Equipment
4 near-perfect golf equipment launches
I love golf gear, so much so that I started a marketing company that helps golf companies sell more of it. But before I did that, I was very lucky to lead the editorial team at GolfWRX.
At GolfWRX, I covered countless product launches and learned more about the physics and chemistry of golf than any of my science teachers would have ever believed.
It was incredibly fun and revealing to learn from the people who actually designed golf clubs. In learning what they do and why they do it, they’ve earned my endless respect for what goes into a day of work in the golf industry.
These days, I’m a part of my own product launches for the brands we help. And when I work on these launches, I always think back to my favorites from my media days to tap into the things that truly got me excited.
Before I dive into the list, I want to share the three factors that I look for in a successful product launch. The launches I’ve selected answer a resounding “yes” to each of the questions below:
- Does the product strongly represent a brand’s values?
- Does the product add something new that solves a real problem?
- Is the product truly influential?
Here’s my list.
4. Ping G30 driver
Remember the first time you saw Turbulators? Ping was making some very good drivers circa 2013, but they weren’t considered the longest. When they launched the G30, that all changed.
On the science side, Ping’s challenge was that it was committed to making ultra-forgiving drivers. The problem was that making ultra-forgiving drivers meant using a driver head shape that was not very aerodynamic and not very fast. So if you were playing a Ping driver in those days, you weren’t playing it for distance. You were playing it for accuracy.
Other brands were pushing forward CG drivers as the way forward at the time, but the people at Ping thought there was a better way. So they went in a different direction.
Ping’s research into aerodynamics landed them on “Turbulators,” which were humps they added to the front of the driver crown that helped reduce drag so golfers could swing faster.
There was a lot of chatter from the other golf equipment companies that the Turbulators were “just marketing” and didn’t actually work. Several people told me they did a test of the clubs after shaving off the Turbulators and didn’t see a difference.
But when golfers put the G30 on a launch monitor, the results were clear. Not only was the G30 the most forgiving driver in its class, it was one of the fastest, too. And that was all that mattered.
3. TaylorMade RocketBallz fairway woods
The claim was 17 more yards. And for most golfers, they delivered that and more. The TaylorMade RocketBallz fairway woods ushered in a new era of metal wood design that made the previous generation of fairway woods virtually extinct overnight – at least for high-spin players.
Looking back, it made perfect sense. Fairway woods at the time launched too low and spun too much… at least relative to today. But what if you could raise the launch, lower the spin, and add more ball speed? That’s what RocketBallz did.
TaylorMade pointed to its “Speed Pocket” – a slot in the front of the sole – as the reason why the RocketBallz fairway woods were so long. The slot helped, but the performance of RocketBallz was just as much about pushing weight low and forward – well past the point that had ever been tried on a fairway wood.
Looking back, RocketBallz was probably too successful for TaylorMade’s own good. The company rode the low-forward CG story all the way to a line of products called SLDR, which had a CG that was so low and so forward that it was unreliable for most golfers. Hank Haney told me point blank that TaylorMade “never should have launched that driver.”
I have a soft spot for the launch, because TaylorMade has always been known for pushing the envelope. After all, TaylorMade was the first to popularize adjustable weights, adjustable hosels, and several other technologies that were unthinkable at the time.
2. PXG 0311 irons
We thought we were going to get another Miura, but PXG turned out to be something completely different. The Bob Parsons-led company hired some of the best and brightest people in the industry and then gave them a blank check to make the best gear they could. And the project succeeded.. particularly in the 0311 irons that forever changed the players’ irons category.
You’ll remember all the screws on the outside, but what mattered was the polymer-foam on the inside. It allowed the 0311 iron faces to be thinner and for more weight to be pushed to the perimeter. As a result the 0311 offered a combination of distance, feel, and forgiveness that no one had experienced before.
Sure, they were almost $3,000 per set, but the golfers that could afford them didn’t care. They were new. They were sexy. And you could make the case that they were the best irons on the market at that moment.
It’s hard to imagine a more successful launch of a new golf equipment brand than what PXG was able to accomplish on the back of the 0311 irons. The company put its money where its mouth was. They hired the team. They recruited the tour players. And they built a buzz that we haven’t really seen since.
1. Callaway Chrome Soft golf balls
After a full day of learning about the Callaway Chrome Soft golf balls, marketed as “The Ball That Changed The Ball,” I stepped into an exec’s office for a quick interview. The goal was to get a few quotes for a story I was going to write.
The exec was wrapping up a few things, and being a nosy journalist, I looked around the office and noticed two boxes of golf balls. One box was red and looked like the ball I’d been learning about all day. The other box was blue. And they both said Chrome Soft.
I must have said something like, “What’s in the blue box?” He could have avoided the question, but he didn’t. “We were going to launch two different Chrome Soft balls, but we found one was better for everybody,” he said. “So we’re just going to launch one.”
The other ball, he told me, had a higher compression. It would have been safer to launch both balls. Had Callaway launched both versions, I’m willing to bet Chrome Soft never would have been what it was. It was an all-in bet on a low-compression concept that was essentially unproven.
This was a different Callaway, too. Callaway didn’t have OGIO or TravisMathew or Topgolf to rely on. It lived and died with hard goods, and had the Chrome Soft flopped it would have been a big problem for the company.
Those in the know will point out that the original Chrome Soft never took off with tour players, and they’re right. But Callaway knew there was something to Chrome Soft for the rest of the golf world.
Chrome Soft was about $10 cheaper per dozen than Callaway’s tour balls at that time, and nothing else really matched up to it. It was butter soft, it was really straight, and it still checked around the greens.
In the years since, we’ve seen all of the big ball manufacturers talk more about compression and deliver a more nuanced line up of products. There’s no question Chrome Soft was a part of that.
What did I miss or mess up? Leave a comment below or send me an email at [email protected].
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Equipment
Spotted: Tony Finau’s driver shaft change at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
Tony Finau has always been known as one of the longest players on the PGA Tour, but he has recently been working on adding a little more distance. Last year, Finau averaged 118.3 mph club head speed and 178.08 mph ball speed, all while playing a Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70 TX driver shaft. This year, he has increased his club head speed to 123.93 mph and his ball speed to 183.32 mph.
However, Finau’s overall distance has decreased by two yards in that time. From a fitting perspective, something was amiss. We asked Tony about the shaft change at the Texas Children’s Hospital Open.
“[I’m seeing] better numbers with the spin. My driver’s been a little high spin for me over the last month or so, and so I just figured it was time to probably check out the equipment,” Finau said. “And it definitely showed me that I was using a shaft that’s maybe a little too tip-stiff for me, the way I load the club now. [I’m seeing] better numbers with the spin.”
Finau switched from the Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70 TX into the Diamana GT 70 TX. The newer Diamana GT has a slightly different profile than the D+ Limited with the stiffest handle section in the Diamana lineup. The mid sections between the two are similar stiffness but the tip is just slightly stiffer in the Diamana GT. Both shafts are within one gram of each other in the 70 TX. The torque rating on the GT is 0.1 higher than the D+Limited’s 2.7 measurement.
Mitsubishi lists the Diamana GT as a shaft between the mid-launching Diamana TB and the new low-launch Diamana WB shafts. For most players, it would be considered a mid/low launch and low-spin shaft option. Mitsubishi’s Xlink Tech Resin System makes sure the maximum carbon fiber content is there for smooth feel without reducing the strength of the shaft. MR70 carbon fiber is used for reinforcing the shaft and boron is used in the tip for its high strength and compression properties.
Finau is still using his trusty Ping G430 LST driver in 9 degrees and has the adjustable hosel set to -1 degree of loft (standard lie angle). Finau’s long-time favorite Lamkin UTX Green grip is installed. He definitely has a few extra wraps of tape under that grip as you can see the bulge down where the grip meets the shaft.
One final note: Per Ping’s PGA Tour rep Kenton Oates, Finau’s driver is also adjusted to play one degree upright to help dial in his desired launch.
We’ll see how he fares with the new setup this week in Houston!
- Check out the rest of our pictures from the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
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Whats in the Bag
Zac Blair WITB 2024 (March)
- Zac Blair what’s in the bag accurate as of the Texas Children’s Houston Open. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist TSR2 (10 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Red 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade M5 Rocket 3 (14 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Speeder 757 Evolution V1 X
Utility: Titleist U510 (3)
Shaft: Aldila Tour Blue 85 X
Irons: Ping i210 (4-6), Miura MB-001 (7-9)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (46-10F, 58-08M @57, 60 @61), Vokey Design WedgeWorks (52-M)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour 105 X
Putter: Scotty Cameron prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
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Whats in the Bag
Martin Trainer WITB 2024 (March)
- Martin Trainer what’s in the bag accurate as of the Texas Children’s Houston Open. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Wilson Staff Staff Model (6.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Kai’li Blue 70 TX
3-wood: Wilson Staff WLabs Prototype (13 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Orange 80 TX
Irons: Wilson Staff Staff Model (2, 4-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Wilson Staff Staff Model (52, 56, 60)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Putter: Bobby Grace Greg Chalmers Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
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Jim Duckett
Aug 4, 2022 at 12:53 pm
Love my RBZ Stage 2. Honestly, it will not leave the bag until the face has zero pop. I’ve had an RBZ fairway in the bag for the past 10 years and I don’t see that changing any time soon. Great club!
Jed
Aug 3, 2022 at 4:13 pm
Ping in general were always so ahead of the field when in terms of innovation and technology. Just thinking about the Laminated woods and Metal woods that followed. Their irons and putters of yesteryear are surely still the benchmark today.
Rich Douglas
Aug 3, 2022 at 1:28 am
I guess to get the Tour players they had to bump up the compression of both the Chrome Soft and the Chrome Soft X. Both balls are high-compression now and nearly indistinguishable.
Zak Kozuchowski
Aug 3, 2022 at 8:43 am
That’s spot on. But the other Chrome Soft Callaway was considering launching at the time of the original Chrome Soft was not a high enough compression for the tour guys to play, either.
It’s been great to see Callaway expand the lineup in recent years to offer a Chrome Soft for everyone. A golfer buddy of mine loves the LS!