Lloyd Jefferson Go - WITB - 2024 Volvo China Open

[jick]

Just an update, on his extremely hectic tournament schedule as he is really what you call a "journeyman" pro:

 

May 22 to 25, ICTSI Villamor Philippine Masters (Philippine Golf Tour)

71-73-68-71, T3rd

 

This was his first tournament with the driver setup I posted in my May 22 post.  Another thing significant about this was that it was the first time he used "salty" ProV1X balls which I floated for him.  I only floated a dozen.  He also asked me what was marked in the box - where it was manufactured.  The ProV1x he used there was manufactured in the Japan facility, as it is marked in the box.  His stash of boxes are mostly Japan-manufactured as he gets them in Japan.  But maybe he must also get from another factory since he does the China Tour as well and probably is handed out balls there too.  He never really mentioned to me if there are differences. 

 

 

May 30 to June 2, Zhengzhou Yellow River Open (China Golf Tour)

69-67-75-72, 8th

 

I just followed his scores online and he did not communicate to me anything.  But his 8th place finish was a strong one and solidified his hold as the leading money winner in that tour's Order of Merit.  A screencap of the ranking is included in this post.

 

 

June 5 to 7, Japan Create Challenge (Abema Tour - Japan)

71-71-80, 66th

 

In his return to Japan after nearly a month away, the Scotty Cameron tour rep handed him a flow neck putter - since the last one posted above was a plumber's neck that is not his preference.  He did not game the putter but sent me pics of it.  But after his disastrous 80 in the last day of this three day tournament, I half expected him to try out the Cameron - which he would eventually do.

 

 

 June 12 to 14, Landic Challenge (Abema Tour - Japan)

69-73-72, T44th

 

The first two rounds, he used the Scotty Cameron putter.  I think this is the first time he has ever put a Cameron putter in play since his junior golf days in 2007 or 2008 when he had Cameron Red X.  He wasn't too happy with it either, so he said he would switch back to the Bettinardi in the 3rd day.

 

 

June 20 to 23, Japan Players Championship (Japan Golf Tour)

69-71-69-64, T20th 

 

I am just an equipment guy, so please don't ask me about his exemptions and statuses.  I'm not sure how he got in the field but this one is a Japan Golf Tour (JGTO) tournament, and not the Abema which is a feeder tour.  So this is a big one.  As a matter of fact, the winner of this event was Ryo Ishikawa.  Lloyd barely made the cut on the number, but was spectacular in his final 27 holes including a final day 64 which was the second best score of the day.  I have seen videos of his birdies and they were impressive putts.  He used his trusty Bettinardi all four rounds.

 

Summary:

 

So as it stands now, Lloyd is #1 in the China Golf Tour and an impressive #7 in the Philippine Golf Tour even though he only played 2 of a possible 5 events.  He has played 11 events in 3 months over 5 different tours.  He made the cut in 10 of 11 events including 2 wins and 5 top 10's.  He is currently ranked 681 in the world, but this hasn't included is 20th in Japan yet.  But quite significantly - he is now the top Filipino campaigner in Japan - having overtaken Justin De Los Santos and Juvic Pagunsan in the OWGR.  In all his tours combined, he has earned approximately over $128,000 since March.

 

Attached are screen captures of his tour performances:

 

 

 

 

 

[jick]

Ok so this is a "Tour Issue" forum, so after diverting a bit on my last post as I was a bit too excited about sharing his results, time to go back to equipment.

 

Attached are photos of his Scotty Cameron putter that he got from the Japan tour rep two weeks ago, which he games for two rounds in Japan.  It may sound unique to see someone game a Cameron and Bettinardi as they are both rival brands, but bear in mind that Lloyd is a free agent with no putter contract.  But since he is a tour player, they do give him stuff.

 

As I kept mentioning, he does not have a backup putter and Bettinardi is also building him one.  Rather than an identical putter, Lloyd wanted a backup that offers a different look in case he putts bad.  He also wanted wide-body heel toe putters - which explains why the Cameron Tour rep gave him the wide-body plumber's neck (see an earlier post with photos).  As he is a flow neck guy, Bettinardi Golf is working on a Studio Stock 28 body with a welded flow neck for Lloyd.  I am not sure of the status of that or when it will get to him.  But it will only be a backup.

 

As for his new Cameron flowneck I am sharing here, he hasn't returned home in over a month so I haven't seen the putter or taken its specs yet.  I will do so as soon as I see him which might be next week.

 

The photos I am sharing are what he shared to me, but I just edited it to have a black background and that reflection to make it look pretty like in the Cameron site.  However, the pics of the face had a sunlight glare so it is what it is. 

[jick]

I seem like I'm just replying to myself but I'll play.  Lloyd left his irons with me for another regrip job, so I took the opportunity to round up his putters. The Bettinardi is the gamer, the Newport 1.5 is a backup candidate, and the plumber's neck Cameron serves no purpose but to occupy space in my workshop and for me to occasionally game.  It's just a totally different universe for tour pros and putters like these.  They are more concerned about gaming them or how they fit their needs. The fathest thing from their minds is the perceived collectible value or keeping them in mint condition.

[BagofToast]

35 minutes ago, jick said:

I seem like I'm just replying to myself but I'll play.  Lloyd left his irons with me for another regrip job, so I took the opportunity to round up his putters. The Bettinardi is the gamer, the Newport 1.5 is a backup candidate, and the plumber's neck Cameron serves no purpose but to occupy space in my workshop and for me to occasionally game.  It's just a totally different universe for tour pros and putters like these.  They are more concerned about gaming them or how they fit their needs. The fathest thing from their minds is the perceived collectible value or keeping them in mint condition.

Keep up the good work. Love seeing this kind of insight. Sweet putters too!

[jick]

Not sure if people are still following this thread but just an update on Lloyd since my last post.

 

He played in the International Series Morroco, made the cut and finish 49th.  This is the 6th different tour he has made money and played on this year.  I guess that is the epitome of "journeyman".

 

He followed that up with a strong 3rd place finish in the Philippine Golf Tour.

 

Then he returned to the Japan Abema Tour and finished 24th in the rain shortened event.  Here are some notes after he returned to my workshop:

 

-He got to swap out the 15g weights of his Cameron Circle T Newport 1.5 to 20g weights.  He gamed it for one round but returned to his Bettinardi JAM-W

 

-He got to see the KBS Tour Rep who has been very accommodating to him.  He has a CT Tour and GPS putter shafts but they are just standby backups for now.  He also found the One Step intriguing and will try to get a couple in his next return to Japan in September

 

-He finally got the backup putter that Bettinardi built him.  In all fairness to Bettinardi, the loft/lie/length specs were spot on to what he requested when I measured it.  But the headweight is a bit heavier and Lloyd finds the shallower face something that needs more practice & getting used to - which he doesn't have time for now since he is juggling tours and always on the go.

 

-He is currently #1 in the China Golf Tour - and if he maintains it, he will earn a DP World Tour card

 

-One of his local sponsors - a real estate group - just re-upped him for one more year

 

-As for my work, I will be reshafting his Titleist Utility 2-iron from the KBS 105x to a KBS 95x hybrid graphite shaft.

 

So what is use is a post without pics right?  So this will only interest the putterheads - but here is his new backup Bettinardi putter:

 

 

 

[Golfingfanatic]

Very cool. Thanks for the update!

[Mookieb10]

On 6/26/2024 at 11:15 AM, jick said:

I seem like I'm just replying to myself but I'll play.  Lloyd left his irons with me for another regrip job, so I took the opportunity to round up his putters. The Bettinardi is the gamer, the Newport 1.5 is a backup candidate, and the plumber's neck Cameron serves no purpose but to occupy space in my workshop and for me to occasionally game.  It's just a totally different universe for tour pros and putters like these.  They are more concerned about gaming them or how they fit their needs. The fathest thing from their minds is the perceived collectible value or keeping them in mint condition.

Definitely not replying to yourself. I’ve been checking in on this thread. Its the best one going. Thank you. 

[collindm1]

Seems as if he'd also like a Scotty Cameron TSB 1.5 (wide body blade) - this based on the slant neck and the soft feel this insert provides. I wonder why the reps haven't tried this one with him? Adrien Saddier gamed this for a while and putted well. @jick

 

https://x.com/ScottyCameron/status/1714451292771188901

[Mitchell]

@jick, thanks for the posts and the updates- always of interest to see how really good players go about making decisions on how and when to make changes. 

[jick]

On 7/30/2024 at 5:53 AM, collindm1 said:

Seems as if he'd also like a Scotty Cameron TSB 1.5 (wide body blade) - this based on the slant neck and the soft feel this insert provides. I wonder why the reps haven't tried this one with him? Adrien Saddier gamed this for a while and putted well. @jick

 

https://x.com/ScottyCameron/status/1714451292771188901

 

He would definitely not like that.  He is not a fan of inserts or finishes in other colors.  He likes traditional bead blasted silver on raw stainless because it wears better in the sense that the look doesn't really change much as it gets older - unlike a plated finish like PVD black for example.  The ideal Cameron for him would actually be the new Select Newport 2.5+ production model.  I tried to tell him to look into that.

 

The Cameron rep he is in close contact with is in Japan, so I assume that their options are more limited.  He did game his Newport 1.5 Circle T in one tournament round once it was fitted with the  20 gram weights but he did not like it and switched back to his trusty Bettinardi JAM-W for the next round.

[jick]

Here is the Titleist U500 iron I built for him.  He swapped out the KBS 105 X shaft into a KBS 95 X shaft.  And I built it with his usual MCC Cord white grip - though this is the actual grip from his previous shaft I just saved.  Perhaps if clubmakers reading this thread can chime in, here is my experience:

*KBS 105 X was installed untipped - as per KBS instructions

*KBS 95 X is lighter than 105 X (duh!)

*KBS 95 X was also installed untipped and same length

*Swingweight was still the same, or strictly speaking even half a point heavier in 95 X

 

So if I may ask, does the 95 X have a different balance point with the 105 X? Or does it have a different flex profile? 

[gentles]

3 hours ago, jick said:

Here is the Titleist U500 iron I built for him.  He swapped out the KBS 105 X shaft into a KBS 95 X shaft.  And I built it with his usual MCC Cord white grip - though this is the actual grip from his previous shaft I just saved.  Perhaps if clubmakers reading this thread can chime in, here is my experience:

*KBS 105 X was installed untipped - as per KBS instructions

*KBS 95 X is lighter than 105 X (duh!)

*KBS 95 X was also installed untipped and same length

*Swingweight was still the same, or strictly speaking even half a point heavier in 95 X

 

So if I may ask, does the 95 X have a different balance point with the 105 X? Or does it have a different flex profile? 

it would be balance point related I would say - not a club maker but I had the same experience with steelfiber shafts. Switched from a 95 gram to 110 gram in a driving iron and swingweight went down 2 points because the weight in the 110 gram is concentrated higher up the shaft 

[slicktry]

Absolutely LOVE this thread. Bravo kuya!

 

God Bless

Jer

[jt2gt]

Slow around here...so looking for the latest on LJG.  What up?

[jick]

On 9/6/2024 at 11:29 PM, jt2gt said:

Slow around here...so looking for the latest on LJG.  What up?

Thanks for the post, sorry I have been too busy to update.  That's because he has also been in a mini-slump.  After his T24, he posted these results:

 

T13 China Tour, MC and T42 in Abema Tour, and MC in Asian Development Tour.  Lj also dropped to #2 in the China Golf Tour but neglible different in money.  For the rest of the season, it is essentially a two-man race for #1 - who will earn DP World Tour Card.  In the Abema Tour, he is currently #20. He needs to finish top 20 to keep his Japan Tour card.

 

However, this is essentially an equipment forum and what's in the bag post so I have hesitated to update this thread without pictures.  And since Lj is juggling so many tours, he is hardly in town.  But here are some equipment updates - without pictures:

 

-His backup Bettinardi with is a BB28 never made it to competition.  It had a heavy head and Lj felt he wanted to convert it to a counter-balance or armlock.  The shafts/counterlock weights/grips have already arrived from Bettinardi who were generous enough to include a number of spares.  It has already been built and Lj has been testing it, but not yet gaming it.

 

-Somewhere along the way, he also got an Odyssey Jailbird putter that he will be testing and traveling with, but it hasn't seem competition too.

 

-It seems unlikely that he will be traveling with his Scotty Cameron Circle T Newport 1.5 even with the change of weights.  It is currently out of the rotation.

 

-In a week or two, his P7CB's from Taylormade will arrive but I will still have to build it to his specs.  Even though his current irons looks pretty worn out, he said it is highly unlikely that he will game it this year considering his super busy schedule and the time needed to adjust to it

 

-A big part for his bad for of late was his driving with the Qi10 LS driver.  The sole had a crack on it - which always seems to be the case with him and composite sole drivers.  He gamed it that way for a few events but has since gotten a replacement, and when he was home briefly - he hit is much better.  Remember, he is not like a PGA Tour pro where there are equipment vans all over.  He is playing different tours in different countries - some that don't have full tour support - so it's not easy for him to get replacements for broken clubs.

 

I hope this update can keep this thread warm until I get to post more new pictures.

 

[jick]

Ok the only update I have is that his iron set for next season just arrived in my workshop. It's going to take me a couple of weeks to build this as this is a retail offering so I'll have to dismantle the set and reshaft, regrip, and bend it to his specs. In the meantime,  here's the photo in my workshop.  I also measured the specs compared -very tight! Swingweights were all exact and loft/lie were nearly perfect.. those that were off were only by 0.5.  Lengths were the same too... but just to clarify that TM's published length is with grip.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

That Bettinardi is a very nice looking back-up.

 

Is he now focussing on finishing top in the China Tour to get a DP World Tour card? Nine more tournaments to go (including the Shandong one this week).

[jick]

9 hours ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

That Bettinardi is a very nice looking back-up.

 

Is he now focussing on finishing top in the China Tour to get a DP World Tour card? Nine more tournaments to go (including the Shandong one this week).

 

He is playing the Abema Tour this week as that needs more attention.  The China Tour is essentially a two-man race between him and the #1, and he feels he can take this week off because the tournaments that follow are worth much more money that he can make it up there.  I know it doesn't sound ideal, but that's what he chose to do - juggle two tours this year.

 

Now to bring this back to its WITB topic, I wish I took pictures of the Bettinardi back-up converted to an armlock/counterbalance putter but I didn't.  I'm not sure if it made his traveling set too.  It was no longer me who modified the putter, but I did see it with a black shaft and longer length.  Bettinardi also sent him a couple of other grip options, another shaft, and some counterbalance weights.  I am not too sure on the exact details and setup of that putter - he was only here for a few days and I saw him only a couple of times and got to sneak in only 9 holes with him.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

34 minutes ago, jick said:

 

He is playing the Abema Tour this week as that needs more attention.  The China Tour is essentially a two-man race between him and the #1, and he feels he can take this week off because the tournaments that follow are worth much more money that he can make it up there.  I know it doesn't sound ideal, but that's what he chose to do - juggle two tours this year.

 

Now to bring this back to its WITB topic, I wish I took pictures of the Bettinardi back-up converted to an armlock/counterbalance putter but I didn't.  I'm not sure if it made his traveling set too.  It was no longer me who modified the putter, but I did see it with a black shaft and longer length.  Bettinardi also sent him a couple of other grip options, another shaft, and some counterbalance weights.  I am not too sure on the exact details and setup of that putter - he was only here for a few days and I saw him only a couple of times and got to sneak in only 9 holes with him.

 

Elite Grip Challenge in Hyogo?

 

The PGM Challenge he played in a couple of weeks ago was pretty near me. I could have gone and watched it. I've actually played that course a couple of times. It's not especially long, but it's tight, and especially requires a lot of precision off the tee.

 

The Abema seems to have quite a few tournaments near me, though no more this year. I should check them out next year, but hopefully LJ will be on the DP World Tour by then🤞

[jick]

39 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

Elite Grip Challenge in Hyogo?

 

The PGM Challenge he played in a couple of weeks ago was pretty near me. I could have gone and watched it. I've actually played that course a couple of times. It's not especially long, but it's tight, and especially requires a lot of precision off the tee.

 

The Abema seems to have quite a few tournaments near me, though no more this year. I should check them out next year, but hopefully LJ will be on the DP World Tour by then🤞

 

Yes, he is in the Elite Grip Challenge now.

 

He missed the cut in the PGM Challenge precisely because of the tight course and precision off the tee.  He was playing a driver with a cracked sole - which he has since replaced.  But when he was there in the PGM, he didn't replace it and used it as is.

 

Well, DP World Tour or even Japan Tour are already good enough!  Hoping for the best!

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

29 minutes ago, jick said:

 

Yes, he is in the Elite Grip Challenge now.

 

He missed the cut in the PGM Challenge precisely because of the tight course and precision off the tee.  He was playing a driver with a cracked sole - which he has since replaced.  But when he was there in the PGM, he didn't replace it and used it as is.

 

Well, DP World Tour or even Japan Tour are already good enough!  Hoping for the best!

 

Yeah, that PGM Challenge course is a "find the fairway" course. The first time time I played it, but I was finding the fairways hitting wedges and short irons in. I putted badly for a 75 or 76 (obviously not off the back tees like your guy). The second time I played it I struggled more off the tee and went for about 83~85.

 

If he plays on the Japan Tour next year, I'll do my best to get to see him, though they don't have so many tournaments down my way (north Kyushu).

 

Hey, if he needs some support or even a place to crash a night, we might be able to help him out.

[jick]

On 9/25/2024 at 12:08 AM, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

If he plays on the Japan Tour next year, I'll do my best to get to see him, though they don't have so many tournaments down my way (north Kyushu).

 

Hey, if he needs some support or even a place to crash a night, we might be able to help him out.

 

Thank you for the offer. I already informed him.  This is going to be a very close call, as he just missed the cut after a decent 11th place finish so he is now #22 in the rankings.  Top 20 earn Japan Tour card - if he doesn't make it - I doubt he will want to do Abema another year.  Let's just keep our fingers crossed.

[jick]

There is really no update since he has stated that he will not use new irons until the season ends.  So I am stuck with his set for next year to assemble.  But compared to other previous sets I built for him, I decided to try a different path.  I decided to bend the heads to his specs (2.5 to 3 degrees flatter) before pulling them out from the stock shafts.  That way, I feel I can get a slightly more accurate reading for dry swingweight and ungripped length before I do the final assembly.  

 

While his current set (P7MC's) look so worn down and beat up now, when he gets them new he is very very anal about the dings.  So that's why I am putting some electrical tape so minimize the bending marks caused both by the bar and the machine.  My machine is a good old defunct Golfsmith Professional Loft/Lie rig that I've had for maybe 20 years now, but it still comes up with accurate readings - at least accurate enough to still match the published specs of Taylormade to within half-a-degree in blind testing.

 

So here are the latest pictures I took.  The next step is removing the heads from the shafts, and weighing them.

 

 

In another note, he is playing the European Challenge Tour (feeder tour of DP World Tour) in China this week and is one of the first day leaders.  Not sure how this can help his status in whatever tour he hopes to find to play next year, but it's always a good thing to be leading a tournament, right?

 

 

 

[jick]

Lloyd finished second in the Hainan Open, losing in a playoff.

 

https://www.europeantour.com/challenge-tour/hainan-open-2024/results?round=4

 

But it's still a good way to end a mini-slump where his last 5 tournaments coming in were: MC, T42, MC, T11, TC.

 

It was also great to see the tournament broadcast live on YouTube.  Such a great experience to see the clubs I built in a telecast.  Here is the link:

 

 

 

He has now won, across all his tours, over $200k.  He is just perilously close to earning a Japan Tour or DP World Tour card for next year.  Let's hope he at least gets one of them.

 

As for me, I have already pulled the heads of his new irons - I will be cleaning the hosels, measuring the bore depths, and getting the head weights soon then I will share here.

 

 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Nice chip in eagle on 12🎊

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Crikey, your guy really gives it a good lash with his driver. No holding back there.

[jick]

Let me update this thread.  First is the bad news - he missed out on the top 20 in the Abema Tour whose season is now over so he will not have a Japan Tour Card next year unless he earns it through Q-School.  He will be automatically seeded to the 3rd stage if he so choses to go that route.

 

His finish in the Hainan Open closed his gap to the #1 in the China Tour - and it is essentially a 2-person race for that top spot that earns a DP World Tour card.  With Abema already done, he will focus his remaining games in the China Tour.

 

And of course the meat and potatoes of this thread which is his equipment.  I have already pulled out the heads of his P7CB's.  The headweights, except the 8-iron, are all within 1 gram of his previous P7MC set - so I guess there is potential for a build to be virtually identical to his P7MC's.  The offset values of his P7MC's and P7CB's are also identical so there might not be much of an issue in adjusting to the look.  Since he is on the road, I have not done a side-by-side comparison yet of the sole width, bounce and grind.

 

So just for reference and putting this here, I will list the iron number then headweight of P7CB then weights of his current P7MC's in parenthesis:

 

4 - 251 (253)

5 - 259 (258)

6 - 266 (265)

7 - 272 (273)

8 - 278 (281)

9 - 287 (287)

P - 294 (295)

 

I also noticed that the P7CB's also have the shorter hosel depth (like the P7MC) which is 1.125", compared to the more common 1.25" to 1.375".  A closer peek also reveals it has those weight slugs in the bottom of the hosel. 

 

The 8-iron is a bit of a conundrum.  It's the only head that is 3 grams lighter than its predecessor, and also has a deeper bore depth of around 1.1825" to 1.25".  So I am guessing that perhaps when the shafts were pulled out - in the 8-iron the weight slug (or a part thereof) must have come off.  So I am loosely contemplating whether to put a 3-gram tip weight in the shaft which will make up for both the variance in bore depth and head weight.  But the purist in me - and especially since this is for a touring pro - wants no part in putting tip weights.  If need be, then it should be the old-school lead tape method.  I will just have to decide after I weigh each individual shaft and get a projected swingweight.

 

Below is a picture of Lloyd from his runner-up finish in the Hainan Open.  His caddie is his sister Lois - who also played college golf in USC (University of South Carolina).  I guess this is the latest picture of his bag I can find.  I guess he is also using his P760 4-iron from his previous set.  It will be interesting to see if the P7CB 4-iron can dislodge it.

 

 

 

 

 

[jt2gt]

Very cool...love the pic with the sister.  Does she play on any tours or is she his full time caddie.  

[jick]

Is anybody still following this thread?  Here are some updates on Lj's performance:

 

-He joined Japan Q-School and finished 1 shot off the main tour.  He gets full Abema Tour status and a handful of Japan Tour starts

 

-He finished 2nd in the China Golf Tour Order of Merit - by the skin of his teeth!  He missed out on the DP World Tour card but as #2 he gets full status on the Challenge Tour

 

-He is currently ranked inside the top 600 in the world, and is the 3rd best ranked Filipino behind PGA Tour campaigner Rico Hoey, and Asian Tour star Miguel Tabuena.  This also means Lj is ranked higher than a lot of other notable Filipinos

 

Now on to the equipment side.  He has been using Golf Pride MCC Black/White grips for at least his last 5 iron sets.  It has been working for him for sure.  But his problem is the supply since there are no Golf Pride Tour reps in the tours he plays, and also because the MCC is very hard to find as Golf Pride is promoting their other lines or the MCC Colors/Teams which is a different grip (heavier).  The original New Decade MCC's that Lj used are the 46.5 gram ones that make his clubs "cheat" the swingweight scale to be half to a point heavier while being 5 grams lighter overall weight.  If Lj will switch to a regular weighted grip, he'll go for a brand easier to access.  He briefly dabbled with Japanese brand Tour G.

 

Now though it seems he willl be more serious in considering something else - and this is Elite Grips. The owner wants to sponsor him and make it easy for him to access wherever he plays.  He send Lj a bunch of grips to test and there is a big chance I will install it in his P7CB's for the 2025 season which I am in the process of building now. 

 

I did some comparisons with the grips and not only is the Elite 5 grams heavier, it is also half an inch shorter and could play just a tad thinner (which Lj prefers).  Now is his offseason so this is when he switches.  I have already built his PW with the Elite grip which he will test against his own so he can compare the feel of the grip.  The rest of his set will be ungripped and he will decide what grip to finally put though I am quite certain he is leaning towards giving the Elite a chance. 

 

Here are pictures of the grips side by side which I compared over a round of coffee and salad:

 

 

 

 

My next post will be process pictures of building his set, then the completed set (which should be done next week), and then Lj testing them for the first time.  I will keep you all posted if there is still interest in this thread.  Thanks for reading and following and let's all hope for a great 2025 season for him!

[JungleJimbo]

18 minutes ago, jick said:

Is anybody still following this thread?  Here are some updates on Lj's performance:

 

-He joined Japan Q-School and finished 1 shot off the main tour.  He gets full Abema Tour status and a handful of Japan Tour starts

 

-He finished 2nd in the China Golf Tour Order of Merit - by the skin of his teeth!  He missed out on the DP World Tour card but as #2 he gets full status on the Challenge Tour

 

-He is currently ranked inside the top 600 in the world, and is the 3rd best ranked Filipino behind PGA Tour campaigner Rico Hoey, and Asian Tour star Miguel Tabuena.  This also means Lj is ranked higher than a lot of other notable Filipinos

 

Now on to the equipment side.  He has been using Golf Pride MCC Black/White grips for at least his last 5 iron sets.  It has been working for him for sure.  But his problem is the supply since there are no Golf Pride Tour reps in the tours he plays, and also because the MCC is very hard to find as Golf Pride is promoting their other lines or the MCC Colors/Teams which is a different grip (heavier).  The original New Decade MCC's that Lj used are the 46.5 gram ones that make his clubs "cheat" the swingweight scale to be half to a point heavier while being 5 grams lighter overall weight.  If Lj will switch to a regular weighted grip, he'll go for a brand easier to access.  He briefly dabbled with Japanese brand Tour G.

 

Now though it seems he willl be more serious in considering something else - and this is Elite Grips. The owner wants to sponsor him and make it easy for him to access wherever he plays.  He send Lj a bunch of grips to test and there is a big chance I will install it in his P7CB's for the 2025 season which I am in the process of building now. 

 

I did some comparisons with the grips and not only is the Elite 5 grams heavier, it is also half an inch shorter and could play just a tad thinner (which Lj prefers).  Now is his offseason so this is when he switches.  I have already built his PW with the Elite grip which he will test against his own so he can compare the feel of the grip.  The rest of his set will be ungripped and he will decide what grip to finally put though I am quite certain he is leaning towards giving the Elite a chance. 

 

Here are pictures of the grips side by side which I compared over a round of coffee and salad:

 

 

My next post will be process pictures of building his set, then the completed set (which should be done next week), and then Lj testing them for the first time.  I will keep you all posted if there is still interest in this thread.  Thanks for reading and following and let's all hope for a great 2025 season for him!

 

Mabuhay @jick ! Thanks for your updates.

 

Elite grips are JDM (Japanese), correct? Very interested in the insights that you've been sharing here.

Would be delighted if you can please continue to share.

 

Was surprised to hear that MCC grips are surprisingly difficult for you to obtain, as i see these carried ubiquitously/ seemingly everywhere  in golf shops 

 

thanks 

Edited December 20, 2024 by JungleJimbo