The history of true paradigm shifts (vs. useless annual remarketing of the same flavor)

[Used2PlayALot]

PUTTERS
Those little gold putters from mini-golf.  
Then there was that cavity backed putter with the white alignment line.
Was this the Ping Anser?  When did it become popular?  1970s?
After that, there has been no real innovation in putter design
Either you use a golden putt-putt putter, or you use a Anser derivative.
There is very little to gain after you have a 1970s Ping putter.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new putters instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 1970s/80s putter is all you ever need to be great. The rest is actual skill and ability. 
What a concept.

IRONS.
The big shift was cavity backed.  The Ping Eye2.  
This was a paradigm shift with perimeter weighted heads as opposed to traditional blades.
This was a HUGE deal.  When did this happen?   This went mainstream in the 1980s.
Any iron you've bought since the 1980s has has minimal improvement over this paradigm shift.
They've even resorted to changing loft angles on "modern" irons to make stupid idiots think they are hitting longer.
No, you're not hitting longer, you're hitting lower, b/c that's not a 7, it's a 7.5.   Idiot.
There is very little to gain after you have a 1980s cavity backed set of irons.  Ping Eye2.   DCIs.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new irons instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 80s/90s irod are all you ever need to be great.  The rest is actual skill and ability.
What a concept.

DRIVERS
They are now freaking HUGE.  Newer is bigger is better.  Anything over 400cc is like hitting a cantelopue.
But, these have been around for  for 15 years.  460cc is the PGA limit and this has been around since 2003.
There is very little to gain after you have a 2003+ mammoth 460cc driver.  
You can split hairs over materials, but unless you're a pro, it doesn't matter for a hack like for you, as you hit 50% of your drivers into the woods anyway.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new drivers instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 2000's drivers are all you ever need to be great.  The rest is actual skill and ability.
What a concept.

 

 

[newtogolf]

IMHO What's changed is forgiveness.  Irons and drivers are more forgiving than they used to be.  The new technology makes it easier to balls up in the air with irons and makes it easier to keep drives on or near the fairway.  

Marketing has of course over exaggerated the benefits, but that's what marketing does.  

[Piz]

In much the same way that corn captured the imagination of our antecedents; club design has styled itself more in keeping with practical necessity than personal preference.  As the years have flaked away...certain certainties have become less certain...if not plain fraudulent.  Despite that...it is undeniably true that modern technology is pretty cool.  I just recently picked up a set of Orlimar sf302 irons (4-pw) at a thrift store. They cost the same as all the other irons ($1.91 each) and are far superior to most.  Karsten Solheim (sic) reinvented the putter; but he only touched on trailing weight.  My guess: If you gave Old Tom Morris a choice he would opt for the Big Bertha knockoffs, in a heartbeat, over the crude implements of the day.

[gregsandiego]

3 hours ago, Used2PlayALot said:

PUTTERS
Those little gold putters from mini-golf.  
Then there was that cavity backed putter with the white alignment line.
Was this the Ping Anser?  When did it become popular?  1970s?
After that, there has been no real innovation in putter design
Either you use a golden putt-putt putter, or you use a Anser derivative.
There is very little to gain after you have a 1970s Ping putter.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new putters instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 1970s/80s putter is all you ever need to be great. The rest is actual skill and ability. 
What a concept.

IRONS.
The big shift was cavity backed.  The Ping Eye2.  
This was a paradigm shift with perimeter weighted heads as opposed to traditional blades.
This was a HUGE deal.  When did this happen?   This went mainstream in the 1980s.
Any iron you've bought since the 1980s has has minimal improvement over this paradigm shift.
They've even resorted to changing loft angles on "modern" irons to make stupid idiots think they are hitting longer.
No, you're not hitting longer, you're hitting lower, b/c that's not a 7, it's a 7.5.   Idiot.
There is very little to gain after you have a 1980s cavity backed set of irons.  Ping Eye2.   DCIs.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new irons instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 80s/90s irod are all you ever need to be great.  The rest is actual skill and ability.
What a concept.

DRIVERS
They are now freaking HUGE.  Newer is bigger is better.  Anything over 400cc is like hitting a cantelopue.
But, these have been around for  for 15 years.  460cc is the PGA limit and this has been around since 2003.
There is very little to gain after you have a 2003+ mammoth 460cc driver.  
You can split hairs over materials, but unless you're a pro, it doesn't matter for a hack like for you, as you hit 50% of your drivers into the woods anyway.
But, go ahead and piss your money on new drivers instead of practice and skill and lessons.
But, the 2000's drivers are all you ever need to be great.  The rest is actual skill and ability.
What a concept.

 

 

Perhaps you make some good points - I'm not an expert on club technology.

But you offer a false choice.

Who says we choose between new equipment and lessons/practice? I'd guess that people who spend money on equipment are the same that spend money on practice and lessons....

[Hardspoon]

4 hours ago, Used2PlayALot said:

They've even resorted to changing loft angles on "modern" irons to make stupid idiots think they are hitting longer.
No, you're not hitting longer, you're hitting lower, b/c that's not a 7, it's a 7.5.   Idiot.

You're WAY oversimplifying this.  It's not just about de-lofting.  If you make an iron face "hotter" (more ball speed for the same clubhead speed), you can (and have to) lower the loft to achieve ideal trajectory, without increasing shaft length...same control/accuracy (because same shaft length), but with more distance.

Idiot. 

(yes, I'm oversimplifying it a bit too...but my point remains)

4 hours ago, Used2PlayALot said:

There is very little to gain after you have a 1970s Ping putter.

I think high-MOI (mallet) designs are probably advantageous...not a "cure-all", but definitely better for a lot of players than a 1970's Ping.  Not to mention custom-weighted putters and custom-designed alignment aids (*cough*, Edel putters, *cough*)

 

[Patch]

 

For some reason this OP's history of clubs seems to make a lot of sense. 

I use a putter that is old, and similar to a Ping Anser putter. My irons are old, and play as well as the new, improved stuff. It's the same with my 4 metal woods. 

Then again, every year the manufacturers bring out new clubs that they say will give me an extra 10-15 yards. If for the last 10 years, I would have purchased these new clubs every year, all my drives would real close to 400+ yards. My 7w would be in the 320 yard range I'd be hitting my 7i,  260 yards, or there abouts. What a mistake I have made keeping my old sticks for this long of time.  

 

[newtogolf]

10 minutes ago, Patch said:

 

For some reason this OP's history of clubs seems to make a lot of sense. 

I use a putter that is old, and similar to a Ping Anser putter. My irons are old, and play as well as the new, improved stuff. It's the same with my 4 metal woods. 

Then again, every year the manufacturers bring out new clubs that they say will give me an extra 10-15 yards. If for the last 10 years, I would have purchased these new clubs every year, all my drives would real close to 400+ yards. My 7w would be in the 320 yard range I'd be hitting my 7i,  260 yards, or there abouts. What a mistake I have made keeping my old sticks for this long of time.  

 

The year to year stats comparisons show that at least at the professional level, driver distances haven't improved nearly as much as driver manufacturers have claimed, shocking isn't it.  

What I think most of us here agree on is that for slower swing speeds and less than perfect golf swings newer drivers and other clubs have become more forgiving and provide us regular guys with a bit more yardage and fairways hit.  

Ultimately, it's about what clubs provide you with the most confidence so it's one less thing to worry about when you're out on the course.  It is a bit ironic that most of the single digit indexes that I know use clubs that are at least five years old or more and many of the high handicappers (like me) have newer clubs because we keep searching for those magical clubs that go long and straight.  

Hell, I'm in marketing and I fall for the marketing gimmicks golf club manufacturers use anyway.    

[70sSanO]

You forgot SHAFTS...

Probably the greatest paradigm shift are graphite shafts and they were not available in 1980's.  Modern day graphite shafts may have done more to perpetuate the game, especially to aging baby boomers, than any other advancement.

John

[Piz]

@Patch points out a serious problem...the clubs are improving faster than we golfers are.  I'm struggling to keep up with technology that is, in some cases, decades old.  Time to roll up the sleeves and get to work.

[WUTiger]

On 7/13/2016 at 0:38 PM, 70sSanO said:

You forgot SHAFTS...

As for shafts, I'm an advocate of finding what I call "your shaft zone." I've done plenty of launch monitor indoors and test-hitting outdoors at demo days. For irons, I've found that the R-flex versions of the NS Pro 8950, the KBS Tour 90 and Ping CFS all work pretty well for me. All these steel shafts come in right about 100 grams, and feel lively without being spongy.

Basically, the average golfer has some shafts that will work, others that will not. 

And, a couple of other things.

PUTTERS - Today you can get adjustments on your putter to make it fit you better. In the olden days, you just kept reaching into the used barrel until you found one that worked. For twenty years I used the Acushnet Bullseye putter. I had good days and bad days with it. Two years I pulled it out and knocked it around the practice green. Surprise! It was way too upright for me, a flatter lie would have worked much better.

IRONS - The SGI and GI/Players splitout in iron heads has been helpful. Better ballstrikers using GI/Players get rewarded with more precise approach shots. Everyday golfers get closer to the green with SGI irons, but get punished on mishits if trying to use Players irons.

Many 1980s improvements in golf clubs were fostered by the entry of aerospace engineers into club design. From the late 1940s until the 1980s, much of club design - especially in irons - involved copying cosmetic characteristics of clubs the top pro players liked. Nobody had very good numbers on club performance. Club designer Ralph Maltby addresses this if you can find one of his MPF books.