All posts by

Miura Golf Introduces CB-501 Forged Cavity-Back Irons

by Annie Latham on March 26, 2010 in Golf Equipment, Irons with 1 Comment

Japanese golf-club manufacturer Miura Golf has just introduced its CB-501 forged cavity-back irons.  Like all Miura irons, the mild-steel CB-501s are hand precision-forged and custom crafted by Katsuhiro Miura, Miura Golf Inc.’s 67-year-old founder, whose forged clubmaking skills over the past 49 years have prompted the Japanese to claim he has “the Hands of God.”

What distinguishes the CB-501 is the effort Mr. Miura’s took to create an iron that featured the ideal ball flight, enough offset to promote playability, the perfect head size and a sole grind that would accommodate a broad range of players.  One of the things he ended up doing was borrowing a design feature from the company’s past-the sweet-spot muscle-back, which was used in a very different Miura iron, the CB-1003, back in 1996.

In all, Mr. Miura spent two years integrating these design variables in different ways until he found the blend that worked best for the widest range of golfers. The result is the CB-501-a cavity-back iron featuring a small muscle-back located behind the sweet spot that delivers the trajectory of a blade iron when the ball is struck on the center of the face. This style of iron also offers cavity-back forgiveness and ball flight, as the contact point moves away from the center of the face.

The CB-501-which boasts a W nickel (satin) chrome finish-is available in a 3-iron through pitching wedge set, right-hand only.  You can find it at high-end, custom-fitting shops.  Pricing is not available.   To learn more, go to www.miuragolf.com.

New Fairway Wood with a Plus 20-Yard Guarantee…

by Annie Latham on March 26, 2010 in Golf Equipment, Fairway Woods with 1 Comment

Tour Edge of Batavia, IL has an offer it hopes golfers won’t refuse — Try their new Exotics CB3 Tour fairway wood, which the company is guaranteeing will add 20-yards more than the distance your are currently getting from  your current fairway woods.  If it doesn’t deliver as promised, you can get your money back.

So what makes the CB3 so capable of propelling your ball farther down the fairway?

To start, it boasts a forged 15-3-3-3 titanium cupped face that is lighter and more powerful.  The company has also played around with variable face thickness which includes a thinner perimeter ring around the striking surface.  Thin face equals long hitting.  Who knew?

And, as they say in the informercials, there’s more!

The a high-tech, titanium cupped face is paired with a heavier hyper steel body. What they did was eliminate every single gram of excess weight  from the face area  and shifted to the rear skirt and sole for a deeper center of gravity.

The Exotics CB3 fairway wood will set you back $299 and comes with come with a lifetime warranty.  Regarding the promotional 20-extra yard guarantee, the catch is that “you can return it under the company’s 30-day play guarantee for a store credit or refund depending on the retailer’s policy.”   A quick check indicates that the CB3 can be found at Sports Authority and Dick’s Sporting Goods.  TGW.com carries it too.   Make sure you check ahead before you pull the trigger.

Cobra Golf’s New S2 Max Irons Unveiled

by Annie Latham on March 23, 2010 in Golf Equipment, Cobra, Irons with 1 Comment

Cobra Golf has just unveiled some new high-performance sticks in a line that has been dubbed Cobra S2 Max.  Available in both iron and iron-hybrid integrated sets,  the S2 Max clubs are designed for maximum forgiveness and high launch for mid- to high-handicap players.  With the S2 Max Iron-Hybrid Set, you get ” Baffler-style hybrids” that provide proper distance gapping throughout the set for players who prefer hitting forgiving hybrids over long irons.

There are several options available:

  • Men’s Graphite set includes 3/H, 4/H and 5/H hybrids, and 6-PW irons, featuring Aldila DVS-HL shafts ($776 SRP).
  • Men’s Steel set includes 3/H and 4/H hybrids with Aldila DVS-HL graphite shafts, and 5-PW irons with FST steel shafts ($632 SRP).
  • Women’s and Seniors’/Lite sets include 4/H, 5/H and 6/H hybrids, 7-PW, and SW irons with Aldila DVS-HL graphite shafts ($776 SRP).

Note: You can find these clubs for significantly less at Golfsmith and TGW.com.

The Cobra S2 Max line has received a Gold Award in the 2010 Golf Digest Hot List. For more information about the Cobra S2 Max Irons and Cobra S2 Max Iron-Hybrid Integrated Set, go to www.cobragolf.com.

Self-teeing System Added to Haggin Oaks Golf Complex

by Annie Latham on March 23, 2010 in News with No comments

The Haggin Oaks Golf Complex, in the Sacramento region of California, has just added the  Power Tee, self-teeing system  to its driving range.  The Power Tee system works by pouring the golfer’s bucket of balls in an underground holding container. After adjusting tee height, a ball pops out of the hole in the mat and tees the ball automatically. After a shot, the tee disappears into a hole and reappears seconds later with another ball.

According to head golf professional, Mike Woods, PGA, “The Power Tee system makes practicing easier and quicker for golfers of all ages and abilities. It also helps players become more consistent with stance and posture and lessens strain on backs and joints. Golfers who have used it tell me it’s really a lot of fun.”

Even before adding the Power Tee system, Haggin Oaks made Range Magazine’s list of America’s Top 100 Driving Ranges.

The Power Tee system, designed and manufactured in Britain, is very easy to use.   The tee has up to 40 adjustable tee heights (4 standard).

Why Tiger’s Return at The Masters Makes Sense (& Dollars)

by Annie Latham on March 17, 2010 in News with No comments

The folks at PGATour.com did a post that proposed six reasons why Tiger returning for The Masters makes sense.  Not that the listing is in any particular order, but the first one happens to be “Controlled Environment.”  We all know Tiger likes control.

Reason 5, “Competing Storyline” makes a good point.  The Masters event is the first “major” of the year.  According to Nielsen, when comparing TV ratings for the final rounds of golf’s four major tournaments since 1977, they found that the top ten telecasts were all from the Masters.

Clearly, with or without Tiger, The Masters tournament itself is an attention getter.  We already noted that The Masters will be available in 3-D, which is a storyline too.  No doubt, Tiger will be the main attraction this year, but he won’t be the only story.

As for six reasons CBS and ESPN should be ecstatic about Tiger’s return (ESPN will air the first two rounds while CBS will broadcast the final two round), check these numbers from a Nielsen Wire post that appeared in February 2009:

The Nielsen Company compared the network TV ratings for the 3rd and 4th rounds of golf tournaments played by Woods after the U.S. Open in 2007 with those same tournaments he missed in 2008 due to a season-ending knee injury. And the results are just what you might expect: Tiger’s absence almost singlehandedly sliced tour ratings in half.

For the broadcasters, and let’s include the Golf Channel in that mix, all six reasons have to do with dollar bills (perhaps “pots of gold”).

San Diego’s a Go! Farmers Signs 4-Year Title Sponsor Deal

by Annie Latham on March 16, 2010 in News with No comments

The AP is reporting that Farmers Insurance Group has just signed a 4-year title sponsorship deal for the PGA Tour stop held at Torrey Pines in San Diego.  Terms of the deal were not disclosed.  PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem did say that next year’s purse would increase half a million from this year, to $5.8 million.

The Torrey Pines event, now known as the Farmers Insurance Open, is held during the West Coast Swing in January.  For the 2010 event, Farmers signed on to be title sponsor the week before the event.  Since 1992, it had been known as the Buick Invitational.  Things changed when the automaker’s parent company, General Motors, filed for bankruptcy and ended its sponsorship last year.

The Masters to Broadcast in 3D; Comcast Distributing for Free

by Annie Latham on March 16, 2010 in News with No comments

The Masters Golf Tournament to Broadcast in 3D

Another day, another 3D announcement.  This time, it came from an unlikely source — Augusta National Golf Club and Masters Tournament Chairman Billy Payne.  They just issued a press release stating that the 2010 Masters will be produced and broadcast live in 3D.

“This innovative step forward, the first of its kind in golf, will include multiple 3D cameras placed strategically throughout the course resulting in perspectives never before seen of Augusta National.”

Sony, IBM and Comcast on board.

Sony Electronics will support the golf effort not only as a sponsor of the 3D Masters telecast, but will showcase the latest advances in professional camera equipment and its 3D-capable televisions. Comcast will join in the production effort and provide the distribution channels necessary to deliver the content free to its households throughout the U.S. Additionally, Comcast and IBM, the tournament’s technology partner, will combine efforts to offer the 3D feed via www.masters.com.

There will be two hours of live afternoon 3D coverage each day starting with  the Par 3 Contest scheduled for April 7.

New Website for St. Andrews Links Features Open Countdown Timer, Old Course Webcams and More

by Annie Latham on March 15, 2010 in News, Courses with No comments

At the PGA Merchandise show in January, the new official website for St. Andrews Links was launched.

Alan McGregor, chief executive of St Andrews Links Trust, said:

“The website is such an important part of our business. It acts as a gateway to the Home of Golf for so many users around the world who are either coming here or who aspire to come here. It has been a major project for us to develop the new site in time for the Open this year and we are pleased to have a new and improved service to offer our golfing customers.”

Indeed, when you arrive at the site, the first thing you’ll encounter is a countdown clock. The Open will be held 15 – 18 July.

There is a stroll down memory lane in the Old Course section.  Also, you’ll find a hole guide with playing advice.  The webcam feature is kind of fun too.

And, of course, there is a brand new Golf Shop section which enables visitors to purchase a full range of official Open 2010, Old Course, St Andrews Links and Castle Course apparel and merchandise.

The new site replaces one that was developed in 2003.

New Stat for Measuring Putts… ‘Putts Gained Per Round’

by Annie Latham on March 14, 2010 in News with No comments

New Stat for Measuring Putts

The Wall Street Journal’s John Paul Newport (Golf Journal) did a story about a new way of measuring putts.  Sure that sounds odd, but it is just because golf hasn’t come up with cool stat names like baseball has (OBP, WHIP, etc.).

The traditional way measuring putting skill among the world’s best golfers is  “putting average” which measures the number of putts that a player takes per round when his ball lands on the green in regulation.

Newport points out “Not only does this approach exclude about 30% of putts attempted on the PGA Tour (those made on greens not reached in regulation), but it also rewards the accuracy of shots into the green as much as it does putting skill.”

One example he provides is of someone who lays up and then chips to a one-putt.

Apparently, none of the current statistics take into account the relative difficulty of the greens played. “Players who compete on a higher percentage of courses with tricky greens, such as at the majors, get a bum deal,” he said.

Throw some MIT researchers (Sloan School of Management) and some computing power (care of PGA Tour’s technology partner, CDW) and what do you get?

A metric called “putts gained per round.”

It starts with creating a baseline from which the golfers will be measured.

  • From 10 feet, the average number of putts that Tour pros take is 1.63.
  • At around 30 feet, the putts-to-go average starts exceeding two. From 40, the average is 2.15.
  • Then there is an adjustment for difficulty of the green.

The model compares the results of each putt a pro takes to the expected putts-to-go average on that particular green by a hypothetical average field If a player holes a 15- footer whose value is 1.82, he gains .82 strokes on the field. If he needs two putts, he loses .18 strokes on the field. At the end of the round, the model adds up all the pluses and minuses to produce the net putts-gained statistic.

Cool huh?

Newport noted that Luke Donald was the best putter in 2009 based on this stat.  Tiger Woods showed favorable numbers too.

It is nice to see the PGA Tour “smartening” up when it comes to offering meaningful stats for such a key aspect of the game.

The complete story can be found here (subscription required).

Golfsmith Announces Callaway Driver Contest: If Phil Wins…

by Annie Latham on March 12, 2010 in News, Contests, Callaway, Drivers with 1 Comment

Golfsmith, the golf specialty retailer, has teamed up with Callaway Golf to offer folks an opportunity to win a new driver if Phil Mickelson is victorious this April in Augusta at the 2010 Masters.

The announcement states:

Starting today and ending April 7, golfers who purchase one of three new Callaway drivers – the Diablo Edge™, FT-Tour™ or FT-iZ™ – at any Golfsmith store across the country will have the purchase price of their Callaway driver fully refunded by Golfsmith if Phil wins the Masters at Augusta, April 8-11.

The rules say, “No purchase is necessary.”

To enter without buying a driver, what you have to do is go to a Golfsmith retail location and ask them for an official “Win With Phil” entry form to fill out and mail in.

Golfsmith estimates thousands of people will take advantage of the promotion, which is available through more than seventy stores from coast to coast. To learn more about Golfsmith’s promotion with Callaway Golf, stop by any Golfsmith store or visit www.golfsmith.com/winwithPhil. This promotion is available only in Golfsmith’s U.S. stores.

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →