They say necessity is the mother of invention. Golf it seems provides golfers with plenty of necessity to keep dreaming up, inventing and bringing new gizmos and gadgets to market all the time. Some are really good. They make us wonder (and sometimes get a little angry) why we didn't think of inventing that new golf gadget that seems to be selling like hotcakes.
One very good one that I saw at the PGA show this winter was an automatic ball return that fit into the cup on the putting green. It was battery powered and spring loaded. When a ball went into the hole and fell on it, it sprung up and flipped the ball out back to the player. It really worked like a charm. The second I saw it flipping the ball back to the player, I said, 'I gotta have one.' If there is one thing I practice a lot it is putting, as I religiously do my 3 foot 30 in a row putting drill just about every time I play. Often I just go to the club to practice putting. They were not available to buy at the show as I asked, but they were handed out to the players at the Bay Hill Classic. They were free for the Tour Players, but I never saw one using it there, or for that matter, any other tournament I have been at this year.
During a lesson last year I asked one of my regular students, after he hit some wedges, to move up to a 7 iron. He cleaned the wedge before putting it back in the bag. He said that he remembered how much I always preach about cleaning clubs after every shot to make sure the grooves are clean. I have a corny saying that, 'A clean club is a happy club and happy clubs hit the ball better.' The truth is, grooves don't work well if they are caked up with dirt and grass.
Well, this student reaches down on the side of his bag and grabs a little plastic bottle with a 3 inch brush on top. He squeezed some water on the face, scrubbed the face clean, then dried it with his towel. 'Works great,' he said, 'and keeps the clubs clean as a whistle.' 'I got an extra one for DJ's caddy,' he said as he opened the side pocket on his bag and pulled one out. 'I see the caddies on TV wipe the clubs clean with a towel after every shot. This will really make it easy for DJ's caddy.'
I said, 'Thanks much, but I'm sure and will bet the farm, that if I give this bottle club scrubber to Todd (DJ's caddy) he would never use it.' 'Why not,' he asked. I replied, 'Because it is just not part of caddy protocol and tradition. And I am sure if he hung that on DJ's bag and used it he would likely have all the other caddies looking at him wondering if he had lost his mind. The club scrubber is OK for anywhere but the PGA Tour and I am sure most other pros and top amateurs won't go near it also. It is just anti-tradition and in the top level of golf, it will take a lot of guts to start a new trend against tradition.' I took it and gave it to Todd. He looked at it and laughed and asked me if I was crazy.
Today I saw the mother of new inventions when I played with one of my regular students. He pulled his clubs out of the trunk and loaded it on the cart. He had a brand new bag that looked like some designer bag designed when the designer was on some bad drugs or hung over. What made my eyes bug out was it had the name of one of the major club, ball and equipment companies name on both sides.
This bag had more bulging pockets and zippers than a woman's pocket book. Then he reached down to what would normally be the big ball pocket on the lower outside of the bag and pulled it open. There was a removable cooler. He showed me the side pocket to put the putter in and then he showed me the Mack Daddy new feature of this bag that blew me away.
With a huge grin and a 'check this out,' he grabs the top of the bag and begins to spin it. And, as he spins it the clubs spin around also. So when you are standing behind the cart and a club you want is in the front of the bag, you just spin the top till it gets right in front of you.
How about that, a 'Lazy Susan' golf bag like you have in your kitchen cabinet or on the table where you spin it to get the condiment you want in front of you to grab it. I told him it was unique and will probably sell a million, but I don't think you will see any PGA Tour player on that company's staff using it on Tour. I just don't see his caddy spinning the top of the bag to get to the 7 iron. But then, maybe if they pay the pro enough money, the caddy will fall in love with his spin top bag quickly. A Lazy Susan spin top golf bag. What will they think of next?
Don't tell me!
The Surge!