Equipment
2014 PGA Merchandise Show: Manufacturer Personality Comparisons
For any golf nut, taking to the floor of the Orange County Convention Center for the annual PGA Merchandise Show is like entering Willy Wonka’s factory. It is wonderfully overwhelming. If you love golf, then your aching feet by week’s end will be a very fair trade for the opportunity to browse so much of what the golf industry has to offer for the coming year.
The Show isn’t just a gigantic interactive gallery, though—it’s a place of business. Thousands of club professionals arrange meetings with multiple manufacturers to determine how they will stock their pro shops for the following year. Significant amounts of revenue are at stake, and like male birds trying to court females with their plumage, major manufacturers are courting any potential new business and shoring up existing accounts. The rest of us get to sit back and enjoy the spectacle.
As a result, each manufacturer seems to exhibit a certain personality through its presence at the Show. Here are my impressions.
Callaway brought a big tank to their Odyssey booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show.
Brand: Callaway
Characteristics: Social media-driven, fun, not terribly serious, bombastic
Show Presence: Given their big recent Big Bertha revival/rollout, Callaway made a big splash in Orlando. Their main booth (of three) featured a 25-foot tall Isaac Newton in the middle. Across the aisle, Callaway’s Odyssey brand promoted their new Tank putter with…a 106,000-pound military tank. Totally normal. Hung from the rafters were banners promoting Callaway’s impressive and ever-growing stable of PGA Tour players. Good contrast of whimsy and authority from the Tour.
Well-dressed reps at the Titleist booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show.
Brand: Titleist
Characteristics: Professional, clean-cut, confident, highbrow, distinguished
Show Presence: There is little doubt that Titleist has the best-dressed reps. They are visible from afar; with white blazers and black pants, their ensemble is unique among exhibitor uniforms without being obnoxious. Likewise, Titleist’s (and subsidiary FootJoy’s) booth set a formal, highbrow tone that included (like its television ads) heavy support from their robust Tour staff. Their most notable new feature was their wedge section, where Titleist is clearly trying to give noted wedge designer Bob Vokey his own brand in similar fashion to Scotty Cameron.
Part of the video presentation about TaylorMade’s MOAD “concept club” at their booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show.
Brand: TaylorMade
Characteristics: High-energy, forward-thinking, fun, relentless
Show Presence: TaylorMade has arguably the most daring and flashy PGA Show presence each year. A key aspect of this is where they choose to situate their booth: beyond the scores of apparel dealers, at the opposite end of the enormous exhibition hall from the rest of their competitors. TaylorMade clearly intends their booth to be a destination for visitors to the Show, and they back that intention up by going all-out to create a space that is equal parts learning space and nightclub-like scene. The introduction to their booth came in the form of an 11-minute video focused on TaylorMade’s R&D department’s efforts to stretch the boundaries of golf equipment in order to explore new avenues of golf innovation. It was impressive.
The more open-air, easy-to-walk-through PING booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show.
Brand: PING
Characteristics: Sensible, cutting-edge, consistent, historic
Show Presence: PING almost seems to treat their presence at the PGA Show as more of an obligation than an opportunity, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. That makes it one of the more accessible and simple booths on the floor, especially for a company PING’s size. They posted up right next to the large indoor club testing area, giving visitors easy access to their products. PING also hauled in one of its fitting vans, which presided over the exhibit as a reminder that PING was into custom fitting quite a while before its recent rise in popularity.
The brooding minimalism of Nike’s booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show.
Brand: Nike
Characteristics: Serious, minimalistic, confident, authoritative
Show Presence: Personality-wise, Nike has always been somewhat enigmatic, vacillating between über-serious ads like the infamous Earl Woods voiceover ad to their recent turns with Rory McIlroy and Wayne Rooney and their excellent “Play in the Now” ad. Their main Show booth was minimalistic and rather serious—almost brooding—with a great deal of emphasis on the new RZN golf ball series. As always, the famous Swoosh was everywhere, as was Rory McIlroy’s curly-headed visage.
The Cobra/Puma booth at the 2014 PGA Merchandise Show had a DJ loft.
Brand: Cobra/Puma
Characteristics: Trendy, cool, bright, young
The up-and-coming tag team of Cobra and Puma is golf’s most obviously hip major brand. Whether or not you like their aesthetics is one matter, but it is undeniable that they have a vision for the image they want to portray, and they’re pursuing it hard. That’s admirable in itself, and indicative that golf is becoming “cooler,” which bodes well for the game no matter what. The outside of the booth featured both mannequins and live models, side-by-side, showing off the newest outfits. There was, by the way, only one way in and out, while many other booths were much easier to wander through. The middle also contained a tower where a DJ was presiding over the musical selection. The white walls of the booth and the brightly-clad, trim staff within gave off a distinctly European vibe.
If you had a chance to visit the Show and have opinions to add about these brands, their personalities and their products, make with the comments.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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