TFLAN I don't think anyone has any type of statistics on that. In addition, there are so many variables that enter into this. In areas where a clubmaker has a reputation, has awareness among the golfing community, then it would be fair to say a higher percentage of the areas' repair work could be going direct to the clubmaker and not through the pro shops. But in areas where there is no real awareness of a clubmaker, then the percentage would have to swing over to the pro shop. Common sense says that most golfers know nothing about having work done on their clubs - only the more serious, lower handicap players become aware of having work done on their clubs, and typically these people are in the minority in terms of the total population of golfers who play with some sense of frequency. So that means the places the golfers go to play are the places where the golfer would ask or be told that they need work on their clubs, and that likely would be the pro shops and driving ranges.
WAY back when I got started and this was the primary area of club related revenue for a clubmaker, I got my pro shop wholesale repair accounts going by making appointments with the pros, taking examples of my work and doing the best quality pitch job to them I could to be able to get their repair work on a PICK UP AND DELIVERY BASIS so things for the pro shop were easy and painless. How much biz you get depends on the quality of your pitch and the respect you can get from the pros. My gut feel says that today, most pro shops and retail golf stores HATE to hassle with repairs and make no effort to promote it, doing it only when the golfer comes to them with something that has to be done or else the club is not playable. They're lazy - they see the repair thing as being too little in revenue to hassle with, too much to have to keep track of with clubs going out and coming back in for the money they would make. So while that certainly makes an optimist see this as the glass of water that is half full for good potential, it also means you have to be very compelling in your pitch to make them see that it would be worth their while and as hassle free as possible for them to decide to partner with a good clubmaker to offer this service to their golfers. TOM -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Tom Sent: Tuesday, July 15, 2008 10:32 AM To: ShopTalk@mail.msen.com Subject: Re: ShopTalk: Club repair, who gets the most? I agree with a lot of what you say, but the point I'm trying to make is that regardless of ability or training, there are a lot of guys out there doing reshafts and regrips. That aside, the question isn't about how much work goes to "garage" guys. The question was, if you'd care to read my post again, what's the ratio of pro-shop to custom shop club repairs? I didn't mention anything about home mechanics. In point of fact, I'd go so far as to say that a relatively large fraction of so-called custom club fitters, whether they be PGA pros or golf store employees like Roger Dunn and others, don't have a clue as to how to fit a golfer properly. However, not to put too fine a point on it, the question remains, what fraction of club repair work goes to the golf shop vs the stand alone clubmaker? TFlan Robert Devino wrote: Club making in of itself won't bring in a whole lot of business. It needs to be coupled with custom fitting services to be a real business. Guys doing repairs out of thier garages are not doing the golf business and in a lot of cases not all, the people they service a whole lot of good. As a Hotstix trained club builder and a graduate of Mundus Institute for Golf Course Management and Lead Builder for KZG I have to say that most guys I have seen building or repairing out thier garage don't have a dedication to perfection. They usually follow tipping instructions instead of building to particular frequencies or MOI's. To me that's no better than buying a set off the rack and expecting them to work for you. If you ask them to analize a lie angle board mark they don't pay any attention to the type of swing that produced it and consiquently don't know how to tell if the mark produced is right for that type of swing. so the poor guy the build for ends up with the wrong lie angles for thier type of swing and can't figure out why they can't hit it straight. I guess my point is most garage builders not all but most are not qualified and don't have the knowledge to do the job right and end up giving the business a bad reputation. Sincerely, Robert Devino 14252 Delano St. Van Nuys, Ca. 91401 (818) 770-0475 ----- Original Message ---- From: Tom <[EMAIL PROTECTED]><mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: ShopTalk@mail.msen.com<mailto:ShopTalk@mail.msen.com>; spine <[EMAIL PROTECTED]><mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, July 14, 2008 6:32:14 PM Subject: ShopTalk: Club repair, who gets the most? I've been a "muny" guy for a lot of years. I've also been a member of a semi-private club. And I was a member of a private club in So Cal for a few years, and now I'm a member of a private club, going on 10 years, in Central CA. So, I have a pretty good idea as to where broken clubs go for repair. The question is, though, what's the ratio of private to semi-private to public courses? I know for a fact that the vast majority of club repair, regrip, reshaft, new club sales at private clubs go through the pro shop . . . that's a fact. I've seen it. Been there. Saw guys come in to the pro with a worn set of grips. Saw the pro charge $7.00 for a regrip with Tour Wraps. I've seen DG S300 reshafts sold for $35.00. Plus grip. Hence the question; how much business is left over after the pro shop is done with their sales? If there is say, a 50/50 ratio of private, semi-private to public courses, how much business can an independent clubmaker expect to see in a given area? TFlan
