Equipment
LA Golf Partners buys Matrix Shafts’ assets, launches “LA Golf Shafts”
Reed Dickens, Founder and Chairman of the newly formed LA Golf Partners, is bringing a concept he once used in a baseball bat company into the world of golf shafts.
Marucci Sports, of which Dickens was the co-founder and former CEO, is the No. 1 bat in Major League Baseball (by a reported 20 percent over its competition), and it’s different because the company partnered with professional players who not only helped with product development, but who actually invested in the company.
Now, Dickens is bringing the same strategy into golf after winning a bid and purchasing assets (inventory, equipment and patents/IP) from Matrix Shafts on March 9th. LA Golf Shafts will partner with professional golfers; the company will build shafts for these pros “from a blank sheet of paper,” meaning they will be fully custom, according to Dickens. Also, those players will become partners with the company. As of now, LA Golf Shafts has not announced exactly which players will become partners.
LA Golf Shafts will also sell aftermarket shafts, with emphasis on the word aftermarket. According to Chief Operating Officer Chris Nolan — who’s the former General Manager of North America for Matrix Golf Shafts — LA Golf Shafts will be made with extreme attention to detail and with a different scaling approach. Therefore, the new shafts will be aftermarket-only, meaning they will not be the “stock” shafts in the golf clubs of OEMs. LA Golf Shafts will also offer the signature shafts of pros to the public, according to Nolan.
So, what’s the connection between baseball bats and golf shafts?
“There’s not just a few parallels, there’s dozens,” says Dickens.
Dickens, who was a baseball player growing up but is also a lifelong golfer and has a handicap in the “low teens,” says when the opportunity arose to buy the assets from Matrix he drew a number of connections between the baseball bat industry and the golf shaft industry. The similarities he noted included materials used, industry size, trade secrets and attention to detail of the products. He also recalls that player-after-player in the majors had issues with baseball bat specs that were off: “Some players kept a scale in their locker to make sure their bat actually weighed [the proper amount].” Now, Dickens says making golf shafts that are fully custom and “absolutely perfect” makes perfect sense given his background. He says that “custom” shafts doesn’t mean engravings or colors, however; he says they’re making prototypes for specific player needs.
Just four days after winning the bid, Dickens and Nolan said they already began making prototypes. While no player-partner for LA Golf Shafts has been announced, they say they’re shooting for Quarter 2 — “as early in Quarter 2 as possible” — to have a product at market.
In terms of pricing, Dickens says LA Golf Shafts will “position as a premium brand.” They will be “aggressive with margins,” and expect to sell “on the high end and above the high end” of what’s currently on the market, possibly “at a few different price points.” Dickens says philosophically that he places a premium on value, meaning he “won’t ask for more money than [the shaft is] worth” and that the company will “spend more money on making these shafts in order to give more to the consumer.”
As for LA Golf Partners, Dickens says the brand new company will continue “looking for good opportunities and looking for the right partners.” Dickens says the company will focus on not just traditional strategies in the golfing space, but will be looking for strategies that are different, possibly partnering with companies not in the golf space.
“I’m on a mission to grow and expand the game of golf,” Dickens says. “[LA Golf Partners will] invest in diverse golf businesses and grow the audience of who plays golf.”
The takeaway here? Dickens and LA Golf Partners have big plans for growing the game of golf, and they’re starting with a shaft company.
Certainly, GolfWRX will be the first to bring you in-hand photos of the new LA Golf Shafts when they release, along with all of the information on materials, tech and specs when we know them.
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Whats in the Bag
Chesson Hadley WITB 2024 (March)
- Chesson Hadley what’s in the bag accurate as of the Texas Children’s Houston Open. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (10 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist TSR2+ (14.5 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 80 TX
Irons: Titleist T200 (3), Titleist 620 CB (4, 5), Titleist 620 MB (6-PW)
Shafts: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 105 X (3), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (4-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (52-12F, 56-14F), WedgeWorks (60-K)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG 2-Ball
Grip: Odyssey
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Check out more in-hand photos Chesson Hadley’s clubs here.
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Whats in the Bag
Gary Woodland WITB 2024 (March)
Driver: Cobra Darkspeed X (8 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TZ5 70 M5
- The white circle that appears at the top of the face a removable sticker that’s used for launch monitor tracking, and Woodland removes it for competition!
3-wood: Cobra Darkspeed X (14 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TZ5 GW100 Prototype
7-wood: Cobra LTDx LS prototype (20 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TZ5 GW100 Prototype
Irons: Wilson Staff (18 degrees), Cobra King MB (4-PW)
Shafts: KBS Tour C-Taper Limited X
Wedges: Cobra SB (48), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (52-08F, 56-14F), Cobra King (60)
Shafts: KBS Tour C-Taper Limited X (48 degrees), KBS Tour V-Ten 125
Putter: Scotty Cameron T-5 Proto
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Tour 3.0P
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
See more in-hand photos of Gary Woodland’s WITB in the forums.
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Equipment
Q&A: Martin Trainer on his Bobby Grace “Greg Chalmers” putter, 6.5-degree driver, and “butter knife” 2-iron
As unbiasedly as I can put it, Martin Trainer has one of the coolest club setups in professional golf. (At some point soon, I’ll put together a top-10 list of “coolest club setups on Tour,” but I know that Trainer will be in the top-10)
What a lineup. He plays a 6.5-degree Wilson prototype driver, a 13-degree Wilson prototype 3-wood, a true blade Wilson Staff Model 2-iron, and a Bobby Grace “Greg Chalmers Commemorative” putter!
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I mean, look at this 2-iron from address…
To quote the great author R.L. Stine: “Goosebumps.”
On Wednesday at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open, I caught up with Trainer to learn more about his bag setup.
Here’s what he had to say:
You have the Internet going crazy over your bag setup, and your putter. Where’d you pick the Bobby Grace-Greg Chalmers putter up? How long have you had it?
MT: This was from when Bobby Grace came to my course in California: Cal Club. And for whatever reason, they just started having them in the shop. So then I took my buddy’s, started using it, and made, like, a million putts in a row, which is how every putter story begins, I guess.
And then, I bought a couple of my own, used it for years, got to the Tour with it, won on Tour with it (the 2019 Puerto Rico Open). Then, about a year later, started using another putter, did that for a couple years, but now it’s back in the bag.
When did it come back in the bag?
MT: December of this past year. So a few months ago.
What year would you say was the first time you threw that in the bag, or, like, when you bought it?
MT: God…Probably, 2016, maybe? 2018?
Do you remember how much you paid for it?
MT: I don’t know, actually. Maybe $100-150 bucks or something. I think that’s the only golf club I’ve bought between high school and now. Well, two, since I bought two of them.
The driver is interesting, too. What went into the prototyping process?
MT: That was a version of the current driver, but it was the prototype that they first came out with for Tour guys to try. And for whatever reason, I just never switched out to the new one.
It’s just 6.5 degrees, right?
MT: Yeah. Very low loft, yeah.
What kind of ball speed do you have with that these days?
MT: Like high 170’s.
Yeah, that’ll work. And then a 2-iron blade? We’re seeing fewer and fewer of those out here.
MT: Yeah. The butter knife.
Very cool thing to have in the bag. Have you done any testing with driving irons?
MT: Yeah, I used to have a thicker one, but it was a little offset, and I never hit it that well. And then finally, I started messing around with the butter knife. And I remember the first time I looked down at it, I was terrified. And then I ended up getting used to it, putting it in play, and it’s been in place since. It’s a pretty good club for me.
How far do you carry that?
MT: Like 235.
A good little wind club, I’m sure.
MTL Yeah, exactly. I can hit it very low. It’s great.
I love it. You have people shook looking at that. Thanks for the time, man.
MT: Absolutely.
To see more photos and discussion of Trainer’s bag, click here.
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Pingback: Dustin Johnson joins LA Golf as a partner, member of board of directors – GolfWRX
the dude
Aug 28, 2018 at 11:56 am
LA??….time to rethink that name
Be Warned
Aug 3, 2018 at 11:41 am
Good luck getting a shaft that’s not a complete forgery. Unless they throw out the entire old inventory, don’t even waste your money. You’ll receive a repainted, random shaft.
Tiger whisperer
Mar 22, 2018 at 9:37 am
GolfnRide – it would not take much research to find that composite bats are made out of the same materials that composite shafts are made from. Marucci makes composite bats, so it actually makes a lot of sense.
~j~
Mar 21, 2018 at 1:23 pm
Another high end ‘solution’ for one’s swing flaws. Whe I’m sure it’ll he ‘fun’ and ‘cool’ to create ylur own personel shaft, I’m betting the only increases one will see is the dent in gheir wallets.
Walt, you must have 100% driving accuracy and distance like DJ if you’re vested in one of those seven (wet) dreams shafts. Your strokes gained against your other rich friends must be thru the roof ????
GolfnRide
Mar 21, 2018 at 12:37 pm
Sounds cool, but am I missing something? Aren’t MLB bats made from wood? I don’t see the crossover “similarities” here.
george
Mar 20, 2018 at 4:58 pm
“n terms of pricing, Dickens says LA Golf Shafts will “position as a premium brand.” They will be “aggressive with margins,” and expect to sell “on the high end and above the high end” of what’s currently on the market, possibly “at a few different price points.” …”
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Only the upper 1% and neurotic gearheads will afford to buy these overpriced status shafts to fix their swing faults with money and equipment.
Ryan
Mar 20, 2018 at 2:35 pm
I preordered an M3 with a Matrix Black Tie 80 and I’m still waiting. Now I know why. I wonder if I’ll ever get it?
Jack Nash
Mar 21, 2018 at 1:41 pm
Check Ebay. You’ll probably find a ton there.
DB
Mar 20, 2018 at 1:08 pm
“spend more money on making these shafts in order to give more to the consumer.”
So the cost to make them will be $20 instead of 10-$15? I’m guessing the prices will be $400+. Also, LA Golf is a terrible name. Most people don’t have good thoughts when they think of LA.
Jack Nash
Mar 21, 2018 at 1:43 pm
Well, if they’re in LA a sanctuary city/State labor will be cheaper. He did say he’d be aggressive on margins which doesn’t necessarily mean tighter.
walt
Mar 20, 2018 at 12:14 pm
“n terms of pricing, Dickens says LA Golf Shafts will “position as a premium brand.” They will be “aggressive with margins,” and expect to sell “on the high end and above the high end” of what’s currently on the market, possibly “at a few different price points.” Dickens says philosophically that he places a premium on value, meaning he “won’t ask for more money than [the shaft is] worth” and that the company will “spend more money on making these shafts in order to give more to the consumer.”
Golf shafts only affordable for the top 1%… and gearheads will have to bleed for these shafts.
carl spackler
Mar 20, 2018 at 8:23 am
seems like a bad move to drop the matrix name, especially when there are alot of pros using existing matrix shafts now
Miuralovechild
Mar 20, 2018 at 1:38 am
LA Gear would be a better name! I’ll stick with no nonsense Oban unless my club fitter tells me different.
Robert Parsons
Mar 20, 2018 at 11:23 am
Wasn’t LA Gear a cheesy clothing company from the 80’s? They did a lot of neon, pastels, & stretchy nylon stuff. Hahaha
Ernst
Mar 20, 2018 at 8:25 pm
????yeah it was!
stueldo
Mar 16, 2019 at 7:10 pm
Like that comment.
SImms
Mar 20, 2018 at 1:26 am
Before you believe all this and that about shafts find and read Mr. Adams (original founder of Adams golf) article about golf shafts…..from a guy that made a living competing with the best golf club OEM’s in the world. In a nut shell once you have the right flex, kick point for your swing it matters little how “Premium” the shaft is….
walt
Mar 19, 2018 at 11:40 pm
Great, but will your shafts beat out the autoclave cured Seven Dreams $1200 graphite shafts …. or will they be floppy soggy oven-cured shafts filled with excess epoxy plastic?
Autoclave curing sucks out the redundant expoxy and the shaft is predominantly graphite fibers. All of the graphite shafts on the market now are oven-cured and reinforced with exotic metallic of graphite fibers to compensate for the spaghetti performance…. and after 40 years of graphite shafts the engineers still haven’t figured out how to improve performance…. other than Seven Dreams.
F
Mar 20, 2018 at 12:27 am
They haven’t tried to figure anything out. It’s all been figured out already. The question was how any of these companies could make any of these types of things affordable at the recreational golf level. Any rich tech and materials companies in cahoots with the world governments supplying space-age advanced materials can make anything, and have always done so. It was always the questions of costs allayed to the public, was the issue, not the ability to make anything. You wouldn’t have been able to afford anything they had put on to the Space Shuttle 40 years ago at Walmart and Target, or even Apple and Microsoft levels – until now. But there are still materials and tech being developed and used that Joe Public won’t be able to afford, until they can make them readily available and affordable again. Where do you think microchip tech came from. Where do you think graphite and graphene came from. It’s as if each one of us could own the Large Hadron Collider one day. But we won’t be able to.
walt
Mar 20, 2018 at 12:10 pm
Haven’t you noticed? All the OEM club and shaft makers have given up on the shrinking recreational golfer market and are now catering to the super-rich where price doesn’t matter…. e.g. PXG, Muira, TM, Ping, etc.. They are overpricing their latest and greatest super game improvement clubs so they can survive. Look at the U.S. car companies who only make a profit selling pickup trucks for blue jean crowd personal use. Same with golf clubs.
Aaron
Mar 20, 2018 at 12:44 am
Walt won’t stop telling anyone and everyone about Seven Dreams shafts. Super annoying.
rebfan73
Mar 20, 2018 at 8:01 am
Agreed
walt
Mar 20, 2018 at 12:03 pm
Yup… super annoying for the gearheads who are stuck with their floppy soggy inconsistent pizza oven-cured graphite shafts loaded with extra epoxy plastic that makes them play like limp spaghetti and spraying the ball all over the place. Losing pride in yer WITB sticks must really hurt…. boo hoo 🙁
JDS
Mar 20, 2018 at 9:29 am
Nice Ad.
Skippy
Mar 22, 2018 at 1:18 pm
It’s Seven Dreamers.
Steve P
Mar 19, 2018 at 11:30 pm
Worst name they could have ever picked for this new company. When I think “LA”, I don’t think of quality golf equipment.