Changing of Grip...

Yes, agreed that Mr.Ong from Octane Golf is a friendly and humble fitter. Not pushy and definitely newbies will not feel out of place. Got my first set of irons from him.

Tradehub for changing grips also have good experiences.

Wholeheartedly recommend mr ong's services. He does a pretty good job and does not overcharge like the other shops nowadays.

cactuzone wrote:

vinjess wrote:

cactuzone wrote:

vinjess wrote:

My Golf Shop @ Tradehub21, look for Raymond. Their GP MC grip is $17 I think. And you can save your old grip too

Just re-grip my clubs today and felt they may be undersize. Hope your recommended fitter can provide friendly advise on the re-grip process unlike my experience today from a highly "commendable" fitter in this forum. I left the place feeling the same as I walked in..."Did I get the right grip? Anything else amiss?" I was looking for guidance and advise but all I gotten were stares (from their regulars as well). That establishment is for regulars and Pros, certainly not for clueless newbies.

Hope to get a better deal tomorrow.

hi, u mean u went to Tradehub? That time I do my grip they asked about my glove size and did one for me to try before proceed with the rest.

Not Tradehub. I am taking your cue to try them tomorrow.

Today's fitter was a highly regarded frequently commended place, I went with high expectation but left utterly disappointed. IMOH they are over-rated here in GR.

bro, care to share the "highly recommended fitter" thru PM? So i can siam if possible. 

herpderp wrote:

Wholeheartedly recommend mr ong's services. He does a pretty good job and does not overcharge like the other shops nowadays.

I personally find his workmanship excellent.

As for pricing, not only does he not over charge, he shaved off a couple of dollars here and there on a few occasions. Largely dependant on what you are doing with him and how many items you are getting so please don't go haggling with this gentleman.

Only disadvantage is that he doesn't have a launch monitor. But if you know what you want, he can advise accordingly.

Impressive is his workmanship and what is really heart warming is his service, you don't have to be a regular, you don't have to be a pro, you can be clueless and he will still give you the attention anyone deserves.

You Are paying money, you should get the attention you deserve. By the way which fitter you are talking about?

Yes, why not share with us where u got the bad experiences from? Benefit us as both consumers and also to the fitter, so that he can improve on or maybe it's just an on-off incident due to whatever reasons.

Red8 wrote:

I'm guessing GP MCC means Golf Pride Multi-Compound Grips (half cord half rubber). They're good for ppl with sweaty palms or play on in the rain (all weather grips) and the clubs get abit wet. Still maintains hold pretty well.. You'll see many ppl using it. It's the half black/white or white/red or white/green or whatever double colored grip. I think it's abt $19 each at Sam's. ask nicely and you might get a discount (:

$19 for the MCC is too expensive, bro! Many shops selling @ $15 each with installation ... You may get a dollar disc each if you re-grip 7 or more irons ...

Turbo wrote:

Red8 wrote:

I'm guessing GP MCC means Golf Pride Multi-Compound Grips (half cord half rubber). They're good for ppl with sweaty palms or play on in the rain (all weather grips) and the clubs get abit wet. Still maintains hold pretty well.. You'll see many ppl using it. It's the half black/white or white/red or white/green or whatever double colored grip. I think it's abt $19 each at Sam's. ask nicely and you might get a discount (:

$19 for the MCC is too expensive, bro! Many shops selling @ $15 each with installation ... You may get a dollar disc each if you re-grip 7 or more irons ...

Yah, $19 for MCC is too ex can get Iomic liao.

Many thanks to bros for your recommendations and pardon me for not replying you, hkhamatuer and vinjess as it's not my intention to slander but to seek an alternative to fix (not only) the grips but also to look at the shaft if the flex suits my swing. 
To clarify any misconception, the service rendered was standard with addition of being told my (used) clubs were lengthened but like choice of grip, I was left to decide on the action to be taken with further offering to try their shaft while waiting.
Probably a case of different strokes for different folks. With all the raving about their rendered services in GR, it's rather disappointing going to them with higher expectation. As I mentioned, I left as I walked in with many issues regarding my clubs unclear.

i think cactuszone is probably referring to BFG. 

i checked with my staff and was told me that a grip was made up for a golfer to try before proceeding with a set. if one wants to seek advice on anything from shaft to swing, they do have to make an appointment as the person who is doing the fitting is not the same person installing the grip.

i am sure many of the GRians here have benefited from our appointed fitting sessions and i am sorry to hear that we did not provide him what he was expecting. Again, if you need to seek advice over issues with clubs, weight, shafts, etc, do make an appointment and its free for GRians.

thank you and i did send a PM at the same time the post was up but did not get a reply. 

Again my sincere apologies if you did not get the service you seek and do not hesitate to make an appointment so that your needs can be better served.

Many thanks for your understanding and support........DGman

DGman wrote:

i think cactuszone is probably referring to BFG. 

i checked with my staff and was told me that a grip was made up for a golfer to try before proceeding with a set. if one wants to seek advice on anything from shaft to swing, they do have to make an appointment as the person who is doing the fitting is not the same person installing the grip.

i am sure many of the GRians here have benefited from our appointed fitting sessions and i am sorry to hear that we did not provide him what he was expecting. Again, if you need to seek advice over issues with clubs, weight, shafts, etc, do make an appointment and its free for GRians.

thank you and i did send a PM at the same time the post was up but did not get a reply. 

Again my sincere apologies if you did not get the service you seek and do not hesitate to make an appointment so that your needs can be better served.

Many thanks for your understanding and support........DGman

Eric, I respect your response and as one of your earliest (but not regular) customers, I think you guys don't deserve any criticism at all la.  You guys have one of the most well-setup places with great technical knowledge.  Some of the other places I've visited don't even know basic things like what the difference kick point has on launch angle.

What your place offers, equipment-wise, and how much knowledge and info you share, foc most times, with many of us not only in the forum and also those who walk in is beyond what anyone else in Singapore can share.

I wouldn't trust many other people in Singapore to get stuff done properly with the professionalism that you guys show.

Just thought I would add my $0.02

To prevent such problems in future.. why not pick up some demo clubs and feel which grip size you feel most comfortable with and then tell the fitter.. "i like this size."

Its also not fair to blame the fitter for doing a poor job if you didnt specify what you like. 

eg... standard (maybe provide glove size)... extra tape (1,2,3 layers.).. thicker right hand.. thicker left hand, etc.

Also I think user should know their butt size of the clubs before changing grips.

abadan wrote:

To prevent such problems in future.. why not pick up some demo clubs and feel which grip size you feel most comfortable with and then tell the fitter.. "i like this size."

Its also not fair to blame the fitter for doing a poor job if you didnt specify what you like. 

eg... standard (maybe provide glove size)... extra tape (1,2,3 layers.).. thicker right hand.. thicker left hand, etc.

precisely.  This is like going to a shoe shop and not knowing your shoe size and asking the sales-person to recommend a shoe size to you.  Obviously you have to decide for yourself what you like and what feels comfortable to you.

eg if you wear size 8 but the sales man recommend you size 9, you wouldn't just take his recommendation at face value before trying it out yourself.

In the service line mismatch of expectations will occur now and then. And in the service line, the old saying of "Customer is always right" will always be held close to the heart of the service provider. 

It is only natural that we bring our gripes in here. "Xxx didn't do this...yyy didn't do that...". And very often more voices will echo either party.

Involved parties had their say. I think it's commendable for thread-starter for not publicaly naming names. Eric too was very commendable for being upfront.

So enuff said already and let it rest.

Juz my thoughts.

abadan wrote:

To prevent such problems in future.. why not pick up some demo clubs and feel which grip size you feel most comfortable with and then tell the fitter.. "i like this size."

Its also not fair to blame the fitter for doing a poor job if you didnt specify what you like. 

eg... standard (maybe provide glove size)... extra tape (1,2,3 layers.).. thicker right hand.. thicker left hand, etc.

I agree with you!

Not fair to blame people lah, change grip only mah.
For me, grip (1,2,3 layer) same one lah
Still shoot lousy scores

Bear wrote:

In the service line mismatch of expectations will occur now and then. And in the service line, the old saying of "Customer is always right" will always be held close to the heart of the service provider. 

It is only natural that we bring our gripes in here. "Xxx didn't do this...yyy didn't do that...". And very often more voices will echo either party.

Involved parties had their say. I think it's commendable for thread-starter for not publicaly naming names. Eric too was very commendable for being upfront.

So enuff said already and let it rest.

Juz my thoughts.

Bear, I'm in the service industry myself, and there are some high maintenance customers that are just not worth a business' time to serve and these customers should be "fired".  Just different ideas about how to do business I guess.

Eric's response was very respectable and for that I salute him, this is the best response a service-provider can give.

But I am not the service provider and I feel we need to speak up for Eric. He really does do an excellent service not only for GR but also for the golfing population in Singapore.  Lets give credit where credit is due and also be realistic about what the customer expects from a service-provider.  

Having said that, I agree, this is too small a matter to spend much time arguing about it, especially since Eric has already responded so eloquently.

LeftRightUpDown wrote:

abadan wrote:

To prevent such problems in future.. why not pick up some demo clubs and feel which grip size you feel most comfortable with and then tell the fitter.. "i like this size."

Its also not fair to blame the fitter for doing a poor job if you didnt specify what you like. 

eg... standard (maybe provide glove size)... extra tape (1,2,3 layers.).. thicker right hand.. thicker left hand, etc.

precisely.  This is like going to a shoe shop and not knowing your shoe size and asking the sales-person to recommend a shoe size to you.  Obviously you have to decide for yourself what you like and what feels comfortable to you.

eg if you wear size 8 but the sales man recommend you size 9, you wouldn't just take his recommendation at face value before trying it out yourself.

This is a good lesson for both fitters and newbie. Everyone should move on and not agrue on who is right or who is wrong.

For any fitter, they can learn from the general feedback and see what can be further enhanced to attend the next walk-in or newbie who know nuts of golf apart from lesson given by their coach. I been to BFG, they have a good setup and their willingness to help, many GRian and I would like to recommend there. But there are time, newbie will be too shy to ask and also difficult for them to compete against experience golfers who already know what they want in the den and keeping the fitter busy (especially during peak hours)

For newbie, I believe GR is a good place to gain knowledge and share their experience in the road of golf. I've started about 1 year plus but only in recent months that I have learnt more about my grip and what other option is available for golfers. I do not know these until i visit one fitter who tell me that;
 
1) I can add tapes to increase my grip (undersize will make me grip harder);
2) There are different size of grip: standard, midsize and jumbo;
3) Not all grips can be salvage (If tear, need to buy new grip);
4) Different brand has different thickness for their standard grip size;
5) Need to inform fitter my hand size (Either your glove size or use the chart table);
6) Can just change one grip to test first before proceeding to change all;
7) Add too much tapes will also affect your swing weight;
8) Must know the butt size (Just learned from bro enwee)

What other question should a golfer or newbie ask? There are so many things to ask:
1) What is swing weight and how it affect you?
2) What is high/mid/low kick point for shaft? Which suits you?
3) Many more...

But these question are too technical that you need to speak to a fitter whom you are comfortable with.

Bro Sean76 has summed it up nicely from a newbie golfer perspective when visiting a pro fitter shop ...

I guess alot of customers' expectation of a commendable fitter naturally became higher and that might lead to certain amount of disppointments if the quality of service rendered fall short of what were being communicated in this forum ... especially if a large number of GRians are singing praises on a particular fitter for his quality works & services ... Well, don't get me wrong ... I am not saying BFG is lacking in service ... Am merely making a generic comment here. It ain't easy to provide good quality service all the time especially if the target market comprises various types of customers - From newbies to seasoned golfers and to equipment sluts who are very fussy ... I believe most ppl in the service industry would strive to provide the best possible service to meet the customer needs ... and offending a customer is definitely the last thing on their mind.

It is good that a customer would voice up his/her displeasure whether it is a valid one or not so that the service-provider would look into it objectively, and to verify if there is a need to change the way he does business ... I am not saying customer is right all the time but from a service-provider standpoint, he should keep an open mind to determine if there is a need to change afterall without customer, any business in general would not sustain ... My 2 cents' worth ...

Good points from all the GRians regarding service.

i have constantly reminded ourselves to be there when the customer needs information but also to refrained being over zealous which may easily lead to hard sell...that is a fine line behind keeping neutral and seemingly unhelpful. Some regulars have found out the hard way why their request for new products are met with the answer, no stock. we do not want to be an accomplice that they can shortcut training with new equipment.

hence if someone says, i need help in this area, they will get full attention and go away as clear as we possibly can. otherwise its not our business to tell the customer that his equipment is not right, blah blah blah unless they ask for an opinion. and in our case, its starts from making an appointment for a swing analysis or just approaching us with a definite question.

in any business and even political arena, competition is great and its also a good platform to push ourselves to become better, more sensitive and offer better service. of course some will react with prices, some with venom and some with better service. i take criticism as point to better ourselves so its good that this thread is a reminder that we are only as good as our last set built or fitted.

have a great week ahead.......DGman

The proof really is in the pudding here, as in the number of regulars and pros who have their equipment tinkered with at BFG. A victim of their own success perhaps, as in being so busy that a walk in customer would not be the first to receive the attention that they are looking for?

So as Eric suggests, if you require undivided attention, best make an appointment.

If I may share for the benefit of curious newbies or who are intending to visit, I too felt a little overwhelmed the first time I walked in unannounced to BFG. I was the stranger as everyone else seemed to be on a first name basis. So I stayed quiet as a church mouse, just content to check out the place and listen in on some conversations to get a feel of things.

On subsequent visits, I found it's all too easy to plonk myself on the sofa and make a friend or three in the process, all that's needed is a self introduction. Also all to easy to be poisoned.

I soon realised that this was not a retail shop where an assistant eagerly followed me around in the hope of making a sale. You go to BFG because you want something done, so try, feel, and touch; without breaking anything of course; and 'feel free to ask any questions' is how I would describe things at BFG. Of course there are regulars go there for no good reason at all, or to eat snake, or because Eric is Mr Congeniality.

I'm no equipment whore, yet I've made many visits to BFG, and never been made to feel unwelcome for not making any purchase or have any work done. Eric believes that if he builds it good enough, they will come. Like I said earlier, the proof is in the pudding.

Months later, I finally put money down, after numerous questions and trials of samples in the Den, on a Zen putter; and more recently, I had my irons reshafted. It took me close to a year but I'm loving how the Zen he built for me has performed ever since. He also personally built my whole set of irons every step of the way, "except the grips" as he said. And I can't fault Eric for his attention to detail, knowledge, deadpan humour, and top notch aftersales service. The quality of work under the hood is every bit as good as it looks on the outside, because he knows that shoddy workmanship is always exposed when you pull a golf club apart. How could I not feel safe putting my beloved set of new irons in his hands?

Any wonder that everybody wants his attention when they visit? My little trick when I'm there unannounced is keep an eye on him and quickly squeeze in my request when he comes up for air. Or drop by at close to opening or closing hours.

Oh, and don't be surprised if he sometimes doesn't want your business because he feels that you are better served by some means other than just buying a good game through equipment. That's just one of the quirks that makes Eric... Eric.

Ok, enough OT!  

My take is that we're all paying customers and, like any paying customer, we are entitled to ask for and expect a level of service which we feel is acceptable to us.

Point is, if you feel that you've not received good service, you should raise that with Eric and his staff. They are all professional and would not belittle you or anyone for asking questions.

It's unfortunate that you left without feeling satisfied. I will admit that BFG can get really busy at during those times, Eric and his staff are running around attending to the many folks there. It can feel a little intimidating if you're not familiar with the people. However, don't let that stop you from asking questions. You are spending good money on your gear and you deserve the very best.

I hope this doesn't deter you from visiting BFG. But the choice is yours... as is the decision to ask and get the service you expect. No one should shortchange you, including yourself.

Just replace my grips with Mr Ong from Octane Golf in Bukit Timah Plaza. Cozy and friendly place.

Hi all, understanding this is a old thread...

I am using mcc.... For about a year already... How do I know if I am due to change.. As you know, at 1 side my good side is telling me they look ok, the evil side is telling me to try a new grip  

You might want to try masda grips. Just changed from MCC to masda and loves them.