Why do club companies do THIS?

Bucketsofjoy

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Sorry for the clickbaity title. #firestarter

Ok, so I recognize that club companies are free to do whatever they want to make money (within the law), and I certainly have no problem with them doing so. But sometimes they make some odd choices that I really don't understand.

For example: This Callaway GBB Epic Forged driver, this Taylormade Gloire Driver (which takes advantage of their Premium Athlete Design technology) or this Dick's Exclusive Taylormade RBZ Black Driver. *these are links to products I haven't seen discussed on THP, so if for some reason I'm unaware of they are NOT supposed to be on THP, I offer my sincere apologies and of course take this down.

It is significant, and perhaps enough, to point out that the markets are different between Japan and the US, but why would these products not even be acknowledged on the OEMs US websites? They are high end products put out by category leading OEMs, so why not make them available everywhere? If options are good, why are these being withheld?

What say you, THP? Why would a company do this? Which of those do you wish you had as an option when you were purchasing a driver? Do you have any more cool clubs like this to report?
 
Specs are different in Asia. Some Asian clubs would be illegal here in the US. They also command a MUCH higher price in the Asian markets.
 
Specs are different in Asia. Some Asian clubs would be illegal here in the US. They also command a MUCH higher price in the Asian markets.

Why would they be illegal?
 
Short answer is the USGA. Long answer is out there on the forums but things like the Epic Star have come to the US market. Sometimes there’s just not demand for things in a country, especially at that price point
 
I can honestly say that I didn't even know these three drivers existed.
 
There are many cars in other markets that aren't brought here either. Sometimes it's that they wouldn't fly by US regulations, but often it's that their isn't a thirst for those products in our markets.
 
Short answer is the USGA. Long answer is out there on the forums but things like the Epic Star have come to the US market. Sometimes there’s just not demand for things in a country, especially at that price point

I can say from a Callaway perspective, the conversations we had were that certain products will not sell here no matter what we think. We have to remember here on THP we are a small niche group and don’t necessarily represent the entire golf market oems consider when choosing to bring certain designs to the states or release them in other markets.

They do their homework and like anything else A ton of consideration is given before making a decision.
 
It costs money to get the club USGA certified.
It costs a lot of money to build an inventory and to market.
It costs distributors/retailers a lot of money to carry inventory...and if the clubs don't all move they eat a lot of that money.
 
Laziness? Don't want to cannibalize "premium" model sales? Possibly why NA Models like the RBZ Black re-paint and the driver-that-shall-not-be-named don't appear on their OEM websites. TM also isn't the only company with these product that apparently don't exist.

There are many cars in other markets that aren't brought here either. Sometimes it's that they wouldn't fly by US regulations, but often it's that their isn't a thirst for those products in our markets.

drives me nuts, there's a superior left-hand-drive model in Europe, but "we have no plans to bring it to North America"
 
These are 2 VASTLY different cases. The two tour spec clubs are Japanese models.

The RBZ Black is a DSG exclusive that basically provides the golf customers at DSG a "new" driver at a vastly lower price point than most "new" drivers today. Equivalent to the recent SLDR-C, whose thread was entertaining to say the least. Looks good and all, but doesn't mean it's up to par with QC nor performance (speaking from former professional experience). TM isn't the only company that does this, there was the Callaway N415 that was basically a debadged XHot. Just a way to get a new look at a lower price and clear inventory.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
 
USGA conformity is a side of this issue I hadn't considered, but it honestly makes me want to try those even more. Also I think there's a lot of merit in a company wanting to offer only a set number of drivers in the US market, but it makes for an ironic discussion. (Imagine the thread Cally/TM isn't releasing enough new driver models!) Also, with the RBZ Black being a Dick's exclusive, I wouldn't really put this in the same camp as driver-that-shall-not-be-named. I can't really think of a TM driver that it resembles enough to see where they're just making good use of spare parts.

Do any of you wish that you had those models made available to you when you went to buy a new driver?
 
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