Titleist has the biggest footprint on the PGA Tour. Whether you’re talking, drivers, wedges, putters, or balls, Titleist has more than it’s fair share of pros bagging their gear. With all the tour success, it’s no wonder that Titleist is billed as the pro’s club, or at the very least, the manufacturer of choice for the game’s better players (handicap of 5 or below). I’d be hard pressed to argue that notion, although over the last couple of years, Titleist has made more of an attempt to build clubs suitable for the-not-quite-elite crowd.

15+ handicappers, don’t get too excited. Titleist still isn’t making anything with you in mind (although you may very well find a Titleist stick that fits your game). The company has, however; extended their lineup to include products geared towards better golfers who haven’t quite achieved elite status (6-12 handicappers give or take a stroke or two). Make no mistake though, Titleist clubs still overwhelmingly favor workability, control, and creativity over forgiveness.

Regardless of whether or not you’re ready to step up to a Titleist, apart from the equipment itself, there’s a lot to like about the Massachusetts-based manufacturer. Last year saw the introduction of both the Titleist Tour Blog, a site that not only keeps Titleist fans up to date on what the tour pros and equipment guru’s are working on, but it also provides a forum where fans can post questions, and actually get responses from guys like Bob Vokey. It’s free for everyone, regardless of whether or not you own Titleist gear, and well worth the occasional read.

Last year Titleist’s fitness site (Titleist Performance Institute) really took off as well. The 100% free site, provides a ridiculous amount of information on golf fitness including workout/fitness plans, and tips from professional golf trainers. In addition to the TPI site, there is also a weekly TPI fitness show on the Golf Channel.

The Tour Blog and TPI are both things that have real value not just to the elite golfer, but the they everyday guy just trying to improve his game, and they’re both free for everyone. As of right now, Titleist is the only major company doing anything on the level of their Tour Blog, and TPI. It’s awesome stuff.

What I also love about Titleist is their pricing structure. The base price of their clubs is in line with every other manufacturer in it’s class, however; if you decide you want a shaft upgrade, Titleist won’t charge you an arm and a leg. Their upgrade prices are far and away, no comparison, not even close, the best in the industry.

While 2008 introductions from Titleist are thus far sparse, those in the market for a new irons set will likely find something to get excited about.

Drivers

The triangular 907D1 and conventionally shaped 907D2 remain the current models. The 907D1 is Titleist answer to the demand for more forgiveness. It’s not as forgiving as most drivers occupying the same market segment, but if you want a forgiving Titleist, it’s the club you should be looking at.

The 907D2 is a favorite among low-handicap players. It’s reportedly more forgiving than past Titleist drivers, but you won’t have to sacrifice an iota of workability to gain that forgiveness.

I looked at both last year, and loved the feel of the D2 (although I couldn’t hit it straight enough to really give it a second thought). The shape of the D1, and relative lack of forgiveness compared to other brands, was enough for me to look elsewhere.

As of this writing, Titleist hasn’t announced an interchangeable head design. Give it time. Whether or not it’s 2008, or early 2009, I can’t imagine we won’t see a mix and match system from the Titleist team.

Fairway Woods

Last year saw the introduction of the 906 series fairway wood. The F2 model was released early in the Spring, while the more forgiving F4 hit stores later in the season. Both models have Titleist’s unsurpassed feel. Better golfers will probably want to stop their search right here.

If you’re looking for a higher-MOI, more forgiving golf club, you may want to look elsewhere, however; guys with handicaps around 15 shouldn’t rule out the 906F4 completely. While it will never be mistaken for a game improvement club, it’s worth a look for players whose problems don’t extend to the fairway.

Hybrids

Titleist hasn’t announced any new hybrids either. Why should they. The 585H is the perfect players hybrid. The 585H is one of the few hybrids on the market without any offset, which means the club sets up completely neutral. You can find a more forgiving hybrid. You can find plenty that make it a little easier to get ball up in the air. You can find hybrids with fancy head designs, and weight systems. What you can’t find is a hybrid that feels as good the 585H.

I play to about an 18 handicap. I could certainly use a little more forgiveness, but after trying every major hybrid on the market last year, I couldn’t find anything I liked as much as the 585H. In general I recommend all golfers play clubs that are one step above their ability level (leave yourself some room to grow), but even for guys with handicaps that hover around 20, I think the 585H deserves a serious look. Perhaps it’s shortsighted on my part, but if were going club shopping tomorrow, there isn’t another hybrid I’d put in my bag.

Irons

With regard to irons, Titleist mostly sat last year out. This year, they’re back with an absolute vengeance, having announced 4 new irons for 2008. The guys over at the unofficial Titleist mouthpiece, The Sand Trap, have had the scoop for a couple of weeks now. While I do find them to be a bit Titleist-biased (and probably with good reason - you shouldn’t bite the hand the feeds), they do an outstanding job covering new products (particularly Titleist) in great detail. You can delve into the full details on their site as you see fit, but here’s the quick rundown.

The AP1 and AP2 are dual-cavity backed irons designed for aspiring players. The AP1 is a cast club which should play as the most forgiving iron in the Titleist lineup. One of the more interesting features of all the new irons is that the hosel length gets shorter as the club gets longer. This allows for more discretionary weight to be placed in the clubhead itself, which as we all know by know, promotes forgiveness, and helps to get the golf ball airborne. The AP1 comes standard with TrueTemper Dynamic Gold shafts. If you prefer a graphite shaft, the exclusive-to-Titleist Aldila VS Proto-T 75 is also available. It’s almost enough to get me thinking about graphite.

The AP2, could still be called a game-improvement iron, however; I use that term loosely. The AP2 are intended for high, single-digit handicappers (a bit of an oxymoron I think). Like they AP1 they feature the dual-hosel length design. Unlike the high-launching, cast AP1, the AP2s feature a forged head that produces a medium launch. The AP2 comes stock with Project X shafts.

Both the AP1 and AP2 boast the “Titleist Feel”, which I admittedly love, although based on experience with past Titleist irons, that feel is not nearly as pronounced as it is in their woods.

You can throw the new Titleist Z series in with the Mizuno MP-37s as some of the best looking irons I’ve seen to date. Just looking at these clubs makes me shameful about the state of my game. Getting past my personal woes, you’ll see that the Z series offer a lot more than sexy design.

The ZB irons (designed for really good players) blends cavity back design (2-4 irons), with partial cavity (5-7 irons) with, pure muscle back (8-pw). You wont find any hybrids in this set. The Z-back design helps to reposition the center of gravity by distributing weight evenly from heel to toe. Like the AP series the ZBs feature a dual-hosel design, making it easier to launch the ball off the longer irons. Unlike the AP series, there isn’t much in the way of forgiveness built into the ZB. Why should there be? With it’s narrow sole, and comparatively thin topline, the ZB isn’t intended for those of us who struggle to keep the ball out of the fluffy stuff.

The ZB not sexy enough for you? For scratch golfers, or guys within 3 or 4 strokes of scratch, Titleist has announced the ultimate players iron, the ZM. Quite frankly, I think simply looking at the ZM blades just cost me 3 strokes. All of the features demanded by the world’s best players are built into the ZM blade, which means all of the things I need, aren’t.

If the narrow sole of the ZB isn’t narrow enough, the ZM has got you covered. Look, there really isn’t much to say about the ZM, other than it’s about the most beautiful golf club I’ve ever seen in my life (that sentence just cost me two more strokes). The bottom line, however; if you don’t already have a tour card, or don’t stand a serious chance of getting through Q School, you’ll probably want to admire the ZM from a distance. For the top .5% of golfers in the world, this club makes a lot of sense. For the other 99.5% of us, the lot of us we’ll be better served by forgetting we ever heard of the Titleist ZM.

Wedges

I’m a little bit surprised we haven’t heard any new wedge announcements from the Vokey design studio. For guys looking for extreme spin, the Vokey Spin Milled wedge is still a current model. For those looking for more traditional results, the 200 series is also current. As of right now, there is no C-Grind sole option, nor is there a 64° option from Titleist/Vokey.

With nothing new, I’m left only to speculate about what we might see in the next 12 months. More so than any other company, Titleist innovation, and in turn, new products are the result of tour feedback. Sometimes a custom tour creation makes it into the Titleist lineup, more often than not, it doesn’t.

That said, my guess is we’ll see a new series of wedges featuring a C-grind sole by fall, if not sooner. If you follow the Titleist Tour blog at all you no doubt have seen references to similar custom grinds being created for Tour Pros. Based on feedback from blog readers, and the fact that similar grinds are available from both Callaway and Mizuno, I’d expect it won’t take look before Vokey produces a C-Grind for the masses. I think the demand is definitely there. As for a 64° wedge. Dave Pelz’s personal beliefs (and my own curiosity) aside, contrary to the C-grind, I don’t think there is enough demand - yet, for a 64° wedge fro Titleist to become a reality. Although, if you gave me a 5 year window, I’d take the bet.

Putters

Once again it’s time for me to blaspheme about Scotty Cameron putters. In the interest of fairness and full disclosure, I’ve never owned a Scotty Cameron putter, and in fact I’ve never tried one for an extended period, that said, I’ve demoed a dozen or so over the years and have yet to find one that lives up to the hype. In every meaningful category of putter performance (roll, control, feel, even esthetics), I found multiple, that’s right, multiple putters I like better - and I’m a guy who actually advocates you think seriously about spending $300 on a putter.

If Titleist wants to send me one to try for a couple of months (sort of like one of those “we swapped your SUV for a Ford Escape” type of deals) I’d be happy to try it, because honestly, I’m starting to feel like a crazy person when I say I just don’t love the Scotty lineup.

New for 2008 is the Scotty Cameron Studio Select Line. The new style gets rid of the insert in the Newport Detour series, that somewhat remarkably, wasn’t universally loved by the Cult of Cameron. The Studio Select series features putters milled from solid 303 stainless steel.

The new series also features interchangeable weights which allow you to add mass without having to resort to other means (such as lead tape), that might take away from the looks of your Cameron.

As with most Scotty’s, the Studio Select can be customized to your liking; including your choice of one of six grips.

I’m sure this latest offering from Cameron will be as well received as everything else he’s made to date. That said, at $325, I’m going to suggest (much to the dismay of Cameron loyalists) that you can do better - in fact you can do better TWICE. If you feel like you absolutely have to spend $300 on a putter, please, please, I’m begging you, take a seriously look at the Bettinardi lineup from Mizuno, or even the Unitized putters from Nike. There are plenty of putters that perform as well, if not better than the Scotty Cameron series; don’t believe the hype.

Balls

Unless you’ve been buried in a bunker for the last 10 years or so, you know all about Titleist golf balls. The Pro V1 is the most popular ball in all of golf. It’s so popular in fact, that I have over 4 dozen of them, and I’ve never bought a single one. In like new condition, they litter the woods of any golf course near you. What that tells me is that plenty of golfers who really aren’t good enough to be playing a $40+ a dozen ball are doing it anyway. It’s great for Titleist as the money keeps pouring in. It’s great for me too, because it means I can play a $40+ per dozen ball without spending a dime.A step down from the Pro V1 series is the NXT Series. Annoying John Cleese commercials aside, at well under $30 a dozen, the NXT series fills the gap between balls that feel like stones, and dropping $40 of your hard earned money into the pond on 7.

New for 08 is the rejuvenated DT series. The DT Carry is optimized for distance - for those guys who hit the ball high and don’t rely on a lot of roll. Hey, I think that’s me. The DT roll is for guys with a lower ball flight, or rely more on roll to move their ball further up the fairway.

While it’s safe to assume that we’re still dealing with the distance vs. spin/feel battle that all manufacturers fight within their own ball lineups, this is the first ball I’ve seen that directly addresses the idea of roll vs. carry. My launch angle tends to be a bit high, which means I really almost exclusively on carry for distance. To see a relatively inexpensive ball on the market which directly plays to the characteristics of my ball flight is compelling. While I’ll stop short of saying I’m going to start playing the DT Carry tomorrow (and not just because my course will be covered with snow for another 2-3 months), I’ll very likely pick up a dozen to see if they work as advertised.

Bags

While it’s not the most beautiful looking bag I’ve ever seen, the Titleist S85 cart bag is among the most functional cart bags I’ve seen this year.

The S85 features 9 pockets, all of which are fully accessible while the bag is attached to a cart. Of those 9, two are fully-insulated beverage containers. The most interesting pocket to me is the magnetic, velor-lined accessories pocket. The most centrally located pocket (where I’d be most likely to keep the things I want quick access to) features a zipperless design that pops open with a simple tug. Also worth noting is the 14-way top, of which all 14 compartments feature full-length dividers.

The S85 loses some points for looks, but gets a A for functionality. While estheticss are important, this isn’t a beauty pageant either. While I might not show the S85 off to my friends, it’s the kind of no nonsense bag you can proudly bring home to your mother.

Final Thoughts

With the exception of the 4 new irons, 2008 is shaping up to be a quiet year for Titleist. Titleist fans shouldn’t worry too much about the calm. I suspect that before 2008 is over, there will be plenty more than irons to get excited about.

In case you’re wondering. Any Titleist dream bag will run you in the neighborhood of $2600.

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