Hot Off The Press: KBS Tour Shafts Announce New Website Design

KBS Tour Shafts Announces New Website Design
BOULDER, CO (February 16th, 2011)

KBS Tour shafts announced today the expansion of its primary website KBSshafts.com to include new Social Media features and design enhancements offering a better user interface and experience with the KBS brand. Complete with improved navigation, technology features and targeted communication programs; the new website delivers ‘core’ golfers an informative center for shaft technology and designs relating to the KBS Tour Series.

WEBSITE HIGHLIGHTS:
- Revamped “Homepage” complete with new navigation tools optimizing user experience.
- Enhanced “Product Pages” complete with shaft technical details, specifications and trim instructions.
- Redesigned “KBS News” section delivering all current headlines and information for the KBS brand.
- An all-new “KBS Blog” giving voice to the KBS brand focused on technical and tour information.
- Integrated “Social Media Functions” allowing users to interact with KBS and share in their network.

As explained by Rob Cheng, Director of Global Operations, “The redesigned KBS website is another step the KBS brand is taking to become the leader on shaft design and technology. Core golfers have long recognized the merits of shaft selection; and, we understand our role to share KBS design concepts and technology in order to continue pushing innovation. Our new website accomplishes this and also offers new social media tools to interact with our audience as well.”

Since being introduced in 2008 worldwide, the KBS Tour shaft continues to rack up tournament accolades being used in over 30 PGA and EU Tour affiliated victories through 2010. Last year alone, KBS Tour shafts delivered 15 combined victories at PGA and EU Tour affiliated events along with 14 more runner-up finishes. Expect more stories to come.

The KBS Tour shaft design is based on optimal shaft geometry to improve club performance. As explained by renowned designer Kim Braly, “The KBS Tour shaft incorporates a unique distribution of stiffness along the center-line maximizing energy transfer and load into the club head. When properly fitted, the shaft enhances player feel with tight ball dispersion and maximum total distance.”

Formalized in 2007, KBS Tour shafts are the premiere brand of steel golf shafts designed and manufactured by FEMCO Steel Technology (FST) headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. Since 1949, FEMCO has remained committed to providing the highest quality steel products and services worldwide.

Website: www.KBSshafts.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/KBSshafts
Twitter: www.twitter.com/KBStour
--
Contact:
Eric Hubbell, Director of Communications
EricHubbell@FSTshafts.com
(303) 444.2226 x12

WRX Study Conducted by KBS

As a company interested in learning from our users and fans, KBS has long been exploring ways to connect with our audience. Online, the world is changing with the progression of social media and our ability has grown tenfold to converse with an everyday fan and share that experience with the rest of our base. It's truly a unique opportunity and one that we don't take lightly. 

GolfWRX.com has truly emerged on that scene growing tremendously in recent years to become golf's largest online community. WRX now boasst approximately 100,000 fans and has brought significant consumer attention to component suppliers such as KBS Tour steel shafts. 

Recognizing this new medium, KBS Tour shafts signed on with GolfWRX.com last fall as a sponsoring partner and immediately set to work developing a survey (posted below) to learn from our fanbase there. The results were truly supportive. In total we saw over 1,200 unique respondents take the time to answer our questions and offer feedback for our team to review. Our survey wasn't perfect but it still sheds light on many player's sentiment for our product and the design. As such, we thought it may be helpful for those still 'wary' to take a look. We've posted a link to the full results HERE and at the bottom. Take a look at the summary below and let us know what you think!

--
Survey Demographics:
Total Respondents = 1,183
68% hold an 11 handicap or lower
40% hold a 6 handicap or lower
82% classify as a 'consumer'
64% do not currently play KBS


Survey Results For Respondents Not Playing KBS - 752 respondents
70% of players having demoed KBS “Likely” to shaft KBS in next set
40% of players never demoing KBS still “Likely” to shaft KBS in next set where 52% “Unsure”

Survey Results for Respondents Currently Playing KBS – 442 respondents
88% indicated satisfied or better with KBS ball flight
91% indicated satisfied or better with KBS ball dispersion
93% indicated satisfied or better with KBS club feel

In each category, less than 4% of respondents were unsatisfied

And, less than 1% do not plan to repurchase KBS in their next iron set.

CLICK HERE FOR SURVEY RESULTS

--

That's all for now. Cheers Readers!

- The KBS Team

Custom Fitting: Shaft Stepping and Mid Flex Offerings

Over the last year, KBS has noticed considerable growth in custom fitting for the golfer and with the KBS Tour series this translates to more soft and hard stepping for in-between players. Soft and hard stepping is a process for taper tip /constant weight shafts wherein the club builder puts either a 4i shaft or 6i shaft into a 5i head and maintains that setup through the set.

This accomplishes a couple of performance differences. First, it tweaks the shaft flex about 1/3 of a flex either direction or roughly 3cpm's on a frequency scale. This allows for a softer 'Stiff' flex or a firmer 'Stiff' flex in the 120g KBS Tour shaft model. Second, these custom builds alter the ball flight just slightly because we've softened or stiffened the tip section versus the entire shaft.

In general, the KBS Tour series has become popular among club builders for the degree of customization our line offers since weight is a consideration as well moving R to S to X-flex. Club builders and fitters can alter weight, flex and ball flight uniquely in the KBS Tour shaft while still maintaining the principal performances of feel, dispersion, trajectory and distance. A very customizable shaft. 

In 2011, we're taking customization one step further offering KBS Tour shaft mid-flexes R+ and S+ at 115g and 125g respectively. This allows a greater degree of fitting for players and fine-tuning for ball flight. 

First scenario. Say you have a player hitting the KBS Tour Stiff-flex and the ball flight and dispersion are good  but the flex feels just a little off. Fitter's have a simple solution: move the player into a 115g R+ not needing to alter the tip section. 

Second scenario. Say you have a player hitting the KBS Tour Stiff-flex and the ball flight is a little high but the flex and feel are spot on. Fitter's have another option: move the player into a 115g R+ hard-stepping the shaft 1x to lower the ball flight and retain the same flex as before.

Send us your feedback on custom KBS Tour shaft builds through our FB Page Discussion Forums. Post any questions you have there and we'll check in to cover popular inquiries here. 

That's all for now!

Cheers Readers,

-The KBS Team

The 2011 PGA Merchandise Show!

1000+ exhibitors.  1,000,000 square feet of exhibit space.  Over 40,000 industry representatives in attendance.  The PGA Merchandise Show otherwise the grandest stage in golf equipment and apparel is a wrap.


Already February and the 2011 PGA Show has already come and gone. Time sure does travel fast. For those not familiar, the annual PGA Merchandise Show, held at the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) in Orlando, FL, is THE annual event for manufacturers and businesses operating in the golf industry. The merchandise show is a sort of annual snapshot of the industry promoting new products, best practices and emerging market trends. This years PGA Merchandise Show continued in that tradition offering a vast and affluent mix of manufacturers and products with fresh branding, pop DJ's, fashion shows, celebrities and more!  


For the KBS Tour brand, this year's PGA Show was a transcending moment as just about everyone knew all about KBS. Wherein prior years, we answered a lot of questions about "Who we are" and "what KBS is" this year was entirely different. Instead we were hearing "You guys are in my fitting carts. Love the shaft." Add to that a steady flow of traffic at our various locations and the whole trip was fantastic.


This year, KBS launched a couple new shaft options to our line offering KBS Tour mid-flexes in addition to the KBS Tour90 shaft in parallel tip. Still, with over 100+ brand new 2011 clubs available to hit with KBS shafts, we saw a constant flow of visitors and talked a lot about fitting players into the KBS Tour shaft.


Walking the PGA Show it is exciting to see the innovations and brand development taking place in the golf industry. All in all, a fantastic lead in for the 2011 season. We'll check back in soon!


That's all for now. Cheers Readers!
- The KBS Team

2010: Another Hallmark Year

Here we come 2011! It's incredible to think just last week we wrapped up the 2010 calendar year. Already, we're gearing up for the 2011 PGA Show and with hardly a chance to reflect on how great a year 2010 actually was!! 


Only 3 years after being introduced the KBS Tour shaft won an unprecedented total of 14 premiere tournaments in 2010. This marks the best year ever at Tour events where many of the world's best players were present. Included in that count is our first-ever WGC event at the CA-Championship and a Champions Tour major. 


We'll get into that later. Our favorite memory from 2010 was in fact less noted yet perhaps more powerful than any win count or number of players using KBS on Tour. It came late spring, in fact, immediately following the Valero Texas Open, where KBS Tour shafts claimed another win. Following that tournament, KBS Tour shafts led the entire PGA Tour in each of the following statistical categories:


- ALL AROUND RANKING
- GREENS IN REGULATION
- SCORING (ACTUAL)
- 2010 MONEY LIST
- SCORING RATING
- TOTAL WINS
- FEDEX CUP POINTS


Only three years after their introduction and KBS Tour shafts held the PGA Tour lead mid-season in every reputable category. Fast forward to the fall season, and KBS Tour shafts resurged at worldwide events grabbing another 8 titles amidst stacked fields. In the U.S., KBS Tour shafts helped two players during the Fall Series confirm their TOUR card status for 2011 winning events at the Frys.com and Miracle Network. 


All in all, another hallmark year that wrapped up beautifully at the South Africa Open where KBS won again to start 2011 season. Not a bad way to welcome the 2011 season and enter the calendar year. 


That's all for now. Cheers readers!
-The KBS Team