Wilson, the sporting goods company that can boast the longest golf shot ever hit, began when a Chicago based slaughterhouse began using pig's bladders to make American footballs. With the introduction of the first sand wedge in the late 1930s, Wilson established itself as a leader in golf club innovation. In 1971, American astronaut Alan Shepard used a Wilson Dynapower iron to hit his famous shot from the moon's surface, which traveled further than any golf shot in history due to the moon's lower gravity, noted Dooyoo.com.
Intoducing the Staff Irons
The lineage culminating in the Staff Progressive clubs began with the first Staff model, introduced in 1954 and featuring Wilson's signature "Muscle Back." This added weight, centered on the back of each iron, was a constant until 1969; when Wilson introduced a milled channel on the club back. This innovation transferred dead weight to the club face. In 1973, an interchangeable weighting system was introduced, and in 1976 the club back cavity began to be enlarged with the introduction of the Bullet Cavity, according to the Wilson Golf website.
Progressive Irons
Until the introduction of Progressive clubs in 1992, players had the choice of cavity-backed irons, which featured a larger sweet spot offering more consistent shots, or the traditional "blade" design for greater feel for shaping and maneuvering shots. Wilson combined the two in their Progressive series, with the 2- through 6-irons having cavity backs and larger club faces. The 7-iron through pitching wedge were designed as "blade" type clubs for greater feel around the greens.
Breakthrough
The most important promotion of the new Progressive concept came when professional golfer Vijay Singh used the clubs with great success on the 1992 U.S. PGA tour. Other manufacturers quickly moved to produce their own version of progressive clubs.
Latest Models
The latest manifestation of the Staff Progressive line, the Progressive Combo, utilizes several club types to make up the set. A 3 and 4-Hybrid club replace the long irons. The 5 and 6-irons are made with super wide soles to improve the launch angle and accuracy. The 7 and 8-irons have the cavity-back design, and the 9-iron and pitching wedge are blades that incorporate a low muscle-back design for better scoring around the greens.
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