TaylorMade to release non-conforming clubs, sources say, following Polara Golf’s lead into recreational equipment

New report by a senior equipment insider at MyGolfSpy alleges the “#1 Company in Golf” will launch a line of non-conforming golf clubs under the TaylorMade, Adams, or other Adidas brand, two years after Polara Golf spearheaded the recreational golf movement with the highly rated Ultimate Straight Ball and Advantage Driver.

 Sep. 27, 2013, Carlsbad, CA—According to “reputable sources” close to golf website MyGolfSpy, TaylorMade, a subsidiary of Adidas, “is planning to launch a line of non-conforming golf clubs,” reports senior equipment insider Tony Covey.

“This is nothing less than the biggest equipment story since…well…maybe ever,” Covey says. “While one reliable source recently put the probability of a non-conforming line at 100%, I’d personally be shocked to see a single USGA illegal club with the TaylorMade logo on it. Adams (also owned by Adidas) is a better possibility.”

In addition to the above report, an independent source close to Polara Golf this week suggested even more, telling company officials that “TaylorMade will positively start selling a non-conforming driver starting in November,” with an announcement expected within 30 days.

The unofficial news comes several months after overtures from a senior TaylorMade official, suggested his company will follow Polara Golf’s lead in the manufacturing of non-conforming equipment designed for recreational players. “Our job is to make sure we get golfers excited to go out and play more golf, and we can do that with better performance,” said the company’s Sean Toulon. “If the ruling bodies don’t like it, then it goes wherever it goes.”

In reaction to the rumor, Polara Golf president Dave Felker acknowledged TaylorMade’s interest in non-conforming equipment, just two years after the former’s upstart Carlsbad, CA equipment company made waves in the New York Times, Fox News, CNBC, and others with their Ultimate Straight golf balls and their Advantage Driver, new for this year.

“Today golf is facing the same kind of decline in participation and revenues that skiing, baseball and tennis faced years ago,” Felker says. “It was the performance characteristics of oversized rackets, metal bats, snow boards, and shaped skis that helped increase participation and revenues for those sports because the new equipment made the sport  easier to learn and more fun to play. Polara Golf is executing a similar strategy for golf. We were the first golf company to invent, market, and sell recreational golf equipment that truly makes the game easier to learn and more fun to play. We’re flattered that others are seemingly following our lead.”

Last year, Polara Golf commissioned a Google Consumer survey that found 73% of golfers admit to not following the rules, fewer than 15% keep a handicap, and 63% would consider playing non-conforming equipment in an effort to maximize their enjoyment of the game. A similar poll conducted by MyGolfSpy found that 76% felt consumers should have better access to non-conforming equipment.

“The closest parallel I can find to golf equipment is competitive cycling,” concluded Covey. “If I just want something to ride around the neighborhood, my choices aren’t limited to legal bikes. I’m free to buy a non-conforming bike from any number of reputable, top-tier companies, and nobody is going to accuse me of cheating in doing so. How is that any different from a recreational golfer who plays non-conforming clubs?”

For more information, please visit PolaraGolf.com.

Media contact

Joe Wieczorek, for Polara Golf
joe@themediagroupinc.com
Office: (847) 956-9090
Cell: (847) 812-7396

Non-Conformity is the Gateway to Innovation

MyGolfSpy.com's recent article by Tony Covey got us thinking. If recreational golf is the majority, why are so many trying to push them out of the game, not allowing them to use what equipment works best for them. Remember the saying, to each their own? Why doesn't this matter in the world of golf? Whose game is it anyway? These are some excerpts from the original article that really stood out for us at Polara Golf.

The USGA Has Over-Stepped

As trustee for the rules of golf, the USGA has grossly over-stepped in their management of the equipment space. It’s one thing to create rules defining competition-legal equipment, it’s quite another to issue a mandate effectively prohibiting golf companies from producing anything that doesn’t conform.

We’ve talked about Major League Baseball governing Little League or the NFL forcing its rules on Pop Warner (that ball is not regulation, kid), but the closest parallel I can find to golf is competitive cycling.

As with golf, the UCI (cycling’s governing body) has rules that cover every aspect of the spot, including equipment. There are bikes that are deemed competition-legal and bikes that are not. The difference between golf and cycling is that if I just want something to ride around the neighborhood, my choices aren’t limited to UCI legal bikes.

I’m free to buy a non-conforming bike from any number of reputable, top-tier companies, and nobody is going to accuse me of cheating anyone or anything.

How is that any different from a recreational golfer who plays non-conforming clubs?

And you know what…while cycling has its share of problems; recreational cyclists, and kids jumping mounds of dirt on Huffys aren’t among them.

Why should guys who aren’t competing against anyone be forced to make a choice between playing competition legal equipment, or non-conforming clubs from a relative nobody?

Why should the USGA dictate what equipment is available to the recreational golfer?

Non-Conforming Equipment is Good for Golf

You think I’m insane? I’m just getting started.

Mainstream non-conforming equipment could ultimately be good for the health of the game. While I’m not one to believe that slow play is killing golf, or long courses are killing golf, or the cost of equipment and tee times is killing golf (nothing is actually killing golf), I think there are some pretty simple steps we could take to improve the overall health of the game, and letting golfers play gear that makes the game more enjoyable is certainly one of them.

+ You want to mitigate the impact of longer courses? Let guys hit the ball farther.

+ You want to speed up play? Let guys hit the ball straighter and keep them out of the damn woods.

+ You want to attract new golfers? Make the game more fun, and part of that means giving non-competitive golfers the ability to play whatever it is that makes the game more enjoyable for them.

And what about the guy who can’t bend over, or who got hurt and lost 50 yards?

What’s the greater tragedy, having somebody who used to love the game walk off the course and never come back, or allowing them to play (recreationally, of course) with anchored putters and juiced up drivers?

Non-Conformity is the Gateway to Innovation

More than anything else, a line of non-conforming clubs would give the golf companies something they haven’t had in a while; complete and total freedom to innovate. As it is in nearly any other industry, imagination, not regulation, becomes the limiting factor.

Since a non-conforming line wouldn’t be bound by any of the conventions of what a golf club is, what it looks like, what it’s made from; golf companies would be free to experiment with new materials, new geometry, and completely new ideas.

How is this bad for golf?

To read full article online: http://www.mygolfspy.com/taylormade-non-conforming-illegal-clubs/

It's No Secret: Polara Golf Proudly Applies For Non-Conforming Status Of New Drivers That Exceed USGA Limits

CARLSBAD, CA - The governing body of professional golf, the USGA, lists almost 500 drivers that are banned from tournament play. This fall, another will be proudly added to the list: The Advantage Driver by Polara Golf, designed to be the longest-hitting driver in golf.

Made by the same California company that introduced the world to the "banned but awesome" Ultimate Straight™ golf balls endorsed on the front page of the New York Times, the new Advantage Driver is similarly effective in lowering scores and boosting recreational enjoyment of the rigorous game. It accomplishes this with a more forgiving, seriously oversized head which is made of lighter and harder titanium to produce a "trampoline effect" when striking a ball. The result is greater accuracy, straightness, and added distance of up to almost half a football field.

"We are proud to announce the introduction of our Polara Advantage drivers to help recreational golfers add up to 40 yards more per drive," says Dave Felker, president of Polara Golf. "Like our well-rated and proven Ultimate Straight balls, we specifically engineered these drivers to exceed USGA limits for more enjoyable rounds."

"Since our drivers are intended for the estimated 85% of golfers who want to score lower and have more fun outside of formal handicap tournaments, Polara Golf is proud to be listed on the USGA nonconforming list."

Polara's approach differs significantly from other equipment manufacturers, however, in that unlike Titleist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Bridgestone, Nike and others that quietly release nonconforming equipment, Polara actively promotes the measurable enhancements of the new Advantage Driver and Ultimate Straight balls.

"We're different in that we advertise the fact that we are selling non-conforming golf equipment," Felker says. "The others do it secretly."

The reason for this can be traced to a double standard of golf purism, Felker says, in which recreational players are expected to adhere to the professional rules of golf, except in cases of more established infractions including foot wedges, gimme putts, and mulligans. Even more recently, it can be traced to the late Ely Callaway's remarks in 2001 regarding nonconforming equipment intended for recreational play. "If the [USGA] makes rules that are against the growth of the game and the enjoyment of the game, then we do not feel that we are wrong, immoral, cheating, bad people to give the public a choice," he said.

Today, Polara Golf stands by that remark. While 67% of Golf Digest readers recently said they would not buy a nonconforming club, "Their readers are not representative of the golfing public, and the data we have indicates the exact opposite: 63% of golfers would play nonconforming equipment since the overwhelming majority play golf for recreational reasons," Felker said.

Hence, the introduction of the Advantage Driver alongside the previously released Ultimate Straight balls. "Whether you're a hard-hitting golfer looking for some extra yardage, a senior golfer looking to recapture the distance of years gone by, or slow-swinging player craving an extra 40 yards, the Advantage Driver is guaranteed to deliver more distance than any driver on the market," Felker promises.

The 475cc oversized Advantage Driver is available in four lofts (10.5, 12, HL1, HL3) and in four shaft flexes (Stiff, Regular, Light, Ladies) for a tailored fit. The drivers carry a MSRP of $299 and are only available in limited supply at www.PolaraGolf.com.

About Polara Golf
Polara Golf is the leader in game improvement equipment for the recreational golfer. Polara Golf's mission is, "To make the game of golf more fun". All of the Polara products are designed for use by recreational golfers who want to take advantage of technology improvements designed to help them score lower and enjoy the game more.

For more information about Polara Golf, visit www.PolaraGolf.com or call 866-556-3100.

Media members interested in field testing any of the Polara Golf products for an editorial review should contact Joe Wieczorek joe@themediagroupinc.com of The Media Group at (847) 956-9090.

6 Of The Most Diabolical Holes In Golf

Once again, the Foursum.com blog does it again, always giving us interesting and out-of-the-box posts. We love this feature of the 6 most "diabolical" holes in golf, because what better way to play golf, than to play on a course made for the devil...

 
1. The 16th at Cypress Point:
You have to hit your ball 220 to 230 yards over the ocean. Yes, the ocean. If you are able to clear the 230 gap, you also need to hit your ball hard enough and with enough accuracy to clear the stone retaining wall on the other side.

2. The 5th at Pinehurst No. 2:
The green on this course is like an upside down bowl – high in the middle and sloping towards the edges. If that wasn’t bad enough, the green is protected by a couple of serious bunkers.  If you’re really lucky, you will end up taking an iron onto a tough green and you must strike with accuracy.

3. The 12th at Augusta:
“It’s a short par 3, what’s to worry about?” I wonder how many naive golfers have said those words just before they teed off on 12.  Golf Digest has called this hole, “… the scariest 155 yards in golf.”  No wonder.  You need to clear a creek, one intimidating water hazard, to get on the green. If you overshoot, you end up in a bunker. The shot from the bunker is terrifying. If you hit the ball too hard, you’re in the water.  Add into the mix the regular ferocious winds golfers experience on this hole and you’re in for one hell of a challenge.

4. The 18th at Whistling Straits:
The 18th at Whistling Straits is the most confusing hole on the course.  “At the Straits Course, no hole is more confusing than the 18th, a hole that bridges two huge dunes and already has been renovated three times,” writes Golf Week’s Bradley Klein. The semi-blind tee shot has to carry a vast wasteland but not go too far lest it tumble into oblivion.  It’s been called Dye-abolical, in honor of its designer Pete Dye. Your tee shot, if hit well, sets you up for a downhill battle to a torturous green that will test your will, your skill, and your sanity.

5. The 17th at Kiawah Island:
This hole is messed up.  For success, you need to clear a sizeable pond, avoid deep bunkers, and hit the horizontal green just right.  Easy, isn’t it?  Writing for the New York Times, Adam Shupak notes the 17th is another Pete Dye creation and is his most “diabolical,” or Dye-abolical.  He explains its challenge well: “From an elevated tee along the northeastern shore of the island, the 17th plays 229 yards for the pros over water lining the entire right side of the hole and front of the green. The putting surface may measure 44 yards deep, but the swath of green to land a ball safely is about 15 yards wide, punishing any tee shot that does not hew to the right line.”

6. The 17th at TPC Sawgrass:
This is a spectacular golf hole for both it’s beauty and its history.  The Golf Channel’s Joe Posnanski, when writing about the 17th at TPC Sawgrass, said, “It is certainly one of the most iconic holes.”  Any golf fan knows the hole. They have watched their favorites cross the narrow path to the green (and if they’re lucky they’ve walked it themselves).  We’ve seen golf’s legends make their approach hoping to catch the green, just wherever they can to stay out of the water.  It’s do or die.  The Associated Press’s Doug Ferguson wrote, “The 17th green rarely decides who wins, rather who loses.”  He couldn’t be more right.  One of the most astounding statistics about the 17th is that it has claimed 481 balls in the last decade of play at the Player’s Championship.