Bridgestone has been a big name around the world, since its founding in Japan in 1931, for its rubber products. Bridgestone tires are among the most recognizable products in the automotive industry.
A few years after the company's founding - 1935, to be exact - Bridgestone produced its first batch of golf balls. And thus was Bridgestone Golf born.
Over the decades, Bridgestone Golf enjoyed great popularity in Japan and elsewhere around the globe. The company began designing and producing golf clubs, in addition to balls, in 1972.
But there's one place in the world where Bridgestone Golf has been missing, until now. That place is the largest golf market, the United States.
Let's clarify: while the Bridgestone Golf brand has been missing, the Bridgestone company has had a major presence in the U.S golf market. Unbeknownst to most golf consumers, Precept is a division of Bridgestone.
The Precept brand has been popular in the U.S., but in 2005 the Bridgestone company has a new idea. Bridgestone Golf is coming to America, and in full force.
The company is introducing a full range of equipment to the American market, all of it geared to better players at the high end of the market. Fans of Precept have no need to worry about that brand going away, however. The Precept brand will live on as the home of Bridgestone's mid-level and value-priced products.
Which is actually good news for Precept fans. Precept products are some of the best on the market, particularly among golf balls, and their clubs are good enough to be played on professional tours. If those same products now are seing their prices reduced to fit the new Bridgestone marketing strategy, that's nothing but good for consumers.
The relationship is similar to what the Acushnet Company did when it acquired Cobra to go along with Titleist. Titleist is the home of the company's high-end, tour-quality equipment, while Cobra offers equipment priced to the middle and value markets for golfers focused more on game-improvement.
Precept's tour staff, meanwhile, has switched to Bridgestone equipment (Nick Price, Stuart Appleby and Fred Couples among them).
Here's a rundown of Bridgestone Golf's 2005 offerings in the U.S. market:
J33 Driver and Fairway Woods
Two versions of the J33 Forged Titanium Driver are available, the J33P and J33R. The J33P driver features a 375cc, pear-shaped clubhead designed to yield a slightly lower launch. The J33R Driver boasts a 420cc traditional oversized clubhead designed for a slightly higher launch, with less spin. The drivers have an MSRP of $499.
The J33 Fairway Woods are made of 17-4 stainless steel and come in 3, 5 and 7 woods. The fairway woods carry an MSRP of $249.
Both the driver and fairway woods incorporate an elastomer compound and tungsten-weighting system in their clubheads. Read the news release for more info.
J33 AirMuscle Utility Clubs
These clubs have a traditional, less-offset iron appearance coupled with widened sole to lower the center of gravity. Their two-pieced forged construction consists of a forged, soft steel body with a thin, highly repulsive, forged spring steel face.
The J33 AirMuscle Utility Clubs carry an MSRP of $199 each. Read the news release for more info.
J33 Forged Combo Irons
This set incorporates a gradual center-of-gravity progression to yield more forgiveness in the long iron, stability in the mid-irons, and more control in the short irons. It's a proprietary system Bridgestone Golf calls "F.S.C." for, you guessed it, forgiveness-stability-control.
The J33 Forged Combo Irons carry and MSRP of $999. Read the news release for more info.
J33 Forged Wedges
Bridgestone says these wedges are designed with the optimum Tour size and shape. They are forged from 1020 mild carbon steel for feel, and feature U-grooves for spin. A longer hosel raises the center of gravity, adding spin and lowering the trajectory.
The J33 Forged Wedges carry and MSRP of $149 each. Read the news release for more info.
Tour B330 Golf Balls
The Bridgestone Tour B330 is a three-piece urethane ball. It features a 330 Seamless Cover Technology (SCT) dimple pattern for reduced drag during elevation, and a prolonged lift after peak trajectory, causing a shallower angle of descent. A "Speed Elasticity Core" contributes to increased velocity off of the clubface and allows larger ball deformation to minimize spin off of the driver.
The Tour B330 carries an MSRP of $54 per dozen. Read the news release for more info.
