New pain-relieving
Kool Tee a kool concept
By Brandon Tucker,
Staff Writer
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Dec. 14, 2005) -- For Pres Kool, golf just wasn't
as fun anymore. A resident and former mayor of Battle Creek, Mich., Kool
suffered through chronic lower back problems for the past several years
and admits the most difficult part of the game wasn't putting or staying
in the fairway.
It was teeing up his ball.
"I had to ask the guys in my foursome to tee my ball up
for me," recalls Kool. "And I didn't like to do that."
Frustrated about his struggles, he called on lifetime friend and inventor
Konrad Marcus for help. Marcus, although a golfer himself, had never designed
anything for the game. Most of his works throughout his lifetime were
for cars, most notably sun visors with lights. But eager for the challenge
and to help his friend, he got to work.
"I started on the Kool-Tee three years ago and almost
gave up on it because it seemed like such a complicated
idea," admits Marcus. "But there are so many people in
this condition who become demoralized. They say, 'I'm not
going to play golf anymore if someone else has to tee up
my ball."
In fact, Marcus estimates the product could help over 4
million people.
"We found if you ask someone in every foursome, they
know someone who could benefit from this product."
How
it works
It sounds simple, but crafting a product that could
stand out from previous tee-setting designs was the main
goal.
"There have been people who have tried to do a product
like this before," says Chuck Berghuis, sales and
marketing director for Kool Tee. "They've been clumsy and
unreliable. But with the Kool Tee, we really feel we got
the engineering right. We're confident in its
durability."
In fact, the breakthrough moment during the design
stage for Marcus was when he realized exactly how humans
teed their ball up.
"When we force the tee into the ground with our hand,
we always keep a thumb on top of the ball to stabilize
it," explains Marcus. "It wasn't until we discovered
that's how you do it.so we installed a spring-loaded
finger. That finger holds it there until the ball is
stabilized."
Kool Tee is easy to use and has just a few steps to get
the ball in the ground. First, insert the ball and the tee
into the slot located in the claw. Then, set the tee at
its desired height in the ground. Finally, pulling the
trigger on the handle releases the ball and your ball is
ready to go.
Aside from teeing the ball up, the Kool Tee also has a
suction cup that can pick your ball out of the hole and a
spade that lets you pick up your tee, fix divots, repair
ball marks-virtually anything on the course that requires
bending over.
For Kool, once he was given the final product last summer, his
enjoyment for the game was back.
"Now I'm playing about ten times a month, which is more
often that I had been," Kools says.
And while the Kool Tee does claim to give those with
back problems an advantage, it has not been banned in any
way from tournament play.
Marcus, who plays about once a week now, does not face
the back problems Kool Tee is supposed to aid. . .yet.
"Who knows," Marcus says. "Maybe one day I'll have to use it myself."
Kool Tee
Extol Inc.
Retail: $89.95
http://www.kool-tee.com
(800) 324-6205
PRODUCT
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