Trevino's clubs

[rex235]

[i]With all the swing speed ads and media commercials, pretty sure Trevino is affiliated with Bridgestone.

One of the magazine editors played with Trevino recently, and he said Trevino shot the most casual 65 the guy could ever remember.[/i]

[SCOTT4099]

He played a set of spalding/top-flite forged blades later on, they had a sombrero stamped on them with his signature....

[Wildwing55]

Believe quite a bit of the time he used Top Flite blade irons. And the Ping-looking putter he is kissing after winning the PGA in the 80s I believe wasn't a Ping, but rather a Dutch-made putter of some type that was given to him by an amateur back then, if I remember the story correctly.

[Night train]

It was a Ping putter that he bought while playing in the Dutch Open. Stood on the head of the putter in his hotel room and bent it till it looked flat enough to suit him.

[mat562]

That's the story I remember reading.

He reportedly picked up an A Blade from a pro shop in the Netherlands whilst playing in the Dutch Open and took it back to his hotel room. 'It was upright and had some loft on it' was, I think, Trevino's early appraisal of the club, although something about it had obviously ticked a mental box or two. Enter the hotel room floor, with a characteristically thin Travel Lodge-style carpet over a concrete base, though, and [i]Voila! [/i]A few hearty whacks later (and, probably, a phone call or two to the hotel reception from the bloke in the room below) and it was to Trevino's liking; a good deal flatter and with appreciably less loft on it.

No stainless steel, high precision, [i]Certified by Scotty[/i] bending machines for Trevino, but he went on to win with the thing - including a PGA Championship at Shoal Creek, if memory serves.

[neilc]

[quote name='farmer' timestamp='1308760485' post='3327162']
I saw him play a couple of times in the mid-70's, and he was playing Faultless irons and a Faultless driver. In the equipment dept, both he and Sam Snead were disappointing. I wanted to see jewels, and instead found them playing clubs, as you say, that looked like they had fallen out of the back of a car.
[/quote]


he played the Faultless Omega golf ball which was basically a softer Top Flight.

I remember using some mid 70S?

[15th Club]

Watching the Golf Channel telecast tonight, I had to bump this thread.

I caddied for Lee in the summer of 1973, and the description of his old MacGregor driver with the switched out sole plate was exactly right.

But while Lee was under contract with Faultless, he didn't have a single Faultless club in his Faultless staff bag. His irons were Power Bilt Citation Scotch Blades, coated on their backs with more lead tape than I think I have ever seen on any other set of clubs before or after. There was so much lead tape that he could have the "Faultless" logo stamped into the tape and it looked almost like a Faultless set. (Lee had a bit of a grind on the soles so that even the Citation sole logos weren't legible.) His putter was, I think, a Wilson 8813. I recall it not being an 8802, but something close and a bit unusual. Spalding sand wedge. Helen was no longer in the bag. I would have remembered Helen; Lee's story was that he gave the wedge for an auction right after he won the '72 Open at Muirfield.

I recall a recent photo of Lee's clubs in an unmarked simple dark stand bag. Like he was an am. Totally weird, for a major Bridgestone brand ambassador. My recollection is that Lee's current clubs were an almost completely unmatched set of odd orphan clubs. Again; for a guy doing major adverstising for Bridgestone it is beyond weird. But that's Lee. He's one of a kind. A genuine, true genius with a club in his hand.

[rdmcdaid]

Great Topic!

Love walking down memory lane with players like Lee and of course the equipment. To put things in perspective, those Scotch blades he played were the most difficult blades known to ever exist.

One of my playing partners back in the 80's loved Lee so much that he carried a 7 wood In his honour! Back then it was odd as we were in our early 20's and it was considered an old man's club in his hands it was magic.

As Bob Hope said, thanks for the memories!

[getair23]

When he was on Feherty he spoke about a perfect set of irons he had made for him. That were perfect until he drilled the backs of them to change the weight.

[ssfranny]

At the Insperity, looked like he was playing Callaway Apex Pro irons.

[onuzim]

I would love to see pics of all these clubs mentioned!

[psygolf]

Reputable club maker on the north side of Chicago used to work on trevino's clubs when he'd come through town...Trevino never wanted to consciously know his club specs...he would just say "bend this a little here n there...don't tell me where they're at!"

[Pete O'Tube]

My favourite memory was during the 1978 Open at St Andrews. I was standing behind the green at the 17th (the Road Hole). The flag was about 10 feet directly behind the cavernous Road Hole Bunker. Trevino was in the middle of the fairway after his drive. When he hit his second there was a collective gasp from the crowd as the ball flew straight right over the OB fence by the Jigger Inn. "He's shanked it!" was the cry. At this point the ball started turning over and landed on the extreme right edge of the green travelling at right angles to the hole direction. It rolled up to 3 feet from the hole for an easy tap-in 3.

Pure genius!

[Croonie15]

Great video here of Lee working his magic in real time

http://youtu.be/6lz4HDoGNXs

[gvogel]

[quote name='ehardman' timestamp='1399232716' post='9230121']
My favourite memory was during the 1978 Open at St Andrews. I was standing behind the green at the 17th (the Road Hole). The flag was about 10 feet directly behind the cavernous Road Hole Bunker. Trevino was in the middle of the fairway after his drive. When he hit his second there was a collective gasp from the crowd as the ball flew straight right over the OB fence by the Jigger Inn. "He's shanked it!" was the cry. At this point the ball started turning over and landed on the extreme right edge of the green travelling at right angles to the hole direction. It rolled up to 3 feet from the hole for an easy tap-in 3.

Pure genius!


[/quote]
What? Lee Trevino hit a big old hook into the Road Hole green? Shotmaker!

[MakAttack]

[quote name='Croonie15' timestamp='1399250288' post='9231823']
Great video here of Lee working his magic in real time

http://youtu.be/6lz4HDoGNXs
[/quote]

Croonie?!

[idrive]

Best read ever on WRX

Sadly there's not 2 more pages

[That Bob Guy]

I was wondering the same things while watching the telecast. It would be interesting to know what he was using as a driver. Looked like it may have had a White Tie shaft?

And Don January...amazing for the shape he's in?

Talent never dies!

[bg3putts]

I played with him in the Bell South senior event in Nashville, Tn. in the early 90's and he was using old Topflite tour irons, Taylormade driver, Wilson wedge and Odyssey blade putter that looks like an 8802 but it had a very light swingweight of B9 -C0. He told me he wanted a light putter so he would go again and hit the ball. We were standing around the equipment trailers talking with a friend of mine who actually won the tournament that year, Jim Ahern, and I said it would be nice to go into those trailers and get what ever you wanted. Trevino looked at me and said, Son if they didn't bring it with them, they are not going to find it in there. So true.

[jake]

I got a chance to use one of Lee's set of irons one summer. A good friend of his played at our club and he could not hit them so he let me try them. They had such a sharp grind on them that you could shave with them. I am thinking that's why he had so much lead tape on them which these did. The grind took off so much weight.
Stout heavy shafts. You could really do anything with these irons with that grind. Eventually I gave them back, in reality they were too heavy to play consistently, if you were on they were great, but if you were off they would knock your fillings out. Anyway its a nice memory to be able to play with one of his sets.

[cbuescher]

For the record, the guy is a total jerk when there's no camera around.

[ExProGoingBack]

Agreed... He was a nasty man when i met him .. Once out of clubhouse in front of cameras he was a different man

[That Bob Guy]

Really? I would have never thought that of the man.

[KevCarter]

[quote name='That Bob Guy' timestamp='1399803447' post='9272323']
Really? I would have never thought that of the man.
[/quote]

I'm sorry, I'm not usually a participant in bashing players. Trevino was always my favorite player, and one I looked up to, until I met him. I've always hoped my encounter was an anomaly...

[texcrom]

Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.

[KevCarter]

[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399822321' post='9273291']
Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.
[/quote]

Texcrom, I did watch the event, and enjoyed it very much. If I may, I would like to relate a more positive story. Same day I met Mr. Trevino, as I was the starter at a Champions Tour event in Minneapolis, 1996. I got to meet everybody, and there were MANY incredibly nice players who treated me with the same respect I treated them. David Graham was also one of my heroes, and a player I wanted very much to meet. I was cautious as he didn't have a very friendly reputation. He was totally the opposite, very nice, and seemed to genuinely appreciate my interest in meeting him. I probably even spoke to him at a time that I shouldn't have, but he was extremely kind and thanked me. David Graham made my day. To this day, I still contact him once in awhile, like last week when we got to watch him on TV. He always finds the time to respond and say hello. I'm an old man but still a kid when it comes to looking up to my boyhood heroes. :-)

Kevin

[That Bob Guy]

[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399822321' post='9273291']
Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.
[/quote]
Although I didn't notice Player's or Nicklaus' faces...it was evident that Trevino was stealing the show, conscious of it, or not.
What a shame.

[texcrom]

[quote name='kevcarter' timestamp='1399823297' post='9273361']
[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399822321' post='9273291']
Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.
[/quote]

Texcrom, I did watch the event, and enjoyed it very much. If I may, I would like to relate a more positive story. Same day I met Mr. Trevino, as I was the starter at a Champions Tour event in Minneapolis, 1996. I got to meet everybody, and there were MANY incredibly nice players who treated me with the same respect I treated them. David Graham was also one of my heroes, and a player I wanted very much to meet. I was cautious as he didn't have a very friendly reputation. He was totally the opposite, very nice, and seemed to genuinely appreciate my interest in meeting him. I probably even spoke to him at a time that I shouldn't have, but he was extremely kind and thanked me. David Graham made my day. To this day, I still contact him once in awhile, like last week when we got to watch him on TV. He always finds the time to respond and say hello. I'm an old man but still a kid when it comes to looking up to my boyhood heroes. :-)

Kevin
[/quote]

Great story, Kevin.

I'm an old guy also, and have been fortunate to play in several pro-ams over the years. Played with guys from my generation, guys everyone would recognize including major champions, and never had a bad experience. Unfortunately, I did witness some "bad experiences" for others, who were either participants, or in other cases volunteers related disrespectfully..

Guess it's just the way the world is.

[KevCarter]

[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399849648' post='9275455']
[quote name='kevcarter' timestamp='1399823297' post='9273361']
[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399822321' post='9273291']
Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.
[/quote]

Texcrom, I did watch the event, and enjoyed it very much. If I may, I would like to relate a more positive story. Same day I met Mr. Trevino, as I was the starter at a Champions Tour event in Minneapolis, 1996. I got to meet everybody, and there were MANY incredibly nice players who treated me with the same respect I treated them. David Graham was also one of my heroes, and a player I wanted very much to meet. I was cautious as he didn't have a very friendly reputation. He was totally the opposite, very nice, and seemed to genuinely appreciate my interest in meeting him. I probably even spoke to him at a time that I shouldn't have, but he was extremely kind and thanked me. David Graham made my day. To this day, I still contact him once in awhile, like last week when we got to watch him on TV. He always finds the time to respond and say hello. I'm an old man but still a kid when it comes to looking up to my boyhood heroes. :-)

Kevin
[/quote]

Great story, Kevin.

I'm an old guy also, and have been fortunate to play in several pro-ams over the years. Played with guys from my generation, guys everyone would recognize including major champions, and never had a bad experience. Unfortunately, I did witness some "bad experiences" for others, who were either participants, or in other cases volunteers related disrespectfully..

Guess it's just the way the world is.
[/quote]

Cheers Tex!

[Don Miguel]

[quote name='kevcarter' timestamp='1399823297' post='9273361']
[quote name='texcrom' timestamp='1399822321' post='9273291']
Not unusual. You love the character, Lee Trevino, you see on TV.

The individual you meet in person, Buck Trevino, is an entirely different person. There's an edge now to the bitterness from not being loved and respected like Palmer and Nicklaus.

If you saw the Legends Senior tournament on TV recently, where Nicklaus, Player, and Trevino were paired together as a team, all you had to do was watch the expressions on Nicklaus and Players faces as Trevino did his act.

In their golden years, even they appeared tired of the act.
[/quote]

Texcrom, I did watch the event, and enjoyed it very much. If I may, I would like to relate a more positive story. Same day I met Mr. Trevino, as I was the starter at a Champions Tour event in Minneapolis, 1996. I got to meet everybody, and there were MANY incredibly nice players who treated me with the same respect I treated them. David Graham was also one of my heroes, and a player I wanted very much to meet. I was cautious as he didn't have a very friendly reputation. He was totally the opposite, very nice, and seemed to genuinely appreciate my interest in meeting him. I probably even spoke to him at a time that I shouldn't have, but he was extremely kind and thanked me. David Graham made my day. To this day, I still contact him once in awhile, like last week when we got to watch him on TV. He always finds the time to respond and say hello. I'm an old man but still a kid when it comes to looking up to my boyhood heroes. :-)

Kevin
[/quote]Very cool story. Thanks for sharing. I have been both pleasantly surprised and the opposite. I think it is good to share our positive experiences. The negative always finds its way out. I feel like there isn't enough emphasis on the positive encounters.

Cheers