For what it’s worth, some may find this interesting. I contacted Callaway in regard to some info on counterfeit clubs and in part they stated that not all of their products are given serial numbers (in this case some FW woods) and the only iron sets that have numbers are those assembled in USA…..they have a number on the 8 iron only.

They state that the only sure way to avoid counterfeits is to purchase from an authorised account holder…they acknowledge that the counterfeiters sometimes use Callaway’s serial numbers so the presence of a number is no guarantee anyway. Nothing really that is highly unusual there…..apart from the strange fact that some genuine articles are issued numbers and some are not…...that makes things easy doesn’t it :)

If you buy a set of irons from anyone legitimate and have them modified by Callaway in ANY way (lie, length) they will not put a serial number on the 8 iron…the off the shelf items should have numbers. You can get a letter of authenticity from Callaway for your non-serialised irons though.

You can get a letter of authenticity from Callaway for your non-serialised irons though.

I am sure that if the Chinese are clever enough to engineer some of these good looking copies (and let’s face it, they may not swing the same – trust me, I have a set and they are dodgy – but they certainly look very close to the real deal), I am sure that they are clever enough to dodgy up a ‘Letter of authenticity’.

I have no idea how much work goes into creating a decent counterfeit club, but give me an hour or two in Photoshop/Illustrator, the right paper and a decent printer and you’ll have yourself a letter of authenticity!

To be honest, morally I couldn’t care less if the chinese are flogging off $100 sets of counterfeit clubs. The real issue that boils my blood is the unsuspecting punters that often buy these things in good faith. If you part with 100 bucks, and knowingly receive a dodgy set of clubs worth 100 bucks then no harm no foul. It could even be argued that the OEM company does not lose out in this case either, because these people probably would not have forked out the $$$ for a real set anyhow.

However, the moment a legit buyer pays top dollar, or near top dollar for fake clubs and parts with $1000 only to end up with junk, well this is a whole other story. The sad fact is that many sellers of fake clubs these days aren’t asking the rediculously low prices they used to. In many cases they are offering them for sale at prices the similar to the real deal, in order to avoid the obvious assumption that they are fake.

It is a nasty situation. Caveat Emptor.

You can get a letter of authenticity from Callaway for your non-serialised irons though.

I am sure that if the Chinese are clever enough to engineer some of these good looking copies (and let’s face it, they may not swing the same – trust me, I have a set and they are dodgy – but they certainly look very close to the real deal), I am sure that they are clever enough to dodgy up a ‘Letter of authenticity’.

I have no idea how much work goes into creating a decent counterfeit club, but give me an hour or two in Photoshop/Illustrator, the right paper and a decent printer and you’ll have yourself a letter of authenticity!

To be honest, morally I couldn’t care less if the chinese are flogging off $100 sets of counterfeit clubs. The real issue that boils my blood is the unsuspecting punters that often buy these things in good faith. If you part with 100 bucks, and knowingly receive a dodgy set of clubs worth 100 bucks then no harm no foul. It could even be argued that the OEM company does not lose out in this case either, because these people probably would not have forked out the $$$ for a real set anyhow.

However, the moment a legit buyer pays top dollar, or near top dollar for fake clubs and parts with $1000 only to end up with junk, well this is a whole other story. The sad fact is that many sellers of fake clubs these days aren’t asking the rediculously low prices they used to. In many cases they are offering them for sale at prices the similar to the real deal, in order to avoid the obvious assumption that they are fake.

It is a nasty situation. Caveat Emptor.

MY point is if you buy a set of irons that need to fitted you will not have a serial number, but you can get a LOA which will make you feel better….ohh and for the Callaway products, the LOA comes from Callaway itself, not the store or with the clubs when they arrive…

< CAUTION, THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH CONTAINS A FAIR AMOUNT OF SARCASM >
Thanks for pointing out that a letter can be copied…I never thought of that…I thought that they would be spending all their time copying irons, woods, putters, iPhones, iPods and the like to worry about a LOA…but I will have to double check it and maybe I will trace the number I called when I spoke with a Callaway representative about it and also make sure the shop I bought them from is not a shopfront for illegal activity….

I have always thought it amazing that you can purchase an Ibanez Steve Vai JEM guitar on Ebay … from the Shityou Province, China … for 99 cents starting price. I am always more amazed when people bid for it.

Thanks for pointing out that a letter can be copied…I never thought of that…I thought that they would be spending all their time copying irons, woods, putters, iPhones, iPods and the like to worry about a LOA…but I will have to double check it and maybe I will trace the number I called when I spoke with a Callaway representative about it and also make sure the shop I bought them from is not a shopfront for illegal activity….

I wasn’t having a go at you mate, sorry if it came off that way. Obviously they would spend more time copying everything else rather than bits of paper. If you re-read my post, the point I was trying to make was the absolute futility of all of this serial number, letter of authenticity, security hologram business.

I was trying to allude to the fact that buying from a reputable dealer is the best way to truely ensure authenticity. Which it seems you have done. Congratulations.

The issue that made me curious initially was that I purchased a new set of clubs from a reputable dealer, very happy with the clubs but noticed that one of the FW woods did not have a serial number whilst the rest did. Then on making enquiries I am told that this is “normal”.?....surely if a company puts serial numbers on some of their products then they should put numbers on all of them if they are of a comparable quality. It just confuses the customer, particularly in times when OEM claim they hold great concerns that they are subject to counterfeiters impinging on their business and reputation (in reality you could insert “profits” in there).

Either put numbers on all of them or none of them. It makes no sense as a business practice to have a standard and not adhere to it yourself.

In my case I’m confident that I have the real deal, but it simply reinforces the issue that no-one will ever really know for sure when the OEM themselves vary their own standards.

The issue that made me curious initially was that I purchased a new set of clubs from a reputable dealer, very happy with the clubs but noticed that one of the FW woods did not have a serial number whilst the rest did. Then on making enquiries I am told that this is “normal”.?....surely if a company puts serial numbers on some of their products then they should put numbers on all of them if they are of a comparable quality. It just confuses the customer, particularly in times when OEM claim they hold great concerns that they are subject to counterfeiters impinging on their business and reputation (in reality you could insert “profits” in there).

Either put numbers on all of them or none of them. It makes no sense as a business practice to have a standard and not adhere to it yourself.

In my case I’m confident that I have the real deal, but it simply reinforces the issue that no-one will ever really know for sure when the OEM themselves vary their own standards.

That’s not a hook, it’s just a fade that didn’t come back.

agree w you mate
it’s utterly very confusing to us customers
the LOA should have a microchip of somesorts to prove that it’s really the real stuff ?

Thanks for pointing out that a letter can be copied…I never thought of that…I thought that they would be spending all their time copying irons, woods, putters, iPhones, iPods and the like to worry about a LOA…but I will have to double check it and maybe I will trace the number I called when I spoke with a Callaway representative about it and also make sure the shop I bought them from is not a shopfront for illegal activity….

I wasn’t having a go at you mate, sorry if it came off that way. Obviously they would spend more time copying everything else rather than bits of paper. If you re-read my post, the point I was trying to make was the absolute futility of all of this serial number, letter of authenticity, security hologram business.

I was trying to allude to the fact that buying from a reputable dealer is the best way to truely ensure authenticity. Which it seems you have done. Congratulations.

I just needed to get my daily dose of sarcasm out…..limited avenues for it at work at the moment.

The issue that made me curious initially was that I purchased a new set of clubs from a reputable dealer, very happy with the clubs but noticed that one of the FW woods did not have a serial number whilst the rest did. Then on making enquiries I am told that this is “normal”.?....surely if a company puts serial numbers on some of their products then they should put numbers on all of them if they are of a comparable quality. It just confuses the customer, particularly in times when OEM claim they hold great concerns that they are subject to counterfeiters impinging on their business and reputation (in reality you could insert “profits” in there).

Either put numbers on all of them or none of them. It makes no sense as a business practice to have a standard and not adhere to it yourself.

In my case I’m confident that I have the real deal, but it simply reinforces the issue that no-one will ever really know for sure when the OEM themselves vary their own standards.

That’s not a hook, it’s just a fade that didn’t come back.

agree w you mate
it’s utterly very confusing to us customers
the LOA should have a microchip of somesorts to prove that it’s really the real stuff ?

If Tiger plays Lefty will he be that good ?
You sure Square is Good ? Don’t Think So !
Good Golf is Fun plus the Great Outdoors…
In the Bag: Clubs and Balls. My Handicap is Bad Golf.

Well I spoke to the Callaway reps over the phone when I got my LOA and frankly it is worth as much as the serials…I suggested they run a registry DB on their genuine clubs so they can be tracked person to person…much like dog and cat registries. That way when you pass your clubs on the registration also passes on (ie Callaway are called and the owner details are also passed on)....and you can check the authenticity of the clubs at any time. I got the impression that this was too much work for them

Microchips work with cats and dogs….....

i personally wouldn’t bother changing registration of clubs if bought some second hand. what a pain in the ass. sure check em before you buy but isn’t that going a bit far?

Here’s some samples

http://www.golfbidder.co.uk...

Here’s some samples

http://www.golfbidder.co.uk…

No matter how bad your game it is always possible to get better or worse

Muggins

good info, good examples…well posted.

Ever wondered if the likes of Callaway, Nike, etc manufacture from the same factories as the counterfiet clubs?

Microchips work with cats and dogs……..

and people n apes too !!
not to mention great white sharks …this i saw on a national geo docu :))

Ever wondered if the likes of Callaway, Nike, etc manufacture from the same factories as the counterfiet clubs?

keep loose and swing free

this is a very real probability
indeed it’s probably happening
and some of this thru the backdoor clubs are from the same batch of genuine stuff !!
very very conceivable

btw is that guy on your avatar going to the Mardi gra ?

You never know what’s under the bag !!! or could be just hot weather ???

Something else to consider in regard to copy/clone clubs. Some time back I was interested in photography and over the course of following and researching this hobby it came to light that a number of the bigger companies who manufactured the high end stuff (insert high price here as well) eg the equivalent of Canon, Pentax etc(just random examples folks, don’t sue me).... suffered “seasonal” sales declines like a lot of companies do..their way around this was to manufacture and market cheaper goods in the same factory using basically the same gear with some minor changes, under a different brand name. Good reliable gear but not competing in the same market as their high end stuff so it did not hurt their sales of the good and established reputable items….the companies did not like this to get around too much in case it reflected on their reputation for turning out some class gear. The cheaper gear continued the sales as a bread and butter line, they had a good reputation for a different section of the market and had a demand year round.

So we have good companies producing good basic gear in the same factories that turn out high end gear….got to be a win-win situation for most of the target market…...the cash flow continues and the high end reputation is protected.

The same is often said of companies producing stereo/electronic gear also.

It stands to reason that any company, including golf item producers, can utilise this procedure so who is to say that some of the clone/copies don’t emanate from this?

No doubt there are a lot of others simply knocking out crap as well, the trick is trying to separate the two.

I know a couple of Sydney pro shops that sell counterfeit Callaway and Taylor Made clubs and claim they are the real deal. It happens in all walks of life, not just golf clubs.

So we have good companies producing good basic gear in the same factories that turn out high end gear….got to be a win-win situation for most of the target market……the cash flow continues and the high end reputation is protected.

I have a cheapo Palsonic TV i bought from Target 8 years ago. It is a Hitachi tube, and it still runs perfect , thankyou very much!

Chinese counterfeiters should be buried alive withe the crap the manufacture.

i hate them!