kwantfm
23rd June 2005, 08:25 PM
Well this should set the cat amongst the pigeons... this is going to be a very long post.
A bit of background. I play off 12 at a moderately challenging golf course. Most people on this board who have played with me (with the exception of Speirsy... my god I hit the ball badly that day) would probably say that my striking looks better than the handicap would hint at (or maybe I'm just delusional). I've been playing this humbling game for all of 17 years and have been an equipment junkie for as long as I remember. I've made two really big purchases during my career as a ho... I bought the original J's Professional Weapon in 1990 (made famous by Jumbo Ozaki, Jack Nicklaus and Ray Floyd in the 1990 Masters), and I purchased the original Srixon XXIO after a long hiatus from buying golf clubs (I went to a demo day after having not bought a new driver for 3-4 years and discovered how much better the current crop were). For both clubs I paid a lot of money.
Whilst running my own business I decided to set up a component import and distribution business with a mate. We brought in SMT heads and AccuFLEX shafts and I tried virtually every component head on the market. For about a year and a half I had a bag totally full of component equipment that I had put together myself. Bang, Ashton, SMT, Wishon... I tried them all... and loved them all.
I'd been on BSG a few years ago and didn't believe the Tour stuff. But after reading a few posts on this board and others and getting a bit of encouragement from those in the know I decided to have a go. The first thing I should say is that Tour equipment is a bit hit and miss. The first club I got was a 300 Tour (the so-called "Holy Grail") which, unfortunately, I never got on with that well. Perhaps this 12 handicapper needs a driver bigger than 360 cc. Next I got a 13* 3-wood and hybrid from Speirsy. After reshafting (he had bloody tipped X-flex shafts in them) they have stayed in the bag and feel incredibly solid.
What has made me a total believer is the 510 TP Tour that I have now. 3oneday helped organise a purchase from the US of the head. Now shafted with a 569 Speeder in S-flex. There are a few differences with this driver: it sounds better, it "feels" more solid (I believe that "feel" comes a lot from sound", trajectory is extremely penetrating without any hint of ballooning, and believe it or not I have gained some metres.
I've probably gained 5-10 metres on solid shots which is a big thing given that I've been able to hit a lot of drivers in the past few years and I have a pretty good idea about loft and shafts that suit me.
This is the best driver I have ever hit... a little surprising given that it's quite a few years old now.
Now what I don't believe. I find it hard to imagine that this is made from a different titanium than the retail product. I have to think that TM pulls the open faced clubs (manufacturing error) off the conveyor belt and use these as a starting point. I believe that the sound and flight differences are due to rat glue or holt melt. This would deaden the sound and change the centre of gravity of the club.
So, to me, Tour clubs give you access to the best spec'ed heads in the business.
As you can tell, I'm pretty excited... and I'm putting on the flame proof suit. Do your best guys!
T
A bit of background. I play off 12 at a moderately challenging golf course. Most people on this board who have played with me (with the exception of Speirsy... my god I hit the ball badly that day) would probably say that my striking looks better than the handicap would hint at (or maybe I'm just delusional). I've been playing this humbling game for all of 17 years and have been an equipment junkie for as long as I remember. I've made two really big purchases during my career as a ho... I bought the original J's Professional Weapon in 1990 (made famous by Jumbo Ozaki, Jack Nicklaus and Ray Floyd in the 1990 Masters), and I purchased the original Srixon XXIO after a long hiatus from buying golf clubs (I went to a demo day after having not bought a new driver for 3-4 years and discovered how much better the current crop were). For both clubs I paid a lot of money.
Whilst running my own business I decided to set up a component import and distribution business with a mate. We brought in SMT heads and AccuFLEX shafts and I tried virtually every component head on the market. For about a year and a half I had a bag totally full of component equipment that I had put together myself. Bang, Ashton, SMT, Wishon... I tried them all... and loved them all.
I'd been on BSG a few years ago and didn't believe the Tour stuff. But after reading a few posts on this board and others and getting a bit of encouragement from those in the know I decided to have a go. The first thing I should say is that Tour equipment is a bit hit and miss. The first club I got was a 300 Tour (the so-called "Holy Grail") which, unfortunately, I never got on with that well. Perhaps this 12 handicapper needs a driver bigger than 360 cc. Next I got a 13* 3-wood and hybrid from Speirsy. After reshafting (he had bloody tipped X-flex shafts in them) they have stayed in the bag and feel incredibly solid.
What has made me a total believer is the 510 TP Tour that I have now. 3oneday helped organise a purchase from the US of the head. Now shafted with a 569 Speeder in S-flex. There are a few differences with this driver: it sounds better, it "feels" more solid (I believe that "feel" comes a lot from sound", trajectory is extremely penetrating without any hint of ballooning, and believe it or not I have gained some metres.
I've probably gained 5-10 metres on solid shots which is a big thing given that I've been able to hit a lot of drivers in the past few years and I have a pretty good idea about loft and shafts that suit me.
This is the best driver I have ever hit... a little surprising given that it's quite a few years old now.
Now what I don't believe. I find it hard to imagine that this is made from a different titanium than the retail product. I have to think that TM pulls the open faced clubs (manufacturing error) off the conveyor belt and use these as a starting point. I believe that the sound and flight differences are due to rat glue or holt melt. This would deaden the sound and change the centre of gravity of the club.
So, to me, Tour clubs give you access to the best spec'ed heads in the business.
As you can tell, I'm pretty excited... and I'm putting on the flame proof suit. Do your best guys!
T