Do You Need A Putter Cover? — (Pros and Cons)

Headcovers aren’t the most fun part of golf equipment, but they come with many benefits. They keep your clubs from clanking around, which is both an annoying sound and potentially dangerous for your golf clubs.

Although widely discussed, most golfers choose to use headcovers on their most fragile and precious clubs – the woods. But what many may not consider is that the putter also often is one of the most expensive clubs in the bag. This brings the question if you should protect it with a headcover, which we will answer in this article.

What Are Headcovers Used For?

Before we go into putters specifically, we need to establish what headcovers are and what they are used for.

The reason for using headcovers is that they offer protection for the golf club’s club head and shaft. Because the golf clubs move around a lot when driven or walked with, they are at risk of scratching or potentially damaging each other. 

Almost every golfer wears headcovers for their woods since they are expensive and extra fragile, especially when they come in graphite shafts. Scratches or nicks tremendously decrease the golf clubs’ resale value, no matter what club it is. This makes a strong case for using headcovers, but using them on all clubs can be a little tedious. 

Do You Need Headcovers For Putters?

The usage of headcovers will differ greatly among golfers. For some, having them is a necessity, while others find them trivial. At the end of the day, it’s entirely up to you to decide, but there are many benefits to reap from using one.

The golf clubs will always jostle around whether you carry them, drive them, or push them.

This damage can both be aesthetically unappealing, such as scratches, and game-impacting like heavy nicks or worn-out grooves. 

This goes for all clubs in the bag, ranging from your woods all the way to your putter. However, very few golfers use them on all of their clubs. As previously mentioned, woods are the most often protected, but after that, it’s probably the putter, which we strongly advocate for using a headcover on.

Why Are Putter Covers Good? – Pros

Not only are putters more often than not expensive, but they are perhaps the most important club in the bag. The old but gold saying of “drive for show, putt for dough” may sound cliché, but there’s a lot of truth in there. At least for us amateur golfers, most of the scoring will be done around the green, which makes the putter crucial. 

Positive Effects Around the Green

Using a putter cover will give you a putter in pristine condition since it won’t get damaged by rough handling or the other clubs in the bag. This will ensure a good-looking putter that gives you confidence when standing over the golf ball, which in return might make you drain more putts and score more birdies. 

If you’re more confident with the putter, you might start using it instead of a wedge when hitting off the fringe or just outside the green. For amateur golfers, putting around the greens is almost always going to lead to more consistency than chipping, as it’s much more challenging to screw up a putt than blade a chip. Remember, consistency is crucial for scoring well.

Higher Resale Value 

When walking through the used club section of your local pro shop, you’ve perhaps noticed the insane damage on many putters. Of course, this isn’t just a result of not using a headcover, but rather way too rough handling, but you get the idea.

With golf club technology evolving immensely every year, you want to make sure that you can resell your old clubs to make the price of the new ones sting a little less. Using a putter cover and limiting nicks and scratches will bring up the resale value a lot in the future should you decide to sell.

Lower Risk of Damaging Other Clubs

Just like your irons and woods can damage your putter, your putter can damage your irons and woods. Woods in particular often come with graphite shafts that are extra prone to damage, and since no headcovers cover the entire shaft, using a putter cover can significantly decrease the risk of damaging these clubs.

Why Are Putter Covers Bad? – Cons

Although putter covers definitely have many pros as listed above, there are some drawbacks to also consider before potentially investing in a headcover for your putter.

Tedious 

If you opt for using a headcover for your putter and wish to have it on at all times, taking it on and off every time you’re on the green can get tiring after a while. One solution for this is to have the putter cover on when you’re not golfing and take it off when you’re going to the course.

However, one major drawback to this is that your golf clubs are most prone to damage when you’re carrying them, which is when you’re at the golf course. Another annoying thing about using a putter cover is that you have to place it somewhere when putting. This might not seem that big of a deal, but it can get tedious if you don’t have a good place to store it. 

Potentially Unnecessary  

Riding in a cart is much better for the golf clubs, as they don’t move around as much, and the bag is always upright. So if you’re a frequent cart rider, the need for using a putter cover will slightly decrease. Still, using a putter cover will have significant benefits when taking the clubs in and out of the car and taking out other clubs from the bag. 

Another scenario where using a headcover for your putter might be unnecessary is if all your other clubs wear headcovers. This might be unusual, but if you use headcovers for your driver, fairway woods, and irons, the need for a putter cover significantly decreases.

Also, if you don’t mind scratches on your putter, or if you perhaps know that you will not be selling your used clubs one day, using a putter cover might be unnecessary. However, the potentially annoying clanking sound will still be there.

Do Pros Use Putter Covers?

If pros use putter covers is a tricky question to answer, as every pro is different and will switch things regularly. Some professional golfers on the PGA tour use headcovers for all of their clubs, including driver headcovers, irons covers and putter headcovers. 

However, because pros switch their gear so frequently and have a caddie taking care of and carrying it, the need for maximum protection goes away. Professional golfers aren’t exactly worried about the resale value of their clubs. Nevertheless, the clanking is still an annoying sound, and scratches and dents on your putter are not fun even if you’re a pro, which is why some choose to use them.

Conclusion: Research by Tellmemoregolf.com

Golf headcovers are essential to keeping your golf clubs nice and tidy, and they come with many benefits. The resale value across all your clubs significantly increases when they’re in great shape, and the annoying clanking sound when carrying or pushing the golf bag decreases. 

The putter is often one of the most expensive clubs in the bag, and it’s also the club used to hit most shots during a round of golf. So protecting it with a putter cover makes a lot of sense, but it is entirely up to you whether or not you choose to do so. 

Thank you for reading this article from TellMeMoreGolf.com – our goal is to produce enjoyable and informative golf content of the highest quality possible. 

Patrick Corley

From a golf scholarship to a Southern California University, to a private golf coaching career and an instructor position at a nonprofit organization, I’m here to help you get better at golf! With my 50+ years of golf experience; I bring you Tell Me More Golf. A golf coaching website that helps your game with instructional golfing content that’s ultimately geared toward making you a better golfer and having more fun!

Our golf instructor team brings it all to you, so enjoy!

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