Equipment Once Thought Too Gimmicky Now Common Place

[Hammer_Hands]

Fat putter grips.  (Superstroke)

[JD3]

15 minutes ago, me05501 said:

"Rescue" clubs aka hybrids.

Aka The Perfect Club 

[st1800e]

23 minutes ago, MattM97 said:

once the nubs wear out the shoes are done. 

True WRXers don’t keep their shoes long enough to find out. 😉

[MattM97]

8 minutes ago, st1800e said:

True WRXers don’t keep their shoes long enough to find out. 😉

 

I know but still there is that possibility that they could wear out. Now if you'll excuse me I'm waiting on shipping notification for yet another pair of golf shoes. 

[bekgolf]

Love me some spikeless shoes.

[grm24]

55 minutes ago, elwhippy said:

Spikeless shoes. Remember the uproar when Couples started wearing the Ecco shoes. Now everyone offers spikeless as their default. 

Ecco and Couple may be responsible for spikeless golf shoes becoming more popular in recent times however spikeless golf shoes have been around since the early 80's.

[JD3]

For me perhaps the grand daddy of them all with what's going on with irons these days and lawsuits between Taylormade and PXG. Nickent ARC irons were foam filled and I believe forged blade-like irons. They look pretty much identical to what's out there now which makes the lawsuits even more suspect.

 

 

 

Edited March 4 by JD3

[grm24]

1 hour ago, JD3 said:

For me perhaps the grand daddy of them all with what's going on with irons these days and lawsuits between Taylormade and PXG. Nickent ARC irons were foam filled and I believe forged blade-like irons. They look pretty much identical to what's out there now which makes the lawsuits even more suspect.

 

 

 

 

TM had foam filled irons as far back as 1993. IIRC the PXG/TM lawsuit was settled in 2019. Hollow headed and/or filled irons (which was one of the reasons for the lawsuits) have been around since the late 1970's/early 80's.

 

[uglande]

Almost every innovation started as a gimmick. 

 

Mallet putters

Giant-headed drivers

Cavity back irons

Hollow iron heads

Moveable weights

Graphite shafts

Adapter tips

 

It's actually pretty remarkable that most tour bags are as consistent as they are. After all these decades, what dominates in 2024 are classic wedge designs, forged iron heads, steel shafts (esp. dynamic gold), Tour Velvet (or similar) grips, and Answer style putters. 

[hammergolf]

7 woods

[JD3]

1 hour ago, grm24 said:

 

TM had foam filled irons as far back as 1993. IIRC the PXG/TM lawsuit was settled in 2019. Hollow headed and/or filled irons (which was one of the reasons for the lawsuits) have been around since the late 1970's/early 80's.

 

Interesting thanks I wasn't aware of this. According to this article from golf.com part of pxg's claim was that TM copied the type of foam material they injected into the hollow head. Which really doesnt sound all that different from Nickent's "high-rebound elastomer" from like a decade earlier. Also PXG CEO is sounding like he was victorious when the settlement doesn't seem to have affected what TM is doing with it's 790 and 770 irons in any way.

 

https://golf.com/gear/taylormade-pxg-irons-settlement-lawsuit/?amp=1

Edited March 5 by JD3

[theboypinoy]

Wedges with full face grooves

[grm24]

3 minutes ago, JD3 said:

Interesting thanks I wasn't aware of. According to this article from golf.com part of pxg's claim was that TM copied the type of foam material they injected into the hollow head.

https://golf.com/gear/taylormade-pxg-irons-settlement-lawsuit/?amp=1

Here's a link I think you might like of older gear. Some old time hollow and cavity filled iron sets. Actually the whole site is fun to look at older clubs.

 

https://www.clubsofdistinction.com/#rhhollow

[Pack7483]

It may not be really be a gimmick club, but quite a few of my buddies thought my love of mini drivers was a gimmick. But the results they see with the BRNR in my hands has changed their minds lol. 

[TRheezy]

Original Top Flight Strata.  I am pretty these came out before the Pro V1.  Just remember playing them over professional 90s in my high school matches. 

[jholz]

On 3/4/2024 at 1:06 PM, st1800e said:

Drivers with huge heads.  

 

I was going to say the same thing. I vaguely remember giving the Original Big Bertha crowd crap about the size and cost of their drivers. 

 

Then the Burner Bubble boys. 

 

Then the TiSi folks.

 

The square driver guys certainly heard an earful.  

 

Fast forward ~30 years and 440cc sounds small and $359 sounds like a bargain. 

 

I guess I was wrong... 😞 

[islesmb]

16 minutes ago, jholz said:

 

I was going to say the same thing. I vaguely remember giving the Original Big Bertha crowd crap about the size and cost of their drivers. 

 

Then the Burner Bubble boys. 

 

Then the TiSi folks.

 

The square driver guys certainly heard an earful.  

 

Fast forward ~30 years and 440cc sounds small and $359 sounds like a bargain. 

 

I guess I was wrong... 😞 

 

I was working at a large golf store back in the day when the TiSi driver was a thing. Everyone who picked one up always commented on the size of it lol. I owned one with a grafalloy pro lite 35 shaft and loved that thing. 🙂

[Mych]

Extreme MOI drivers (Nike Sasquatch?)

[shoeshine]

Graphite iron shafts. Maybe throw in graphite putter shafts in the mix as well