I proposed something a while back about and then read something recently that got me thinking about it again. I have long wanted a set of
vintage style clubs (persimmon woods and blade irons) and suggested a
Master tier set similar to the very reasonable WGT Pro set a while back.
Then I was reading an old article where Johnny Miller was
discussing iron play and how back in his playing days he wasn't just
killing the ball and only hit his 9 iron 125 yards. 6 iron 160, and 4
iron 185. I started playing around from those numbers as a base and
then hit on the big idea that I didn't have previously.
The idea is rather simple - offer more than just a full set of clubs
like the Pro Set but give options on how the set is configured to
replicate different periods in the game. For example, players like Jack
Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer in their heyday used a driver, 3 wood, and 1
iron - sand wedge or maybe swapped a third fairway wood in for a long
iron - but the idea of the 3rd wedge wasn't brought in until Tom Kite
started carrying one in the 80s. By offering more than just 13 clubs
you allow the idea of era based competitions and competitions with equal
equipment with a higher level of precision equipment than the starter
clubs.
For example, picture the clubs below with 3-3.5 precision, 1.5
forgiveness, and 2-2.5 spin with a trajectory similar to the level 59
g20s and a meter between 3 and 3.5 throughout the set.
Driver 265 yds
3 wood 235 yds
4 wood 218 yds
1 iron 222 yds
2 iron 210 yds
3 iron 197 yds
4 iron 185 yds (JM yardage here)
5 iron 172 yds
6 iron 160 yds (JM yardage here)
7 iron 148 yds
8 iron 137 yds
9 iron 125 yds (JM yardage here)
Pitching wedge 105 yds
Sand Wedge 85 yds
Lob Wedge 60 yds
and could also add in a vintage putter (8802 or Bullseye lookalike)
with 3 precision, 1.5 forgiveness and 3 balance and a 4.5 meter with
increments that are a bit off like 10, 40, 80, 160, 300.
To keep the tournament field level, Vintage tourneys could require
the use of a WGT ball. Players who wanted to slow the meter using GI3
series balls while those who wanted more performance could use the SD
balls.
Now the sales spin, no licensing fees needed since all WGT equipment
= profit margins of 100 %. Also bear in mind that a large percentage
of WGT members are old enough to remember those clubs and a little bit
of nostalgia goes a long way - especially aimed at those with disposable
income. A few hours of programming and some photo editing and you
charge say 2000 - 3000 credits for the full set limited to Master tier
or higher - yardages would work great for those tees I think - and you
get a lot of options.