BST Deal gone bad - Head Failure - Please Help

[raskal21]

Sold a Cobra Xtreme Head in the Lefty BST that was in excellent condition.  It was purchased new and played by Only me for 4 Weeks.  There was not a scratch on it.   Buyer notified me he hit 10 balls with it today and it now looks like this.   He did not indicate the packaging was damaged just that it failed after hitting it.  Has anyone ever seen a head fail in this manner by hitting 10 balls?  Done a couple of hundred BST transactions but nothing like this.  Any comments are appreciated

Edited October 22, 2020 by raskal21

[MPAndreassi]

It looks like it was smashed into something on the backswing or maybe a club dropped into in the bag, fell off the cart. That doesn’t look like a structure issue from normal play or circumstances 

[brew4eagle]

Bad luck for buyer, but if he received in as stated condition and then hit it, it's now his problem to try to work it out with Cobra.

[osh9]

Definitely looks like he hit something other than a ball with it. I feel like there's zero chance that part of the head gets damaged from hitting a ball...

[xabia]

I have cracked a number of driver heads

I have also taken a driver head and smashed it into the ground repeatedly (do not judge)...and have never come close to seeing this level of damage

 

0 chance of that happening from hitting a golf ball

[GoldenBellGW]

+1. Also never seen a driver fail structurally from the rear. If so might be a Crack at a seam or separation of components but nothing like that. That's intentional by the looks of it

[nitram]

So what is the buyer asking from you?

[Old Tom Morris]

Looks as if it was swatted at the tee marker after an errant drive.

[Gsea]

Ball damage lol. Guy has some grandes cojones looking to pass that off.

[mikewohlwend]

It almost looks like a righty tried to hit a ball with it.

[ChitownM2]

No way that occurred from hitting a golf ball. He either swung into something in the back swing or the slammed it into something. If he hit a ball the would have to be some damage at the face/crown that extends all the way back.

[raskal21]

Buyer is “looking for some resolution”.      My question to him was if that head was comprised during shipping the box must have been destroyed?  Also, surely you would notice that type of damage prior to hitting a dozen or so balls which caused a giant hole to appear.   Literally there is a large piece of material missing.   Might look at the situation a bit differently if he notified me immediately when the club arrived and said it was damaged.

[Boogs2]

That looks like it was smashed on the ground.  

 

Tell the buyer to kick rocks. 

[PutterFingers]

Make sure you keep all emails that the buyer admitted to hitting it. Clearly he wouldn't have hit a club that came to him like that, so the damage wasn't there when it arrived. The emails will come in handy when the inevitable "not as described" paypal claim comes in.

Someone damaged that driver either carelessly or intentionally. Is the buyer right handed? The only way that damage occurred hitting golf balls is if he's right handed and hit 10 balls off the back of the club. I would think that was unlikely, but it's more likely than that happening in a normal swing.

[golffeen007]

15 minutes ago, raskal21 said:

Buyer is “looking for some resolution”.      My question to him was if that head was comprised during shipping the box must have been destroyed?  Also, surely you would notice that type of damage prior to hitting a dozen or so balls which caused a giant hole to appear.   Literally there is a large piece of material missing.   Might look at the situation a bit differently if he notified me immediately when the club arrived and said it was damaged.

Umm only if you loaded it with C4! 
This guy must be kidding right ,for him to ask you to resolve that he smashed it into something? Good thing I’m not lefty or id ask for his ID to block him lickidy split.  

[chocolate_rehab]

The back of the club was obviously impacted by something, that didn't occur during a normal swing.

 

Pretty crappy of him to try and get something out of you for damage that obviously occurred after he received it.

[Sfd732]

I am trying to look at this with no bias, but here is my issue with the situation. Let's say that Thor swung the club and so much pressure was created inside the head that it blew the back of the club out. The second picture shows the carbon fiber being broken inward, not outward. I can only come to the conclusion that the club was subjected to some form of impact from the outside inward. Smashing on ground into tee marker, into a tree, etc...

 

but this is just my opinion.

[third-times-a-charm]

lol that didnt happen by hitting a ball

 

he's trying to take advantage of you

 

he should call cobra, though, on his own.

[Mbarry212]

Seller(raskal21) forgot to mention that he shipped the club without more than a flimsy bag over the head. Damage was seen on the box in the exact location of the damage to the club but no external damage was seen on the club when unboxed.  With no way to tell if the club had been damaged, it was taken to the range and after hitting a few balls, the extent of the damage became obvious. 

Sfd732's point makes it painfully obvious that the club was damaged during transit but the full extent was not seen until used. I NEVER asked for a refund, just asked for help with either contacting cobra or usps to help in finding a resolution. 

[MFBach]

I’ve had drivers and woods fail in multiple places... cracks on the face, crown, and in seams along the sole of the club. All of them from normal use. There is absolutely no way that was caused under normal circumstances during play. 
 

If he accepted the club at delivery, he should take it up with Cobra. I’m willing to bet they’re going to tell him the same thing as anyone else with any sense though. That is not a club failure or manufacturer defect. It’s equipment abuse. If nothing else, he’ll learn not to act like a fool on the golf course. 

[dcfball88]

27 minutes ago, Mbarry212 said:

Seller(raskal21) forgot to mention that he shipped the club without more than a flimsy bag over the head. Damage was seen on the box in the exact location of the damage to the club but no external damage was seen on the club when unboxed.  With no way to tell if the club had been damaged, it was taken to the range and after hitting a few balls, the extent of the damage became obvious. 

Sfd732's point makes it painfully obvious that the club was damaged during transit but the full extent was not seen until used. I NEVER asked for a refund, just asked for help with either contacting cobra or usps to help in finding a resolution. 

Did you look at it when you unpacked it?  If you noted damage on the package, surely you would have inspected the club. If you even just glanced at the club, you would notice the damage. But especially if you noted the packaging was damaged, you would definitely check the club in the “exact spot”. So then at that point, why take it to the range? I would have immediately notified the seller instead.

 

what am I missing?

[MFBach]

29 minutes ago, Mbarry212 said:

I NEVER asked for a refund, just asked for help with either contacting cobra or usps to help in finding a resolution. 

If that’s truly the case, your best bet is to contact USPS. Hopefully there was some type of additional coverage or insurance for the shipment. Problem is, USPS is a PITA to deal with currently. It seems that damage that severe might have been noticed during delivery. By any chance did you take any pictures of the damage when you received the package? 

[golffeen007]

35 minutes ago, Mbarry212 said:

Seller(raskal21) forgot to mention that he shipped the club without more than a flimsy bag over the head. Damage was seen on the box in the exact location of the damage to the club but no external damage was seen on the club when unboxed.  With no way to tell if the club had been damaged, it was taken to the range and after hitting a few balls, the extent of the damage became obvious. 

Sfd732's point makes it painfully obvious that the club was damaged during transit but the full extent was not seen until used. I NEVER asked for a refund, just asked for help with either contacting cobra or usps to help in finding a resolution. 

So you’re saying the rear of the head imploded when you hit it? If it was truly damaged during shipping and it looks that bad now , after only a few balls at the range , surely there would have been signs on the back of the club before you hit it, no? Do you have pictures of the box? Bet a hole in a doughnut Usps wouldn’t accept responsibility here unless box is totally trashed. Hope you didn’t have to sign for it. 

[Mbarry212]

I gave the club a quick once over when I received it (lesson learned) and there didn't appear to be anything that stuck out. Therefore, the only thing to do I thought would be to take it to the range and see how it feels. 

I did NOT have to sign for the package. The delivery was delayed with USPS (not uncommon these days). The box had some damage to it but it wasn't anything egregious. When I took it to the range today, after hitting a some shots, I looked down at the club head, and could clearly see the damage seen in the pictures posted above.

I can sit here and swear on my life and all that is holy that I did not do anything intentional to the club head, nor did it accidentally hit anything, allow it to fall out of my bag, or have any other form of aformentioned "abuse". I have a picture of the damage to the box and will review my ring camera to see if it was handled poorly during delivery. Next step is to contact USPS. 

To set the record straight, I never asked for a refund, I simply asked for help with some sort of resolution. The seller is obviously a long-time member and I was hoping he would be able to help give some insight as to how I should handle it. I know this is on me and its a lesson learned to always CLOSELY check a club when it is delivered. 

[brew4eagle]

7 hours ago, Mbarry212 said:

Seller(raskal21) forgot to mention that he shipped the club without more than a flimsy bag over the head. Damage was seen on the box in the exact location of the damage to the club but no external damage was seen on the club when unboxed.  With no way to tell if the club had been damaged, it was taken to the range and after hitting a few balls, the extent of the damage became obvious. 

Sfd732's point makes it painfully obvious that the club was damaged during transit but the full extent was not seen until used. I NEVER asked for a refund, just asked for help with either contacting cobra or usps to help in finding a resolution. 

In that case I'd contact USPS, but I think you're going to need the seller's cooperation since technically seller makes the claim with USPS.  If it wasn't insured, then $50 is all you can get so might not be worth the headache.

Edit- also, if there was a way to prove the buyer's side of the story, then seller should make the buyer whole.  But that's a big "if".

Edited October 22, 2020 by brew4eagle

[mikewohlwend]

If you want to see what Cobra will do for the club, then call them.  I would bet they won't ask for a receipt since the club is the model from last year.  Which means it will more than likely be less than a year old (I think they have a 1 year warranty)

[Colej]

Did the buyer take pictures of the damaged box? 

[raskal21]

I appreciate the buyer joined this thread.  It was not intended to flame him but to gather some info from other BST sellers.   The buyer is correct, there was no headcover.  The bag he is referring to was an eBay bubble wrap envelope the was around the head. The club was also in 6x6 box with plenty of packing material that nothing moves the box.  I’m sorry no Headcover would protect against that type of crushing damage.  That is not a headcover issue.  I let the buyer know if he contacted me the day it arrives, presents the damaged box and head, this is a diff conversation.   I simply conveyed my skepticism for reasons already discussed here.   I didn’t even get into the details like what did the first ball you hit sound like?  What did the 12th ball sound like?  What did sound like when it completely failed and a large portion of the crown ended up inside the head.   I’ve dealt with shipping damage before (shafts) as a buyer but not like this.

[Stetson]

Did the buyer notice the chunks of carbon fiber fall out of the box upon receipt?  It would’ve left debris in the box or in the head. It might still be in the box

Edited October 22, 2020 by Stetson

[Mbarry212]

Here is the damage to the box along with the contents used to protect the club during shipping.