FORE Magazine

Top Menu

  • About Me
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Home

Main Menu

  • Current Issue
  • Profiles
  • Sustainability
  • Travel
  • 19th Hole
  • Classic Course
  • FORE Her
  • More
    • Know the Rules
    • Handicap Hints
    • SCGA Junior
    • Where Are They Now?
    • News
    • Public Affairs
  • scga.org
Sign in / Join

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account
Lost your password?

Lost Password

Back to login

logo

FORE Magazine

  • Current Issue
  • Profiles
  • Sustainability
  • Travel
  • 19th Hole
  • Classic Course
  • FORE Her
  • More
    • Know the Rules
    • Handicap Hints
    • SCGA Junior
    • Where Are They Now?
    • News
    • Public Affairs
  • scga.org
EquipmentSpring 2021
Home›Equipment›Vanity Fare: Personalized Wedges Gaining In Popularity

Vanity Fare: Personalized Wedges Gaining In Popularity

By Scott Kramer
April 26, 2021
1576
0
Share:

ANTHONY TARANTO is busy these days. Callaway’s master wedge artist spends hours in the company’s Carlsbad headquarters stamping and painting wedges by hand for Tour pros and VIPs, creating roughly 100 masterpieces each week. Simultaneously, other company artists in Mexico also hand-paint Callaway’s customs wedges, like Michelle Wie’s elaborate “Lord of the Rings” themed wedge set.

It’s become a huge business, and it’s helping spur interest in wedges.

Demand for vanity clubs — particularly wedges — is on a sharp rise among pros and amateurs alike. Experts believe the popularity is soaring because golfers can get a piece of unique equipment that no one else has, a reflection of that person’s style and character.

Hand-stamping has been a tradition since 2005 at Titleist, where Aaron Dill creates the wedge artwork. Early on, “We were just stamping initials for our Tour staffers to reflect what grind it was,” recalls the director of wedge promotions. “But Tour pros wanted to showcase who they were outside of golf.”

Rickie Fowler was one of the first, putting Oklahoma State colors and song lyrics on them. It gained traction from there. Dill says that pros want to tell a story of who they are, something unique to what they’re doing in life, with initials, important dates and children’s names. One player even had the latitude and longitude of important events in his life—such as where his kids were born or where he got married—etched in.

WE WERE JUST STAMPING INITIALS FOR OUR TOUR STAFFERS TO REFLECT WHAT GRIND IT WAS, BUT TOUR PROS WANTED TO SHOWCASE WHO THEY WERE OUTSIDE OF GOLF.” —Aaron Dill, wedge artist at Titleist

At TaylorMade, wedge personalization has been “picking up as we’ve offered more of it the past two or three years,” says John Gonsalves, vice president of direct to consumer. “There’s been more online adoption and people playing around with the interactive personalized options feature on our website.”

Interestingly, while TaylorMade’s wedges are personalized by laser, they deliberately don’t look that way. “Consumers want a handmade look, so we make the laser etchings imperfect, as as though they’d been done by hand,” says Gonsalves. Marquee tour pros, such as Dustin Johnson, do get the handmade treatment, however.

It’s easy to add a personalized wedge to your own bag. Callaway, Titleist, TaylorMade and Cleveland Golf all offer personalization of select wedge models on their respective websites. As you click to select the finish, accent colors, text, text style and logos on the wedge head, you’ll see the virtual wedge’s aesthetics updating in real-time. The Lord of the Rings may not be your style, but … Yoda anyone?

 

Previous Article

Coming Attractions: Prepping For The 2023 Open ...

Next Article

Breaking Bad: A Lifelong Hack Breaks Par ...

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
mm

Scott Kramer

Veteran golf writer Scott Kramer has covered the golf equipment market full-time since 1990. His career has spanned senior editor positions at both Golf Pro Magazine and GOLF Magazine. He now works on a freelance basis for many consumer and trade publications, including the SCGA’s FORE magazine.

Related articles More from author

  • Equipment

    Innovative New Clubfaces

    January 7, 2019
    By Scott Kramer
  • Equipment

    A $1,200 Shaft? Really?

    February 12, 2018
    By Scott Kramer
  • Equipment

    I Tried It: ADIDAS Golf Powerband Boa Boost Shoes

    February 14, 2017
    By Scott Kramer
  • Travis Johnson
    Equipment

    A Stylish Balance: Meet Travis Johnson, and the next hot line in golf apparel

    January 1, 2014
    By Julia Pine
  • EquipmentWinter 2022

    Minimal Approach: MNML Golf’s Quest to Create the Modern Golf Bag

    January 24, 2022
    By Scott Kramer
  • Equipment

    A Sight For Poor Eyes

    May 8, 2019
    By Scott Kramer

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Recent Posts

  • At The TurnFall 2022Featured

    A Homebase for Generations: A Century of Character (and Characters!) at Meadowlark GC

  • Fall 2022FeaturedSustainability

    10,000 Years in the Making: The Journey at Pechanga Views History Through a Very Long Lens

  • Fall 2022FeaturedHandicap Hints

    Handicap Allowances

  • Fall 2022FeaturedProfiles

    Bradford Wilson Wants to Talk: SoCal Social Media Star Champions Golf and Therapy (and Not in That Order)

  • EquipmentFall 2022Featured

    Direct to Golf Consumer: How Social Media is Changing the Way We Buy Equipment

Fall 2022FeaturedHandicap Hints

Handicap Allowances

There is often anticipation in the air as the date for the next handicap competition at a club approaches. Participants want to know what handicap value will be used in ...
  • The Single Life: The Simple Pleasures of Being “That Guy”

    By John DeGomez
    October 25, 2022
  • Cut! Rulings Hollywood Got Wrong

    By Jeff Ninnemann
    October 25, 2022
  • From Crisis to Confidence: The Southern California Golf & Water Summit

    By Craig Kessler
    October 25, 2022
  • Direct to Golf Consumer: How Social Media is Changing the Way We Buy Equipment

    By Scott Kramer
    October 25, 2022
© 2016 FORE Magazine About Us | Contact Us | Advertise