Question to the forum about AG

bignev

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I must ask some of the forum members, What is your gripe with AG, I have used them many times over the last few years and have found there staff very helpful and the equipment I have bought has been exellent but all I hear on here are derogatory comments and put downs about a firm that gives good service to many people. (And no I dont work for them). In the past they must of done something terrible to lots of low h/capers as it seems to be them that slag them off the most.
 
To me they are a bit like the PC World of golf. I wouldn't particularly trust the advice over a good club pro and have a feeling that they sway towards particular brands based on profit mrgins rather than what's really best for the customer. That said, they have some good stuff and you can pick up some good deals. Just do the research yourself and don't just take in all the sales patter you get and they are fine.
 
Commision much?

Not everyone here hates them. A lot of people do like using a number of AG stores.

We are full of different opinions on here like most forums so we don't all love or hate anything.

Some people do like the AG way of things and the services offered.

Some find a perticular store not to their liking or feel that they get pushed towards brands that have greater mark up. Some find the whole fitting process a joke there which I'm sure is true in some cases.

I haven't been in an AG for years but I have nothing against them, personally I like supporting my local pro and we get on well together. I need someone with a good knowlegde and connections who is on my doorstep so I can get extra stiff shafts ordered in and loft and lies checked, HS putting videos done and club tinkering.
Not sure but I seriously doubt I would ever find anything like that at AG and I don't want an A flex Nicklaus driver which some people make out they have.
 
To me they are a bit like the PC World of golf. I wouldn't particularly trust the advice over a good club pro and have a feeling that they sway towards particular brands based on profit mrgins rather than what's really best for the customer. That said, they have some good stuff and you can pick up some good deals. Just do the research yourself and don't just take in all the sales patter you get and they are fine.

This.

If you know what you're going in for, they're fine. But I wouldn't trust their advice.
 
You will not always hear bad things about AG on here; you will usually hear balanced views. They have some good and some bad points. They have alot of stock and all the new toys but if you don’t know what you want, people tell me they will point you towards brands that they have a higher mark-up on. If you know a little and know you’re a stiff shaft they will steer you towards the stock stiff and maybe not let you know there are other options.

The staff are not consistent from what we can tell, sometimes you get a someone really good and other times you will get the class clown.

They are in it for profit on a large scale, they have large shops that they have to play rent on, it’s pretty obvious stuff. I have used them for all my woods, but in the future I will be getting custom fit as I feel it works for me.
 
I was in AG in Finchley chatting to a lady staffer there, who was a scratch golfer at Moor Park before turning pro. She seemed to know her stuff. I have chatted to another staffer who was very good before too.

On the other hand, there are some others in there who are a bit rubbish.

Like any shop, it depends who you get to talk to.
 
AG does some things very well others not so good - but that's my opinion based on my local AG and the staff I have met and got to know over the years.
some of the staff are knowledgable about what they sell, others are purely and simply salesmen, right now they happen to be in AG, last week it could have been shoes, next week cars. some (too many?) are trainees who are allowed too much leeway.

and I could say exactly the same about my local DG.
 
I find them very much hit and miss. I got some good service on my driver about 15 months ago but got crap service on some Cobra irons I bought.

Their online shop is excellent for delivery.
 
I don't mind AG to be fair and tend to use them rather than the club pro. I find at our place that his stock is more expensive and I tend to get a better deal price wise. The American Golf in Northampton doesn't seem to try and sell you Nicklaus or Wilson like I hear on the forum they are pretty unbiased in my opinion.
 
AG is like any other High Street Retailer in that there will be inconsistencies in the advice given depending on which store you go to.

I prefer to try things out on a range before buying and am fortunate in that I know the Pro at the range I use will give me sound advice.

However if he can't give me a similar deal I will use my hard earned cash at AG if the deal is better - usually he will give some discount to loyal customers so I generally buy from him.
 
Nobody has suggested that AG always gives bad advice, or that there is anything wrong with their products. As others have said, if you know you want a certain club with a certain flex, and AG has one, good luck to you.

But I have seen people who have been "fitted" at AG and have been sold stuff that was so inappropriate for them that the person fitting them should be sacked. I have also hit a few balls on a launch monitor at an AG, and discovered that the Camberley AG is at about 5000 feet altitude, because a drive with 100mph clubhead speed carried 280 yards.

Also, people sometimes say they got good advice at AG. Perhaps, but some of them may be confusing good advice and advice they liked the sound of. The two are not necessarily the same.
 
I must ask some of the forum members, What is your gripe with AG, I have used them many times over the last few years and have found there staff very helpful and the equipment I have bought has been exellent but all I hear on here are derogatory comments and put downs about a firm that gives good service to many people. (And no I dont work for them). In the past they must of done something terrible to lots of low h/capers as it seems to be them that slag them off the most.

Their too biased towards certain brands, which everyone found out through the power of the internet is due to higher commission rates.

I went in to buy a set of TM burner or Callaway irons, the guy pretty much refused to sell them to me pushing me towards wilson Di9. no matter how much i clearly said i didnt want wilsons " yes you do, your hitting them much better ". in the end as they refused to sell me what i wanted i went elsewhere and they had my £450 instead.

My local AG used to get my business on any sundaries such as balls tee's etc but after a situation at christmas i now will not spend another penny in there even if it costs me more to buy elsewhere.
 
Why have they stopped selling it?

No idea. :mad:

What I do know is they have sold out of them in more or less all their shops, as have Direct Golf.
It seems all the shops are now pushing the sklz range and that isn't shifting.
:D
 
I have mixed feelings on AG. I've bought from there in the past and got my current driver from there too. When I bought the driver I took my own in there to compare their range with on the computer they have. I found it annoying when I swapped to my club after trying theirs that they said they had to enter it into the computer to say it was my own. I felt the system might be biased towards certain clubs and brands.

The best way I know now is to use demo clubs from your pro shop and try them on the course.

In fact today I took the Titleist 910H 19* stiff flex out. What a club. The pro shop didn't ask to many questions, they were happy with me using it and they have a fantastic fitting bay with Head Pro Peter Baker ready to sort you out with any clubs you want fitting.

I'd only recommend using AG if you know your exact specs and they will do it cheaper than your local pro shop.
Balls, tee's, bags etc etc AG is fine if it's the cheapest but I just don't trust them for recommending what I do actually need.
 
As I posted last week I was one of the lucky chaps who got fitted for a new driver.I am not going to sing and shout about the service because of course with GM there it was going to 110% but having now played a number of times with the driver its without doubt the right one for me. Distance up, better flight, and less miss hits so with the tech and the staff they defiantly got it right with me.

Oh and think there pricing was spot on £FOC!:D
 
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