The President's Grip

Dwight David Eisenhower played golf the way he commanded — with precision, patience, and an obsessive attention to detail. As the 34th President of the United States, he logged over 800 rounds during his two terms, escaping to the course whenever the weight of the Cold War allowed. But Eisenhower had a problem. The standard leather grips on his clubs wore smooth. His hands, at 65, weren't as steady as they'd been at Normandy. He needed something better.

The solution came not from a golf pro or equipment manufacturer, but from a Chicago factory floor. Guard-Tex — originally developed in 1935 for industrial workers who needed hand protection that wouldn't tear skin on removal — had quietly become the go-to tape for anyone who needed a better grip. Machinists used it. Surgeons used it. And somewhere along the way, someone handed a roll to Ike.

"He wrapped every club himself. Same technique, same tension, every time. The man who planned D-Day didn't delegate his grip."

The tape's appeal was simple: it stuck to itself, not to the club. No adhesive residue. No slipping. And unlike leather grips that degraded with sweat and weather, Guard-Tex could be rewrapped in minutes. For a president who valued efficiency above all else, it was perfect.

From the Oval Office to the Hall of Fame

Eisenhower's Guard-Tex-wrapped clubs became something of a legend among golfers who knew. After his death in 1969, several of his clubs were donated to the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Florida. The tape is still there — yellowed with age, but intact. A testament to both the man and the material.

What makes the story remarkable isn't that a president used Guard-Tex. It's that he used the same tape factory workers used. The same tape nurses used to protect their fingers during long shifts. The same tape jewelry makers use today to handle precious stones without leaving oils.

Guard-Tex doesn't change depending on who's using it. That's the point. The formula that worked for Chicago machinists in 1935 worked for a five-star general in the 1950s. It works today for CrossFit athletes, surgeons, and weekend golfers alike.

Why It Matters

In an age of endless product iterations, special editions, and planned obsolescence, there's something almost radical about a product that hasn't changed in 90 years. Guard-Tex isn't vintage — it's just correct.

The latex compound that bonds cotton fibers to each other (but never to skin) was perfected in 1935. Every attempt to improve it has failed to improve it. So we stopped trying. Sometimes the original is the original for a reason.

Eisenhower understood this. A man who witnessed the chaos of war valued things that worked. Things that didn't need constant revision. Things you could count on.

His clubs sit in a museum now. The tape is still wrapped tight.