Field Trip
Fore! Local Company Finds Sweet Spot in the Golf World Take a tour of this treasure in the history of the sport Article Kory Kilmer | Photography Karsten Manufacturing Tour
W
ith its world-class courses and complimentary world-class climate, Phoenix long ago established itself as a premiere destination for golfers from across the globe. Lesser known, perhaps, is the fact that the city is home to the only golf club manufacturer in the United States as well: Karsten Manufacturing, or more commonly known in golfing circles as PING. The Karsten Manufacturing Corporation (KMC) is named for Karsten Solheim, who constructed his first golf club in the garage of his own home in Redwood City, Calif., in 1959. After relocating to Phoenix two years later, demand for that original club, a putter, would keep Karsten busy. What had started as a hobby consumed more and more of his time. Finally in 1967 Karsten decided to quit his day job as an engineer at General Electric and focus on developing his new company. He named his company PING, which represents the sweet sound that a golf ball makes as it strikes the face of one of his clubs. That same year he decided to move out of his garage in into a factory setting, and KMC was officially born. Though Karsten would pass away in 2000, the company remains under the guidance of the Solheim family as his sons have continued to manage the business. Today, PING has positioned itself among the premiere brands of golf equipment worldwide, and KMC is regarded as a trendsetter of club manufacturing with its focus on improving a player’s game through equipment technology. A tour of the manufacturing facility begins with a short presentation introducing the founder and how his passion for constructing a better golf club would lead him to creating KMC. After a video introduction to the rest of the Solheim family and one on golf club design, 42 North Scottsdale Lifestyle | January 2014
visitors are ready to see the factory. Since the actual forging of PING club heads is done off-site (mainly at a foundry in southwest Phoenix), the tour offers a first-hand glimpse of the actual assembly process. Visitors go straight to the factory floor, immersed in the hustle and bustle of employees hand-crafting every golf club. One of the most notable takeaways is the sheer volume of customization. Though PING ships out its fair share of demo clubs and sets, most of their clubs are based on orders from customers far and wide. Because a golfer’s swing is as unique as their personality, each club must be shaped, balanced, and bent to the individual specifications of each order. The one glaring omission is the fabled “Gold Putter Vault.” In a quest to create a unique way to reward golfers using his company’s clubs for winning a tournament, Karsten began creating two gold-plated (or in the case of major tournament champions, solid gold) replicas of the winning putter. After engraving both with the professional’s name and the tournament won, one of the clubs is presented to the victorious golfer, while the other is stowed away in the company “vault.” Widely referred to as the Fort Knox of golf, today the vault is home to more than 2,500 golden putters, with new ones being added almost weekly. Tours are offered every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, except for holidays. No children under 9 years old are permitted. Each 1.5hour tour begins at 9 a.m. Reservations are required; tours do sell out, often weeks in advance, during the peak months of October through April. For reservations, directions and additional information, call KMC directly at 602.687.5385.