I Want A Salmon Shirt!

A fun day for golf… some PGA Tour guys are finishing up at the BellSouth Classic while others have already made their way to Augusta. I’m surprised that they even got as much golf in as they did at the BellSouth… that weather was pretty nasty! I want to first make a correction. I mentioned …

A fun day for golf… some PGA Tour guys are finishing up at the BellSouth Classic while others have already made their way to Augusta. I’m surprised that they even got as much golf in as they did at the BellSouth… that weather was pretty nasty!

I want to first make a correction. I mentioned the other day that Fred Funk was using TaylorMade CGB 3 and 4 irons. Well I did some more reading and digging to find that he only had the CGB 3 iron in his bag.

I have been watching the live feed from the Masters this morning. Looks like TaylorMade has some more limited edition stuff there. I saw a new TaylorMade R7 staff bag (I think Tom Lehman was using it… oh and I just saw my man Darren Clarke with one too.. and an salmon colored shirt.. atta boy). It is black and white… sort of retro looking. I would also not be surprised if TaylorMade did the limited edition hats thing again. It seems like they do it for every Major now.

May Wood has joined the Top-Flite Golf team. Wood is basically the female version of Hank Kuehne… another Top-Flite player. Wood will wear a Top-Flite hat, carry a Top-Flite bag and will play assorted Top-Flite and Callaway golf equipment. With Top-Flite now having May Wood, Hank Kuehne and Ricky Barnes, it’s clear that they will be pushing the “long drive” angle. How far does Wood hit it you ask? Farther than any of us!

A few questions about shafts today. No problem. A reader ordered some Callaway X-Tour irons with Dynamic Gold S300 shafts but wants to experiment with a different shaft. He has used Constant Weight Rifle shafts in the past and suggested that a Project X shaft might be better for him. The Project X is an excellent choice. It is close to the Rifle shaft… it’s made by the same company. The ball flight from a Project X reminds me a lot of the Flighted Rifle… slightly lower ball flight and more penetrating. I don’t know if I would recommend the Project X to a higher handicapper but it is best that you give it a try and decide for yourself. Oh ya… our reader loves his new Callaway X-Tour irons!

Another shaft question… this one concerning the True Temper BiMatrix shafts. I won’t bother you with all the scientific reasons as to why this shaft was made. Let’s cut right into a brief history (in my words) of the BiMatrix shaft. About five or six years ago there was a great need for “the next one”… the next big golf technology that was going to save all of our games. The whole 460CC driver craze hadn’t hit, people talked about COR in driver heads but it was getting old and the UST Proforce was becoming popular. Hmmm… if the UST Proforce is gaining popularity, I wonder if customers are ready for new and exciting shaft technology? You see… overall, customers don’t care about shafts. They don’t understand them, they are boring to learn about, and most weekend warriors would rather get the big new driver than invest in a better shaft in their current club. True Temper took a chance and hoped that people were ready for change. They came out with the BiMatrix shaft… a part graphite, part steel shaft. It was an attempt to give the consumer the best of both worlds. Wow, that’s a great idea! People didn’t care. Adams Golf went pretty heavy into these shafts.. featuring the BiMatrix in their iron and wood lines. The Adams clubs sat on the shelves. Then they went on sale. And they sat some more. People just didn’t care and didn’t want to learn about what this new technology might do for them. Shafts are like the engine of a car. They make the golf club work. This is one of the biggest areas for improvement in golf equipment. But it isn’t “sexy”. How many of your buddies run up to you after a big drive and ask you about your driver shaft? Not very many… they might ask you about your shaft flex but that’s about it. The BiMatrix is a good shaft. Check out www.truetemper.com and learn about these shafts. They still have some Tour usage… with David Toms being their biggest name. I think we will see another shaft revolution very soon. The whole “nanotechnology” idea is on the horizon and it will be very interesting to see how the general golfing public reacts. Check out SirPuttsAlot’s Rant… Getting The Shaft to learn about some upcoming technology in graphite. Thanks for the email!

Let’s talk about Tour Edge. We had a reader ask about this company and their products. I have lots of experience with Tour Edge. I sell it and I have hit it. If more people knew about Tour Edge, I think it could be a great seller. Their stuff is good. They have some really smart ideas and technologies but they lack the “big name”. They made the hybrid club before it was cool. They also offer a lifetime warranty on their equipment… although I don’t think I have ever had to use it. Marketing is everything in golf. You can sell a pop can on a tree branch if you market it right. Tour Edge needs to spend some money in advertising. I don’t think they need to go and sign a bunch of Tour players but they need to get into golf magazines and tell people about their equipment. If you have a chance to try their stuff… please do. I would say that their strength lies in hybrid clubs and fairway woods. I am not a huge fan of their drivers and most of their iron sets are more along the lines of hybrid sets anyways. We used to sell their putters but they didn’t move. Check out www.touredge.com for more details.

Well I think that is it for today. There are still more emails that need to be answered but I’m thinking I should do some laundry on my day off! Fun stuff huh? Then maybe I will go and find a salmon shirt like Darren Clarke. I don’t know if salmon is my color… is it anyone’s color? Thanks very much for all your emails and kind words. The new site is coming along and you should see it soon! Have a great day.