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https://72strokes.com Golf News and Equipment Review Blog Mon, 15 Jul 2013 18:41:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.7.1 Gasp! Counterfeit golf clubs seized in China https://72strokes.com/2011/11/gasp_counterfeit_golf_clubs_seized_in_china/ https://72strokes.com/2011/11/gasp_counterfeit_golf_clubs_seized_in_china/#comments Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:23:04 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=4097

Can you tell which one is the fake? It's the one on the left.

Last week the Chinese government conducted multiple raids on counterfeit golf club operations in China. They seized over 25,000 products from markets in Beijing and Shanghai.

This is part of an ongoing effort to stem the flow of fake golf clubs coming from China. In September alone, the Anti-Counterfeiting Group conducted 4 raids that seized 80,000 fake clubs.

According to Michael Rider, Senior VP and General Counsel for Callaway Golf, “The number and location of these recent raids sends a strong message to counterfeiters that we are committed to shutting them down.”

“We are striking back at these illegal operations, hitting them where it hurts like our most recent action in shutting down some of the most popular locations in the world of counterfeit store fronts,” said Rawleigh Grove Vice President and General Counsel for PING. ”We’re confident this will be a deterrent to counterfeiters in the future as we keep pushing to keep golf real.

The problem is that while the numbers sound impressive (and they really are), this is just a drop in the bucket. When you shut down one market in China, 2 more will open up. Personally, I don’t really have a problem with Counterfeit clubs per se. If you want to buy some cheap knock-offs, then go ahead. Nobody buying a $50 set of Callaway’s in China actually thinks they’re real. The real problem is when the counterfeits get shipped over here to be sold as legitimate clubs. Some golfer then ends up going on eBay and unknowingly buys one and wonders why his new super-titanium carbon fiber driver is shorter than his 5-wood.

To that end, I’ve posted a list of websites allegedly selling fake golf clubs after the break. Also, for what it’s worth, the counterfeiters only bother going after the big name brands. A rep from Adams told me earlier this year that they’ve never actually seen a fake Adams club because they’re not yet a big enough brand to have caught the attention of the counterfeiters in China. Also, My Golf Spy has a nice guide on how to avoid buying fake clubs on eBay (they claim 24% are fakes).

Examiner.com

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/11/gasp_counterfeit_golf_clubs_seized_in_china/feed/ 63 fake taylormade Can you tell which one is the fake? It's the one on the left. Share First look at Ping I20′s? https://72strokes.com/2011/08/first-look-at-ping-i20s/ https://72strokes.com/2011/08/first-look-at-ping-i20s/#comments Tue, 16 Aug 2011 15:29:40 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=3874

Eagle-eyed David over at Golf-Patents.com spotted a new design patent issued to Ping today. It was filed 2 months after the design patent for the G20′s and based on the look of the club, it could definitely be the upcoming I20′s. Also, it happens to look quite a bit like the grainy TV screenshot of an I20 club posted over on Golfwrx a couple of weeks ago.

Here’s the screenshot from Golfwrx:

Golf-Patents.com

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/08/first-look-at-ping-i20s/feed/ 0 Ping I20 patent shot ping i20 tv screenshot Share Ping club designer gets to put his creations to the ultimate test https://72strokes.com/2011/08/ping-club-designer-gets-to-put-his-creations-to-the-ultimate-test/ https://72strokes.com/2011/08/ping-club-designer-gets-to-put-his-creations-to-the-ultimate-test/#comments Thu, 11 Aug 2011 13:00:51 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=3837

One of the names to watch as the PGA Championship kicks off this week is Marty Jertson. Marty who? I’ll give you a pass on this one because you’ve probably never heard of him before unless you’re a hardcore club geek.

Jertson is actually a senior design engineer for Ping and the new G20 irons are his brainchild. Earlier this year he finished T5 at the PGA Professional National Championship, earning a spot in the year’s final major. Naturally Jertson will have the G20 irons, fairway woods, and driver in his bag this week.

It must be pretty rough spending all day designing and testing golf clubs and then getting an opportunity to put everything to the test in a major championship. I know I’ll be rooting for Marty this week and I suspect that plenty of others will too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q4B27njGmc

GolfMagic

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/08/ping-club-designer-gets-to-put-his-creations-to-the-ultimate-test/feed/ 0 marty jertson Share First Look: Ping G20 Irons https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-g20-irons/ https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-g20-irons/#comments Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:03:48 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=3697

And of course with a new driver and hybrid, there has to be a new iron set right? The G20′s look to be building on the very successful G15 irons (you’d be surprised how many guys on tour are playing the G15′s even though their bag says Taylormade).

I definitely like the color scheme (super important, right?). They feature a multi-material badge to provide “solid feel and sound while enhancing distance control”.

The G20 iron also features an “enhanced hosel transition to help capture the ball”. From what I can tell, it should help the clubhead get through the grass and presumably(?) is meant to address some of the complaints that golfers have about too much offset in GI irons.

Here’s Senior Ping Designer Marty Jertson discussing the new G20 irons:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q4B27njGmc&feature=youtu.be

I’m really excited about the G20 line-up. I’ve been playing the I10′s since the day they came out and I’ve been looking at moving to the G-series irons for some increased forgiveness. My birthday is coming up and a set of these irons would make a really nice gift… hint hint…

The entire G20 line-up will be available on Aug 11.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-g20-irons/feed/ 1 G20_Iron_Beauty G20_Iron_Badge G20_Iron_Hosel Share First look: Ping G20 hybrids https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-hybrids/ https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-hybrids/#comments Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:01:36 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=3692

I’ve never had a hybrid in my bag before. But I have to say that these G20 hybrids look really nice. Interestingly, Ping went the opposite direction of the driver/woods and actually made the face of the G20 hybrids more compact while adding bounce and camber to improve turf interaction.

Here’s Brad Schweigert again on the G20 Hybrids:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy54mSRITFI&feature=youtu.be

The entire G20 line-up will be available on Aug 11.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-hybrids/feed/ 0 G20_Hybrid_Beauty G20_Hybrid_Bounce Share First look: Ping G20 driver https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-driver/ https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-driver/#comments Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:00:31 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=3679

Today was a pretty big day for the folks over at Ping. They spent the afternoon launching a ton of new products. They kicked things off with the announcement of the new G20 driver.

It basically looks like a cross between the G15 (my current driver) and the more recent K15. They’re using a new titanium (Ti 8-1-1) with a higher strength/weight ratio and have increased the overall face size and MOI of the driver.

Here’s Ping’s Director of Engineering Brad Schweigert discussing the G20 Driver:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCUjgvZVOQo

If they’ve managed to improve on the G15, then it will be one hell of a driver. I’m gaming a G15 with an Oban Devotion shaft and it’s the best driver I’ve ever hit. I can’t imagine how you could improve on it, but Ping found a way. Bubba apparently liked it quite a bit in testing. With these numbers I can see why:

The entire G20 line-up will be available on Aug 11.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/07/first-look-at-the-ping-g20-driver/feed/ 0 G20 Driver Beauty G20_Driver_MOI_Footprint G20_Driver_Bubba_Numbers Share Ping: Road to the Bob Hope https://72strokes.com/2011/01/ping-road-to-the-bob-hope/ https://72strokes.com/2011/01/ping-road-to-the-bob-hope/#comments Wed, 26 Jan 2011 13:00:34 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=1659

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uQV_vAjOnw

Daniel Udd is becoming quite the video star.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2011/01/ping-road-to-the-bob-hope/feed/ 0 Share Inside the Ping Tour Van https://72strokes.com/2010/12/inside-the-ping-tour-van/ https://72strokes.com/2010/12/inside-the-ping-tour-van/#comments Thu, 23 Dec 2010 13:00:22 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=1326

Rob over at Sandbox8.com put together these 2 awesome videos that give us a glimpse of life on the Ping Tour Van.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2010/12/inside-the-ping-tour-van/feed/ 1 Share Ping Steps Up For Quadruple Amputee https://72strokes.com/2010/12/ping-steps-up-for-quadruple-amputee/ https://72strokes.com/2010/12/ping-steps-up-for-quadruple-amputee/#comments Wed, 08 Dec 2010 17:00:58 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=1160

Jeff Lewis lost both of his hands and feet in 2005, but not his passion for golf. After unsuccessfully attempting to play golf with his existing prosthetics, he decided to contact several equipment manufacturers to see if they could help him. All he heard was “Sorry.” That is, until he contacted Ping:

“I contacted several of the major golf manufacturers,” Lewis said. “They all told me they couldn’t help me. I contacted Ping and they said, ‘Can you be here tomorrow at noon?’

That’s a company stepping up and doing the right thing. Dr. Paul Wood, the engineer that oversees Ping’s Innovation Department, viewed this as an opportunity to challenge his team to think outside the box.

“We had some real outside-the-box thinking,” Wood mused. “One of our engineers asked if we could attach a metal piece to his bone. Jeff’s wife said, ‘Do you have any idea how painful bone surgery is?’

Ultimately a mechanical engineering intern from Stanford ended up developing a prototype that allowed clubs to be locked into a prosthetic arm. Ping then created a custom set of five clubs for Lews covering Driver to Putter.

Now Ping is taking what they’ve learned from working with Lewis and incorporating it into their work with the Wounded Warrior Project. They’ve already fit triple, double, and single amputees through the program.

I’ve always been a big fan of Ping and have been playing their clubs for years now, but this has taken my opinion of them to the next level.

AZCentral.com

Jeff’s Website dontworryaboutme.com

]]> https://72strokes.com/2010/12/ping-steps-up-for-quadruple-amputee/feed/ 1 jeff_lewis2 Share I Got A Nice Fat Check From Ping Today https://72strokes.com/2010/12/i-got-a-nice-fat-check-from-ping-today/ https://72strokes.com/2010/12/i-got-a-nice-fat-check-from-ping-today/#comments Sun, 05 Dec 2010 18:24:42 +0000 https://72strokes.com/?p=1133

I finally went through the mail from Thanksgiving and found an envelope from Ping. Imagine my surprise when I opened it up to find a refund check… for 98 cents… from 2006.

Back in 2006 I sent a set of i5′s back to Ping to have the lie angles adjusted. They charged me $32 and I never gave it a second thought. But apparently Ping did. Mary H Jump, being the dilligent employee that she is, realized that Ping had overcharged me by $.98. I’m not sure why it took them this long to figure it out, but once they did, they weren’t going to rest until this wrong had been righted. And so, over 4 years later, I received a check for $.98.

Say what you want about Ping, but they are fastidious, if a little lethargic. Now please excuse me while I go treat myself to something off of the dollar menu at McDonalds.

]]> https://72strokes.com/2010/12/i-got-a-nice-fat-check-from-ping-today/feed/ 4 ping_refund ping_refund_check Share