Hello PURE grippers,

As you probably know, Hank Haney has an incredible circle of friends - and being part of that circle has its benefits.  

For several years now, Hank has offered his time to the American Century Championship while asking for little in return. This year was his chance to give back to his friends and partners, and he came through in a big way. Hank was able to get all his partners an invite to the American Century Championship to show off their products and help service all of the 82 Celebrities who were participating in the event.

The American Century Championship takes place near Lake Tahoe at Edgewood Golf Course in Stateline, Nevada. The event started in 1990 and has developed a reputation for allowing the public to get close to their favorite celebrities. But just because they’re famous for something other than golf, doesn’t mean they don’t take it seriously.   

The championship is run like a PGA tour event and has cash prizes for the winners.  The championship brings in an average of about 80 celebrities a year to compete for a total purse of $600,000.  So where do PURE grips and the rest of Hank’s partners fit in?

Hank Haney is always looking for ways to get his partners maximum exposure.  With all of the events Hank has going on throughout the year, anyone associated with Hank Haney is bound to get great exposure in multiple places.  With attendance exceeding 40,000 for the week, the American Century Championship couldn’t be a better place to get exposure.  With Hank’s great relationship with American Century he was able to get Crocs, Garia Carts and PURE grips a spot to showcase their goods.   

It’s only half-way through the year and we’ve already had an amazing 2012! 

We’ve partnered with a number of great organizations to help spread the word about our custom golf grips, but we’re not done yet. Our most recent partnership is another perfect match. As the official golf grip for all 10 of the Oakley Pro/Am series tournaments this year, we couldn’t be more excited. 

Although many of you have probably seen pictures on our facebook page from the events we’ve been to so far, we have some additional fun that we’ve been holding out on until now:

Oakley’s original concept for the Oakley Pro/Am was to give back to the club pros, account holders, assistants, and other friends of the company.  The concept was simple—“Big Time Fun.” But since Oakley pulled out all of the stops to make each event an unforgettable experience, “big time fun” might have been a bit of an understatement.  

We started our partnership in April at the Carolina Classic at the Little River Golf Resort.  Expecting a traditional Pro/Am was a mistake.  After attending the Oakley pre-tournament party with a performance by Kelly James, we quickly figured out that this was going to be a little different than any Pro/Am we had ever seen.  This was a perfect way to set the scene for the Pro/Am the next day.  

While the right equipment can give you a competitive advantage, the insight and guidance that a good golf instructor can provide are essential if you’re looking to take your game to the next level.

As one of the world’s leading golf instructors, Hank Haney has worked with over 200 touring professionals and written more than 300 instructional articles in major golf publications. To help celebrate our partnership with Hank Haney, PURE Grips is proud to announce the “Win a Day with Hank Haney” Sweepstakes. 10 lucky winners will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Phoenix where they will get one-on-one instruction from Hank Haney himself.

In addition to a 2-night stay at the beautiful Talking Stick Resort and casino, winners will participate in a golf clinic put on by Hank Haney where they will learn how to master the fundamentals of the game. After that, Haney will provide personalized instruction to each of the winners, helping them work on improving certain aspects of their game. Next, winners will get to participate in a tournament at the gorgeous golf course where they can win additional prizes and awards.

Are you ready to “Play Pure”? Head on over to our Facebook page to learn more about the sweepstakes and enter to win

No matter what specific technique you use to grip your club, it is critically important to have a firm but gentle grip. If you hold your club too tightly, your swing mechanics and hand motion might be thrown off. If you hold your club too loosely, you won't be able to control your club and you'll use too many muscles in trying to swing your club. Think of it like a business handshake. You don't want to grip someone else's hand so firmly as to be overbearing and painful, but you still need a certain level of firmness and control. A too-loose handshake will leave your arm floppy and leave people unimpressed.

As a golfer, you have many options when you're looking to upgrade your equipment. There are many metals to choose from when selecting the composition of your club heads, and there are many materials to choose from when deciding upon your shafts. Why should your grips be any different?

Most golfers know the basic materials grips are made of. You've got rubber, leather, various cording and other fabrics. However, what most golfers don't know is that many of these materials are actually terrible for your game and for your hands.

The worst offenders are the grips that are made out of cords and half cords. Most of the time, golfers buy these grips because they hear or read their claims that cord grips are exceptionally weather resistant and are "all-weather" grips. This could not be further from the truth. Cord grips might, and I stress might, do a better job of wicking away moisture than other clubs. That's the primary purpose that they're designed for. However, they are no less waterproof than any other type of grip. In fact, when cord grips get really wet and the fabric is saturated, you can wipe them with a towel all you want and they will still feel slick. So, you still have to take precautions to keep them dry. The other problem with cord and half cord grips is that they rip your hands to shreds. They are so rigid and so unforgiving that they will cause blisters, cuts and torn skin.