CHAT LIVE with True Temper & Callaway! Fri Jan 18 NOON ET!

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='WVP' timestamp='1358305521' post='6236957']
Wow, great group there. Looking forward to it. Thanks to all involved!


For True Temper: I'd like to know, other than weight, the differences between the PX Velocity shafts in the Hot and Hot Pro.

With such a competitive market, do you anticipate a trend for OEM's to offer "real" shafts rather than "made-for"?

For Callaway:

When you design a new driver head, do you design with certain shaft characteristics in mind? Or go to the shaft manufacturers afterwards? Wondering how that partnership works and how shafts get chosen.


Thanks!
[/quote]

Ultimately, this is the manufacturer’s call based upon certain cost/profitability targets that must be met. They have to decide if the additional shaft cost adds enough value to the overall club system. The Callaway team certainly saw the importance of putting a premium shaft into their 2013 product line. Bottom line is X Hot + PXv = WOW!

[anthony007]

How many tour guys are playing the x hot driver vs the new razr fit? why would i want x hot over the razr fit and vice [b]versa[/b].

Thanks

[TrueTemper]

Hi everyone from the True Temper team! Thanks for being with us today. Before we dive in to the chat, we realized there were many questions specifically about the new PXv shafts available in both the new Xhot products and some of the aftermarket versions. With that being the case we wanted to answer all those right at the beginning. Below is a snapshot of the PXv lineup.


PXv Tour 52: This shaft was designed as the next generation of the Project X graphite family, following the PX Black and PX Blue. We used our latest low resin content aerospace grade materials to mimic the bend profile and stability as found in the rest of the PX family. You should expect to see the same launch characteristics as the previous models. The lighter weight will allow for lighter finished clubs or increased length, both of which help generate extra ball speed.

PXv in XHot Driver: We worked with Callaway to test the PXv Tour 52 performance in the Xhot head. We found that it did not provide the launch and spin characteristics for the target golfer, frankly it was a little too much shaft and it didn’t provide enough spin to maximize carry and felt too firm. We adjusted the design to launch and spin a little more and feel smoother. These shafts are made with the same aerospace materials we use in the Tour 52 and made on the same production line with the same tolerances. No one should consider this a lower quality “made for” shaft. This shaft was specifically co-engineered by Callaway and Project X to maximize the performance in XHot.

PXv Tour: This is a heaver weight version of the PXv Tour 52 for players that prefer heavier shafts. We went back and looked at our most popular shafts from the PX Blue Tour Issue line and modeled each flex based on those shafts which is why there is a drastic weight progression. We found that 6.5 and 7.0 players prefer a 70 gram shaft but the better 5.5 and 6.0 players want something in the mid 60s. When Callaway tested this shaft in XHot pro they found that it was the right weight and performance for the stronger player that would be buying XHot pro. This version is available stock in Xhot pro and in the aftermarket.



Oh and also...

GO HEELS.

[jeffreyjenkins]

Looking at two shafts for my new set of irons. TT X-100 and Tour issue TT X-100. How much difference will I be able to tell in the performance of these two shafts? If I were to choose Tour issue TT X-100, what is a good recommendation for wedges (48, 54, 60)
Thanks,

[benknudson]

What are the significant differences between the X Hot and the Razr Fit Xtreme drivers?

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='Puppetmaster' timestamp='1358305826' post='6236991']
Hi fellas,

Thanks for taking the time to do this.

First, we know from the group that got to visit your facility, and from your interaction and postings here and on other social media outlets that you are really going all out with R&D and putting the best tech possible into the X Hot and other lines. And the feedback from performance has been excellent so far from what I can tell, but audiences like us are the geeks and fanatics so we kind of "get it". How are you communicating all this to your sales reps to pitch successfully to the more averagely informed golfer who has not really been as excited by the Callaway brand in recent years?

Second, the X Hot and X Hot Pro drivers are supposedly higher spin heads than the Fit Extreme, loft for loft, yet most of the Tour pictures we've seen thus far have shown that more pros are putting the X Hot Pro in the bag, what's the main reason for that? Preference for the feel or look?

Sorry for the long questions and thanks for your time.

Best regards,

J
[/quote]


We started the process with our reps back in August and continued it in November on X Hot at our sales meetings. We work really hard to get them excited around the launch of our products and they are a very important part of the sphere of influence. They play a significant role in not only transitioning the excitement to customers as they book for the year but also with golfers of all types as they work at demo days and at retail. Our reps are just like all of you and were really excited to see our product led strategy this year and happy to see the simple and easy stories that made it obvious what our products do. So we really do the same things we do elsewhere with our reps, it just starts much earlier in the process.

[ROBOPTI]

LUKE !!!!… WHAT’S UP !!! … I think easily the most important question you will get all day … [b]“Did YOU get Gerritt to make YOU a Cupcake Wedge?”[/b] … I’d like a pic !!

And to Chad …. Good Morning !!!!!!! … 1 question

[b]WHERE[/b] is my commission check from True Temper for single handedly bringing back steel shafts in drivers … I check my mailbox every day … still nothing … Sad

Long live steel in drivers … You heard it here 1[sup]st[/sup] … Just sayin

[ram01002]

Do you see a large number of players who assume dynamic gold is the best shaft for them, and then transition into something different? What is a common transition?

[jaskanski]

For TT - how about bringing an updated Black Gold shaft back into play?
For Callaway - how about bring said shaft into an OEM club set? You could call it the X-gold.......or Black hot.

[CallawayLuke]

[quote name='arydolphin' timestamp='1358304405' post='6236803']
For the Callaway staff: can you give a quick summary of the difference in weighting and ballflight characteristics between the X Hot driver and the X Hot Pro driver? The X Hot driver has more draw bias in it, but is the X Hot Pro driver set up for a neutral ballflight or is it fade biased?

For the True Temper staff: Can you explain how the PXv shaft would compare in ballflight to the original Project X driver shaft and the Project X Black shaft?
[/quote]

The Standard X HOT driver has more draw bias than the X HOT Pro which is designed to be neutral and the Standard X HOT driver has a higher cg which will generate more backspin.

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='lvmike' timestamp='1358310925' post='6237523']
True Temper,
There seems to be a trend toward lighter weight shafts and higher torque. In the past, this seemed to lead to high spin numbers. What technology is keeping the spin so low?

Callaway,
Will you be offering the shafts as stand alone purchases?

Thanks GolfWRX, True Temper and Callaway for this opportunity.
[/quote]


We will be offering the PXv found in the X Hot Pro as an aftermarket offering

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='deck' timestamp='1358306568' post='6237083']
True temper- what more can be done with shaft technology?

Callaway- with the limitations golf ruling bodies have imposed on technology in the club face what can be done that has not already?
[/quote]

We’re always looking at the next new technology in golf shafts…whether advancements in materials or our manufacturing. Many times, one affects the other. For instance, our superlight GS series (75, 85 and 95) of steel shafts are far lighter than we ever thought we’d be able to achieve 11 years ago when I joined the company. These shafts were made possible by advancements in steel alloy technology…made from an entirely different steel than our lightweight and tour shafts. With the new material came new methods of manufacturing that had to be implemented to process the shafts.

On the graphite side, there are new materials found in each of the PX, PX Black and PXv franchises from super-strong weave materials to high-strength, low resin carbon fiber.
What’s next? Stay tuned…we’re always challenging ourselves to find the latest shaft technology, test it and prove it. We expect more exciting shafts to hit the market latter in 2013.

[bayoubogeyguy]

[quote name='HipCheck' timestamp='1358302621' post='6236539']
[b]***THIS WILL BE THE LIVE Q&A LINK*****[/b]

[size=5][color=#B22222][b]PLEASE FEEL FREE TO POST QUESTIONS AHEAD OF TIME BELOW.[/b][/color][/size]

[b]Join us for a Live Chat with Callaway and True Temper!
Submit a question for your chance to win 1 of 3 X Hot Drivers with a PXv shaft![/b]

[attachment=1492149:chatcally.png]

[b][u]WHO:[/u][/b]
Callaway’s Luke Williams, global director of woods and irons, Alan Hocknell, senior vice president of research and development and Jason Finley, director of marketing

True Temper’s Chad Hall, director product marketing and global tour operations and Don Brown, product development manager and designer of the new Project X PXv shaft.

[b][u]WHAT:[/u][/b]
GolfWRX members will have the chance to discuss Callaway’s new Callaway X Hot driver which is offered with the new Project X PXv shaft. The Callaway and True Temper team will be available to answer any questions about the new driver and shaft.

[b]***Also, any GolfWRX member who submits a question that is answered during the live chat will have a chance to win one of three Callaway X Hot drivers with a PXv shaft.***[/b]

[b][u]WHEN: [/u][/b]
Friday, January 18 from 12:00 p.m. EDT

[size=5][color=#B22222][b]***THIS WILL BE THE LIVE Q&A LINK*****[/b][/color][/size]

[size=5][color=#B22222][b]PLEASE FEEL FREE TO POST QUESTIONS AHEAD OF TIME BELOW.[/b][/color][/size]
[/quote]

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='xThor' timestamp='1358310098' post='6237467']
Thanks for doing this, looking forward to it! Here:s my question:
With the evolution of heads being adjustable, how are shafts adapting to fit these changing characteristics?
[/quote]

There have been tremendous advancements in recent clubhead design with regards to adjustability. While adjustability provides many advantages for the player (loft, face angle, etc.) we believe strongly that it’s important to maintain a consistent delivery mechanism to the ball. Therefore our goal as a shaft manufacturer is simple…identify the target player and develop the most consistent, high-performance shaft we can for that player. Working in tandem with the Callaway team we did that with the new X Hot and X Hot Pro series.

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='swanry30' timestamp='1358311407' post='6237555']
TRUE TEMPER:

What was the idea and concept behind the PXv shaft and technology? Is this the predecessor to the PX blue, black, or a new line in general?

CALLAWAY:

Who is the target for the Xhot TOUR driver. What are the benefits or upgrades from the xblack - and can you achieve proper swing weight for those of us who prefer a driver at 44.5" to 45"?

Thanks!

R.
[/quote]


Hard to describe the exact target for any our new Drivers, best way to tell which one is right for you is always to go get fit and try them out for yourself. We believe they will all be longer for you.

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='lvmike' timestamp='1358310925' post='6237523']
True Temper,
There seems to be a trend toward lighter weight shafts and higher torque. In the past, this seemed to lead to high spin numbers. What technology is keeping the spin so low?

Callaway,
Will you be offering the shafts as stand alone purchases?

Thanks GolfWRX, True Temper and Callaway for this opportunity.
[/quote]
We’d be remiss to say that the shaft has been the only reason for this. You have to remember that ball and clubhead technology has come a long, long way in recent years. The overall spin reduction is found in combination of all three working together. As it relates to the shaft, we are using far better materials than we did in the past. Think about it, they’re building commercial airplanes out of carbon fiber now…who would have thought we would have ever seen that back in the day? We also have developed an in-house design model that can accurately predict the final shaft design and its performance before the first prototype has even been rolled in the lab. We simply know much more about cause and effect than we did prior to the technology explosion in the past decade.

[Topspin2]

What does Graphite Design's pullback from US manufacturing say to you guys?

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='dp4sc' timestamp='1358314051' post='6237709']
Appreciate you both taking the time to field questions from our community. A lot of the questions asked above I am curious to see responses to. Here are a couple more general questions that can apply to both Callaway and True Temper

Focus groups seem to be an important factor in market research to create products that meet the needs and desires of your end consumers. We all know that touring pros give credibility to any company, but what have each of your companies done to research what average Joe Golfer looks for when purchasing products? How do you work to balance tour credibility and performance for those of us not playing on Sunday afternoon for a living?

For True Temper specifically, how does the profile of the new PX 95 compare to that of the PXi? Love the PXi a lot, hoping the PX 95 is a comparable lightweight version of the PXi?

Thanks again for taking time out to speak with us.
[/quote]

This is a really great question. So many times we look at Tour exposure as the be-all end-all when in reality so many tour caliber products are not at all suited for the general consumer. This is why we use both tour and consumer player panels to test our products. We will either bring players to our test facility or go to golf courses and set up shop on the range to test. This is an invaluable part of our process. As it relates to the Callaway products that’s precisely why the PXv in the X Hot is a modified version of the PXv Tour 52. It is slightly less tip stiff and allows the same tour-proven technology to work for a wider range of players.

[drewjam]

I'm sure this has already been asked but do the stock PXv shafts in the Xhot Pro drivers have the exact same characteristics of a PXv shaft purchased aftermarket from a True Temper dealer? Thanks for your time!

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='dp4sc' timestamp='1358314051' post='6237709']
Appreciate you both taking the time to field questions from our community. A lot of the questions asked above I am curious to see responses to. Here are a couple more general questions that can apply to both Callaway and True Temper

Focus groups seem to be an important factor in market research to create products that meet the needs and desires of your end consumers. We all know that touring pros give credibility to any company, but what have each of your companies done to research what average Joe Golfer looks for when purchasing products? How do you work to balance tour credibility and performance for those of us not playing on Sunday afternoon for a living?

For True Temper specifically, how does the profile of the new PX 95 compare to that of the PXi? Love the PXi a lot, hoping the PX 95 is a comparable lightweight version of the PXi?

Thanks again for taking time out to speak with us.
[/quote]


Tour and Market Research both play a significant role in Product Development. This is part of the reason why we have 3 different drivers this year, all of which have already been put in play on Professional Tours around the World. We wanted our Tour Players, Better Players, and Everyday golfers to have a choice from different drivers that all did different things for their game. It is an exciting time to be a golfer and have plenty of great options.

[CallawayLuke]

[quote name='WVP' timestamp='1358305521' post='6236957']
Wow, great group there. Looking forward to it. Thanks to all involved!


For True Temper: I'd like to know, other than weight, the differences between the PX Velocity shafts in the Hot and Hot Pro.

With such a competitive market, do you anticipate a trend for OEM's to offer "real" shafts rather than "made-for"?

For Callaway:

When you design a new driver head, do you design with certain shaft characteristics in mind? Or go to the shaft manufacturers afterwards? Wondering how that partnership works and how shafts get chosen.


Thanks!
[/quote]
We start working with shaft manufacturers early in the process, we have certain targets based on how we are designing our head and the overall specs and performance that we are targeting, but we also want to know what they are working on and planning to bring to market. We then look for the best match and work with them on any tweaks we may want. We have a long history of doing this with True Temper/Grafalloy in both irons and woods and they have been a great partner for us.

[JGalls]

True Temper - Regarding going lighter weight in steel shafts...

Seems like the majority of tour players are still playing heavier weight shafts with a few exceptions (i.e. Kuchar and Snedeker with graphite 95's I believe). Do you see them ever making the switch to lighter as you continue your advancements in materials and manufacturing?

[bayoubogeyguy]

Hi ya Callaway and True Temper!

I currently play the True Temper XP S300 in my irons and love the ball flight and accuracy. My current driver is the Ping Rapture with an Aldila Vs Proto 65 S. My question for ProjectX and the new V shaft is what weight/flex shaft will give me the same flight and dispersion results in the new Callaway X Hot Driver? Can you provide specifics on the tip profile and bend point as well?

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='dp4sc' timestamp='1358314051' post='6237709']
Appreciate you both taking the time to field questions from our community. A lot of the questions asked above I am curious to see responses to. Here are a couple more general questions that can apply to both Callaway and True Temper

Focus groups seem to be an important factor in market research to create products that meet the needs and desires of your end consumers. We all know that touring pros give credibility to any company, but what have each of your companies done to research what average Joe Golfer looks for when purchasing products? How do you work to balance tour credibility and performance for those of us not playing on Sunday afternoon for a living?

For True Temper specifically, how does the profile of the new PX 95 compare to that of the PXi? Love the PXi a lot, hoping the PX 95 is a comparable lightweight version of the PXi?

Thanks again for taking time out to speak with us.
[/quote]

PX 95 Flighted is lightweight version of the original PX Flighted shaft that was such a great combo in previous X-series programs. It is lighter than PXi and is actually descending weight (PXi is constant). The shaft also features a variable flight from long irons (higher trajectory) to short irons (lower, controlled trajectory)

[JEFFERYLEE]

Do you think a Xhot or Xtreme 5w would be a better gap from my 3 iron..

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='My2Dogs' timestamp='1358316503' post='6237837']
Thanks for the opportunity to ask some questions.

For Callaway- when you designed the Versa putter and thought of the color pattern of W/B/W or B/W/B is one made for a right or left dominate eye player? Or is it just a preference on how it looks to each player?

For True Temper- for shaft design what is the main focus point for the consumer? Spin, launch or feel? Or is it a combination of them to achieve the ball flight they need?

Thanks again.
[/quote]


We are here to talk about X Hot and Pxv but since it is the launch day for VERSA today and we are all excited about that, we will give this a go. The different color options are really about personal preference and what works better for you. My suggestion would be to try them both and find the one that works best for you. Was exciting to see Ryo with the Black/White/Black version and Phil with White/Black/White version in play at the Humana this week.

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='Topspin2' timestamp='1358528900' post='6253401']
What does Graphite Design's pullback from US manufacturing say to you guys?
[/quote]

We think Graphite Design just decided that the U.S. market was too difficult an environment for them compete in and strategically it made more sense for them to put their focus on the Japanese market...hence the move. Also, their manufacturing was never in the U.S.

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='HISPL' timestamp='1358314447' post='6237757']
Oh, one more question for the True Temper guys, is it possible to make a shaft that has a similar bend profile (EI curve?) to the PX Tour Issue 6A4 but in a much lighter weight? Say 35-45 grams? Does this technology exist or is it likely to if it doesn't already?
[/quote]

That’s a tough one. 6A4 is a pretty stiff puppy. Surprisingly the PXv 39 is incredibly stable for a sub-40 gram 46” shaft. However, it’s not a 6A4. If you’re looking for a similar profile to 6A4, but lighter then you definitely need to give PXv Tour 52 7.0 flex a chance…know you’re going to love it!

[Callaway_Finley]

[quote name='scooter67' timestamp='1358336945' post='6238249']
The first question is for True Temper.

Will you bring back to market a shaft like the old Royal Presision shafts that had steps and were frequency matched with the 5.0-7.5?

The second is for Callaway.
How does the PGA Tour staff match up Jamie Sadlowski ? Numbers please.
[/quote]


Jamie's numbers are actually quite a bit higher than anyone on the PGA Tour that we have. His ball speed is at least 25mph higher than anyone on our staff, which we believe is one of the longest teams on Tour.

[TrueTemper]

[quote name='My2Dogs' timestamp='1358316503' post='6237837']
Thanks for the opportunity to ask some questions.

For Callaway- when you designed the Versa putter and thought of the color pattern of W/B/W or B/W/B is one made for a right or left dominate eye player? Or is it just a preference on how it looks to each player?

For True Temper- for shaft design what is the main focus point for the consumer? Spin, launch or feel? Or is it a combination of them to achieve the ball flight they need?

Thanks again.
[/quote]

Spin, launch, feel, weight, cosmetics…all of the above!