FIELDREPORT - CARLY FROST
Follow the retro resurgence
Keep up with the latest trend and transform a corner of your pro shop with a selection of 'retro' golf gear. Carly Frost investigates
f you are a follower of high street trends then you will have undoubtedly noticed the resurgence of retro products in the last few years. From vintage clothing and footwear to designer furniture for the home that’s a throwback to the fifties and even modern versions of vintage cars like the Fiat 500 – there are examples of the popularity of retro fashion everywhere. This high street influence has now filtered through into the golf industry with several of the leading manufacturers introducing modern day versions of their most iconic and successful equipment launches in a new retro form to their lines for 2014. Leading the way are Wilson Staff who are celebrating their centenary
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this year. To mark 100 years of innovation the brand's tour ambassadors including Padraig Harrington, Paul Lawrie, Marcel Siem and Kevin Streelman will be carrying a new Wilson Staff Centennial Pro Tour bag. The iconic red and white tour bag features the vintage Wilson Staff
shield and retro branding. The modern day tour stars are following in the footsteps of Major-winning legends of the game like Gene Sarazen and Sam Snead who used variations of the famous Wilson Staff red bag in the past. The vintage logos and retro designs also characterise several new
Wilson Staff products that you can stock in your shops in time for the start of the golfing season. They include the Dx2 Soft – one of the UK’s fastest selling golf balls last year –which is being sold in a special retro pack with six individually gold-foil wrapped balls inside, designed to resemble the classic style from the 1950s. Also featuring the special centenary branding are Wilson Staff’s neXus carry bag, a range of headwear, headcovers, a towel and an umbrella. Another company with a great heritage in the game that is following
the retro trend is John Letters. The Scottish manufacturer is one of the oldest equipment brands in golf and I’m sure many of you will remember its original Golden Goose putter that took the golfing world by storm over
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65 years ago. This year the famous John Letters putter is returning to shops with the same classic looks but it has been given a modern design twist. The new Golden Goose 1 putter may still look rather ‘old school’ paying homage to its popular predecessor but it is made from an ultra- soft 303 stainless steel and features state-of-the-art ‘Roll It’ face technology to offer golfers an exceptional ball roll and awesome feel. All at the very affordable recommended retail price point of £99.
“It’s not just hard goods that will sell well in a retro display in your shop, but classical golf fashion style is bang on trend this season too.”
Callaway Golf has also turned back the clock with the reintroduction of one of its most iconic clubs, the Big Bertha driver. The Big Bertha was the original and very first big-headed driver the golfing world had ever seen and as such the brand name is synonymous with distance and forgiveness in golf. 2014 sees the return of the Big Bertha brand with the launch of the new Big Bertha and Big Bertha Alpha drivers. The latter has already made the headlines with the early season success Callaway Golf’s staff professionals have had on tour. The Big Bertha Alpha scored two victories in its first few weeks on tour including some spectacular play in the hands of European Tour ambassador Pablo Larrazábal who claimed the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship crown in February. In
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