2011...What Will It Bring In The Way Of New Golf Gear?

I’m sitting in a railway station, got a ticket for my … no, wait, that was Paul Simon. I’m sitting in my room of dreams, snow falling outside, wind blowing and grass hibernating, thinking of the golfing season. I’ve made my picks for Fantasy Golf this week and have my toes crossed for a big pay day at the points window. My attention turns to golf gear, as I’m itching to complement the swing changes I’ve made with some new equipment, apparel and accessories.

One of the interesting notes that came out of the recent PGA Merchandise Show (that I attended from afar) was the announcement from Callaway of a new uPro device, the MX. The evolution involves pre-loaded courses (25,000, to be precise) simplified download of new courses, hi-res aerial photography of each course, touch-screen navigation and a $199 price. For those in and out of the know, the beta v. vhs or dvd v. blu-ray battle here is the scope versus the gps. The range scope, offered by many companies, allows portability and adaptability. The gps provides aerial mapping and accurate, measured distances from point to point. As a current uPro user, I’ll be interested to see how old school compares with new school for gps.

Nike Golf …what can we say? Here’s a company whose central spokesperson has gone through some tough times lately. How does the company respond? They turn out better product than ever. Word on the carpet is that the new VR driver and Lunarlon shoes are top-shelf. With media darling Jhonattan “Jhonny” Vegas and John Cook notching wins in the USA and Paul Casey doing so in the Middle East, Nike’s stock is rising. The company also has a new ball out, so I’ll be sure to see how it compares to the most highly-anticipated orb release of 2011, the …

new Pro V1 and Pro V1x from Titleist. The ball that sprung Tiger’s dominance at the turn of the millenium has been caught, it seems, by offerings from Bridgestone, Callaway, Nike and Srixon. Will Titleist re-assert itself with wins upon wins in 2011? We know that most golfers on the tours play the ball; let’s see how the new one translates at the victory stand. Last week, Bubba Watson put dinner on the table for his brood with a 1-stroke win in San Diego, thanks to his Pro V1x.

I’m one of those die-hard blade players when it comes to irons. I have a set of Mizunos from the mid-2000s that I cannot take out of my bag. Truth is, I haven’t tried. I presume that the time will come to go to a more forgiving club. Perhaps I’ll just turn to a softer shaft. What I do know, however, is that more golfers are hitting straighter shots with more forgiving irons. They’re also more comfortable in doing so. I’ll take a look at irons and apparel a week or so from now. In the meantime, dream with me!