Golfweek

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – History repeated itself at Riviera Country Club. At the 1948 U.S. Open, the grooves on the MacGregor irons, played by the likes of Ben Hogan and Jimmy Demaret, had to be buffed down. It made no difference. Hogan shot 276 and broke the tournament record by five strokes.

After that incident, John D. Ames, chairman of the USGA Implements and Balls Committee, published a one-page explanation titled, “How to Test Iron Club-markings” in the August 1948 issue of Golf Journal that ended with this insightful observation: “It seems too bad that it has been necessary to get down to such fine points in order to insure fair play. Wouldn’t it be nice if, as in the old days, we could just go out and play golf?”

Here’s a closer look at the Independent Special Committee that will eventually review the PGA Tour Policy Board request about the Ping Eye 2 grooves issue:

Gordon F. Brunner, Chairman

• Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, Proctor & Gamble (retired)

Douglas McCorkindale

• Chairman, Gannett Co., Inc. (retired)

Donald B. Rice

• Chairman, President and CEO, Agensys
• Former Secretary of the U.S. Air Force

Samuel K. Skinner

• Of Counsel, GreenbergTraurig Attorneys at Law
• Chairman, President & CEO, USF Corporation (retired)
• Former White House Chief of Staff
• Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation

The fifth member of the committee is in the process of being filled.

The members of the committee cannot be active members of the PGA Tour, current or former members of the Tour Policy Board, employees or former employees of the Tour or employees or anyone having a material business relationship with any golf-equipment manufacturer.

Using a launch monitor on the practice range at the Farmers Insurance Open, TaylorMade tour reps recorded some eye-popping ball speeds from Dustin Johnson and Robert Garrigus. Johnson hit a drive with the Burner SuperFast that was clocked at 189 mph, and Garrigus reached 186 mph with an R9 SuperTri.

Players were allowed to use the new R9 SuperTri driver for the first time at the Farmers, and it became the tournament’s No. 1 driver model, with 25 in play.

Also of note: 23 TaylorMade TP xFT wedges with interchangeable faces were used.

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Westwood’s driver dilemma: Lee Westwood had his second equipment problem in as many weeks.

A week after blaming a second-round 78 in Abu Dhabi on his iron shafts, saying they felt like “fishing rods,” Westwood had to pull out a backup driver, a Ping G15 that he had not used in competition, after his Ping G10 cracked during Round 3 in Qatar.

“Everything you could imagine could go wrong did go wrong for me this week,” he said. “I ended up playing the last nine holes with a 3-wood (a 14-degree i15) because the spare driver hit into the rough left every time.”

At least ...

Why are today’s golf clubs better than ever?

The consistency of materials and the quality of materials are much better. In many cases, this is the same stuff that goes into fighter planes – the lightest and strongest materials known to man, and they are now available at a reasonable cost.

Do you see a replacement for titanium in golf clubs?

The military is constantly working on new materials, and we’re always drafting off the military. What is more likely, though, is new forms of titanium, new alloys. I don’t believe there is a magic material around the corner.

Why do golf clubs generally look better today?

The finishes and the detailing have been improved so dramatically. Shape has been a big factor, too. Clubs today are sleek and fast and modern in appearance. They are sexy. I think everyone is better today at the aesthetics surrounding golf equipment.

Callaway has invested heavilyin multimaterial technology. Why?

If you look around, you see fascinating multimaterial applications in airplanes, automobiles, motorcycles and all sorts of things. So we’ve carried that over to golf clubs. Each piece fills a very specific need.

What are PGA Tour players telling you about ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Steve Boccieri, creator of the Heavy Putter, has a dream: to bring a driver to market and sell a full line of equipment to golfers.

Five years ago, Boccieri debuted the Heavy Putter at the PGA Merchandise Show with intentions to create “the great weight debate.”

In fits and starts, his putters have gained acceptance in the marketplace, albeit still a small piece of the piece. As of October, Boccieri’s putter marketshare at on- and off-course retailers climbed to 1.9 percent, up from 0.8 percent a year ago, according to the October Golf Datatech.

Some start-up equipment makers have made the mistake to grow too fast. Boccieri’s smart enough to know that he couldn’t dive straight into the deep end that is the driver category.

“To enter that market as an individual with one product is a sure loser,” he said.

But he also believes the time is ripe to grow.

“It’s time to go vertical,” he declared. “You can’t add too quickly or you will go bust. You have to get enough footing to be able to go back to the till. Now I have my cult following of customers ...

Seen at the PGA Merchandise Show: Jim Holtgrieve, the 2011 U.S. Walker Cup captain, who is recovering from carpal tunnel surgery on both hands.

“It’s been eight weeks (since the surgery),” Holtgrieve said. “I hope to be playing tournament golf in another five weeks.”

The 2011 Walker Cup will be played at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club on the northeast coast of Scotland.

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New from Cobra Golf: S2 Max, one of the new members of the growing S2 family.

S2 Max can be purchased in two versions: all irons or an integrated irons-and-hybrids combination.

The street price for the all-iron set will be $399 with steel shafts and $499 with graphite shafts. The street price for the integrated set (five irons and three hybrids) will be $499 with steel shafts and $599 with graphite shafts.

S2 is fast becoming a power-packed model for Cobra. S2 Max is scheduled to be in retail stores by the end of March.

• • •

Those yards add up: Sean “The Beast” Fister was promoting his new titanium driver, the Punisher 450 Pro LD, at the PGA Merchandise Show,

Fister is the only American to win three RE/MAX World Championships in the Open Division.

Fister ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – If you think it was tough growing up with the last name Wildman, then you haven’t even considered how tough it was with the first name Asher. Think about this for a moment: Every time you travel or go to an amusement park of some sort, they have gifts with your name on them. A coffee mug from Disney that says Bill. A key chain from the London Tower that says Jane. Never when I was looking for one of those gifts did I ever see the name Asher.

Every vacation I went on, I would anxiously go straight for the gifts-with-your-name-on-it section of the store, hoping to see mine. Unfortunately, the names typically go from Arnold to Atwal, omitting me entirely.

Today at the PGA Merchandise Show, my name-finding moment finally happened. While perusing row 3,900, I walked by a company named Asher. Naturally, I had to know more.

The name belonged to James Roundy and Samson Lloyd, who started their own golf glove company. What makes these guys unique is that their gloves are anything but plain. They currently have four different styles: the Birdy, Camo, Death Grip and Eye Candy. Each glove has ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – I’ll admit it now, I am someone who takes energy-enhancing sports drinks. This afternoon at the PGA Merchandise Show, however, I stumbled upon a product with which I was not too familiar.

Applied Life-Science Research Industries (ALR) is renowned for their body building supplements. Today I found out they are trying to appeal to a whole new audience in the golf world.

ALR is launching a product called Chain’d Out, a powdered supplement you add to a bottle of water and drink before, during and after a round of golf.

Chain’d Out is designed to help your body continuously replenish amino acids in your bloodstream. Here is little Science 101: Our bodies do not make amino acids. After we eat something that contains proteins, our body digests the protein and stores the amino acids in our muscles from the food that was eaten.

There are three essential amino acids in Chain’d Out that help your body recover quickly so you can stay strong for all 18 holes of golf.

“It offers an alternative to sugar products,” ALR’s Golf Pro Michael Manavian said. “It’s especially good and nutritional for senior citizens with diabetes ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Fans of the Bridgestone B-330 RX, rejoice. The company introduced a new and improved version of the popular ball as well as an additional version, the B-330 RXS with improved spin characteristics around the green.

When Bridgestone began its ball testing campaign in 2006, little did it know that its consumer education effort would also deliver R&D benefits.

Bridgestone’s team of engineers culled the data from all those test drives and learned that 77 percent of golfers whom they tested didn’t swing fast enough (below 105 mph) to achieve the benefits of its premium line of B-330 and B-330S models. Those golfers, unable to compress the ball, suffered from low launch and too much spin – a deadly combination. Yet of that 77 percent, more than half used a tour quality ball.

Bridgestone recognized an opportunity to create a urethane-cover tour-caliber ball for the golfer with a slower swing speed. Thus the original B-330 RX was born.

Opportunities to be fit for Bridgestone’s B-330 RX, RXS and other ball offerings will be growing this season. The company will be expanding its ball-fitting campaign to 22 teams canvassing the country and expects to fit 40,000 ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Odyssey Golf and short-game guru Dave Pelz are teaming up again. His patented two and three-ball putters were licensed to Callaway Golf, and inspired the Odyssey Two-ball putter, which debuted in 2001 and is one of the best-selling putters of all-time.

Now, Pelz is joining Odyssey as a brand ambassador. It’s the first time Pelz is endorsing a golf club (in the past, he has designed equipment).

“We want to make people score better,” Pelz said. “That’s what my life is about.”

ORLANDO, Fla. – Can the PGA Tour stop Phil Mickelson, John Daly and other players from carrying square-grooved Ping Eye 2 wedges that were manufactured from 1984 until April 1, 1990, even though U.S. Golf Association rules specifically allow the use of these wedges?

Maybe, although it wouldn’t be easy.

Here’s why: In 1993, the PGA Tour agreed to settle a lawsuit over square grooves that was initiated by Ping (the USGA already had settled in 1990). As part of the settlement, the Tour agreed to follow all USGA rules, including the one that grandfathers the use of Eye 2 irons and wedges from the 1984-2000 time period.

Mickelson, Daly and other players, confronted with the new 2010 condition of competition requiring touring pros to use smaller, lower-spinning grooves, decided to experiment with the old Ping Eye 2 wedges from that six-year manufacturing window.

Why? Because some of the wedges contain grooves that not only are square, but also contain exceptionally sharp edges. It is these groove edges that are responsible for most of the spin generated by these famously high-spinning wedges.

“There are multiple different shapes to different U grooves (square grooves),” said Ping CEO John Solheim ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Ping CEO John Solheim was married Dec. 5 in Phoenix, Ariz., to the new Mrs. Sunny Cynthia Dell Solheim.

“We think alike. We have so many common interests,” said a beaming Solheim, who met his wife-to-be through a friend at church.

One of those interests appeared to be uninhabited islands, as the Solheims honeymooned on a “little island with five bungalows and no electricity.”

Actually the island was a short plane ride from Bora Bora, their primary honeymoon destination.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Sam Shah was an avid golfer a few years ago. Unfortunately, it seemed unclear if he would enjoy playing the game again. In 2003, Shah was in a bad car accident, which led to back and neck problems.

A couple of years went by before Shah decided to pick the game back up. After his recovery and rehab from the back injury, Shah discovered he had a poor core rotation.

Shah practically had to learn how to play all over again. This time around, he wanted to make sure he had proper weight balance and a healthy-looking pivot while turning during his golf swing.

In 2009, a couple of years after his auto accident, Shah was at home in Louisville, Ky., and came up with the Pivot Pro. Serving as both the Pivot Pro president and inventor, he stumbled upon what he thought was a major breakthrough.

“My research lead me to now know that the pivot drives the golf swing, and that the pivot is the most overlooked aspect of it,” Shah said.

The gadget you strap on to your foot looks similar to an aerating shoe for your lawn. However, the bottom of the shoe is ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – It seems that at this year’s PGA Merchandise Show a lot of people are being drawn to golf simulators, and I stumbled upon one that you can play in your own living room.

Dancin’ Dogg is a five-year-old company based out of Traverse City, Mich. This afternoon I spoke with their V.P. of Sales Steve Konold, and he showed me how much fun friends and family can have in their own living room with the OptiShot Infrared Golf Simulator.

The OptiShot simulator features 3D simulation, accurate swing analysis and a library of world-class courses (including Bethpage Black and Torrey Pines). Inside the box is one optical swing pad, the program’s software, balls, tees and a USB cable.

"The revolutionary game was created to create a golf simulator for the masses," said Konold. "It’s something the whole family can enjoy and it will calculate everyone’s club speed, face angle, path of your swing, distance, tempo and your contact with the ball."

The OptiShot swing pad sets up like swinging off a mat on the driving range. The program connects from the pad to your computer at home and provides impressive visuals – it’s as ...

Golfweek.com is on the floor at the PGA Merchanside Show to bring you an up-close look at the latest equipment and golf industry news. Check back daily as Golfweek.com brings you all the action from Orlando, Fla.:

• Biz Blog: Gene Yasuda, Adam Schupak and James Achenbach report on industry news.

• Toy Box Blog: James Achenbach weighs in on the newest equipment.

• Fashion Blog: Ashleigh Korzack and Ashley Crain with the hottest trends of 2010.

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SATURDAY (Day 3)

• VIDEO: Demo Day 2010: Mizuno, Adams, Bridgestone

• Heavy club line expanding through the bag: Adam Schupak has an update on the heavy club line, which has expanded from putters to wedges, with irons and drivers in the works.

• Golf fashion goes innovative: Ashleigh Korzack found some of the more ingenious ideas on the fashion end of the Show, including perfectly-placed pockets, cutting-edge materials and some serious protection from the elements.

• Tattoos and golf mix together in fashion: Asher Wildman found a golf clothing line that caters to the golfer with tattoos.

• • •

FRIDAY (Day 2)

• VIDEO: David Leadbetter in your living room: Asher Wildman takes a look at the latest in golf training aids from the 2010 PGA Merchandise Show. Featuring tips ...