Zarma FLYtee Combo Pack

Grade: A
Teachers’ Comments: Durable—yet somehow biodegradable at the same time.

While it is technically true that wooden tees are biodegradable, lord knows how long it will take the lacquered little spindles to break down to earth friendly components. And as for the plastic ones—forget it.

The Champs FLYtees on the other hand, are both durable and biodegradable. Champs says that the tees are made with a “bio-agent additive that enables microorganisms to metabolize plastic into humus, which actually benefits the environment. “

I can attest to their durability—they are much tougher than the usual wooden models. They’ve also got an interesting six pronged top that’s supposed to reduce friction and increase distance. I have no idea whether that is in fact true, but it certainly makes sense.

I like them.

AB Golf Designs Throwback Fairway Headcover

AB designs’ excellent throwback headcovers are made from polyester fibers made from recycled bottles. I did a review of them earlier.

For Earth Day, AB Golf Designs is offering a special discount of 22% off a set of four head covers through April.

Be The Ball Sports Optics

Grade: A
Teachers’ Comments: Great sunglasses for the price

Be The Ball Sports Optics produces line of good looking, highly functional sunglasses at a very reasonable price. The review pair that I received is their golf model (naturally) BTB 800 (shown above).

Of much interest to this golfer were what BTB calls its “High Definition” lenses. These are designed to filter out blue light, reducing haze and making the landscape appear more clearly. UV/Haze filters on a camera lens work the same way. I keep a UV filter on all of my camera lenses at all times (they protect the lens against damage, do much good in many situations, and do no harm in the rest). In practice, the haze filters on the sunglasses work well. Most of my rounds thus far this year have been played in hazy twilight—and these really make a difference.

The lenses also offer 100% protection from UVA and UVB rays—very important for eye safety in a sport where 100% of our time is out in the sun.

Another interesting bit of technology in these sunglasses are the “visually decentered lenses.” This is explained in the diagram below:

The end result is a set of sunglasses free of the distortions that generally plague inexpensive models. That’s also important to a golfer, especially when trying to read a green.

From a design perspective, I found a lot to like. The “medium to large” size fits my rather large head perfectly well (I often struggle to find good fitting sunglasses and hats). The arms are gently curved and the temple areas rubberized, ensuring a snug fit—these won’t fall off when you work to give that drive an extra few yards. On the other hand, they don’t feel too snug, either. In fact, they’re so light—and the vision through them so good—that I forget I have them on. I particularly like the half frame design because they allow air through and don’t cloud up in humidity.

Fit and finish on the glasses is good. The hinges don’t wiggle and the nose pieces are solidly attached. The material from which they are constructed is light, and flexes well. The lenses are said to be able to withstand a shot from a .22 caliber at 50 feet (I wouldn’t try that at home).

I have just two reservations. First,  the smoke lenses may not be dark enough for some on a very bright day. And second, I’m not sure about their long-term durability. The frames are quite light and while in no way “flimsy”, seem to me as though they would not stand up to hard use. That’s not an issue for me—I take care of my toys—but others may not be as careful.

**Update: The manufacturer says that there’s a lifetime warranty. So you don’t have to worry.

Be The Ball’s website pushes their marketing phrase “The Best $100 Sunglasses you can get for $50.” I think they’re absolutely right on this one. All of the “golf” sunglasses are priced between $35 and $50. The $50 models have polarized lenses. Most of the models are priced at $40. Those are very good prices for some very good glasses.

I think I’m going to get another pair.

Tin-Cup Golf Ball Marker

Grade: A+
Teacher’s Comments: This would make a great Father’s Day gift. There are so many neat designs, I’m tempted to collect them.

The Tin-Cup golf ball marker is a simple idea, elegantly executed.

I’m not sure why the site bills it as a “golf ball marker,” though. A marker is a writing tool. The Tin-Cup is a stencil. Tin Cup Golf Ball Stencil. There.

The cup looks to me quite a bit like a WWI Tommy’s helmet—a round cup with a wide flange. The stencil design is in the center. You just pop the ball into the center, then use an ultra fine Sharpie in your favorite color to fill in the shape.

Tin-Cups come in dozens of designs, from martini glasses, to dogs, flags and playing card suits. They also have a limited number of college logos. West Virginia wasn’t among them, so I went with the “Chesapeake” crab design (I was born and raised in Maryland). The company also will do custom logos.

As you can see from the photo, the design looks really good on the ball. It also only takes a couple of seconds to fill in.

The Tin-Cup has a hole in the flange to facilitate hanging it from your golf bag. I’ve got a spare carabiner, but need to find a chain or ring small enough, but with a big enough diameter to fit into the hole and clear the flange.

A few suggestions for the Tin-Cup people: 1) Do a Raven design. I’ll buy it.  2) Expand the Collegiate Designs 3) Offer limited edition designs—perhaps to commemorate Majors (a jacket design you could color green, or a big cup).

You can get them at the Tin-Cup site, or for a little cheaper at Amazon.

Hot Hands Heated Golf Mittens

These mittens are designed to hold those chemical handwarmers in place in a pouch on the palm side of the glove. That’s a neat idea. Put these on between swings and keep your phalanges from freezing.

I need a pair of these. Last spring, I got a case of frostnip on one of my fingers while playing a round.

Chief’s Face Wash
Grade: A
Teachers’ Comments: Works like a cuppa joe for your face.

I first ran across Chiefs Face Wash on—of all places—a site called Lovely Package. I am inexplicably interested in package design and have that site’s feed linked to my Google reader.

At any rate, the package photos interested me enough to make me visit Chiefs’ site, and from there I was sufficiently intrigued to order a tube.

I’ve been using the product for four months now, and love it. Chiefs Face Wash is a manly, invigorating clean designed to wake you up in the morning like a double shot of espresso. A dime sized spot gets my face tingling and clean. (A little goes a long ways. It’s worth noting that with daily use, I’ve been on the same tube for four months. )

In spite of its active nature, Chiefs is very kind to my skin. It doesn’t dry it out, and doesn’t leave an oily finish like some of those “moisturizing” face washes. The key ingredients in Chiefs are ginseng, methol, peppermint, eucalyptus and rosemary. The first three are the pick-me-ups, with the ginseng working on the circulation. Eucalyptus offers antiseptic properties. Rosemary is what gives the gel its “woody undertones.” Thats perfume speak for manly. It smells herby, not sweet. Even so, the one thing I’d try to improve is the smell. While I like it, what I’d really like is this product in a Bay Rum. Recommended.

I want a Rolex for Christmas. But what real man doesn’t?

If your budget is bigger than mine, you might want to use the link below, and the coupon codes at this Thursday through Monday for Rolex deals.

CYBERCJ500 for $500 off any Rolex President watch

CYBERCJ250 for $250 off any Rolex Datejust watch

CYBERCJ1000 for $1000 off any Rolex Super President watch