Golf Digest Hot List

[hypergolf]

How credible is golf digest hot list? I personally feel that they are putting in new clubs that the golf companies would like to push into the market. Also, I am not biased to any golf brands. However I believe that Titleist 905R felt much better than some of the clubs that made it onto the list. Lastly, I feel that performance should be given more weight than the rest of the categories (Buzz, Performance, Technology, Preference, Value) What do you guys think?

[Surly Bastage]

All I care about is how they look at address and how they perform. I do not care one bit about over-hyped technology. I think the buzz factor is somewhat circular in that certain brands get more advertising, so the public is more aware of them and asks about them, then they get onto the Hotlist for more advertising.

I like the way Golf Magazine does their review better. They have more people (a wider range of handicaps) smacking balls and providing feedback. I believe they also tell you each participants current clubs and who purchased what as a result of the testing.

[LeafsFan]

I agree completely. The "buzz factor" in particular seems to be a category specifically to advantage the big names. (although I agree that the big names do produce great gear).

I think not only should Performance be more heavily weighted, it should be broken down into narrower categories such as workability, forgiveness, look at set-up, cutom options etc. Each of these should then be weighted according to the category being evaluated...for example forgiveness in a "players Iron" would get much less weight than it would for a "Game Improvement Iron".

[Soxx22]

I mostly agree with the comments above. I think that performance should count at least double if not more. i could care less about buzz. and i can figure out value by looking at the price.
However, i do like how they break everything down (like the irons into different categories) - i'm in the market for new irons (first time in about 14 years) and the Hot List has been very helpful. I basically just took the game improvement section and tried every set out (along with a few from the Players section.) Right now i'm leaning towards the Taylor Made R7s anyone have any thoughts on those?

[Everardo]

There was another thread already on this :)
http://thesandtrap.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4680

[hypergolf]

Soxx22. I used to own a Taylormade R7 425 SR flex. I really liked the driver until my caddie dropped it from the cart and made a big dent on the head. I have tried a few drivers that my friends own (Titleist 905R, Callaway X-460, Taylormade 460 Draw, Honma, Taylormade 460, Ping G5) but I think I really got more distance and accuracy out of 905R and X-460. Just from my opinion :)

ANYWAY, back to this hot list. Also GOLF magazine gives a monthly reviews about the new clubs. Is GOLF magazine's reviews more unbiased and complete than the Golfdigest reviews?

[icourtnage]

Soxx22. I used to own a Taylormade R7 425 SR flex. I really liked the driver until my caddie dropped it from the cart and made a big dent on the head. I have tried a few drivers that my friends own (Titleist 905R, Callaway X-460, Taylormade 460 Draw, Honma, Taylormade 460, Ping G5) but I think I really got more distance and accuracy out of 905R and X-460. Just from my opinion :)

You have a caddy!? That'd be nice......

I think the hot list is fairly reliable. I agree with the complaints about the 'buzz' factor, but to be fair to Golf Digest, I do have to point out that it is the 'Hot List', and partially aims to evaluate those clubs that are...well....'Hot'. If I were to organize the results, I'd make sure that there were evaluations of each club by the handicap of the evaluators. I mean, I don't care as much about what a 30 handicap says about the workability of an iron, whereas I'm definitely interest in what a scratch golfer says. I'm sure that a 30 handicap doesn't care what a scratch golfer says about workability. Just a thought. Additionally, I realy don't care what technology is present in a club. If its made of rock and hits the ball long and straight, then I'm sold on a driver. I'd rather know about look, feel, workability, consistency, distance control, and price.

[hypergolf]

icourtnage. When you play in certain parts of Southeast Asia (Thailand, Indonesia, China etc) golf courses provide you with caddies. You just need to tip them about 10 bucks after the game. Some courses use it as a marketing technique to attract men, where the golf courses will only pick pretty caddies (no offense to any female readers) but it is a common culture in this part of the world. This would be a law suit case in the US. haha.

Check my home course www.cengkarenggolfclub.com

Anyway, back to Hotlist vs Golf magazine rating system choices...

[mizunoguy]

How can a club be hot when it is not even released yet, it is more hype.

I think the hot list is fairly reliable. I agree with the complaints about the 'buzz' factor, but to be fair to Golf Digest, I do have to point out that it is the 'Hot List', and partially aims to evaluate those clubs that are...well....'Hot'.

If I were to organize the results, I'd make sure that there were evaluations of each club by the handicap of the evaluators. I mean, I don't care as much about what a 30 handicap says about the workability of an iron, whereas I'm definitely interest in what a scratch golfer says. I'm sure that a 30 handicap doesn't care what a scratch golfer says about workability. Just a thought.

Additionally, I realy don't care what technology is present in a club. If its made of rock and hits the ball long and straight, then I'm sold on a driver. I'd rather know about look, feel, workability, consistency, distance control, and price.[/QUOTE]

[golfgolfer]

Personally, i take the list with a pinch of salt. It is a good guide to see what clubs are available and the technology that the clubs are using.

When come to choosing one for myself, i will want to make sure it suits my swing and that I can hit it well. I won't mind getting an older generation club if it suits me well.

My thots

[hypergolf]

Just wondering... Why do better players prefer Titleist brands? What is the major difference compared to other brands like Callway, Taylormade etc? When I see club pros playing they usually have Titleist Driver, Fairway wood, Hybrids. For irons a mix of Titleist and Mizuno. Wedge and putters definitely Titleist. Is it just an image thing or there is really something about this brand?

[iacas]

Just wondering... Why do better players prefer Titleist brands? What is the major difference compared to other brands like Callway, Taylormade etc? When I see club pros playing they usually have Titleist Driver, Fairway wood, Hybrids. For irons a mix of Titleist and Mizuno. Wedge and putters definitely Titleist. Is it just an image thing or there is really something about this brand?

Titleist has a great relationship with club pros, that's why. They've done a lot - and expended a lot of energy - to court club pros. The results? More club pros are Titleist guys, and thus sell more and stock more Titleist stuff. It makes sense.

Better players prefer Titleist equipment because it appeals to their sense of aesthetics and playability. Titleist isn't a high-handicapper clubmaker - that's what Cobra is for. Obviously the paragraph above contains MASSIVE generalizations, but they're true to some extent. Obviously nowhere near all better players prefer Titleist, but of those that do, the above are the likely reasons why.

[icourtnage]

Personally, I have a special place in my heart because Titleist has always made, in my mind, players clubs. Thinner top lines, increased workability, and solid feel. As iacas said, Titleist makes a club for better players. And to be honest, that is part of the appeal of the brand.... there is some exclusivity associated with it.
Branding is a big part - Vokey wedges....Scotty Cameron putters - Titleist has done a fantastic job branding their clubs, and making sure that those key pieces of equipment, wedges and putters, have been consistent over the years.
As far as wedges go - Titleist makes great wedges....and they are consistently great. Rarely do you see a 'form forged' screw up like Cleveland had. Granted, Cleveland makes fantastic wedges too.
Mizuno has a similar story. Their irons are PURE, and they have historically been geared towards better players. Granted, they've started to put out a lot more clubs in the past few years to try and broaden their customer base. At heart, they are still a club that good players love.

In my opinion, its somewhat cyclical. Both brands are associated with better players, and in turn, better players gravitate towards those clubs (an interesting phenomenon). I'll readily admit that when choosing clubs, the stigma around them does affect me a little bit. Hogan, Titleist, and Mizuno have special places in my heart because they make, on the whole, clubs geared towards the better player.

[elivate]

icourtnage. When you play in certain parts of Southeast Asia (Thailand, Indonesia, China etc) golf courses provide you with caddies. You just need to tip them about 10 bucks after the game. Some courses use it as a marketing technique to attract men, where the golf courses will only pick pretty caddies (no offense to any female readers) but it is a common culture in this part of the world. This would be a law suit case in the US. haha.

Individual Rp. 115,000,000

Corporate 1 Rp. 125,000,000 Additional Corporate Rp. 100,000,000 Gold Plus Rp. 220,000,000 How much is that in dollars?!?! Back on topic I see that the new Maxfli Fire Golf Balls get Golf Digest Hot List 2007 - SILVER Has anyone tried these yet? They seem to be priced fairly reasonable... a good option for those of us that lose enough balls to make the real expensive ones a bad choice?

[golfgolfer]

Individual Rp. 115,000,000

1USD = 9,047 Rp.

Thus Rp 115,000,000 is estimated about USD 12,711. hope this helps

[hypergolf]

Thanks for the Titleist/Mizuno feedback.

How about other brands? What are each brands popular for?

eg: Titleist - Geared towards better players.

How about for the following brands?

Callaway:
Taylormade:
Ping:
etc...

Tks.

[Dminn23]

I love titleist equipment but I decided to buy a set of Mizuno MP-67s off of ebay to give them a shot. I think I'm going to really enjoy the softness of the clubs. I still have yet to receive them and once I do, it'll be a while before I get a chance to hit them because of the Ohio weather has been brutal lately.

In regards to the hot list, I did notice that while Titleist got golds for their irons and wedges (as well as Mizuno), they kind of disguised the favorites by putting a little astrisk next to the product for the category leader. In the performance category, Mizuno's mp-60's and MP-R wedges were the leaders much to my surprise. After I saw that I had to goto golf galaxy and try out a MP-R. I was amazed, you can open up the 60 degree (5 degree bounce) and it lays flat. It was awesome! I would really like to get a 54 or 56 and a 60 in the MP-Rs. Killer wedges, very attractive too.