Partnership With OB Sports Brings PGA Tour-Level Custom Club-Fitting To The Portland Area
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Hot Stix Golf, the golf industry’s leading independent custom club fitting and equipment testing lab, announced that it will open a state-of-the-art club-fitting facility at Langdon Farms Golf Club, located in Aurora, Oregon, just south of Portland. The Club fitting services will run from now to October 1, 2008. This new location provides Hot Stix Golf’s proprietary Tour-Level golf club fitting services for the first time to local Portland area residents.
The unique joint venture between Hot Stix Golf and OB Sports Golf Management (management firm for Langdon Farms Golf Club) combines cutting-edge, custom-fitting technology (Vector launch monitors) with first-class facilities, making Langdon Farms Golf Club the leading provider of advanced golf fitting services in Oregon. The fitting sessions will take place on Langdon Farms’ expansive outdoor practice tee allowing the professional club fitters to examine ball flight from launch to landing.
“Oregon continues to wow the golf world with gems like Langdon Farms,” said Tom Graunke, chairman of Hot Stix Golf. “Along with the surge in great golf courses came a surge in demand for golf equipment. We believe that an increasingly golf-savvy public will take advantage of our game-improving club-fitting services.”
Hot Stix Golf is truly unique in the golf industry in that they fit golfers to the best equipment regardless of brand i.e. if, for example, Callaway is the best fit, that’s what they’ll recommend. This impartiality is one of the main ingredients of our success. Since opening its first club-fitting facility in Scottsdale, Arizona in 2000, Hot Stix Golf has custom fit more than 35,000 amateur players and more than 100 Tour professionals. Graunke credits the growth in demand to Hot Stix’ ability to provide general golf consumers with an affordable, state-of-the-art club-fitting and customization process that is identical in every way to that which the major manufacturers provide to Tour players and VIPs. However, Hot Stix Golf has two important advantages over even the manufacturers – cost and impartiality.
“We independently test the equipment, we fit the golfer to the best equipment for their unique swing, then we built the clubs to Tour-level specifications,” said Graunke. “It’s about quality and consistency. The Tour guys were the first to demand that. All we’re doing is making it available for everyone else.”
The Hot Stix Golf Difference
“At our new Portland-area facility, a Tour-Fitting costs just $125 for woods and $125 for irons,” said Graunke. “Plus, we offer all of the product lines from all the major manufacturers and, if requested, we present options that suit our customer’s budget.”
During a Tour-Fitting at the Langdon Farms facility, Hot Stix’ certified club fitters gather data using a proprietary fitting system as players hit a variety of shots. This information enables the club fitters to determine a player’s exact “Swing DNA” – the elements that make an individual’s golf swing unique.
A player’s Swing DNA is then compared against a vast database of golf club and component performance data that Hot Stix Golf has captured over time. In more than six years, Hot Stix has invested millions of dollars to independently test the products of all the major club and component manufacturers. Over 100,000 R&D testing robot swings have been completed since Hot Stix opened, along with advanced shaft, club head and ball testing. This testing has enabled Hot Stix Golf to create the most comprehensive repository of golf equipment data in the industry.
By comparing a player’s Swing DNA to the performance data of various golf clubs and components, Hot Stix’ club fitters are able to determine the ideal makeup of a player’s set of golf clubs — the number and type of woods, hybrids, irons and wedges for that particular player, as well as the precise loft, lie, length, shaft and grip for each club.
To make reservations or to learn more about Hot Stix Golf, please call toll free 877-513-1333, or visit www.hotstixgolf.com.
Ranked as the “#1 best course to hold a golf tournament or corporate event in Oregon” and as the “#2 public golf course in Oregon” (only behind Bandon Dunes) by the Portland Business Journal, Langdon Farms Golf Club is home to 18 holes of stunning golf designed by John Fought and Robert Cupp. Langdon Farms Golf Club opened to rave reviews in 1995 and immediately became a favorite in the Portland area. Over the years, the local, regional and even national golf writers have consistently recognized it as a truly unique golf experience. The “Big Red Barn” Clubhouse, winner of Crittenden Magazine’s “Best New Clubhouse” for 1996, was modeled after the original barn on Mr. Langdon’s farm. The original barn, built in 1916, actually comes into play down the left side of the 8th hole. The Big Red Barn clubhouse, creative signage, theme development, and links-style golf course design and maintenance elements have all contributed to the exceptional reputation of Langdon Farms. The golf facility is open, as displayed at the entrance, to the “PUBLIC ONLY”. For more information on Langdon Farms Golf Club, to reserve a tee time, or to book wedding, tournament, or special event, call: 503.678.GOLF (4653). Or book tee times online at www.langdonfarms.com
Langdon Farms Golf Club is professionally managed by Scottsdale based – OB Sports Golf Management, a diversified, golf-oriented company with a long history of success. OB Sports currently manages 30 premier golf courses and country clubs throughout the United States and Mexico. Known for its comprehensive and personalized services since 1972, OB Sports has become widely acclaimed as the leader in boutique-style golf course management. For more information on OB Sports, visit www.obsports.com or call (480) 948-1300.
Contact:
åÊJerry Rose, APR
åÊ (480) 348-7540
