Confession Corner - Admit Your Golf Equipment Biases

[Derek9rx]

A few years ago I got hooked up with a massive discount from a friend who worked at titleist. I’ve had a hard time considering anything else since. I’ve been fitted for new products since at TPI and at fitting events for products (paying full price again). Titleist does such a great job fitting and their products just keep getting better. I would consider other companies but if they’re close, I’m sticking with titleist 

[TimT]

I actively try to eliminate bias from any equipment fitting or testing I can. I definitely have bias, but I really want to base decisions on performance first. When I replaced my driver this year I went into it really wanting the TSR3, but the Paradym performed better for me. It was only after making the decision my fitter told me about Callaway’s 200% trade in program (I previously had the 2018 Rogue.) I really appreciated that… if he would have told me about the incentive program up front that could have swayed my judgment. 

When the new generation Vokey wedges come out next year my dream scenario would be to find a place I can do a blind fitting on actual grass and out of actual bunkers like you see players do on YouTube… you know, where the fitter hands them an unknown bounce and grind and they get to see what performs best.

Overall I’ve had two full bags of Ping in my past and I liked them fine, but that was before custom fitting was the norm. Now it truly is whatever performs best, so anymore my bag is a mix. 

[Dweed]

I hear ya TimT. Nothing wrong with mixed bags, especially since you're not being paid to carry them eh? Welcome to the Forum. I trust you'll find there is a wealth of knowledge you should be able to find and we hope you will share yours with us as well. Welcome fellow Big 10 er.

[JohnnyO3478]

2 hours ago, WAF4011 said:

I won't pay for anything Maxfli.  Which is a shame because when I find one of their top of the line balls, I love it.  I like the DTC savings, but I hate Dicks Sporting Goods politics.  I am a hunter and shooter too, so when they buckled and closed their Field and Stream stores because guns are scary, I took my money elsewhere.

I can respect that ....

[Dweed]

2 hours ago, WAF4011 said:

 but I hate Dicks Sporting Goods politics.  I am a hunter and shooter too, so when they buckled and closed their Field and Stream stores because guns are scary, I took my money elsewhere.

I hear ya, I did the same years ago when DSG got rid of all their PGA folks from the golf dept. But...I've mellowed over time and they have done some good things locally so...I don't totally disregard them anymore.

[Rosey31]

For me I do have a brand loyalty to Titleist as I was a staff player back when I was in the industry and they took great care of me. That was probably more to do with the reps we had, but it's always stuck with me. 

I have hit other clubs and most every other manufacturer makes great equipment. I know for years I felt that the Titleist woods were lacking until they came out with the TS series. So yeah I rock a full bag and even still my 20 year old staff bag. 

As far as the other brands go:

Taylormade - Great stuff in their forged irons, Woods have always been good. 

Callaway - Never felt great with anything except to original Big Bertha 3 wood. 

Ping - Easy to hit but always shorter for me.

Mizuno - Love the look and feel, but always a club shorter.

Never really hit much with other brands like Wilson or Srixon. Done nothing with DTC but would be willing to.

Miura - Would love to try but just can't justify the cost yet. 

[GolfNut14]

I am mostly biased toward Titleist. My driver, fairway wood, irons and golf balls are Titleist. My hybrid I went to Tour Edge and love it. I have 2 Sub 70 wedges and love them as well and my golf bag is Sub 70 but I also have a Titleist staff bag. Overall Titleist brand is still my favorite.

[Snowmonkeys1310]

I'm weirdly against Taylormade drivers and very biased towards PING's drivers. I occasionally hit the ball more in the toe with a driver. In the past, when trying Taylormade drivers, I found that toe strikes were so penal I couldn't play them. Drivers were going 30+ yards offline to the right. Meanwhile, a toe strike with a PING lazily turns over. No idea if Taylormade drivers still behave the same, but, if I was looking to replace my driver I don't think I'd even try a Taylormade.

Meanwhile I love Taylormade fairway woods. Not sure why they seem so different than their drivers, but, to me anyway, they really do.

Also a bit of a fanboy for Mizuno. My first set of irons was a set of Mizuno hand-me-downs from my dad and I've been hitting Mizunos ever since. I have gone through a few fittings over the years and somehow Mizuno wins every time. The closest anything ever got to unseating them bag were the ZX-5s from Srixon. 

[DAC]

I have always been a Ping fan. Recently I purchased a PXG driver and am very pleased with the results. Considering going for a PXG fitting for new irons.

[GolfSpy_APH]

The original bulky watches from ShotScope just at a glance had me turned off for no reason other than the watch itself. I ended up going down the arccos route and now have ditched that. I miss the data and enabled sole arccos Sensors again yesterday to try. To be determined, but my overall distain for the difference between Android and Apple on Arccos just doesn't have me excited. Really need to look more at ShotScope.

[FreddyTheBearCat]

Adams. If I see an Adams product, no matter if I need it or not or even if it's in good condition, I'll still think about buying it. I don't know what it is? I got Adams as my first clubs and I just have a weird loyalty to the brand. You always remember your first I guess?  I was pretty excited to see the DTC comeback, will try to test them out if I can at some point.  Ironically, I don't really like Taylormade, I have the SLDR fw and it's probably out of the bag for next season.

[BIG STU]

I am probably the most brand agnostic person on here or WRX. I simply play what works for me and my game. I don't get bent out of shape over product cycles , advertising or what Joe Pro plays on Tour. The old V- Steels in my signature the 7 wood I have had and played since new. The driver in my signature I traded a M-6 for and got money to boot. I hit the old Cally better than anything else. 

[KRW]

On 9/16/2023 at 11:52 PM, GolfSpy_APH said:

The original bulky watches from ShotScope just at a glance had me turned off for no reason other than the watch itself. I ended up going down the arccos route and now have ditched that. I miss the data and enabled sole arccos Sensors again yesterday to try. To be determined, but my overall distain for the difference between Android and Apple on Arccos just doesn't have me excited. Really need to look more at ShotScope.

The new Connex from ShotScope is extremely easy to use and the live aerial feature is a great addition to the platform. 

[RoyN]

As someone who works in the industry and gets to hit almost everything all the major manufacturers come out with I have a real good idea what works and doesn't for my game. I haven't been playing very long so i dont have any deep seated personal bias towards any manufacturers. Ive played something from every club maker at some point and have 5 or 6 brands in the bag now.

However, because I work in the industry I do have a few professional bias, good and bad.

Taylormade has the worst QC of the major manufacturers and almost 50% of all warranty and repairs that we see are from them. Their clubs preform but also fall apart more than anyone. They know this and take care of their customers generally. 

No manufacturer from top to bottom across all products beat Titleist. Their CS is top notch and you get what you pay for. Their products last.

Ping knows their role and they own it better than anyone. Forgiveness that cant be matched and along with Titleist the top 2 in QC and CS.

PXG... nothing wrong with their products but price and marketing got to change. Yes your 7i goes a lot further when the loft is 27*.

[dinomack99]

Whether it is the brash personality of Bob Parsons or clever market research, PXG found an open space in the industry and has fully embraced it. They are perhaps too loud for a lot of your Titleist and Ping customers, but they make fantastic equipment and I think they've got a really loyal following.

[JohnnyO3478]

11 hours ago, RoyN said:

PXG... nothing wrong with their products but price and marketing got to change. Yes your 7i goes a lot further when the loft is 27*.

For the record - PXG has one model out of the 6 they sell with a 7i loft of 27 - 0311 XP.  My fitter friend (until recently with PXG) all but refused to put anyone in that particular club - and I've never met anyone with them. One is 28 - 0211. The other 4 are between 30 and 33.  

Curious how their pricing should change.  Up or down? With which companies that offer as wide a variety of custom fit options for forged irons - with no upcharge - are they out of line?

[RoyN]

1 hour ago, JohnnyO3478 said:

For the record - PXG has one model out of the 6 they sell with a 7i loft of 27 - 0311 XP.  My fitter friend (until recently with PXG) all but refused to put anyone in that particular club - and I've never met anyone with them. One is 28 - 0211. The other 4 are between 30 and 33.  

Curious how their pricing should change.  Up or down? With which companies that offer as wide a variety of custom fit options for forged irons - with no upcharge - are they out of line?

In my market the majority of the pxg clubs are the 0211 and some stronger lofted 0311 xp. People are always chasing distance. 

A large portion of the golfing market is not as informed with product knowledge like most of the members of this fourm. And the majority of golfers are not fit for their clubs and buy them off the rack.

But the pricing needs to come down slightly. The stock offerings of the new gen6 are 100-200 more than Zx5s and P790s. All manufacturers could lower prices to be fair lol.

[JohnnyO3478]

32 minutes ago, RoyN said:

In my market the majority of the pxg clubs are the 0211 and some stronger lofted 0311 xp. People are always chasing distance. 

A large portion of the golfing market is not as informed with product knowledge like most of the members of this fourm. And the majority of golfers are not fit for their clubs and buy them off the rack.

But the pricing needs to come down slightly. The stock offerings of the new gen6 are 100-200 more than Zx5s and P790s. All manufacturers could lower prices to be fair lol.

Interesting.  It's completely understandable why folks on a budget would gravitate towards the 0211s - that's a solid value choice. However, my buddy was pretty adamant that very few golfers would benefit from the 0311XP models over the 0311Ps. He said that people think they are more forgiving than the 0311P - but they are not - and the promote a bad delivery of the club face.  Seems a shame that the PXG players in your area do not take advantage of the custom fit opportunities. 

 

Anyway - for fun I just configured some iron sets - 5-PW - all with MMT shafts 

0311P - $1,319.94 ($1,139.94 for vets and 1st responders) - shipped in 10 days

P790 - $1,286.94 - shipped 1/17/24

Zx5 - $1,328.69 - 3 week lead time (on the shaft)

 

Club Champion posted a neat video the other day that had these three models (plus Paradym, T350 and JPX HMP) in a head to head.  Worth checking out.

 

2 of the three above were on my short list the last time I bought clubs.

[DrDaveYT]

This is a really interesting topic, something I think about a lot myself but have never really written down or articulated to anyone.

 

Positive Bias

Titleist - For me, their woods are my holy grail. I had their 913D3 driver back in high school, and once it broke I tested other brands (based on whatever I was able to get at my club as a lefty, which usually came from the old lefty pro's left over gear) but nothing ever really worked for me. Switched back to a Titleist Tsi2 driver this past season, and all of a sudden my driving is like what I remembered in the 913 days. Long, straight, controllable, with a bit of a fade bias that I can use/control. It's taken probably 5-6 strokes off my game just based off not losing as many balls/hitting my spots more often than not. I don't think I'll ever use another driver than Titleist for the forseeable future. I also added a Tsi2 5 wood that I have really been agreeing with. Also got my first Scotty this year and a vokey wedge, so that adds to my love for Acushnet products overall. 

Mizuno - Similar to titleist with their woods, but irons. I haven't played anything other than mizuno since I was a junior golfer, and I don't see myself changing. Had jpx 825 irons as my first "real set" after junior clubs, now 223 pro irons. 

Nike - Absolutely loved their clubs, mostly the woods. Had one of the old SasQuatch Sumo2 drivers and it was as awesome as everyone says. Still play my trusty Nike Covert Vrs 3H.

Neutral Bias

Taylormade - Never really loved the way their clubs felt or played personally, and feel their turnover is too fast to keep up with. I do have a Spider Tour X I got recently that I've really been enjoying as an alternative to my phantom x 5.5 if I don't want to bring it out somewhere or I want something with a bit more bounce off the face somedays. Otherwise, I do play the new tp5 pix often, I got a set of the 2024 balls and have been enjoying them, but overall neutral on them vs my ProV1 balls, especially the x Left Dash. Only exception to this are the TM wedges (mg3 and later), I have absolutely loved having these in the bag. 

Cobra - Always loved the way their clubs looked, especially their woods lately with the milled faces. Overall, nothing special about the brand to me. They make a really solid product at an even more solid price point. I have a cobra 3W in the bag right now to try out the baffle rails, and I like it so far. Nothing I think that will keep it there over a new Titleist 3W down the road tho. 

Ping - Nothing special to me, I had a G20 driver that I just couldn't seem to get to work. I have never personally liked the way their irons look, but I can't deny the performance of the brand for so many golfers and their history. 

Callaway - Never really got along with their golf ball, looks of their woods, etc. but wouldn't be against trying something from them in the future. The Paradym driver/woods is the only really attractive wood they've made recently IMO. 

Negative Bias

PXG - Not sure why, I just can't stand the way the clubs look. The branding, the marketing, etc just makes me feel like they're trying too hard. Can't really explain it any better than that haha. 

Srixon - Similar but can't really pinpoint why. I don't mind their marketing or branding/looks, I just don't feel like it holds the same weight as even Ping, but especially Titleist or Mizuno for me personally.

Edited November 22, 2023 by DrDaveYT

[Dead Solid Bogey]

I still have a soft, soft spot for MacGregor. I would probably go all in and fill the whole bag if MacGregor continues on the upward trend…. 

[Preeway]

Bias is hard to pinpoint. My only negative bias really is Topflite. Would never play that ball no matter what they do. As far as clubs go, I’ll always go to a fitter and end with whatever works best for my swing. Advertising doesn’t really do much for me but perhaps convince me to give something a try. 

[Josh Parker]

2 minutes ago, Preeway said:

Bias is hard to pinpoint. My only negative bias really is Topflite. Would never play that ball no matter what they do. As far as clubs go, I’ll always go to a fitter and end with whatever works best for my swing. Advertising doesn’t really do much for me but perhaps convince me to give something a try. 

That's me!  I don't get paid by any of them and until they do, I'm in the what is going to work best for my game club.

[Preeway]

1 minute ago, Josh Parker said:

That's me!  I don't get paid by any of them and until they do, I'm in the what is going to work best for my game club.

Yep. I’ll swing any brand that gets the results I want. Might save money or I might spend a lot. Either way, I get what makes me confident standing over the ball. 

[EnderinAZ]

4 hours ago, Josh Parker said:

That's me!  I don't get paid by any of them and until they do, I'm in the what is going to work best for my game club.

That describes my bag, Taylormade Hi-Toe wedges, Srixon irons, Ping Hybrids, a Tour Edge E522 7 wood, and a Taylormade driver. 

I have never hit a Titleist driver that didn't feel like I was hitting rocks instead of golf balls. 

And, I am on my 3rd Golf Buddy golf watch. Cheap, accurate, tell time well, without a lot of useless bells and whistles. 

[GolfSpy_APH]

Having never seen in person or played either Indi or Edison wedges I will admit that just from a glance I prefer Indi. It isn't something against Edison at all, I think they probably make a great wedge. More if someone said hey here is money for either these wedges or these I know my money would be going to Indi. Zero performance reason and no real reason outside of looks and just my overall perception. 

[Josh Parker]

3 minutes ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

Having never seen in person or played either Indi or Edison wedges I will admit that just from a glance I prefer Indi. It isn't something against Edison at all, I think they probably make a great wedge. More if someone said hey here is money for either these wedges or these I know my money would be going to Indi. Zero performance reason and no real reason outside of looks and just my overall perception. 

Looks can definitely play a part in my decision but given the opportunity to test a club out and it performs, I'm going for it.  

But then again, I don't think many people played the Ping Doc17 and I loved the way I putted with that dang thing.  Ha

[Samuel09152]

I would say I’m working through my biases and trying to be more open.

With that said, I am a fanboy over some P790 and P770 and just about anything Taylormade. I bought a M6 driver when it came out and it cracked a year or so later. Taylormade replaced it with a SIM max. Since then love them even though I don’t have many clubs by them because I don’t have the money. 
 

I like callaway ok but many because I get clubs off callaway preowned and don’t ever feel to far behind on the models. 
 

I hold an unfair bias towards Wilson. I’m not sure why but I just don’t want to even look at them even though I have read recent reviews saying they are not bad. 
 
I would say the same goes for smaller brands, mainly because I’m ignorant. I don’t know anything about them and it I don’t want to spend money on clubs, balls, and apparel on things that I’ve never heard or read about. One reason this forum is amazing! It’s opening my eyes up to so much good stuff that I would have held an unfair bias to! 

[Josh Parker]

4 minutes ago, Samuel09152 said:

I would say I’m working through my biases and trying to be more open.

With that said, I am a fanboy over some P790 and P770 and just about anything Taylormade. I bought a M6 driver when it came out and it cracked a year or so later. Taylormade replaced it with a SIM max. Since then love them even though I don’t have many clubs by them because I don’t have the money. 
 

I like callaway ok but many because I get clubs off callaway preowned and don’t ever feel to far behind on the models. 
 

I hold an unfair bias towards Wilson. I’m not sure why but I just don’t want to even look at them even though I have read recent reviews saying they are not bad. 
 
I would say the same goes for smaller brands, mainly because I’m ignorant. I don’t know anything about them and it I don’t want to spend money on clubs, balls, and apparel on things that I’ve never heard or read about. One reason this forum is amazing! It’s opening my eyes up to so much good stuff that I would have held an unfair bias to! 

This community does great at getting information out there on the DTC brands and smaller companies.  

[I_found_something_29]

First and foremost, great topic. It is so hard to change these biases and prejudices. I definitely have a positive bias towards Taylormade woods - PXG, Mizuno, Titleist, and Taylormade irons and wedges. I have had two experiences with Callaway and neither were all that good so I am prejudice against them. Anything Ping just doesn't really fit my eye so I write them off immediately. Outside of those, I will give everything a shot especially in the putter domain.

Edited November 24, 2023 by I_found_something_29
Added a brand to irons

[Fred Mitchell]

As my signature suggest Name brands are flexible lol. That being said so far if its a Driver/FW/Hybrid I am biased towards Ping, not saying another brand cant beat it out and move to the bag but it will have to be strong, tie goes to the runner/Ping. Irons I drove over an hour away on multiple trips to try dang near everything on their LM before I bought the T300's, Mizuno was close but not close enough and i didnt care if it said Walmart on it if the numbers on the LM made it the winner. I am biased towards Cleveland wedges because  I started with and still use them but I did add a TaylorMade Hi Toe 4 in 56 to try. The 2 TaylorMade DHY's were just an option I chose because the Hybrid hates me so i bought 1 to try then added another, not much selection on Utility irons that arent stiff or X stiff in my area. Putter is an odd story, I had drove to Nashville and tried just about anything and everything and the Cleveland Elite series putter beat everything I tried so thats what I bought, I was on Facebook Marketplace nosing around and saw a just listed Scotty Cameron priced to low and i messaged I will take it instantly figuring to flip for a little extra profit for golf but just like any other putter I took it and tried it and now the Cleveland frontier elite is in my old/extra bag lol. Ball was Bridgestone based on the older golf ball testing here at MGS I tried them and played them but am now trying a few balls based on the new MGS ball testing, once again if it says welcome to Walmart on it but flies farther/higher/lands steeper and has good short game qualities then that bad boy is going in my bag.

 

This kind of brings up a peeve of mine over the whole looks/feel/sound thing when picking clubs. I do not and never will understand why people make such a big deal about them especially sound and looks. Over and over i see people who could REALLY REALLY use more forgiveness/distance/etc. refuse to play brand XYZ because it looks funny and even worse sounds funny. Let me tell you if Bozo the clown markets a driver that makes a sound like the clown nose when they pinch it but goes farther and straighter for the same money then that bad boy is going in the bag. If you play double bogey golf and base club selections based on your taste in look and sound or worse yet they read that club XYZ looked and sounded better then as we say down South, Bless Your Heart.