Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser Putter Review

The Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser putter harnesses artificial intelligence to deliver greater distance control, in a bid to reduce your three-putt percentage. But does its additional stability deliver?

Odyssey are behind some of the best putters in the game, and they have some of the best putters in the game playing with their flat sticks – hardly surprising considering Odyssey are the No.1 putters on Tour. You’ll find golfers such as Jon Rahm, Rose Zhang, and Min Woo Lee with one of the best Odyssey putters in their bags. Also, Wyndham Clark won the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am with the Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser putter in his bag. During the third and final round, Clark only had 23 putts en route to an impressive course-record 60.

The Ai-One Cruiser putter range has been launched alongside the Ai-One and Ai-One Milled putter ranges. All three ranges have been designed with the assistance of AI, and they are the first flat sticks to feature an AI-designed putter face.

Callaway (who owns Odyssey) don’t only rely on AI to develop optimized putter faces. The company harnesses the power of AI to help them manufacture the best drivers, fairway woods, hybrids, and irons. This has led Callaway to deliver the Paradym Ai-Smoke range.

Odyssey have specifically designed their Ai-One Cruiser putters to counteract imperfect impacts. Most putters, when hit off-center deliver a loss in ball speed, which leads to putts stalling short of the hole, but that won’t happen with an Ai-One Cruiser in hand. It’s well-known that even the best players like Xander Schauffele and Minjee Lee can miss-hit putts by up to 3mm from the center of the face, so having a putter that produces a solid roll from across the face is invaluable.

Everything you need to know about Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser putter

Ai-One Milled or Ai-One Crusier?

Odyssey is all about offering every golfer their perfect putter solution. To ensure this, there’s a wide range of Ai-One models across the three different ranges.

The Ai-One Cruiser models consist of three of the brand’s most popular tour-proven head shapes. Each model features Odyssey’s Ai-One insert with an aluminum backer and White Hot urethane striking surface which promotes feel and consistent ball speeds across the face.

Avid putter fans will know that counter-balanced putters are trending right now. Both Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman won majors in 2023 while using counter-balanced putters. The heavier head-weighted Ai-One Cruiser family will cater to golfers looking to explore counter-balancing, armlock, and broom handle designs.

Odyssey knows that there’s a whole band of golfers who prefer the feel and feedback of a premium CNC milled putter, so there’s also a very precisely made CNC machined Ai-One Milled family too. There are eight head shapes and hosels to choose from. These models come with AI-designed titanium face inserts, each with a uniquely contoured back surface, which Odyssey says gives the pure feel milled putter fans expect.

How much difference will an AI putter face make?

Odyssey knew they were onto something special with AI but they wanted a figure to prove just how much better the tech was compared to the competition. So, they robot tested from 15 different spots across the face and discovered their super-computer-designed faces hit putts 21% closer to the intended target than any traditional putter tested.

Admittedly center-hit performance remains the same as any other putter, but most golfers do not hit putts from the center that often. So I’d say to view the Ai-One models as having larger, more effective sweet spot sizes (with the Ai-One being slightly more forgiving than the Ai-One Milled), meaning putts from a larger portion of the face travel the same distance, which ups consistency and reduces your three-putt percentage.

What’s the real-world benefit?

With AI being Odyssey’s flagship new tech, the brand obviously wanted star player Jon Rahm to be an early adopter. So, the brand put in some serious hard work to study his stats in a bid to convince the Spaniard AI could help. And their findings are mind-blowing. 

Bearing in mind the 21% accuracy improvement the company believed they could reduce Rahm’s 23 three-putts for the season (2023 prior to the Tour Championship), immediately to 12. Part of the thinking at least came down to how Rahm sees longer-range putting being about speed control, rather than just trying to hole more putts more often.

The numbers might only equate to an improvement of 0.2 in strokes gained when putting, but such a rise would see the Masters champ jump from 23rd to 9^th for his on-green performance. In terms of cold hard cash that’s a move that would have seen Rahm earn an additional $2.5 million in 2023.

Needless to say, Rahmbo was so impressed an Ai-One Rossie putter went straight into his bag the week before the Ryder Cup.   

What does the heavy, counter-balanced Cruiser family bring to the table?

Counter-balancing is not a new idea to golf, it’s been around for years, but 2023 saw a real resurgence of the concept amongst top tour players. Rickie Fowler and Keegan Bradley both won on the PGA Tour using counter-balanced Jailbird putters in 2023 (the Rocket Mortgage Classic and Travelers Championship respectively), which has led to several leading putter brands trying their hand at counter-balanced putters again in 2024.

The theory is that heavier head weights and more mass positioned inside the shaft and above the hands give greater stability. As the putter weighs more it also means you’ll need to use your bigger shoulder muscles to swing the putter effectively, which is a really good way to eliminate the inconsistencies of flicking at putts with the wrists. I really like the concept so long as you are happy with the longer shaft length (which can get tangled in clothing if you are shorter) and you feel you can confidently control the pace of putts from distance, which can be more challenging with heavier head putters.

True blue

Putters are seriously personal pieces of equipment, hence why the Ai-One range features 27 different models across three different families. All models come with a deep, rich navy blue PVD finish which is both durable and attractive. Expect a look that won’t offend or jar any golfer’s eye.

Each Ai-One putter also has an automotive-grade polymer window either in the sole or cavity back to showcase just how lumpy and bumpy the AI-designed face is. Two front sole weights let golfers tailor head weight by 5g, 10g, 15g, or 20g, so each can be dialed into the exact set-up you desire. 

Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser

RRP: $349.99 / £339.00

	Loft	Length	Lie	Head Weight	Toe Hang
Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser	3°	38″	70°	380g	0°

The Jailbird has re-emerged as a firm tour favorite over the last 12 months thanks primarily to Rickie Fowler regaining form using the model, and Wyndham Clark wielding a Versa Jailbird when lifting the US Open in June 2023.

This and the smaller Jailbird Mini, within the standard Ai-One family are the only two models to feature the blue, white, blue Versa color scheme that is great for highlighting aim.

The Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser putter looks fantastic, but arguably it’s the headcover that steals the show. The navy blue headcover features what looks like an actual jailbird with a vibrant orange beak and the Odyssey logo has been cleverly used for the eyes of the jailbird. I would purchase this putter for the headcover alone – the incredible putter underneath is a massive bonus!

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About the author

James Hogg – Golf Equipment Writer

James has a degree in English Language from Newcastle University and an MA in Journalism from Kingston University.

He spent seven years working for American Golf as part of the sales and fitting team alongside his studies and is a specialist in putters, golf balls, and apparel.

James took up golf as a teenager and, thanks largely to his length and consistency off the tee, he plays off a handicap of 4.7 at Cleveland Golf Club.

You can contact James via email for loads more golf equipment insight.

Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser Putter

RRP: $349.99 | VIEW US OFFER | £339.00 | VIEW UK OFFER

Loft: 3°

Length: 38"

Lie: 70°

Head Weight: 380g

Toe Hang: 0°

Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser Putter