@36aday is pleased to introduce interviews with leaders in the game of golf. Nine questions are presented to probe important issues of the game, personal experiences, stories and insight. Just like 9 holes of golf, I hope you find this enjoyable and that it leaves you wanting more.

A Quick 9 With Michael Flori, Owner and Founder of Revolutionary Golf, a US company with an innovative plan to have you playing the right golf ball.  They’ll even ship your golf balls right to your door each month.

Part One of our conversation focuses on this unique business model and plans for roll out later in 2018.

1. Welcome to a Quick 9, Michael.  So what is Revolutionary Golf?

MF – Thank you very much. In short, Revolutionary Golf is a golf ball subscription box for golfers. The question I get most often after I say that is, “What makes it so revolutionary?” There are already two golf ball subscription boxes on the market. They are called High Side Golf and Tee Box Club. What separates my box from them is my custom fitting feature. I have done tons of research and developed a formula that I can use to fit golfers for golf balls. So when my box launches I will be able to custom fit golfers for golf balls and then send them a box each month with their balls as well as some other accessories. I’m not just marketing a box here; I’m starting a movement, a revolution if you will. Too many golfers are falling for the age old trick that more expensive golf balls are always better for you, or if the pros use them you should too. This is just not correct, and it’s time for somebody to put a stop to it. That’s the mission of Revolutionary Golf.

2. There are a few unique aspects to your business I’d like to explore with you.  First, the subscription component.  What was your rationale for a golf ball subscription model?  And while you mention two others I don’t know if I have ever heard of that before.

MF – So it’s funny actually. My grandfather is the one who taught me how to golf and got me into the game. For the last few years he has been getting golf balls that he doesn’t use from his friends so he will bring them to me when he visits. It was early October 2017 and he had brought me a box of used Pro V1’s and a brand new box of Velocity golf balls. I was walking to my car to put the balls in my bag and I thought to myself, “What if I could turn this into a business? What if I could share the feeling of receiving golf balls right at your house once a month with other golfers?” That’s when Revolutionary Golf was initially born. I first wanted to ship out refurbished golf balls in an egg carton and for about 3 weeks that was the business model. I quickly decided this wouldn’t be an ideal model as unique as it was so I decided to use a box like most subscription boxes do. It was also at this time that I was doing my own research on golf ball dynamics and custom fitting. One day in October while doing my research the idea to integrate a custom fitting feature in with the box occurred to me. And it’s a good thing that it did because not too long after this I realized my original idea wasn’t so unique. There were already two golf ball subscription boxes on the market. Tee Box Club specialized in refurbished balls and High Side let you pick and choose your own box. Out of these two models I do believe mine is the best and I hope that with the help of my crowdfunding campaign I can bring it to the market soon.

36aday – You have certainly done considerable thinking about this!

3. Next, the fitting component.  This intrigues me the most.  Please share an overview of the processes for determining what ball is right for a subscriber?

MF – Sure, I have developed a math based formula that I can use to custom fit any golfer for golf balls. In phase 1 of my business I am going to be personally fitting each golfer with my formula and I will get back to them with their fitting results and which box I believe they should order from my site. There will be seven boxes each with balls from the major brands and other accessories that you can add as well. I will take a look at their results and fit them based on my knowledge of the system that I’ve developed. Some of the questions they’ll be answering are:

• Handicap
• Swing Speed, if they know it
• Driving Distance
• If they have trouble hitting it straight
• If they prefer to stop the ball on a dime or let it pitch and roll.
• And a few other questions.

I will take these questions and fit them into one of seven categories by adding their numbers up and averaging them out. Each box has a number and I match the average number with the number of the box and voila, I get my result. I have tested this multiple times and found that each time I am able to correctly fit the person for the right box. I make sure when I fit someone that I send them a detailed explanation as to why they were fit for that box as well as a list of every ball they can use. The way it works is that each question has multiple predetermined answers. The job of the subscriber is to choose each answer that best fits them. I have written very informative articles on the specifics of the golf ball on my website. You can check them out on the blog page at RevolutionaryGolfBalls.com. I believe that these articles do a very good job at explaining the anatomy of the golf ball and how the fitting process is determined.

4. I understand your business is still in development.  How are things progressing and when do expect to throw the switch and go live?

Things are progressing nicely. I only need $18,000 to launch and so I’ve decided to put together a crowdfunding campaign with the popular site, Indiegogo. I’ve decided to accept early bird discounted pre-orders. For only $35 contributors can get their first month for free. I did the math and that means an early contributor can receive golf balls and accessories valued at $60 for only $35. There will be some other really awesome perks as well. For example, if a contributor isn’t ready to commit to a box they can contribute $15 and receive the Revolutionary Golf glove to try for themselves. I am going to be launching the crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo on Tuesday March 20th. It will run for 35 days, which means you have about one month to capitalize on the awesome savings. Once we reach the $18,000 goal I will be able to pay the developers the $1000 down payment so they can begin working on the website as well as order the inventory. It may take between two and three months until I am ready to flip the switch. So as of right now you can expect Revolutionary Golf to launch in July. So my message to a reader interested would be to sign up for my email list now. Everyone signed up before July 1st will receive a 10% coupon. You will also be kept up to date on the progress of the campaign and website development. I will also occasionally send very helpful information in the form of blog posts.

36aday – that will make for a busy and exciting month for you!

Check tomorrow for Part Two of my conversation with Michael Flori, where we explore integration into the Canadian market, a vision for success and Michael’s bucket list of courses (and his dream foursome)