The Scotty Cameron brand carries genuine prestige, Tour presence, a devoted following and a price tag that demands results. But when two of its most prominent families go head-to-head in a real-world data set, which one delivers more made putts?
We dug into results from our 2026 putter test covering 29 mallets (18,524 putts) and 24 blades (15,333 putts) to find out how the Phantom 9, Phantom 5, SS Newport and SS Newport 2 stacked up.
Here is what the numbers tell us.
How We Test
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- Titleist Pro V1 golf balls are a key component in testing. Every shot hit in Most Wanted utilizes these golf balls. They have long been the gold standard in golf ball quality, and it is the only ball we trust to complete our Most Wanted testing.
- Foresight GC Quad – Foresight is the gold standard in camera-based launch monitor technology because it produces data we can rely on with every shot hit. For this test, our GC Quads captured 13,680 shots.
- The Indoor Golf Shop’s SIGPRO Premium – All of our testing is done indoors at our HQ in Yorktown, Va. With each test, our screens take an absolute beating. Thus, we need high-quality, durable impact screens to handle the workload. SIGPRO Premium exceeds our expectations.
- UNRL Apparel – The official staff apparel partner of MyGolfSpy, we rely on UNRL to keep staff comfortable and focused at providing the world-class testing.
The setup
The two Scotty Cameron families were tested in separate category pools but the same people were used as testers in both tests. The Phantom 9 and Phantom 5 competed against 27 other mallet designs. The SS Newport and SS Newport 2 went up against 22 other blade-style putters.
The core metrics we are working with:
- Puttview Handicap (PV HCP): how many strokes better than the field average. More negative is better.
- Make %: percentage of putts holed at each distance.
- Avg Miss: how far the ball finished from the hole on misses, in inches. Lower is better.
- Dir Dev (Directional Deviation): how far the ball strayed from the target line. Closer to zero is straighter.
Overall results: Phantom 9.2R leads the Scotty lineup
When you pull back and look at the full picture, the Phantom 9.2R is the standout performer across all four putters. It ranked ninth out of 29 mallets with a PV HCP of -4.8, sitting behind some genuinely strong competition in a deep mallet field.
The SS Newport 2 was the stronger blade performer at seventh of 24 blades with a PV HCP of -3.3, while the original Newport came in at 11th with -2.9.
The Phantom 5 landed at 18th among mallets with a PV HCP of -3.7.
One figure that jumps off the page is directional deviation. The Phantom 9.2R posted a Dir Dev of just -0.01, essentially perfect. The SS Newport came in at +0.90. It helps explain why the Phantom 9.2R performs so well from longer distances where even slight path errors compound into bigger misses.
Distance breakdown: Where the stories diverge
The distance breakdown tells an interesting story. From four feet, all four putters are competitive although the Phantom 5 is a notable underperformer at 78.1 percent, the weakest result of any of the four at that distance. At eight feet, there is little to separate any of them.
The mid-range is where the Newport 2 and Phantom 5 both shine, leading the group at 12 feet. And from 20 feet, the Phantoms pull clear, with both models making significantly more putts than either Newport at that distance. That’s where you start to see some of that blade versus mallet separation.
The miss story: Newports leave you closer
There is one area where the Newport family holds an edge. When the Newports miss, the ball stays closer to the hole. The SS Newport 2 averages a 16.4-inch miss and the Newport comes in at 16.7 inches overall. The Phantom 9.2R averages 18.1 inches and the Phantom 5 sits at 19.8 inches.
A shorter miss means a more manageable comeback putt and fewer three-putts sneaking onto the scorecard. The Phantoms drain more of the initial attempt especially from further away but when they do miss, the second putt is slightly longer.
Head-to-head: Phantom 9.2R versus SS Newport 2
The Phantom 9.2R carries the better raw PV HCP number at -4.8 versus -3.3 for the Newport 2. Its directional accuracy is in a different league, rolling at essentially dead straight compared to the Newport 2’s +0.76. And from 20 feet, it makes putts at a rate nearly a third higher than the Newport 2 (21.9 percent versus 16.4).
The Newport 2 counters with better 12-foot performance at 52.8 percent and tighter misses that average 16.4 inches compared to 18.1 for the Phantom 9.2R. It is also the putter with decades of refinement behind it, a shape that Tour players have trusted for years and a feel profile that many golfers find easier to read at address.
Which matters more depends on the golfer. For a player who struggles to get long putts close and regularly faces three-putt territory, the Phantom 9.2R’s distance performance is valuable. For a player whose lag putting is already solid and who wants to convert more mid-range putts, the Newport 2’s 12-foot numbers and tighter misses become the more relevant stats.
The verdict
The data points to the Phantom 9.2R as the strongest Scotty Cameron we tested in 2026.
But this is not a clean “mallets beat blades” story. The SS Newport 2 ranked seventh in a competitive blade field, held its own at 12 feet and leaves you with the shortest misses of any Scotty in the test. The Newport family still has real substance behind its reputation.
As with every category we look at, get fitted. Find out where you make the most putts and which shape gives you confidence over the ball. The data can point you in a direction but it cannot replace standing over a putt that matters.
I have had my old Newport long enough that this data has me curious. It might be time to try a Phantom 9.2R and see what happens. If I do, I will let you know.
The post Which Scotty Cameron Performed Better In 2026: The Phantoms Or the Newports? Here’s What The Data Says appeared first on MyGolfSpy.