Inside Golf Magazine takes you behind the scenes to hear how this Japanese tire company became the fastest growing American golf company, Bridgestone Golf. See Bridgestone's new ball technology is bringing municipal golfer into tour caliber equipment. Distributed by Tubemogul.>> I'M HERE WITH DAN MURPHY FROM BRIDGESTONE GOLF. DAN, TELL ME, HOW IS IT THAT A COMPANY CAN GO FROM MAKING PREMIUM TIRES TO PREMIUM GOLF BALLS; HOW DOES THAT WORK? >> WE'VE HAD GREAT SUCCESS IN THE LAST 5 YEARS BUT, IT REALLY STARTED WAY WAY WAY BACK IN THE 1930’S IN THE JAPAN. THE FOUNDER OF OUR COMPANY IS ISHIBASHI AND, ISIBASHI IN ENGLISH MEANS STONE BRIDGE. WHEN HE FOUNDED THE COMPANY, HE CHANGED HIS NAME TO ENGLISH AND HE CALLED IT BRIDGESTONE SO THAT’S THE BEGINNING. ISHIBASHI WAS A POLYMER SCIENTIST; HE UNDERSTOOD MATERIALS AND RUBBER TECHNOLOGY. HE APPLIED THAT TO THE TIRE BUSINESS VERY SUCCESSFULLY BUT, HE HAD A GREAT PASSION FOR GOLF. A POLYMER SCIENCE THAT’S REQUIRED TO MAKE A TIRE THAT INTERACTS WITH THE ROAD SURFACE IN AN EFFECTIVE WAY, IN RAIN AND SNOW AND DIFFERENT CONDITIONS. IT’S A VERY VIOLENT INTERACTION. THERE’S A LOT OF STRESS ON THE MATERIALS. IF YOU TAKE THAT AND APPLY IT TO GOLF, WHEN A DRIVER IMPACTS A GOLF BALL, THE MATERIAL IMPACT IS VERY VERY SIMILAR. THEY’RE BOTH VERY VIOLENT INTERACTIONS SO THE POLYMER SCIENCE REQUIRED TO PERFORM UNDER THAT KIND OF PRESSURE, THERE’S A STRONG, STRONG PARALLEL. >> THAT INTERACTION CAN BE A BIT MORE VIOLENT FOR SOME THAN OTHERS, I IMAGINE. >> YOU’VE SEEN ME PLAY. >> A LOT OF GUYS ON TOUR HAVE ISHIBASHI TO THANK FOR THE GREAT BALLS THAT THEY’RE USING, NOW. >> WITHOUT A DOUBT. WITHOUT A DOUBT. WE’RE VERY THANKFUL TO ISHIBASHI, AS WELL. IN THE LAST 5 YEARS, WE'VE LAUNCHED BRIDGESTONE GOLF HERE IN THE U.S. AND IT’S BEEN VERY VERY SUCCESSFUL FOR US. ACCEPTANCE FROM THE U.S. CONSUMER HAS BEEN GREAT WITH OUR TOUR TEAM AND ALSO WITH A PROGRAM THAT WE CALL THE BRIDGESTONE CHALLENGE BALL-FITTING PROGRAM. IT’S BEEN VERY VERY SUCCESSFUL FOR US. >> YOUR ROSTER OF GUYS ON STAFF IS REALLY COOL AND IMPRESSIVE. YOU’VE GOT FREDDY COUPLES, CHARLES HAL III, BRAD CONNECTICUR BUT, I HEARD THAT YOU’VE GOT A NEW GUY COMING ON. CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT. >> WE'VE GOT AN OLD/NEW GUY COMING ON. I GOT A PHONE CALL 3, 4 WEEKS AGO AND THIS FELLOW WAS VERY ENTHUSIASTIC. IT WAS A FAMILIAR VOICE BUT I COULDN’T QUITE PLACE IT. HE SAID, I FOUND A GOLF BALL ON A GOLF COURSE AND I HIT IT, AND I'M 10 YARDS LONGER. THIS IS AMAZING AND I LOVE IT. I SAID, WHO IS THIS? THIS IS LEE TRAVINO, HE SAID. SO LEE TRAVINO CALLED US ABOUT OUR B330RX GOLF BALL. >> THE FIRST ONE I HIT, I COULDN’T BELIEVE IT. HOW WELL IT FELT AND HOW FAR IT WENT. THEN, I FOUND IT AND THEY CAME DOWN AND MONITORED MY SWING SPEED AND, I FOUND OUT THAT I WAS SWINGING UNDER 100 MILES AN HOUR. SO I QUALIFIED FOR THE RX, BABY, RIGHT THERE. >> THAT’S THE BALL WE MADE FOR SLOWER SWING SPEEDS. A TOUR-CALIBER BALL FOR SLOWER SWING SPEEDS. IT’S A SOFTER COMPRESSION BALL SO IT'LL GO FURTHER OFF THE DRIVER FOR YOU. YOU’LL BE ABLE TO COMPRESS IT. IT’S GOT THAT URETHANE COVER SO IF FEELS GREAT AROUND THE GREEN. >> I WANTED TO DO THIS, SIMPLY, BECAUSE, FOR THE FIRST TIME, A COMPANY HAS COME ALONG TO TRY TO HELP A GUY WITH A SLOWER SWING SPEED. THAT’S THE SECRET. IF YOU CAN COMPRESS A GOLF BALL WITH A SLOWER SWING SPEED, YOU’RE NOT ONLY GOING TO GET MAXIMUM DISTANCE, YOU’RE GOING TO GET MAXIMUM HEIGHT ON THE BALL AND, YOU’RE GOING TO GET MAXIMUM SPIN. THERE’S NO REASON NOT TO HIT A GOLF BALL THAT FEELS GOOD AND YOU GET MAXIMUM DISTANCE EVEN THOUGH YOU’RE UP IN AGE AND YOUR SWING SPEED IS BETWEEN 70 AND 90 AND 100 MILES AN HOUR. >> LEE CALLED US AND HE SAID, I’VE GOT A BOY SCOUT OUTING IN DALLAS, TEXAS, CAN YOU HELP ME WITH SOME BALLS? I SAID, YOU’RE LEE TRAVINO, WE'LL SEND YOU SOME BALLS. FROM THAT, WE GREW A RELATIONSHIP AND HE’S NOW ON STAFF WITH US AND APPEARING IN A NEW COMMERCIAL WITH FREDDY COUPLES, THAT A LOT OF YOUR VIEWERS MAY BE ABLE TO SEE ON TV IN THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS. >> I’VE ALWAYS BEEN ENTERTAINED BY BRIDGESTONE COMMERCIALS. YOU'VE GONE A GREAT JOB. >> WE DON’T BELIEVE IN BEING THE SAME OLD, SAME OLD. WE NEED TO BE CREATIVE IN EVERYTHING WE DO BECAUSE WE’RE A CHALLENGER BRAND. WE HAVE AN INTERESTING IDENTITY IN THIS MARKET BECAUSE WE’RE BACKED BY THIS HUGE, HUGE MULTI-NATIONAL COMPANY. BRIDGESTONE CORPORATE IS A $30 BILLION COMPANY. IT’S BIGGER THAN MICHELIN, IT’S BIGGER THAN GOODYEAR. >> NO WONDER IT’S THE TOP-SELLING LADIES BALL. NO WONDER I WON SO MANY TIMES. >> WE WON SO MANY TIMES. >> I THINK SOMEONE NEEDS A HUG. >> WE’RE ALSO VERY SMALL. WE CAN BE CREATIVE, WE CAN BE ENTERTAINING IN OUR COMMERCIALS. THAT’S RESULTED IN A LOT OF COOL SPOTS. CURRENTLY, WE'VE GOT A SERIES OF SPOTS CALLED FAN MAIL. >> WELCOME BACK TO BRIDGESTONE FAN MAIL. >> HERE’S ONE FROM DALLAS. >> DEAR BRIDGESTONE. LAST WEEK, A BUDDY OF MINE GOT ME TO TRY YOUR RX BALLS AND, LET ME TELL YOU, I WAS BLOWN AWAY. THANKS FOR A GREAT BALL. LEE TRAVINO. >> TRAVINO? >> I THINK HE WAS A BULL FIGHTER. >> WHAT? >> OH, YEAH, BRIDGESTONE. >> I PARTICIPATED IN ONE OF THE BRIDGESTONE BALL SITTING AND, THE B33RX WAS THE BALL SELECTED FOR ME. WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS ABOUT THE BRIDGESTONE THAT LEE TRAVINO LOVES SO MUCH? >> WHAT MOST CONSUMERS LOVE ABOUT THE BALL IS, IT’S LONGER FOR THEM. HE’S EXPERIENCED THAT BY ACCIDENT; BY FINDING A BALL ON A GOLF COURSE, TEEING IT OFF AND PLAYING IT FOR A FEW HOLES. HE RECOGNIZED THAT THAT BALL, BECAUSE OF THE DESIGN, REALLY FIT HIS SWING SPEED. JUST LIKE YOU WERE MEASURED ON OUR LAUNCH MONITORS, WE MEASURED LEE ON THE LAUNCH MONITORS. HE HAD A 98-MILE-AN-HOUR SWING SPEED, WHICH IS RIGHT THERE IN THE WHEEL HOUSE FOR THE RX. WHAT THAT’S GOING TO DO WITH A 98-MILE-AN-HOUR SWING SPEED IS, HE’S GOING TO BE ABLE TO COMPRESS THAT BALL BECAUSE IT’S GOT A SOFTER COMPRESSION AND, BECAUSE HE CAN COMPRESS IT IT’S GOING TO GO A LITTLE BIT LONGER FOR HIM, OFF THE TEE. HIS EXPERIENCE IS 10 YARDS, SO THAT’S WHAT HE LOVED ABOUT IT. I DON’T THINK ANYBODY DOESN’T WANT 10 MORE YARDS. IT’S A CLUB LESS IN ANY GREEN. >> TELL HIM TO LOOK FOR THE BOX IN THE RED. SUN BE RED. I'M THE ONE THAT STARTED THAT; NOT TIGER AND NOT CURTIS STRING. 1968, BABY, U.S. OPEN. JACK NICHOLAS BIT THE DUST. >> DAN, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU’RE WORKING HARD TO HELP PLAYERS IMPROVE THEIR GAME. THANKS SO MUCH FOR HAVING US. >> THANK YOU FOR COMING. CAN YOU SAY ISHIBASHI. CAN YOU SAY IT 3 TIMES, FAST? >> ISHIBASHI, ISHIBASHI, ISHIBASHI. >> THAT’S GOING ON YOU-TUBE. Less