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Club Lab

Gene Parente, Jonathan Wall

Club Lab is a golf equipment podcast hosted by Golf Digest managing editor Jonathan Wall and Golf Laboratories founder Gene Parente, diving deep into the gear generating buzz through real robot-testing data, tour trends and conversations with the people who matter most in the industry. Every episode is designed to make you smarter about the equipment in your bag.

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32 episodes
weekly
Avg 50 min
English

Episodes 32

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#92
October 28 · 59 min
Srixon/Cleveland's Director of Engineering, Dustin Brekke
JWall sits down with Srixon/Cleveland's Director of Engineering, Dustin Brekke to discuss bringing the ZXi lineup to life, working with Roger Cleveland, designing products with a team abroad, favorite projects and more.
#91
October 21 · 44 min
Revisiting our hybrid testing
We revisit our hybrid testing to clear up some data. But first, do Texas and Oklahoma hate each other too much? And Big Deal or No Big Deal gets personal for Uncle Gene.
#90
October 14 · 32 min
Should you play a hybrid?
The top of many golfers' bags can be a bit of a guessing game, and the emergence of high-lofted fairway woods has only added more variables to the mix. So, should you play an 18-degree fairway wood or an 18-degree hybrid? JWall and Uncle Gene discuss based on some robot testing data. But first, we've been traveling to OEMs to get some sneak peeks at new products, plus Big Deal or No Big Deal is back and Gene has some fire answers.
#89
October 1 · 52 min
What's next for golf’s equipment rollback?
Uncle Gene is back from the Faroe Islands, which means it's time to break down the latest in golf's ball rollback saga. Our dynamic duo goes on to discuss more irons testing data from the Golf Laboratories swing robot, then plays another edition of 'Something or Nothing?'
#88
September 23 · 51 min
How consistent are 2026 irons?
Similar to our test of a decade of drivers, we put 2026 irons to the test on the Golf Laboratories to identify standouts in spin consistency. But first, a new segment, "Big Deal or No Deal," where Uncle Gene decides what silly season equipment changes are something and which are nothing.
#87
September 16 · 1 hr 1 min
Brooks Koepka puts an old favorite back in the bag
Fall is affectionately known as golf's silly season. The FedEx Cup Playoffs have ended, there are a handful of PGA Tour events scattered about the calendar. It's the perfect time to try out a new club or two. Or, in Brooks Koepka's case, bring one back. Also on this week's pod, some more tidbits from our trip to Titleist's Manchester Lane facility, notes on Srixon's ZXi lineup, Charlie Woods' deal with TaylorMade and a deep dive on chasing distance with irons.
#86
September 10 · 48 min
Inside Titleist's Manchester Lane ball-testing facility
JWall and Uncle Gene got to spend time this week at Titleist's "East Coast TPI," where ball testing is the main focus. Director of Golf Ball Product Management Frederick Waddell spent some time with the boys to detail all things Titleist golf ball, including some new product to look out for in the new year.
#85
September 2 · 59 min
Scottie proves our robot testing right
The Golf Laboratories swing robot showed us lower launch, lower spin and increased ball speed with the Qi4D compared to previous TaylorMade models. Guess who switched into the new Qi4D head, picked up distance off the tee and won two events in three weeks? That's right, Scottie Scheffler. JWall and Uncle Gene break it all down. But first, even more on Good Good and Rory weighs in on bifurcation. Plus, Tommy Fleetwood makes a putter change and a new putting gadget hits the market.
#84
August 26 · 41 min
A warning sign in the golf equipment space
A potential canary in the coal mine emerged earlier this week when Golf Datatech released numbers showing July 2026 equipment sales were down in almost every category compared to July 2025. JWall and Uncle Gene dive into why. But first, the crew weighs in on the Good Good ad that's caused a stir. Then, New Release Season never stops and the boys have the latest news.
#83
August 18 · 52 min
Here's the deal with Open Flight, an open-source launch monitor
There's a drawback to almost every launch monitor on the market. The best ones are expensive, often prohibitively so. A middle tier typically charges a subscription fee. Others use software that "guesses" what your ball does based on a split second of captured data. Some store your sessions and make it difficult to download your own data to analyze it. But what if there was a launch monitor that had none of those roadblocks? That's the question Coleman Rollins has been asking himself. Now, he's
#82
August 13 · 46 min
How today's equipment enables today's swings
It's no secret today's golf gear is easier to play than in generations past. It's kind of the focal point of the whole distance/rollback debate. But one swing coach posits that three of the most unique, effective swings in golf today — all from PGA Tour winners — would not be possible with the clubs and balls of yesteryear. But first, Uncle Gene played Cypress Point, FedEx and Odyssey team up on a headcover and blade putters near extinction at the U.S. Amateur.
#81
August 5 · 1 hr 1 min
We robot tested 54 golf balls
JWall and Uncle Gene put 54 golf balls to the test on the Golf Laboratories swing robot to find out which performed best on the critical 40-yard wedge shot test. But first, the equipment release calendar knows no bounds. Several new clubs hit the market in the past week or so, and the boys break them all down.
#80
July 29 · 58 min
Chris Marchini on the latest fitting trends
Golf Galaxy Director of Golf Experience and master fitter Chris Marchini is back to answer your questions about club trends and club fitting. We bounce from driver heads, to shafts, irons and everything in between.
#79
July 22 · 37 min
And now, a Royal Rumble of drivers
A couple weeks ago, we gave you a Royal Rumble of irons. Now, we've done the same with drivers. But first, an equipment recap from the Open Championship, including why you might want to put a putter head on a telephone pole.
#78
July 15 · 46 min
Equipment notes for the Open Championship
You asked, we listened. We tested Titleist's GTS drivers at 105 mph on the Golf Laboratories swing robot, and the results were intriguing. But first, it's Open Championship week, which means a whole lot of changes at both ends of the bag for many tour pros. High lofted woods become long irons and mini drivers and new bounce options are in play for wedges on the baked, firm, sandy soil.
#77
July 8 · 40 min
A Royal Rumble of irons
Who says irons need to be in one category or another? We put every iron we tested on the Golf Laboratories swing robot in one big pot and picked the most outstanding few in a bunch of categories. But first, some tour talk as players head over to Britain for the Open Championship. Look for some long irons this in place of fairway woods. Plus, L.A.B. Golf collabs with Uncrustables?
#76
July 1 · 53 min
We put Titleist's GTS drivers to the test
Titleist made waves with its April release of its new GTS line of drivers. And there was a whole lot of hullabaloo around how much ball speed, and, in turn, distance pros were gaining. JWall and Uncle Gene finally got their hands on some drivers and put them to the test on the Golf Laboratories swing robot. Also, Viktor Hovland's driver change pays off and what's the deal with Damascus steel?
#75
June 24 · 43 min
Some surprising super game improvement iron data
JWall and Uncle Gene are back from their respective vacations and we have lots of super game improvement iron robot data to discuss. But first, Wyndham Clark's Ping Scottsdale Tec putter carries him to his second U.S. Open title and the USGA delays its rollback plan.
#74
June 17 · 29 min
Robotic iron analysis: Game Improvement Irons
Our summer robot analysis series continues with game improvement irons as JWall and Uncle Gene break down the data from the Golf Laboratories swing robot.
#73
June 10 · 34 min
How 2026 players distance irons performed with a robot
We put the hottest category in irons to the test on Golf Laboratories' swing robot, and the numbers were outstanding. JWall and Uncle Gene break it all down, and JWall learns the difference between negative and positive.

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