Opinion & Analysis

Brand loyalty — why do we use the clubs we do?

Published

12 years ago

Jun 9, 2012

GolfWRX

By Graeme McLeish

GolfWRX Contributor

The Year is 1998 and time for the annual family holiday. We are going back to Florida, but not to our usual spot. This time we are staying at Marriott’s Grande Vista – The Home of the Faldo Golf Institute!

Growing up Nick Faldo was one of my favourite golfers. I loved the way he approached the game, dedicating himself to improving every aspect of his game and doing what was necessary to get there.

So, for a 16-year-old on his way to spend two weeks next to Nick’s academy was a dream come true. During that holiday I spent 13 out of the 14 days on the golf course and the practice range. I let the rest of the family go to the theme parks. All I was interested in was golf (and lots of it).

The facilities there were like nothing I had seen before. There was an indoor teaching studio with all the cameras and swing technology you could imagine and a workshop to make any adjustments to your club you needed. At the club where I grew up, the practice area was a strip of grass sandwiched between the first and second holes, so best you stay alert for stray tee shots heading straight for you.

Just like any other kid, I wanted to use the equipment that my favourite players were using, and since Faldo at the time was playing with Mizuno clubs, I couldn’t wait to try them out and be fitted for a set.

At the time I was playing with a set of Hogan H40s. I had bought them during a previous trip to Florida from the Edwin Watts on Turkey Lake Road. It was a huge golf shop and I was in heaven every time I went there. We didn’t have golf shops anywhere near as big as that in Scotland. In fact, if the golf shop was bigger than a cupboard you were lucky.

So, upon arrival at the Faldo Golf Institute I quickly booked a custom fitting session with Randy (later during the stay I also booked a lesson with Faldo’s coach at the time, Chip). This was my first taste of custom fitting of any sort. Previously it was a simple case of grabbing a set off the shelf that you liked.

I can’t remember the other club that I tried, but the one that I do remember is the MP-14 (obviously … because I ended up getting a set). It certainly was a great experience and opened me up to a whole new world of possibilities.

At the end of the session, the club that I was hitting the best with was the blade. Who would have thought that I would be going from a set of Hogan H40’s (large cavity backs) to a set of Mizuno MP-14 blades?

It was a dream come true to get a set of Mizuno blades.

That holiday and that custom fitting session was the start of my golfing relationship with Mizuno.

Fourteen years later and I still use Mizuno blades. Why is that and what made me loyal to a brand for so long?

Well, I believe that there are a few contributing factors. First of all, as I mentioned, at the time my favourite golfer was playing with Mizuno, so anything they produced stood out ahead of the competition and any brand that sponsors a player that you like or relate to will get your attention before any other brand.

Their reputation for producing the best irons was also a factor as well as how I played with them and the way they made me feel as a golfer. I perceived that playing with blades made me a better golfer and bought into the idea that you first learn to play with blades and then if you want to change, you can, but your ball striking and your ability will be better off because you played with blades. So far I would have to say that it has paid off.

In 2003 I bought my very first Scotty Cameron putter while I was working in Boston as part of my university degree. I had to save a bit of cash to get it, but I had wanted one for so long. There were a few kids at the club playing with the Terrylium model, so naturally I wanted to own a Scotty Cameron. The name of the shop evades me, but it was on Commonwealth Ave. and I was living just down the road from the old Boston University hockey arena. They were still building the new one at the time.

I remember the day that I bought it. It was the Studio Stainless Newport and I walked out that shop with a big smile on my face. To this day more than nine years later it is still in my bag. I love the way it looks, the way it feels and most importantly the number of putts I hole with it.

So why are golfers so loyal to particular brands?

Well, the game takes up a lot of your time for starters and a fair amount of your cash too. Good equipment doesn’t come cheap and finding good equipment that you like and that fits your game is no easy task, so when you do find something that you like and suits your game, you hold onto it. Maybe it is a way of minimising risk.

Some brands just fit with you better than others.

This is most likely a combination of the colours that they use, the way they present their clubs, their motto, the professionals that they sponsor and the type of clubs that they produce.

Could where you live and grow up be a determining factor?

I made a comment to a golf coach who has helped me out with my swing about why there are so many Scottish touring pros using Mizuno clubs, and his response was that generally the Scottish guys prefer a traditional looking club and there probably is no other brand that produces a more traditional looking club than Mizuno.

Another way you may look at it is, Mizuno has their UK headquarters in Scotland and therefore out of the top manufacturers probably get the most exposure to the Scottish market.

Well, golf is a game of tradition and a game that likes to hold onto and honour that tradition. Other than the technology, golf has changed very little since it began. Maybe the nature of the game creates golfers and people who tend to be loyal and like their traditions.

When you see top professionals changing club manufacturers you hear the commentators start to panic – is it the end of their game? Will they be able to perform to the same level?

Maybe brand loyalty is an integral part of golf.

Golf is a very visual game. Just like there are courses that suit your eye, there are clubs that suit your eye better than others.

When you set up to the ball, you want the club to look and feel a certain way. You want it to give you a feeling of confidence, excite you about hitting a great shot and assure you that there is nothing else in the world that you would rather be doing than playing golf.

There are so many clubs out there to choose from and lots of good looking blades also, but none of them do it for me quite as well as Mizuno and as they say “Nothing Feels Like a Mizuno”.

So, it is safe to say that I won’t be using any other manufacturer’s blades any time soon and I can’t wait to get a set of the MP-69’s in my bag custom fitted perfectly for no one but me.

Click here for more discussion in the “Equipment” forum.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans betting preview

Published

19 hours ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

The PGA TOUR heads to New Orleans to play the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In a welcome change from the usual stroke play, the Zurich Classic is a team event. On Thursday and Saturday, the teams play best ball, and on Friday and Sunday the teams play alternate shot.

TPC Louisiana is a par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. The course features some short par 4s and plenty of water and bunkers, which makes for a lot of exciting risk/reward scenarios for competitors. Pete Dye designed the course in 2004 specifically for the Zurich Classic, although the event didn’t make its debut until 2007 because of Hurricane Katrina.

Coming off of the Masters and a signature event in consecutive weeks, the field this week is a step down, and understandably so. Many of the world’s top players will be using this time to rest after a busy stretch.

However, there are some interesting teams this season with some stars making surprise appearances in the team event. Some notable teams include Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala as well as a few Canadian teams, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners.

Past Winners at TPC Louisiana

2023: Riley/Hardy (-30)
2022: Cantlay/Schauffele (-29)
2021: Leishman/Smith (-20)
2019: Palmer/Rahm (-26)
2018: Horschel/Piercy (-22)
2017: Blixt/Smith (-27)

2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Picks

Tom Hoge/Maverick McNealy +2500 (DraftKings)

Tom Hoge is coming off of a solid T18 finish at the RBC Heritage and finished T13 at last year’s Zurich Classic alongside Harris English.

This season, Hoge is having one of his best years on Tour in terms of Strokes Gained: Approach. In his last 24 rounds, the only player to top him on the category is Scottie Scheffler. Hoge has been solid on Pete Dye designs, ranking 28th in the field over his past 36 rounds.

McNealy is also having a solid season. He’s finished T6 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and T9 at the PLAYERS Championship. He recently started working with world renowned swing coach, Butch Harmon, and its seemingly paid dividends in 2024.

Keith Mitchell/Joel Dahmen +4000 (DraftKings)

Keith Mitchell is having a fantastic season, finishing in the top-20 of five of his past seven starts on Tour. Most recently, Mitchell finished T14 at the Valero Texas Open and gained a whopping 6.0 strokes off the tee. He finished 6th at last year’s Zurich Classic.

Joel Dahmen is having a resurgent year and has been dialed in with his irons. He also has a T11 finish at the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass which is another Pete Dye track. With Mitchell’s length and Dahmen’s ability to put it close with his short irons, the Mitchell/Dahmen combination will be dangerous this week.

Taylor Moore/Matt NeSmith +6500 (DraftKings)

Taylor Moore has quickly developed into one of the more consistent players on Tour. He’s finished in the top-20 in three of his past four starts, including a very impressive showing at The Masters, finishing T20. He’s also finished T4 at this event in consecutive seasons alongside Matt NeSmith.

NeSmith isn’t having a great 2024, but has seemed to elevate his game in this format. He finished T26 at Pete Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, which gives the 30-year-old something to build off of. NeSmith is also a great putter on Bermudagrass, which could help elevate Moore’s ball striking prowess.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 LIV Adelaide betting preview: Cam Smith ready for big week down under

Published

19 hours ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After having four of the top twelve players on the leaderboard at The Masters, LIV Golf is set for their fifth event of the season: LIV Adelaide.

For both LIV fans and golf fans in Australia, LIV Adelaide is one of the most anticipated events of the year. With 35,000 people expected to attend each day of the tournament, the Grange Golf Club will be crawling with fans who are passionate about the sport of golf. The 12th hole, better known as “the watering hole”, is sure to have the rowdiest of the fans cheering after a long day of drinking some Leishman Lager.

The Grange Golf Club is a par-72 that measures 6,946 yards. The course features minimal resistance, as golfers went extremely low last season. In 2023, Talor Gooch shot consecutive rounds of 62 on Thursday and Friday, giving himself a gigantic cushion heading into championship Sunday. Things got tight for a while, but in the end, the Oklahoma State product was able to hold off The Crushers’ Anirban Lahiri for a three-shot victory.

The Four Aces won the team competition with the Range Goats finishing second.

*All Images Courtesy of LIV Golf*

Past Winners at LIV Adelaide

2023: Talor Gooch (-19)

Stat Leaders Through LIV Miami

Green in Regulation

Richard Bland
Jon Rahm
Paul Casey

Fairways Hit

Abraham Ancer
Graeme McDowell
Henrik Stenson

Driving Distance

Bryson DeChambeau
Joaquin Niemann
Dean Burmester

Putting

Cameron Smith
Louis Oosthuizen
Matt Jones

2024 LIV Adelaide Picks

Cameron Smith +1400 (DraftKings)

When I pulled up the odds for LIV Adelaide, I was more than a little surprised to see multiple golfers listed ahead of Cameron Smith on the betting board. A few starts ago, Cam finished runner-up at LIV Hong Kong, which is a golf course that absolutely suits his eye. Augusta National in another course that Smith could roll out of bed and finish in the top-ten at, and he did so two weeks ago at The Masters, finishing T6.

At Augusta, he gained strokes on the field on approach, off the tee (slightly), and of course, around the green and putting. Smith able to get in the mix at a major championship despite coming into the week feeling under the weather tells me that his game is once again rounding into form.

The Grange Golf Club is another course that undoubtedly suits the Australian. Smith is obviously incredibly comfortable playing in front of the Aussie faithful and has won three Australian PGA Championship’s. The course is very short and will allow Smith to play conservative off the tee, mitigating his most glaring weakness. With birdies available all over the golf course, there’s a chance the event turns into a putting contest, and there’s no one on the planet I’d rather have in one of those than Cam Smith.

Louis Oosthuizen +2200 (DraftKings)

Louis Oosthuizen has simply been one of the best players on LIV in the 2024 seas0n. The South African has finished in the top-10 on the LIV leaderboard in three of his five starts, with his best coming in Jeddah, where he finished T2. Perhaps more impressively, Oosthuizen finished T7 at LIV Miami, which took place at Doral’s “Blue Monster”, an absolutely massive golf course. Given that Louis is on the shorter side in terms of distance off the tee, his ability to play well in Miami shows how dialed he is with the irons this season.

In addition to the LIV finishes, Oosthuizen won back-to-back starts on the DP World Tour in December at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the Mauritus Open. He also finished runner-up at the end of February in the International Series Oman. The 41-year-old has been one of the most consistent performers of 2024, regardless of tour.

For the season, Louis ranks 4th on LIV in birdies made, T9 in fairways hit and first in putting. He ranks 32nd in driving distance, but that won’t be an issue at this short course. Last season, he finished T11 at the event, but was in decent position going into the final round but fell back after shooting 70 while the rest of the field went low. This season, Oosthuizen comes into the event in peak form, and the course should be a perfect fit for his smooth swing and hot putter this week.

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Opinion & Analysis

The Wedge Guy: What really makes a wedge work? Part 1

Published

5 days ago

Apr 18, 2024

Terry Koehler

Of all the clubs in our bags, wedges are almost always the simplest in construction and, therefore, the easiest to analyze what might make one work differently from another if you know what to look for.

Wedges are a lot less mysterious than drivers, of course, as the major brands are working with a lot of “pixie dust” inside these modern marvels. That’s carrying over more to irons now, with so many new models featuring internal multi-material technologies, and almost all of them having a “badge” or insert in the back to allow more complex graphics while hiding the actual distribution of mass.

But when it comes to wedges, most on the market today are still single pieces of molded steel, either cast or forged into that shape. So, if you look closely at where the mass is distributed, it’s pretty clear how that wedge is going to perform.

To start, because of their wider soles, the majority of the mass of almost any wedge is along the bottom third of the clubhead. So, the best wedge shots are always those hit between the 2nd and 5th grooves so that more mass is directly behind that impact. Elite tour professionals practice incessantly to learn to do that consistently, wearing out a spot about the size of a penny right there. If impact moves higher than that, the face is dramatically thinner, so smash factor is compromised significantly, which reduces the overall distance the ball will fly.

Every one of us, tour players included, knows that maddening shot that we feel a bit high on the face and it doesn’t go anywhere, it’s not your fault.

If your wedges show a wear pattern the size of a silver dollar, and centered above the 3rd or 4th groove, you are not getting anywhere near the same performance from shot to shot. Robot testing proves impact even two to three grooves higher in the face can cause distance loss of up to 35 to 55 feet with modern ‘tour design’ wedges.

In addition, as impact moves above the center of mass, the golf club principle of gear effect causes the ball to fly higher with less spin. Think of modern drivers for a minute. The “holy grail” of driving is high launch and low spin, and the driver engineers are pulling out all stops to get the mass as low in the clubhead as possible to optimize this combination.

Where is all the mass in your wedges? Low. So, disregarding the higher lofts, wedges “want” to launch the ball high with low spin – exactly the opposite of what good wedge play requires penetrating ball flight with high spin.

While almost all major brand wedges have begun putting a tiny bit more thickness in the top portion of the clubhead, conventional and modern ‘tour design’ wedges perform pretty much like they always have. Elite players learn to hit those crisp, spinny penetrating wedge shots by spending lots of practice time learning to consistently make contact low in the face.

So, what about grooves and face texture?

Grooves on any club can only do so much, and no one has any material advantage here. The USGA tightly defines what we manufacturers can do with grooves and face texture, and modern manufacturing techniques allow all of us to push those limits ever closer. And we all do. End of story.

Then there’s the topic of bounce and grinds, the most complex and confusing part of the wedge formula. Many top brands offer a complex array of sole configurations, all of them admittedly specialized to a particular kind of lie or turf conditions, and/or a particular divot pattern.

But if you don’t play the same turf all the time, and make the same size divot on every swing, how would you ever figure this out?

The only way is to take any wedge you are considering and play it a few rounds, hitting all the shots you face and observing the results. There’s simply no other way.

So, hopefully this will inspire a lively conversation in our comments section, and I’ll chime in to answer any questions you might have.

And next week, I’ll dive into the rest of the wedge formula. Yes, shafts, grips and specifications are essential, too.

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