Every time I take it out of my bag for some new modern wedge, I go back to it a few weeks later. I demand a re-count!, He went on to say, and as owner of MyGolfSpy you should feel ashamed since you were given a set as a gift 15 years ago and I remember you putting me in play for a few rounds, how could you do this to me?, Slotline had a hit on their hands with their Slotline Inertial puttersthey sold over 2 Million of those flatsticks. Executives were my first real set of golf clubs. Currently play AP2s coming out of the bag for a few rounds and if the linear dynamics keep performing like they did in Vegas the AP2s will be taking a long rest. worst time to visit costa rica; apartments for rent in fort pierce with utilities included; sunshine plaza opening hours sunday; photosynthesis and cellular respiration kahoot The set I found is 2-9, but the 5 iron is gone. He also was one of the best designers in the golf biz. I gave the set to my nephew, and he loves them. All Irons for men were 37. They are also said to be legendary Canadian player Moe Normans favorite clubs of all time. You can post now and register later. In 1984, Questor sold off Spalding/Evenflo to a Venezuelan group headed by Gustavo and Ricardo Cisneros. I think a list of the craziest irons made should definitely include the Jerry Barber Golden Touch irons made over 40 years ago. Yes it has some smoother lines compared to some of the other clubs on the listbut you put that PowerBow as Nike says on any of those other irons and it is a dead ringer for this list of crazies. It had a good locking mechanism, and was made for poorer people who could not afford a whole set. Ugly or unconventional, I felt a more confident with them and Stan Thompson fairway woods. If you are a beginner and are looking for a . Spalding Executive Left Handed Golf Clubs There are several different types of left-handed golf club sets, so which one is the best for you? 1 Iron Spalding Executive x EZ Oversize. vicunas. Man, some of my favorites on this list. "publisher": { 2023 Genesis Invitational - Monday #3. He traded a set of classic Burke PunchIrons to get the Lynx. The 1968 arrival of the Executive MV2 Bird Over Ball clubs are among some of Spalding's most easily recognizable clubs. You had to turn those over to see the ugly, but the cone in the bottom was down right wacky! This putter is a remake of the model Bobby Jones used in the 1930s and features a head made from nickel plating over copper plating over forged carbon steel. TaylorMade, by comparison, has been sold twice in the past four years. Sponsored by: GolfCircuit.com, Maxfli Tour, Tour X and Tour S Golf Balls, Penfold Ace Golf Balls: Whats Old Is New Again, Topgolf Callaway 2022 Financials: $4 Billion? I have a 3-15 wood set that are fun to play with. "name": "Swing Yard", Used to play traditional blades with the odd shank. * Note: These irons were designed by Duke Duclos. How about the Spalding Exec SE. Oversized high center of gravity heads and huge amounts of offset are what killed long irons IMO. Do You have any idea? Men's Right Handed. This is the story of Spaldings Final Countdown. I wonder how much influence he had on those? Some of the most popular Spalding Club models were: At one time, Greg Norman used the Spalding Tour Edition irons, now a collectors item, on Tour. I was the Sales Manager of Stan Thompson golf company for several years and worked very close with Stan. These were said to be Moe Normans favorite clubs and are rated by the MyGolfSpy Forums resident vintage club expert Big Stu as the third greatest pure forged blade of all time. Spalding, like its old school brethren Wilson and MacGregor, simply wasnt sexy to a new generation of golfers. Starting in the early 1900s, Spalding started making golf balls before manufacturing clubs. The 1999 Hogan Apex, forged by Endo Manufacturing in Japan, remains a sought-after collectible, and a very playable blade, to this day. One of the most famous Spalding clubs was the Cran Cleek (club with a narrow face and little loft) for poor fairway lies and even putts. These irons actually performed quite well and had many copy cats of it down the road to prove itincluding another iron that made the list at #12 Slotline Lowpro iron and the Titleist Super Slim irons. The 500s have less offset than the 440s. Men's Right Handed. Would you make an iron set out of stone? Thank you for your research efforts. I played Spaulding Black Dots back in late 60s. To maintain the limit of 14 clubs in the bag, I change off now and then. "https://www.instagram.com/_swingyard_/", So we thought if it was as crazy looking as the original it had to be on the list but a little further down. While theyre old-school, Spalding clubs are made to high standards and are built to last, making them a great option if youre looking for a cheap and cheerful set of clubs. What about Goldwin?? NOW AVAILABLE: GolfWRX G/Fore Hats and Holderness & Bourne Polos! Make Request. The companys lead-faced putters also provided better touch for players. Played dots a bit but later played a lot of Top Flites because I was a teenager, and the balls did not cut (this was back in the days of balata balls that cut if you looked at them hard). Weird thing was I could hit the XL-4 long irons better and the Executives better from 7-PW. They definitely arent the prettiest of clubs but I did enjoy playing them. And if you did not have the exact lie to match your swing could cause issues with the toe or heel diving down at impact. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google, (your email address will not be published), Acushnet 2022 Financials: $2.27 Billion and Counting, Penfold Ace Golf Balls: Whats Old Is New Again, Four Testers Wanted Inesis Spikeless Shoe. My Nike Slingshots is the best set I have ever used. On sole: club# + SPALDING. They preceded hybrid irons by 20 years or so. Spalding, along with Wright and Ditson, was importing golf clubs from Scotland. I completed the set off of eBay for around $100. But, you raised an interesting question: If Top-Flite Elite Professional irons with the Bird on Ball logoare rated by the MyGolfSpy Forums resident vintage club expert Big Stu as the third greatest pure forged blade of all time. Then what irons are #1 and #2 best ever forged blades? Instead, well hit the highlights. That was a great history lesson!!!!! is fantastic, but the club is as stiff as an old water pipe and is accordingly harsh. Love it or hate it the Nike Slingshot irons made the list. Your previous content has been restored. (Everything To Know). Our mission is #ConsumerFirst. You have any pics of the Samurai irons Neilwould love to see them. KKR wanted Spalding to make money the KKR way. Why are Spalding golf balls called Top Flite? Yes, it did. Money put a few of these clubs on touralthough that does not mean they were worth a penny. I owned two sets of Unique ironsstarting in 1976. And Jim Furyk won the 2003 U.S. Open with the new Strata Ace, which featured playing card suits (a la Penfold) instead of numbers. What a lovely trip down memory lane, nostalgia is a wonderful thing. Pretty sure that was the first major won for a solid core ball. They also specialized in unique clubs like the Cran Creek. Kind of reminds one of the Hogan radial but not near as wide on the soul. These irons which I dont know who actually designed were called the Ray Cook Titanic irons and were made back when Scotty Cameron was a putter designer for the company. There are a couple different models of this iron. "description": "List of all the Spalding Irons by the year each set was released", It was a low loft club used for poor lies and putting. This new construction was a major technological advancement in golf balls. "https://www.pinterest.com/Swingyard/blog/" The Roaring 20s gave us Babe Ruth, Knute Rockne, Jack Dempsey, and Red Grange. Various . Not to belittle them because KKR is incredibly successful, but they didnt know the golf business the way we did, says White. The greatest golfer at the time plays Spalding? Sold them to a guy 30 years younger who also loved them. Balata covers. The VAS irons have finally been dethroned from their previous top spot as Worst Iron Ever Made! Although from a phone-in interview Mr. VAS told us, I feel robbed. I played a set of Mags for years until I got to where I could not swing fast enough to bend the stiff shafts. Spalding sold off its majority ownership in Evenflo in August of 1998. I didnt know until I read this article that evidently FILA was the designer of the original face forward iron design; speaking of which, I wouldve thought the F2 Face Forward Irons wouldve made the list (http://www.intheholegolf.com/store/f2is.html). It is more of a you gotta be kidding me), an Integra 650 cc driver (you have to dig a ditch before you swing), etc. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google, (your email address will not be published), CONTEST Adams Pro Black Giveaway! Wish the 5 iron would have been there. Whats more, KKR continued adding to its golf empire, buying Etonic in 1996 and Ben Hogan a year later. Bought a used set of 3-SW with a sticker decal some 35 years ago and added a 2-iron with stamped lettering later on a trip to Chicago. Its an interesting question to ask about a company that was a factor for over 125 years. I love it but was told it is no a legal putter. MyGolfSpy, Inc. All Rights Reserved. I have one of those! Spalding EXECUTIVE Iron Set. 1983 As a former professional player, Spalding recognized the need of enlisting the assistance of experts to promote both the game and his merchandise. His stuff was marvelous and all original. I may be way off they had a a plain face -but the back was a series of round holes -like a honey comb design does any one remember these what were they called and who made themmy friend died so I cant ask himanyway thanks. Overall, Spalding clubs arent worth a great deal of money today, but theyre a good option if youre hoping to pick up an affordable set of clubs to get started with. Was a fan of the TopFlite XL. Spalding also produced the first U.S.-made golf shoes, the first clubs to use numbers instead of names, and the first completely matching set of woods and irons (the Kro-Flite). Yet again, the same fate as MacGregor had. when were spalding executive golf clubs madeoregon dpsst training calendar. CA License # A-588676-HAZ / DIR Contractor Registration #1000009744 lol! Albert Spalding died in 1915, but his company continued to flourish. I would hand stamp #7 on all irons. In an effort to keep golf a game of skill, the USGA implemented the 14 club rule that we see today. You can buy a set in good condition on eBay for around $100. Long irons with shallow faces, little offset and perhaps slightly softer shafts can be quite playable. The Strata, however, proved to be a gold mine for Spalding. Great collection I remember many of them in the past 30 years often thought of buying some of them, but luckily, I didnt, Ive purchased dozens of iron sets in the last few years (Big Bertha,FTI, Taylor Made, Cobra, Nike V series) NOne of these work as well as my Ping Zings, Hey, what about Shakespeare and fiberglass. In that year, the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) took shape, and many of the fledgling tour's stars already had endorsement deals with Spalding. I got balls, well ProV1's anyway. ***GIVEAWAY*** Cleveland CBX ZipCore Wedge! 1 Iron (18) Spalding EXECUTIVE XE. The Executives were the bomb back in the day. In the early days, golf clubs were hand-forged using a hammer and anvil. I seem to remember them being pretty wacky. I will let the then Chariman of FILA Golf tell you a little bit about these 1994 released set of ironsand take you back in time like you were there for the original launch: Never before have so many game improvement features been built into one club. Every iron ever made is ugly as hell when you hit it off the hosel. Anyone ever hear of anything like that? Nice article John! My woods are Taylormade Burners 1 & 3, and I have two Mizuno hybrids. my 5w distance matches my friends new drivers in distance off tee,,they are amazed. Great research John with some very interesting history facts about the company and its equipment. GolfWRX_Official Laugh if you must, but the design works. When he would get ready to play, he would hold the club so that the sole was visible to everyone. It was just crazy how many golf balls we would sell through Wal-Mart in 18-ball pack, adds White Wed get orders on the fax machine for 50,000 18-ball packs, and theyd want them in two weeks.. Almost , http://www.intheholegolf.com/store/f2is.html. They are awesome clubs, very well-weighted, with a great center of gravity for high loft shots. The early Top-Flites were juast the opposite; you couldnt cut one of them with an axe. I just found a set of Slingers at the thrift store for $10. Like its sporting goods brother-in-arms MacGregor, Spalding ownership changed hands in 1958. I think this is the web site for me . Clear editor. The company was already selling golf balls when, in 1905, it became the first in America to offer its own brand of golf clubs. "url": "https://swingyard.com/wp-content/uploads/Spalding-Irons-by-Year.jpg" They introduced the Browning 500 Series to counter that effect.But, they waited too long and by that timethe party was over! The 1968 arrival of the Executive MV2 Bird Over Ball clubs are among some of Spaldings most easily recognizable clubs. "author": "Ned Howard", These articles are all outstanding. Pretty or not (thats the clubs), I have played Fila Latitude irons since they came out. The Spaulding Executive was just too far ahead of its timegreat club! No copy for them. They were good at it too, in one year selling off companies for more than $7 billion they had bought for only $1 billion. It was fun to have and I actually hit the thing really really well. MyGolfSpy, Inc. All Rights Reserved. I have a set of both the 440s and the 500s, and there is no difference in face depth. Jim passed away recentlyhe was a great innovator do you remember the Basakwerd Putter There was a time that Spalding golf clubs were among the best in the business. Why is that I have the Tiger Shark 7 iron and the Spalding Exec XE 5 iron in my golf collection??? It was a close race but in the end we felt like it was finally time for the super-rare and hard to find Lil David Slingers get the recognition they were due. As a golfer of a certain age, these history articles are fascinating! John, Anybody know anything? By 2002, players such as Hal Sutton, Bernhard Langer, and Luke Donald were playing the Hogan Apex ball. The Early Years of Spalding Golf Starting in 1900, Spalding opened club-making factories in London and in Fife, Scotland, producing forged iron heads for Spalding clubs sold both in the UK and U.S. single, replacement or add-on golf irons and wedges for Spalding Executive MV2 bird over ball Irons. He could not believe the smoothness of the Driver. jazzbone, September 4, 2006 in Equipment. Alternatively, you can look on a discount site like Rock Bottom Golf. The strangest set I play with at the moment is a matching set of 3 through 15 fairway woods made by Protactic Golf in Chicago (part of the remains of Northwestern Golf, I think). { Driver to 15 wood. You might remember the popular Stan Thompson woods with the unique sole design. Those were real whacky.. bent shafts and roughly milled heads. When youre in the market for Spalding clubs, bear in mind that they were branded as Top-Flite clubs for a while, so be sure to broaden your search to include Top-Flite models. Ive owned a set of VAS, Zings, Slingshots and the Spaulding Execs (for vintage golf days). I would appreciate any help you could offer! Quite honestly, we werent ready for that.. Perhaps they were a little ahead of their time (3-PW). Swing Yard is a participant in the Amazon.com Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.ca, amazon.co.uk and any other websites that may be affiliated with Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. I asked him about it and he said he had shown it to Spaulding, Wilson and MacGregor and their response was It will never sell!!!! Does Spalding make golf balls? Return Policy > WORLDWIDE SHIPPING. Fugly yes looks kinda like a pancake spatula at address but effective. Jeff Sheets had been Director of R&D for Top-Flite since 1995, and his first club for Hogan became a legend. With a few months of work and some radical design modifications it was turned into the first modern Metalwood. One of my favorite balls back in the late 80s was the Top-Flite Plus. i was pretty impressed with the club. We had small layoffs on an ongoing basis, and people kept looking over their shoulder. Peter lived in Ridgefield,Ct. PING was still PING, and Tiger was becoming Tiger. We had hybrids back in the 80s. What a mess that design was! the only problem I have had{although the have to be at least 30+ years old},is graphite cracks. I play with several timesa year. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. The Ginty was the first modern Utility club. Spalding, seemingly, was on top of the world. Over two million Bobby Jones sets were sold in America. Model Summary Color chart indicates best . Copyright 2023. Thanks for the history lesson and walk down memory lane. In the meantime, this should hold you over, https://mygolfspy.com/why-does-the-ben-hogan-equipment-company-still-matter/. When I eventually found a set of Magnums with regular shafts, I bought them but had been addicted to the graphite. Got the 3 PW for 3.99 a club, bought the 5- PW first, played two rounds and went back and bought the 3 & 4. Love to see them. Design the future of bad golf! Thanks. They play as well as any other set Spalding sponsored Vardons 1900 tour of America, culminating in Vardon winning the U.S. Open in Chicago. Great article takes me back to nostalgia. MacGregors ownership carousel started in 1978 when it was sold to lumber conglomerate Wickes. By this time, Spalding was making everything from barbells, dumbells, punching bags, and rowing machines to fencing blades, whistles, shot puts, javelins, and golf clubs. " [We] decided that . What about Giant Irons, I remember seeing those on an infomercial a few times. But, they were NOS (New Old Stock) and with Ohio State grips and headcovers; so a diehard Buckeye fan. The Cobra set left handed golf club set is made of premium products. Some scumbag broke into my vehicle and stole the set about 25 years ago. Is it worth getting a new set of clubs, or should I focus on getting spikes and a gloves, ( I currently golf in thing sandles). In addition to being a prolific golf club designer and inventor of innumerable gadgets and gizmos, I have led a fascinating life, as you can see by a brief look at a summary of my biography.. Read on to learn more about the history of Spalding clubs and what you can expect from various models. lol..!! I know that this is a very late reply but I actually knew the designer of these irons and spent time speaking with him. FS - Fiberbuilt Flight Deck / GripMaster Roo pulls, New Vokey SM8 52 & 56 wedge set / New Titleist Caps (for bigger heads) / New Cobra RadSpeed 10.5* Driver, Peacoat, with premium, upgraded shaft, TSR3 ub-6x, cobra radspeed, TEE pro 721 driver and 3w, Ventus Black TR Folds of Honor 6x w/ TM Adapter, Ventus Red TR 6x w/ TM Adapter, Adidas Tour 360 22 Size 13, MyStealth2 Driver Headcover. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. I think Browning was leaving the golf business then and they were discounted last set in the store. Until the USGA banned deep-grooved irons, Spalding's Stop 'Em and Dedstop clubs brought a smile to countless players' faces.