Just want to make E-bay a safer  place  to shop. I have been on E-bay for a little while now and have educated myself pretty well, I have read about some real horror stories about people paying lots of money for fake equipment any where from putters, wedges, woods, golf bags, umbrellas, head covers and even what I sell, golf grips! You name it, if its a high dollar item They make counterfeits. I had recently bought a 104 golf pride decade multi-compound grips here on E-bay well I hadn't received them and finally got the seller to  communicate with me and gave a tracking number to me, the guy was from Pennsylvania and the grips were coming from China, sorry China but red flag. After I found that out I did my research and sure enough they were gonna be counterfeit. Well I made some phone calls and happen to bump into the attorney of some of the major companies. Any ways I contacted the seller told him if I knew they were coming from china I would have never have had purchased them especially coming from the counterfeiting capital of the world "CHINA"! well this attorney took a look at this seller and turn out everything he sells was nothing but counterfeit equipment after he contacted the seller I mysteriously received a refund and the seller was suspended. Now if I see any suspicious  items I just e-mail the listings to the attorney he is a lot quicker than E-bay!                                                                                                                                      Basically the rule of thumb if it comes from China its probably gonna be counterfeit. If its a 1 day listing with a price that is to good to be true, it is! So from China, 1 day listings, price to good also sellers with  there feed back set on private. Also I'm sure some sellers don't even know they are selling fake equipment, so if you run into anything from the major companies Titleist, Odyssey, Callaway, Taylor made, Cobra and so on feel to contact me leave an Item number and I can send the listing to the golf companies attorney.                                                                                     Some of the equipment thats being counterfeited are pretty much all Taylor made, Callaway and Odyssey, from bags to head covers iron and woods. Scotty Cameron putters Titleist vokey wedges. Golf pride decade multi-compound grips. Just be careful read feed backs and don't be shy about asking for serial numbers, the golf companies can confirm if real or counterfeit. I hope this was helpful and be careful and remember the large majority of U.S E-bay sellers are generally good and honest.                                                                                                                                                                           CHINESE GOVERNMENT RAIDS FIVE GOLF EQUIPMENT COUNTERFEITERS

Authorities Arrest Six Individuals. Criminal Prosecution Expected.

Jiangmen, Putian and Xiamen, China
Chinese anti-counterfeiting enforcement authorities conducted a series of simultaneous raids at 5 different manufacturing locations of counterfeit golf clubs and equipment in Jiangmen, Putian and Xiamen, China on July 14, 2004. Three raided locations, consisting of a foundry, polishing factory and assembly facility, were located in Jiangmen. A foundry in Putian City and an assembly operation in Xiamen were raided as well. Six persons were arrested in connection with these raids, including owners and management of these facilities. Criminal prosecutions are expected.

The government raids took place after six American golf equipment manufacturers filed complaints with Chinese anti-counterfeiting enforcement authorities. Agents encountered and seized substantial amounts of counterfeit golf equipment, manufacturing molds and related equipment at these locations. Preliminary estimates are that 31,000 pieces of counterfeit golf clubs in various states of production, 9,300 grips and 2,000 shafts were seized. In addition, about 5,000 additional trademark representations and several counterfeit golf bags were seized. Most importantly, 84 sets of molds for making counterfeit golf clubs and grips were confiscated, in addition to other manufacturing equipment.

Copies of clubs and equipment manufactured by Acushnet Company (Titleist and Cobra Golf), Callaway Golf (Odyssey and Ben Hogan), Cleveland Golf, Nike, Ping and TaylorMade-adidas Golf and other manufacturers were observed. The estimated value of the seized goods is more than $1,000,000.

"These raids were significant not just because of the large amounts of inventory that have been confiscated," said Rob Duncanson, an attorney coordinating anti-counterfeiting efforts in China on behalf of the listed manufacturers. "While most previous seizures effected by the joint China efforts of the major American golf equipment manufacturers were primarily finished goods seized from retailers or distributors, these raids were successful in seizing significant amounts of counterfeit golf club manufacturing equipment, reducing the capacity that is immediately available for making more counterfeits. It may be difficult to replace the molds and other equipment that have been taken out of service."

In addition, he observed that six people have been arrested and placed into custody in connection with this operation. "Hopefully, this strong position taken by the Chinese intellectual property enforcement authorities will serve as a deterrent to those who seek to profit from producing counterfeit golf products," commented Duncanson.

The anti-counterfeiting efforts of the major United States golf equipment manufacturers in connection with significant support from Chinese authorities and the United States Customs Service continue to generate successes in fighting the counterfeiting problem at its source in China. In May, 2004, the industry participated in a simultaneous joint raid of 11 retailers in Shanghai. Recent reports indicate that most of these retailers of counterfeit products are no longer operating. "By continuing to leverage their collective efforts, these manufacturers are working to ensure that these low quality counterfeit golf clubs are no longer available to deceive the golfing public," stated Duncanson.