Club Lab
Club Lab
Gene Parente, Jonathan Wall
Club Lab is a golf equipment podcast hosted by Golf Digest managing editor Jonathan Wall and Golf Laboratories founder Gene Parente, diving deep into the gear generating buzz through real robot-testing data, tour trends and conversations with the people who matter most in the industry. Every episode is designed to make you smarter about the equipment in your bag.
Revisiting our hybrid testing
We revisit our hybrid testing to clear up some data. But first, do Texas and Oklahoma hate each other too much? And Big Deal or No Big Deal gets personal for Uncle Gene.
Oct 21
44 min
Should you play a hybrid?
The top of many golfers' bags can be a bit of a guessing game, and the emergence of high-lofted fairway woods has only added more variables to the mix. So, should you play an 18-degree fairway wood or an 18-degree hybrid? JWall and Uncle Gene discuss based on some robot testing data. But first, we've been traveling to OEMs to get some sneak peeks at new products, plus Big Deal or No Big Deal is back and Gene has some fire answers.
Oct 14
32 min
What's next for golf’s equipment rollback?
Uncle Gene is back from the Faroe Islands, which means it's time to break down the latest in golf's ball rollback saga. Our dynamic duo goes on to discuss more irons testing data from the Golf Laboratories swing robot, then plays another edition of 'Something or Nothing?'
Oct 1
52 min
How consistent are 2026 irons?
Similar to our test of a decade of drivers, we put 2026 irons to the test on the Golf Laboratories to identify standouts in spin consistency. But first, a new segment, "Big Deal or No Deal," where Uncle Gene decides what silly season equipment changes are something and which are nothing.
Sep 23
51 min
Brooks Koepka puts an old favorite back in the bag
Fall is affectionately known as golf's silly season. The FedEx Cup Playoffs have ended, there are a handful of PGA Tour events scattered about the calendar. It's the perfect time to try out a new club or two. Or, in Brooks Koepka's case, bring one back. Also on this week's pod, some more tidbits from our trip to Titleist's Manchester Lane facility, notes on Srixon's ZXi lineup, Charlie Woods' deal with TaylorMade and a deep dive on chasing distance with irons.
Sep 16
1 hr 1 min
Inside Titleist's Manchester Lane ball-testing facility
JWall and Uncle Gene got to spend time this week at Titleist's "East Coast TPI," where ball testing is the main focus. Director of Golf Ball Product Management Frederick Waddell spent some time with the boys to detail all things Titleist golf ball, including some new product to look out for in the new year.
Sep 10
48 min
Scottie proves our robot testing right
The Golf Laboratories swing robot showed us lower launch, lower spin and increased ball speed with the Qi4D compared to previous TaylorMade models. Guess who switched into the new Qi4D head, picked up distance off the tee and won two events in three weeks? That's right, Scottie Scheffler. JWall and Uncle Gene break it all down. But first, even more on Good Good and Rory weighs in on bifurcation. Plus, Tommy Fleetwood makes a putter change and a new putting gadget hits the market.
Sep 2
59 min
A warning sign in the golf equipment space
A potential canary in the coal mine emerged earlier this week when Golf Datatech released numbers showing July 2026 equipment sales were down in almost every category compared to July 2025. JWall and Uncle Gene dive into why. But first, the crew weighs in on the Good Good ad that's caused a stir. Then, New Release Season never stops and the boys have the latest news.
Aug 26
41 min
Here's the deal with Open Flight, an open-source launch monitor
There's a drawback to almost every launch monitor on the market. The best ones are expensive, often prohibitively so. A middle tier typically charges a subscription fee. Others use software that "guesses" what your ball does based on a split second of captured data. Some store your sessions and make it difficult to download your own data to analyze it. But what if there was a launch monitor that had none of those roadblocks? That's the question Coleman Rollins has been asking himself. Now, he's building an open-sourced launch monitor.
Aug 18
52 min
How today's equipment enables today's swings
It's no secret today's golf gear is easier to play than in generations past. It's kind of the focal point of the whole distance/rollback debate. But one swing coach posits that three of the most unique, effective swings in golf today — all from PGA Tour winners — would not be possible with the clubs and balls of yesteryear. But first, Uncle Gene played Cypress Point, FedEx and Odyssey team up on a headcover and blade putters near extinction at the U.S. Amateur.
Aug 13
46 min
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