Over the past year
literally truckloads of apparel and golf equipment have been received,
tested and reviewed by our staff.
Soft good are the bread and butter for retailers as this is where
the highest percentage mark–ups are found. And with the
advent of new apparel and accessories companies blossoming, the
golfers upgrading of their wardrobes can be seen in the styles
and selections being made available by these new companies.
Companies such as Tehama and Nike have very avant-garde merchandize
while companies such as Zero Restriction, Sunderland and Fairway
& Greene have made great inroads on the Tours, which in turn
have boosted their sales.
As regards to equipment, the product life cycles have been shortened
to less than six months giving both the consumer many options
but also causing confusion as to which product to purchase. In
this domain of equipment (drivers, irons, woods, wedges and putters),
marketing is playing a more important role for the manufacturer.
For the consumer, his best “defense” is to test drive
these products before making a purchase.
The most common thread amongst the star performers in each category
was their quality, design, and functionality and desired intended
usage.
We have, after exhaustive testing, concluded that to do each
category justice, we would pick the top three products in each
category, where possible, and award the title “The Best
of the Best”.
Certain categories will reflect just a single product. Others
contain two and sometimes three items, as we felt they were of
equal stature. For those categories with only a single brand named,
it was simply that other products submitted were deemed “not
up to snuff” and therefore were omitted.
The first product listed is to be considered the best of show,
unless there is a tie in which case all the products named will
be bolded. I too often get asked about my favorites therefore
for the sake of my sanity and that of my publisher, I concur with
the first product shown to be my choice as well in that category.
This article is “Men Only”. The “Ladies Only”
will appear in an upcoming issue.
 APPAREL:
Belts – Greg Norman – Bobby Jones
- Footjoy
Caps – O’Connor – Legendary
– Imperial Headwear
Cleats/Spikes – Black Widow SoftSpikes
- CHAMP Trac
Gloves - Nike - Footjoy – TaylorMade
Outerwear – Zero Restriction – Sunderland
- Tehama
Rain Gear - Zero Restriction – Sunderland - Roche
Zero Restriction
Socks – Eurosocks – DeFeet - Footjoy
Shirts - Upscale – Fairway & Greene –
Tehama – Tommy Behama
- Regular – Greg Norman – Adidas - Nike
Shoes - Traditional - Nike – Adidas
– Footjoy – Surefoot
- Contemporary - Ecco – Cyclonic - Bite
Trousers – Greg Norman – Tommy Behama - Dockers
Visors - Imperial Head Gear - Texace
 ACCESSORIES
Collar Stays - Collarstyx
Coolers – 2,4,6 Cascade To Go Cooler
Golf Bags – Stand Bags
– PING – Ogio - ClubGlove
– Cart Bags - ClubGlove - Sun Mountain
- Ogio
Golf Carts - EZ Go – Yamaha –
Club Car
Grips - Lamkin – GolfPride – Winn
 On-Line
Golf Shopping – The Golf Warehouse (www.tgw.com)
Push Carts – Manual
– Sun Mountain Speed Cart – Big Boy Express
- Electronic – Lectronic Kaddy
Putting Greens - SofTrak Putting Greens
Range Finders – SkyGolf GPS - Bushnell
Sunglasses - Scheyden – Oakley- SunBuster
Sunscreen - Kinesys – ProDerma
– Coppertone Sport
Tees - Global Golf’s “Step Down”
tees – Brush Tees
Travel Bags – Club Glove – ClubGlove’s
“Stiff Arm”
Umbrellas - GustBuster
 TRAINING
–TEACHING
Golf Book – The Right Mind for Golf
, The Consistent Winning Process.
Schools - Game Improvement -
Pelz Short Game Schools – Butch Harmon Schools –
Kip Puterbaugh Golf Academy (Carlsbad, CA at Aviara)
- Pro Teacher School – Professional
Golf Teachers Association of America
Training Aids – Putting
– Dave Pelz Putting Tutor – The Putting Arc –
Putting Pod- Trustroke
- Swing - The Inside Approach – AJ
Bonar’s Video Series – The Plane Stick
Custom Fitting – Mitch Voges Max Out
Golf – Dynamic Balance System
 The
Inside Approach
EQUIPMENT
Balls - Over $20 per dozen
– Nike “One” – Titleist Pro V1 Series
– Callaway HX Tour 2
- Under $20 per dozen – Noodle –
Top Flight Infinity – Precept U-Tri
Drivers – Major OEM –
TaylorMade 580 Series – Titleist 983 Series – Cobra
SZ –
Callaway GBB II - Cleveland Launcher
- Secondary OEM – Adams- Tour Edge
- MacGregor – GolfGear Tsunami
Fairway Woods – Sonartec –
TaylorMade - Cleveland - Nike CPR
 Irons
- Regular – TaylorMade RAC Series –
Callaway X16 – Nike Slingshot
- Hybrid - TaylorMade Rescue Mid -Tour Edge
Bazooka JMAX Combo Set
– Adams Idea Irons -
Shafts - Graphite - Fujikara
– Graphite Design Intl. – UST
Steel - True Temper - Rifle
Shaft Enhancement – Advanced Shaft Design
Centroidal Axis Technology(TM), - SST Puring
Putters - Scotty Cameron Series (all)
– Odyssey 2- Ball – TaylorMade Rossa series
Wedges - Cleveland Series - TaylorMade
RAC Series –Vokey Series – Callaway V Series
Barry Lotz, J.D., Ph.D. is the director of the Professional
Golf Teachers Association of America. He is also a member of the
Golf Writers Association of America and the California Golf Writers
Association and a Mediator for the golf industry. He is a contributing
writer to numerous national magazines. He can be reached at drlotz@cbsgolf.net |
