The modern belt has been around for centuries – obviously there is little technology involved and the only materials required are leather and metal. For me, that is part of the appeal of belts. The fact that two simple materials can be combined in so many ways to create a one of a kind “pants holder upper”. Well, a funny thing happened a few years ago. Nexbelt came out with a buckle that totally changed how a belt and a buckle work together.

While Chase 54 is far from a household name, they have grown incredibly fast over the past 4 years and there is a good chance you can find them in your golf club. Unlike most apparel start-ups that are founded by designers, Chase 54 comes from the manufacturing side. Basically, the company had tons of capacity so they decided to start their own line of apparel. With the cost side of the equation under control, Chase 54 has been able to pound out lines quicker than Rick James back in 1981.

“Do you come from a land down under?

Where women glow and men plunder?”

Finally, I have an excuse to quote Men at Work lyrics. Oh, come on, you know you loved that song so don’t even pretend to not know the words. While we all know the “greatness” of Men at Work, I will forgive you if you have not heard of Forte golf balls unless you say “mate” or eat VegeMite sandwiches, because these balls are primarily sold in Australia.

For this review, we played two of Forte’s golf balls (they make four). Specifically, I will review the Forte Tour Performance and the Apex golf balls.

Growing up in the 80’s I am all too familiar with the “puffy jacket”. Looks aside, if you have ever donned a puffy jacket you know the two words you won’t utter are “I’m cold”. I am not exactly clear on the science, but puffy jackets dominate when it comes to warmth.

Finding the right mix of colors to create bold patterns is not an easy task. Too often brands end up looking unprofessional or even clownish. In other words, not appropriate for serious golfers. Fortunately, Bunker Mentality pulls off a fun look while staying within the accepted golf boundaries.

The beer of the month club may have started this trend but the cat is surely out of the bag now. With companies competing for the same customers, more and more are turning to some type of subscription model to boost sales and create loyalty. The idea is simple for these companies: lock in purchases in exchange for discounts and exclusive offerings. For customers the hook is not only the savings but ease of having products delivered to your door on a regular basis…like Christmas but every month.

First off, I am a brand person rather than a piece person. What I mean by that is that I prefer to find a brand that I like and then create a collection of pieces from that brand, rather than find individual pieces from a number of brands. The reason being is that once I lock onto a brand that I like, I can feel comfortable with everything from sizing to fit to quality. Moreover, I like the idea of being a brand ambassador and feeling like an adhoc “member of the team”. You know, “sponsored by xxx”.

Trying to keep up with all of the new golf apparel brands can be quite the challenge, as it seems a new label pops up each day. Plus, the lines between golf apparel and just ‘apparel’ continue to blur. I mean, what makes a shirt a “golf shirt” or a pair of shorts “golf shorts”? Frankly not that much. Sure there are some technical properties, such as material leaning towards performance, but mostly what we are talking about is a style that looks like it belongs on a golf course.

$99 for Three Bombtech Wedges?

Seriously, when Bombtech offered to send me their new wedges I was more than a bit skeptical. I am no math major but it is hard for me to figure out how you make money on a $33 wedge that has an ounce of quality in it. I am not picking on Bombtech either, I feel the same about a burger, fries and a drink for $1.50. At some point, low pricing becomes a signal of low quality.

Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what is Heaven for? – Robert Browning

…we wanted a cool place for our buddies and customers just to hang out, talk golf, watch golf, roll putts and tinker with putters. – Neal Rohrbach

Where does he get those wonderful toys? – The Joker

It’s probably best for us all that the reach of the founders of Strokes Gained Putters exceeds their grasp for now, or they might still be lounging inside Strokes Gained’s luxurious putting studio cum world headquarters. And who could blame them?

A couple of years ago I ended up having dinner and drinks with the founder of My Golf Spy and one of his writers. Among the many topics we spent time talking about was the rise of the boutique putter market. For years the putter market was dominated only by the major brands like Ping and Callaway. However, with the increased popularity of Scotty Cameron, brands like Edel and Piretti got more attention from people looking for some putter bling.

The idea of putter bling obviously flies in the face of what MGS stands for, since they obsess with being “datacratic”. In other words, they were having none of my argument that looks matter.

I don’t care how many Major Championships Greg Norman coulda, woulda, shoulda won, he has absolutely won the game of life. If you still shed a tear for the big Aussie, check out his interview on Feherty and you will quickly realize he is holding all of the cards. The fact is, most golfers careers are relatively short compared to their endeavors after golf. Greg Norman has certainly made the most of his time so far.

As a blogger and interested party of golf apparel, the Iliac brand has been on my radar to review for about 4 years. On Tour, we have seen recent PGA Champion Jimmy Walker wear Iliac, as well as 2015 Open winner Zack Johnson. Other brand ambassadors have included the “human lightening bolt” Retief Goosen, Justin Leonard and Jin Park.

You would think it would be pretty straightforward to design a good pair of golf shorts, but unfortunately that seems to not be the case. While I have plenty of quality golf shirts, quality shorts maintain a “short” stack in my closet (no pun… whatever). For me the keys to a good pair of shorts – besides a good cut – is the material and pocket configuration.

For years I have had my eye on the Adidas Tour 360, but for whatever reason I have never owned a pair. Unlike most models of golf shoes, the Tour 360 have remained relatively consistent over the past 10 years without a major design overhaul. This year’s model is no exception, although they definitely look way cooler than past models.