Mezz.1 Max

The 2022 Mezz.1 Max is the enlarged version of L.A.B.'s Mezz.1, built around the same Lie Angle Balance idea but scaled up. The maker's page lists it as roughly 20 percent larger than the standard Mezz.1, and both Carl's Golfland and 2ndswing.com corroborate the underlying spec: a 69 degree lie and a 2.5 degree static loft, with 1 degree of effective loft when paired with the Press II 1.5 grip, per customclubs.eu. The body is described by the maker as 6061 aircraft aluminum, fully CNC milled, with a 303 stainless steel midsection also CNC machined, and the maker's page notes it's hand-balanced and tested at L.A.B.'s headquarters in Eugene, Oregon. It ships in Standard, ArmLock, and Broomstick builds per 2ndswing.com, with the Press II 1.5 Smooth grip listed as stock.

Reviewers largely treat the Max as the stability flagship of the line. 2ndswing.com and customclubs.eu both describe it as offering outrageous stability, and underparreviews.com called it the most forgiving and stable zero-torque putter in L.A.B.'s lineup, wrapped in what it called a familiar fang-mallet shape that will not scare off golfers accustomed to traditional designs. Golf.com noted the putter generated considerable buzz on the PGA Tour, and Golf Monthly's reviewer went further, calling it one of the best putters they had used to date. Pricing reporting varies by outlet: Golf Monthly lists an MSRP of $469 with a customized price of $559, while Plugged In Golf lists $470 stock and $560 customized, a gap worth noting rather than resolving.

Not every note is uncomplicated praise. The Community's read on this release flags premium materials and feel alongside unusual aesthetics that may take some getting used to, a premium price tag, and a soft aluminum sound that won't suit every preference. Plugged In Golf's own description of the sound, an extremely quiet tick, sits comfortably with that reservation rather than against it. Where the standard Mezz.1 asked golfers to trust the zero-torque geometry in a more compact package, the Max is the version built explicitly to push forgiveness and MOI further, at the cost of size and, for some, of looking like anything they've putted with before.