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Genuine Question For THPers

SuperStroke
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If playing in a full fitting event I would have a fitting for that sponsors line exclusively. Having been fit for those clubs I would expect excellent performance across the board with their products. I would imagine I could resist new club fever for at least 6 months. That would allow me to jump into any threads on the clubs and answer questions while giving the clubs a full testing. I agree that there is no correct answer but I do feel that anyone playing in a full bag event owes it to their sponsor to play the clubs at least a few weeks to provide post event reviews, then change if they wish.
 
jlukes said:
Doesn't make much sense to me why people would bother investing so much time and money into an event to only turn around and drop off THP and/or sell the equipment immediately afterwards.
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It depends on the person, what motivates them and where they are in life. There are many people who see the physical gift of clubs as the greater reward. There are others who see the experience of the event itself as the greater reward.

For me, of course the idea of a custom fit full bag of clubs is a major "WOW!" point, you'd have to be pretty jaded for it not to be. But I am a person of some means and if I really really wanted a club I could get it/them without too much of a financial burden in most cases. Meaning the tradeoff I make in my budget to get the clubs would be for other wants, not needs.

So for me, it's the experience. The chance to play a course that will almost assuredly be better to much better than what I can play at home, combined with the chance to spend significant time with a group of people that the odds suggest I will form some kind of bond with that will last, THAT to me is the big prize.
 
This thought has actually been fresh in my mind the last couple of months considering I just received a full set from the #TheGrandaddy. I guess it comes down to the person and what they feel is best for their game. I struggle with not wanting to play some of the gear as I want to keep them more as a reminder ( driver shaft and stand bag) of the event. The rest of the bag I plan to play for the foreseeable future unless I feel they are a bad fit. For me personally it is a general interest in playing the gear but also my way of saying thank you for such an incredible gift.
 
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I feel the same way. I like to pay things like this forward.

lightningbolt44 said:
I have a viewpoint on this that I am sure is not shared by all but that is OK I understand theirs as well.

Personally if you get something from an event you need to give it a fair shake. I think many probably look at it like well I will sell this off or sell my old stuff off and be ahead of the game. I am not big on this . I get that equipment might not work for everyone but don't approach it trying to get ahead in the game. My approach is if I get something from and event I will try it out if it works out it will stay in the bag if it doesn't I am paying it forward to another thper not just selling to be ahead. By paying it forward it gives the opportunity for another opinion and to me that is the real value in a community setting such as this.

To expand on that as well. If I was ever lucky enough to get a full bag if it worked out I would he paying my old equipment forward (what I didn't want to keep). Again it helps out other thpers and to me the equipment honestly means nothing I love the experience the events provide the equipment is honestly just an afterthought when I am considering an event.
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amsmith61 said:
This thought has actually been fresh in my mind the last couple of months considering having just received a full set from the #TheGrandaddy. I guess it comes down to the person and what they feel is best for their game. I struggle with not wanting to play some of the gear as I want them to keep them more as a reminder ( driver shaft and stand bag) of the event. The rest of the bag I plan to play for the foreseeable future unless I feel they are a bad fit. For me personally it is a general interest in playing the gear but also my way of saying thank you for such an incredible gift.
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Stupid putter. :angry:
 
For me I still got all my clubs from #THPMC, and I plan on keeping them for awhile. I was properly fitted with a trackman before hand to get all my numbers so I could be set with the correct club. I've never done that before so I think these clubs mean more to me than others. Also after all the hard work I put into the #THPMC, I feel that the clubs were a reward for giving it my all. Yes I can understand if you have been with a set of clubs or club that just plain works for you so you can get rid of the ones that don't. I rarely blame the equipment for my mistakes on the course because I think it's all my swing. IDK I just feel these mean more to me than just equipment, they mean months and months of hard work and dedication.
 
I think it's a matter of giving the clubs an honest go, and reporting your feedback. It's half the reason the companies give us the gear in the first place...same for clothing and such. While I don't still game all of my #THPMC gear, some of the agreement I had with my lovely wife is that #THPMC would largely end my club-buying frenzy for awhile, and that's largely held true. I've traded some of it within the THP community, but that's all.

I know there are folks with much greater tendency to swap out gear, and I think that so long as they give the equipment an honest chance, that's all anyone can really ask. We're all trying to improve our game, and some of that means playing the gear we think best suits it. I wouldn't want someone playing gear they don't like or wouldn't actually use simply out of obligation to the community, beyond a given event.
 
I can't speak based on experience, but I feel as though if provided with equipment that person should play it long enough to provide proper feedback and revisit the threads to answer questions for a fairly long period of time (6-12 months).

What they do with the gear is none of my business, but even if I wasn't playing it full time, I would hang onto it to provide comparisons with future equipment.

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For me, I prefer to keep and use the clubs that I have obtained through THP events. The memories from the clubs usually mean more to me than the clubs themselves.

Unless the club was something custom made for a particular player, I wouldn't view someone negatively for making a prompt change in their bag after an event is over. I know people look at clubs differently.


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JB said:
Not all events.
The Grandaddy is completely free of costs and is one of two events that have offered a full bag of equipment.
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Events like the grandaddy brings up a completely different issue with me and people viewing it as a way to get ahead. Free trip and free clubs yet some still try and "make money" off being selected. I will leave it at that as I don't want to stir anything up and it is a general statement not pertaining to most.
 
If I get in something with a full bag, you can have my old set, your money is no good with me :)

sparksjr said:
So I cant buy your old set?
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You better put a muzzle on me lol

lightningbolt44 said:
Events like the grandaddy brings up a completely different issue with me and people viewing it as a way to get ahead. Free trip and free clubs yet some still try and "make money" off being selected. I will leave it at that as I don't want to stir anything up and it is a general statement not pertaining to most.
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As many have stated before, I would give the sticks a good amount of time (I cannot say a year, cause I play all year, but I would absolutely give the clubs 6 months) to see how I like them and give feedback.
I could never get rid of clubs that were given to me by a sponsor or thru THP, it would eat at my conscience and I would want to keep the equipment as souvenir from the event.
 
Personally, I think in most instances I would play the new gear for a full season. I would then evaluate against my current clubs and decide which I think are better for me, then move forward with those. I would love to be in the position to have to choose as I have never had more than one set of clubs.

As far as an obligation, I am not sure that there is really any obligation other than to try to continue improving your game. If you are better with the prior clubs you played, then I don't think anyone could have a legitimate problem with you playing your prior clubs.

I don't think I would sell any clubs given to me in an event just because I like souvenirs. I may let my dad or a friend play them though.
 
I'm not sure if there is an obligation to play the full set for however long, but for me I wouldn't be able to sell the clubs as I would keep them as a memory of the awesome event.
For me though as a fitted bag I would give the clubs a few months and if they didn't work out then I would just keep them as a keepsake and go back to my old clubs
 
lightningbolt44 said:
Events like the grandaddy brings up a completely different issue with me and people viewing it as a way to get ahead. Free trip and free clubs yet some still try and "make money" off being selected. I will leave it at that as I don't want to stir anything up and it is a general statement not pertaining to most.
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To be fair, I don't think there is a single person, from the either Grandaddy event, that has tried to "make money" off participating in the Grandaddy.
 
I agree with a lot of what is in here. I tried to pay a lot of my stuff forward as well.

My dad is now gaming my MD2 wedges and I got the tour version which fit my game better, and he has the Bertha 3W. I absolutely cherished the #Grandaddy and the memories. I still game the driver, hybrids, and just took the putter out for a newer version. I have supported Callaway by giving them most of my club purchases (sans one) since the #Grandaddy, and they created a life-long customer. I think everyone should give their stuff a fair shake, but if something works better or you have an itch to scratch then do it...

I don't think that makes me a bad person, and I certainly don't think anyone should be forced to play something, but just show some tact. Do the sponsors a favor like the one they did for you and give feedback on the clubs, answer questions, whatever you can. It is the least one can do IMO
 
For me- if something is given to me, I refuse to make money from it. I also try to play whatever the equipment was for at least half a season. Then and only then do I feel like I can give something a fair review. So far, I have stuck to all these rules for myself.


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TexasHacker34 said:
I agree with a lot of what is in here. I tried to pay a lot of my stuff forward as well.

My dad is now gaming my MD2 wedges and I got the tour version which fit my game better, and he has the Bertha 3W. I absolutely cherished the #Grandaddy and the memories. I still game the driver, hybrids, and just took the putter out for a newer version. I have supported Callaway by giving them most of my club purchases (sans one) since the #Grandaddy, and they created a life-long customer. I think everyone should give their stuff a fair shake, but if something works better or you have an itch to scratch then do it...

I don't think that makes me a bad person, and I certainly don't think anyone should be forced to play something, but just show some tact. Do the sponsors a favor like the one they did for you and give feedback on the clubs, answer questions, whatever you can. It is the least one can do IMO
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Oh brother I dont think anybody would ever put that label out there. We have always been clear, by essentially being unclear, in regards to obligations. That is why I wanted to start the thread, because I was very interested in the response of the people here.
 
I think there are 2 ways to answer this depending on how the event works... Example A...the shaft outing where 8 guys are going to get a new head, custom shaft, fitting and a round for less than the cost of an off the rack driver. YOu got a killer deal on the club, and it wouldn't have been possible without THP, but you still paid for it, a similar price to what it will cost a year after release. IN that case I think you owe it a good trial period.

Example B.... you end up being one of the lucky ones who gets chosen for one of the full bag events. JB and GG, and a few of the long time THPers, worked their asses off to not only make the event happen, but to court OEMs and show them the value in handing 2 grand worth of stuff over to THPers. Then the OEMs handed 2 grand worth of stuff to quite a few THPers. Not just 2 grand worth of whatever, but 2 grand worth of what you want, what should be the best possible fit for you.

In example B, IMO, not only do you owe it to the OEM and THP to play that stuff, but to play it a lot, at least for the length of a release cycle from that OEM if not longer. Not only that, but I feel like you owe it to THP and the OEM to do some serious grass roots, word of mouth, hand shaking and baby kissing marketing for the OEM and THP. Everybody you play with for the next 6-12 months should see that equipment, hear something good about it, and be pestered to visit THP and have a look around.

I understand completely that sometimes the equipment you think should work for you doesn't. But no way could I ever believe somebody if they said everything in the whole bag didn't work. If after a while you feel like a wedge wasn't a good fit then go back to old faithful. Or if you never get the confidence with the putter pop another one in the bag. But if you got the stuff handed to you you should give it every last effort to make it work. Take the irons in for a loft/lie adjustment, tinker with the swingweight, spend a few bucks on a shaft that make work better.

To just use the stuff for the event and then immediately throw it in a closet or on Ebay is not only an insult to THP and the OEM, but IMO it displays the level of self-centeredness that is driving our society down the crapper. Golfers are supposed to be honorable for crying out loud.
 
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