ELY seems to have put in a double bottom. We should be in for a nice period of price gains.
Any comments on the quality or earnings potential of the new clubs recently announced?
Callaway Golf Introduces The Big Bertha(R) X-12 Irons - The Company's Best Stainless Steel
Irons Ever
PR Newswire - January 12, 1998 08:39
CARLSBAD, Calif., Jan. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Callaway Golf Company
(NYSE: ELY) today announced the introduction of its latest product
breakthrough, the Big Bertha(R) X-12(TM) Irons. These new stainless steel
irons, which will replace the existing line of Big Bertha Stainless Steel
Irons, have an exciting new look, several significant new features and more of
the advanced playability benefits that golfers around the world have come to
expect from Callaway(R) woods and irons.
Designed by Callaway's Senior Executive Vice President and Chief of New
Products Richard C. Helmstetter, and his team, including renowned club
designer Roger Cleveland, the new Big Bertha X-12 Irons have a sleek, good-
looking profile.
"These are the best, and the best looking, stainless steel irons that
Callaway Golf has ever produced," said Donald H. Dye, President and CEO of
Callaway Golf. "We believe the new Big Bertha X-12 Irons continue our
tradition of introducing innovative golf clubs that bring greater satisfaction
and pleasure to all golfers, regardless of skill level. They are the result
of Callaway Golf's commitment to creating more satisfying golf clubs through
research and development. These new irons make evident that our original
mission -- to provide Demonstrably Superior and Pleasingly Different(R)
products -- is ongoing."
Among the new features on the Big Bertha X-12 Irons, which will be
available in retail shops around the world within approximately 10 days, is a
new, Multi-Layer Design effect on the back of each club. Each layer represents
about a 0.020" (twenty-thousandth of an inch) difference, and it affects the
feel, sound and strength of the club. This feature also provides increased
forgiveness on off-center hits and ensures that the center of gravity is in
the best position. For example, the center of gravity on the 7-iron is only
0.689" and on the 5-iron it is 0.705", remarkably low for an iron with an
enlarged clubhead.
The new Big Bertha X-12 Irons also feature a new variation on an older
Callaway design theme -- the 360-degree undercut channel that began with the
original Big Bertha Irons. The original channel was an identical width all
the way around the club's perimeter. The new undercut design still goes 360
degrees, but varies in width, a change that enabled Callaway Golf's designers
to place the center of gravity away from the face. This helps to give a
sleeker, more classic look to the irons.
The sole of the new Big Bertha X-12 Irons also is narrower, with a
slightly tighter radius. The clubheads also are slightly shorter than the
original Big Bertha. This helps reduce turf drag for improved performance out
of the rough.
The features that combined to make Big Bertha Irons the most popular and
most playable in the world are still evident in the new Big Bertha X-12 Irons,
including the patented S2H2(R) (short straight hollow hosel) concept. The
concept takes the weight from the hosel where it is useless and transfers it
to the hitting areas where it is most needed. "Tru-Bore(R)" technology,
another Callaway Golf trademark that extends the shaft through the clubhead
for improved stability and feel, also is incorporated in the Big Bertha X-12
Irons.
"Our research has shown that the Big Bertha X-12 Irons will deliver shots
that are longer, higher and straighter," Richard Helmstetter said. "They are
extremely uniform in performance, even though you may strike them on different
parts of the clubface. They are also much easier to hit out of the rough than
the original Big Bertha 100 percent stainless steel irons."
Reactions from Callaway Golf Staff Professionals who have tested the Big
Bertha X-12 Irons have been uniformly enthusiastic. Some Callaway Staff Pros
will be putting the irons in play this week on the PGA Tour. A number of
Senior PGA Tour, PGA European Tour and LPGA Staff Professionals also have
already shown a desire to switch to the irons.
The price point for the new Big Bertha X-12 Irons will be the same as for
the original Big Bertha Stainless Steel Irons. For more information and for
photographs of Big Bertha X-12 Irons, visit the company's web site at
www.callawaygolf.com.
SOURCE Callaway Golf Company
/CONTACT: Krista Mallory of Callaway Golf, 760-931-1771/
(ELY) |
