3M Championship

8/10/10

Well the Nationwide Tour swing is over sadly to say! I am a little disappointed in the fact the money, contracts and player loyalty has continued to set its roots out here. It seems just as I am warming up to the new faces and old it is time to go back to the big show. I was able to go back to several Solus players and show the new wedge to but with no avail. The wedge is good and the players know it and they know Solus is here to provide the equipment and service they need. The feedback was very rewarding though! But like I said earlier this week and last, it is very difficult to ask a player to change if we cannot be out here to provide service and protect our stake or turf. Granted there are phones, texts and emails but nothing can replace the actual body here week to week to adjust and tweak the equipment. The players are all looking for the edge but the money seems to be the only edge they have to gamble on, this doesn’t help a little company like Solus. The pressure that is applied on these players either with money, equipment or both is enormous as well as intimidating. It’s a hard line to cross for most.

I will give you an example. I followed up with a REAL close friend that is a teaching pro from “up north” that used to play the Solus wedges and has for at least three years. I approached him around the practice green to just see how he was doing and chew the fat, so to speak. Please keep in mind he is not a regular player out here full time but Callaway provides him equipment and service. The pressure was so bad that he started looking around to see if anyone from especially Callaway was watching us. He’s a friend but I started to get sucked into the black hole! I ask if he was uncomfortable and he said yes! For obvious reasons the Callaway tour van was at the top of the hill overlooking this green. He is a full Callaway staffer and he would not even look or glance over at the new wedge. He asked me to come out on the course and he would look at it there… This is just one of many that I followed up with over these past several weeks and they all had the same attitude. It’s just too bad it has come down to this.


I did get a little refreshing look from an old Solus player Nathan Tyler. Naturally he is now with Nike and they are supplying him with everything from sunglasses to underwear! So you can see the writing on the wall, can’t you? He like the rest are very courteous and very apologetic when approached. I offered Nathan a look but he was getting ready for the afternoon pro-am, so I handed him a business card and told him to call if he needed anything. He said he really missed the Solus wedges while looking down at his full bouquet of Nike equipment in his vase or wait, his bag! It’s just very disappointing for me. Of course I am on this side of the fence! I will say one thing when I was taking my stab out here the money wasn’t here and you starved week to week trying to make cuts and pay entry fees. I was playing against the likes of Tom Lehman and David Duval just to mention a few. These guys have all broke the code on survival by taking the dangling carrot, money! Money talks and BS walks thus my journey on the dark side, the tour grunt! Hey there is still light at the end of the tunnel though brief and fleeting and that’s the Monday qualifiers and mini tour players that still have to buy their equipment in most cases. We also have college teams that have hundreds of players that would love to play the Solus! I guess we should be tilling some new soil up stream instead of trying to grow a garden that has no fruits or veggies! Boy that’s kind of deep don’t you agree? I got stuck there for a second! HIHI….


Oh by the way, I waited for the player or players that picked up the two wedges out of the bag without me knowing to come back. Not! Hopefully they went in the bag under the radar and watchful eyes of the “big boys”! I will research and brief you later!


Hopefully I have given you a little insight on how things are operating out here for us. Not much going on and that can be mostly blamed on the heat and oh, did I mention MONEY? I hope you all have a great weekend and always remember to golf your ball where the mower runs it’s easier to find! So they tell me, HIHIHIHi..


My next round of travel starts in about 10 days back on the PGA Tour for the Barclay’s. Until then take care and be safe!

8/9/10

Solus takes a T18 and T28 at the 3M Championship in Minnesota!

Mike put a few more clubs in play this week. Jack Ferenz took the 56* wedge that we built for Steve Thomas. Steve has gone awol for the past several weeks.


Dana Quigley had a 60* bent to 62* and adjusted the lie angle 3* flat. Dana is a new player for Solus!


Good friend, Fuzzy Zoeller picked up a 56* and had it set at 55* while adjusting the lie angle 4* flat. Quite frankly I am not sure how a wedge can possibly perform the way the design was meant. But these guys all have their own little quirks and who I am to question? They are out here and I am sitting here writing these blogs!


Bruce Fleisher has a bag full of Solus equipment that is in the wedge department! He put a new 52* in and had his old 60 adjusted to 58* and his new 60 bent to 63 for bunkers. Now there’s a combo! Keith Fergus adjusted his 52* to 53* and had the lie angle set 3* upright. There was a lot of adjustments this week!