the last several years; about a week ago I spotted the item that is the subject of this post.

Like so many of the products that are sold on Amazon.com, the Amolabe Pressure Trainer is a cheap, Chinese-made knockoff of an original product that was conceived, designed, and developed by someone else—usually a Western manufacturer. Though closely reverse-engineered to perform much like the original, the build quality, fit, and finish of the Amolabe copy are poor—not to mention that this product represents outright intellectual theft of the design and development work that went into the original PuttOUT.

The material from which it is made is noticeably different from the original PuttOUT, particularly the portion which comprises the target and base, which is made of a slightly softer material than is used on the original device; as a result, this vital piece is readily deformed, and does not hold its shape well. In addition, the fit between the stiffer plastic ramp portion of the device and the target/base is rather poor, in particular the fit of the Micro-Target, a hinged piece that allows the user to reveal a hole in the ramp where a ball rolled with “perfect” pace and alignment will come to rest.

The Amolabe device performed similarly to the PuttOUT, but I noticed that the leading edge of the target portion, if not made to lie flat against the surface, would slightly deflect the ball as it crossed it. The contours of the ramp, which are so vital to the rollback feedback performance of the PuttOUT that makes it unique, appear to be very close to those of the original, but it would take very sophisticated measurement equipment to determine how close.

The bottom line is that the Amolabe device performs… adequately, and maybe $8.99 for this counterfeit looks better to you than the $39.99 purchase price of the now-upgraded original PuttOUT. What your purchase decision comes down to is whether you prefer to support the dedicated, diligent people who design, develop, and produce original products, or line the pockets of Amazon’s multi-billionaire owner Jeff Bezos and some unknown Chinese factory owner.

I opt for the former. 

Shame on Amazon for carrying this product on their website.

* (The advertised value of products chosen is toted up over the year, and if the total hits the IRS’ $600 threshold a 1099 form is issued, and the Vine member is responsible for taxes on the total value of products obtained through the program.)

PuttOUT—the analog putting trainer that succeeds in a digital world

High-tech and digital technology have a firm grasp on the world of golf – advanced CAD (computer-aided design) and exotic materials are the order of the day in golf club design; GPS devices and laser rangefinders assist you on the course; and apps for your phone keep your score, track your stats, and even keep track of those Nassau’s and automatic presses that can make settling up at the 19th-hole feel like an AP Economics class.

In the midst of all this digital magic, however, a new training device has hit the market that uses good old-fashioned analog operation to help you home in on your best putting stroke – it’s called PuttOUT.

 

The PuttOUT putting trainer is precisely designed to operate as simply as possible.

The PuttOUT is a deceptively simple-looking device, consisting of a clear plastic ramp on a circular white plastic base, but it is as precisely designed as any computer chip. The base, which is the exact diameter of the cup – 4-1/4 inches – is your primary target. The clear plastic ramp swoops up behind the base, its shape and position with respect to the “cup” engineered to give you feedback on every putt – no batteries required.

The shape of the ramp allows the ball itself to provide feedback on the quality of the shot. Precisely designed based on the fixed diameter and mass of a golf ball, as defined by the USGA and the R&A, the shape of the ramp works with the ball’s momentum to tell you if your putt is a hit or a miss. It’s simple – if the ball stays on the ramp and rolls back toward you, that putt would have gone into the hole; if the ball drops off of the side of the ramp without rolling back, that putt would have missed. Not only that, but the distance the ball rolls coming back is the distance that the ball would have rolled past the hole had it been a miss.

But that’s not all – the PuttOUT has one more trick up its sleeve: the “microtarget”, a hole in the center of the ramp about halfway up which is the ultimate goal for your PuttOUT practice session. If the ball stays in the microtarget, you’ve hit a “perfect putt” – perfectly centered on the hole, with just the right amount of speed, which the PuttOUT folks define as the pace that would have carried the ball 18 inches past the hole, based on a Stimpmeter reading of 10.

Lots of putting training aids have hit the market over the years – guides to force your putting stroke into the “correct” line, clamp-on pointers to help you line up your shot, even lasers that project a beam of light on the green to help you start the ball on the right line. What the PuttOUT does, simply and elegantly, is give you feedback, based on the behavior of the ball on the ramp, that tells you if you are getting the ball to the hole with the right speed and line – feedback that reinforces a good stroke without directly telling you how to make that stroke.

Before I got my PuttOUT, I had been practicing in my office by rolling putts at a cup-sized paper cutout on the carpet. A ball that rolled right across the center of the “hole” was easy to score as a good putt, but the ones that skirted the edge were judgment calls. With the PuttOUT, that uncertainty goes out the window – if it rolls back, it was good; if not, it was a miss.

I have been using my PuttOUT now pretty much daily since Christmas, and I have rolled hundreds of putts on the tight-pile industrial carpeting in my office since then, with a variety of different brands and models of golf balls, and three or four different putters. Besides getting a really good handle on the quirky little break in my carpeting, the biggest benefit that I have realized from all this practice with the PuttOUT is learning what I need to do to put a consistent stroke on the ball every time.

I know that practicing with the PuttOUT has helped my putting, because after just a few days of use, one of my golf buddies – a guy whose last comment on my game was that I needed to throw away my irons and get a set that I could hit – actually complimented me on my putting.

Getting the ball to the hole with the right speed is key in putting, and helping you develop a feel for this is where the PuttOUT shines. Harvey Penick, the great teacher who is at least partially responsible for the putting genius of one of the best putters of all time, Ben Crenshaw, famously wrote in his Little Red Book: “I like to see a putt slip into the hole like a mouse.” I keep this quote in mind whenever I practice with the PuttOUT, and when my putts are rolling back off the ramp no more than a foot and a half to two feet, I know that I have achieved that goal.

The PuttOUT people also make a practice mat as a companion to the PuttOUT. The mat rolls at 10 on the Stimpmeter – a value based on their survey of average green speeds at a wide range of golf courses – and has alignment marks to aid you in your practice sessions.

The PuttOUT is not only easy to use, it’s convenient to take with you to the course, or to the office for a little lunchtime practice (or competition with coworkers…), thanks to its folding design. With or without the PuttOUT mat, the PuttOUT trainer is the best putting training device that I have seen come down the pike – ever. PuttOUT is available at major golf-equipment retailers, or online (in the USA) through Amazon. It might just be the best $29.99 you ever spend on improving your putting.