DnA Golf - Changing the Face of Golf One Driver at a Time

- Tempe, Arizona-based DnA Golf has got driving on its mind. This subsidiary of VyaTek Sports got its start when approached by BMW to create a golf club that fit in with the company’s “Ultimate Driving Machine” concept. That was seven years ago. In September of 2009 a company and driver was born: DnA Golf unveiled its DnA Alpha 610 Driver that features a patented, detachable face and elastomeric insert. In essence, it allows you to fine-tune for “D” (Distance) and “A” (Acoustics).

What does every golfer enjoy about driving a golf ball? Gripping and ripping with hopes of knocking the ball far (and on target). But also, there is a certain satisfaction in the sound. Much like folks prefer the crack of a baseball bat over the ping of an aluminum bat.

Founder & CEO, Howard Lindsay and his team unveiled DnA Technology™, which actually has a dual meaning. Due to the unique construction method being used to create the driver, not only can it be optimized for Distance & Acoustics, but it also allows the company to offer a level of customization never seen before in a driver – thus the reference that each driver carries a unique "DNA."

Don’t try looking for a DnA Driver in your local GolfSmith or online at TGW.com. Along with this unique, fine-tuning approach, DnA Golf also has a unique distribution strategy where they focus on small runs of custom drivers for corporate partners and “green grass” pro shops. Plus, they have the manufacturing flexibility to be able to add custom emblems/logos.

Clearly, besides driving golf balls, driving brands are a key part of DnA Golf’s company DnA.

Technology

Let's start by discussing the "D" as in the Distance aspect of the DnA driver.

Per the company's website, the distance a golf ball covers is directly proportional to the energy "lost" at impact. What DnA Golf did was find a way to produce drivers that can be tuned to the maximum legal limit by effectively minimizing "lost energy."

What’s Legal?

USGA COR: You may have seen ads with references to USGA’s COR ratio. COR stands for “Coefficient of Restitution.” The test is all about measuring the energy lost at impact and involves striking an un-shafted driver head with a moving golf ball and then measuring both the incoming and rebound velocities. The maximum legal value is 0.83, which means that there’s a 17% energy loss at impact, due to strain energy of the ball and head, heat, and noise.

USGA CT: The COR test has evolved into something called the Characteristic Time (CT) test. This new test takes the entire golf club into account, not just the club head. Apparently, one of the reasons for the change is so that more field testing can take place (i.e. on the PGA Tour). The CT test measures how long the ball is on the clubface and reflects how much energy is transferred during impact. The USGA (and other governing bodies) have regulated a maximum of 257 micro-seconds (µs). Any club that tests above 257 µs indicates that the head/face is too flexible and the club is deemed “non-conforming.” Test values under 257 µs are acceptable. In essence, a higher µs means less energy lost, thus more distance.

Due to DnA Golf’s patented “tunable” approach (#7,338,390 US issued for detachable face technology), the company can deliver drivers that bump right up to the limit. That means more distance due to having the highest allowable face-flexibility.

A for Acoustics

As DnA Golf explains it, there has been a trend over the last 15-years towards making club heads that are larger and more hollow. Tied to longer clubs, this combination is great for velocity and distance (that lauded MOI). However, what’s missing is a satisfying sound. In fact, the bell-like sound has been compared with the pingy tin can sound from aluminum bats.

What’s that sound?

The sound you “hear” when striking a ball is a combination of frequency, decibel level and wave duration. Things at higher frequencies “sound” louder than something with a lower frequency. Also, sounds that have a longer duration are louder than something with a very short duration.

In the context of driver impact, there is a huge spectrum of frequencies involved when a driver head crushes a golf ball. So what DNA Golf focused on was creating a driver that replicated the sound of the old classic ("old school” persimmon clubs), yet still performs like a modern titanium driver.

How did they do it?

Because they were brilliant enough to come up with a unique detachable face design, they have unlimited access to the interior of the hollow head after the club has been constructed. They came up with a way to fine tune the acoustic profile of a club to three distinct levels:

Level 1 - closely replicates the hollow sound of modern titanium drivers.

Level 2 - is more muted creating a lower acoustic signature.

Level 3 - has the most acoustic damping and is designed to mimic the classic solid sound of the old persimmon drivers.

The DnA Alpha 610 driver can be tweaked so that younger players, who like that tinny sound can stick to Level 1; while golfers who grew up playing real wood drivers may find Level 3 quite enjoyable.

If all of this sounds confusing, don’t worry. As mentioned above, this fine-tuning is not targeted for drivers bought through standard distribution channels.

Distribution Strategy

DnA Golf has made it a point to partner exclusively with select corporate brands (i.e. BMW) and high-end, green grass golf facilities (i.e. resorts who sell OEM clubs with their own brand). The co-branded driver is ideal for things like brand loyalty programs, promotional gifts, customer/partner/employee rewards and dealer/distributor incentives.

The reason for this approach, which makes total sense for a niche company like DnA Golf, is to connect premium brands with the company’s state-of-the-art, high-performance driver in order to spread brand awareness and visibility.

What Arnie Thought

A great example of how this strategy plays out occurred in November, at Arnold Palmer’s Kingdom Cup Invitational. DnA Golf created special “Kingdom Cup” branded drivers specifically for the event and was among the key sponsors along with Bentley, Tag Heuer, Callaway, Kettle One and Valspar.

“Participating in an event of this caliber was a great way for us to promote our new company,” said Howard Lindsay, Founder/CEO of DnA Golf. “The feedback from everyone who tested the drivers at the demo day was great. The drivers purchased by Arnold’s Kingdom Magazine for the tournament winners and to auction off to raise money for the Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital were a big hit.”

A glowing endorsement came from Arnold Palmer himself, who personally tested the DnA Golf driver during the Kingdom Cup demo day. He later requested one for his own bag.

How to Get One

Although the company has a unique distribution strategy, there is an option for buying direct with a choice of two different DnA logos, for $395 per driver. What you get is a driver with a custom shaft from Fujikura (you can select from A-X flex). You also have a choice of lofts. The Right Hand ones are: 9.0º, 10.5º and 12.0º. The Left Hand loft is 10.5º. The driver length is a standard 45.0”.

You also have the choice of which level of acoustic signature profile (Level 1, 2 or 3) you’d prefer. Lastly, each driver includes an embroidered ultra-leather head cover and custom torque limiting face screw wrench.

Note: All active and retired military personnel receive 25% off, so the driver will run them just $296.

Conclusion

Hats off to DnA Golf. They have really thought this unique driver out from end-to-end by focusing on creating a superior product and moving it through channels that appreciate what’s essentially, “the ultimate driver.” The fact that you and I can get a hold of it if we so choose is a huge plus!

For more information, go to www.dnagolf.com.