Williams F1 is one of the best known and more successful names in Formula One racing. Now the company is taking some of that same racing technology and putting it into golf equipment with three Williams Sports Series of clubs: the Players Series, Gold Series and Black Diamond Series. At first glance, the marriage of Formula One and golf seems like an odd couple, but Josh Trivett, a director for Williams Sports, says otherwise.
“Golf has always been technology driven,’’ Trivett said. “The aerodynamics of high end sports cars is the same thing we’re looking for in golf clubs. Williams Sports has 250 engineers who know how to work with materials, weighting and aerodynamics.’’
Trivett said the initial areas of “technical partnership’’ are in the aerodynamic profiling of golf club shafts, ferrules and heads, and the application of composites and alloys materials science in club design. In addition, according to Trivett, the rapid ‘concept to delivery’ lead times typical of Formula One will allow Williams Sports’ golf clubs to reach the golf market sooner than via traditional R&D routes.
“What’s breaking news (in terms of technology) isn’t breaking news to us,’’ Trivett said.
The Williams Sports golf team, by the way, is a familiar one to industry watchers. Former Nickent Golf founder and president Michael Lee serves as chief executive officer of Williams Sports. Two directors - Trivett and Stewart Hsu – are former executives with Nickent Golf.
What sets Williams Sports apart – along with its F1 ties – is its use of Densimet in all of its metal woods and irons. The second-heaviest metal in the world, Densimet is used in the FW32 race car to bring the car up to the minimum race weight, while also being used to provide additional traction based on the drivers style of driving.
Traditionally, Trivett said, golf manufacturers have used Tungsten for weighting, but the use of Densimet in its entire golf line, Trivett said, allows Williams Sports to maximize design capabilities enhanced the by the reduced volume needed for Densimet usage instead of Tungsten or other materials.
In addition, Trivett said, Inconel - a nickel based material used by the Williams F1 team of engineers in their production of exhaust parts for the FW32 race car – is effective in golf clubs because of its ability to withstand extreme temperatures while maintaining its structural integrity. The key benefit that steams from this material, according to Trivett, is the fact it has a higher tensile strength than stainless steel, but due to its nickel base provides for a softer feel.
This material is typically used in a machine or forging application which works well for golf equipment. All of these key attributes combined provide the reasoning for Williams Sports use of Inconel as its baseline material for the entire Qualifier series of irons.
“It’s all so different that some people have had trouble getting their heads around it,’’ Trivett said. “ But once they understand the technology and see how it works, they’re sold.’’
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