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PODCAST

Gear Smart

Which clubs should you be playing? Why are wedge grinds important? What the hell is Smash Factor and why does it matter? There"s a lot to unpack in each of these questions. And Ryan Barath, Skratch"s resident Gear Czar, has the answer. Every other week, Barath will be answering a selection of the hundreds of real reader questions he gets each week on Instagram, talking to the leading innovators in the gear space, and delivering the need-to-know information that can turn any dedicated golf fan into a

sports golf

All Episodes

53:23

New Titleist Mini & Talking LIV vs PGA TOUR

Gear Smart ·

2026/05/07

Ryan discusses the new gear releases of the week, including the McLaren Series 3 irons and the Titleist Mini Driver, then dives into the LIV Golf vs. PGA TOUR debate and what LIV's financial status could mean for players in the future.Enter for a chance to win a trip for two to the American Century Championshio in Lake Tahoe this July by visiting fujikuragolf.com/acc! Use the code "GEARSMART" for an extra entry.

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51:06

McLaren Golf is here, what you can learn from Nelly's...

Gear Smart ·

2026/04/30

Ryan dives into McLaren Golf's new tour pro ambassadors, then breaks down Nelly Korda's dominant win at at the Chevron Championship–and what you can learn from her irons for your next fitting. He then talks about the newest spring releases in equipment and answers your questions from the Gear Smart Hotline.Make sure to follow the Gear Smart Instagram account for more equipment news from Ryan!

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33:25

Talking Titleist Ball Fitting with Patrick Dewar

Gear Smart ·

2026/04/23

Patrick Dewar, Titleist's Associate Tour Consultant for Ball Performance, joins this week's episode to discuss the ball testing process, fitting tour pros, how to find the right balance between short game feel and ball flight, Cameron Young's switch into the Double Dot and more.Presented by Titleist.

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57:45

RBC Chat and asking the question- are there too many...

Gear Smart ·

2026/04/16

We're back after an exciting week at the Masters!Ryan dives into the club changes this week at RBC Heritage, new releases and debates the question– are there just too many golf clubs on the market?

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48:01

Talking Masters with Club Junkie's Brian Knudson!

Gear Smart ·

2026/04/08

It's MASTERS week and we're talking all things gear ahead of the action at Augusta National. Ryan is joined by Golf WRX's Club Junkie, Brian Knudson, to talk gear changes to watch for, dark horse picks and the one thing holding Bryson back.

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43:13

A deep dive into the BEST golf bags

Gear Smart ·

2026/04/02

Ryan kicks off this week's episode breaking down Gary Woodland's incredible win at the Texas Children's Houston Open and why his equipment fits his game so well. Then he takes a deep dive into the best golf bags on the market, and why a "perfect" golf bag doesn't exist.

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00:57:53

Titleist's surprise GTS drop and talking TaylorMade...

Gear Smart ·

2026/03/26

Ryan dives into a surprise Titleist announcement this past Sunday and what we know so far about their new GTS line of drivers and fairway woods. He also touches on Bryson DeChambeau's win with Bettinardi wedges, Fujikura's new blue profile and a recent Barath's Bargain Bin find.Then he's joined by TaylorMade's James Holley to talk about the success of their Spider putter, working with players like Tommy Fleetwood and more.

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01:05:25

Cam Young's Secret Hybrid & talking with Cleveland...

Gear Smart ·

2026/03/19

Ryan dives into The PLAYERS Championship and the "off-menu" hybrid in Cam Young's bag that helped him win, and how it can help you too.Then he chats with Cleveland's Tour Engineering Manager Patrick Ripp about wedge design, working with players and the process of bringing products from concept to testing and retail.

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00:36:50

Gear changes from big names at THE PLAYERS

Gear Smart ·

2026/03/13

Ryan is fresh from a few days at TPC Sawgrass ahead of THE PLAYERS Championship talking about the gear changes tour pros made ahead of the tournament, visiting all the tour trucks, the surprising reason Justin Thomas put some old clubs in the bag and more.

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00:53:24

Diving into Callaway Golf's latest driver face tech,...

Gear Smart ·

2026/03/05

On this week's episode, Ryan sits down with Callaway Golf's Jacob Davidson, VP of Global Tours, and Brian Williams, VP of R&D to chat about driver face technology, Chrome Tour golf balls, developing protypes, and how they're leaning into equipment that can help golfers blend their bags.Ryan also dives into the announcement of McLaren Golf, including the big names from the industry that are involved.Presented by Callaway Golf.

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00:49:20

Talking Vokey Wedges and Design with Titleist's Kevin...

Gear Smart ·

2026/02/26

Vokey Director of Wedge Development Kevin Tassistro joins this week's episode of Gear Smart to chat about their new SM11s, the process of designing wedges, how they're constantly improving their technology and more.Ryan also talks about Jacob Bridgeman's win at the Genesis Invitational, the unique gear set up he has in his bag, and the Spider putter's hot streak on TOUR.

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00:48:56

Collin Morikawa's winning new putter, Srixon's...

Gear Smart ·

2026/02/19

There were some big gear changes at Pebble Beach last week that proved successful. Ryan breaks down Collin Morikawa's winning new putter, Min Woo Lee's swap to a TRTL and more.Then he dives into the new Blackout collection from Srixon, LA Golf's direct-to-consumer rumors, and other gear news of the week.

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00:49:39

Back to blades for Rory at Pebble + More Mini...

Gear Smart ·

2026/02/12

Coming off his switch to cavity back irons, Rory McIlroy is back in blades at Pebble Beach. Ryan breaks down what it means and what the biggest differences are for Rory.Then he chats about more new mini drivers and answers a controversial Q&A from the gear Hotline.

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00:52:49

Talking club design with New Level Golf's Andy Hennis

Gear Smart ·

2026/02/05

Ryan breaks down Justin Rose's equipment free-agent win at Torrey Pines, previews gear changes ahead of WM Phoenix Open and shares more about week testing new clubs of 2026.Then he's joined by Andy Hennis of New Level Golf, to talk about club design, their player-driven design philosophy, forged wedges and more.

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00:52:49

Brooks is back, Scottie Wins again, and answering...

Gear Smart ·

2026/01/29

Ahead of Brooks Koepka =PGA TOUR return this week, Ryan breaks down what he's got in his bag–including a very old Nike club. Then Ryan chats about Scottie Scheffler's 20th PGA TOUR win, including why he keeps going back to an old reliable driver.And big news this week–TaylorMade has sued Callaway about a video using UV light to show disparities between golf balls. Ryan shares what you need to know.

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01:10:41

Speed Golf Rob on his adventure into speed golf and...

Gear Smart ·

2026/01/22

It's PGA Show week, so Ryan breaks down all the new gear that's dropping, including the Titleist SM11s, and chats about Chris Gotterup's win in Hawaii using the new Bridgestone ball.Then Rob Hogan aka Speed Golf Rob joins Ryan to talk about his journey into the game, trying to play professionally, the differences in walking golf and speed golf, putting together a speed golf bag, and how it changed his game forever.

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00:54:19

Talking Cobra OPTM, PXG Irons, Equipment Contracts,...

Gear Smart ·

2026/01/15

Ryan is diving into more equipment hitting the USGA conforming list, including a new PING mini driver. Then he breaks down Cobra's new OPTM line, the PXG Gen 8 irons, and fresh equipment contracts in play at the Sony Open before answering a question from the Gear Smart Hotline.Have a question for Ryan? Give him a call at 747-224-1868.

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00:55:48

Mizuno, TaylorMade and more new releases of 2026

Gear Smart ·

2026/01/07

Ryan breaks down the fresh 2026 launches of the week, including Mizuno irons, drivers, and putters, TaylorMade's Qi4D driver, and the Titleist ProV1x Left Dash.Then he brings back Ryan's bargain bin, and answers questions from the listener hot line.If you have a gear question for Ryan, leave him a message at 747-224-1868 ☎️

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01:00:57

Q&A from the all new listener line and more to end 2025

Gear Smart ·

2026/01/01

Ryan wraps up gear news in 2025 and answers YOUR questions from our new listener hot line! Do you have a gear question for Ryan? Give him a call at 747-224-1868 ☎️

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01:27:45

Chatting 2025 gear trends with GolfWRX Club Junkie...

Gear Smart ·

2025/12/19

Gear heads, rejoice! Ryan is joined this week by the Club Junkie himself, Brian Knudson of GolfWRX to chat about the year's new clubs, trends on TOUR, and more.Have a gear question for Ryan? Our Gear Smart hotline is now open! Give him a call at 747-224-1868 and he might answer your question on the next episode!

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59 results

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