There are a lot of golf equipment companies out there. There are even more putter companies.
What makes Weston Maughan Golf interesting is that it doesn’t really feel like it started with the intention of becoming a traditional golf equipment company at all.
It started with a challenge.
Someone asked Weston Maughan if he could design and make a putter. He said yes, worked with an engineer to create the CAD design and eventually produced the first one. That was back in 2019, and what began as a challenge gradually developed into a small-batch golf equipment business focused on custom, milled putters.
We recently had Weston on LATT Live to talk about the story behind the brand, how he approaches putter design and manufacturing, and what it is like trying to build a golf equipment company one putter at a time.
Who is Weston Maughan?
Weston’s background is an interesting combination of golf, design and engineering.
He started playing golf as a teenager and was also studying drafting at school. That early experience gave him an interest in technical drawing and design that eventually became useful when he began working with CAD and golf club design.
Before starting Weston Maughan Golf, he was also active on Instagram as a golf equipment commentator. He built a following by looking at golf club design, comparing different manufacturers and discussing why certain products worked.
That eventually led to an obvious problem.
Once you start making your own golf clubs, it becomes difficult to spend your time publicly critiquing everyone else’s.
So Weston shifted his attention towards his own designs.
Instagram then became a major part of the growth of Weston Maughan Golf. Rather than relying on traditional advertising, the brand has grown largely through showing the products, the manufacturing process and the custom work directly to golfers.
That personal element is still a big part of the company today.
How are Weston Maughan putters made?
The putters are produced in relatively small batches, with Weston choosing to focus on the quality and individuality of each club rather than trying to manufacture at huge volumes.
The pure blades are milled from a single piece rather than using a separate neck and head construction. That approach requires more expensive five-axis machining, but it allows Weston to produce the design he wants without compromising the construction simply to reduce manufacturing costs.
Once the machining is complete, there is still considerable work involved.
Finishing has become an increasingly important part of the process, with Weston taking on more of the work himself. This includes finishes such as black oxide, brown oxide and rust-style finishes.
Some of the rust finishing is particularly hands-on. Weston has developed his own process using vinegar, salt and hydrogen peroxide, combined with heat and repeated preparation of the surface to achieve the desired look.
It is very much a case of experimentation and refinement rather than simply following a predetermined production process.
That is probably one of the defining characteristics of a small golf equipment company.
There is room to experiment.
Custom putter design
One of the biggest attractions of Weston Maughan Golf is the amount of customization available to customers.
Rather than simply selecting from a fixed collection of cosmetic options, customers can work directly with Weston to create something much more personal.
Custom stamping is a major part of that.
Names, dates, phrases and other personal details can be incorporated into the design, allowing the finished putter to become something that is genuinely unique to its owner.
Weston will even provide images of the putter from different angles so customers can draw on them and show him what they have in mind before the work begins.
That makes the process much more collaborative than a typical online golf equipment purchase.
The customer isn’t simply choosing a product.
They are helping design it.
A different approach to customer service
That relationship continues throughout the manufacturing process.
Weston told us during the LATT Live Q&A that one of his favourite parts of making a putter is the interaction with the customer while it is being produced.
He regularly sends photographs showing the progress of a custom putter, allowing the customer to see the stamping and finishing develop before the club is completed.
It is a small detail, but it changes the experience.
Most golfers buying a new putter will see the finished product for the first time when they open the box. With a custom Weston Maughan putter, you can actually watch it being made.
And because the business is so small, there isn’t a large customer service operation sitting between the buyer and the manufacturer.
If you contact Weston through Instagram, you are talking to Weston.
He even takes video calls with customers and potential customers to discuss what they are looking for and work through ideas for their putter.
That direct relationship is something that is increasingly difficult to find as golf equipment companies grow.
Why small-batch golf equipment is interesting
There is obviously a huge difference between Weston Maughan Golf and the major golf equipment manufacturers.
Weston isn’t trying to produce tens of thousands of putters and get them into every golf shop.
The appeal is almost the opposite.
The production is limited, the customization is extensive and the person designing and making the putter is directly involved with the customer.
That doesn’t automatically make a small-batch putter better than a mass-produced one. The big manufacturers have enormous resources, sophisticated testing and years of experience behind their products.
But it does offer something different.
And I think that’s what makes companies like Weston Maughan Golf worth paying attention to.
There is a story behind the product.
You know who made it.
You can have a conversation with that person.
And you can have a genuine influence on what eventually arrives in your hands.
The future of Weston Maughan Golf
Perhaps the most interesting thing about talking to Weston is that the company still feels like it is evolving.
This isn’t a brand that has already reached its final form.
Weston is still experimenting with finishes, developing new ideas and working out how far he wants to take the business while maintaining the hands-on approach that helped create it.
That is probably part of the appeal.
The story started with somebody asking whether he could make a putter.
He said yes.
A few years later, Weston Maughan Golf is producing custom milled putters for golfers who want something more personal than a standard retail product.
And there is still a sense that Weston is figuring things out as he goes.
For a golf equipment enthusiast, that’s a pretty interesting company to watch.
Watch the LATT Live Q&A
We recently sat down with Weston Maughan for a full LATT Live conversation about his background, the story behind Weston Maughan Golf, putter design, manufacturing, custom stamping, finishes, Instagram and the future of the brand.
Watch the full conversation below.