Al:
Good points for sure but most all of the
readers of GD believe that the custom clubs used by the guys on tour all come
from the OEMS and know very little if anything about real clubmakers like you
and everyone else here. And the worst part of it is that because they are
aware of the tour players using custom shafts, or this or that, the regular
golfers tend to believe that custom clubs are only for better
golfers. So the education process really needs to almost start all
over again. But you have a good idea about putting your picture in front
of 1.5 million readers because that would really go a long way . . . uh, a long
way. . . uh, ah heck, it would go a long way toward making you the pre-eminent
fitter for the ladies, you handsome dog you!!
TOM
-----Original Message-----
From: Al Taylor
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2003
12:47 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: RE: ShopTalk: Top
Clubmakers / GD / Dr. Loft
Hey there TOM W,
Listing top club makers / fitters would be superb. I could list all my
club champ customers etc. Maybe my pic too??
Seriously, you know maybe crawling before walking might be a good
approach. What about some articles on the hardware these pro golfers
use? Maybe some comments on their various lofts and lies and
grinds. A mention or two on their putter and driver lengths. What
do these comments all have in common? Custom Clubs. How do they get
them? Club makers. Who helps make the custom choices? Club
fitters. You could sneak in the side door by mentioning the customized
stuff and voila (that is French for gadzooks), you then have to mention these
masters of trickery, at some point.
Al
At 02:32 PM 10/15/2003, you wrote:
Harry and Bernie:
You guys are both aware that any magazine, regardless of its
subject area is somewhat to sort of to very much handcuffed by its
advertisers. In the magazine business there is an old adage that is often
tossed around that goes, does advertising breed editorial, or does
editorial breed advertising. And the only industry in which I have
seen magazines basically stick their noses up to their advertisers are some of
the computer magazines, when I have seen reviews of computers or peripherals or
software that make negative comments once in a while.
I can tell you that over the years in my career going back to
the 80s I have written as a guest or regular contributor for Golf World,
Golfweek, Golf Shop Operations, GOLF, Golf Digest, Golf Illustrated and
others. In every case except for Golf Digest, I have been either kicked
out or told to tone it down, when something I wrote about the truth of golf
equipment incurred the wrath of an advertiser. The funniest one I
remember was when I wrote an article on forgings for Golf World long before the
Golf Digest people bought the magazine. Something in the article upset
the then president of Ben Hogan company and I was asked to fly down to Ft Worth
where Hogan used to be HQd, to explain my piece to the president and their
officers. The meeting started with the president literally throwing the
issue at me that had my article in it, using what I considered to be a very
childish manner of letting me know what he thought about my writing.
Well, I got up to walk out because I dont ever need to have to deal with people
like that, but then he cooled down. Net result is that there are a lot of
people in the industry who believe that their ad dollars bring with it a right
to tell a magazine what to write, and whether the magazine listens or not is
simply a matter of how much they need the ad dollars.
In Golf Digests case, I have worked with them for now nine
years, much in the capacity of what you, Bernie, mentioned about your fathers
role. Their equipment editors will call me for ideas, or run statements
made by this or that golf equipment company by me to see what is fact or
fiction, or ask me to write articles once in a while when their editors do not
feel they want to or are qualified to do. Each of the three equipment
editors I have served under in the past 9 yrs with GD have been superb guys who
desperately want to write the facts about equipment. But they too have
some handcuffs on in terms of putting pictures or comments of clubs in there that
are a balance between those made by their bigger advertisers and some from
companies who dont advertise as much. I think from what I have seen, they
do that in a decent balance. And they usually go to the OEMs for
quotesbecause they believe that the readers would listen to a name from a big
company but then they have used my quotes a lot over the years too, so that
does not say that they only go to OEM people for a comment. Then too, the
big equipment companies are calling these guys almost daily to keep up the
pressure for more mentions of their equipment. That part often really
tires them out because it is so fraught with politics and pressure.
I can tell you that off the record, the equipment editors do
respect the better clubmakers, but for them to really write about this side of
the industry, they need some groundswell of interest so that they can justify
the interest from their readers to the big cheese editors. That was why I
suggested to GD that since they know people do buy custom clubs, just like they
know people take lessons, why not do a list of top custom clubmakers like they
do a list of top swing teachers. It made sense to the equipment editor so
he and I are slowly starting to lobby the big cheeses there to consider it.
No doubt such a list would have to include pros or clubmakers who fit with OEM
carts too, but anything that would publicize custom clubmaking would
help. And that is the approach that I am trying to take on this or always
try to help, so you see in the end, I politic them too for my preferred side of
the industry!! Only not with as much ego as the OEMs are known to use
when they do it. But I do have to qualify that and say that some of
the OEM equipment guys are decent people who dont always think that they need
to be first in line all the time. To dream of a golf industry where
everyone is a truly nice person is probably a little too unrealistic, but I can
say that the majority of the equipment editors for the various magazines like
Mike Stachura at GD, Mike Johnson at Golf World, Jim Achenbach at Golf Week,
Laurie Dovey at Golf Illustrated these are some of the best and most well
rounded and open minded for sure.
TOM W
-----Original
Message-----
From: Harry F. Schiestel [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Tuesday, October 14, 2003
10:06 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: ShopTalk: Top Clubmakers
/ GD / Dr. Loft
Hi Tom
My son and I cancelled our 3 year subscription to GD, due
to the conflicting instructional coverage, and some teachers are mere hacks.
I do intend to purchase the Nov. 2003 issue, just to read
your published article, unless its posted in full on the internet.
Regarding the Top Clubmaker List, great idea if you
could ever get a major magazine to support your concept.
"Now my next project with GD is to convince them
they need to publish a booklet and side article on top clubmakers just like
they do for top teachers of the golf swing every year." What criteria and process would you recommend, to select clubmakers
worthy of such honourable distinction?
I get the feeling that 1 of the 2 awards processes now is
based almost solely on how many dollars you spend with the parent company.
How would Golf Digest / yourself make such a clubmaker list
creditable, for our industry at large? I do very much like this idea.
My swingspeed is 90 mph, and I'm playing a 14 degree 400 cc
driver, Aldila One 65-R Mid Launch, 47 inches long, 307 grams total weight.
With a low total weight, the extra 2 to 3 inches in length
was very easy to swing. I'm hitting more fairways than I did at 44 or 45
inches.
After playing golf now for 7 years, I had personal long
best drives on 4 of the the first 6 holes I used the driver. After 2 months
the honeymoon is still on. On hole one, I would roll into the gully once
a year. Now I carry the gully almost every time I play. I've worked
on my balance a lot in the last 2 years as well. Between the driver
upgrade, and better swing mechanics, I've gained on average about 45 yards in 2
years. Then I built new fairway woods (new heads, reused same shafts) and
gained another 20 yards with the same loft. On a par 5, that equates to
approx. 60 to 70 yards. I'm starting to get the opportunity to putt for a
birdie. Through clubmaking, the game is NOW getting a little easier to
play! WOW!
Thanks Bernie for the over length driver suggestions.
With anticipation Tom, I can hardly wait to get my hands on your recent GD
article.
Thanks Harry S
www.Golf54.com
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On
Behalf Of Tom Wishon
Sent: October 14, 2003 3:59 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject:
RE: ShopTalk: Golf Digest Higher loft articles
SNIP / SNIP
Now my next project with GD is to convince them
they need to publish a booklet and side article on top clubmakers just like
they do for top teachers of the golf
swing every year. The initial response on
this idea from Mike is positive, but now it has to go to the higher ups, which
is always tough in the face of remembering where their ad dollars come
from. But Ill keep plugging because this side of the industry deserves a
lot more respect and things like that could help a lot.
Thanks,
TOM W
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Tuesday, October 14, 2003
10:11 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject:
ShopTalk: Golf Digest Higher loft articles
I
read these articles with great interest since this advice will be followed by
many customers. Interesting that in the charts an 11* driver with 115 MPH
clubhead speed showed a carry of 259 yards. Of all my customers that have been
fitted I have only found 3 who could acheive this kind of clubhead speed and
they all claim at least 280 yard carry! Most have clubhead speeds in the
75-85 MPH range and claim carry distances of 190-200 yards! I guess
everyone is lying!
Most interesting part of this
subject article is the contribution by Tom Wishon which discusses the angle of
attach. This part was unfortunately the LAST page of the entire article and had
the most truth in it. This information will be (IMHO) the most overlooked
because no 90 MPH clubhead speed player would fess up to needing a higher loft
to acheive greater distance And a player with this clubhead speed
"certainly" gets way more than 208 to 212 yards carry!
My
conclusion is to fit "macho" players with "wuss"
drivers...........now I need to find 11-12* loft drivers with just the number
"1" on the soles! This head combination with shafts that do not have
designations of L,A,R,S,XS will be future of successful selling!
Your opions please?
