TAG HEUER ENTHUSIAST: Golf

Showing posts with label Golf. Show all posts

Thursday, 13 March 2025

INSTRUCTIONS: TAG Heuer Golf Battery Change

This may sound a little silly, but I've been dreading the day when my Golf needed a battery change... because not only does it have four tiny screws holding down the square caseback, but I was also concerned that once the screws were removed and the backplate was removed, what would happen with the buttons that hold the folding parts of the watch together? Would they just ping out and I'd be left with a mess of parts in a bag to take to my local watch repairman?

Well thankfully no. As you can see they are still held firmly in place, which is logical... but then you can't always assume everything will be okay with watches just because it makes sense in your head. The only problem I actually encountered was that I had never come across a 315 battery before (very thin that one) so it wasn't one I had in stock. I was also slightly confused about the lack of a gasket, but then the watch is only rated to 50M, in other words 'not very waterproof'.

FEATURE: Keeping Track of Wrist Time 2022

Happy New Year everyone, and welcome to 2023. We start the year with everybody's favourite post... 'Keeping Track of Wrist Time' (I jest of course, it doesn't get any more self-indulgent than this!), in which I reveal which watches I wore the most (and least) during the year of our Lord Jean Claude Biver 2022.

I know, it's a LOT, just keep calm and we'll get through this together! Haha.

Now if you've already read my 'Another Crazy Year of Watch Buying' post that went up a few days ago, you'll know that there's been a fair bit of coming and going this year. Actually a lot more going than coming... which is a good thing, because looking back it's clear that I had (and still have, truthfully) far too many watches to actually wear them all. In fact I'd be somewhat surprised if I'd worn my Microtimer more than 25 times since I bought it back in 2017. And given it cost me £85 for a new battery last year, that isn't a good ratio!

FEATURE: Another Crazy Year of Watch Buying!

Ever since I started this blog way back in October 2016 my watch collection has been expanding year on year, some years at a genuinely frightening pace. In fact by the end of 2021 I had in excess of 50 TAG Heuer watches.... which is quite a lot by anyone's reckoning!

However, 2022 was the first year when this trend was not only halted but reversed, and for the first time I finished the year with a MUCH smaller collection than I started it with.

The year began slow but steady, right up until I bought my long sought after blue dial Japanese limited edition Grand Carrera... which turned out to be something of a pivotal purchase as far as my TAG Heuer collecting goes.

BUYING EXPERIENCE: TAG Heuer Golf Quartz Watch

WAE1111.FT6004

Ever since I got into the whole TAG Heuer thing I've always been fascinated by the more off-beat models, and one such example would be the TAG Heuer 'Golf' which appeared in the mid 2000s and exploited TAG Heuer's collaboration with the legendary golfer Tiger Woods. The watch was designed with the express purpose of being suitable for wearing while playing golf, which meant that comfort and lightness was imperative. To this end TAG Heuer moved the watch's crown to the left hand side (so as not to press into the back of the hand while taking a shot) and a created a unique design which completely eradicated the need for a clasp.

SPOTLIGHT ON: New Arrivals at TAG Heuer Bicester Village

PHONE THE STORE: (01869) 249008

EMAIL THE STORE: enquiries.bicester@tagheuer.com

Some good news, the TAG Heuer Bicester Village store will re-open on Thursday the 3rd of December.

While they have been closed the store has moved just a small distance to the other side of the 'street' and as such it will be all shiny and new when you pay them a visit.

In the meantime you can still place orders by phone (Monday) and email and I believe this will continue even after the store re-opens on Thursday, so make sure to check here regularly for new stock updates.

Speaking of which, here are the latest arrivals to the store...

CAR2090.BH0729

CARRERA HEUER 01 CERAMIC 43mm

LIST PRICE - £5150

BICESTER PRICE - £3090

CAR2150.FC6266

CARRERA CALIBRE 1887 43mm

LIST PRICE - £4450

BICESTER PRICE - £3115

CAR2A10.BA0799

CARRERA CALIBRE 1887 43mm

LIST PRICE - £4150

BICESTER PRICE - £2905

CAS2110.FC6266

CARRERA CALIBRE 16 43mm

LIST PRICE - £3950

BICESTER PRICE - £2765

CAT2050.FC6322

LINK CALIBRE 16 43mm

LIST PRICE - £5595

BICESTER PRICE - £3915

CAY211Y.BA0926

AQUARACER CALIBRE 45 41mm

LIST PRICE - £3450

BICESTER PRICE - £2415

WAE1114.FT6011

GOLF QUARTZ 37mm

LIST PRICE - £1695

BICESTER PRICE - £1185

WAH1210.BA0859

FORMULA 1 QUARTZ 37mm

LIST PRICE - £1195

BICESTER PRICE - £835

WAR215C.FC6336

CARRERA CALIBRE 5 39mm

LIST PRICE - £3000

BICESTER PRICE - £2100

WAR215D.FC6181

CARRERA CALIBRE 5 39mm

LIST PRICE - £2895

BICESTER PRICE - £2025

WAS2112.FC6181

CARRERA CALIBRE 6 39mm

LIST PRICE - £2850

BICESTER PRICE - £1195

WAY101A.FT6141

AQUARACER QUARTZ 43mm

LIST PRICE - £1350

BICESTER PRICE - £945

WAY1313.BA0915

AQUARACER QUARTZ 32mm

LIST PRICE - £1795

BICESTER PRICE - £1255

WBC1350.BA0600

LINK QUARTZ 32mm

LIST PRICE - £1950

BICESTER PRICE - £1365

WBD2111.BA0928

AQUARACER CALIBRE 5 41mm

LIST PRICE - £1850

BICESTER PRICE - £1295

WBG1312.FC6412

CARRERA QUARTZ 36mm

LIST PRICE - £2100

BICESTER PRICE - £1470

Saturday, 17 October 2020

HISTORY: TAG Heuer Golf (2005-2009)

The TAG Heuer 'Golf' watch is perhaps one of the strangest models ever to come out of the factory in La Chaux de Fonds. Renowned mainly as the 'square' TAG Heuer that isn't the Monaco (although that doesn't stop some people listing them as Monacos on eBay...) the watch was designed to be worn when playing Golf - hence the name. As such it is on the small side for a modern watch and it features a unique and inventive fastening system, leaving the impression that the watch has no clasp.

In fact the case of the watch folds open (that's what the two buttons are for on the case) to reveal the end of the rubber strap which has to be cut to approximate length. It's a unique idea and presumably was designed to remove the clasp from the strap to maximise comfort and security for the player. Also to this end, the crown was fitted to the left side of the case, taking it out of the way when in use (assuming it was worn on the left wrist).

2005 CATALOGUE

The Golf was first featured in the 2005 catalogue, presumably born out of TAG Heuer's association with legendary golfer Tiger Woods, but just one watch was included; the WAE1111.

WAE1111.FT6004: 37mm, black 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap

2005 SPRING CATALOGUE

In the Spring Collection catalogue of 2005, the second Golf was added, this one featuring a 'Tiger Woods' logo at the '6' position. This one was apparently a 'limited edition', though with an 8000 piece production run it's the second least 'limited' limited edition in the TAG Heuer collection.

WAE1110.FT6004: 37mm, black dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap (L/E Tiger Woods)

2006-2007 CATALOGUE

Again the 2006-2007 catalogue adds just one new watch, the all white WAE1112. While this is identical to the WAE1111 in all but colour, the advertising clearly establishes that this is for the 'lady golfer'.

WAE1112.FT6008: 37mm, white 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, white rubber strap

2007-2008 CATALOGUE

The next catalogue announces two new Golfs, alongside the WAE1111 and WAE1112 (presumably all 8000 WAE1110s had sold out by this point?), one of which brings a vivid shock of colour to the range.

WAE1113.FT6004: 37mm, grey dial, titanium/steel/PVD case, black rubber strap

WAE1114.FT6011: 37mm, pink MOP dial, titanium/steel case, pink rubber strap

2008-2009 CATALOGUE

The 2008-2009 catalogue shows all four Golfs as featured in the last catalogue, with no new models added. This was the last catalogue to feature the TAG Heuer Golf watch.

NON-CATALOGUE MODELS

There are three Golf watches that were never shown in a TAG Heuer catalogue. The WAE1115 was a 500 piece limited edition and the WAE1116 and WAE1117 appear to be mildly facelifted versions of the WAE1111 and WAE1112.

WAE1115.FT6004: 37mm, grey/red dial, titanium/steel/PVD case, rubber strap (L/Edition)

WAE1116.FT6004: 37mm, black 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, black rubber strap

WAE1117.FT6008: 37mm, white 'golf-ball' dial, titanium/steel case, white rubber strap

A page from the 2007/08 catalogue illustrating the fastening mechanism

The WAE1115 is very hard to find information on. Googling it only brings up a lot of replica sites and I actually wondered if it was a genuine model at all. But Tom at Bicester Village helpfully confirmed that it does appear on the TAG Heuer system. Finding a genuine piece might be something of a challenge though given the amount of replicas out there, personally I think I'd go for the WAE1113 instead.

Saturday, 26 October 2019

SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer Golf Ladies Quartz Watch

WAE1114.FT6011

TAG Heuer Outlet / Bicester Village, 19th September 2019

Not quite an 'On the Wrist' (although I could have quite easily slipped this on as the rubber strap was more than long enough), but I had an awful lot to try on this September day (you know, back when it was warm every day - seems like a long time ago now, doesn't it?) and so I just gave this a bit of a casual look over. Unfortunately I didn't even think to remove the protective film from the crystal before snapping these shots so apologies for that, but this was literally taken straight out of the delivery box!

While this is clearly aimed at the female market, there's no reason a guy couldn't wear it if he was sufficiently flamboyant, indeed, this watch is exactly the same size as the black Golf I tried on previously (and surely no one is going to say a lady couldn't wear that one!). Admittedly I did find it a tad small, but then the watch is designed to be used when playing golf so this is 100% an intentional, practical design decision.

By way of comparison, at 37mm this is approximately the same size as the smaller quartz Monacos that came out last year which again are sold as both 'male' and 'female' watches depending on the dial and strap colours (except in Belgium where that sort of thing is completely illegal*). I'm sure my wife would like the colour of this one, but I know it's going to be too big for her tiny wrists so that's a non-starter. Shame...

*Okay, I might have made that up.

The watch itself is a fairly simple affair, albeit with a couple of unusual features. Firstly, the crown is on the left hand side of the case (Calibre 11 style) so as not to dig into your wrist while playing a shot, and secondly the strap is a continuous band of pale pink rubber which is fastened inside the case. This is facilitated by the two buttons on either side which push in to release the folding three part case and allow the end of the strap (which needs to be cut to approximate size) to be placed inside. Once the case is closed the strap is retained securely and you can go about your game.

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for the Golf, but like the quartz Monaco I find it just that bit too small and effeminate for me (even in black). Still if you fancy one of these you can save yourself nigh on £500 as this is currently on offer at the Bicester Village boutique for £1155 (down from £1650).

DON'T FORGET YOU CAN ALWAYS KEEP UP TO DATE WITH THE LATEST BICESTER VILLAGE DELIVERIES BY CLICKING ON THE BANNER TO YOUR RIGHT...!

Friday, 20 September 2019

SPOTLIGHT ON: New Arrivals at TAG Heuer Bicester Village

CALL TAG HEUER BICESTER VILLAGE ON (01869) 249008

Once again I am pleased to be able to bring you bang up to date news from TAG Heuer Bicester Village regarding the latest stock to arrive. As always, stock is limited so please call before travelling a long way to make sure the item you are interested in hasn't already been sold. Some very nice pieces in this delivery and that Aquaracer Alarm watch isn't going to stick around very long at £880!

CAJ2180.FT6023

List Price £4350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £2610

CAR2014.BA0799

List Price £3950

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £2765

CAR2B80.FC6325

List Price £6000

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £4200

CAV518K.FC6268

List Price £6350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £4445

CAW2114.FT6021

List Price £4350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £3045

CV201AH.BA0725

List Price £3750

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £2625

WAE1114.FT6011

List Price £1650

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £1155

WAP111Z.BA0831

List Price £1350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £880

WAT2113.BA0950

List Price £2350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £1645

WAY1453.BD0922

List Price £4350

BICESTER VILLAGE PRICE £3045

Friday, 16 August 2019

ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Golf Watch

WAE1116.FT6004

TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 22nd July 2019

Not the first time I've had a Golf on the wrist, but the first time in a good while I think. It's an odd little thing, very quirky... it's designed for a particular purpose and as I don't play golf myself it's not especially useful to me (but then I don't dive either...), but there's no reason that should preclude non-golfers wearing it if they like it.

You could, I suppose, see this as an affordable alternative to a Monaco, but in reality it has a very different aesthetic. It's slightly 'confusing' to look at, because while at first glance it looks square, a closer look at the dial reveals a different story. It's also quite small, I don't have the measurements unfortunately, but it looked disappointingly dinky on my 'manly' 7.3/4" wrists.

The 'Golf' watch is in essence a basic three-hander with a quartz movement, designed to cope with the shock of golfing. There's a date at the 3 position; the dial has a kind of 'golf ball' relief in the central section and the watch has a left handed crown (to prevent it fouling your wrist while swinging your golf club, obviously). The watch has a ribbed and satisfyingly 'branded', seemingly endless rubber strap which actually fastens in the watch case itself. Those buttons on the upper edges release the three part case, which opens to release the end of the strap (which has to be cut to approximate length) and clamps down on it when closed. It's a clever idea and not having a clasp is a brilliant idea, but those buttons do look a bit odd. It would be interesting to see if someone could come up with a better way to do this as the concept of a claspless strap is quite brilliant (as I'm sure anyone with a scratched up clasp would agree) .

I'm not sure if this is still available, but when I tried this on at Bicester Village in July this piece was offered at £980 (RRP £1400), I don't recall seeing it the last time I visited, but I might have just missed it. While I'm not totally sold on the case shape, I love the quirkiness of it, but it's just that bit too small for me, worth a look though if you happen to visit the outlets any time soon.

Sunday, 17 March 2019

SPOTLIGHT ON: New Arrivals at TAG Heuer Bicester Village

Once again I can bring you exclusive news of the latest stock to hit the TAG Heuer Outlet at Bicester Village. As ever, stock is limited and moves quickly. No joke, by the time I visited last week most of the last delivery had gone, so if you see something you like the look of don't delay!