Equipment

Getting to know 59 Belts

Published

10 years ago

Oct 6, 2014

After a long day on the range teaching junior golfers in Las Vegas back in 2006, Trevor Derrheim came up with an idea to create a milled-buckle to complement the new micro-fiber clothing and Euro-styling trends that were becoming red-hot in golf at the time.

“I honestly knew nothing — no fashion background or business degree,” Derrheim said, “but I have always had a great imagination, determination and focus when I really get into something I believe in.”

By the spring of 2007, Derrheim’s brainchild, 59 Belts, had opened shop in Las Vegas and after months of prototyping the first buckles that met his approval were finally ready.

“With the Canadian Women’s Open coming up,” Derrheim said, “I decided I would take the first 20 or so buckles ever made straight to the LPGA Tour to be tested.”

Derrheim flew to Edmonton to hand the buckles – stainless “Canuck” (Maple Leaf) styled and personally engraved with the name of each player, the event and the date on the back of each – out to a select group of players he felt might appreciate the Maple Leaf theme and also support 59.

“I managed to get 16 buckles in play that week and Lorena Ochoa won the event wearing her 59 ‘Canuck’ belt on Friday and Saturday,” Derrheim said.

That’s right, 59 not only debuted on a major golf tour but was also worn by the eventual champion.

Derrheim recalls being worried that a buckle wouldn’t work right or fall apart. Quite the contrary, the reaction he received during and after the event from the players was overwhelmingly positive.

“It was very shoot from the hip kind of stuff looking back at it,” he said. “I was just a golf instructor with an idea who did something about it. Those were great times and I owe a lot to those girls who gave me the inspiration to keep grinding.”

It wasn’t too long after when PGA Tour pro Brian Gay sported a 59 buckle while winning the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in 2008.

After a couple years, Derrheim transitioned away from teaching to concentrate more fully on what is today a nearly $500K business, although he says he still sees the occasional student as time permits.

Independently run with everything customized and made in the USA, 59 primarily mills from solid high-grade aluminum or 303 stainless steel stock. The company is also launching an exotic buckle line in the next month or so that will include Damascus, Mokume Gane and also gold-plated options. The exotic buckles are going to be extremely unique one-of-a-kind pieces. The price of 59 buckles ranges from $50 in aluminum up to $1,500 for the exotics. 59 makes just a handful of buckles a day, one at a time, and the workmanship reflects that effort.

“From the beginning, the goal was to produce a product that would outlast any other in the game,” Derrheim said. “I really believe we achieved that with 59 and continue to set the benchmark for quality. We don’t mass produce; instead, every single buckle is individually milled and hand finished. Our goal is to a make classy buckles that will outlast the user. From a brand perspective, 59 is about full commitment, the total sacrifice to be better. The number ‘59’ in golf will always signify excellence and the constant struggle to achieve perfecting something that cannot be perfected. If 59 were a body part, we would be the calloused hands of a golfer.”

Over the past seven years, several prominent Tour players have worn 59 at one time or another including Rory McIlory, Rickie Fowler, Keegan Bradley, Sergio Garcia, Jordan Spieth, Paula Creamer, Annika Sorenstam and Yani Tseng.

59BeltsRory

The company is finalizing a new strap attachment system that will allow traditional style straps to fit on a 59 buckle, the goal of which Derrheim says is to make 59 buckles more user friendly to the public and to pave the way for entry into a more traditional retail environment.

While having a buzz around your products is nice, Derrheim admits, he is much more focused on the long-term.

“I think it’s pretty easy to get wrapped up into what is going on now and to forget about forming a plan for who you are as a brand and how you want to spread that message,” he said. “I also think it is important to actually have a message that people can relate to. 59 is that one kid who is the last one off the course or range every night. Every facility has that kid… That is our brand message. It’s never been about making money for me. Maybe that’s a terrible thing to say as a business owner, but I’ve never needed much to be happy. I really just wanted to make something people could take into battle and appreciate being part of.”

Your Reaction?

LIKE0
LEGIT0
WOW2
LOL0
IDHT0
FLOP0
OB0
SHANK1

Equipment

A shocking Backstryke putter appearance + 7 interesting gear photos from the Zurich Classic

Published

18 hours ago

Apr 25, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to New Orleans, where TPC Louisiana plays host to the 2024 Zurich Classic. In between breakfast beignets and nightly Creole feasts, PGA Tour players are also competing in the unique two-man format at the Zurich this week.

Although the vibes in Nawlins are a bit lighter-fare than the recent back-to-back competitions the Masters and the RBC Heritage signature event), the gear news was no less serious this week.

We spotted some recent changes from Rory McIlroy, a very rare Odyssey Backstryke putter, dove into the bag of legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and spotted Patrick Cantlay continuing to test new equipment.

Get your beads out and crack your crawfish, because it’s time for an equipment rundown from The Big Easy (meaning New Orleans, of course, not Ernie Els).

See all of our photos from the Zurich Classic here

Rory’s on-and-off lob wedge

Since the end of 2023, Rory McIlroy has had an on-again, off-again relationship with a Titleist Vokey K-Grind lob wedge. In his last start, it was on, and the wedge is back in the bag again this week. We got a great look at the complicated grind that McIlroy uses.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

A full look into McIlroy’s bag above also shows that he switched out of the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper that he used at the RBC Heritage, and he’s back into the Qi10 core 3-wood. As we discussed last week, McIlroy will likely keep the BRNR around as a course-specific club, trading it in and out for the 3-wood.

See Rory McIlroy’s full 2024 WITB from the Zurich here

Turning Back the clock

Unless Tommy Gainey is in the field, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Odyssey’s Backstryke technology make an appearance on the PGA Tour.

But then, when you least expect it, Russ Cochran shows up.

For more than a decade – since the 2013 Sony Open in Hawai’i – Cochran has been stuck on 599 PGA Tour starts. This week will be his 600th.

Cochran is in the field at the Zurich this week playing alongside Eric Cole, whose regular caddie is Reed Cochran, Russ’s son.

The Backstryke putter was first released back in 2010, and its unique design helps shift the axis point of the putter closer to the CG of the head. And, the putter is getting a nod this week at the Zurich Classic, thanks to Cochran’s 600th career PGA Tour start.

The putter is certainly awesome, but don’t forget to check out Cochran’s full WITB from this week.

Drew Brees with a Super Bowl winning Scotty Cameron putter

Drew Brees, a legendary retired quarterback for the hometown New Orleans Saints, made an appearance at the Zurich’s Wednesday Pro-Am, playing alongside Zach Johnson, Ryan Palmer, and current Saints QB Derek Carr.

Brees’ bag included a TaylorMade Stealth2 Plus driver, a BRNR Mini 13.5-degree, a Stealth 5-wood, a mixed set of P-790 and P-760 irons, Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedges, and a custom Scotty Cameron “New Orleans Saints” putter, which Scotty made for Brees following his Super Bowl MVP-winning performance in 2010.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

It should also be noted that Brees has his Venmo QR code as a bag tag.

If you’re gambling with Brees on the course, just know that not having cash won’t work as an excuse.

Brilliant.

See Drew Brees’ full WITB from the Zurich here

Stricker’s unrecognizable putter

Steve Stricker has made numerous upgrades to his bag recently, including a new TSR3 driver and T100 irons, but his longtime Odyssey White Hot No. 2 putter is still going strong. It’s the most recognizable unrecognizable putter ever.

Here’s a better look at Stricker’s flatstick, which he started using back in 2007.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

Patrick Cantlay has opened the equipment-switching floodgates

Over on the PGA Tour’s Equipment Report this week, we covered Cantlay’s recent switch into Ping Blueprint S irons, and a Titleist TSR2 driver.

Cantlay hadn’t switched irons for about seven years, so the iron switch he made at The 2024 Masters came as a shock to the norm. He simply isn’t one to change gear very often, so anytime Cantlay makes a switch, it’s news.

It seems the floodgates of equipment testing have opened up a bit for Cantlay, who was also spotted testing a custom Scotty Cameron blade putter on Tuesday this week. By Wednesday, Cantlay was back practicing with his familiar Scotty Cameron T5 Proto mallet, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.

Daniel Berger’s custom Jailbird site lines

Berger, who’s currently using Odyssey’s Ai-One Mini Jailbird mallet putter, has a unique 3-dot, 2-line alignment on the crown of his navy-white-navy-white mallet putter. Looking down at the putter, it’s easy to see why this alignment system would help; it just seems impossible to set up to the ball off-center, or misaligned to the target.

Also, for anyone worried, you can rest easy. Yes, he’s still playing the 2013 TaylorMade TP MC irons, which we highlighted in our recent “Modern Classics: Old vs. New” video testing series.

FitzMagic teams back up

Brothers Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick are teaming up once again at the Zurich this year, and Bettinardi Golf hooked them up with some festive “FitzMagic” headcovers to match this week.

See what else is in Alex Fitzpatrick’s WITB here

And, with that, we say goodbye to the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, including 30 unique photo galleries full of equipment photos.

We’ll see you next week in Texas for the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson!

Your Reaction?