I have a lot of respect for how Chip responded to this. Very classy response and well thought out. I appreciate that he took the time to say something and defend Xaufuffle (sp?).
Chip Brewer Responds to Failed Driver Test
zooropa
Well-known member
How do you figure? By not releasing this until the furore has cooled off, they've left Xander out there on his own like a deer in the headlights. From a company perspective, sure, but throwing him under the bus by not commenting until now is pretty ****** imo.
TheHeez
Well-known member
You don’t think that Xander and Mr. Brewer have been in close contact regarding this from day one? I’ve got to think that this was a crafted and coordinated response and Xander was very much a part of it.
zooropa
Well-known member
To take all the heat and be accused of cheating? No, I don't at all. Why do you call him Mr Brewer?
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- #55
zooropa
Well-known member
If you're a kid and it's an authority figure, absolutely. I'm not even sure what you call it otherwise.
TheHeez
Well-known member
Are there people that actually think Xander was cheating, had anything to do with his driver being hot or that this was part of some conspiracy to break the rules?
I call him Mr. Brewer because I’ve had the opportunity to meet him, hold him in high regard and extend a term of respect I feel he deserves.
I’d imagine that most see this as a Callaway issue, not a Xander issue so waiting was right. I can’t imagine that XS was ever truly out there on his own as you say. Nor did I see the backlash about him other than his statements about only testing a few.
zooropa
Well-known member
Given there wasn't a peep out of callaway until now and he was a callaway player, how was he not on his own? He was pissed (rightly so) that it came out it was him, rather than "a player with a non-conforming callaway driver". Still, he tried to throw pxg and tm in the long drop, too. I guess it is just another example of the pro-callaway bias here (by some, not all)
TheHeez
Well-known member
I don’t deny that there are Callaway fans here, they do a lot for THP. But to call it bias is folly. I think more than anything we took the player at his word when he said he doesn’t sit around testing his clubs and instead focuses his time on preparing for a major. Especially when the margin of test failure was so close to the line. The only person to call Xander a “cheater” was a friend and fellow pro just busting his chops.
To imply that Xander got hung out to dry is simply conjecture. It’s silly to think that the bosses at Callaway were hanging back and letting Xander take grenades without there being a discussion and plan of action (& perhaps inaction). What was Callaway going to say that wouldn’t appear reactionary? Xander provided enough of that message previously. Mr. Brewer provided the measured response we see above and by most accounts, it’s a good one.
The statements I saw from Xander seemed to indicate he was upset by his name being leaked, but not everyone who’s driver failed testing. The fact that his driver didn’t pass seemed to be a non-issue for him. The faulty equipment was pulled, there wasn’t any cheating since all of this happened before the event started, and the faulty equipment was replaced with conforming equipment immediately.
Xander’s issue was with the testing process, and the lack of confidentiality around the testing. That has nothing to do with callaway. Callaway has no say in what the governing bodies do or don’t do, which is reflected in Mr Brewer’s statement.
- Staff
- #63
The fact that it’s something that can be limited to being just used as a kid to some authority figure is definitely a sign of the times.
I use Mr., Mrs, and Ms. all the time, even with my students, to which I am the authority figure. It’s a sign of respect.
Actually one can make that statement, because the defect happened. It's not a criticism of Callaway or those involved in this process. Rather, it's a reality that the failure occurred and was correctly detected by the system in place to test it.
It's also the lack of continuity in the testing process. It's a random test of 30 drivers out of a field of 140.
Those guys are snagging up the hottest heads made from their chosen OEM, having one go over the limit is going to happen.
I appreciate Chip's response but I don't think it was necessary.
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Chip Brewer Responds to Failed Driver Test
Was listening to PGA tour radio on my drive to Edmonton & can’t remember who they had on talking about this issue & the tolerance of the equipment used to test. They said the tolerance of the testing equipment used was 6 points either way so it had a 50/50 chance of failing being that close to the limit. It also didn’t sound like they was a huge difference between a head that was at 245 vs one at the absolute limit so I can’t imagine Xander would risk his reputation for a yard or so.
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Was listening to PGA tour radio on my drive to Edmonton & can’t remember who they had on talking about this issue & the tolerance of the equipment used to test. They said the tolerance of the testing equipment used was 6 points either way so it had a 50/50 chance of failing being that close to the limit. It also didn’t sound like they was a huge difference between a head that was at 245 vs one at the absolute limit so I can’t imagine Xander would risk his reputation for a yard or so.
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Very professional response.
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I agree with your position... the testing should be limited to those involved, but I honestly feel like all failed tests should be made public.
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I also use it all the time. Age doesn’t matter. It’s more about respect for a person or position.
knowing nothing beyond a failed test to me is not enough to discredit an entire manufacturing process, be it callaway or anyone else. we know so little, yet are ready to conclude so much. there's a great thread about golf balls if you're interested.
Mainly to Xander’s name release or leak.
I truly believe that the major OEMs know the limit for each club and while they get close, they would never intentionally push a club past the legal limit.
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Is 240-245 higher or lower than 239
Right. But, it's within the extended limit. 240-245 passes based on the rules.
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That's exactly my point though. We can't discredit the entire process -- just understand that part of the entire process didn't work. There's no way to overlook the fact that, in this case, a defect occurred. It's OK to admit that, which is exactly what Chip Brewer did.
Let's not mince words here: the process failed in this instance. Whether it be upstream during the manufacturing of the club (unlikely) or downstream when the build of the driver was such that falling outside of spec was possible (most likely). Regardless of whether or not we agree on the scope of what happened, the end of the story is still the same: the club failed the test.