New clubs from the old school
Led by Jessie Ortiz's designs, Bobby Jones Golf will enter the club market this fall.
By Garry Smits, The Times Union.
Bobby Jones Golf's green-tinted drivers, fairway woods and hybrids have the look of old persimmon clubs and are being designed by famed craftsman Jesse Ortiz (below). BEN SKLAR/The Times-Union
Jesse Ortiz admits to some trepidation about putting his name with that of the legendary Bobby Jones on anything, let alone a golf club.
Walter Rosenthal said it's a natural match.
"Trust me," said the chairman and chief executive officer of the Bobby Jones Golf Company last week during a demo day at the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine. "They go together. Jesse is a master craftsman. Jones was a master player. It all fits into a great product."
Seventy-five years after Jones won golf's grand slam and 45 years after Ortiz' father, Lou, founded Orlimar Golf, the names are now linked with the formation of Bobby Jones Golf. With Ortiz serving as the chief designer, the company is manufacturing a series of drivers, fairway woods and hybrid clubs for men and women, with a fall launch.
The driver heads are 420cc and in lofts of 9.5 and 10.75 degrees for men; and 400cc and 14-degrees for women. The drivers will have two swing ports to provide either a neutral or draw bias option; and the fairway woods come in lofts of 13, 15, 17 and 19 degrees for men and 18 and 23 degrees for women.
The drivers for men will have a suggested retail price of $300, and for women, $250. The men's fairway woods are $200 and hybrid clubs $180; and the women's fairway woods are $180 and hybrids $150.
David Gates Golf will be the first area retail outlet to sell the Bobby Jones clubs. Gates said the clubs will be in stock within the next 30 to 45 days, and customers already have asked about them.
"There's a buzz about the clubs," Gates said. "Normally, you don't see new equipment lines come out in the fall but this is different. Jesse is one of the premier club designers alive and the name of Bobby Jones is one of the most positive and well-known in golf. It's a very good combination."
The drivers and fairway woods are made of Russian beta-titanium and have a polished, forest green finish and a shape that resembles classic persimmon clubs.
Stamped on the bottom of each club is: "Bobby Jones Players Series by Jesse Ortiz." Rosenthal, a 58-year-old Southern California businessman who brought Ortiz into the venture through mutual friends, said it's a marriage of golf pedigrees that they hope creates the next stir in the equipment industry.
"Jesse is the only designer of classic persimmon clubs who then created great metalwoods," Rosenthal said. "We needed to get him back."
BEN SKLAR/The Times-Union
Where Ortiz had gone was a limbo of sorts. After dizzying success with the Orlimar Tri-Metal fairway woods in the late 1990s -- sales went from $1.5 million per year in 1997 to more than $100 million per year by 1999 -- the company had fallen on tougher times since Ortiz took on private investors. Eventually, it was sold to King Par Golf in 2003, a short time after Ortiz left as chief designer.
Financially secure but restless outside of the equipment industry, Ortiz was spending time in his private workshop, tinkering with his next designs. But he wanted to be associated with a company on solid ground and with a quality brand.
Enter Rosenthal, who knew of Ortiz through a restaurateur friend of both. Rosenthal was a retired businessman and cancer survivor who, like Ortiz, didn't need to work.
But, also like Ortiz, he was restless.
Rosenthal was enough of a golf fan to know that the 75th anniversary of Jones' Grand Slam was this year. He also knew that Jones' survivors (who had formed a company called Jonesheirs, and had previously licensed the name and image to a line of clothing after terminating an old equipment licensing deal with Callaway Golf) weren't going to allow the use of his image on just any project.
"When I first called them, I was told, 'Wait in line,'" Rosenthal said. "They get offers all the time. They're very protective of Bobby Jones' name and image, as they should be."
But when they found out Ortiz was involved, it all changed. In relatively quick time, the deal was struck and Bobby Jones Golf was formed.
Ortiz said the clubs will be marketed and sold, for the most part, where Bobby Jones clothing is sold. That means high-end resort shops, golf pro shops and retail outlets.
Ortiz said one mistake about Orlimar products was that too many units were shipped out too quickly.
"When a club professional or retail manager thought he had too much inventory, you'd see the clubs in large retail chains for $99 each," he said. "They didn't respect the brand. We're not going to make the same mistake this time."
Another new wrinkle: instead of gauging early sales of men's equipment before launching a women's line, Bobby Jones Golf is coming out with both at the same time. The company also has golf commentator Ann Liquori on board as its first spokesperson.
"They're showing a tremendous commitment to growing women's golf by developing a full product line for women at the same time as for men," she said. "And believe me, they're good clubs. I get a chance to hit all brands, and get offers to endorse a lot of them. These are the best I've ever hit."
While the clubs look good, Gates said performance will be the deciding factor.
"There's not question about the beauty of the clubs," Gates said. "How well it does will be how well they perform, and I think they're going to perform well."
Led by Jessie Ortiz's designs, Bobby Jones Golf will enter the club market this fall.
By Garry Smits, The Times Union.
Bobby Jones Golf's green-tinted drivers, fairway woods and hybrids have the look of old persimmon clubs and are being designed by famed craftsman Jesse Ortiz (below). BEN SKLAR/The Times-Union
Walter Rosenthal said it's a natural match.
"Trust me," said the chairman and chief executive officer of the Bobby Jones Golf Company last week during a demo day at the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine. "They go together. Jesse is a master craftsman. Jones was a master player. It all fits into a great product."
Seventy-five years after Jones won golf's grand slam and 45 years after Ortiz' father, Lou, founded Orlimar Golf, the names are now linked with the formation of Bobby Jones Golf. With Ortiz serving as the chief designer, the company is manufacturing a series of drivers, fairway woods and hybrid clubs for men and women, with a fall launch.
The driver heads are 420cc and in lofts of 9.5 and 10.75 degrees for men; and 400cc and 14-degrees for women. The drivers will have two swing ports to provide either a neutral or draw bias option; and the fairway woods come in lofts of 13, 15, 17 and 19 degrees for men and 18 and 23 degrees for women.
The drivers for men will have a suggested retail price of $300, and for women, $250. The men's fairway woods are $200 and hybrid clubs $180; and the women's fairway woods are $180 and hybrids $150.
David Gates Golf will be the first area retail outlet to sell the Bobby Jones clubs. Gates said the clubs will be in stock within the next 30 to 45 days, and customers already have asked about them.
"There's a buzz about the clubs," Gates said. "Normally, you don't see new equipment lines come out in the fall but this is different. Jesse is one of the premier club designers alive and the name of Bobby Jones is one of the most positive and well-known in golf. It's a very good combination."
The drivers and fairway woods are made of Russian beta-titanium and have a polished, forest green finish and a shape that resembles classic persimmon clubs.
Stamped on the bottom of each club is: "Bobby Jones Players Series by Jesse Ortiz." Rosenthal, a 58-year-old Southern California businessman who brought Ortiz into the venture through mutual friends, said it's a marriage of golf pedigrees that they hope creates the next stir in the equipment industry.
"Jesse is the only designer of classic persimmon clubs who then created great metalwoods," Rosenthal said. "We needed to get him back."
BEN SKLAR/The Times-Union
Financially secure but restless outside of the equipment industry, Ortiz was spending time in his private workshop, tinkering with his next designs. But he wanted to be associated with a company on solid ground and with a quality brand.
Enter Rosenthal, who knew of Ortiz through a restaurateur friend of both. Rosenthal was a retired businessman and cancer survivor who, like Ortiz, didn't need to work.
But, also like Ortiz, he was restless.
Rosenthal was enough of a golf fan to know that the 75th anniversary of Jones' Grand Slam was this year. He also knew that Jones' survivors (who had formed a company called Jonesheirs, and had previously licensed the name and image to a line of clothing after terminating an old equipment licensing deal with Callaway Golf) weren't going to allow the use of his image on just any project.
"When I first called them, I was told, 'Wait in line,'" Rosenthal said. "They get offers all the time. They're very protective of Bobby Jones' name and image, as they should be."
But when they found out Ortiz was involved, it all changed. In relatively quick time, the deal was struck and Bobby Jones Golf was formed.
Ortiz said the clubs will be marketed and sold, for the most part, where Bobby Jones clothing is sold. That means high-end resort shops, golf pro shops and retail outlets.
Ortiz said one mistake about Orlimar products was that too many units were shipped out too quickly.
"When a club professional or retail manager thought he had too much inventory, you'd see the clubs in large retail chains for $99 each," he said. "They didn't respect the brand. We're not going to make the same mistake this time."
Another new wrinkle: instead of gauging early sales of men's equipment before launching a women's line, Bobby Jones Golf is coming out with both at the same time. The company also has golf commentator Ann Liquori on board as its first spokesperson.
"They're showing a tremendous commitment to growing women's golf by developing a full product line for women at the same time as for men," she said. "And believe me, they're good clubs. I get a chance to hit all brands, and get offers to endorse a lot of them. These are the best I've ever hit."
While the clubs look good, Gates said performance will be the deciding factor.
"There's not question about the beauty of the clubs," Gates said. "How well it does will be how well they perform, and I think they're going to perform well."
