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10 takeaways from Callaway’s club tinkering podcast

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In Callaway’s latest series of podcasts, the team talks with Gerritt Pon, Senior Club Performance Analyst, an industry veteran and fitting specialist who has personally built clubs for Phil Mickelson. The three audio files run roughly 50 minutes in length (total), so we extracted some of the more valuable/interesting pearls of wisdom from the Fitting Room podcast series. Want to hear the entire interview? You can find the full series on the Callaway Media Productions website.

The topics covered range from beginner to advanced. Here’s a selection of the quality information from the talk with Mr. Pon, which range from the most basic information to advanced topics.

Where tinkerers should begin

Pon says that loft and lie are the most important part of any sort of club tinkering for amateur golfers. Proper loft and lie can take a golfer from hitting shanks to striping it, which is more than can be said for almost all other adjustments.

Lie angle rules of thumb

Generally, if a player is consistently missing right, s/he ought to be playing clubs that are more upright. Likewise, if the golfer misses left, a flatter lie is necessary.

The first wood adjustment to make

Photo courtesy of Callaway.

Pon adjusting a driver at the Ely Callaway Performance Center (Photo courtesy of Callaway).

Callaway recommends that before making any adjustment to the moveable weights in their woods, golfers should dial in an optimal loft.

Swing weight basics

Every two grams of weight added to a club head adds one swing weight point, so shortening a shaft an inch changes swing weight by six points. Adding weight to a wood head can be done externally (using lead tape) or internally (with glue injected into the club head). Also, weight can be added to the grip end to reduce swing weight, but different rules apply. It takes five grams of weight to lighten the swing weight by one point.

Who tinkers?

Tinkering seems to be more correlated with personality type than handicap. For example, tour pros span the range from massive tinkerers to not really making many equipment adjustments.

Interesting fact about different-colored grips

Pon says he’s found different-colored models of the same grips can weigh different amounts.

Spin 101

With respect to spin, when a club spins too much, the ball will balloon. When it doesn’t spin enough, the ball will tend to fall out of the air.

So you want a 55-degree wedge?

In making a 55-degree wedge: Better to weaken 54 than strengthen 56 for most golfers, as the 54 would have more bounce. Weakening a club makes the leading edge look straighter. Strengthening adds more offset. Pros tinker most with their wedges ahead of major championships, particularly the Masters (where players prefer less bounce).

Phil Mickelson: club builder

Phil Mickelson ground his own lob wedge for the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. He wanted a 64-degree with zero degrees of bounce.

The Callaway OG wedge

Roger Cleveland has made a special OG “Office Grind” wedge for Callaway employees: 64 bent to 60, ground to zero bounce.

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

8 Comments

8 Comments

  1. sumsum

    May 2, 2016 at 9:55 am

    Callaway production team :

    “Is your ball going left?! Just flatten the club!

    Is your ball going right?! Just raise the lie up!

    At Callaway we think the Shaft doesn’t matter, Head / offset don’t matter, grip doesn’t matter, hell your swing doesn’t even matter. Just adjust the lie and you are on your way to straight shots all day!!”

    ……morons

    • Desmond

      May 3, 2016 at 1:12 pm

      Who’s the moron?

      You might look in the mirror.

      It states “where tinkerers should begin…”

      “Begin” is a key word.

      • Mad-Mex

        May 3, 2016 at 9:58 pm

        So sumsum, from your post it appears your knowledge of golf clubs would one were you have designed many clubs, so, what is your most successful design?
        Let me guess,,,,, NONE?

  2. JustTrying2BAwesome

    May 1, 2016 at 4:35 pm

    Haha OG wedge. I love it

  3. B Clizzle

    May 1, 2016 at 1:28 pm

    Callaway should research better adhesive or how to glue the heads properly…
    Clubs I bought last year have have the heads fall off
    8 iron three times and the rest twice
    Never gonna stray from ping again

    • Ming Yeung

      May 1, 2016 at 6:07 pm

      funny thing you say that, i found the callaway and tm woods on the non adjustable heads were the most difficult to remove, took me at least twice as much heat and elbow grease to even break the dark expoxy. ping irons i found to be the easiest to remove. mizuno irons took the longest to remove

      • B Clizzle

        May 1, 2016 at 7:08 pm

        Well I just know I see a little gap near the ferrule and head…then after one swing the head is twisted
        And I don’t leave them in my car
        They stay at the course

  4. Tex

    May 1, 2016 at 1:20 pm

    But what is Roger Cleveland’s feelings on the XE1 bent to 60?

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Equipment

Tour Edge unveils all-new Exotics mini driver

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Tour Edge Golf has today introduced the all-new Exotics mini driver, engineered to deliver a powerful combination of speed, control, and versatility in the long game. 

The Exotics Mini combines a titanium face with a stainless-steel body in design to balance ball speed with stability and control, creating a versatile option at the top end of the bag. 

At the core of the design is Tour Edge’s proprietary Combo Brazing technology, a high-precision thermal bonding process that seamlessly fuses a titanium cup face to a stainless-steel body into a single, continuous structure. By eliminating energy loss found in traditional multi-piece constructions, Combo Brazing is designed to deliver faster face response, more efficient energy transfer, and a uniquely powerful yet controlled feel.

The multi-material construction also allows mass to be positioned lower and deeper in the head in a bid to increase stability, while the thin titanium face is engineered to maintain ball speed across a wider impact area.

“While the initial goal was to enhance control and versatility in the long game, Combo Brazing ultimately drove measurable gains in ball speed and distance within the mini driver category. In robot testing, we’ve documented higher ball speeds, higher launch, reduced spin, and increased carry and total distance compared to leading models.” – Vice President of R&D Matt Neeley

In addition to distance performance, the Exotics mini emphasizes forgiveness through a heavier stainless-steel body that shifts mass toward the perimeter. This configuration increases MOI relative to traditional all-titanium mini drivers, helping preserve ball speed and directional stability on off-center strikes. Paired with Pyramid Face Technology from the Exotics metalwood line, the design is intended to support consistent speed across the face.

To further enhance MOI, a lightweight carbon fiber crown frees additional mass that is strategically repositioned low and deep in the head in design to improve stability and promote optimal launch with controlled spin.

“We designed the Mini to be about five millimeters shallower than other mini drivers on the market. That change improves playability off the deck. From a clean fairway lie, it can function as a strong 3-wood alternative while still providing control off the tee.” – Tour Edge CEO David Glod

An adjustable hosel system allows for loft and lie tuning to dial in trajectory and shot shape, while a fixed 13-gram rear weight helps stabilize the head through impact to improve dispersion consistency. The Exotics Mini Driver is available in 11.5 and 13.5-degree lofts in right-handed models.

Pricing & Availability

The Exotics Mini Driver is available for pre-order beginning today for $399.99 USD at touredge.com, and will be available for purchase at retail outlets worldwide on May 22, 2026. 

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Equipment

Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, our members have been pitting a Srixon ZXi combo against a TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo. WRXer ‘edutch22’ is on the hunt for a new set of irons and kicks off the thread saying:

“Looking at picking up a new set of irons and think I’ve narrowed it down to Srixon ZXi combo or Taylormade P7CB/770 combo. I am currently a 5 cap and allbeit I feel irons are my weakness. My miss is a little to the toe side. I am decently steep at 4-5 down. Always thought I am high spin but recently on trackman my 7 was spinning at 5800 roughly. 

My question or looking for thoughts on which one would benefit me more from a forgiveness standpoint? Or is there another iron is should be looking at entirely? I only get to play about once or twice a week, if I am not playing a 2-3 day event. Thanks in advance.”

And our members have been sharing their thoughts and suggestions in response.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • manima1: “You just can’t go wrong with Srixon ZXi7.”
  • MattM97: “You have to hit them to know, the V-Sole on the Srixon can be make or break for many.”
  • dmeeksDC: “P7CB is more forgiving for me than ZXi7 because my main miss is low middle and the P7CB still flies and spins great on that miss. These are both really nice irons but I like the P7CB more than the Zxi7 and the P770 (or P790) more than the Zxi5. The Srixons are larger so if that gives you confidence that is the way to go. I don’t feel like I get any benefit from the V-sole and the P7CBs live up to their high Maltby forgiveness rating so the TaylorMades have been great for me.”

Entire Thread: “Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss”

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Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo

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At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @pianoman0123 has a 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo up for grabs.

From the listing: “2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade Combo.  4-8 irons are CB’s and the 9,PW are Blades.  5-PW have Project X 6.0 Shafts and the 4 Iron has a Steelfiber CW110 Stiff Shaft.   Standard Length, Lie and Lofts.  These are in very good condition the shafts just don’t work for me.  Like new Lamkin Grips on the 5-PW and a stock Golf Pride on the 4 Iron. $525 OBO.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules

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