50 Words or Less
The TearDrop TD-7 putter is a high MOI mallet designed to provide consistent roll and high forgiveness. Unique face technology creates surprising results.
Introduction
Generally, teardrops on the green mean it’s been a pretty rough putting day. In this case, could it actually result in more feet of made putts per round? While this iteration of TearDrop putters is new to the marketplace (there’s also a traditional mallet and a blade putter in the lineup) the company has a history of success with its “Roll-Face” design dating back 30 years. I tested the TearDrop td-7 to find out how it stacks up to today’s high MOI mallets.
Looks
At first glance, the TearDrop TD-7 is a familiar-looking modern mallet. It has a squared off profile with wings at either side and some prominent alignment aids. The three lines extending back from the face are a simple and effective alignment aid. The white top line feels less helpful and more distracting for me though I could see how it helps some golfers with their aim.
This putter appears to be constructed of two pieces screwed together. One is a familiar “seven” shape with two triangular wings on either side, while the second piece fills in the gap between the wings and adds more stabilizing elements at the perimeter.
Overall, the look of the materials and design elements don’t scream “premium” to me. To the extent that looks inspire confidence, this matters. But as you’ll see below, its appearance doesn’t stop it from being an effective tool on the greens.
Sound & Feel
The feel of impact off the face is quite soft. I would describe the sound as a gentle ‘tock’. I didn’t notice a ton of variation on putts struck slightly off-center. Given the size of the TearDrop TD-7 and its focus on forgiveness, you won’t notice a ton of feedback through the hands either.
Performance
On the practice green, I immediately felt comfortable with the TearDrop TD-7 in my hands. The stock SuperStroke grip felt familiar to me and the mid-weight putter head felt easy to rock back and forth with a controlled straight back and through motion.
After hitting a few putts of varying lengths, I was taken aback. It just seemed to produce remarkably true forward roll, and distance control seemed almost automatic. I’d like to give myself some credit, but I also have to think that some of the putter’s design elements were working to get the most out of my abilities. I’m a decent putter but the results were much better than that.
Surprisingly, the TearDrop website isn’t very informative when it comes to detailing the technology behind this putter. It mentions the terms Radial Face Design and Grooved Friction Face but doesn’t add any detail about what those are and what they do beyond making it “easy to hit your line and watch putts track.”
After a bit of research, I found that “Roll-Face” and “Radial Face Design” both refer to the fact that the putter face changes loft from top to bottom, becoming significantly more lofted as you go higher on the face (from zero to 4.6 degrees). Most putters have a consistent loft of 2 to 4 degrees across the entire face. Again, some sort of objective data from the OEM about how and why this works would be nice.
I don’t have objective data to validate my anecdotal experience on the greens, but Matt does. He tested the Anser-style TD-1 and had similar results on the practice green before taking it home to his GCQuad launch monitor to learn more about what was happening. Read all about his experience with the TD-1 HERE.
Conclusion
The TearDrop TD-7 is an intriguing modern mallet putter. It does everything you could ask on the greens and seems to have differentiating technology, which is rare in putters these days. But its lack of a premium look and feel make me question whether it’s worth the asking price of $299.99 when new models from some of the bigger OEMs on the market can be had for the same money. If you’re curious, TearDrop offers a 60 day risk-free trial.
Visit TearDrop Putters HERE
- Cleveland RTZ Wedge Review - February 6, 2025
- 2025 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Recap - February 2, 2025
- 2025 Sony Open in Hawaii Recap - January 12, 2025
3 Comments
Without knowing the exact specs of the face, it sounds exactly like sik/cobra and the decending loft technology. I like the look of it, but I prefer my alignment lines to extend all the way to the face. If they did that, and came out with a model with slight toe hang, I’d be interested in trying it.
#007
Love the Teardrop style. Also like your review of #007 grips. Please enter me for the drawing. Thank you, Ken Chester