Observations from Orlando

[Donald MacKenzie]

A quick recap of stuff I saw at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando that stood out as worthwhile, as we wait for golf here in the north...

• Bridgestone has three new sets of irons that all look great. Even better, you can mix and match between the sets to create your own combo set, and Bridgestone is encouraging the mashup process.

• Adjustable drivers with multiple shaft options are going to be very expensive for a while. Nickent's system includes a driver head and two shafts for a little less than $500, and that's by far the cheapest option. For now, this is totally geared toward the equipment junkies, but should go cheaper if the companies can find a way to reduce costs on their end (and if there's enough demand). I wouldn't buy into these unless there was an industry-wide standard for the shaft connectors. That way, if I had a shaft that really fit my game but wanted a new driver head from a different company, I could buy the new head and keep using the old shaft without having to heat it, pull it and reinstall it, all of which could damage/alter it.

• The new "blackened" version of the Rife Aussie putter was hands-down the most handsome putter I saw at the Show. Second place was Nickent's new milled putter series.

• The new Tour Edge XCG driver is a solid successor to the original Exotics driver. Nice deep face and solid sound, good shaft options. The geometric Exotics XLD driver is a good option for slower swing speeds who want to try the Exotics brand (and is smartly priced at $299).

• Callaway's Hyper X driver might get lost in the shuffle of the adjustable club hubbub, but it is a better-looking, better-playing driver than the X driver it replaces.

• Ogio's Mammoth travel bag is just that. I think you could probably get two stand bags in there, or maybe a small fridge and a few cases of beer. Cool design touches on board, like a six-wheel system for different types of rolling through the airport and a hat pocket with a plastic dome to keep from crushing your lids in transit.

[andre112]

sounds like nickent keeping up with the trend.
looking forward to their milled putters