• MOI, Multi-material designs and defined wall thicknesses
• Square shapes conquer the fairways
• Customized clubs for every situation

Starting in 2008, drivers with a hitting surface that have a high COR value (>0.83) are no longer permitted in tournaments. This rule applies to all players, i.e., also to amateurs.

The prohibition of trampoline hitting surfaces has inspired the industry to create new developments, whose properties provide players with many other, in part more exciting advantages. GOLF EUROPE 2007, 15th International Trade Fair for Golf, will show all of them in Munich from 7 to 9 October 2007.

The most important current keyword is certainly MOI ("Moment of Inertia"). The idea behind this is that the higher the moment of inertia, the less a club (regardless of whether iron or wood) tends to twist. This increases the chance that the hitting surface hits the ball directly at the moment of impact. The topic of MOI covers all club areas from drivers to putters. As a result, some people are even proposing a new golf ball model with cores that become harder to the outside.

Among drivers, the efforts to achieve a high MOI have recently resulted in square shapes, which Callaway Golf and Nike are launching on the market this season. Manufacturers, who have taken this path, will continue to pursue it and further the idea of square and practical onto the fairways. But new shapes also include ones, which have been developed further from the classic drop profile, for example, that
have more of a triangular contour or ones whose club head is not curved classically upward, but instead is tapered sharply downward. The design possibilities provided by modern CAD systems have not been taken advantage of fully yet either.

The limit is being reached everywhere with respect to size and specifications: XX values in size, inertia and lightness. And the shafts? Lighter and longer. The driver shafts 2008 are between 45 ¼ and 45 ¾ inches with the goal of generating as much club head speed as possible. Whether this results in less control will have to be seen in actual playing.

Multi-material designs are not always obvious at a glance, but they produce noticeable advantages for players. They make it possible to distribute weight defined (especially in the lower back part of clubs) to support a steep ball launch and a high ball trajectory. The same direction is also being taken with production using different material thicknesses.

One of the most important topics of the future is the adaptation to different swing profiles and game situations. TaylorMade took the first step in 2004. Other companies have followed; in 2008, more drivers with fixed and moveable weight cartridges will send balls into their trajectories. Recent relaxed rules of the regulatory agencies concerning this adjustability in woods and irons are smoothing the way for moveable club components on the fairways. Changeable hitting surfaces are also allowed for putters in the meantime in addition to weights. In addition, the innovative force of this club type is not only promoting sweeping shapes with a high moment of inertia, but also refined adjustment systems.

Multi-material designs are also being used in irons to an unprecedented extent. In the segment of play-supporting irons, ultra-thin and highly rigid hitting areas will be seen and heard, which are inserted in club heads that are primarily only a frame. Soft synthetic materials will be combined manufacturer-dependent for optimizing sound and feeling.

Hybrids have also become firmly established and are supplementing the irons 4, 5 and 6 and even 7 individual cases in starter sets. This also applies to ladies' and senior citizens' sets. The season 2008 should be exciting for this club type; new shapes and new loft/long versions can be expected.

Custom-fitting, clubs tailor-made, have now taken hold in the complete golf market. The latest developments here concern refining the already well-known connector systems. According to leading manufacturers, they are aligned so well today that the connector mechanism hardly affects the (drive) weight at all. Completely new paths could be taken here over the coming years as a symbiosis of technical possibilities and acceptance by the regulatory agencies.

7/MK/sk