It’s also become a bit of a contest between the OEMs each year to not only best capture the character of the event, but also the host as well.
This week’s U.S. Open at Oakmont is no different with Callaway, Cobra, Srixon and TaylorMade all releasing themed accessory collections highlighted by their staff bags.
So we decided to go ahead and rank this year’s U.S. Open limited edition staff bags.
These golf bag rankings are entirely subjective and based on personal taste, some beef jerky I just bought at the Boston airport, and a mild obsession with headcovers. If your favorite didn’t win, blame my eyes—not their design team. If that doesn’t work, blame Johnny Wunder.
You can either lean in hard with the championship or the venue, and Callaway went with the latter and did it beautifully.
I’ll admit it’s a little off-putting when a U.S. Open staff bag isn’t red, white and blue (as the other three in this list are), but I love this bag because of its use of the Church Pews silhouette. Not only does the nod to Oakmont’s signature feature show on the sides of the bags, but also on the zipper pulls, interior lining and top of the putter headcovers. I also really love how the texture changes to depict the adjacent 3rd and 4th fairways.
This is a bag and accessory collection that Callaway’s pros should be proud to use all week, and it will likely be highly sought if any make it to the retail or secondary market.
What does a golf club company from California have to do with the city of Pittsburgh? TaylorMade’s first driver, the Original One was also eventually known by the “Pittsburgh Persimmon” moniker as the first metalwood back in 1979.
While I think Callaway separated itself with its nod to Oakmont, I think TaylorMade’s combination of honoring its own history, nod to the “Steel City” and use of red, white and blue, makes this collection too good to rank second.
The vintage TaylorMade logo was also put on limited edition boxes of TP5 and TP5x golf balls, which help take this throwback collection to the next level.
Cobra does a nice job here making a very clean and subtle nod to Pittsburgh’s blue collar heritage in the steel industry.
It sure looks like the bag is wearing a pair of denim overalls, with even a little breast pocket with the outline of Roberto Clemente in downtown Pittsburgh. Afterall, it makes sense that the “Steel City” is also the “City of Bridges” with 446 bridges, including two right next to Oakmont over the Allegheny river.
Another nice touch is the headcovers are designed so they look like riveted steel plates.
No. 4: Srixon
Srixon’s All-American staff bag.Srixon
Srixon’s “All-American” staff bag is a very clean and simple use of the stars and stripes.
It’s hard to really dislike any bag with red, white and blue, but this one only finds itself at the bottom of this list because it lacks any easter eggs for Oakmont or Pittsburgh like the other three.
Still, it’s a new take on the colors and style and the matching headcovers look great too.
Jack Hirsh is the Associate Equipment Editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State University, earning degrees in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his high school golf team and recently returned to the program to serve as head coach. Jack also still *tries* to remain competitive in local amateurs. Before joining GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as a Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but also producing, anchoring and even presenting the weather. He can be reached at jack.hirsh@golf.com.
