Golf Life Tips and Games

Inside Golf Magazine sits down with Bob Vokey to hear how passionate he is about making beloved and infamous Titleist Wedges.Check out this story and see how Bob Vokey has made his golf club a successful, fashionable and scoring club. Distributed by Tubemogul.>> FOR ME, TITLEIST IS A GREAT FAMILY; THEY’VE GOT GREAT PEOPLE AND THEY MAKE GREAT EQUIPMENT. WITH VOKEY, HE’S THE GREATEST GUY IN THE WORLD. IF I GO TO VOKE, I SAY, VOKE, THIS WEEK, I WANT A DIFFERENT WEDGE, I'M GOING TO NEED A LITTLE MORE BOUNCE BECAUSE THE GOUND’S A LITTLE SOFTER OR WHATEVER IT IS. VOKEY WILL GET RIGHT IN THERE, WE'LL HAVE THREE WEDGES, WE'LL TAKE A LOOK AT THEM, WE'LL GRIND ON THEM. HIS PASSIONS FOR THE GAME, HIS JOB, MY WORK, IT’S AMAZING. IT’S CONTAGIOUS, TOO. HE JUST LOVES BEING OUT HERE AND HE LOVES WORKING AND, IT’S FUN BEING AROUND THAT. THEY MAKE GREAT STUFF SO IT’S A REALLY NEAT FIT. >> NOW WE TAKE YOU TO CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA WHERE TITLEIST CLUB DESIGNER, BOB VOKEY, BUILDS SOME OF THE BEST WEDGES IN THE GAME. >> I LOVE WORKING WITH GOLF CLUBS, GOING BACK TO MY TEEN YEARS. I WOULD SHAPE THEM AND I USED TO WORK IN THE GARAGE. GO TO THE GOLF COURSE AND I JUST WORKED ON IT. TO COMPETE WAS LIKE A HOBBY. IT WAS JUST FUN DOING IT. I WAS VERY FORTUNATE THAT I TOOK THIS HOBBY AND I TURNED IT INTO A LIVELIHOOD. NEVER FIGURED OUT HOW IT REALLY GOT INTO IT. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE LATER 60’S WHEN I WAS WORKING. I REMEMBER THIS ONE FELLOW, HE SAID, SON, IF YOU DON’T LOVE WHAT YOU’RE DOING, QUIT, OR YOU’LL NEVER BE A SUCCESS. SO THAT’S WHEN I GOT INTO LEARNING ALL THE INS AND OUTS ABOUT A GOLF CLUB. PEOPLE SAY, VOKEY, YOU’RE A GURU; I'M NOT A GURU. YOU’RE AN ENGINEER AND I'M NOT. I THOUGHT AN ENGINEER WAS A FELLOW WHO DROVE A TRAIN AND WORE A FUNNY HAT. I SAID, I'M NOT, I'M JUST A GOLF GUY WHO HAD A LOVE, I HAD A KNACK WORKING WITH THE PLAYERS. I WAS WHAT I CALL A LISTENER AND A NOTE-TAKER. I STARVED FOR A LOT OF YEARS. I REMEMBER BACK IN MY LEE TRAVINO DAYS. I USED TO WORK WITH LEE QUITE A BIT AND DROVE MY LITTLE DATSON. HE WAS LIVING IN PALM SPRINGS AND I USED TO DRIVE OVER FROM VISTA, CALIFORNIA. TRAVINO LAUGHED AT ME, YOU DROVE THAT THING OVER THE MOUNTAIN? HOW DID YOU EVER GET OVER THE MOUNTAIN DRIVING THAT THING? I WAS FORTUNATE TO COME IN CONTACT AND WORK WITH LEE AND WITH DAVE STOCKTON. I RAN INTO DAVE, YESTERDAY. HE WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST SHORT GAME PLAYERS, EVER. I REMEMBER DAVE TELLING ME, YOU LEARN THE GAME FROM THE GREEN BACK 250 YARDS. HE WORKED ON THAT VERY HARD IN THAT PART OF THE GAME, WHICH I WOULD RECOMMEND TO A LOT OF YOUNG PLAYERS. THEN, AT TITLEIST, I TOOK A LOT OF THOSE IDEAS WITH THE HELP OF A LOT OF PEOPLE WITHIN TITLEIST. I LIKE TO LOOK AT IT AS A TEAM EFFORT; I HAD A LOT OF GOOD PEOPLE WORKING WITH ME. TITLEIST, HAS THE BEST R&D SYSTEM. I’VE GOT THE PGA TOUR PLAYERS. ALL THE YEARS OF RESPECT BEING OUT THERE WITH THEM. I LET THEM TRY IT, THEY TELL ME LITTLE INS AND OUTS, WHAT IT CAN AND CAN’T DO. EVERYBODY IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT. THEY HAVE A LITTLE DIFFERENT TECHNIQUE, A LITTLE DIFFERENT STYLE SO IT REQUIRES THEM TO HAVE A LITTLE DIFFERENT OPTION AT THE WEDGE AND I KNOW THAT’S WHAT WE'VE DONE. JUST GETTING OUT THERE, WATCHING A PLAYER HIT THE BALL, LISTEN BY SIGHT, WATCHING THEM PLAY THEIR BALL; JUST DIFFERENT SOUNDS. THESE PLAYERS WILL TELL YOU. THEY MAY NOT EXACTLY TELL YOU THAT THE BOUNCE IS NOT RIGHT AND, THEY DON’T GIVE YOU A NUMBER BUT, THEY CAN TELL YOU JUST BY HITTING, BOB, I DON’T LIKE THE FLIGHT, IT’S COMING OFF A LITTLE LOW. KNOWING ALL THOSE CERTAIN THINGS, I CAN HELP A PLAYER AND GIVE THEM A HINT. THIS IS WHAT THE WEDGE IS DESIGNED TO DO. THIS IS WHY I WANT YOU TO USE THE BOUNCE, I WANT YOU TO USE THE TRAILING EDGE. IT’S NOT JUST TOUR PLAYERS, WE’RE ABLE TO PASS THIS ONTO THE WEEKEND GOLFER, WHICH IS MY BIGGEST THRILL. IT’S NICE TO SEE A PLAYER COME UP TO ME HOLLERING, MR. VOKEY, I LOVE YOUR WEDGE, THEY’RE THE BEST WEDGES I EVER HIT. I SAID, THEY’RE TITLEIST WEDGES. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE SUPPORT BUT, IT’S NICE TO BE ABLE TO SAY THAT WE'VE DESIGNED A GOLF CLUB THAT THE AVERAGE WEEKEND GOLFER CAN GET THE ENJOYMENT OF HITTING SHOTS. I CALL IT THE HOLY GRALE, A PERFECT WEDGE. IT DOESN’T EXIST. ONE MAN’S POISON IS ANOTHER MAN’S CUP OF TEA. I CONTINUE TO WORK AND THAT’S WHAT MAKES MY JOB MORE EXCITING. WHEN I GREW UP WITH THE WEDGE, THEY WERE A, “GET OUT OF TROUBLE” TYPE OF CLUB. THE WORD WAS SAND WEDGE. WE CALL THEM LOBBERS NOW. I SAID, THE SAND WEDGE, IT’S GOT TO WORK, IT’S GOT TO PERFORM. THAT’S ONE OF MY FIRST THINGS I LIKE TO WORK WITH A PLAYER. IT’S YOUR, “GET OUT OF TROUBLE CLUB.” IT’S GOT TO WORK, IT’S GOT TO PERFORM. YOUR, “GET OUT OF JAIL” CLUB. THESE PLAYERS, BEING SO BIG, SO STRONG, HITTING THE BALL SO FAR, THEY’RE SO TALENTED, THEY WANT A WEDGE; THEY DON’T EXPECT TO JUST GET OUT OF TROUBLE, THEY EXPECT TO HIT A SHOT. THEY’RE EITHER UP OR DOWN FOR A BIRDIE OR AN EAGLE. AS A RESULT, IT’S EVOLVED TO MORE OF A SCORING CLUB. FIRST AND FOREMOST, IT HAS TO LOOK GOOD. THE WEDGE, TO ME, IS PROBABLY THE TOUGHEST CLUB TO DESIGN. EVERY PLAYER PUTS IT DOWN, WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE. THAT’S CALLED PROFILE. SO I TRY TO MAKE A PLEASING PROFILE. IN ESSENCE, IT’S A PROFILE THAT I CALL A TEARDROP. IT’S A LITTLE HIGHER IN THE TOE AREA, AND A LITTLE SHALLOWER IN THE PIE AREA. I SPEND A LOT OF MY TIME GIVING A LEADING EDGE TREATMENT AND SOMETIMES TOP LINE JUST TO MAKE IT LOOK GOOD, FIRST OFF. WHAT I’VE DONE WITH THE WHOLE WEDGE THAT WE'VE WORKED HARD AT IS TRY TO MAKE IT LOOK LIKE A COMPLETE SET. YOU CAN PULL ANY NUMBER AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME. YOU CAN SAY, WOW, THAT’S A NEAT SERIES. EVERY MAJOR MANUFACTURER MAKES THE BEST CLUB. WE ALL MAKE A VERY GOOD GOLF CLUB BUT, I THINK AT TITLEIST WHAT WE HAVE IS THE PEOPLE WITH A PASSION BEHIND EACH PRODUCT. IT’S A TEAM EFFORT, WE ALL WORK TOGETHER, AND WE ALL CROSS-TRAIN EACH OTHER, WITH KNOWING ABOUT ALL OF OUR PRODUCT. WE ALL HAVE A PASSION, WE ALL LOVE WHAT WE DO. IF YOU DON’T LOVE WHAT YOU DO, YOU’LL NEVER BE A SUCCESS.