What Do You Expect from Your Equipment?

What do you actually expect to gain from new equipment?

Is it 10 more yards, better control, a 4-point drop in your index, or just the satisfaction that comes from tossing new gear into the bag?

Are we being realistic?

I’m not pretending to have the answer; I’m simply posing the question.

It’s Different (obviously) with the Pros

At a recent Nike Golf event in Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to sit down with Brooks Koepka to discuss both equipment, and the evolving look of golf (the apparel stuff). I asked about his transition to Nike, and how long it took for him to get comfortable with the new gear.

The short answer, “not long”.

What really caught my attention was how Koepka quantified the benefits of his equipment switch.

There’s more to the discussion for sure, and no doubt Nike would have loved it if I included the part where Brooks raves about the new RZN Tour ball, but the snippet above is what’s most-relevant to today’s discussion.

Think about what he said…one shot per tournament. That’s .25 strokes per round.

Yeah…It’s Not the Same

Obviously we’re not quite apples to apples here. We might not even be shopping at the same fruit stand. At the PGA Tour level guys have been properly fit for years (at least you would hope). It’s also true that, for better players – especially tour-level players – the window for improvement is narrow.

But still…one shot over four days? And Koepka’s not the first to tell me that. A few years ago Ian Poulter suggested his benchmark was 1, maybe two strokes in a tournament.

Pros want a stroke a week. We’re being sold improvements by 10s of yards, and nearly as many strokes.

Is that realistic?

Equipment Can Make Us Better

As you’ll see next week (teaser alert), there’s plenty of data that suggests that new gear (specifically a properly fit new driver) can not only give you upwards of 10 More Yards – seriously, it’s true, but can also substantially improve consistency. It is, however, no small detail that we’re talking about properly fit equipment.

Even then…does that always translate to lower scores? Hmm… Let’s hold that thought.

Today’s question; what’s your measuring stick? What do you expect from new equipment? What does it take for something new to replace yesterday’s gamer?