Ed Travis Equipment blog

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Big Bertha

USGA and R&A

By ED TRAVIS Wilson Dynapower irons were the dominant iron brand on the PGA Tour in the fifties and sixties

By ED TRAVIS Every golfer I have ever talked to wants to play better, score better and enjoy the game

By Ed Travis Golf, at least most of the time, is played with the sun shining if not beating down

By ED TRAVIS Tour Edge Golf’s Exotics lineup for this season includes three iron models, two redesigned from 2022 and

By ED TRAVIS Titleist fills out the TSR family with an ultralight model, the TSR1, especially designed and constructed to

By ED TRAVIS Mizuno after a four-year development process has announced the ST-230 drivers, fairway woods and hybrids including a

By ED TRAVIS Ping has launched the much-anticipated successor to the G425 drivers with three G430 series models featuring distance

By ED TRAVIS TaylorMade has expanded the Stealth iron line with the HD model designed for slower swing players needing

By ED TRAVIS TaylorMade Golf has announced three Stealth 2 Carbonwood Drivers for 2023 with a thinner carbon face and

Paradym Drivers from Callaway By ED TRAVIS Callaway Golf has announced the new Paradym club family that includes drivers, fairway

By ED TRAVIS The new line of Huntington Beach SOFT Putters from Cleveland Golf has six shapes, all specially milled

By ED TRAVIS It’s always refreshing when someone you respect agrees with you…or is it the other way around? In

By ED TRAVIS The new MC-502 (muscle cavity) irons from Miura Golf replace the previous MC-501 model; they are designed

By ED TRAVIS What a difference a year makes. Registration of golf professionals and industry members for the 70th PGA

By ED TRAVIS Mizuno known for their irons has introduced a new family of irons, the 923s, with a game-improvement

By ED TRAVIS Three new fairway wood models under the TSR brand have been announce by Titleist. They address the

By ED TRAVIS Following on the 2019 TS model and the 2021 TSi model the newest drivers from Titleist are

Kalea Premier by TaylorMade By ED TRAVIS Kalea, the women-specific brand from TaylorMade Golf, has added updated models tagged Kalea

By Ed Travis The new Ping ChipR is, as the name implies, replaces a wedge around the green for those

By ED TRAVIS Sun Mountain’s new cart bags, the Maverick for men and the Stellar for women, are full featured

By ED TRAVIS Featuring more accuracy than previous versions, the Arccos Gen3+ Smart Sensors use integrated artificial intelligence machine learning

By ED TRAVIS XXIO, a sister brand to Srixon, has introduced for the new season the X family of light

By ED TRAVIS The new Ping Glide 4.0 wedges are the fourth generation of this popular line going back to

By ED TRAVIS Golf’s ruling bodies, the R&A and USGA, are just steps away from dictating elite players (top amateurs

By ED TRAVIS Expanding the D9 family Wilson Golf has introduced for 2022 the D9 Forged model irons designed using

By ED TRAVIS Titleist’s Vokey Wedge division, whose wedges are the most played on the PGA Tour have replaced the

By Ed Travis The new Launch Pad woods, hybrids and irons for men and women from Wilson Golf are targeted

By ED TRAVIS Reinventing a product that’s been around for more than 10 years is risky, but Sun Mountain has

By ED TRAVIS Capitalizing on the success of last year’s 721 metalwoods Tour Edge Golf has updated them in the

By ED TRAVIS Bridgestone Golf has reintroduced the four models of the Tour B series for the 2022 season with

By ED TRAVIS The 69th PGA Show was held January 25 through the 28th in Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center

By ED TRAVIS TaylorMade Golf is promoting the use of carbon fiber in the new multi-material Stealth fairway woods and

ED TRAVIS TaylorMade Golf has announced the Stealth Carbonwood driver family with a totally new and unique face, one made

By ED TRAVIS Callaway’s Rogue ST MAX drivers make use of a fixed tungsten weight, a first for them in

By ED TRAVIS French clubmaker ARGOLF’s AR-F35s are targeted to those slow to moderate swing speed players wanting added forgiveness

By ED TRAVIS Adams Golf Tight Lies fairway woods and hybrids have been reintroduced with improvements to make them even

By ED TRAVIS Designed in consultation with Ping’s tour staff the new Glide Forged Pro wedges have a more compact

By ED TRAVIS Three tracks, two sliding weights and an adjustable hosel put the Mizuno ST-G 220 driver at the

By ED TRAVIS Cleveland Golf has announced their latest game-improvement irons the Launcher XL with a high MOI hollow body

By ED TRAVIS Ping has announced their newest irons in the better-player category, the i59 model, featuring a forged body

By ED TRAVIS Callaway is promoting the new Epic Super Hybrids describing them as having the “DNA and technology of

By ED TRAVIS TaylorMade Golf’s P-790 model have been a popular choice in players-distance irons since the original introduction and

By ED TRAVIS Titleist has replaced their current T-series irons with four new models and the newbies include three for

By ED TRAVIS Galway Bay Apparel is serious about rain and golf. Their tag line is “Just because the weather

By ED TRAVIS Cobra Golf has added to the King line of clubs with the King Tec Hybrid targeted for

By ED TRAVIS Ben Hogan Golf’s newest game-improvement category iron, the Edge EX, has a large cavity back with a

By ED TRAVIS A few observations from the 85th Masters won by Hideki Matsuyama the first native of Japan to

By ED TRAVIS For those wanting wedges with extra bite Cobra Golf has brought out the new King Cobra model

By ED TRAVIS Bridgestone Golf’s newest Lady Precept is the latest version of the best-selling women’s’ golf ball of all

By ED TRAVIS Callaway Golf’s (NYSE: ELY) purchase of Topgolf International, Inc. has been completed, paid for with the issuance

By ED TRAVIS The Arnold Palmer Invitational. Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Bryson DeChambeau. A trifecta if there ever was

By ED TRAVIS Previously launched in Japan, Honma’s new T//World GS (Gain Speed) family of game improvement category clubs for

By ED TRAVIS Callaway Golf fills out the Chrome Soft golf ball family with the X LS, a four-piece urethane

By ED TRAVIS Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic the 2020 Ryder Cup was pushed back to 2021 bringing back memories

By ED TRAVIS Srixon’s ZX iron series has been completed with the introduction of the game-improvement medium profile ZX4 irons

By ED TRAVIS The choice of Michael Whan, who recently announced he was leaving as Commissioner of the LPGA Tour,

By ED TRAVIS The two panels of carbon fiber in the crown that wrap around on to the sole of

By ED TRAVIS Mizuno bills the better-player ST-Z and game-improvement ST-X as their next generation designs. Both have a forged

By ED TRAVIS The e12 Contact from Bridgestone has a cover with a unique dimple shape featuring a raised center

By ED TRAVIS Callaway says the ERC Soft is their longest ball with soft feel and for 2021 it has

By ED TRAVIS Three new Epic drivers from Callaway combine the latest artificial intelligence-designed Flash faces and Jailbreak Speed Frames

By ED TRAVIS A lot has changed since January 2015 when Bob Parsons, the founder of GoDaddy.com introduced, Parsons Xtreme

By ED TRAVIS A new version of the Bridgestone e6 has been announced retaining the two-piece construction and low spin

By ED TRAVIS Accessory maker Zero Friction has introduced a lightweight stand bag with dual strap and useful features including

By ED TRAVIS Having had a couple of weeks to think about the implications of the announced “strategic alliance” between

By ED TRAVIS Srixon’s new ZX5 and ZX7 drivers use Rebound Frame Technology that layers flexible areas with stiffer areas

By ED TRAVIS Concept Helix, a new approach from Golf Pride to regripping without special equipment, tape or solvent using

By ED TRAVIS Accessory maker Zero Friction has entered the rangefinder business with two pistol grip models having a range

By ED TRAVIS Cobra Golf again breaks new ground with introduction of the limited-edition King Supersport-35 putter, the first golf

By ED TRAVIS A friend, who happens to be a golf professional based in California, put it best Saturday afternoon

By ED TRAVIS The two largest and only publicly traded golf equipment companies, Acushnet Holdings Corp. (NYSE: GOLF) and Callaway

By ED TRAVIS Callaway Golf (NYSE: ELY) is buying Topgolf Entertainment Group for shares valued at approximately $2 billion which

By ED TRAVIS Sales of golf clubs are booming and though one hardly is dependent on the other, health considerations

By ED TRAVIS Two new driver models called TSi from Titleist feature a reconfigured shape for better aerodynamics and a

By ED TRAVIS On his way to a six-stroke U.S. Open victory Bryson DeChambeau was not the longest off the

By ED TRAVIS A new distance iron from Honma Golf, the TR21X model, is targeted at players ranging in skill

By ED TRAVIS Four years ago, Justin Thomas had some ideas for a modified putter which have now resulted in

By ED TRAVIS The 2019-2020 PGA Tour season will be remembered for a long time. The worldwide pandemic caused a

By ED TRAVIS Honma Golf expands its lineup with the announcement of the TR20B model blade irons for professionals and

By ED TRAVIS Third generation JPX irons from Mizuno Golf, the JPX921 series, consists of the JPX921 Forged, JPX921 Tour,

By ED TRAVIS A more compact profile distance iron, the TaylorMade P770 with a forged hollow head, and two new

By Ed Travis Our window on the finances of golf equipment companies is not wide since most firms are part

By ED TRAVIS OnCore’s new Vero X1 4-piece urethane cover golf ball has a larger core to provide more iron

By ED TRAVIS Jon Rahm’s chip-in on the 16th hole Sunday at the Memorial Tournament all but clinched his victory

By ED TRAVIS Bryson DeChambeau’s performance with a driver during the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club was an

By ED TRAVIS Those of us who play golf for the fun of it sometimes wish we could use our

By ED TRAVIS Retailing has taken an unprecedented hit. According to the U.S. Census Bureau the Sporting Goods/Hobby/Musical category had

By ED TRAVIS In a move that surprised no one, the PGA of America and Reed Exhibitions have canceled the

By ED TRAVIS Long iron substitutes from Ben Hogan Golf, the UiHi Utility Irons and VKTR+ Hybrids, designed for combo

By ED TRAVIS The Garmin Approach Z82 rangefinder gives lasered distances to 450 yards and the display shows a two-dimensional

Wilson reenters the premium category with the Staff Model, a four-piece cast urethane cover ball. Fast Facts: Four-piece construction Cover

By ED TRAVIS One of the reasonable things to do while watching the dog destroy pillows on the couch (he’s

By ED TRAVIS ICON forged muscle back blade-style irons for better players by Ben Hogan Golf have progressive weighting with

By ED TRAVIS Dean Knuth and partner Steve Trattner started Knuth Golf with the simple idea of making high quality

By ED TRAVIS According to the recently released USGA and R&A Distance Insights Report (DIR) golfers (including you) hit the

By ED TRAVIS Acushnet Holdings Corp. (GOLF: NYSE) has two franchise brands, Titleist and FootJoy, that dominate in their respective

By ED TRAVIS Each January we attend the PGA Merchandise Show to find interesting and significant products among those being

By Ed Travis The golf industry kicks off the new year in Orlando with the PGA Merchandise Show, promoted as

By Ed Travis Bridgestone Golf has unveiled the 2020 TOUR B family of golf balls and promoting what they are

By Ed Travis Honma Golf is making a significant effort to capture a bigger portion of the golf equipment business

By Ed Travis Callaway Golf’s latest line of clubs is called Mavrik and clearly builds on the success of last

By Ed Travis Two new irons have been introduced by Tour Edge Golf, a game-improvement category model EXS 220 and

By Ed Travis TaylorMade Golf’s entry in the ‘metalwood wars’ for 2020 is the SIM model which seems to be

By ED TRAVIS XXIO is pushing to increase its share of the equipment market in the U.S. with an aggressive

  By Ed Travis Golf rangefinders using the ubiquitous GPS technology have become commonplace and almost every golfer in the

By Ed Travis Every player knows (or should know) the key to hitting scoring shots, the ones critical to posting

By Ed Travis For more than 30 years Tour Edge Golf has built clubs for recreational players with two important

By Ed Travis Most muscle back iron designs owe a debt at least in part to Mizuno Golf engineers who

By Ed Travis Cobra Golf has introduced a super game-improvement category iron called the T-RAIL that fulfills the needs of

By Ed Travis Miura Golf’s founder Katsuhiro Miura began forging irons in 1957 and since been responsible for some of

  By Ed Travis First offered in 2017 the P790s have been the best-selling iron model in TaylorMade Golf’s history

By Ed Travis The 2018-2019 PGA Tour season is over and it’s time for our annual compilation of which manufacturers

By Ed Travis Titleist recently introduced the 620 CB and MB irons basically “pro-only” models and for recreational players the

By Ed Travis The topic of slow play leapt into focus on social media when the number one and number

By Ed Travis Rain. Fog. Sunshine. Wind. Tucked pins. Fescue. Gorse. Rough. Humpy, bumpy, firm fairways. Texas wedges. Raised greens.

By Ed Travis The original Callaway Golf Epic irons released in the spring of 2017 had something of a “concept

By ED TRAVIS One of the basic truths about golf is even when a putt is hit online with the

By ED TRAVIS Titleist decided in order to be major factor in the driver business they would have to make

By Ed Travis Cobra likes to stress the sophistication and ingenuity of their club design process and can point to

By Ed Travis According to Joe Jung, one of the founders of New Ground Golf, the company was formed in

By Ed Travis The superlatives applied to Tiger Woods particularly after winning the Masters in April, his 15th major chasing

By Ed Travis Scotty Cameron is one of the most respected putter designers in the industry and when he comes

By Ed Travis Bridgestone Golf for the 2019 season has introduced a new line of wedges, the XM-1s, that can

By ED TRAVIS More than 95 percent of golfers will not only never play at the professional level but will

By ED TRAVIS The past year was a good one for golf equipment companies lead by the two largest Acushnet

By Ed Travis There’s always a risk when a company tries to improve on a popular product. However, Dean Snell

By Ed Travis Wilson made a statement about their view of the club business with the introduction of the Cortex

By Ed Travis You can pardon a clubmaker boasting a little when for 10 years they have made one of

By Ed Travis Rumors and hyperbole are as much a part of the annual PGA Merchandise Show as the lines

By Ed Travis After TaylorMade Golf made the announcement of a pair of drivers with a feature not seen since

By Ed Travis Callaway Golf’s announcement of the Epic Flash driver and fairway woods was accompanied by the introduction of

By Ed Travis Callaway Golf (NYSE: ELY) is the largest seller of golf clubs with a dominant position in drivers

By Ed Travis As TaylorMade Golf fights to regain the top spot in driver sales it’s sometimes overlooked that their

By ED TRAVIS PING had a lot of success with the G700 a game-improvement category iron model last year, so

Year of the Tiger Perhaps Ben Hogan’s come back to win six majors after a head-on collision with a bus

Perplexed what to buy for a golfer on your gift list? Here are a few suggestions of items we like

By Ed Travis In the view of some it took courage for Wilson Golf to subject themselves to another round

By Ed Travis Since Callaway Golf came out with the first Big Bertha irons back in the mid-90s the name

By Ed Travis Some observers forget there’s a danger in reading too much into the financial results of a company

By Ed Travis Played golf the other day with a good friend who brought along a gentleman I had never

By ED TRAVIS Designing golf clubs always involves compromises but the two attributes every manufacturer is looking to build into

By ED TRAVIS Titleist is the number one ball company and will remain in the top spot for the foreseeable

By Ed Travis The other day it occurred to me that like lots of others I didn’t know as much

By ED TRAVIS Justin Rose won the FedExCup bonus of $10 million on points though his three over par effort

By ED TRAVIS Tour Edge Golf is upping their ante in the driver market with the Exotics EXS model which

Ok, the real hype can begin now U.S. Ryder Cup team Captain Jim Furyk has made three selections leaving one

By ED TRAVIS Michael Breed on his Sirius XM PGA Tour radio show A New Breed of Golf has proposed

By ED TRAVIS Brooks Koepka beating Tiger Woods for the Wanamaker Trophy and the 100th PGA Championship gave us some

At this writing it’s still two months until the Ryder Cup will be played at Le Golf National outside Paris.

By ED TRAVIS Truth time. My favorite majors are the Masters and the British Open and that’s not saying anything

By ED TRAVIS It was interesting the revamped PGA Tour schedule for the 2018-2019 season received so little play by

We took the Titleist AVX to the course and had golfers try it, giving each two sleeves so they could

By ED TRAVIS The buildup to September’s Ryder Cup has begun and over the summer as it always does will

By ED TRAVIS The chance to play the latest drivers, irons and putters is a great part of writing about

Potentially forgotten in all the coverage given the introduction of the AVX, its latest premium golf ball, is the fact

By ED TRAVIS Ah, the rite of spring called the Masters. Each April for much of the nation it marks

  Publisher’s note: For a dissenting opinion to the below, from the superintendent at one of the great traditional courses

By Ed Travis One of the best ways to hit better shots is to play with clubs that help to

By ED TRAVIS One of the more interesting introductions at this year’s PGA Merchandise Show was a family of clubs

By ED TRAVIS Annually the golf industry gathers in Orlando for what some call the “Disney World for golf nuts,”

One of the pleasures that least in part compensates for having to tread the miles of aisles at each year’s

Callaway Golf had a banner season last year with the Epic club family, especially the driver, and hopes to do

By ED TRAVIS Tiger Woods comes back . . . again: A WD in Dubai in February. Another back surgery in

By ED TRAVIS Having a few days pass since Tiger Wood’s competitive comeback at the Hero World Challenge, a few

The golf world is all aflutter with the impending return of Tiger Woods and that’s a good thing. Heaven knows

By Ed Travis Observers are applauding the European Tour’s renaming the 2018 Austrian Open as the Shot Clock Masters. Putting

By ED TRAVIS “Whilst delighted for all the players, it’s quite sad to see The Old Course of St Andrews

By ED TRAVIS Without dusting off my crystal ball—it’s got a big crack in it anyway—I see two trends worth

A quick nine after work. Taking the kids for a few holes on a Sunday afternoon. A bucket of balls

Fifteen years ago I had a set of Steelhead X-14 irons from Callaway Golf. They were actually released in 2000

Golf clubs, and putters especially, get their names for lots of reasons—some having to do with their performance, some for

In the past there have been a number of times I have been critical of golf’s rules givers, the United

The Great Big Bertha Epic driver from Callaway Golf caused a flurry of comment on the Internet and in club

By ED TRAVIS Leupold makes great laser rangefinders and so the opportunity to test out two of their newest models,

An old friend was on the phone the other day talking about his golf game and asked if I knew

Right out of the box the new Ping i200 irons make a positive impression. They look great, like an iron

Tour Edge Golf doesn’t spend millions on television advertising campaigns nor do they dole out money for toursters to play

In 2013 Tom Olsavsky joined Cobra Puma Golf as Vice President of Research and Development after a long stint with

For a lot of reasons besides the thrill of watching him play this madding game we need a healthy Tiger

By ED TRAVIS The new book “Back On Course” has the subtitle “Drive Business Performance Through Golf” and it discusses

By ED TRAVIS After covering the PGA Merchandise Show for more than 20 years the variety of products still amazes

By ED TRAVIS Each year Jim Koppenhaver, President of the industry consulting firm Pellucid Corp., and Stuart Lindsay also from

There lots of gift guides for golfers but this year rather than the usual approach we thought it would be

At this writing we are just over two months to the opening of the 2017 PGA Merchandise Show – in

By ED TRAVIS The trials and tribulations of golf equipment manufacturers and retailers have been well reported with Dicks Sporting

Club makers use words like NEW, AMAZING, THE LATEST, etc. to promote their clubs and putters are no exception. When

Now that a few days have passed since the USA Ryder Cup victory a couple of points should be raised.

Tour Edge Golf rolled out the Exotics brand in 2008 with the express purpose of utilizing technologies and materials that

Some may think “Virginia Is For Lovers” is just another marketing slogan but at least in the case of Virginia’s

Olympic golf was a smash hit but will that success help to accomplish the goal of those who believe the

There are lots of reasons to pick a particular putter from “it looks good” to of course, “it works… at

By Ed Travis The golf equipment industry is evaluating the potential effects of Nike Golf announcing Aug. 3 it would

Two years ago the PGA of America realizing how much interest there had been in the long drive competition formerly

There have been few startup manufacturers whose clubs have received as much attention and praise as the High Heat driver

At one time or another most of us have played golf in a business situation often with customers or potential

After more than a century golf is again an Olympic sport and perhaps it would be a good idea to

Stand around the first tee on any given Saturday morning and several things are obvious. For the purposes of this

He doesn’t play any longer and perhaps his step has slowed some but Arnold Palmer is still The King and

Time flies and if you’re of the age to remember Cobra’s Baffler has been around since 1975. Granted the Baffler

Last weekend a buddy invited me to play golf at a nearby course we both enjoy. It’s not especially long

Sam Snead – Slammin’ Sammy – golfing legend, multiple major winner, Hall of Fame member and holder of the record

Every golfer knows the Pro V1 and Prov1x are flagships for the Titleist brand. Because of their performance they are

We put recycled 2016 model Titleist Pro V1x golf balls from LostGolfBalls.com head to head with those fresh from Acushnet

Customization in golf is all the rage. Drivers have ability to reposition weight and adjust the loft so ball launch

Slow play is killing the game. Golf takes too long and there’s no doubt the five-hour round is pushing people

Retiring last July after 16 years with TaylorMade Golf, his most recent position being Executive Vice President of Product Creation,

“Growing the Game.” A fine slogan and more players are needed to keep golf healthy as both a sport and

The reaction upon first seeing the DV8 golf clubs was, “Right… a set of clubs in a backpack.” But it’s

By Ed Travis The PGA of America is 100 this year and the recently completed 63rd PGA Merchandise Show in

One of the benefits of the annual PGA Merchandise Show is having the chance to find unique golf products, ones

By ED TRAVIS “The Major of the Golf Business” is not an exaggeration as it applies to the PGA Merchandise

The Golf Skate Caddy is a practical single rider golf cart that makes sense even for the less nimble and

Hybrids and fairway woods from Tour Edge Golf built their reputation as a first class manufacturer and though they make

By Ed Travis December is the time for media outlets to roll out their list of noteworthy events during the