A Fresh Start for Tommy Armour

With Dick’s Sporting Goods at the helm, Tommy Armour golf clubs are making a welcome return.

The only club that made a dent in the Ping Eye 2’s dominance of the iron market during the 1980s and early ‘90s was the Tommy Armour 845 of which over 600,000 sets were sold. Named for the Hall of Fame (inducted in 1976) golfer from Scotland who emigrated to the US in 1922, and won the 1927 US Open at Oakmont, 1930 PGA Championship at Fresh Meadow on Long Island, NY., and 1931 Open Championship at Carnoustie, the Tommy Armour brand was founded in the 1970s and, bolstered by sales of the 845, remained a fairly significant manufacturer until the first decade of the new century.

It could never repeat the success of its seminal iron, however, so its name faded from view and the 845 remained the product for which it was best known – for many, the only product for which it was known (although the EVO driver did have its fans).

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As has happened with a handful of other once-famous golf brands in recent-ish years, the ownership of Tommy Armour trademarks, intellectual property, and licenses, moved from one company to another – TearDrop Golf, Huffy Corporation, Hilco Consumer Capital and Crystal Capital and, in 2010, to Sports Authority which became the sole vendor of Tommy Armour-branded clubs, selling bargain drivers, woods, irons, wedges and putters (and even shoes) off the shelf.

In March of 2016, Sports Authority went bankrupt and, in June, Dick’s Sporting Goods paid $23m for the Sports Authority brand name, intellectual property, and the lease on 31 stores.

Two years later, after working closing on the relaunch with BMW Group subsidiary, Designworks, the Tommy Armour brand resurfaced, joining other in-house, private brands Top Flite, Maxfli, and Walter Hagen. The extensive line of products will be sold exclusively online and at Dick’s Sporting Goods stores, and are certainly positioned above bargain-basement-quality.

“Our goal is to revitalize the brand to be one of the most sought-after in the country by infusing cutting edge technology and materials at an affordable price,” says David Michaels, the company’s Senior Product Manager of Golf.

The flagship of the initial product line-up is undoubtedly the TA1 – a powerful-looking driver with a lot of state-of-the-art technology that is priced at a level that puts it in the Tour Edge/Cobra/Cleveland/Wilson/Lynx bracket – a notch below the big boys in terms of prestige and price, but a very solid choice for a lot of golfers nonetheless.

The TA1 is instantly identified by its matte red 8-1-1 Titanium body. A carbon fiber crown and tungsten sole weight combine to lower the Center of Gravity and raise the Moment of Inertia to an impressive 5,400 g/cm². A high tensile strength DAT 55G Titanium Cup Face produces a high COR that promises a lot of ball speed. “This material is really what helps us deliver both a better feel and longer distance over clubs that golfers might be more familiar with,” says Michaels. Tommy Armour isn’t the only brand using DAT 55G, but it isn’t widely available in the US, and certainly not in a driver of this price. Something else you might not see in the typical mid-price driver is the top-quality Mitsubishi Kuro Kage Silver TiNi graphite shaft.

Other useful tech includes Surface Disruptors in the crown which help reduce drag and thus increase clubhead speed, and an adjustable loft sleeve that allows you to set your preferred loft and lie configuration.

Michaels is justifiably upbeat about the return of Tommy Armour clubs. “We’re proud of the final product,” he says, “and look forward to customers getting it out on the course.” If you’re in the market for a quality driver but don’t want to pay top dollar, the TA1 might be just the thing.

$300
Right-hand only
Lofts: 9°, 10.5°
dickssportinggoods.com