TaylorMade R1 and RBZ Stage 2 – What’s the Story with Those Crown Graphics?

Coming Soon: TaylorMade R1 & RBZ Stage 2

Unless you’ve basically been living in a bunker for the last several weeks you’ve very likely already seen pictures of TaylorMade’s upcoming R1 and RBZ Stage 2 woods lineup.

If TaylorMade’s plan was to keep everything under-wraps until early January, that ship has long since sailed…and sunk.  Pics, some real, some real fake, have been floating about the interwebs for a number of weeks now. The latest round of spy pics aren’t coming out of factories. They’ve emerged from sources within multiple proshops, leaving us with little doubt that what you see, is what you’re going to get.

A Story for Everything

When TaylorMade does make their official announcement we expect there won’t be any shortage of storylines.

You can be certain the resigned compass-like ASP plate is going to offer even more control over face angle. Both drivers apparently will feature an all-lofts-in-one-head design similar to Cobra’s MyFly, and Nike’s FlexLoft. TaylorMade may even talk about a refined head shape with weights in the R1 placed closer to the face.

We fully expect that the announcement of the new RBZ Stage 2 Fairway Wood will be accompanied by a yardage claim; maybe even a double-digit one. Readers will immediately want to know how it compares to Callaway’s upcoming XHot. Begun, the fairway wood wars have…again.

Golfers will care about that stuff…all of that stuff, but the untold story that’s sure to generate the most interest…

What the hell is the deal with those crown graphics?

You’ve got lines, and patterns, and colors. There’s basically a lot going on.

The early feedback wasn’t kind (to say the least). Initially I thought TaylorMade was sitting on top of their biggest bust in years, but opinions, including my own, have tempered of late. Frankly, none of that matters. Find it beautiful. Find it hideous. Be indifferent. It doesn’t matter what you think. TaylorMade wouldn’t release it, if they weren’t sure they could sell it.

For all the hype, I’m one who has come to believe that TaylorMade’s stuff performs as well (and sometimes better) than most anything else on the market today. Of course, performance isn’t even half the equation. It’s the story that matters most, and nobody in the industry spins a yarn as well as TaylorMade.

You Tell the Story

So while we wait patiently for the “Official” version we thought it might be fun for you guys to speculate (and wildly so) on the story behind the elaborate crown graphics. Put on your psychic caps and tell us how you think TaylorMade is going to sell the crown design.