Review - Winn Dri-Tac Grips

Butch Harmon swears by Winn grips, (possibly due to some sponsorship deal - who knows?) but it's not hard to understand why. I have been using Winn grips since I started regripping my own clubs a few years ago, putting Xi7s on both irons and woods.

The Dri-Tac seems to have taken over from the Xi7 and is similar in appearance. The red and black (my favoured colour scheme,) looks great with its silver detailing. It has a soft feel compared with the Xi7, but still gives the confidence that a firmer grip gives (at least to me.) To say that it is tacky is like saying that a fish likes water, and these grips don't seem to be that different to the fish. They play very well in damp conditions and stick to your hands like duct tape to... well, anything. This tackiness tends to degrade over time, however the grippiness remains. I tend not to use a glove playing golf but I'm not sure a glove would add anything when using these.

They are marketed as having high shock absorption and to be honest, I'm not going to argue with that. They certainly don't send any shock waves up through my hands when I hit a poor shot, (yeah like that happens a lot.)

These are not the cheapest grips on the market but for what I would call a mid range price, you are getting a top of the range grip. If you can afford them, this is the grip for you. It is the benchmark for all future grip reviews.

Look: Great styling 4/5
Feel: Very tacky, soft yet firm(?) 4/5
Durability: Still grippy even when tackiness degrades 4/5
Water Resistance: Good in the wet 4/5
Value: Mid range pricing, but a great grip 3/5

Clone Clubs - My First Experience

I remember a guy who I worked with telling me about clone clubs about ten years ago. He said they were modelled on the branded clubs, but were totally 'legit' because they weren't supposed to BE the branded clubs, and had names like Turbo Power, Heater and Command. Over the next couple of years, every time I though about getting new clubs, I considered clone clubs. I did a bit of internet searching and found a number of places in the USA where these clubs could be procured.

The day came when I decided I was getting new clubs. My old Lynx Oversize irons with graphite shafts, which I'd previously bought on a visit to the States, just weren't cutting it for me anymore, despite delivering me a hole-in-one and a matchplay title in my golf society. The promise of deep cavities, peripheral weight distribution and increased sweet spot, was too much.

I visited my local golf store with a view to trying out some branded clubs, then seeing what the clones could do on a price comparison. I tried a few clubs but the Ping G2 irons were exceptional. I looked down at the long irons with confidence, with their thick top line, and almost hybrid feel. The short irons with their massive faces made me feel as if I couldn't possible hit a fat shot. These were the clubs I would buy - but without the Ping name.

I hurried home and quickly found my preferred site - Pinemeadow Golf, which happened to be doing Ping G2 clone irons, which looked very similar to the G2s I had tried. I read some very positive reviews about Pinemeadow, and the clones, which had the rather naff name of Oxygen Type-S irons, and then spent a few months trying to decide to buy them. It was a risk, in fact a big risk. I had never hit these clubs, never even seen them, didn't have any experience buying over the internet from the US... eventually I made the decision.

Now you must understand, The Pings were over £500 at the time (things haven't changed much) but the clones were $165 for 3-PW. Shipping would be around $35-40 so I was looking at around $200 which translated to about £130 at the time, plus duty was taking my total club price, delivered to my door for about £160. BARGAIN.

It was June, my birthday was coming up. I remember sitting one Sunday night, placing my order, then putting my credit card details through, and it was done. My clone clubs were ordered.

I was expecting to wait a couple of weeks, but much to my sheer delight, the clubs arrived the following Friday - Unbelievable! I happened to be planning to play golf that Friday with a friend, so I was overjoyed to be able to play with my new clubs. I took the out of the packaging and found myself looking at the Ping clubs I'd tested weeks before. They were amazing. So far so good.

The clubs were fantastic. Such a big sweet spot. I didn't seem to be able to hit poor shots. My normal fade-come-slice in the long irons had turned to a DRAW! I was taking divots with the short sticks, something which I had not done before. Okay, this was a new better technology, and there was the inevitable 'bump' you get with playing with new clubs, but I can truthfully say, eight or nine years later, these clubs were a great buy. Yes, I had plenty of off days with them, I learnt to hit plenty of those poor shots which had alluded me that first day, but all in all. they have served me very well. In fact it's maybe time to think about a new set...


Ping G2s, Oxygen Type-S