Higher Prices = Better Quality – Insights From The Inside

In the highly unlikely event that any of you were disappointed that there was no rant last week I would like to apologize. But anytime an opportunity to go to Phoenix and play the TPC at Scottsdale comes up it’s pretty tough to say no. Before I get right into it, this is the disclaimer …

In the highly unlikely event that any of you were disappointed that there was no rant last week I would like to apologize. But anytime an opportunity to go to Phoenix and play the TPC at Scottsdale comes up it’s pretty tough to say no.

Before I get right into it, this is the disclaimer part where I have to say that neither myself SirPuttsAlot nor my superior SirShanksAlot are affiliated with any golf club brands or golf club manufacturers. Any biases we may have come from years of experience in the business dealing with these companies. This article is not meant to be an endorsement for any particular golf brand as we are both aware that all of the upper end club manufacturers have similar facilities. I just wanted to write an article reflecting my personal experiences while on vacation.

As well as playing some great golf courses I had a chance to visit the Ping WRX center. This is the facility that Ping Golf uses to conduct research, do testing, and fit golf clubs. The way that Ping is set up is they have the foundry where all the clubs are actually built and assembled on one end of town, and the research, design, and testing facility on the other. Unfortunately time did not allow me to visit the foundry but I did get to spend a couple hours at the WRX center and actually watch one of their top level fitters go through a full fitting session. Wow. To get a chance to see some of what goes on behind the scenes at a higher end club company was incredible. I had heard many stories before visiting Ping but it was much cooler than I ever imagined.

There are thousands upon thousands of clubs on hand. Any Ping club that you could ever imagine, with any shaft you could ever think of and in any specs that you could dream of. The fitting is done half inside and half outside on the range. From inside they open a large bay door where you hit balls off real grass to the outside. This is where the launch monitor is located and it gives spin rates, launch angles, ball speeds, etc., etc., etc. They use this to determine the best shaft, loft, ball, shaft flex, and more. Two of these hitting bays are used to house the Ping Man; the mechanical hitting machine that does much of their testing. We were able to see the Ping Man hit a couple of balls and it was quite neat. The way they are able to tweak the machine to produce all kinds of swings is amazing. We also went outside to a first class hitting facility. ProV1's are the range ball of choice with a large area of green grass to hit off there is even some slight mounding to try different clubs off of side hill lies.

The most impressive part about visiting the Ping facility though was getting a chance to see how extensive the testing is that they conduct. Thousands of different club designs are tested with different shafts and specs. The clubs are tested for distance, spin, forgiveness, durability, and on, and on. They are tested with different golf balls and even off different types of grass. One room is set up specifically for durability. A club will be hooked up to the Ping Man while the staff tries everything they can to break the club. If a club passes all the tests it is put through here it is then sent to the marketing department where they try and make the club as pleasing to look at as possible for the consumer. It may take up to several years of research and testing before a club is finally suitable to bring to market if it makes it there at all.

As I said earlier, I know that all upper end golf club companies have similar R & D facilities. If any of you ever have a chance to visit one I urge you to go. It becomes apparent why these higher end companies have to charge so much for their golf clubs and it also becomes apparent why they are worth it.

That's all I have for this week. I'm not sure if there will be a rant for the next two weeks due to Christmas and New Years. If not I would like to wish all our readers Happy Holidays and if you are enjoying a few rum and eggnogs like we certainly will be, please don't drink and drive.

SirPuttsAlot