Author: Guest Author

Nike Expands Sumo Line with Irons and Hybrids

Sumo technology has left the tee box. And I’m not sure yet if this is a good thing or not.

Bag DropAnyone that has ever started playing with an “intro” set of irons, or even Grandpa’s hand-me-downs, has explored game improvement to some extent. This area of golf technology has increased in popularity over the last several years, with some major leaps forward. With the advantages of increased forgiveness on mis-hits, greater control, distance, and consistency, it is hard not to be sucked in. While game improvement is a major area of focus for mid- to high-handicappers (like me), we are still not a pushover for these promises. To quote Luke Donald, “No matter how rich or powerful you are, you can’t buy yourself a good golf game.” While Luke Donald does not typify the golfing public, this notion still holds true for us regular folks as well.

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Cobra Introduces UFi irons

Cobra’s UFi irons are like dating Angelina Jolie. Easy on the eyes, but without the attitude when you come home late smelling like cigars and booze.

Bag Drop As winter quickly approaches, and as more and more golfers are constrained to the indoor putting greens and driving ranges, we all quickly develop a case of “equipment-itis.” I know I do. I start delving into the stack of catalogs leaning precariously under the coffee table. My random visits to eBay become more like daily rituals, and my cell phone beeps constantly with text messages alerting me to soon-ending auctions.

The latest release from Cobra could quite possibly become the topic of one of these text messages.

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Cleveland Introduces New CG14 Wedge

Hot on the heels of the CG12, the “better player’s” wedge, Cleveland is releasing the CG14 for the rest of us.

Bag DropThe wedge choices on the market today are enough to baffle even the most astute of short game wizards. Now, with new buzz words like “visco-elastic vibration-dampening material,” Cleveland Golf has come out with the CG14, the latest in its venerable “CG” line of wedges.

For the past 20 plus years, Cleveland has held the top spot in the wedge category. Thanks primarily to Titleist’s line of Vokey wedges – with assists by Callaway, TaylorMade, and weak sales of the CG11 – Cleveland’s market share was reduced by a few points in 2006. After a quick recovery, Cleveland continues to once again distance itself from the competition.

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Cobra Intros L4V Driver and TaylorMade Intros r7 CGB MAX Line

I think Cobra and TaylorMade are trying to make it easier to dial in your golf game than it is to find a Friday night keg party at a college campus.

Bag DropWhile you suckers in the northern states are preparing to put your clubs away for the winter, us lucky souls down south are simply trying to remember where we’ve put our long pants. After all, that’s all winter really means to us: pants instead of shorts when we golf.

Us southern boys also get the opportunity, unlike you Yanks, to try out the new equipment that is invariably released in September or October. This week, we’ve got news of lots of new gear from both Cobra and TaylorMade.

Don’t worry, my northern brothers, you’ll be playing this equipment in six or seven months!

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Nike to Introduce KARMA Golf Balls

A little karma goes a long way. Or at least that’s Nike’s claim.

Bag DropIf Nike’s new golf ball does what it boasts, it may just drive away some potential buyers. That’s because the new ball is named KARMA, so if you’re playing too slow, or don’t bother to tip the cart girl, you might just find yourself behind a tree, or fishing your balls out of the water. On the other hand, maybe this will become the golf ball with the best hole-in-one record. Or maybe it’ll just go in the hole more frequently for those who are about to ascend to another plane of existence…

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Colbert Putter Plating

Don’t relegate that old putter to the closet, have it refinished and put a
‘new’ gamer in your bag.

Colbert Putter Plating LogoI love putters. All shapes, sizes, lengths, and colors. Mostly I love putters that are different or unique.

My Scotty Cameron Newport putter is not a very unique putter since the Anser-style is the most copied putter design ever. My putter is – or I should say was – a very ugly one in need of a drastic restoration. I had to change it.

I could have sent my putter off to Scotty’s Custom Shop, but they only don’t offer very many finishes Enter Colbert Putter Plating, owned and operated by Kevin Colbert out of Blaine, Minnesota. Colbert Putter Plating came highly recommended from some acquaintances and other putter aficionados who, like me, were looking to give their putters a little TLC. Great thing about Colbert Putter Plating is that he can refurbish nearly every make and model out there, so it’s a great one-stop-shop for putters.

After visiting the Colbert Putter Plating website, my imagination quickly began to race with ideas of how to transform my ugly duckling into a sexy swan.

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Avalon Lakes (Warren, OH) Review

Avalon Lakes is typical Pete Dye, but set in the middle of Ohio. Renovated in 2001, the course shows plenty of Dye characteristics.

Avalon LakesAvalon Lakes Golf and Country Club is located in Warren, OH about 40 minutes southeast of Cleveland and 45 minutes northwest of Pittsburgh, PA. Avalon Lakes was created by Pete Dye in the late 1960s and is one of the esteemed architect’s earliest creations.

In the late 1990s, Dye came back to rework his diabolical magic. Avalon Lakes underwent massive renovations that cost somewhere between four and six million dollars. The change took the original course from a great Fowler’s Mill style Dye course into a modern-era Dye course: target golf along the lines of the famed TPC at Sawgrass.

Avalon Lakes is ranked 67th on Golf Digest’s list of Top 100 public courses. Avalon Lakes previously hosted the Giant Eagle LPGA event for four years. The final year – 2000 – was the only time the LPGA players competed on the redesigned course.

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Ping Introduces i10 Irons, G10 Series Woods, Irons, and Hybrids

The last time anyone released this many new clubs they were named “TaylorMade” and it had been two months since their last new product release.

Bag DropPing has long been one of the top club manufacturers of game-improvement clubs. Their latest innovations continue along this track as they plan to release two new sets of cavity-back irons, the G10 and i10, along with a new addition to the G-series of drivers with the G10 and G10 Draw Drivers. And that’s not all: Ping is also releasing new fairway woods and hybrids to accompany the drivers and irons.

Let’s take a look at Ping’s latest clubs.

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2007 U.S. Open Scores

How did Oakmont play? How penal was the rough? How tricky were the slick greens? Find out.

The Numbers GameWe all know how hard the U.S. Open is, and we knew how hard the it was going to be at Oakmont Country Club, but did it live up to expectations?

This week we’ll take a look at a few of the more interesting statistics from the 107th playing of the U.S. Open.

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