Sub 70

Order a set from Sub 70 and it doesn't come off a shelf, because there isn't one. Every club is built to order in Sycamore, Illinois, an hour west of Chicago, by a team small enough that the person who assembles your clubs puts a handwritten note in the box with their name and contact details on it. Jason Hiland started Sub 70 in 2018 after twenty-odd years in golf components. The idea was to strip out the advertising, distribution and retail markup rather than the club. Trade-ins and a pre-owned inventory sit alongside the built-to-order clubs, under a tagline that reads expectations redefined.

Length, lie, loft, shaft and grip are all specified at the point of order, which is a normal expectation at a fitting studio and much less normal online. There's a demo programme too. The Seventy, the company's fitting room in downtown Sycamore, handles fittings by appointment, and the clubs cover a full bag, from the 6xx forged irons through the 749 and 799 sets to the 286 and JB wedges, with drivers, fairway woods, hybrids and putters filling out the rest. Tommy Armour III put his name on a wedge and iron line. John Daly has played them with no contract and said as much out loud, which is about the best endorsement a small company can get.