If you’d like off-the-wall, the brand new Golf Delight x James Bond grip collaboration certainly qualifies.
“Off the wall” is a really apt time period.
So are “out of left discipline,” “are they severe?” and, should you’re significantly cynical, “what the hell?”
Alternatively, “wow” and “that’s fairly cool” additionally apply.
The fact, nonetheless, is that if nothing else, limited-edition collaborations are supposed to be enjoyable, completely different, attention-getting and, most significantly, restricted. In case you haven’t been CC’d on the memo, it’s good to recollect a basic fact.
Golf is a sport, my associates, and video games are purported to be enjoyable.
Golf Delight x James Bond = enjoyable
“We’ve a ton of Bond followers right here,” Golf Delight CEO James Ledford tells MyGolfSpy. “It actually exhibits a special facet of Golf Delight. We nerd out on grips right here however we had a ton of enjoyable placing all of it collectively.”
This new James Bond grip package isn’t Golf Delight’s first foray into limited-edition collaborations. This previous June, the corporate teamed up with NBA star Steph Curry to create a particular grip set to help Curry’s UNDERRATED youth golf program.
Nevertheless, if a James Bond-themed golf grip was in your bingo card for this fall, right this moment’s your fortunate day.
“A variety of it is a enjoyable sort of experiment to see the way it works for us and to create extra visibility for the model,” says Ledford. “The UNDERRATED grip was a primary for us. This one, nonetheless, might be essentially the most pure enjoyable we’ve had with a grip.”
Whereas the collaboration could appear out of left discipline, the discharge timing just isn’t. Oct. 5 occurs to be World James Bond Day and the Bond traditional Goldfinger is celebrating its sixtieth anniversary this fall. Goldfinger was launched within the UK in mid-September 1964 and the U.S. simply 4 days earlier than Christmas. Golf Delight is paying homage to that traditional and the golf showdown between Sean Connery’s 007 and Gert Frobe’s unhealthy man Auric “Strict Guidelines of Golf” Goldfinger.
“That scene is likely one of the most iconic golf scenes in film historical past,” Ledford says. “We did a launch occasion a couple of days in the past in London at Stoke Park the place they filmed that scene. It was fairly cool to stroll within the steps of Sean Connery and Goldfinger on the market.”
(For the document, the Bond folks handed out sleeves of Penfold Coronary heart golf balls.)
Shaken, not stirred …
Ledford says there’s a enterprise facet to those collaborations, which is to succeed in as many golfers with various pursuits as attainable.
“It’s true Golf Delight has a 60- to 70-percent market share within the grip class however we solely have interaction with perhaps 40 p.c of all golfers in any given 12 months. Folks simply don’t take into consideration grips. A part of what we’re doing at our World Innovation Heart in Pinehurst is creating a very completely different mindset about grips.”
In case you’re questioning how a James Bond tuxedo-looking grip goes to do this, you could be lacking the purpose of “restricted editions.”
Golfers could discover enjoyable with stripes, icons or shade drips on golf balls, however most of us take a look at grips because the factor we maintain on to once we swing a membership. We actually aren’t occupied with self-expression.
“Golf Delight has at all times saved it fairly secure with our grips,” says Ledford. “That is only a manner to assist folks see grips differently. It’s not like we intend to promote a number of these.”
The Golf Delight x James Bond grip collaboration is available in a limited-edition 007-themed package, just like the Steph Curry collaboration. It consists of 14 grips, 13 of which are supposed to be put in in your golf equipment. The 14th grip is a souvenir in a particular gold bar show field.
Think about throwing that down because the prize on your subsequent match with a supervillain. Or your cousin.
The world just isn’t sufficient
Give Golf Delight credit score: it didn’t skimp on the main points with an intricate 007-esque tuxedo design. The bow tie, for instance, has a cross-grain to it whereas the tuxedo shirt offers off a quilted look. The lapels of the tux have a special texture altogether and the tux jacket has 007 texturing. There’s even a 007 spiral eye on the top cap. All that’s lacking is an Aston Martin DB5 and a Walther PPK.
“It wasn’t simple to do however it was a number of enjoyable,” says Ledford. “We could not fold these design options from the James Bond grip into different Golf Delight grips, however we’re pushing our capabilities to new limits. It places new issues in our instrument package that we are able to use in numerous methods in our core choices.”
Ledford says extra grip collaborations are coming however there’s nothing to announce now. Most probably you’ll see Golf Delight teaming up with different golf-playing celebrities however he isn’t ruling out further Bond-themed ideas.
“We’re anxious to see how the market reacts. If folks prefer it as a lot as we do, you’ll be able to think about all of the enjoyable Bond iterations we might construct off this. If it brings a sure viewers to Golf Delight that loves James Bond however doesn’t usually take into consideration their grips, we’d like to do extra of it.”
Perhaps we’ll see a Diamonds Are Perpetually grip set or perhaps The Spy Who Liked Me. How a couple of Moneypenny girl’s grip?
Hey, should you love Bond and golf, why the hell not?
Gold Delight x James Bond: Closing ideas
Of us, these are for enjoyable, and there’s no hurt in enjoyable. The tuxedo design is fairly intricate and one can see how Golf Delight can use what it realized through the design and manufacturing course of sooner or later. If it helps, consider the Bond grips as an idea automotive. In case you desire “gimmick,” that works, too.
However until you play on Sundays to feed your loved ones, you play golf for enjoyable. So have some enjoyable, OK?
“Everybody’s used to the Tour-proven, severe facet of Golf Delight, and that’s nonetheless our core. That’s who we’re,” says Ledford. “But it surely’s enjoyable to let stuff like this out of the bag each infrequently. It must be enjoyable, which is why you’ll see us poking round in these areas, simply to see what occurs.”
In case you’re not a Bond fan, don’t fear. Golf Delight isn’t going all 007, on a regular basis. You’ll be able to nonetheless purchase plain black Tour Velvets. In case you’re feeling a bit of saucy, the MCC grips in Groups colours are at all times there.
If, nonetheless, you’re a fan of the traditional Sean Connery, the forgotten George Lazenby, the campy Roger Moore, the missed (and underrated) Timothy Dalton, the just about excellent Pierce Brosnan or the buff however brooding Daniel Craig, you will get a grip dressed up in a tux.
Someplace Ian Fleming is having a smoke and smiling.
Worth and availability
The Golf Delight x James Bond grip collaboration comes within the aforementioned 14-grip package. The field itself is collectible, that includes an image of the well-known Bond-Goldfinger match on the within cowl. The 14th grip is available in a collectible gold bar field.
As a restricted version, solely 2,000 units will probably be made. They’ll be out there in each commonplace and midsize.
The package sells for $189. It’s out there for pre-sale beginning right this moment at 007Store.com. Ledford expects they’ll ultimately be out there on the Golf Delight web site.
The publish Golf Delight x James Bond Grip Collaboration appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
