PHOENIX, Ariz. — There are few people who impacted advancements in golf club technology over the last century more than the late Karsten Solheim.
Born in Norway, Solheim spent his early years in Seattle, enrolling at the University of Washington for two years before working as an engineer for companies like Convair and General Electric.
But he soon became interested in making better golf clubs after he himself struggled on the golf course with existing options. Solheim’s first foray in the golf world came when he invented and built a putter inside his garage.
Solheim went on to launch Karsten Manufacturing in 1959 and created the PING brand — named after the sound he heard when metal struck a ball — and the rest, well, is history.
Today, Ping is known around the world for developing revolutionary clubs like the Anser putter and was the first company to offer custom-fitted golf sets.
“He was a genius, truly, in terms of what he brought to club design,” longtime PING marketing director Pete Samuels said of Solheim.
Solheim’s innovations are still felt all around the PING world headquarters in Phoenix, Ariz., from the manufacturing factory itself to the company’s hi-tech research and engineering center.
“The engineering foot is the one the company leads with in terms of putting product out that functions and performs,” noted Erik Henrikson, Head of Fitting Science at PING.
GeekWire had the opportunity to tour the PING facility on a recent trip to Phoenix. Aside from the geeky golf technology, our favorite part was probably the “Gold Putter Vault.” As a way to congratulate professional golfers who won tournaments with a PING putter, Solheim started a tradition in the 1970s by sending each player a gold-plated replica of the putter he or she used to win, while also keeping one inside the vault.
As you can see, there have been quite a few winning PING putters in the last several decades:
Check out the video below for a closer look at PING’s facility:
