Confession Corner - Admit Your Golf Equipment Biases

[Shapotomous]

I dont have a brand bias but visually i have definite preferences that lean away from colorful, flashy or "plasticky".  The last term is my description of the layers that get put on the back of an iron.

So i immediately eliminate anything from any brand that tries to hit those marketing hot spots.

[DotesMaGotes12]

Definitely have a bias for Taylormade and Titleist, with that being said I do want to play my best golf so if there is another brand that suits me better and helps me play better I become biased to that brand.

Coming from a baseball background I never liked anything Mizuno, went and got fitted for irons and the best irons for me at that time was a set of Mizuno irons. 

I would say I'm brand agnostic but its hard to want to put Taylormade and Titleist products in the bag. 

[Dead Solid Bogey]

MacGregor has a special place in my bias. First clubs in my bag. They were the only clubs in my bag for over a quarter century. Would give them a real hard look again if they became in my opinion viable in today’s market place of options. 
  To @Preeway  point, I have looked at some niche DTC outfits, possibly pulling the trigger on one of these outfits for wedges fairly soon… 

[JeB]

General bias - Forged is better than cast no exceptions.

 

Positive equipment bias - Titleist golf balls and Vokey wedges are far better than everything else on the market.  

Negative equipment bias - mizuno makes great irons, crappy everything else. Cleveland/Srixon is second tier to Titleist, Callaway, and TaylorMade in everything.

 

indifferent equipment bias - DTC products like sub70 I’ve heard a lot of positive things about but would need a specific reason to try them

 

 

[gingerbeast87]

I have a bit of soft spot for cobra gear. Don't know what it is but the designs feel sleek, the balance and weighting of the woods and hybrid just work for me.

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Great topic!

 

Red Rooster - good gloves

Sub 70 - solid value option

Takomo - sexy irons

New Level - I don’t have more than a passing familiarity, so ?

Haywood - Intriguing, they look stunning

MacGregor - Fills me with Nostalgia, like a warm hug from Mom

Caley - Dark Horse, similar to Takomo

Sacks Parente - Not familiar, so

Indi Golf - spin kings

Edison - similar to new level, in that I’m aware they exist but no firm opinion

[dabigkahuna]

I'm a bogey golfer who only upgrades about once every 10 years.  I was recently in the market for new irons as my Callaway Diablo edges were just not working for me anymore.  A buddy gave me a set of Pings Raptures, and I hit them far, but could not seem to work fades, or draws very well.  So, in talking with guys from my league, the Mizuno 923's kept entering the conversation, and based on several recommendations, I decided to try them out.  My golf shop guy had me bring in several 7i's from different sets to compare on his monitor.  Lo and behold, the Mizunos beat our Callaway and Ping in distance, accuracy and forgiveness.  I've been gaming them about three months now and cannot believe how high and far they go relative to my old sets.  So, long story short, Mizunos are my irons.  In fairness to Callaway, my 4 hybrid has essentially replaced my long irons, and 3W.  Driver is a TM M3 which replaced my old Nike Sasquatch Sumo 5900.  My 5w is a Ping G5 and is incredible off the deck.   I'm not really a brand guy, but will put what works in my bag, even if it's a total mismatch.  If it works, it stays. 

[funkyjudge]

6 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

I wonder how many of you feel about the DTC brands, they have so much less exposure and I would be very curious to hear what the first word or sentence comes to mind when you hear brands like 
 

Red Rooster - Haven't tried their gloves, and don't plan to do so

Sub 70 - Excellent clubs (I own and game them), and great customer service

Takomo - Their irons are attractive and have gotten many good reviews; I would try them

New Level - I own some of their clubs; not really impressed

Haywood - WHO DAT?

MacGregor - Are they still around?

Caley - Another WHO???

Sacks Parente - Putters look nice, but I'm not in the market for another putter

Indi Golf - Interesting-looking wedges, but I'm an Edison guy (see below)

Edison - Best wedges I have used in many years (I used the first gen and now game the Edison 2.0)

I am sure some of them many have never heard of and there are many there I left off because frankly now the list is way longer than it had been even a few years ago!

Here's one more for you:

Makefield Putters - I love mine!!!

 

See my responses in italics above

[cnosil]

6 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

I wonder how many of you feel about the DTC brands, they have so much less exposure and I would be very curious to hear what the first word or sentence comes to mind when you hear brands like 

 

I’ll play!  As I looked through your list, I knew all the brands.   the only one I haven’t tried is the Sacks Parente but is one I want to try since I am a putter guy.    

Red Rooster - impressive

Sub 70 - solid gear, great customer service

Takomo - maybe a bit too small; limited configurations 

New Level - one of my favorite irons in most wanted testing 

Haywood - acceptable. Not great but not bad. 

MacGregor - classic name, but not what they used to be.  

Caley - loved the utility iron. 

Sacks Parente - did the stock debacle significantly damage the company?  Avoid unless I can snag one cheap.  

Indi Golf - up and comer  

Edison - expensive and not better for me.  

 

[D.Murphy]

Nike... My first real set of clubs and the ones I still use today are Nike SlingShots. 
I have one of the last versions of their Victory Red Drivers I still use. I used to only play Nike balls. I wanted .. no I needed everything nike named/branded/sold in my bag so I could play better. 
s***** shot over water with a rando tree ball found. Obviously it went hard right and dead center of the pond was due to nonNike ball, so doe that even count as a stroke?

Now being a fair bit older and not having all that extra disposable income cuz you know having a family and all that. I play just about anything and everything I can get my hands on. I play a fairly cheap ball, that is if I am forced to go out and get some new ones. I just got some Lazrus wedges cuz they were cheap and I needed some wedges and I'm not making the Korn ferry tour this season (or any of the folllowing either_, let alone the PGA. So biases BE GONE> 

although I REALLY REALLY want Nike to come back into the club realm. I could use a new set of Irons, a nice new driver, and maybe a fairway wood or two... just saying. 

[Collinwho]

I really like Cobra. I think they are a very underrated brand. Because of that, if I need a new club and I'm not getting fitted for it, I will look at Cobra first, and only try other brands if the Cobra option isn't working out for me. Additionally, for reasons I can't explain at all, I don't like Callaway. If I'm comparing any other brand to Callaway, I will go with the other brand unless Callaway so thoroughly undeniably outperforms it that I can't convince myself otherwise. 

Neither of these are rational, and I do try to keep my mind open for fittings, but if the numbers are close enough I will always choose Cobra > anything else > Callaway. 

[KG0716]

For the longest time I only would play Callaway or Mizuno. I had bias from fitters, local stores, and previous use. 
 

I was not a huge fan of taylormade or ping just for personal reasons. 
 

hiwever as I have taken golf more serious and entered local competitions I got fit again and ironically got fit into the new p790 irons, stealth 2 3 wood, and a ping 5 wood. I still can’t get rid of my callaway driver but regret not giving king or TM the chance before now. 
 

putter wise very biased to use scotty or odyssey. 
 

bad bias - have heard nightmare stories on PXG so tend to avoid. 

[Kanoito]

Negative bias towards PING equipments (or bad experience), but a buddy of mine is willing to sell his soul to get me to try a PING driver to fix my long game off the tee... lol

[BallsLeon]

I don't think I'm good enough or wealthy enough to play Titleist anything.

[Scottie Tats]

I do have a bias to Callaway for sure. I have swung other clubs but I am for now very biased to one brand, lol. It's the sound and feel I get from the Paradym set that I enjoy over anything else I have hit a golf ball with.

[Reed all about it]

My biggest golf bias is that PXG is the best value in golf. When they are having their sales (which seems to be constant now) or you are able to use military discount nobody can beat the product you get for the price you pay. 

[MrMashie]

I have become a firm believer that with today’s game and technology being fit for your clubs is a must. We used to have 3 options when buying off the shelf clubs R,S, and A shafts. I played Wilson Staff muscleback blades for years with dynamic gold S shafts…and they served me well in my younger years. Then around 40 and not having the time to play as much raising a family I moved over to Ping to try and help with forgiveness, however I missed the butter feel of my forged irons. The distance I gained however kept me there. As I moved into my mid 50’s I realized that I was losing swing speed and distance due to physical limitations due to a bad back..so it all came down to finding clubs that could help me recover lost yardage and several sets and years later I finally went for a fitting with PXG and after a tremendous experience of testing various shafts I found a setup that worked very well for where my game is at presently. I know many don’t care for Bob Parsons but his product is first class and luckily I  qualify for his Hero’s pricing. I finally found an iron that gives me that buttery feel, good look at setup, and performance I was hoping to find again. So for me I’m a PXG fan I really believe they are in a class above.

[Rygolf32]

I definitely have a few -

Ping Irons (have played with the last 20 years)

Vokey Wedges - have never used another. Absolutely love them and they work!

Ecco/Foot Joy shoes - Ecco 1st but expensive and tend to be ugly. Foot Joy 2nd and usually end up with them.

[PJVicary]

Positive Vibes

Taylormade. The older RSi 1’s were in my estimation the best look/ feel irons I’ve ever owned. Someone offered me way over what I paid and they were gone. One of my worst decisions. Plus the corporate guys have been no less than A+ anytime I’ve reached out. Still have SIM driver and an old RBZ 3HL fairway wood that I would never part with.

Mizuno. Using a set of Mizuno JPX 921 Pro irons that I have a love hate relationship with. When hit pure, there is no better sound/ feel/ end result. 

Titleist. I game Vokey wedges and a 913 H 24 degree Rescue all of which are dependable. 

Cure. While not exactly a household name, Cure build great putters. I have every model made and often alternate depending on how I feel

Bobby Grace. Just picked up his M5K-GT (I know it’s old but so am I). Love the feel.

No one has talked specifically about shafts. The UST design is the best I have ever played. I carry their Mamiya Recoil in all of my irons and own 16 new backups in the event I purchase a couple of additional iron sets in the years to come.

Neutral

Cleveland Srixon. Nice looking irons but could never find common ground with them.

Ping. Good brand. Just never think of them when looking for a new set.

Negative 

Callaway. Never a fan

PXG Never played the club and have no desire to. The guy has an ego the size of Texas and he alone turns me off.

[excourse]

My current fetish is Miura irons. I have neither the skill or aptitude to hit them as well as I'd like, and always score better when playing more forgiving clubs yet the feel of a well struck iron while rare, is worth the effort. 

[KRW]

My equipment bias is one length irons.  I was fit for my Cobra LTDX One Length irons and my distance and gapping is spot on.

[Oli3]

Hi, my name is Oliver and I'm a compulsive Titleist user...

- Irons - Currently moving from Titleist 620 MB to the new Titleist T100

- Driver: Titleist TSR2

- Fairway: Titleist TSi

- Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM8 (replacement to SM9 coming!)

- Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron Super Select Newport 2

- Ball: Titleist Pro V1

- Bags, hats, ball markers....you guessed it, Titleist. 

No Titleist shirts...I'm committed to just wearing shirts from my club.

Shoes: Couple pair of Footjoy (Titleist family) but also Ecco and Travis Mathew.

I'm working on my problem...but damn....they are just so good!

[lacou19]

If you look at my signature it will give you a decent idea...

 

I really like Cobra. They perform really well and are usually priced just a little below the big brands.

Mizuno for the feel in the irons. I did have Cobra irons in the past though.

Vokey for the wedges. I have tried others and haven't found anything as good for me yet.

Odyssey for my putter. Love the results, feel and shape of the putter.

I don't like Scotty Cameron (but that's mostly to annoy my playing partner and tell him that he overpaid for his putter)...

Not a fan of Callaway, although I did love my old FT iq square head driver (couldn't miss the fairway with that thing).

 

I think I would play almost anything that would make me better but even in a fitting there is only so much time and they only have so many clubs that you can try so you'll never know if there was something better. Don't get me wrong, I'll still get fit for my next set of irons but I'm always wondering, could I have found something better???

Edited September 13, 2023 by lacou19

[ChiefMikeOfficer]

I'm sure I can list some brands specifically...but I am open to trying a lot of things, so focusing more on categories (which encompass groups of brands/styles). The biggest one: when it actually comes down to putting up money for fittings or a big club purchase, I have this big unfounded bias (I've broken from this successfully with putters, though):

What's the anticipated resale value?

Unfounded because...when it comes time to get the next set, I don't actually care! I shifted from trying to get the most out of resale to feeling like it's not worth the time (comparing to spending that time being a dad, or cutting into sleep time, etc.) -- instead, I've handed things over to friends, donated to a local High School team, save some of them, etc. At my last iron fitting, Srixon and Mizuno were comparable with Srixon taking a slight edge, but I went Mizuno. Similar for drivers -- absolutely bombing a Srixon, opted for Callaway (and now Taylor).

Other biases (some founded, some not): 

Saddle shoes - used to buy them "because that's what golf shoes are supposed to look like", but now I'm anti-saddle, think other styles look a lot better, and like that golf shoe popularity evolved to different / more casual looks

Scotty -- overpriced, and I just think other brands build a better putter (at least "for me")

Stock / off-the-rack wood shafts - cue the crew that defends these as "the real deal now", but I won't buy one, unless it's just to get my hands on the head. Now, I think that's more my specific game than the shafts themselves -- my Stealth has something close to a stock / not-fully-custom-build option, but my fitting clearly showed I needed something heavier, so I have a version of the shaft that had to be custom-ordered (still through TM, though). 

Brands purchased by Dick's - Top Flite, Maxfli come to mind (don't Google that category verbatim ). To be fair, though, in my quest to learn lefty alongside my 2 year old, I am buying the lefty gear from these brands, because it's inexpensive.

Flat-brim hats and Joggers -   -- Joggers bias only applies only on the course, I do love them as casual wear, but it took me a long time to get there.

Bags made by big clubmakers - only exception is Ping, because I was a Hoofer guy until a few years ago. Haven't tried every brand, but haven't like the ones I tried (notably Callaway and TM, haven't tried Titleist). I now prefer my bag to be designed/made by a bag company, not a club company (I know, some are from bag companies with a brand added, but not always the case). 

 

 

 

 

 

[bens197]

My only opinion is that the TaylorMade Spider putters are trash and a lot of better players are compromising their game by using them.

[Markjr100]

just read my WITB... I have always been a Taylormade guy. I have never owned anything else from supersteels to speedblades to my second set of 790s. it fits me, they feel the best and I love what brand presents with innovations and design. As a personal confirmation. I was on holiday in Scotland and Ireland for golf the last 10 days and when I left Scotland for Ireland my clubs decided to continue vacationing in Edinburgh airport. I shot sub 80 with my own clubs in Scotland and had to rent clubs in Ireland. 1st round was with Aerojet and shot 87. 2nd day I played Callaway and shot an 84 and Final day I shot and 80 with Titleist clubs and if not for a double bogey (they were blades, which I have never played before). I would have broke 80. But None of the clubs felt right compared to my 790s. 

Bottom line my Bias is pretty self explanatory

[KC Golf]

57 minutes ago, cnosil said:

I’ll play!  As I looked through your list, I knew all the brands.   the only one I haven’t tried is the Sacks Parente but is one I want to try since I am a putter guy.    

Red Rooster - impressive

Sub 70 - solid gear, great customer service

Takomo - maybe a bit too small; limited configurations 

New Level - one of my favorite irons in most wanted testing 

Haywood - acceptable. Not great but not bad. 

MacGregor - classic name, but not what they used to be.  

Caley - loved the utility iron. 

Sacks Parente - did the stock debacle significantly damage the company?  Avoid unless I can snag one cheap.  

Indi Golf - up and comer  

Edison - expensive and not better for me.  

 

Interesting views from someone who has tried a bunch of stuff.  I have less knowledge about DTCs, but have used a few and I like them.  They represent great value and in most cases close to big name performance and quality.  The biggest issue with DTC is getting fit or taking a flyer and trying it out.  

In terms of DTC, I like Takomo irons (101Ts), Haywood (wedges) and Red Rooster (love the quality and fit), Edel (wedges are great), Stitch (clothes & headcovers) and Dormey (head covers). 

I do admit that I am totally biased for Titleist.  Love the quality, fit and product range.  If money was no object I would be all over a full set of all Titleist with upcharge shafts.

But for my ball, I am Srixon guy now.  Only do to MGS.  Moved on from Titleist Pro Vs.  Better value and great performance.  I like that if I find it off the fairway it’s usually mine.

[ejgaudette]

20 minutes ago, bens197 said:

My only opinion is that the TaylorMade Spider putters are trash and a lot of better players are compromising their game by using them.

I know you are a firefighter but that is a hot take right there, make sure you have an extinguisher handy.

[Markjr100]

That's it!! blame the putter not the loose nut behind it

[Sooner13]

I think we're lucky that there is great depth in golf equipment - all with good quality and plenty of options. It really comes down to individual preferences and getting properly fit.

I have a heavy equipment bias favoring PING. Karsten Solheim was one of the most impactful figures in golf history - and his designs have essentially been copied by the majority of the industry. I've primarily played PING for the past 20 years - as they are high quality - with excellent customer support. My wish is that they could recapture the magic of their putter line. PLD line seems pretty strong - but believe there is an opportunity to improve their mid-level offering. I'd love to see a double-wide Anser - milled stainless steel - without an insert - at a more affordable price point. Perhaps an extension/update of the Redwood line (which I thought was terrific).

I think one of the best deals in golf is the Kirkland golf gloves. Four high quality leather gloves for $22 is a steal!

TaylorMade has frustrated me over the years - not because of their quality (they make great stuff) - but rather their product cycle. It seemed like they would have a new product launch every six months.

Titleist is my leader for golf balls. They always perform well in testing (including MyGolfSpy's testing) and their quality/consistency seems peerless. I currently play the ProV1x or Left Dash. However, there is so many great options available now - with the Vice Pro Plus being my favorite mid-price ball.

I've played golf for over 50 years - and over the years, I've played almost every brand....except Nike. I'm sure their equipment was fine -- but I was never compelled to play Nike.