"Hickory finds its way back to Pinehurst"

Morning Read’s Shaun Tolson reports on a very exciting collaboration: Pinehurst and Tad Moore Hickory.

The rental sets are a steep $50, but anyone who has played unsuitable hickories can attest that the price is worth it given the quality of Moore’s clubs. The rental sets can be used on any Pinehurst course, though the resort is advocating their use on Nos. 1, 3 or the Cradle.

Tolson writes:

Yes, playing a round with hickory clubs may open doors to a new social circle of golfing compatriots, but it will definitely open newcomers’ eyes to the challenges that the sport’s greatest players faced a century ago.

“They’re just fascinating to hit,” Smarrelli said of the clubs. “You get so much satisfaction when you hit the ball solid with those things. When you hit a good shot, you say, ‘Wow! This is how they played golf way back.’”

As Barksdale eloquently and astutely describes it, a round of golf on one of Pinehurst’s early courses played with hickory clubs allows guests to “take a step back in time,” he said. It encourages those players to adopt an old-school mentality and it requires them to think creatively about the shots that they will hit each step along the way.

“It’s just a really neat thing to do that you can’t necessarily do everywhere,” he said, “because they don’t have them everywhere.”

If you haven’t seen Moore’s clubs, you can see plenty here on his Instagram page.