Author: Jack Waddell

Callaway and TaylorMade Giving Clubs Away

Summer now brings real deals on golf equipment. Two of the biggest makers are offering a buy one, get one free deal on drivers and fairway metals.

Once upon a time the product life cycle of a persimmon wood model might be as long as four or five years. No more. Now a driver or fairway wood model’s life is measured in months.

Callaway FT-3The downside is that it’s expensive to keep playing the latest and greatest. The upside is that you can quickly realize some terrific bargains on top-of-the-line equipment even as early in the season as June.

Callaway and TaylorMade both recently announced similar promotions that may be a real bargain if you’re in the market for a driver and fairway metal or hybrid. Here’s the scoop.

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Shaft Spining, Splining, and PUREing: Black Art or the Ultimate Tweak?

Working on the premise that no two shafts are created equal, a relatively new tuning method seeks to deliver consistent feel, flex and performance throughout a set of clubs.

Bag DropThere are many variables in a golf shaft. Some are designed and engineered by the manufacturer – stiffness, flex point, and weight. Other factors, however, become the province of aftermarket clubmakers and fitters who can adjust length, trim tips, and match frequency to suit your swing speed, tempo, and ball flight.

Over the last six or seven years, another way to tune shafts has emerged that proponents say best matches feel across a set, tightens shot dispersion patterns, and optimizes performance. Detractors, on the other hand, say it’s unnecessary and expensive. Most manufacturers say their shafts don’t need it.

Complicating the picture, it’s a practice that goes by several names and actually can be performed in a number of ways. In this week’s Bag Drop we’ll try to shed some light on shaft spining, splining, and PUREing.

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The Other Stuff In Your Bag

Like a Boy Scout, a serious golfer needs to be prepared. Here’s a look at some necessities and some nice-to-haves.

Bag DropAfter a couple decades of using nothing but a carry bag, I succumbed to the reality that I was riding more than walking. So I added a staff bag to my arsenal of equipment. It’s great. It’s much easier to pull and replace clubs and best of all it holds a ton of stuff. But I still use my Hoofer when I do walk, when I have a caddie, and when I’m playing in a competition (the staff bag just makes too much of a commercial statement in an amateur event to my way of thinking).

I quickly grew tired of transferring stuff back and forth between the bags so I resolved to stock each one independently. In the process I realized that my carry bag was not as lean and mean as it could have been. I also realized that the cart bag would allow me to hold some things that could occasionally come in quite handy. Here’s what I finally decided on…

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Promise Meets Reality: Michelle Wie Fails in Open Bid

She’s getting closer. But the 16-year-old prodigy still has some growing to do. I can’t wait till she gets there.

In what is sure to go down as one of the most over-reported, over-hyped, and over-analyzed golf events of the year, Michelle Wie faltered over the back nine of her second round at Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, NJ to finish five shots out of a playoff for a spot in the upcoming U.S. Open at Winged Foot.

That, of course, is the big story. But I had a chance to witness her attempt, watch some of my friends try to qualify, and came away with a different angle on the day.

Michelle Wie Sectional Wide

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Father’s Day Gifts for the Golfer Who has Everything

Father’s Day gift giving doesn’t have to be a chore if your dad’s a golfer. A little web surfing can produce some unique ideas.

Bag DropIn my family, the three U.S. majors all marked significant annual observances. The Masters fell around my dad’s birthday and the PGA Championship around mine. And, of course, every year the U.S. Open wound up on Father’s Day.

It was always fun trying to pick out a golf gift for my dad, even if it was a challenge to come up with something truly useful for a golfer who had everything. If that’s your predicament, here are some ideas to consider from a golfer who has everything and who’s probably old enough to be your father…

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Headcovers: Art Form, Fashion Statement, Personal Expression, or Unnecessary Evil?

Headcovers do more than keep your woods from scratching up and banging around. They tell the world a lot about yourself.

Bag DropFirst I have to make a couple confessions: I am a headcover freak. And, yes, I know headcovers are probably unnecessary, if not a hassle to deal with. But to me they are a fascinating anachronism that has lived on far longer than their necessity would dictate. Why is that? And where do you stand on one of the burning issues in the game today?

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Cobra’s Optica SL Putters: Star Wars on the Putting Green

With the introduction of its Optica SL putter, Cobra Golf hopes its future’s so bright you’ll have to wear shades.

Bag DropIt had to happen sooner or later. Golf design has advanced so far it has entered into the realm of science fiction. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda have apparently conspired with Cobra Golf to design a putter that is half golf club, half light saber. Armed with the new Cobra Optica SL putter, you’ll have to tell your foursome to stand back and watch out. You are a Jedi knight about to light it up on the putting green.

I’ve played golf an awful long time. And during that time I’ve seen some awfully strange putters. But Cobra’s latest design just proves no matter how long you hang around, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Where do I begin?

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Etonic: Regaining a Foothold In Golf

That Etonic is back in the golf shoe game in a big way can only be beneficial for many players. After all, if the shoe fits…

Bag DropFor decades, beginning in the 1950s, Etonic was the Avis of golf shoes to FootJoy’s Hertz. Both were based in Massachusetts, both sprung from that area’s strong heritage in shoe making, and both transitioned from street shoes to become golf shoe specialists. Together they dominated the market.

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Bobby Jones Golf: Everything Old Is New Again

In an era of increasingly strange looking high tech woods, Bobby Jones Golf and Jesse Ortiz are delivering the latest technology in a package that harkens to the sweet shape of persimmon.

Bag DropIn these days of marquee designers like Vokey, Cameron, Wishon, and Cleveland, it’s interesting to watch as their creations evolve to incorporate new technologies and materials. But perhaps the most extreme example of design evolution over time is that of a club maker whose work has spanned the transformation from wood to steel to exotic composites in drivers and fairway clubs. I had a chance this week to talk with Jesse Ortiz, try his new clubs, and see for myself the passion he brings to his craft and his role as vice president and chief designer for Bobby Jones Golf.

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