
Putters from "name'' craftsmen such as Scotty Cameron (Titleist), Bob Betinardi (Mizuno) and Bobby Grace have been popular with consumers the past several years. One of the unknown names in putter design, at least among consumers and probably most of the trade, is Kia Ma. Chances are Ma won't be unknown for long.
TaylorMade-adidas Golf next month will begin shipping Rossa TP by Kia Ma putters (suggested retail price $360) into its popular family of Rossa putters. Ma might be new to consumers, but not to TMaG where he's been making Rossa putters for the company's PGA Tour staff players, such as Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose, for the past six years. In fact Garcia used a Ma-designed Rossa putter in his recent victories at the Castello Masters and the HSBC Champions.
Bill Price, senior director of putter creation for TMaG, said the Rossa TP by Kia Ma putters will appeal to the "golf purist'' who loves classic design.
"Every surface is satiny smooth and every curve and corner is perfectly rendered,'' Price said. "Their straightforward shaping makes them easy to look at and aim, and they feel fantastic. When you pick one of these putters up you realize right away the person who created it is someone special."
And someone about to be a lot better known.