Industry stalwart Rock Ishii joins Callaway

Industry stalwart Rock Ishii joins Callaway

Callaway Golf has fortified its golf ball R&D division with the addition of industry veteran Hideyuki “Rock” Ishii as Sr. Director, Advanced Golf Ball Research.

Ishii brings 25 years of golf product development experience, including 15 years with Nike Golf, during which he was responsible for the design of every Nike ball.

To date, 25 Major Championships have been won by athletes Ishii worked with on golf ball design and fitting.

Callaway say no brand has been more innovative than themselves in the ball category of late and they believe their Chrome Soft and Supersoft products have exceeded golfers’ expectations for feel, spin, distance and control.

According to Golf Datatech, Callaway is the fastest growing major golf ball brand since 2013.

Dr. Alan Hocknell, Callaway’s SVP of R&Dsaid: “Adding Rock to our already exceptional ball team will strengthen our ability to investigate new construction methods and improve our evaluation of golf ball performance, leading to better products for golfers at every level.”

Callaway say that at a time when other golf companies are consolidating resources, they are investing in order to continue bringing new innovations and better performing products to market.

Last month Callaway acquired Toulon Design, a boutique clubmaker specialising in premium putters that combine design with meaningful performance technology.

Chip Brewer, President & CEO of Callaway Golf added: “By further investing in R&D, at a time when we believe others are or will be forced to pull back, we view this as an excellent opportunity to further strengthen our technical position and build for the future.”