Club Champion — Local services in New York

Jake (Club Champion, NYC Master Fitter and Master Club Builder) is da' man !!! Patient / experienced / excellent communicator / in it only to meet your needs (and within your budget). If you are even at all serious about playing the best golf that you can (which may not include becoming a scratch golfer - but should include hitting more fairways with tighter dispersions on your driver and clearing more traps to hit more greens with the irons) ping Jake to let him help you to dial it in with the modern technology of this year. (I believe that this was a pivotal year in golf club design, with all companies utilizing AI to produce the best / most forgiving clubs ever available.) And if you want to really get into it, read ahead for my thoughts on optimizing your Club Champion visit - making the most of your appointment: DO go in swinging well - be ready to swing representatively of your current game. (Don't prance in there after a long winter or layoff and just hope for the best !! I had a couple of range sessions before committing to my visit.) DON’T hit balls right before - you may take 150 or more full swings during a full bag fitting (equivalent to playing 54 or more holes). Trust your fitter. They know the options. Don't micromanage the process based on the ads you’ve read or the hot clubs your friends are talking about. Let the "apples to apples" club comparisons you experience be your guide. Your fitter is steeped in science, but they are artiste’s as well. Yes they will tell you of the thousands of shaft / club head options that they have, and they do . . . and that helps greatly. BUT the process ultimately depends on precision that must be inserted by your fitter. They can’t have EVERY club / loft / lie / bounce / grind / shaft (weight / length / stiffness / material), etc. option available. Your fitter is the key in building clubs for you. "I don’t have this shaft in 45” but if we take off half an inch that will encourage this or that so that’s what we need to do.”

What is the value of tighter dispersion and hitting a few more fairways a round and maybe clearing that bunker or two and rolling onto more greens (?) That’s the value proposition you need to make. (But if you've read this far - you probably know that this process...

UPDATE (9/17/25):

Mitch (regional sales manager) called me the day after my review, and he was serious about making it right. I had already gotten a driver from elsewhere, but he was very persistent (offering an actual free fitting and no obligation to make a purchase). It took some time for me to want to give them more of my time/money, but I eventually came around when I needed a putter.

This time, Mitch hooked me up with John. The experience was night and day. John wasn’t pushy at all, he didn’t even talk to me about pricing until I asked, and he was endlessly patient with me as I tried out 10-20 putters. When we finally narrowed it down to the LAB Mezz, he printed out the pricing sheet, and left me alone to make a decision. He was also extremely knowledgeable about latest technologies around putters, he shared about his personal experience, and he was extremely friendly and personable.

I don’t normally change my reviews, but I’m revising from a 1 to a 5. I’ll choose to believe Mitch that my last experience truly was a one off experience. He was dedicating to making things right, and today I can honestly say that I’d come back again for my next club fitting.

ORIGINAL (8/28/25):

I made an appointment for a “free fitting”. After waiting 30 minutes for Alex to finish up with his prior client (props on him for not rushing out others), he was able to start my fitting.

Before swinging a single club, he told me I’d need to buy a $1000+ driver + a $50 fitting fee or pay a $175 fitting fee if I didn’t buy anything. After he looked up my appointment, he realized I did, in fact, have a promo. But only for the $50 extra fee. Now I could choose between spending $1000+ for a custom driver or walk away empty handed and out $175. Wasted an hour of my...

I recently got a putter fitting from these guys. Should be simple. One of the things I liked about the putter I selected was the grip. Literally said to the fitter I think I just like this putter because of the grip. Putter arrived three weeks later. Wrong grip. It’s been a week now and the only solution after several follow up emails is to file a warranty or maybe get the grip from the store!??. What kind of solution is that. So I guess I’m supposed to get it regripped. I’ve spent more time figuring out grip they even put on this thing than I spent on the Sam lab testing. Waste of time. This is the second time these guys have screwed up an order for me. Two for two. The first time at least they dealt with that problem appropriately with good customer service. This one is basically like sorry your custom putter is not what you wanted. What a joke. Sweet “oversized” grip in picture below!! I wont even get into the actual fitting process for both clubs. But needless to say on both I would have been happy to return them instead of dealing with the screw ups. ...