Duffers Corner

The long forgotten era of club naming; Brassie, spoon, mashie, jigger, spade. If your grandfather played golf 50+ years ago, you bet he had a brassie or spoon in his tiny little canvas carry bag. The old tools of the game sure have evolved from simple, handcrafted designs of persimmon, plastic and steel to complex works of engineering using aeronautical material like titanium, as well as tungsten & lightweight stainless steel.

I just heard through the grapevine that Cleveland Golf will be introducing in the fall a kind of ‘short-iron hybrid’ called of all things, a NIBLICK.
Click HERE for a high resolution image.

From the British Golf Museum

Definition: The “pitching niblick” was the historical golf club (wooden-shafted, pre-20th Century) whose short shaft made it the club of choice for chipping and short approaches. In the way it was used, the pitching niblick was most equivalent to today’s wedges.

That doesn’t mean the pitching niblick was necessarily a high-lofted club, however. With antique golf clubs, loft could dramatically differ from set to set among the same clubs. That’s why you’ll sometimes see this club also compared to a 4-iron under its alias, the “jigger.”

It’s sometimes not the loft of an antique club that is used to equate that club to modern ones, but how the club was used. And the pitching niblick – a k a jigger or lofting iron – was used to approach and chip.

The Niblick hybrid chippers are the length of a standard putter (35”) and the loft of your typical 8 & 9 iron.

What would the Niblick be used for?
Mainly for chipping around the green. Perfect for pitch shots where the pin is some 30+ feet away. You could also use it for low running shots where you might be stuck under a tree or group of trees.

Is the Cleveland Niblick ‘NEW Technology’? No. The Odyssey Maxman chipper is similar in design.

Is the Cleveland Niblick a gimmick club? A big NO!

When this club comes out in October, for those who struggle with their short game, you need to give this club a try. I mean it. Personally I have used chippers in the past and the Niblick looks like the best design I have seen. The Odyssey Maxman felt great but is limited to just chipping close to the green. The Niblick is built more like a iron due to it’s traditional hosel compared to the putter like hosel of the Marxman, which will open up more possibilities (longer shot range).

If I demo a Niblick anytime soon I will let you guys know.

Have you ever heard of a club designer named Don White? Up until about 5 years ago I hadn’t and I thought I know every nonsensical tidbit about the golf industry. All I knew about Don was that he worked at MacGregor Golf as a pretty well respected designer, doing custom grinds on both wedges and irons. Then just a couple of days ago, due to all the press that Greg Norman received for his play at the British Open, I find out that he has been with MacGregor since 1971, and has been their chief club designer since 1980, and I hadn’t heard of him? You’re telling me that Don White designed all the great Muirfield and VIP irons of the 1980s when he was only in his late 20s to early 30s? Are you kidding me? A guy that was originally not an engineer and had no previous knowledge of golf or club design was customizing and building irons for Jack Nicklaus? This Don White character should be in some hall of fame or something. Oh wait! HE IS!

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Interview with MacGregor’s head club designer Don White.
Great insight into club making, custom grinds and the various tour pros he has built clubs for.

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Then just a couple of days ago I finally got to see a close up picture of what looked like ‘retro’ irons Don built specifically for Norman to play in the British Open. I swear I’d seen these before. After some digging I had a lookie-what-we-have-here moment:

Eerie similarity aren’t they? Rumor has it these irons (2009 VIP Pro Diamondbacks) might be introduced this coming fall/winter.

Don White, my friend, I commend you for your continued preservation of the classic forged blade and the name MacGregor, ‘The greatest name in golf!’

A funny little side note: Just yesterday I purposely attached the picture below to my refrigerator to send a little hint to the wife that I might have my eye on some new irons and within minutes she comes barreling around the corner doing her best Soup Nazi impersonation – “NO CLUBS FOR YOU!”

An old friend called me from out of the blue yesterday just to rap about golf & politics (his wife was out of town and I think he got tired of talking to himself). We discussed a varied range of topics, rants, an argument or two, but we settled on talking about last weekends British Open. Here’s a small excerpt of our conversation:

Buddy – “2-irons?”

Me – “Yeah?”

Buddy – “Do they still make them?”

Me – “Yep, but they are now being made by the same people making 8-track tapes!”

Buddy – “Funny….really, does anybody still make them?”

Me – “Sure, they’re still being made. (long pause) Why would you want one?”

Buddy – “I saw some players using them at the Open, I play in the wind sometimes, maybe it might help.”

Of course I come back with a classic analogy:

Me – “Using a 2-iron to hit into the wind would be as effective as cleaning your dirty laundry down by the river using an old washboard.”

Buddy – “Huh?”

Me – “Exactly!”

Why do golfers think that if they use a club a tour pro uses they will hit it just like them?

Quick, sort of related story –
A few years back a friend of mine was part of a small group (8 music industry people) that had a meet & greet with guitarist Eddie Van Halen. Before Eddie showed up, the group was able to demo the guitar, amplifier and effects pedals that he sometimes uses during recording sessions. Now 3-4 guys in the group were pretty accomplished guitar players and after a few minutes playing around with Eddie’s equipment, most agreed that it didn’t sound like his kind of setup. Where one thought the tuning was all wrong another thought the tubes he used in his amp weren’t right, the guitar just didn’t have that signature Van Halen sound. Then Eddie walked in. Cigarette in mouth, saying nothing, he walked over to his guitar, turned up the volume and let her rip. Eddie played some of his classic Van Halen riffs note perfect, sounding eerily close to the original recordings, which of course stunned everyone in the room. “It’s not the equipment, it’s the player.”

So I explain to my buddy that he should look more at getting a low lofted hybrid than putting a 2-iron in his bag. There are pro model hybrids that have a slightly higher center of gravity that lowers shot trajectory, like the Adams Idea Pro, Taylormade TP Rescue, or even the Cobra Baffler Pro. “..and if lower tee shots are what you are after, remember this equation: tee the ball lower + play the ball back in your stance = lower tee shots.”

Graeme McDowell, a professional golfer from Northern Ireland, was asked if he had put a 2-iron in his bag for this years British Open, he answered:
“No, the 2 iron is only for very windy conditions.”

It has been a few years since it happened and I didn’t really expected it, since I was told there was a good chance it might never happen again, but it did – my favorite pair of golf shoes leaked over the weekend!

Now for all of you reading this that live in the land of the sun, let me try and explain. No, I don’t store fluids in my shoes, nor are my feet extremely sweaty, I just live in the Pacific Northwest where it rains a lot. A good portion of my rounds are either played in the rain or on a course that has a fair amount of standing water, so waterproof golf shoes are a must have.

So was I surprised they leaked? A little. I mean I have had my fair share of shoes go bad -

• ’94 Dexter DrySports – Both soles came completely off. I later found out that the DrySports were one of the few Dexter golf shoes made in the US, the EPA told them to use a less toxic adhesive, so they ended up using a ‘water based glue’. Oh the insanity!
• Nike Air – All of my Nike shoes with the air support bubble in the heel have deflated. I know I am a big guy but……
• Mizuno Permanent Spikes – No need to ever change them, spikes never wore out, absolutely loved them, until a couple broke off. Side note, soft spikes killed those shoes.

My shoes that leaked last weekend were FootJoy DryJoys. I have probably owned 10 pair of FootJoys over the years and have never had any issues, so did FootJoy make a faulty pair of shoes? Not necessarily. Shoes still need a little personal maintenance to help keep them from leaking, and one of the worst offenders to their waterproof seal is grass fertilizer. Fertilizer eats away at the glue that keeps the sole and leather upper together, allowing water to penetrate into the uppers membrane, causing your feet to get wet. A way to prevent this is simply to take an old tooth brush and scrub water along the area where the sole meets the upper after every round, which helps breakdown the strength of the fertilizer, prolonging the life of your shoe.

So in this case, it looks like it was a defective shoe. FootJoy has a great comfort and waterproof guarantee, so no worries about getting them replaced.

And before I get a bunch of responses, yes, I do own a pair of rubber golf boots. I’ll make sure to wear those next time.