Charlie Woods' putter 'finally woke up' in second round of Junior PGA. What's in his bag?

USA Today

4 days ago

Charlie Woods is on the move at the 49th Junior PGA Championships in no small part thanks to sensational putting in the second round on Wednesday.
Woods, a rising junior at the Benjamin School and son of legendary golfer Tiger Woods, shot 6-under 66 in the second round at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. After two rounds he's at 7 under for the tournament and in fourth place.
Woods had his putter working early in the round. He sank a long birdie putt on the third hole and went on to shoot 31 on the front nine, carding six birdies along the way.
"I hit it about the same as I did in the first round, but the putter finally woke up today," Woods told Ethan Hanson of Lafayette's Journal & Courier after the round. "It felt really good in my hands, and I was able to roll a few in after some solid iron shots.
"Nice to get myself back in the mix and looking forward to getting after it tomorrow (Thursday)."
Woods' putter of choice at the Junior PGA Championships appears to be a custom L.A.B. DF3, an unconventional putter that is growing in prominence after J.J. Spaun's win at the 2025 U.S. Open and later a $200-million dollar private equity deal.
Charlie Woods putter at Junior PGA Championship
L.A.B. Golf, which stands for 'Lie Angle Balance," is a rapidly rising name in golf gear circles thanks to its distinctive designs and technological innovations.
The company claims its designs eliminate torque during the putting stroke, helping to keep the club face square to the arc of a player's putting motion. L.A.B. offers pre-built putters but has also specialized in a custom-fitting process to deliver personalized putters to golfers.
Recent adoptees on the professional circuit Rickie Fowler, Dustin Johnson and Spaun, who handed the company its biggest breakthrough with his victory at Oakmont Country Club in June.
On July 28, the Wall Street Journal reported L. Catterton, a private equity firm, acquired a majority stake in L.A.B. Golf for an estimated $200 million.
L. Catterton, which also has stakes in major brands like Peloton and Birkenstock, is expected to help bring the Oregon-based company to a wider audience and address a number of issues, including lead time in the production process.
Eric J. Wallace is deputy sports editor for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at [e-mail]. Golfweek's David Dusek contributed to this article.