pga365.com

Got an email the other day about the opening of Vokey.com, a sub-site of Titleist selling the Brian Vokey-designed wedges.  As you may or may not know, Titleist also has a separate site for their Scotty Cameron line of putters.  This is pretty cool because any time you have a separate website for your putters (or whatever other equipment that is being offered) you know that it's there for a good reason, and that is to highlight the importance or exclusivity of said equipment.
The Vokey.com website tries to do what the Scotty Cameron website does, which is to highlight their products and explain why they are great, giving a little bit of history or design explanation from the creator(s) and some player testimonies...just not in as much detail.  As I was browsing the site I noticed a new wedge included in the Vokey lineup - the Vokey TVD 60.   

The TVD 60 will be released in a limited-edition batch of 600.  Limited-release stuff is gobbled up by club junkies and if the response to the limited release is anything as good as Cameron's limited release stuff, 600 wedges will end up selling in no time flat.  But somehow I don't think that Titleist is concerned as to whether or not they can move those 600 wedges...I know they can. 

The TVD 60 has, according to the site, a high-performance sole and sole relief.  The bounce surface (which is "crescent-shaped") is cambered to keep the club from bouncing but also has enough sole width and bounce angle to prevent digging.  There is heel, toe and trailing edge relief that is designed to keep the club's leading edge close to the ground from a variety of playing positions.  The wedges also inherit the machined grooves and face of the Spin Milled models. 

The price?  $250 according to the website.  But that price also includes some personalized stamping that you can have added such as a set of initials, your choice of shaft and grip.  But why pay $250 for a "custom" wedge that is actually stock, and differs only slightly from the Spin Milled version which is over $120 cheaper?  The only real difference I see is that the TVD has a sole grind (the other Vokeys do not) and more relief.  

I guess I'm just disappointed that the website didn't really have the content I was expecting.  The Vokey.com site was lauched primarily to highlight the TVD wedge but the site didn't go into explaining the wedge as well as I had hoped.  I know that this site is a work in progress; the Cameron website started that way and has grown into its own subculture, it seems.  I hope that more loft and bounce options will be available in the future.  Perhaps the creation of the site was meant to be a way to guage the amount of interest generated by the TVD?

I'm sure the TVD is a terrific piece of equipment but $250 seems a bit steep for a wedge, a tool that is actually disposable, at least in my opinion.  If you play many rounds and hit a lot of balls your wedges will eventually lose their bite - take a brand-new wedge out to a practice bunker and hit some balls and you'll realize that you're slowly wearing down the face of the club.  Maybe it's the exclusivity of the club that will attract people, but if you're looking versatile wedges with multiple loft and bounce options, companies Cleveland and Callaway will have your head spinning with a dizzying amount of choices.  With the addition of wedge master Roger Cleveland to the company lineup, Callaway now has 2 different grinds available (PM and C-Grind) in addition to their regular sole for the same price as any other wedge, and if true customization is the name of your game then you can have a Scratch or Chikara wedge completely tailored to your preference and swing style instead of an off-the-rack single-option Vokey TVD for the same price.

Or you can take a $120 Spin Milled to your nearest bench grinder and create your own. 

Posted by vaca22 at 03:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In 2004, TaylorMade released their r7 driver.  The driver was very unique because it was the first to feature movable/adjustable weights that golfers could configure to fit or enhance their swings.  Would something like that make sense for the average joe weekend player?  The answer to that question is 37.65% yes, and 62.35% no.  And yes, I spent hours* of exhausting research, testing and polling to come up with that precise number.

Since the introduction of the r7 and its subsequent variants, TaylorMade has been the #1 driver on tour for what seems to be an eternity, but if you stop and think about it, it makes sense as to why.  The r7, particularly the r7 Quad, is highly adjustable with 4 different weights that can be interchanged to alter ball flight.  More weight towards the heel promotes a draw, more towards the toe promotes a fade, and equal weighting means a relatively straight ball flight.  Since there are 4 slots for weights, you can also adjust the weighting for high fades, low draws, low fades, high draws...you get the picture.  A repeatable swing will allow you to fully take advantage of these adjustments...hence the 37.65% "yes", where "yes" represents touring pros, club professionals and so on.  The rest of us hackers (62.35%) can use it to correct our consistent slices and hooks, adjusting the weights just once and leaving it that way, or losing the wrench, whichever comes first.

Callaway's first adjustable weight offering wasn't even adjustable.  In 2005 they launched their FT-3 driver which came in 3 different flavors - Draw, Neutral and Fade.  Because the head of the FT-3 was mostly carbon-composite material, a total of about 45 grams of discretionary weight was then  internally reconfigured at the factory depending on what you wanted the ball to do.  The Draw model had more weight placed towards the heel and the Fade model had more towards the toe.  That eliminated the need for a wrench and extra weights. 

In 2006 Callaway introduced the Opti-Fit system, a brilliant way to interchange almost two dozen shafts with all the various driver heads, creating a huge combination of options for golfers that wanted to be professionally fitted and matched to the clubhead and shaft that gave them the best possible combination of launch angle, distance and roll.  With the introduction of the FT-5 and FT-i drivers, the Opti-Fit system looks like a science laboratory.  Lots of options for everyone. 

The Callaway Opti-Fit system is shown above.

The USGA approved a proposal to make a rule that adjustments to clubs during rounds would now be possible.  That change was approved and was effective for Jan 1, 2008.  This meant that club heads and shafts could be interchanged between rounds.   Now, I'm not quite sure how this might benefit even professionals, because I assume that all of their clubs are tweaked out to what works best for them and what fits the course, but we'll see how much they'll use these interchangeable components as the season progresses.  These interchangeable parts are not just for the professionals, either.

Enter Callaway i-Mix, Callaway's venture into the latest in club adjustability that will be available to the public.  If you want the benefits of this kind of adjustability, you'll need at least multiple heads or multiple shafts, plus the tool necessary to lock everything into place.  While it might not make a big splash with the public due to the increase in costs, the option to make these kinds of changes now exists.  To some club tinkerers this is truly a dream.  Nickent has also introduced it's own system of interchangeable components as well and I imagine that TaylorMade and other manufacturers will be quick to follow this trend if they haven't already. 

Golf technology continues to evolve and push existing limits.  It'll be interesting to see what these companies can introduce in the future - first came adjustable weighting, and then club geometry (see Nike's SuMo or Callaway's FT-i).  Now comes club component adjustability.  I don't know what is left to do, but something tells me that even club FACES will soon be interchangeable.  Call me crazy, but it's the next logical thing.

* (a few seconds)

Callaway's i-Mix system is shown above.

Nickent's adjustable Evolver driver.

Posted by vaca22 at 01:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Really mad.

On December 14th, 2007, Callaway Golf won a patent infringement suit against Acushnet, the maker of the renowned Titleist Pro V1 line of golf balls. Does this kind of stuff ever happen between two of the largest names in golf? Generally companies of this magnitude go after makers of knock-off clubs and bogus balls and settle quietly out of court. In this case, jurors found Acushnet guilty of infringement on 4 of 5 (I've also heard 8 out of 9) of Callaway's golf ball patents. I thought that was pretty interesting considering how long Titleist has been in the business of making balls. You can read a little more about that in our Golf Equipment forum. At the time I really wasn't sure what this meant for either company...until today.

While randomly surfing some days ago I came across amazing information thanks to Dave Dawsey, otherwise known as "The IP Golf Guy". Callaway golf has filed a motion for a permanent injunction. That's fancy legal-speak for seeking to totally halt the production, sale and distribution of the Pro V1. The motion itself is a challenging read, but the information contained within is incredibly intriguing, and Callaway makes a very compelling case for itself. The link to the redacted brief is here:

http://golf-patents.com/files/22847-21779/20080116_callaway_motion_for_injunction___redacted_version_of_brief_in_support.pdf

In the brief, Callaway states many interesting things. According to the brief, Callaway Golf spent hundreds of millions of dollars to develop its own golf ball business from the ground up. The result was the Callaway Rule 35 golf ball, which according to the company was a great success in the market and played by many elite professional golfers. They claim that the success of the ball was undercut by Acushnet with the release of their infringing Pro V1 line of balls. Apparently tour players gave back troubling input regarding Acushnet (Titleist) and threatened to switch from their wound balls to something else. This happened after Acushnet studied the Rule 35 and other similar balls. The response to negative feedback was the release of the Pro V1, and what this did was it enabled Acushnet to retain the huge amount of players signed under contract with Titleist and "dilute the competitive advantages of competitive balls that might have otherwise induced Titleist users to switch." Callaway recognizes that "while an injunction cannot change history…an injunction will give Callaway Golf a meaningful opportunity to secure a share of the market of the sort it would have had, and should have had, absent Acushnet's infringement."

Check out these two portions of Callaway's proposed order:

"Acushnet’s professional golfers currently under contract are permitted to play ProV1 products through the end of the 2008 calendar year. However, in addition to the notice required below in paragraph 4, Acushnet shall notify in writing all professional golfers affiliated with Acushnet that ProV1 products will no longer be available after December 31, 2008."

"Distributors and retailers of Acushnet’s products, and Acushnet customers may dispose of remaining ProV1 product inventory in their physical possession by sale or otherwise, but Acushnet shall not further supply any distributors, retailers and/or customers with ProV1 products as of the date of this Order."

Oh boy.

Callaway then systematically begins to outline and highlight how Acushnet's use of Callaway's patents-in-suit have caused the company damage by using Acushnet's own graphs, charts, and statements made in the previous patent suit that was decided on December 14th. In a press release issued shortly after the suit was filed, Callaway states that Acushnet tried to "create the impression that it had developed the Pro V1 before the filing of the patents in suit." The statement issued by Acushnet says, "Acushnet received it's first patent covering this technology on March 3, 1999. The oldest of the Callaway patents being asserted was not filed until December 12, 1999 and issued on March 15, 2001." Continuing on with the brief, Callaway states, "This statement (Acushnet's) creates the impression that the Pro V1 and the first Acushnet patent covering it came before the Sullivan (Callaway) inventions protected by the patents-in-suit - an assertion that Acushnet knows to be false. Acushnet never disputed that the patents-in-suit had effective filing dates no later than 1995 and, both in the pretrial order and during trial, conceded that the effective filing date for Callaway Golf's patent applications was 1995 - long before the 1997 filing date for the first Acushnet patent relating to the Pro V1."

The brief states that Acushnet continued to publicize this misleading statement in other public statements made after the trial. Reading the table of contents alone will give you an idea as to how solid of an argument Callaway makes:

• The infringing Pro V1 continues to Callaway Golf of marketing opportunities, intangible benefits, and sales of golf-related products
• Acushnet's other tactics irreparably harm Callaway Golf's image and reputation.
• The patented technology substantially encompasses the Pro V1, rather than being merely a minor component of the infringing product.

As if all of this weren't enough, Callaway even goes on to explain how the public interest will not be harmed by a permanent injunction by saying that the removal of the Pro V1 "will in no way deprive the public…of the convenience of a ready supply of high performance golf balls, or even three-piece urethane-over-ionomer golf balls. Once the Pro V1 is enjoined, there is nothing to suggest that the standard market forces along with the collective efforts of Callaway Golf and other manufacturers of premium polyurethane-covered multi-layered golf balls such as Bridgestone, Srixon, TaylorMade and Nike would be unable to fulfill the demand previously met by the infringing Titlist balls."

Yes, you read that correctly…Callaway just mentioned the names of competitors that could gain more market share than they currently have if the Pro V1 didn't exist. If you think Bridgestone, Srixon, TaylorMade and Nike don't or wouldn't agree, you may just be nuts.  This is just the beginning of some very interesting things in the world of golf.

Posted by vaca22 at 01:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The first installment of my Hot List review featured mostly drivers and irons.  Just as important as the clubs that get you off the tee are the clubs that get you closer to the hole...hybrids, wedges and putters.  Here are a few more tools to keep your game sharp this year...

Hybrids -  If you don't already have one of these clubs in your bag, you're throwing away strokes.  Hybrids are easy to hit and come in such a huge variety of lofts you  can replace anything between a 3-wood to a 5-iron.  They're reasonably priced as well, for the most part.   Ping's new G10 comes in 6 different lofts and have a couple of great shafts as standard choices (Graffaloy's ProLaunch Red and UST V2 High Launch).  Nickent's 4DX Ironwood replaces the tried but true 3DX, a wildly popular choice of club on all tours.  The Nickent has a dizzying choice of lofts (11) and a very traditional look that's hard to dislike with a sharp metalic sound off the face.

Ping's new G10 hybrid and Nickent's 4DX Ironwood.

Wedges -  I've already mentioned one of the standards of wedges in my previous entry, the Cleveland CG12/CG14, but now it's time to mention the other standard - the Titleist Vokey Design Spin Milled.  With two different finishes to choose from (Tour Chrome or Oil Can) and plenty of loft and bounce options, the Vokey Spin Milled wedges are also butter soft thanks to a 8620 mild carbon steel head.  The milled grooves are no joke - the club has 30% more groove volume than previous wedges for more spin out of the rough or wet lies.  As if the deeper grooves weren't enough, the entire face is also milled and grooved.  A hard hack with this club and you'll easily scuff a softer tour-level ball.

Titleist's Vokey Design Spin Milled wedges, in Tour Chrome and Oil Can finishes.

Putters - You may think a putter is just a putter, but that is no longer true.  There are essentially two types of putters - blade putters and mallet putters.  I remember being the first kid I knew to play a mallet putter, the Ram Zebra.  I also remember being made fun of because it looked so goofy, but I loved the way it set up and rolled the ball.  Because their designs are so unique now, I'll opt out of discussing blade putters and stick with the mallets because a lot of different technology is now being incorporated into these. 

When Odyssey's 2-Ball came out, it was seen as a radical departure from normal putter design.  People grew to love it, and the 2-Ball subsequently became one of the best selling putters of all time.  The 2-Ball then evolved and incorporated different inserts (milled steel and elastomer), and then the 2-Ball SRT was born.  That's a big mallet putter; it's Saturn Ring Technology increased the MOI for stability through the swing by using high density alloy rings that connected the front heel and toe sides to the back of the putter.  But topping the 2-Ball SRT was the Tri-Ball SRT, a huge mallet putter that extended even further out from the back. 

Odyssey is again testing the boundaries of putter design with the new Sabertooth, a futuristic-looking mallet that looks more like Middle Age melee weapon.  Odyssey claims the putter has the highest MOI in their line of putters and "fangs" that place about 37% of the putter's weight in the outermost perimiter, a design that is created to resist any kind of twisting at impact.   TaylorMade offers the Tourismo putter, another mallet putter that has a smaller look than most new mallets and adjustable weights that you can configure to your preferences.  The Tourismo also features polymer-filled grooves in the face that improve roll; many people that have tried this putter love the way the ball comes off the face, claiming a true and smooth roll.  Perhaps the most outrageous mallet putter out on the market now is TaylorMade's Spider.   I won't even say anything about this one, you can just look at the picture and decide for yourself.

Odyssey's new White Hot XG Sabertooth. 

TaylorMade's Tourismo (top) and Spider mallet putters (Spider picture courtesty of GolfDigest.com)

Posted by vaca22 at 03:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Nice!  For some reason I wasn't expecting the Golf Digest's 2008 Hot List to be out so soon, but it's out NOW, and that's a great thing.  I've been reading equipment review lists and articles since day 1 and I can't believe how much keeps changing.  Unless you're just a beginner and you're playing around with your dad's ancient set of clubs, or if you just never play often at all, you should really take advantage of all the technology and custom fitting that is available.  At the very least, have your irons bent to the correct lie angle of your swing.  It's very inexpensive and doesn't take long at all at the golf shop.  Having your lie angles adjusted will make a huge difference in your game. 

That being said, let's check out what's cool...

After quickly flipping through, I've noticed that not only have the clubs gotten more technologically advanced, but they even look fantastic.  A lot of irons look good to the point that you'd be kind of hesitant to get them dirty if you had bought them brand-new.  Companies such as Cleveland and Nike have started to incorporate soft inserts that dampen feel and improve weighting, as illustrated below.  The result are clubs that not only look great but feel great too.

 Nike's new SQ Sumo2 and Cleveland's new CG Red irons.

There is so much new stuff that if I write about it all this blog entry would be 5 pages long, so I'll sum up what I think are some of the best new/revised pieces of equipment that will make a splash in '08.

Callaway Golf - Callaway keeps it's FT-5 and FT-i model drivers but replaces the successful X460 driver with the Hyper X driver.  The Hyper X has the largest hitting area of any of Callaway's all-titanium drivers an incorporates a face thickness section in the shape of an "X" to improve the spring-like effect across the larger hitting area.  Also new for '08 are the FT Fairway woods, and the popular X-Fairway gets a redesign with a modified X sole for better leading edge contact.  Although it wasn't in the Hot List, Callaway is also unleasing the FT-i Squareway Wood for spring.  It is the same concept as Callaway's square FT-i driver...but for FAIRWAYS!  Not sure how a square fairway wood wouldn't look totally bizzare on the fairway.  The Big Bertha irons are also new and feature wide sole, hybrid-like irons for the 3-, 4- and 5-irons before making the transition to a more conventional shape and constant-width soles.

Callaway's new Hyper X driver and Big Bertha irons. 

Nike Golf - Nike has revamped its infamous SQ Sumo2 and created the SQ Sumo2 5900.  The difference between old and new versions is that the new 5900 has an updated and lighter multithickness face, and they've taken that saved weight and distributed it to the very corners of the club, creating extreme stability on heel-and-toe hits.  The club is said to have a more muted sound that it's predecessor.  If you've never heard the original SQ Sumo2 being hit, it sounded like hitting a marble with a plank of oak...plus it was LOUD.  The SQ Sumo2 hybrid-irons (first pictured) incorporated Nike's Powerbow technology to increase perimiter weighting for more forgiveness.  The Nike Slingshot 4D are essentially the replacement to the Slingshot OSS irons that feature a progressively positioned "slingback" and variable sole widths.

Nike's Slingshot 4D irons.

Cleveland Golf -  Cleveland's model cycles seem to come a bit earlier in the year than most other manufacturers', as their CG line of irons has already been on the market for a few months, but brand new for the company (which was recently acquired by the parent company of Srixon) is the release of CG14 wedges, which feature a visco-elastic-polymer insert to dampen vibration and a slight offset that accommodates a forceful swing through turf.  For a boatload of loft/bounce options, check out the CG12 wedges which are essentially the same except for the absence of the dampener. Cleveland's Zip Grooves are featured on both models, which create extra spin from any lie.

 Cleveland's CG14 wedge (shown with Black Pearl finish).

There is so much more to mention that I might have to do a second installment to include everything else.  Pick up the latest issue to get the lowdown on all the new gear (I would say that EVERY manufacturer has something new to offer).  Once you see something you like, head on down to your local store and spend some quality time with the new gear.  There's bound to be something for everyone, for any budget.

Posted by vaca22 at 11:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

It looks as if Nike will be ringing in the new year in style with their new golf shoe offerings for 2008.

 As has been the case for the past several years, Nike will be releasing new versions of their Tiger Woods line of shoes, the Air Tour TW 8.5.  These were first seen being worn by Tiger during the President's Cup tournament this past September and are now on sale (for a mere $199.99 mind you), shown below in the white/black combination.  Also available are black/black and white/red color combinations.  The shoe will feature a full-length Poron sockliner and Nike's TPU Nike Power Platform Outsole that maximizes ground contact throughout the swing.

 Also available now are the less expensive (but equally as sharp) Air Zoom Elites.  The Air Zoom Elite will retail for $129.99 and comes in four different color combinations: white/metallic silver/black, white/metalic silver (shown below), black/metalic silver, and white/sport red/dark cinder. 

 Although the look and feel of Nikes aren't for everyone, if these shoes are anything like the previous versions such as SP-7.5 TW and SP-6, they will be wildly comfortable and supportive.  Nike golf shoes tend to be a little narrower than their sneakers but the snug feeling of these shoes are exactly what you need when you're negotiating hills and other unstable or uneven surfaces.

Posted by vaca22 at 03:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)