Austin Smotherman earns first PGA Tour win with L.A.B. Golf’s new mallet

Austin Smotherman won the Bank of Utah Championship with L.A.B. Golf’s VZN.1i, the company’s newest mallet putter and the model’s first PGA Tour winner.

Released in June, the VZN.1i is L.A.B. Golf’s most forgiving design since the original Directed Force 2.1. Its defining feature is a set of strong visual cues intended to make alignment easier. The putter also has a newly shaped sole designed to give golfers more confidence that the face is aimed where they want it.

Smotherman has used L.A.B. putters since last season. He switched to the OZ.1 in June 2025 and used it to finish T2 at the Cognizant Classic in March 2026, shortly before formally signing as a company ambassador, becoming only the second professional to do so.

During the break between the Wyndham Championship and his first fall start at the Biltmore Championship Asheville, Smotherman visited L.A.B.’s Oregon headquarters for another putter fitting. He also said this was his first season working with putting coach Josh Gregory.

“I flew to Eugene, Oregon, to get fit at the L.A.B. studio and saw the headquarters where they produce every custom putter in the country—something like 1,200 putters a day. It’s wild,” Smotherman said Friday after matching his PGA Tour career low with a 62 in the second round. “I went through a full putter fitting and ended up with the putter I’m playing now. I played it the week before Asheville, and this is my second week using it in tournament play. So it’s working out pretty nicely.”

Smotherman gained more than 5.3 strokes putting through the first three rounds in Utah and finished 20th in the category as he secured his first PGA Tour victory.

Austin Smotherman’s L.A.B. Golf VZN.1i specifications:

• Length: 34.5 inches
• Lie: 69.5 degrees
• Alignment aid: Short line
• Insert: Flymill steel
• Shaft: L.A.B. Golf x TPT
• Grip: SuperStroke TLT