How We Rate Products - Golf Sidekick

How We Rate Products

We are first and foremost fanatical golfers and love learning about new equipment and gear ourselves. We see our readers as our friends and make sure to always provide up to date information with accuracy.

We love to help you score better through the Golf Sidekick Youtube channel as well as our Chief Reviewer, Alex Etches Golf. Eric Chong of Impact Golf Malaysia is the lead technical specialist regarding all components of every product we recommend. 

We only recommend products that we believe in after hitting them ourselves and playing with golfers who use the equipment regularly to remain up to date with any changes in opinion or issues. 

Some products are sent to us for testing and review but a vast majority of products never make it onto the reviews as they are not acceptable to recommend to you. The products you see on this website are the only ones we recommend and stand behind those recommendations. The reviews of golf products are independent and unbiased.

How we do it

This is our process:

Obtain current and prior model golf equipment

We receive products or purchase them if they are of interest and potentially useful for you or ourselves. Alex Etches is our Head of Reviews and takes the lead in sourcing products through his extensive network of golf manufacturers and professionals.

Eric Chong of Impact Golf Malaysia sources new equipment as well as tests every component of the equipment we feature on Golf Sidekick.

For a lot of gear, we compare to prior models, keep the promises and hype in check and provide you useful information if you're thinking of purchasing any new equipment. We will only feature useful products. We source and obtain irons, drivers, fairway woods, hybrids, wedges, putters, rangefinders, golf watches, towels, hats, golf bags and push carts among other gear. 

Use the products

We use the products and assess them from the moment of unwrapping packaging, through to using the product as intended, and then allowing for some settling in time to make sure the items continue being satisfactory.

Our Head of Reviews, Alex Etches will take the equipment onto the course, as well as provide Trackman data of the performance of the equipment. Alex is our video review specialist and provides more than 10 years of expertise in golf equipment reviews. Alex will provide information about the advancement in technology, comparisons to prior models, performance of current models and suggestions for you if you're thinking of buying.

Eric Chong fits and builds clubs for clients in Malaysia and has first hand knowledge of equipment in real-world scenarios, watching hundred of golfers using the gear we feature on Golf Sidekick.

We write all the articles ourselves, produce all our own videos with original content and products are put through their paces by both amateur golfers as well as 3 pros currently on retainer. 

Check user experiences on course, in person

We make sure we understand the products fully by checking other users experiences in case we miss something. 90% of the information is from ourselves, and the final 10% is from external sources, watching friends and colleagues play the equipment, in person. 

Eric Chong, our head of technical analysis is our eyes and ears on the ground, receiving feedback from golfers just like you.

We do not aggregate information. We create all our own information through experience with all equipment.

Feature the best and find you the best deals

We feature only the best equipment and provide links to the only the best products for you, which earn us affiliate commissions. Thank you for using our site and giving us a little tip by buying through the links in the articles.

As an Amazon associate, we earn commissions through qualifying purchases on Amazon. 

We find the best sources are from a trusted retailer online, or directly from the manufacturer. Often you may find second hand products through our suggested outlets just to help keep your costs down. 

What we do not do

We get many offers of payment to place products higher up in our reviews. We do not accept these offers, instead using the products honestly and if they pass our criteria, they are featured, but if they do not, they are not featured.

We do not post products without intensive research and testing.

With a combined 85 years of experience in golf in our team, we know golf. A mix of amateurs, club builders and professional golfers (touring and club pro) we understand what is best for the average every day golfer as well as the elite level golfer. We do not like to waste money and we hope we can help you make better decisions through our work. 

Our opinions remain as objective as possible at all times. Please note that everyone has different preferences in golf equipment and we try to convey ours as matter of fact as we can. 

We earn commissions on the sale of products through the links we use.

Thank you

The Golf Sidekick Team