Edwin Watts...Say What?

I was at my local Edwin Watts shop on Saturday wanting to get some ideas on a shaft change for my Adams BUL5000 driver. I have another thread here where I talked about it being a bit too long and the flex far weaker than expected.

Anyway, the guy that usually does there launch monitor work was not at work, so they could not do that (which was fine with me, since I have just started back and don't have much swing to judge by right now anyway). But one of the salesmen says to me that, given the fact that I am such a big guy, he is sure I will need a stiff shaft. Not that he is wrong, but I thought swing speed, not body size decides that...I mean I am sure Camillo Villegas plays an X-stiff and he weighs all of what...90 pounds?

So the guy is going to sell me on getting an Aldila NV65S, which is a good shaft I guess...for $115 plus $25 to install. Now, I am sure Golfsmith already has a decent margin on their shafts as well, and they are selling that same shaft for $68. To be able to buy local and such, I understand, may demand you pay a bit of a premium...but not that much.

Next, the part that I really did not like, the guy then says something to the effect that he does not know why I would bother reshafting that driver. I look at him quizzically, and he says, very serious here, that golf club technology is so good right now that if you are not buying a new club every 6 months to a year, you are falling way behind everyone out there that you might be playing with. That last year and the prior year's equipment are basically not even worth bothering with, and I am really handicapping myself if I do not keep all my gear current. Now, I understand that this guy is there to sell gear, but I have to strongly disagree with his whole line of thinking. I would say that, in fact, the technology has gotten so good over the last several years that there are few improvements left to be made from what was available last year and the year before, and what difference there are would not be so noticable to a hack like me. If I were inquiring about reshafting an original Big Bertha driver, I would understand his point, but the club I am looking at got some very good reviews not too long ago.



Am I just way off base here or was that guy a total jerk?

The guy's an idiot, and the only reason to shop local is for the "expert" advice and supporting the community.

I guess using that logic, I should throw out my 7 year old 975J which I routinely hit past my playing partners using their massive 460 this and 460 that.

Don't waste your time, and if you are really curious, see a proper club fitter that uses a launch monitor to get you the proper shaft for your driver. I had my driver fit by Titleist using their Launch Monitor, and it was one of the best things I ever did for my golf game.

Sounds like he was more concerned about his commission than giving good advice. I would go somewhere else or get some unbiased advice from someone at your course.

Bad advice. What is best for you is what works. Simple as that.

And as many here will attest, newer is not always "better", it's just newer. There is a lot of promotion that goes into making the general public feel that way. This is a low margin business, that requires a lot of volume to make money. I am guessing the information he was giving you was better for him than for you.

I bet Aldila would have a slightly different opinion as well...

My favorite Edwin Watts story.....

I walk in with an R-7 driver that had been donated by Edwin Watts for a charity event. I won it in a putting contest......proof positive that even a blind squirrel can find an acorn at least once in awhile. I asked to exchange the 10.5* driver for a 9.5*. The rocket scientist that is "helping" me looks at me and asks "Why do you want to do that? That 10.5* driver is perfect for you!"

.....you just can't make stuff like that up!

was this the edwin watts over in huntsville, AL??

do they get paid on commission?

wow, i guess i need to trade in my 6 year old irons that i can score with for some new ones that i cant

Nope. Shreveport, La. I miss Bama though.

Yep. You and all the folks playing Ping Eye2's and other classics are really killing your game according to this guy.

The guy was way off base, at least for your situation. Like you mentioned, if you have something really old, you might want to think about getting something new. I am in the same opinion as 'iceman', I use a driver that is 5-6 years old. I will continue to use it until I find something that I can hit better. I bought into the 'keeping up with the times' theory before, but it didn't do me any good. I always go back to the old reliable.

In an area the size of Shrevport, there should be other options for you to get the work done that you want. Check the phone book or ask around for a local clubmaker and see what they say.

I'd say think again. There are very few "salesmen" that are not on some type of incentive program (be it commision, points, etc...) At the very least they are ranked/scored by their sales totals. A lot of pressure can be placed upon even "non-commison" salesmen.

The OP ran into a salesman trying to make money vs. helping a customer, plain and simple. Sometimes though, I think we expect too much of salespeople. How much do you think the typical saleperson in a golf shop makes? Not enough so that kids are saying "I'm going to college so I can work as a salesperson in a golf shop." Given the pay scale, it really isn't reasonable to expect them to be experts on every aspect of golf clubs (although given the price of clubs they should be.) A year ago I was looking for a video camera, and the store "expert" was explaining to me that what I wanted to do was impossible with a DVD camcorder, and that I needed to purchase one with a hard drive. Since I had already been doing it with a DVD camcorder borrowed from a friend (which is why I wanted to purchase this one, I knew it worked for my purpose from experience) I told her so. Her response: "I was TOLD you can't do that." The days when you could count on a salesman to be an expert (even in a high priced area like electronics or glof clubs) are long gone. You need to come prepared, or risk making an expensive mistake.

He's very opinionated for a salesman. I don't think there is much evidence to support his statement.

I was thinking the same thing while reading the original post. I have a couple of good Edwin Watts stories myself(the reason I started regripping my clubs). The last time I was there, one of the salesman actually laughed at my Steelhead 3 and 5 woods. He made some remark about how I was too young to be playing ancient equipment like that. That was why I was so pleased to have a Golf Etc. locally, but now they are closing/going out of business.

I disagree. In my area, employees at stores like Best Buy, Golfsmith, Dicks Sporting Goods, etc. don't get paid on commission anymore.

Generally, larger people can swing the club faster. Leverage helps (long arms). Cosidering he's not an "expert," it makes sense why he said this.

$115 + $25 for installation for an NV? They're under $70 everywhere else. I would have walked out right there.

The salesman kind of does have a point about technology advancing. Golf (and all technology) progresses at an alarming rate. By the time you get your brand new computer working, it's outdated. By the time you by your new driver, there's going to be something that could be better in a few months. Not necessarily will be better, but could be better. I would go so far to say that there is a "perfect" combination of shaft and head for every player. I also think that technology does bring about better clubs. And as the heads and shafts get better (because of R&D;), the "perfect" combination changes. I'm not sure how much better it would be (probably not noticable), but it could and maybe should be better. I like my driver right now (TM SuperQuad) and have no intention of changing the head. (I may change the shaft to one that fits me better.) I think the OP brought up a great point that driver technology may be so good that the only innovations in drivers are very small. I'm not sure how true it is, but it sounds good. There are limits on drivers (COR, MOI, volume, etc.) that do put a cap on technology, so his theory may be true. If the driver works for you, why change it unless you find a better replacement? If you don't feel comfortable with the combination, it's not the salesman who has to hit the drive on 18 to win...you do.

Terrible golf advice. Decent sales ploy.
That crap might work on the next guy.