Tony Covey MGS

Hey Everyone, We've sorted things out, but needed to generate a new discount code to make it work. The new code is: MXMGS15 As always, we'd appreciate if you use the supplied links: Maxfli Tour: Medium firmness with mid trajectory and spin Maxfli Tour S: The softest Maxfli Tour with high flight and low spin Maxfli Tour X: The firmest and fastest Maxfli Tour with penetrating trajectory and higher spin rates.

Hey Guys, Sorry. The deal is real. We're working with DSG to get the issues with the code sorted out and will hopefully extend the offer once we do.

Let me see if I can clear this up: For driver, fairway woods, and utilities, the accuracy score is derived from the Playable shot percentage and Straight Shot percentage. I believe those are explained in the relevant posts - although we did have the strokes gained reference in the post longer than we should have. We used SG in the past but moved away from it. Anticipating the follow-up questions - we got rid of strokes gained because, after looking at several years of data, we concluded that it just doesn't work as a primary metric in a large driver test. While we worked with Lou Stagner to enhance SG with additional penalties as the ball travels farther offline, in practice, there is a strong correlation with fairway percentage almost without regard for distance. With respect to Trip's comment there are a couple of points I should make. First, we don't use the PGA Tour tables. Instead, we use tables developed for scratch golfers. As it relates to higher handicap golfers - it's not a big deal. Effectively SG just sets a baseline for values, so while higher handicap golfers will produce lower SG scores, in our implementation, the best-performing clubs still produce higher scores. In that respect, the scale is almost arbitrary. It gives us a reasonable starting point. We've gone to great lengths in our methodology to neutralize the SG advantage of better/longer players. I'm not going to get into the details, but the simple explanation is that Strokes Gained is typically used to compare performance difference between golfers. We've adapted it to compare differences between clubs for the individual golfer. While I think SG is incredibly useful in a driver demo/fitting scenario, in driver and fairway wood tests, you need additional insights. For our target-based tests (hybrids, irons, and wedges, we use Strokes Gained as our accuracy metric. In this scenario, there is a correlation with greens hit, however, SG is more effective because it also considers pin proximity and lie condition. We've looked at other metrics in isolation (pin proximity, greens hit) and they don't work nearly as well as SG in this scenario.

Who knew that unpainted moisture resistant drywall could create magic.

Foremost, which does Vice, OnCore, the Maxlfi Tour Stuff and Wilson Staff model and TP5/5x core & mantles is in Taiwan. Snell MTB and MTB-X are made by Nassau in Korea.

In my opinion, Vice does some cool stuff in terms of branding and not being afraid to try some stuff that's a little weird by conventional standards, but... Some of the marketing walks and maybe crosses the line. "Engineered in Germany" is a good place to start. Define "engineering". As I've joked on NPG, if I call my local pizza place and tell them what I want on a pie, did I engineer a pizza or simply order it to spec? That brings me to Fused Urethane and the new dimple design. Consider this highly educated speculation based on the realities of the market. Like other DTC brands, Vice is having trouble maintaining inventory. As we all know by now, golf is super-hot so demand is outpacing supply for everyone. With small-to-mid sized golf companies, those issues are compounded by the realities of the ball market, namely, the big boys get the priority and whether we're talking about Snell and Nassau or Vice and Foremost, the big boy is TaylorMade. That's especially true as Foremost does the core and mantle production for TP5/TP5x. So what I think is happening is that Vice is struggling to get inventory from its primary supplier and to offset that, it's having a *new* ball with 344-dimples and a Fused Urethane cover made somewhere else. Every indication is that the ball itself is being produced by Feng Tay. They manufacturer RZN balls, the Mizuno RB Tour stuff, and countless stuff you've never heard of. Feng Tay is pretty good, but definitely a step-down from Foremost. Why take a quality hit unless you absolutely have to? Better margins perhaps. The *new* dimple pattern is almost assuredly the same one found on the RZN balls, and - if you feel like trucking trucking to your local Walmart - the Spalding tour balls too. I wouldn't be shocked if the new Vice is similar to the Spalding Tour. Regarding Fused Urethane - it's highly unlikely that Feng Tay has made a consequential material breakthrough during COVID. Possible, but unlikely - and you can bet your house that nobody in Germany developed a new urethane process. The very high probability is that "Fused Urethane" is Vice-speak for injection molded TPE. Plus or minus a patent here or there it's the same process currently used by Bridgestone, Callaway and a bunch of others. It's only noteworthy because Foremost is a cast urethane provider so it's a fundamentally different way of putting covers on balls. Cast vs. injection molding from an advantage standpoint is one of those things where it depends on who you ask - and you'll definitely get quite a bit of 'we do it better than the other guys using a similar process', but the guys I know who source from multiple factories tend to favor cast. Probably nothing most golfers would notice or care about one way or the other, but it is what it is. Make of it what you will, but this doesn't look like reinventing a wheel so much as it does finding somebody who already has a wheel to sell you.

Dead? I'm going to go with nonsense. What is possible is that a driver *could* develop flat spots along the face's bulge and roll radii. I say *could* because although it's theoretically possible, with current materials along with improved design and manufacturing techniques, it shouldn't happen. We chatted with the PING R&D guys about this briefly. They do a ridiculous amount of canon testing to ensure that not only will faces not break, but that'll they'll maintain their shape for the duration.

Unfortunately this is a recurring problem among some smaller brands. Unable to draw any real distinction between their own product and the mass produced product from the big boys they often resort to either telling us: 1) Everything is the same, so you might as well buy my custom clubs 2) The big guys are just marketing companies, I spend all my money on R&D...(the implication is that they spend more on R&D than big golf companies, which is basically absurd). Yes...big companies have big marketing budgets, but they also have MASSIVE R&D budgets as well. The two are not mutually exclusive. You seldom see a viable argument for a small component brand. Mostly it's arguments against bigger companies. I will say that one of the exceptions I've encountered is Steve Almo from Geek Golf. I've spoken with him a few times about his drivers, particularly the No Brainer we had in for our big driver test. Steve strongly believes that heavier is better, and so he's engineered his driver heavier than the just about anyone's. Is he right? Hell if I know, but he's one of the few that will concede that off-the-rack actually fits a good number of golfers (Steve throws out 60%), and that his clubs are more suited to the 40% for whom off-the-rack doesn't work.

KZG, one of the more respected component brands on the market today, just announced their new GF X Driver. The new driver features adjustable weights (7 different weights), but interestingly no adjustable hosel. While attempting to draw differentiation between itself and the major OEMs, my feeling is KZG makes a couple of mistakes. While hinting that major golf companies release too many drivers, the release mentions KZG's 9 different offerings (that allow fitters to select the design that's right for you). 9 Drivers? And somebody else is going to tell me which one is right? That's one of those ideas that's great on paper, but as consumers we like feeling like the buying decision is ours...and mostly ours alone. The bigger mistake, IMO is that the weights in the GF X Driver can only be adjusted by the fitter. That's not all bad, but the next bit really rubs me the wrong way: "It has been proven time and again that when golfers make their own adjustments the results have been disastrous. Golfers tend to adjust their clubs every time they have a mis-hit. After several mis-hits and adjustments, it is impossible determine the correct positioning for optimal performance and launch. And worse, their swing is never in a groove, but rather changing daily with every mis-hit and adjustment" I get it...or at least I think I get what KZG is going for (our fitters do a better job than trying to self-fit), but how it reads to me is "The average golfer is too stupid to adjust his club the right way. When he tries, he only makes it worse, so rather than let some idiot tinker with the club he just spent $400, we're going to make him go to a fitter to have the adjustment done the right way". To me the message comes across as arrogant and condescending. It also raises larger questions about the reality of custom fitting...particularly with the driver. I've said this before...for all but the very best players in the world, the golf swing is not consistent enough to declare an absolute ideal fit for every golfer. Some days 9.5° will outperform 10.5°. Some days a fade bias will be better than a draw bias. Some days an open face works better than a closed one. Most of us bring a different variation of our swing to the golf course almost daily. Some days we're close to how we think we swing...other days we're way off. As an educated golfer, I'd much rather have the ability to make adjustments to account for what I have that day than to have to go see my fitter every time I want to tweak something. There's a reason why golf companies are now releasing intuitive fitting apps with their adjustable drivers. It's about enabling the consumer, not restricting him. Now I will concede that not everyone understands what the impact of adjustability (real or imagined) is...or should be, but I also strongly believe that one of the worst mistakes a golf company can make is to dictate absolutes to the consumer. While doing it this way is a great way to drive the consumer to a KZG dealer, I also believe it's double-effective at keeping the consumer away from KZG. That's my read on the release. I've included the full release below. Read through it...I'd love to hear your thoughts. ----------------------------------------------- NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (May 15, 2013) - KZG, the #1 Custom ProLine™, has introduced its new GF X Driver, incorporating Gravitational Force (GF) Technology, which features two strategically-positioned weight portals and a selection of screws in seven different weights. The elegant and sleek, all black GF X's swingweight, launch angle and draw/fade bias can be adjusted 128 ways to optimize any golfer's launch conditions. "KZG is not a marketing company, but rather a bona fide golf equipment manufacturer." reports Jennifer King, president of KZG. "While most major brands bring out one or two driver models per season, usually designed for the masses, KZG offers nine different models to allow a professional fitter the ability to select the design features needed for any given golfer regardless of their skill, size, strength or even budget. The GF-X is an ideal model for those players who require unique adjustments with maximum forgiveness." The 460cc GF X offers optimum power and accuracy. The weight portals are strategically positioned where changes in weight and center of gravity are most effective. The screw weights are available in 1.5, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10 and 12 gram options. The weights can also be used to compensate for a fade or draw bias. Even spin rates and trajectory are altered by changes in the weights. The adjustments for all KZG clubs are done solely through KZG's network of highly qualified professional fitters. It has been proven time and again that when golfers make their own adjustments the results have been disastrous. Golfers tend to adjust their clubs every time they have a mis-hit. After several mis-hits and adjustments, it is impossible determine the correct positioning for optimal performance and launch. And worse, their swing is never in a groove, but rather changing daily with every mis-hit and adjustment. KZG's GF X removes the guesswork, as a professional clubfitter will ascertain the proper weight combination and adjustments for any particular golfer, leading to confidence and consistency ... and helping the golfer hone his swing into a fine-tuned groove. With the introduction of its new GF-X driver, KZG offers nine different drivers, comprising a wide spectrum of models to suit any golfer, regardless of skill, strength, size or budget. The GF-X has a traditional profile with an all gloss black head with matte black screw portals, a very sexy looking driver. All KZG drivers are custom fit and built with numerous shaft options. Retail pricing varies depending on the options selected, with MSRP starting at $399. About KZG Founded in 1994, KZG offers its equipment only through the finest fitters and teachers in the industry. KZG makes great equipment, but it is their professional fitters and teachers who make it unbeatable. By partnering with the true professionals who have the skill, integrity and passion to really help improve a golfer's game, KZG has catapulted to a position of prominence in customized golf equipment.