Equipment
New Miura Golf President says quality, pricing “will stay the same”
New Miura Golf President Hoyt McGarity confirmed to GolfWRX that a new group has made a significant investment in Miura Golf. True Spec Golf will now act as a management company that deals specifically with the worldwide sales and distribution of Miura products.
The news of Miura’s sale, which was first reported on GolfWRX, created a flurry of discussion about Miura’s future within the golf equipment world — both the Miura family’s role, and potential changes to Miura products.
“At the end of the day, I want to get across to people that Miura Golf clubs are going to continue to be made at the same factory in Himeji, Japan,” McGarity told GolfWRX. “Mr. Miura and his family will have control over everything that goes on with production and development of Miura clubs.”
McGarity also addressed questions about Miura’s quality and pricing, saying that the company’s tolerances “have always been tight, and they’re going to stay tight.” He also said prices of Miura clubs “will stay the same.”
“[Miura clubs] aren’t for the mass market and are never going to be,” he said. “We’re an ultra-premium brand, and we’re going to stay ultra-premium.”
McGarity, 33, is also the CEO of True Spec Golf, a custom club-fitting company that was founded in 2014 and has expanded to 10 physical locations under his leadership. The company takes what it calls a “brand-agnostic” approach to club fitting, helping golfers find the best golf clubs for their game. McGarity is also the CEO of True Spec Golf sister company Club Conex.
“True Spec will always be brand agnostic,” McGarity said. “If [another brand’s clubs] are better than Miura’s, that’s a Miura problem. We’re always going to sell the best-performing clubs to our customers.”
True Spec will act as a “fulfillment center” for Miura, McGarity said, specifically as “a shipping and storage place.”
McGarity stated that the real advantage for Miura’s partnership with True Spec is True Spec’s ownership of Club Conex, a company that sells patented components that allow golfers to try the same golf shaft in a variety of different golf club heads, regardless of club head manufacturer. Club Conex is used by the vast majority of premium club fitters, opening up important distribution channels for Miura.
“Club Conex is primed to help Miura with distribution,” McGarity said. “With Miura, you’re going to see a company that’s heavily consumer-focused and dealer-focused.”
McGarity also cited the importance of improving the appeal of the Miura brand internationally. “The brand and its appearance have to be the same quality as the clubs themselves,” McGarity said. “Because no one makes better forged irons than the Miura family.”
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- Kris Kim what’s in the bag accurate as of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. More photos from the event here.
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (9 degrees @7)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 60 TX
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 Tour (15 degrees @13.5)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana WB 73 TX
Irons: TaylorMade P770 (2, 4), TaylorMade P7MB (5-PW)
Shafts: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX (2), Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour 120 X
Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (50-09SB, 56-12SB, 60-11TW)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 WV 125
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Check out more in-hand photos of Kris Kim’s equipment here.
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TaylorMade is continuing its UDI/DHY series with the successor to the Stealth UDI and DHY utility irons: PUDI and PDHY (which the company styles as P·UDI and P·DHY). TaylorMade is folding the designs in with its P Series of irons.
TaylorMade outlined the process of developing its new utilities this way. The company started with the data on utility iron usage. Not surprisingly, better players — i.e. those who generate more clubhead speed and strike the ball more precisely — were found to gravitate toward the UDI model. DHY usage, however, covered a wider swath than the company might have expected with six-to-18 handicappers found to be bagging the club.
TaylorMade also found that the majority of golfers playing UDI or DHY utilities were playing P Series irons at the top of their iron configurations.
Can you see where this is going?
Matt Bovee, Director of Product Creation, Iron and Wedge at TaylorMade: “As we look to the future, beyond the tech and the design language, we are excited about repositioning our utility irons into the P·Series family. P·UDI is an easy pair for players that currently play P·Series product and P·DHY is an extremely forgiving option for players of all skill levels. It is a natural fit to give these players the performance in this category that they are looking for.”
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TaylorMade PUDI
TaylorMade PUDI technology cutaway (via TaylorMade)
Crafted with tour player input, TaylorMade sought to develop a confidence-inspiring utility iron that blends with the rest of the P Series irons. Also of note: Interestingly, the PUDI has a more compact head than the P790.
In comparison to past UDI products, the PUDI has a more traditional iron shape, slimmer toplines, and less offset with a little of the backbar visible at address.
TaylorMade PDHY
TaylorMade PDHY tech cutaway (via TaylorMade).
Larger in profile than the PUDI, the PDHY seeks to position center of gravity (CG) lower in the club for ease of launch. The toe height is larger and the profile is larger at address — roughly five millimeters longer than PUDI — the sole of the club is wider for improved forgiveness.
Club Junkie’s take
Golfers who feel like they are missing something at the top of the bag could find the PUDI or PDHY a great option. The look of the PUDI should fit the most discerning eye with a more compact look, less offset, and a thinner topline. If you want a little more confidence looking down the P-DHY will be slightly larger while still being a good-looking utility iron.
For being small packages both models pack a pretty good punch with fast ball speeds, even off-center. The feel is soft and you get a solid feel of the ball compressing off the face when you strike it well. Your ears are greeted with a nice heavy thud as the ball and club come together. The PDHY will launch a little higher for players who need it while the PUDI offers a more penetrating ball flight. Both utility irons could be the cure for an open spot in the top end of the bag.
PUDI, PDHY, or Rescue?
TaylorMade offers the following notes to assist golfers in filling out their bags:
- PUDI has mid-CG right behind the center face to create a more penetrating mid-to-low ball flight
- PDHY has a lower center of gravity to produce an easier-to-launch mid-to-high ball flight.
- Both PUDI and PDHY are lower-flying than the company’s hybrid/Rescue clubs.
- PUDI is more forgiving than P790.
- PDHY is the most forgiving iron in the entire TaylorMade iron family
Pricing, specs, and availability
Price: $249.99
At retail: Now
Stock shafts: UST Mamiya’s Recoil DART (105 X, 90 S and 75 R – only in PDHY)
Stock grip: Golf Pride’s ZGrip (black/grey)
PUDI lofts: 2-17°, 3-20°, 4-22° in both left and right-handed
PDHY lofts: 2-18°, 3-20° and 4-22° in both left and right-handed
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Equipment
Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (5/3/24): Scotty Cameron Champions Choice 2.5+ putter
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a Scotty Cameron Champions Choice 2.5+ putter
From the seller: (@wwcl): “Has been gamed as pics show. 33.5 includes original h/c and grip. $575 includes shipping and PP fees.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: Scotty Cameron Champions Choice 2.5+ putter
This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules
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Faking-it-with-blades
Jan 14, 2017 at 11:06 am
Anyone notice a particular iconic Miura iron NOT featured in the glamour shot above? Is the Baby Blade literally “out of the picture” going forward?
rex235
Jan 12, 2017 at 8:16 pm
“Miura will remain an ultra premium brand…”
When Miura makes a LH forged model of the 1957 Cavity Back they made for Jack Nicklaus…
ZJohnson
Jan 12, 2017 at 4:21 pm
Ok, now this makes sense. Cool Clubs did fulfillment for Miura this time last year as they started to sell their product in brick and mortar stores across the US. They built approx. 100 sets before having to stop so they didn’t fall behind with their own customers. Cool Clubs distributes for KBS now as it is much more time and cost effective for them. Unless True Spec hires two/three guys to do nothing but fulfill Miura’s orders, it’s going to be tough for them to keep up.
B. McKenna
Jan 16, 2017 at 7:31 pm
I watched this Hoyt guy try to bend a set of irons at Modern Golf and it was pretty bad. There are tons of industry guys with more knowledge than him. I’d give this relationship 6 months. If CC couldn’t pull it off with their facility, doubt Tour Spec will be able to handle it.
LD
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:36 am
Talk is cheap.
Tom C
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:29 am
Well, at least he’s an Irishman.
Those new irons are already a clear indicator of a different direction. I appreciate the new Presidents words, but I just don’t see how it will happen. I’m sure there will be a clear view of things that a new owner would want to do to make money, and some of the current operations are cost prohibitive in terms of manufacturing, but some of those things are what make them such quality clubs. It’s contradictory to say that “we want to increase the brand recognition world wide”, but we aren’t going to make it a mass selling brand.
The brand and it’s appearance are already as good as the clubs themselves, they just want to sell more and more of them, which I understand, as the market is becoming more and more competitive in this ultra-premium market. That being said, it’d be like saying Koenigsegg needs to market better because they sell 20 cars a year, when Ferrari sells 100. Koenigsegg’s are made in an old airplane hangar, and make the fastest cars in the world, and much like Miura, most people have no idea what they are, but for those that do, they’re all you’d ever want, and you wouldn’t want them to change.
This is like Mercedes releasing the “Under $30k” renditions of their cars. Yeah, it’s nice. Yeah, it says Mercedes, but is it really a Mercedes? Meh.
The only consolation I find in this is that the buy out isn’t from a direct competitor looking to buy out their market share (and avoid questioning over patents), so it’s not going to be an Adams-Taylormade ordeal.
Daniel
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:26 am
Wasn’t their PP-9005 Genesis clubs that GolfWRX just reviewed made in some other factory?
Zak Kozuchowski
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:34 am
The Genesis irons are made in Miura’s factory. That correction has been made in our review: http://www.golfwrx.com/419156/review-miura-neo-genesis-pp-9005-irons/
Adam
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:35 am
Absolutely correct:
Production country “China”
http://www.miuragiken.com/products/passing_point/pp-9005/index.html
Daniel
Jan 12, 2017 at 9:53 am
The sentence in that review article was too specific to have been a typo IMO. Something about the geometries being too hard for that facility.
Zak Kozuchowski
Jan 12, 2017 at 10:54 am
Thanks for the questions and comments, guys. This response is directly from Miura:
“All Miura irons start from a single billet of soft carbon Japanese steel at the Miura Giken factory in Himeji. (this is what will always distinguish Miura irons) The next step of the process is working with our partner in Taiwan to complete the manufacturing process (the 455 Carpenter Steel face) The clubs are then shipped back to the Miura factory for final inspection before making their way to market.”
“With reference to the Miura Giken website, technically the club is “finished in Taiwan (China) and thus you are not able to say Made it Japan, however, the Miura family is involved in the process, start to finish.”
gunmetal
Jan 12, 2017 at 2:08 pm
So the Japanese plant has lost capability to finish the heads? Or it’s just cheaper for them to ship them off to Taiwan/China, pay Taiwan/China labor rates, then ship them back to Japan or straight to True Spec or whoever than it is to just finish them in Japan?
I know this is partly semantics, but when you play the “Made/Forged in Japan” card so blatantly sometimes the details can be a little muddy, lol.
Mark
Jan 12, 2017 at 3:13 pm
I do not think this is about cheaper labour rates. Taiwanese companies are, collectively, the world’s biggest producers of golf equipment. They own all of the major production sites in China and many of them have kept their specialist production units located in Taiwan (driver heads which require intricate casting tend to be produced there). I think Miura have simply chosen a high quality Taiwanese supplier to do what they are unable to do. If I remember correctly, Tom Wishon has used Taiwan based facilities for his advanced materials designs.
Rich
Jan 12, 2017 at 8:55 am
There is no way Miura will not fall victim (to what degree is yet to be seen) to compromise when there has been significant investment. Whoever put the money in, will expect to see money back and that will not happen with significant change.
Adam
Jan 12, 2017 at 5:39 am
So has TSG bought or invested in Miura Golf (which is the North American and International Sales arm of Miura) or have they bought the parent company Miura Giken from Japan who produces all the clubs for Miura and Miura Giken. So far in 2 articles it is still not clear!
Zak Kozuchowski
Jan 12, 2017 at 7:34 am
Adam,
Miura offers slightly different products under the names Miura and Miura-Giken (Japan), but all products are designed and manufactured under one roof. The deal encompasses all of Miura.
S Hitty
Jan 12, 2017 at 12:29 pm
I don’t get why such information is so hard to obtain from their own website and why do you have to explain it all in the comments and not in the articles themselves.
Zak Kozuchowski
Jan 12, 2017 at 12:40 pm
We have added the detail to the body of the Genesis review for all future readers to understand and discuss.
Tom
Jan 11, 2017 at 8:58 pm
+1
Chunkiebuck
Jan 11, 2017 at 8:36 pm
Hey, are those rear tail lights or turn signals on the back? I’m guessing they flash left or right depending on ball flight direction. You know, in case you missed the flight of your ball, you can
take a quick peek at the back of these clubs for confirmation.