Equipment

2020 GolfWRX Holiday Gift Guide: Golf gifts for the Value Seeker

Published

6 years ago

Nov 23, 2020

It’s that time of year again, GolfWRX members, the moment we start filling our wish lists with the golf gear we want this holiday season.

The GolfWRX Holiday Gift Guide was created to ensure that our readers give (and hopefully receive) the very best golf gifts on the planet. These gift ideas will suit any budget, and each item was hand-picked by our staff.

In an effort to provide more value and tailored recommendations, we’re presenting our guide as a series this year, targeting “the purist,” “the gearhead,” “the value seeker,” “the golfer looking to improve,” “the clothes horse,” and “the big spender.” (Editor’s note: remaining installments to publish tomorrow and Wednesday)

You know the value seeker by his/her eschewing of anything that will put a significant dent into the wallet while still getting the most from their game, this includes equipment, practice tools, or anything else you might find filling out a golf bag – maybe even the golf bag itself.

Here are our best recommendations for “the value seeker” in your life.

Tour Edge Hot Launch series clubs

Tour Edge and its Hot Launch line of clubs are one of the undisputed leaders when it comes to offering game improvement technology and value to golfers of all skill levels. The newest Hot Launch 521 Series, which includes the Hot Launch E521 and Hot Launch C521 line, can be broken up into two categories to help players quickly identify which clubs they should most consider, and it goes from drivers all the way down to wedges.

The Hot Launch E Series offers high-MOI, extreme game improvement designs with a singular focus on delivering easy-to-launch performance, which is built around correcting the most common miss in golf: the dreaded slice.

The Hot Launch C Series is designed for golfers who desire classicly shaped clubs that offer optimal launch and spin rates, while still getting all the benefits of easy to hit, forgiving clubs built around maximizing MOI.

Buy here.

Snell golf balls: $28.99 (when you buy 5 dozen)

The premium golf ball market if full of high-end competition from major OEMs, and in the direct to consumer market, there is value to be had at the cost of performance, but with Snell golf balls, you get the best of both worlds.

Founder Dean Snell has been in the golf ball business for over 25 years, and with Snell Golf, you can skip the middle man and go directly to the source—and save money. Beyond just saving money on one dozen, the more you buy, the more you save. When you buy 5 dozen (hopefully that’s at least a season’s worth for most golfers on your list), it breaks down to only $28.99 a box!

Buy now.

Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft Premier putters: $129

Golfers love milled putters, and Cleveland Golf’s Huntington Beach Soft Premier line proves that you can get a milled putter packed with technology for under $150.

The Huntington Beach Soft Premier line is all about enhancing the looks and feel of the putter while continuing to offer familiar shapes and proven technology. The grey satin finish reduces glare and offers a premium look—without a premium price.

Buy here.

GoSports Golf Practice Net: $79.99

Practicing your golf game shouldn’t just be a nice weather activity, and whether it’s winter or summer unless you are a member at a club or have already purchased a membership at a local range, buckets of golf balls can really add up.

Buy here.

Golf Avenue/GolfWRX trade-in program

Golf Avenue is one of the largest online shops for used clubs, and there is no better value when it comes to gear than buying used. They also offer a huge selection of new closeout priced bags, shoes, and accessories to help outfit any golfer with the essentials.

GolfWRX offers readers a 10 percent trade-in bonus on every trade, and further, you’ll earn a 25 percent trade-in bonus?when you complete any purchase thru December 31, 2020! What could be better for a value seeker.

Buy here.

Imperial hat: >$30

The Imperial brand is over 100 years old, but they never rest on their laurels and are constantly working on new designs and partnering with others to create unique collections. From dogs to donuts they have fun graphics and styles to find the perfect fit for any golfer on your list. You can get what amounts to a premium, custom hat at a reasonable price.

Buy here.

Linksoul Gaiter Gift Box: $65

When it comes to premium face coverings that are stylish to boot, Linksoul’s offerings are first in class. And with the average price of a quality poly/cotton-blend gater running in the $20-25 range, take advance of the opportunity to snag four for $65.

Buy here.

Caddy Tek CaddyLite V3 3-wheel push cart: $176

There is no better way to enjoy a round of golf than walking the course, and with the Caddy Tek CaddyLite V3 you can do that in style and at a great price. It’s compact and comes with an umbrella holder along with an undercarriage cooler bag to keep your clubs and accessories at your fingertips as you stroll the course in style.

Buy here.

Gogogo ProGS24 Laser Rangefinder: $90

Nobody wants to be the “What yardage did you get?” golfer in your group, and with the Gogogo laser range finder, you won’t have to be! It can measure larger objects up to 650 yards, but also has a “flagpole locking function” to help get you locked onto the pin inside of 150 yards, along with 6X magnification for ease of use. For less than $100, it’s hard to find a better value and more highly rated (4.5 stars on Amazon.com) laser range finder!

Buy here.

Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

2 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.

Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: Titleist Vokey Proto Wedges 54M, 60T

Published

5 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @Putt4Dough is selling some prototype wedges from Vokey Wedgeworks. These include a 54 degree wedge with the M grind and a 60 degree wedge with a T grind.

From the listing:

(1) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 54M with a Tour Issue DGS400 shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet (logo down). Standard length, lie, and loft. BB&F ferrule. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

(2) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 60T with a KBS Tour 130X shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet. Standard length, lie, and loft. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules.