Hello GolfWRX world, this is Andrew Von Lossow, and I’m joining you from my Instagram page Lead Tape Chronicles. I am ecstatic to be part of the team!

A little about me: I grew up in Seattle, Washington, very close to the game of golf. My Dad, Jim Von Lossow, operated Von’s Golf and Putter Studio. He took care of the region’s players for 30 years, providing club repair and club fitting. He was the first to have Trackman in Washington State in 2005. My Dad worked on the whole spectrum of golf, from beginners to touring professionals. On a daily basis, I would see things from a beginner set, to a set of clubs for a former NFL quarterback with 12 wraps of tape under the grip, and bending to lie angle one degree for a very well-known feel-based tour player.

Seeing all of the options there were in the world of custom clubs, I was curious about what it would do for me to get the ball to get into the hole in the most efficient way possible. Little did I know it would be a new world.

My beginnings in the game

I got my start in golf with my parents handing me a club when I could walk. That grew into playing junior tournaments and into high school and community college. In high school, I worked in the bag room at Sand Point Country Club in Seattle and my Dad’s golf shop. In college, I caddied in Montana during the summers.

During college, video editing and then graphic design were my off-the-course passions, but there was always the pull back to the course. For the last six years, I have been working with decorating apparel for golf courses with events and pro shops.

On the course, I have loved tournament golf and competing. I have had some highlights over the last number of years such as qualifying in four USGA Championships. Highlighted by the US Amateur in 2022 at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, New Jersey. I made it into match play through a playoff and was the 63 seed. That meant my match was slated against tournament favorite and number two seed Michael Thorbjornsen. A great match was had, and I was fortunate to be victorious with a 3 and 2 victory. The next day I lost to the eventual runner up Ben Carr in the Round of 32 by the tally of 1 down. I have been fortunate to win the Rosauers Open, which is a Pacific Northwest PGA Section major, and win the Washington Golf Player of the Year once and the Washington Golf Mid-Am Player of the Year three times.

It is my favorite to prepare and compete in tournaments for this wonderful game, which begins with equipment. What clubs are going to be battle-tested? I am of the belief that every time you practice or play golf there is a moment for a breakthrough that can change your game for the better.

Enter @LeadTapeChronicles

The Lead Tape Chronicles Instagram page started in July 2018. I noticed the beginning of niche golf pages highlighting certain elements of the game. With my experience growing up in the club shop and seeing all of the custom clubs over the years, this was a creative outlet to express.

A page highlighting amateur players’ clubs from all over the world and shots of tour professionals’ clubs. I thought about how this page can cover the world of golf equipment with a personal touch for each player. To me, lead tape on clubs is a symbol of ownership: how a club should feel in your hands, making it yours, not something off the rack. Growing up in a custom club shop, some element of the club had to be worked on. A club is great right out of the factory, but if you can’t feel the club head enough, it’s time for lead tape to help it align with your feel.

Lead Tape Chronicles has been built by players sending in their photos of their clubs. Their way of playing the game and showing what makes a club feel good to them. It has also been a page that draws inspiration for other players on how to adjust their clubs. It is great because it brings together many other elements of the game, such as golf courses, tournaments, and shared experiences.

How I see the world of golf gear

As I look at the gear world these days, I reflect on what I like in my own bag. Today, with so many new clubs entering the market, when do you make your decision to change yourself?

I look at drivers and wedges frequently: the modern-day scoring clubs. New driver technology each year seems to amplify with better mishits, but how do those mishits with the clubs react to your swing? That’s one of my keys: finding the best club for your game with mishits. 

Fresh grooves on a wedge are a great feeling. It’s been amazing seeing the amount of grinds available for retail when you used to see them only in tour bag scenarios. The world of wedges is wide and underreported on.

Putters are always intriguing, and with so many new models today, especially with the arrival of zero torque. Multiple putting categories are there to review. My Dad had a putter line from the late 90’s to 2010 or so. Even featured on the original GolfWRX forums, his putter was made of 303 stainless steel, a once-notable material that is now commonplace, so I have plenty of history in the realm of flatsticks.

Another area I find fascinating in today’s equipment world is the technology with shafts. The ability to fine-tune a graphite shaft, seeing all of the different available weights and the shaft profiles. There have never been more options, from driver to putter. 

What you can expect from me in the future

Looking forward, I would like to dive deeper into what makes our bag setup what it is. And how a course management philosophy can be based off equipment decisions. So many options come into play now — such as driver, mini-driver, fairway woods, hybrids, and driving irons — even wedges can be part of the iron set down to the gap wedge with ease.

Being into the equipment world as deeply as we are, we are aware of the new gear that hits the market year after year. The dopamine rush is worth it to see where the new clubs came from their predecessors. I also wonder what makes a club’s staying power in the bag? We see it with fairway woods, putters, and drivers until they reach the COR limit. I am curious about what makes a club stay in a player’s bag, and I want to explore that further.

Of course, as a competitive player myself, I’ll be bringing you insights from that aspect of the game. Building a bag for competition is quite a bit different than picking your 14 for a weekend round with the guys.

Look for all of this and more in my content, and a focus on lead tape use, naturally!