Equipment

When OEM finishes just aren’t good enough…part 1

Published

17 years ago

Jan 9, 2009

R Hetzel

Nike Golf has really improved upon their golf products since entering the OEM golf equipment realm. I like my Nike wedges so much, except for the chrome finish, I decided a change to their looks was in order. This past season I gamed a set of forged Nike Pro Combo Tours with a somewhat matching set of Nike Forged Tiger Woods 56 and 60 degree sand wedges. They fit right in with my iron set, and from inside 100 yards I was deadly (well for me anyway) accurate with these wedges. Yet, something was missing in the aesthetics department. For me, a chromed sand wedge is akin to golf fashion faux pas.

I was now in search of a properly finished wedge so I wandered over to the SV wedge lineup (the Victory Red line wasn’t even a rumor at the time, and even now they are the wrong finish for me), I liked the SV’s more subdued finishes, but I liked the performance of my Tiger Woods wedges more. In short, I couldn’t stand the chrome finish on these wedges. Many times this summer the bright sunlight bounced off the wedge face and right into my eyes. I don’t wear sunglasses while paying so this became quite a problem. In my mind there were two possible solutions. The first, and least attractive solution was to switch to a different brand of sand wedge. A wedge with an oil can finish more to my liking, no thank you, I really like my Nike Tiger Woods wedge line up. The second solution was to figure out a way to change the finish on my wedges. Sure, we all see the guys on the forums who bust out the blowtorch in the garage and change the finish. What I really wanted OEM looking, or better because these wedges (and me) deserve it. The finish that Nike (and other OEMs on their stuff as well) had neglected to put on there in the first place. Spend some time on the Golfwrx forums and you’ll see a ton of refinished putters, wedges and even irons, all with aftermarket finishes better than what came on the golf club originally.

Here are my wedges, removed from the shafts and ready for shipping to Black Oxide Service.

You could also get in contact with Monica at Black Oxide Service, or also known by the acronym, “BOS”. BOS can do all types of refinishes to golf clubs. They offer options for carbon steel and stainless steel as well. Just ask via e-mail and Monica will send out a super neat power point with a ton of pictures showing new finishes and various paint fill options they have completed for their discriminating customers. The possibilities are almost endless. For me it was pretty straight forward and simple, wait until winter sets in, send of fthe Nike wedge heads to BOS for a refinish more to my personal liking, have them re-do the paintfill to my specs (this was the toughest part, deciding on paint fill colors) and then wait for them to arrive back in Ohio. Stay tuned for part two of this story, we’ll see the wedges up close and refinished and then go more in depth with Black Oxide Service and what they have to offer as well. Stay tuned!

Equipment

Slab city on the Korn Ferry Tour — Lead Tape Report

Published

17 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This week, we have our Tour Photographer, Greg Moore, on the ground at the OccuNet Classic at Tascosa Golf Club in Amarillo, Texas, for the 14th event of the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour season. With that, we see some great things in the Lead Tape Report as we roll into Amarillo.

Joel Thelen

Monday Qualifier, Joel Thelen is in the field this week. He has played on the Korn Ferry Tour for a full season in 2023, and he is back in action this week. A couple of clubs caught my eye this week in his bag.

First off: His trusted Titleist 816 H2 hybrid. This club came out in October of 2015, and it still remains strong in the bag. Also, take a look at this Odyssey White Hot OG 7, putting a capital S in the 7S model. This custom neck has some impressive lean for an arm-lock-style putter. The bottom of the putter is covered in tape for optimal weighting.

Mitchell Meissner

Taking a look at Mitchell Meissner’s bag this week, we have some great lead tape coverage. Top to bottom working from fairway metals, irons, and wedges. We can see on the short irons and wedges that there is tape at the base of the grip, adding a little counterbalance. Along with that, some tape on the short irons and wedges as well. Moving to his putter, he rolls the Odyssey 7 Bird putter. Meissner putts left-handed and strikes the ball right-handed.

Whats in the Bag

Bud Cauley WITB 2026 (June)

Published

18 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Will Schube

Bud Cauley had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.

Driver: Titleist GTS2 (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X

3-wood: Titleist GTS3 (15 degrees, B1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 70 TX

7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 80 TX

Irons: Titleist U505 (3), Titleist 620 MB (4-9)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 8 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F), WedgeWorks (60-K*)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putters: Scotty Cameron Tour Prototype, Scotty Cameron GOLO 6.3 Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

See more in-hand photos of Bud Cauley’s clubs here.

Equipment

Name every set of irons you’ve owned – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

18 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user has offered up a prompt for the true sickos, inviting fellow forum members to share every set of irons they’ve ever owned. As to be expected, this is a lengthy forum topic.

@Lamosteve began:

Can you name every set of irons you’ve owned? Here’s mine

Spalding Dots
Spalding Eclipse
Ram Lazer FX
Lynx Parallax
Mizuno EZ Comp
Ben Hogans
Cleveland CG Red
Taylor Made R9s
PING i20
PING iE1
Taylor Made M6

Our members in the forum have been offering up their own collections. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

macedan: “Started with a hand-me-down Golden Bear set from my brother when I was in high school, never really played more than once a year or got into the game until about summer of 2017. First purchased a set of Cleveland CG4’s (I actually really miss this set sometimes, soft & not terribly large for a GI iron), moved into Nike Vapor Fly’s by the end of the year. Those lasted until spring of 18 when I decided I wanted new, so I traded them in for TM Rbladez. Honestly, although I liked the Rbladez, poor decision on my part, I think this was really about the only time so far that after a week or two I was kicking myself for not staying with what I had. Rbladez stayed with me until late last summer when I switched to P790’s and (knock on wood) I am hoping this will be my longest lasting set.”
JimmyC59: “MacGregor Jack Nicklaus Triple Crown. Palmer The Standard. Still play these.”
jgrzask: “Tommy Armour 845u
Mizuno MP-32
Mizuno MP-33 (2 sets)
Bridgestone J33cb – still own
Srixon i-302 (2 sets) – still own
Tourstage X-Blades – still own
Mizuno Hot Metal – still own
Nike Forged Blades – still own
Titleist 714 AP1 – still own
Cobra Forged SS – still own”

Entire Thread: “Name every set of irons you’ve owned.”