PineMeadow Golf clubs

[A5]

PMG Website

For those who don't know, PMG makes "clones" of expensive golf clubs and sells them for a much lower price. They say that they use the same suppliers for the shafts and club heads and that the clubs are cheaper because they spend a lot less money on advertising.

The problem is that the only reviews I can find are on their own website or on websites they advertise heavily on (or maybe even own, I can't tell), so the lack of negative reviews is suspicious. I'd like to get a good price on some new irons, but I don't want something really crappy

 

[Random Variable]

Namebrand golf clubs are way overpriced, but I would avoid companies that make clones. I would search for an older (but unused) set of Nike's or TaylorMade's.

 

[A5]

Originally posted by: Random Variable
Namebrand golf clubs are way overpriced, but I would avoid companies that make clones. I would search for an older (but unused) set of Nike's or TaylorMade's.

Do you have any good sites or stores to look at for that? I can only seem to find the latest and greatest $600+ clubs

 

[Spineshank]

Ive bought numerous clubs off of ebay for cheap. Theres always certified pre-owned sellers on there for golf clubs.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

The golf courses here sell off their rentals once or twice a year. Right now you could get a complete set of Nikes (1, 3, 5... 3-9 iron, SW, PW, Putter & Bag) for about $500. You might want to see if any of your local courses are gearing up for an end of season rental clearance. Maybe around Aug or Sept?

 

[Gibsons]

My understanding is that there are about 5 factories/foundries (in China, natch) that actually make all the clubs. If that's true, then it stands to reason there's not much difference between clubs (particularly irons, assuming you're comparing forged to forged and cast to cast, etc).

Gaghalfrunt has a lot of experience in this area and usually posts in these threads....

 

[Vic]

Pinemeadow makes decent knockoffs from what I've heard. IMO it's more important to get your clubs custom-fitted than to worry about the brand name.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Originally posted by: Gibsons
My understanding is that there are about 5 factories/foundries (in China, natch) that actually make all the clubs. If that's true, then it stands to reason there's not much difference between clubs (particularly irons, assuming you're comparing forged to forged and cast to cast, etc).

Gaghalfrunt has a lot of experience in this area and usually posts in these threads....

Who's this Gaghalfrunt guy?

There are a lot more than 5 foundries, but you're generally right. Just about everything comes from China and it is possible that a $500 club and a $5 club can come from the same foundry and be made from the same materials. It's very easy to find a no name club that matches the quality and performance of the big OEM names like Titleist, Taylormade, Callaway, etc. But it's also easy to find some Chinese clubs that are inferior knockoffs made of garbage materials, shoddy workmanship, zero quality control and bad performance. I don't know enough about PineMeadow to be sure of whether they're one of the good ones or one of the bad ones. The fact that I don't know them would lead me to believe they're the latter.

OP, if you're interested in finding quality clubs at good prices you're on the right track going with lesser known names, but I wouldn't recommend going with this particular noname. You can probably find higher quality for similar price if you go through a dealer that carries well known and reliable brands like Golfsmith, Golfworks, Wishon or Hireko

 

[Slick5150]

I picked up a Pinemeadow driver last year. I actually liked it quite a bit.

 

[A5]

OP, if you're interested in finding quality clubs at good prices you're on the right track going with lesser known names, but I wouldn't recommend going with this particular noname. You can probably find higher quality for similar price if you go through a dealer that carries well known and reliable brands like Golfsmith, Golfworks, Wishon or Hireko

Could you suggest a few game-improvement product lines from these places? There's a lot of choices from all these companies Right now I kind of like the Acer Mantara line from Hireko, but I have no idea if they are good for what I need from my clubs.

My current irons are a set of Ping Eye 2 knockoffs that are pretty old, and I'd like to get something that helps me be more consistent and keeps the amount of spin low.

Edit:
The word I was looking for was 'forgiving' - I need very forgiving clubs

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Originally posted by: A5

OP, if you're interested in finding quality clubs at good prices you're on the right track going with lesser known names, but I wouldn't recommend going with this particular noname. You can probably find higher quality for similar price if you go through a dealer that carries well known and reliable brands like Golfsmith, Golfworks, Wishon or Hireko

Could you suggest a few game-improvement product lines from these places? There's a lot of choices from all these companies Right now I kind of like the Acer Mantara line from Hireko, but I have no idea if they are good for what I need from my clubs.

My current irons are a set of Ping Eye 2 knockoffs that are pretty old, and I'd like to get something that helps me be more consistent and keeps the amount of spin low.

Edit:
The word I was looking for was 'forgiving' - I need very forgiving clubs

The Acer line is almost all ultra game improvement and if that's what you're looking for it provides a great bang for the buck. They have the wide soles, low COG, high offset and extreme perimeter weighting that are thought of as being "forgiving" although that's kind of a misnomer. They forgive a certain set of common flaws that are typically found in beginners. If you have a different set of flaws that might not be all that forgiving.

But if you're looking for consistency or low spin that could be hard to accomplish. First and foremost consistency comes from the swing, not the sticks. If you're making a lot of different mistakes like slicing one shot, hooking the next, topping some, fatting some, etc, no clubs will make you more consistent. That takes practice and lessons. As for spin you have to get on a launch monitor under the care of a qualified fitter to get that dialed in. "Low spin" is something you hear a lot on TV as pertains to pros. But the truth is that different swing speeds demand different spin rates. A pro that swings the driver at 115mph will get the best results at 2200-2500 rpm depending on launch angle. For an amateur that swings 100 mph that's too little spin. The player will lose distance because the ball won't stay in the air long enough at that speed and spin rate. For a woman or senior player that swings at 75mph thats WAY too little spin and their shots would be low line drives that don't get close to the maximum distance possible. You're not looking for LOW spin, you're looking for the RIGHT spin and too little is just as bad as too much. That's something you can't guess at. You need to get on a monitor to be sure that your clubs are optimized for your launch conditions.

 

[lykaon78]

Edit:
The word I was looking for was 'forgiving' - I need very forgiving clubs

Two or three lessons with a pro may erase the need to buy forgiving clubs. Unfortunately there are no clubs that will completely erase bad swing mechanics.

 

[A5]

I guess it might help to give the play-by-play of a typical hole for me:
Shot 1: Slice tee shot into the woods or rough. Occasionally hit a straight drive ~225-250yds.
Shot 2(& sometimes 3) : Either top the ball or hit it really fat with an iron (I rarely if ever play my fairway woods). If I do make good contact with the iron, it usually comes up short of what I wanted.
Shot 3: Second or third iron shot into the rough around the green.
Shot 4: Chip/pitch to within 10-20ft or airmail it over the green if I hit it too hard. This is the only shot I have confidence in.
Shots 5&6 (maybe 7 ) : Putt.

I think that part of the problem I'm having with the irons is that they aren't long enough since I got them when I was like 13 (am 22 now), so I have to try to correct that with my swing, which is causing the topping and divots.

I'd also appreciate some recommendations on gloves and cheap shoes if you guys know of anything good.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Originally posted by: A5
Shot 1: Slice tee shot into the woods or rough. Occasionally hit a straight drive ~225-250yds.
Shot 2(& sometimes 3) : Either top the ball or hit it really fat with an iron (I rarely if ever play my fairway woods). If I do make good contact with the iron, it usually comes up short of what I wanted.
Shot 3: Second or third iron shot into the rough around the green.
Shot 4: Chip/pitch to within 10-20ft or airmail it over the green if I hit it too hard. This is the only shot I have confidence in.
Shots 5&6 (maybe 7 ) : Putt.

I think that part of the problem I'm having with the irons is that they aren't long enough since I got them when I was like 13 (am 22 now), so I have to try to correct that with my swing, which is causing the topping and divots.

I'd also appreciate some recommendations on gloves and cheap shoes if you guys know of anything good.

Some observations:

1) While the irons *might* be the wrong length that's not what's causing the problem with the thin/fat shots. That's a sure sign of one of two things. Either you're making a big lateral sway off the ball forcing you to lunge forward on the downswing or you've got a big head bob somewhere on the backswing forcing you to try to get it back into position on the downswing. You need a few lessons with somebody that can spot which of the problems you have.

2) If a well struck iron comes up short you obviously have no idea how far you hit the ball. Most beginners club to a career shot, that one special time when they hit a certain club xxx yards because it was downhill and had a 50mph tailwind. You need to spend a little range time on learning EXACTLY how far your average shot goes with each club. Not your best, your average. That means hit 20 6 irons, throw out the best 8 and the worst 8 and take the middle four. That's the distance you should expect to hit that club.

3) Take one chipping lesson and learn the proper technique, then practice it religiously. You will save a TON of strokes that way, it's not hard to learn and requires no special skill, no strength, no athleticism, nothing. A 30 handicapper can quickly become a good chipper, an old lady can quickly become a good chipped, an uncoordinated drunk can quickly become a good chipper.

4) When putting concentrate on speed, nothing else. Too many beginners grind over the line and then either hit it 20 feet short or 20 feet by. (mostly short). Forget the line and grind over the speed. If you get the speed right you'll almost never 3 putt. Almost all three putts are caused by bad speed on the first putt, NOT a bad line. Again, easy way to save a ton of strokes.

5) Cheap gloves buy whatever you find for a good price on ebay or closeout at the local shop. There's not much difference.

6) Shop for shoes by fit, not price. Ignore all recommendations about specific brands or models, what other people like should be meaningless to you. Go out and try on EVERYTHING. Buy whatever fits and don't be afraid to spend a little extra. You're going to be on your feet for 4 hours or more, if the shoes hurt they're not a bargain. Don't skimp.