Golfsmith Sinks into the Mire

I am so pissed. In a recent visit to my favorite golf shop, a local custom club fellow in Pacific Grove, Calif., Brad showed me a copy of the latest catalog from Golfsmith. In it, they tout a “new” technology they feature. A cheap rip-off counterweight from a fellow who will remain simply, “the thief.”

The originators of today’s most sophisticated counter-weighting system comes from Balance Certified Golf.

Two former NASA engineers (yes, they worked on the Space Shuttle) left NASA after discovering what quantifies “feel.” They determined that proper counter-weighting can be manipulated in all clubs with the proper weight in the butt of the club. They developed an elegant testing system called Motion Balancing™and have over 500 dealers worldwide. They have been on all Tours for 6 years and have such major endorsers as Scott Hoch and Tom Jenkins (with over $5M in earnings with BCG onboard) on their team. MacGregor Golf, SeeMore Putters, Pinfire Golf, Ray Cook and YES use their system each week on Tour to perfect their putters for their professional players. Over 160 Tour players use their system.

In 2004 Golfsmith was sent a kit to test for placement in their catalog. At the PGA Show in 2005 I was in the meeting where their “product team” met with Jeff Lindner and John Cranston, the true developers of the product. It seemed to me at the time that they were fishing, not shopping. In my opinion, they wanted a cheaper solution and a “one size fits all” solution. It is not possible since every club and every golf swing is different.

The product in the catalog is, in my opinion, a clear patent violation as it is a direct cheap a** copy of the BCG original. The tightening screw may lead to damaging shafts since it is such a cheap screw that it is not fine enough to tighten in the same “fine” manner as the BCG product. It is made offshore, of course. The BCG “drop-in” insert is made in the USA, installed by a qualified dealer base, and they provide a great do-it-yourself kit.

The fact that such a giant can do this to a real contributor to improved play because they are a small company is counter to the integrity of this game. So, if you believe in fair play, and you believe in supporting the good guys, avoid products from this ghoul of a company.

If you, dear reader have some suggestions on how to stop this type of behavior…fire AWAY! Or, if you have a “bad” experience in dealing with Golfsmith, let it fly.