Joining The Club
Corona-Based Golfers Have Their Own Unique Putter On The Market

Published: July 27, 2004
Edition: ALL ZONES
Section: SPORTS DAY
Page#: C06
By LEW PRICE- THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE

CORONA - The universal truth has always held that a poor putter is a condemned man.

Brad Cochran was living proof. He could drive a golf ball a mile into the wind, could strike it as pure as Napa cabernet. But he couldn't buy a putt and he couldn't buy an antidote off the shelf.

So he engineered one.
"I had to design something for me," Cochran said. The result of his tinkering is Pinfire Golf, a Corona-based operation Cochran and his partner, Greg Martin, have launched. So far, their revolutionary foray into the competitive equipment manufacturing business consists of a custom-fitted putter constructed of aerospace aluminum.

The club's head resembles the 2-ball putter sold by Callaway but is heavier, has a larger sweet spot and is available in different shafts.
"We believe that we have a quality, handmade product and that is what will separate us," Martin said. "We want to cater, obviously, to the professional player, but also the high- and mid-handicap players.

"This is a product that is easy to use. It sets up well and it lines up well. Too often players don't have the proper product. They buy something because of the name."

The message Cochran and Martin want to float is that this is not a 2-ball knockoff. "We have the perfect balance and weighting," Cochran said. "Our sweet spot is one half-inch larger than the 2-ball. It is face-balanced." Cochran, a Chino native who now lives in Corona, is 29 and chasing the dream life of a touring professional. He is playing the area mini tours, prepping for a run at the PGA Tour's Q school.

Two weeks ago he established the course record at Corona's Eagle Glen, shooting a 62 using - of course - a Pinfire putter. He has always been an inveterate tinkerer, constantly making adjustments to his clubs. "I went through about five or six models and about 50 drawings to get to this point," he said. "We finally got it right." And it is USGA-approved. "It took an act of Congress but we got it approved," Martin said. "They have seven of our putters."

The Eagle is similar to the 2-ball only in that it has two holes that aid in alignment. Its defining traits are the face balancing and weighting, the super-light aluminum and the enlarged sweet spot.
"It's easier to line up," Cochran said. "It's hard to miss the sweet spot so you're always gong to get the same roll."

The putters, which Cochran and Martin will shape to fit the individual player, are available with a single-bend offset, a double-bend offset, a straight shaft and a belly model. They are available in six distinctive colors and retail for $169.99. The partners have sold nearly 200 since they became available six months ago, their displays so far on site at Eagle Glen, Bear Creek Country Club, Hidden Valley Golf Club, El Rancho Verde Golf Club, Cresta Verde Golf Club, Nevada Bobs in Riverside and on the company Web site, www.pinfiregolf.com.

Martin, 42, is a PGA professional and mini-tour player. He said the key to the company's long-term success is getting their putters into the hands of an established touring pro.

The Canadian Tour's Brien Davis is using one and UNLV's Ryan Moore has one, too. There are several in play on the Gateway Tour and the Nationwide Tour's Kevin Stadler, Martin said, loved the putter but is prohibited from playing one because of his contract with Ping.
"We've nickel-and-dimed ourselves to death to get the money to keep this going," Martin said. "Money is the big issue. It's all marketing. The average tour player gets $5,000-10,000 a week to play a putter and that's just not feasible for us. But at our demo days we have been outselling everyone - Ping and Callaway included."

Ryan Lane, a PGA apprentice, is a convert. He said he tried one of the putters and his game was revolutionized. "It's probably the most accurate putter I've ever seen," he said. "You just get so much more consistent with your stroke. I went from more than 30+ putts a round to around 28." Robert Stover, the golf shop manager at Eagle Glen, said he has yet to hear any negative feedback from anyone who has purchased one of the putters.

"It's just a great product," he said. "It sets up so well that you always get the clubhead back to the ball square. And it's affordable." The current model is just the tip of the iceberg. Cochran said he already has other models on the drawing board but doesn't want to release them until the current model begins to flourish. "This particular model won't fit everyone's eye, so we will have a traditional model when we're completely satisfied with this one," he said. "Our goal is for this to be a real business. "It's not about the money. It's about going to a golf course somewhere and seeing someone using one of them and knowing, `Hey, that's my putter.' There's just something kind of cool about that."