Pachesham Park Golf Centre.

Had a couple of hours to spare yesterday afternoon so decided to take a trip to my local driving range to try out a few drivers and have a practise. So after about 10 minutes looking round shop i asked the pro could if i could have a go of the R11 and was told that i could only demo the driver by booking a custom fit session. As i haven't had a custom fitting in years i thought i would take the pro up on the offer only to be told that i would have to pay a £45 charge for the service even if i found i didn't like the R11! Since when did "try before you buy" carry a hefty price tag?

The whole situation has left me rather bitter and has made me think about using their sub standard over priced practise facilites in the future.


rant over.

I have just been to the local American Golf shop and tried out a whole range of drivers, including the R11, for free, OK was hitting into a net, but it at least gave me the feel of the clubs.

Too many rip off merchants in golf!!

ridiculous state of affairs, would still go there though; no need to cut of your nose to spite your face but I wouldn't be buying anything off him, not even a bar of chocolate or pack of tees. I am quite sure your local club pro would give you a bash of an R11, but better still try Tour Edge exotics driver if you can track one down!

Had to pay for the priveldge if thats the case and you chose to purchase one i'd be asking for th eprice of the fitting off the balance of the driver. Thats outrageous. Go to any main dealer and get a free fitting even as OP say American Golf maybe in a net but they also do have affiliations with a few ranges around the country that you could book to goto and get a free fitting.

I would say that this is the consequence of having adjustable drivers and the pro's not prepared to allow users the loan of a wrench and a few shafts. When the R9 first came out one of the ranges I go to used to allow the user the loan of a wrench, this ceased when he lost a couple of heads.
With these drivers it's not just a matter of having a couple of swings at a ball and getting the right shaft and settings takes time and I know my local pro won't sell the R11 without a fitting session.

I am sure that American Golf wont sell a golf club without making sure you have had a proper fitting.

But what we are talking about here is trying the club out, i.e. making a few swings with it, and hitting a couple of balls.

I would imagine that if Taylor Made were aware that some pro's are trying to charge Joe public a sum of money to try out their clubs they would not be best pleased. (might just send them an email, and ask is it their policy on this matter)

oldparwin wrote:I am sure that American Golf wont sell a golf club without making sure you have had a proper fitting.

are you serious ... !

Yes, as I have bought a good few clubs from them

yet to be swayed by ag. just feels a bit too jjb'zee for me. service always feels a little bland. prices rarely tempting. probably due to having such a great pro and golf shop in inverness when growing up. always good value, friendly and informed service.

I have always found AG to have the best prices, my local Pro, now has to try and match their prices if he wants a sale. I will sometimes buy from him so as not to feel to guilty, but he would never charge for trying out a club.

Is £45 really so outrageous though? If you get a good service from the professional who takes his time to give you the proper and correct advise that will benefit your golf game, then I think it is money well spent.

My experiences of places like American Golf have generally been that some of the 'advisers' who work there are more interested in steering you towards products that pay them a better commission rather than what is best for you. Some of the youngsters who are employed by AG show a golfing knowledge that I would describe as extremely limited and that is being generous...

Couple of points on this. AG would happily sell without a fitting session because if a member of the public decided to go in and just pick one off the shelf to purchase they will not say no to a quick sale.

Further to that point though a good salesman in any shop AG or other large retailer should try to tempt you into hitting one in the net before you buy.

Also where OP states AG are generally cheaper he is correct as any larger retailer like them will be able to outprice a local pro by sheer fact they have more selling power. Though that's not good for the pro it is good for the buyer.

Also with regards to OP's other point about Taylor Made not being happy if they found out you were charged I am in complete agreement. If they knew of this they'd do something about it. After all you can goto TM's pro fit centre at Wentworth for free of charge providing you can't get an appointment.

Maverick wrote: After all you can goto TM's pro fit centre at Wentworth for free of charge providing you can't get an appointment.

£100 for a driver fit.
http://www.wentworthclub.com/golf/3259/

Thanks for the link K@S just assumed it'd be free like the callaway fitting centre in leatherhead. Just goes to show maybe TM are really a cash cow for taking peoples money from fitting.

Have to say the callaway centre not sure how it works but went there last year with my old man, he got a free 2hour fitting session on everyclub in the bag an dthey were very honest no sales pitch they even said they would not recommend their irons to him as his current set were already ideal fit. All he ended up buying out of it was a wedge

Maverick wrote:Thanks for the link K@S just assumed it'd be free like the callaway fitting centre in leatherhead. Just goes to show maybe TM are really a cash cow for taking peoples money from fitting.

Have to say the callaway centre not sure how it works but went there last year with my old man, he got a free 2hour fitting session on everyclub in the bag and they were very honest no sales pitch they even said they would not recommend their irons to him as his current set were already ideal fit. All he ended up buying out of it was a wedge

Mav, I don't think it's just a matter of cash cows so much as the large number of options available now for both irons and drivers means that the pro's are spending a lot more time getting it just right for the golfer and once they have sorted out the specs some golfers are going elsewhere to get cheaper clubs. I have noticed a few places where they have gone back to charging for the fitting and then deducting the charge if you buy from them.
While my local pro has sold a good few of the R11's he has had to tell a few people that their money would be better spent on lessons on using a driver as their ball flight is so inconsistent that no amount of tweaking of an R11 would make it any better.

Bluecoverman

I think that £45 is a total rip off to try out a club, anyone who is prepared to pay that must have more money than sense. There is no way I would pay a penny to try out a club

They always say that fools and their money is easily parted.

I have send a email to Taylor Made about the fitting charge, and will update everyone if I receive a reply

oldparwin

They also say that if you pay peanuts you get monkeys

I'm with OP on this one it doesn't sit right with me that you have to pay to try out a club, that seems like a quick way to rip people off especially if in the end it is not suited to the individual.

The method K@S mentions I can see the value in that to a fitter/pro in that the money is then deducted off the total of the club a sort of deposit if you like.

OP please keep us informed of what you hear back from TM, I'm very interested in the outcome as I completely agree with you and feel anyone willing to pay £45 just to try a club is either very well of money doesn't matter of incredibly naïve to say the least and parts with cash to complete villains

tarka they are actually a fitting centre for tour edge too along with ping, mizuno, yonex and wilson. The problem i have is paying someone £45 to tell me stuff that i already know. I might just nip down to my local AG/Nevada Bobs but i was always put off by the sales assistant in Nevada Bobs follwing me round telling me every club i looked at was "awesome". If you ever tried out a club she stand around watching telling you that you have a really good "SMASH FACTOR" for an amateur and you hit the club so well. Always put me off buying from them....

Sometimes in Custom Fitting a fee is involved, however as your booking is usually required to be made through a pro I have always come to an arrangement that if I buy a club/set of clubs then the pro will pay for the session in return for me buying the clubs through him.
I could alternatively pay for the fitting myself, and once I have my spec sheet simply source it or build a set up myself of I felt the need.

Personally I think TM are already doing a very good job of parting fools with their money by A) having so many different models coming out each year with the frankly absurd and unsustainable promise of being straighter and longer and B) the gimmick of a white head without having to charge for someone just having a shot.

I have received an email from TaylorMade to say they have received my email, and one of the customer service team will be in touch.

Wonder how long we need to wait till we receive a reply???

Did they try to entice you into trying the new R11?

Apparently it's longer and straighter than the R9, which was longer and straighter than the R7 Superquad, which was longer and straighter than the R7........................................

OP please keep us posted i'll be interested to see what TM say, especially as i've said on numerous other threads I find them to be the Golf markets mercenaries what with flooding the market with so many products that are current line...

Wonder if they have though about going into the tampon business they could be the longest and most absorbant yet with white heads and spend most of the time being used by stuck up .....

Still no reply from TaylorMade.

They are probably too busy developing next months longer and straighter neon yellow with pink dots driver.

Had a reply from Taylor, will not buying any of their products again.

Have pasted their reply below:

Hello,

Thanks for the email.


Please contact our affiliate in the UK at the following, as they are a
different region and have different rules and regulations, as well as
different product:

United Kingdom
TaylorMade Court
Viables Business Park
Jays Close
Basingstoke
Hampshire
RG22 4BS
United Kingdom
Phone: (44) 1256 479797
Fax: (44) 1256 479357

Thank you again and we wish you continued success with your golf game!

Best regards,

Talk about trying to doge the bullet or question in this case, that level of avoidance and customer service would also turn me off using them if I hadnt' already made the decision to never user TM porducts again after a personal issue with them