Callaway is putting serious money behind the idea that the next big leap in golf clubs won’t come from tweaking what already exists. The company has announced a $15 million investment in a new 3D printing facility in Fort Worth, Texas, a move it says will open the door to designs that conventional manufacturing cannot produce.
The facility expands Callaway’s titanium R&D and manufacturing capabilities, giving engineers more freedom to build complex structures that traditional methods cannot achieve. The company expects that these capabilities will unlock significant gains in club performance and accelerate the development of future innovations.
Based on 7 years of research
It is not a leap into the unknown. Callaway says the investment builds on about seven years of additive manufacturing research and development, and by the end of 2022 the company will produce prototypes and custom models in-house, developing expertise in 3D printing of titanium. Fort Worth is taking it a step further by establishing dedicated manufacturing capabilities in the United States. (Look at the patent register, and you’ll see that Callaway has been catching up with 3D printing for a while.)
Here is the timeline: the facility is located next to Callaway’s North American Distribution Center and is expected to be operational in mid-2027. It will begin to support part of the company’s product needs in the United States in 2028, with an initial focus on customized titanium products.
“At Callaway, we believe the greatest performance results come from challenging the status quo,” he said. Chip Brewer, president and CEO of Callaway. “We believe that 3D printing represents one of the most important opportunities to advance the performance of golf clubs in decades, and we are investing to drive that future.”
He went further, indicating what the company sees as the real prize.
“No one can create the next generation of performance by relying only on yesterday’s methods,” Brewer said. “We are building capabilities that give our engineers the freedom to pursue ideas that simply were not possible before. This is not just an investment in manufacturing. It is an investment in the encounters that will define the future of our products and our brand.”
The Texas project also fits a pattern. Callaway says it has invested more than $100 million over the past few years in its golf ball manufacturing operations in Chicopee, Massachusetts, which the company believes is the most advanced golf ball manufacturing facility in the world. Together, the two investments represent what Callaway calls a long-term commitment to proprietary technology and American manufacturing expertise.
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The company’s ambition is to turn advanced engineering, technology and manufacturing into products that golfers can see, feel and experience. I also believe that the ability to do what others cannot can be a definite competitive advantage. If Callaway can print titanium structures that rivals cannot machine or cast, that can become a real advantage.
Of course, the timeline means golfers won’t feel or experience any of this immediately. Production does not begin until 2028, and the company’s forward-looking statements warn that the completion of the installation and the creation of 3D printing production are not guaranteed.
My thoughts
There have been rumors of Callaway moving to a two-year cycle with its woods, but I don’t know if it confirms that in my thinking or not. It will be really interesting to see if they think they can continue to make significant gains in the market every year with this new bet. It might even be something that really supports a move to a two-year life cycle to give you more time to make it perfect.
We also address Cobra here. Cobra has publicly led the way in 3D printing technology with its 3DP series of golf clubs, and there are rumors that they will expand on that. There are also other manufacturers who have 3D printed in Tour. Then you have companies like Avoda Golf, or Bryon’s unnamed club company which are also supported in the 3D printing space.
For me, this is Callaway saying “we’re here and we’re ready to put up a strong fight in this market.” I’ve said it in plenty of coverage before about my love for what Cobra is doing with 3DP; this is the next frontier in golf club design. The things I was able to see behind the scenes makes me incredibly happy for the future of golf equipment, and the more companies we can get to join this new frontier, the better the product we will get.
