Cleveland Frontline ISO Slant Neck 33" Review

[FairwayNinja1]

Before I begin I just want you guys to know I am not one of the MGS official winners/testers of the putter. I have played 6 rounds with the putter so far.

So the Cleveland Frontline ISO Slant Neck 33" is my new putter, coming from an Evnroll 1.2 with a stability shaft and more recently I played the Tommy Armour Impact No. 3. Not related to the review but mallets have made my putting much better, less feel but my putts are rolling much better with a mallet. 

 

LOOKS

To be honest, in my opinion, this putter is as ugly as could be. For that reason I like it even more, I kind of feel like its your ugly child that you need to give a little more love to but it reminds me of a spatula. The finish is nice, sort of reminds me of the rubber spray paint feel and look, which is ok as there is no glare at all off the putter on a sunny day. I have seen in other comments people are worried about the weights being on the face, that they may possibly hit the weights on their putt, I have not had that issue once yet. I think those people are exaggerating the chances of hitting the weights, like others said if you hit the weights you need ALOT more putting practice as even high hcp's shouldn't have that bad of a stroke. I had the sight line on top painted yellow to make it pop a little more as the white could get dirty and start to lose its pop overtime. Looking down at the putter was not uncomfortable but different in the beginning as I have never played a putter head that style but the more I played it the more I became comfortable and confident with it. I started to feel like this thing is so big(compared to other putters I've played) that its just inviting me to roll the ball into the cup. I like how low it sits to the floor, looks very smooth on the floor but initially when I sat the putter behind the ball I thought the 2135 height seemed too low and I wouldn't make great contact but as the rounds went on I saw that was a foolish thought, the putter height was perfect. After playing some rounds with it all of the negative looks thoughts I had seemed to fade away and my love began to grow. Also not sure if this would go under looks category but the putter cover is very nice addition. The cover is simple, clean and quality- just wish it had a magnetic closure instead of velcro. 

 

FEEL

Compared to other mallets the feel of this putter is great. It feels VERY smooth and stable during your putting stroke(VERY) but you don't get the same feedback as you do from a blade which is to be expected of course. For a mallet though, the feedback is great. It feels very good in your hands and the sound is a little bit more of a thud then a click. When you strike the ball the face sort of pops the ball off the face way more soft then firm. It actually feels similar to my Evnroll 1.2 in terms of how it feels when the ball makes contact. At times I have rolled putts way too far due to this "pop" off the face, something I'm not very used to as the TA was more firm. Cleveland promoted how the forward weights will help create a more stable putting stroke giving you a better roll and I feel like that is absolutely true and I'm actually very surprised this tech wasn't done before. If you want a great feeling mallet that gives your stroke some added stability this is no doubt a putter you need to try. The pistol grip is absolutely fantastic as well, it feels great in your hands. The grip is thick and the materials used feel great. If the grip gets wet it doesn't get slick like a SuperStroke grip would. It feels like a rough rubber, but feels great in your hand.

 

PERFORMANCE

In this section I will compare it to the Tommy Armour Impact NO.3 because it is the only other mallet putter I have ever used. First I would say the Cleveland definitely rolls the ball more true then the TA and feels much better then the TA. I have made made more 10ft'ers with the Cleveland then I have with the TA. So far from the 6 rounds I played with the Cleveland, I had 2-4 less putts each round compared to the TA. So there is definitely an improvement for me in performance with the Cleveland. I wasn't sure to categorize this following statement under Looks or Performance but I decided performance as ALIGNMENT is a big factor for me and my eyes. That is where this putter is lacking, in alignment. There is really no visual cue's besides the sight line on top. Coming from the TA I felt like the TA gave you great visual's behind the ball. The pocket in between the fangs on the TA just gave a great look to where the ball was going. When I putt I visualize a river just a tad bit wider then the ball, and my ball floating down that river into the hole. The TA really helped with that visualization due to the shape of the head. I'm finding it a little harder to get the "river" visualization with the Cleveland. Their visualization cue's are very limited and basic and wish there was a way to create more visuals. I was actually thinking to have it painted on top two lines ball width wide, similar to the Scotty Cameron Phantom X7 maybe one day. Also the face has distance/line control similar to the Evnroll which I am a big believer in, where they vary the depth of grooves to better control distance across the face. I see it work in this putter just as I did with the Evnroll, being honest. 

 

OVERALL

Overall I am extremely happy with this putter and will no doubt be staying in the bag, which has been a hard thing for me to commit to. Only 6 rounds and each round I've had 2-4 less putts, regardless of the looks or visual cue's something is obviously working better for me. Whether its the forward weighting creating a more stable stroke or a the face tech creating better distance control, whatever it may be its working for me. I myself get fitted for every single club I buy and so should you. Give this putter a try next time you're looking for a new putter, it will be worth it especially for 200$ all the tech and feel you are getting. 

[cksurfdude]

Good review, good info .. thx! I'm intrigued by these new Cleveland putters and your positive experience has me leaning more towards testing one out.

[BMart519]

I rolled the Elevando in the store today, crushed the first putt past a hole about 10 feet away. Feel was very firm compared to the HB SOFT #6 which I own and like the distance control on. Made a couple medium range putts but nothing that stood out. 

I agree with OP that the alignment is pretty basic/minimal and will have to go give the Cero a try in the future with the additional 2 lines on the back flange. Need to try it on a few longer putts as well. Maybe try to hit a couple balls off the weights as well. 

As someone who plays slow to moderate speed greens and occasionally struggles with leaving putts short, I am interested in the potential of this line of putters given how "hot" the face seemed.