Over 120,000 Counterfeit Golf Products Seized In Multi-City Raids In China

[nevets88]

I don't know much about how counterfeit clubs are made. Do they steal the mold from Titleist or do they make their own and try and copy it as close as possible? It's not just clubs. Bags and grips. I don't know what the piece means by labels.

Over 120,000 Counterfeit Golf Products Seized In Multi-City Raids In China

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A historic crackdown on counterfeit golf equipment seized 120,000 pieces of fake product bearing brand names such as Titleist, TaylorMade, PXG, PING, Callaway and XXIO after police in China simultaneously raided 10...

 

[CarlSpackler]

13 minutes ago, nevets88 said:

Do they steal the mold from Titleist or do they make their own and try and copy it as close as possible?

They are masters at that. My former employer engineered a prototype for a customer who then sent it to a Chinese company to copy and manufacture for a fraction of the cost. It's nothing short of theft.

[djake]

24 minutes ago, CarlSpackler said:

They are masters at that. My former employer engineered a prototype for a customer who then sent it to a Chinese company to copy and manufacture for a fraction of the cost. It's nothing short of theft.

It is theft.  Whatever happened?

45 minutes ago, nevets88 said:

I don't know much about how counterfeit clubs are made. Do they steal the mold from Titleist or do they make their own and try and copy it as close as possible? It's not just clubs. Bags and grips. I don't know what the piece means by labels.

Over 120,000 Counterfeit Golf Products Seized In Multi-City Raids In China

---

A historic crackdown on counterfeit golf equipment seized 120,000 pieces of fake product bearing brand names such as Titleist, TaylorMade, PXG, PING, Callaway and XXIO after police in China simultaneously raided 10...

 

@nevets88 thank you for sharing this article.  I find these type of thing fascinating to read.  Really glad the Chinese authorities cracked down.  

[TourSpoon]

I often wonder if my TaylerMade Staff Bag is counterfeit. 

Some of those fakes are really close cosmetically to the real deal. I don't think I could tell a staff bag fake from a real one. These guys obviously have manufacturing experience. The clubs have to be harder to pass off but they are getting better at the copies. I saw a video on fake drivers and once you hit it you kind of know its not quite right. By then its too late and you have been had. 

[CarlSpackler]

1 hour ago, djake said:

It is theft.  Whatever happened?

They sued the customer and won. They had to pay royalties for a few years, but it paled in comparison to employing our people.

[Shindig]

Poor LeBron James, how will he ever feed his family after this setback?   

But for real, IP theft and forgeries are horrible.  Glad there's some enforcement, keep up the good work whoever did this.

[ChetlovesMer]

2 hours ago, nevets88 said:

I don't know much about how counterfeit clubs are made. Do they steal the mold from Titleist or do they make their own and try and copy it as close as possible? It's not just clubs. Bags and grips. I don't know what the piece means by labels.

Over 120,000 Counterfeit Golf Products Seized In Multi-City Raids In China

---

A historic crackdown on counterfeit golf equipment seized 120,000 pieces of fake product bearing brand names such as Titleist, TaylorMade, PXG, PING, Callaway and XXIO after police in China simultaneously raided 10...

 

Wow, that's pretty interesting. I must say I'm happy but surprised that the Chinese Authorities are taking it seriously. 

2 hours ago, CarlSpackler said:

They are masters at that. My former employer engineered a prototype for a customer who then sent it to a Chinese company to copy and manufacture for a fraction of the cost. It's nothing short of theft.

Damned Carl, I hate when that happens. It happens to us all the time too. It really hard to do anything about it. Even if you sue, you end up losing more money in the lawsuit than the potential gain from the sale. So, sometimes you just end up gritting your teeth. 

I once had a gentleman from China call me and say something like "We are copying John Deere Model XYZ, please quote me on all the parts you provide John Deere." 

I said something like "I'm sorry, those parts are proprietary to John Deere. But, I tell you what, let's talk about what you are trying to build and I'll help you spec in components to make your machine even better than John Deere's." 

Then there's like a 10 second pause. The guy thinks about it and then says "We are copying John Deere Model XYZ, please quote me on all the parts you provide John Deere." 

[TourSpoon]

I am still waiting on a response to my first statement. Tough crowd today. 🤣

[Shindig]

1 hour ago, TourSpoon said:

I often wonder if my TaylerMade Staff Bag is counterfeit. 

Okay, it took me until your second comment to figure this out.

I'm sure it's legitimate.  Would you take $3 for it?  I can pay with a single bill if you prefer. 

[boogielicious]

3 hours ago, nevets88 said:

I don't know much about how counterfeit clubs are made. Do they steal the mold from Titleist or do they make their own and try and copy it as close as possible? It's not just clubs. Bags and grips. I don't know what the piece means by labels.

Over 120,000 Counterfeit Golf Products Seized In Multi-City Raids In China

---

A historic crackdown on counterfeit golf equipment seized 120,000 pieces of fake product bearing brand names such as Titleist, TaylorMade, PXG, PING, Callaway and XXIO after police...

 

I’ve been to a counterfeit mall in Shanghai. It was called Pearl City. They had everything from golf stuff, to Rolexes, Gucci bags, NFL gear, etc. They also had a lot of touristy stuff and I got a chess set with Chinese characters for my son. 
 

They had special hidden rooms where the transactions were made. The golf stuff was pretty obvious fakes. Crappy looking at best. My buddy bought a couple of fake Rolex for his daughters For $10 each. They were much better fakes. We snuck them into a real a Rolex store later and they were hard to tell apart.

Another Australian friend wanted to get a Drew Breez Saints jersey for her son and was negotiating. She asked me if $80 US was too much. I told her I would get here a real one for $50. OH Boy the vendor was pissed at me! She yelled for quite a while. Later when we passed by the booth, she came out and yelled again! It was a blast.

[Double Mocha Man]

29 minutes ago, ChetlovesMer said:

Wow, that's pretty interesting. I must say I'm happy but surprised that the Chinese Authorities are taking it seriously. 

Damned Carl, I hate when that happens. It happens to us all the time too. It really hard to do anything about it. Even if you sue, you end up losing more money in the lawsuit than the potential gain from the sale. So, sometimes you just end up gritting your teeth. 

I once had a gentleman from China call me and say something like "We are copying John Deere Model XYZ, please quote me on all the parts you provide John Deere." 

I said something like "I'm sorry, those parts are proprietary to John Deere. But, I tell you what, let's talk about what you are trying to build and I'll help you spec in components to make your machine even better than John Deere's." 

Then there's like a 10 second pause. The guy thinks about it and then says "We are copying John Deere Model XYZ, please quote me on all the parts you provide John Deere." 

That's a great story!  He was John Deere all the way or nothing at all.

1 hour ago, TourSpoon said:

I often wonder if my TaylerMade Staff Bag is counterfeit. 

I often wonder if my swing is counterfeit.

[TourSpoon]

21 minutes ago, Shindig said:

Okay, it took me until your second comment to figure this out.

I'm sure it's legitimate.  Would you take $3 for it?  I can pay with a single bill if you prefer. 

I'll trade for a Callyway Driver. 

[CarlSpackler]

2 hours ago, TourSpoon said:

I often wonder if my TaylerMade Staff Bag is counterfeit. 

Some of those fakes are really close cosmetically to the real deal. I don't think I could tell a staff bag fake from a real one. These guys obviously have manufacturing experience. The clubs have to be harder to pass off but they are getting better at the copies. I saw a video on fake drivers and once you hit it you kind of know its not quite right. By then its too late and you have been had. 

Many (MANY) years ago, I bought a Ti Bubble II at a driving range in town. Less than a month of owning it and the face caved in. They replaced it claiming there must have been a manufacturing defect. I could have been, but I've always wondered if it was a copy.

@ChetlovesMer That's how they get a lot of intellectual property.

The sad thing in all of this, I thought the World Trade Organization was supposed to police this stuff.

[Shindig]

1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

Another Australian friend wanted to get a Drew Breez Saints jersey for her son and was negotiating. She asked me if $80 US was too much. I told her I would get here a real one for $50. OH Boy the vendor was pissed at me! She yelled for quite a while. Later when we passed by the booth, she came out and yelled again! It was a blast.

I enjoy watching Drew Breez on my genuine Sorny television. 

[boogielicious]

3 hours ago, Shindig said:

I enjoy watching Drew Breez on my genuine Sorny television. 

[Archie Bunker]

Many if not most of the top club manufacturers have their club heads made in Chinese factories. I've read where some of these factories, after completing a run of heads for a major manufacturer, just keep the line running as a "fourth shift" for themselves. The heads go out to assemblers who do the final shafting and decoration, and you get a pretty good counterfeit copy. Some are hard to tell apart from the genuine. So legit manufacturers have to resort to serial numbers and hologram labeling to keep the real thing for themselves.