Mirror Review
July 29, 2025
Summary:
- A majority stake in L.A.B. Golf has been acquired by L Catterton, a private-equity firm backed by the luxury goods conglomerate LVMH.
- The deal values the putter company at over $200 million.
- The acquisition follows a surge in the company’s popularity and sales, significantly boosted by J.J. Spaun’s 2025 U.S. Open victory using a L.A.B. Golf putter.
How does a golf company selling odd-looking putters suddenly get valued at over $200 million?
That’s the story of L.A.B. Golf, a brand that’s changing the way the world sees “putting”.
From Lie Angle Balance technology to celebrity tour wins and a luxury-backed buyout, these L.A.B. Golf facts reveal how a once-niche idea became one of the game’s most disruptive innovations.
But First, What Is Putting?
In simple terms, putting is the final stage of playing a golf hole. It’s when the golfer rolls the ball on the green using a special club called a “putter” to gently get it into the cup.
Why does it matter so much? Because putting directly affects scores, demands extreme precision, and challenges even the best golfers. In fact, face angle at impact decides over 80% of a putt’s direction—meaning even small errors can make or break a round.
Here are 10 Interesting L.A.B. Golf Facts: The Game-Changing Putter Brand
1. The Core Philosophy: Your Putter is Working Against You
L.A.B. Golf was founded on a simple but powerful idea: traditional putters are fundamentally flawed and work against the golfer.
The company argues that while golfers often blame themselves for missing putts, the real issue is often the putter’s design.
Their mission is to simplify what they see as the most challenging part of the game.
2. The Science is in the Name: L.A.B. Golf
The name “L.A.B.” is an abbreviation for “Lie Angle Balance”.
This refers to the company’s patented technology that eliminates torque and the need to manipulate the putter face during the stroke.
Lie Angle Balance technology is designed to keep the putter face square to the putting arc effortlessly.
The goal is to make putting as simple as choosing the right line and speed, then making a natural stroke.
3. The “Immortal Moment” That Changed Everything
The company’s biggest breakthrough came in June 2025, when professional golfer J.J. Spaun won the U.S. Open.
Spaun sealed his victory by sinking a dramatic 64-foot putt on the final hole at Oakmont using a DF3 L.A.B. putter.
CEO Sam Hahn called it an “immortal moment” that validated their unique technology and put the company on the map.
4. Explosive Growth from Being Unknown
The brand’s rise has been wild.
In the seven years since current CEO Sam Hahn took over in 2018, the company’s sales have grown by an astounding 18,000 percent.
Following the U.S. Open victory, demand has surged even more.
After selling around 130,000 LAB putters in 2024, the company is projected to potentially triple that number in 2025.
This growth isn’t just commercial; it’s also proven in professional competition.
L.A.B. Golf putters have secured wins across many of the top-level tours, including:
PGA Tour, Korn Ferry Tour, PGA Tour Americas, Liv Golf, Challenge Tour, PGA Tour Champions, DP World Tour, EPSON Tour, and LPGA.
5. The CEO is a Former Music Promoter
The man leading this explosive growth, Sam Hahn, isn’t a golf industry lifer.
He was a music promoter and bar owner who simply fell in love with one of the company’s original putters.
He took over the struggling brand from its founder in 2018 after buying out the original investors and is expected to remain CEO under the new ownership.
6. The Details Behind Their Best-Selling Putter
Ever since L.A.B. Golf launched its first putter, the ‘Directed Force’, golfers have asked for a less “weird” looking version.
The DF3 is the company’s answer.
While it has a more traditional shape, the DF3 maintains the technology that fans love: it stays square by itself through the stroke and is exceptionally forgiving on mishits.
Each putter head is entirely CNC milled in the U.S.A. from 6061 aluminum.
To achieve the precise Lie Angle Balance, eight steel or tungsten screws of varying densities are installed in the sole.
Finally, each putter is hand-balanced at the L.A.B. Golf factory in Creswell, Oregon.
7. L.A.B. Golf Hold Multiple U.S. Patents
The technology behind L.A.B. Golf putters is protected by 3 U.S. patents.
These include patents for a “Self-balancing putter” and a “Self-balancing golf club with rearward leaning shaft“.
The core innovation described in the patents is a design where the shaft’s center axis converges with a balance point, which makes the clubface naturally seek a square position at impact.
8. You Can Get Fitted From Your Living Room
To ensure their technology works for everyone, L.A.B. Golf offers a unique remote fitting process that is fast, easy, and can be done from home.
A customer just needs to record a short video of their putting stroke with a comfortable putter and send it to the company.
9. A Historic Acquisition in the Golf World
The L Catterton acquisition, valuing L.A.B. Golf at over $200 million, is one of the largest for a putter brand.
For context, it surpasses the notable 1997 deal when Callaway purchased the Odyssey brand for $130 million in cash.
Company founder Bill Presse has publicly expressed his happiness with the acquisition.
On social media, he wrote, “Yes, we sold the majority shares of Lab. From start to finish, my dreams have all been realized… The new owners are incredible”.
He also noted that he remains a shareholder in the new company and hopes to stay involved.
10. The New L.A.B. Golf Owners Are Titans of Luxury
The new majority owner, L Catterton, is a private equity firm backed by LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton)
LVMH is a French conglomerate that owns dozens of the world’s most recognizable high-end brands, including Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Tiffany & Co., and Tag Heuer.
This acquisition is a huge entry into the golf equipment space for the luxury-focused investors.
The Future of L.A.B. Golf
The story of L.A.B. Golf isn’t just about fancy putters; it’s about how precision engineering, bold thinking, and a perfectly timed U.S. Open moment turned a quiet brand into a global contender.
With L Catterton and LVMH now behind it, L.A.B. Golf is set to transition from a niche company to a major player in the global golf market.
In conclusion, these L.A.B. Golf facts remind us that even in a tradition-heavy sport like golf, smart ideas can rewrite the rules and the scoreboard, too!
