TMaG Goes Retail

TaylorMade Golf, a division of Adidas (OTCMKTS:ADDYY), says they going into the brick and mortar side of the business with the opening of their first branded outlet store next month in Myrtle Beach with more stores to follow. The business plan is for the stores to be exclusively outlets, selling previous season merchandise from the company’s four brands TaylorMade, Adams Golf, adidas Golf and Ashworth. At present each of the brands offers current merchandise and clearance items for sale over the Internet.

“The outlets are designed to benefit our current retail partners and golfers alike. There has been an influx of product in the marketplace that has moved at a slower pace than expected,” states Ben Sharpe, CEO TaylorMade Golf Company.  “The outlets allow us to sell off-season product at a discounted price, while giving our retail partners the ability to set prices on in-season product at sustainable levels."

Parent company adidas will partner with TMaG to manage the stores. A second location in Livermore, Calif. will open soon after the Myrtle Beach outlet and additional locations are anticipated before the end of the year.

“The retail outlet model will enable our company to more effectively manage distribution of prior generation products while strengthening the position of our brands.” Says David Abeles, President of TaylorMade Golf Company.

Some observers see this move as a response to criticism from green grass and other retail outlets of TaylorMade’s multiple product launch marketing. It also is a way to get a jump on club competitors such as Callaway Golf (NYSE:ELY) for off price sales while at the same time giving TMaG a distribution channel to help traditional retailers inventory.

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary

Women's Western Amateur underway at Lancaster Country Club

The Women’s Western Amateur rolled into Lancaster Country Club Monday for the first of a six-day stay with Emily McLennan, a rising junior at the University of Tennessee – Chattanooga and Eunice Yi, a rising sophomore at Georgia Regents University posting dual 1-under par 71s to top the leaderboard on the first of two qualifying days.

     McLennan and Yi were the only two players in the field of 144 to finish under par on the 6,201-yard lauded William Flynn design. That’s surely an indication of what type of test Lancaster CC will provide one year from now when it hosts the U.S. Women’s Open.

     McLennan, the reigning Tennessee Women’s Amateur, Southern Conference champion and a native of Queensland, Australia and Yi, from Evans, Ga. will attempt to secure medalist honors as the top qualifier among 64 who will enter the championship flight of match play, which begins on Wednesday.

     Nineteen players from Pennsylvania are in the field at the Women’s Western, eclipsed only by the U.S. Amateur in status among women’s national amateur events, including Shannon Gramley of Sharon, Pa. and Shady Side Academy, who posted a 1-over 73 Monday.

     Other Pennsylvania residents include Erica Herr, a recent Council Rock High North graduate and New Hope resident bound for Wake Forest University in the fall. Herr opened with a 4-over 74. Herr’s younger sister, Madelein, shot 88. Allison Cooper of Harrisburg also shot 74. Ashley Cassidy (79) of Doylestown, Emily Gimpel (79) of Lafayette Hill, Kate Granahan (80) of Allentown, Amanda Ploener (80) of Chadds Ford and Aurora Kan (83) of Boothwyn will battle for spots in the 64-player championship field Tuesday.

     The Women’s Western Amateur, held continuously since 1901 and featuring former champions Patty Berg, JoAnne Carner, Nancy Lopez, Beth Daniel, Cristie Kerr and Stacy Lewis is free and open to the public. Check out www.wwga.org for complete scoring and more info.

Nate Oxman

Editor

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10 Rounds with the GX-4i² Golf Rangefinder

One of the best ways to improve your score is to select the correct club for the yardage, and assuming you hit that club your normal distance, you’ll be putting for a birdie. Right?

However, if you have played this game for any length of time you know that’s one of those statements falling into the easy-to-say-hard-to-do category.

The big problem of course is the inconsistency of results when we swing a golf club. Everyone who has ever played golf experiences it so all we can do is take more lessons and send additional time on the range knowing perfection will never be attained. However, you still need to know the distance to the target and laser range finders provide it with absolute accuracy and are not dependent on signals from orbiting satellites.

Which brings me to the Leupold GX-4i² laser rangefinder. From the first, even taking it out of the box, it was evident this is a quality product, rugged and well-made. Over the ten rounds of this trial that fact was confirmed time and again.

Distances are given to one-tenth of a yard, way more accurate than my game but none the less comforting and I liked the “fog” mode which helps for targeting pins when you have one of those early morning tee times. The GX-4i² also has compensations to help you with the “plays-like” distance based on your inputs for altitude and temperature and there’s an inclinometer to judge the effect of slope on your shot.

What makes the GX-4i² unique though is the ability to link all of these and, after you have input the distance you hit your 4-, 6- and 8-irons, the unit will suggest the correct club for the distance compensating for the effects of elevation, temperature and altitude.

And the best thing is the system works.

Anecdotally, an uphill par-3 on my home course has a fairly severely pitched green angling from back to front. Using the GX-4i² I found the correct club for a front pin location was one more than would be called for just judging by the yardage. No surprise there but to a back right pin the club needed was two more than the yardage because of the slope. It may sound elementary in the retelling but it still was a pleasant surprise to me.

Finally the USGA rule that allows laser rangefinders does not allow use of ones with all of the GX-4i2 features such as the inclinometer so Leupold provides two face plates. A bright yellow one with a microchip to give all the described distance compensations and club selections plus a chrome faceplate without the chip, making it in compliance with the USGA rule.

So if you want the best and will makes use of the yardage compensation features the GX-4i² at $625 is a great choice, conceivably the only choice.

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary

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It’s Not Just Majors

The other day sitting around after a round of golf discussing our favorite topic and commenting about Adam Scott’s attempt to defend his Masters title. Virtually impossible we concluded but that lead to a question none of us were able to answer with certainty.

Of the currently active players on the PGA Tour who after Tiger and Lefty have the most wins. The usual suspects were named and after taking advantage of smartphone technology my guess (shared with several others) of Davis Love III was confirmed.

This incident however prompted my thinking as to the reasons why the World Golf Hall of Fame recently made such a massive change to the process of selecting those get their names on the wall in St. Augustine.

To illustrate the problem and why it was a good thing to revamp the enshrinement selection process take a look at the list of currently active Tour players. And let’s set aside for a moment the number of major championships since too often that’s the only focus especially by my media colleagues. Plus we should add in their international wins since some such as Colin Montgomerie have spent most of their careers playing in Europe (31 wins) and have never won in the U.S.

The list is headed of course by future Hall of Famer Tiger Woods with 79 PGA Tour victories and 12 internationally followed by Phil Mickelson, inducted into the Hall in 2012, with 42 on Tour and 4 around the world. Then it drops back to Hall member Vijay Singh at 34 and 22.

Here’s the rest:

Davis Love III – 20/2

Ernie Els 19/47

Jim Furyk 16/0

Fred Couples 15/5

Els and Couples are Hall of Fame members already but Couples’ induction at least and certainly Montgomerie’s who has no majors were a big reason why the Hall of Fame’s board decided to make drastic changes in the selection criteria and process.

For me the need was obvious when they made decision under the old method of voting that lowered the standards for admission from 75 percent of the votes to 65 percent to finally the candidate receiving the most votes over 50 percent. I think it’s a classic case of shooting yourself in the foot—trying to solve the problem of current players not measuring up to the records of those who preceded them by making it easier to get elected.

I’m reminded of the sports leagues for kids’ that give everyone a trophy for merely showing up.

What are the chances the current crop of “stars” on Tour will better the records of those in the Hall? Will Adam Scott achieve more majors or how about DJ or Patrick Reed or Rory?

Boy, talk about a guessing game!

The Hall had become a recognition not for play in the Hogan-Nelson-Palmer-Nicklaus-Player-Trevino-Miller-Watson-Mickelson category but for something less and golf fans responded with a collective yawn. Let’s hope the new criteria changes that because the fans, the game and the great players already members of the World Golf Hall of Fame deserve it.

Images courtesy of the World Golf Hall of Fame

Remember…Bobby Jones was a Professional

Masters week is an appropriate time to remember tournament founder Bobby Jones, who dominated his era as no one has ever done and there are a bushel of numbers to illustrate the point. Numbers such as Jones’ winning the four majors in 1930, the Grand Slam of the U.S. Open, British Open, U.S. Amateur and British Amateur.

His record shows from when he won his first U.S. Open title in 1923 through his 1930 U.S. Amateur win he played in 20 major championships and won 13 times.

Let that sink in for a moment…playing as an amateur against professionals of the caliber of Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen he won 65 percent of the time.

And then he quit. He had climbed his personal Everest and the only direction he could go from there was down.

Besides he was tired, worn out from the strain of playing at such a high level as well as from the travel which in the 1920s was arduous, many days and nights on trains or steamships.

There also was another important factor in his decision, Jones needed money. He was not independently wealthy and while an amateur he couldn’t play for pay. He had to generate an income from his fledgling law practice and other ventures to support his wife and children.

Therefore, a month and a half after winning the U.S. Amateur for the last time he sent a letter to the USGA announcing his retirement from championship golf and renouncing his amateur status.

As a professional Jones most certainly could have commanded huge fees for exhibitions just as Walter Hagen was doing or he could have played for prize money on what passed for a professional tour in the Depression years of the 1930s. But reflecting the times any money he won would have paled in comparison to the potential exhibition income.

So he did neither. Jones sent the letter because he knew the USGA rules strictly defined what constituted being an amateur and he was planning to make money from ventures related to golf so he would have been in violation. This in spite an earlier ruling by the USGA that money Jones received for a column appearing in several hundred newspapers did not somehow violate his amateur status. Inconsistent to be sure but probably more a reflection of the prevalent opinion a journalist was above the common drudgery of earning money from the game in contrast with lowly professionals.

And Jones was not about to sell his endorsement of some product just for the sake of making money. In fact his best known project wasn’t an endorsement deal at all but an immensely popular series of one-reel instructional films shown in movie theaters entitled “How I Play Golf.” Even today these films are worth watching, filled with information about the golf swing though Jones disliked what he called the “corny” story lines transparently centered on him giving lessons to movie stars.

His most profitable venture was getting into the club business and he became intimately involved with the design of the club line bearing his name manufactured by A.G. Spaulding Company. Interestingly the fact Jones autograph-model clubs had steel shafts was a major factor in sealing the demise of hickory shafts…”If Bobby says steel is OK, it must be.”

So the bottom line is according to the Rules of Golf Bobby Jones, the greatest amateur golfer of all time, was not allowed to be an amateur any longer.

Images courtesy of the USGA.

Course Closings 11 Times Openings

On the eve of what might be called “Golf’s Annual Global Summit,” better known as the annual PGA Merchandise Show which takes place next week in Orlando, the National Golf Foundation is reporting that in the U.S. during 2013 more than 11 times as many golf courses closed compared to the number that opened.

  

The NGF records openings and closings using the descriptor of “18-Hole Equivalents” to equalize the data among different sized facilities. Last year 157.5 courses closed, six being private clubs and the balance public access, either daily fee or municipal.

On the other side of the ledger 14 courses (18-Hole Equivalents) opened and 40 percent or 5.5 of them were private facilities.

At the end of 2012 there were 14,564.5 courses in the country, 10,704.5 being in the public access category.

This is the eighth year in a row there has been a decrease in the number of golf courses, a total of 643 from the peak in 2005. This is a drop of about 4 percent and reflects the decrease in the number of golfers plus other factors such as local economic conditions and course capitalization.

Industry analysts point out the shrinkage in the number of courses is a natural correction of the market reflecting fiscal and demographic changes in the business of golf after the 40 percent growth in golf facilities from 1986 to 2005.

Though it may first strike the observer as counterintuitive the continued closing of courses is a positive for the industry. As the NGF notes, “Although there will be excellent new golf courses being built in the future, the gradual market correction is expected to continue for the next few years. Annual net reduction of supply should be in the 130-160 range, helping us inch toward a healthier supply and demand balance.”

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary

New ClubGliders

The ClubGlider from Sun Mountain is a great solution to that unpleasant task of getting your sticks through the airport and for the new season a new model joins the lineup, the Tour Series.

ClubGlider is different from other travel bags because it has extendable legs with wheels in addition to the wheels at the bottom of the bag. This means all of the weight is supported making it easy to maneuver to and from the parking lot and when you get to airline check-in the legs fold away, locking in place.

Since a loaded travel bag can weigh 45 pounds, the ClubGlider’s design does away with the hassle and strain of picking it up and putting it down. Your travel bag stands ready to move when you are. All have heavy-duty two-way zippers on the outside and thick padding on the inside to protect clubheads and shafts. Plus there are storage pockets, internal cinch straps, reinforced wear areas and a lift-assist handle.

ClubGlider is available in four different models – Pro, Meridian, Journey and the new Tour Series – offering protection for golfers ranging from weekend warriors to touring professionals. Retail prices are $349, $289, $219, and $319 respectively.

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary

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Ten Rounds With The CB Pro

According to the buzz, Tour Edge had come up with something really special in the Exotics CB Pro fairway and starting with the packaging it was evident they agreed.

Rather than the usual slim cardboard carton holding a club muffled in bubble wrap, the CB Pro was inside a carton inside another carton with the club suspended in multi-layer pasteboard brackets. There was even a pasteboard tube to secure the Stitch head cover. Clearly Tour Edge considers the CB Pro to be out of the ordinary so I was looking forward to “test driving” this latest from the company that built their reputation by making really top notch fairways and hybrids.

“Test driving” new clubs, especially drivers and fairways can be done in several ways but I prefer to do it on the course. A golf simulator is fine and the computer data is useful but on-course conditions cannot be duplicated even by the most sophisticated software. Testing on the range is an improvement since wind and lie and stance mimic actual playing but even with a radar measurement device you still can’t walk out and see for yourself.

And you can add to my list of prejudices, the same is true when comparing one club to another. Call me old-school but the proof of a club’s performance is on the course not on the range or in a simulator.

So, after being appropriately appreciative of Tour Edge’s packaging the next stop was the course.

The first thing you notice is at address is the CB Pro head looks smaller than recent Exotics models like the XCG6. At 170cc the size and shape look good behind the ball and could even be called confidence inspiring. There’s also a new sole design that Tour Edge says helps keep clubhead speed at impact by tending to glide over the turf rather than digging in and looking at divot depths this certainly seems to be true. The titanium cup face is combo brazed to the stainless steel body, a process used only by Tour Edge, and clubhead weight has be moved closer to the face to favor a lower ball flight.

As it happened the first two rounds with it in the bag were played with a 10-plus mph wind but since the CB Pro does produce a nice flat trajectory it meant the ball could be controlled even when across the wind.

Because of the wind (and playing in the rain on one occasion) it wasn’t until the fourth or fifth round I really came to appreciate how long the CB Pro hit the ball. It had felt good, solid from the start, but the fact that even with a flat trajectory there was enough spin on the ball to keep it in air without a tendency to balloon meant the result was really good distance.

Gaining confidence I started using it from the tee on tight holes and though it certainly isn’t as long as a driver it did what you want the most when using a 3-wood instead of a 1-wood, it “thread the needle” when called upon.

There’s no question the Exotics CB Pro should be at the top of your list for consideration if you are in the market to replace your present fairways. It comes in a choice of five lofts between 13.5 degrees and 17.5 degrees with either the Fujikura Speeder 661 or 757 Series shaft.

At the beginning I said Tour Edge thinks this club is something special. The packaging was an indication of how special but the company is only making a limited number of the CB Pro and, risking “sticker shock,” has set the retail price at $500.

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary

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Tour Edge Exotics XCG7

Tour Edge Golf has updated the Exotics XCG line with the XCG7 and XCG7 Beta drivers plus new fairways, hybrids and irons for 2014.

The new drivers are adjustable and there are two different club head sizes, the XCG7 at 460cc and the Beta at 440cc. In addition to the smaller size the Beta has a deeper face to produce lower spin. Both have loft options from 8.5 to 12 degrees in ½ degree increments.

According to the company the Exotics XCG7 AND XCG7 Beta fairways are designed to be more forgiving than previous models and have a lower profile face and large clubhead. The Beta model offers a smaller head, deeper face, and produces a slightly lower, more penetrating trajectory.
The new hybrids also have regular and Beta models to accommodate golfers having a range of skill levels. The XCG7 offers a larger, shallower face to produce a higher trajectory while the Beta has a more compact shape and deeper face for workability and a more penetrating ball flight preferred by better players. Exotics XCG7 IRONS have an improved pocket cavity iron design to date and are cast in one piece from 431 stainless steel. Tour Edge says the new design provides better feel and more stability in a classic-style head design.

ED TRAVIS | Golf Opinion & Commentary
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