How decades of club building, innovation, and hard lessons shaped Eric Burch’s newest venture
There are plenty of new golf brands entering the market every year. Very few are launched by someone who has already spent three decades designing products, fitting golfers, running companies, and solving equipment problems from nearly every angle imaginable.
That experience is what makes Tanso Golf interesting.
During a recent Life At The Turn Live Q&A, founder Eric Burch shared the story behind the company’s launch, the winding path that brought him there, and why this latest venture feels different from the ones that came before it. Along the way, the conversation touched on everything from Club Conex and other brands to Japanese craftsmanship, product design, health challenges, and the realities of launching a company in 2026.
Three decades in golf
Burch’s introduction to golf was anything but conventional.
A set of clubs that belonged to his grandfather sat in his grandmother’s basement for years before eventually finding their way into his hands. At the time, golf wasn’t the focus. Baseball occupied most of his attention until a knee injury forced him to look for something with a little less impact. Golf filled that void and quickly became much more than a hobby.
By the late 1990s, he was already working as a club fitter and running his own business. Curiosity naturally led him deeper into the equipment side of the game. Questions about fitting evolved into questions about design. Questions about design eventually became products.
That process led to Club Conex, a company many golfers know for its interchangeable adapter systems and fitting solutions. Later came UniFit, a universal adapter concept that simplified compatibility across multiple OEM platforms. The success of those products opened doors throughout the industry and eventually led Burch into roles that exposed him to manufacturing, engineering, and product development at a much larger scale.
Several stops along the way left a lasting impression.
Time spent working with Miura provided a close look at traditional Japanese manufacturing and craftsmanship. A previous venture offered a different education, showing what could happen when strong products connected directly with golfers. Consulting work with other companies added even more perspective.
Listening to Burch discuss those experiences, there was very little emphasis on accomplishments. Instead, the conversation focused on lessons learned. Manufacturing challenges, customer feedback, product iteration, and the constant balancing act between performance, cost, and scalability all helped shape the way he thinks about equipment today.
Why Tanso exists
Tanso Golf wasn’t born immediately after his prior ventures.
In fact, there was a period where another company seemed unlikely.
After battling a rare disease called Valley Fever, Burch faced a series of serious health complications that forced him away from golf entirely. Recovery became the priority. Time that would normally have been spent designing products or building companies was instead focused on simply getting healthy again.
Looking back, that time away appears to have changed his perspective.
Rather than rushing into another venture, he spent time considering what he actually wanted the next chapter to look like. When opportunities to consult for companies such as LA Golf appeared, he took them. Those experiences helped reinforce certain ideas while also highlighting the things he wanted to do differently moving forward.
Eventually, those thoughts became Tanso Golf.
For Burch, the company represents an opportunity to take everything he has learned over the years and apply it without compromise. There is no attempt to chase trends or build products simply because the market expects them. The goal is much simpler than that.
Build equipment he believes in and build it the right way.
Building clubs his way
Throughout the conversation, one theme surfaced repeatedly.
That philosophy influences nearly every decision at Tanso Golf.
Rather than focusing on marketing narratives, Burch spent much of the discussion talking about manufacturing, fitting, performance, and customer experience. He openly discussed the realities of modern golf equipment production, explaining that many brands often rely on the same factories and production resources despite presenting themselves as completely different. What matters, in his view, is how those resources are used and refined.
Years of fitting golfers also shaped the product lineup.
The current iron family was designed with blending in mind, allowing golfers to move seamlessly between models depending on their needs. The 249 MB serves as a modern muscle-back. The 349 CB provides additional forgiveness in a cavity-back profile. The 449 expands the lineup further with a player’s distance design that remains visually appealing at address. Each model was developed to work together rather than exist as separate, disconnected products.
A similar philosophy extends into the wedge lineup. Multiple grind options give golfers flexibility without overwhelming them with endless choices. Future products are already taking shape, including a utility iron and a hollow-body model aimed at players looking for additional forgiveness.
For all the discussion about products, however, the most revealing comments were often the simplest ones. Burch repeatedly returned to the idea that golfers deserve equipment that performs, offers value, and delivers a positive experience from beginning to end. Everything else follows from there.
Launching Tanso Golf
One of the more refreshing aspects of the conversation was Burch’s willingness to discuss things that weren’t going smoothly.
The launch itself had its share of challenges.
Website issues surfaced.
Shipping problems appeared.
AI-driven systems behaved in ways they weren’t supposed to.
Customers encountered errors that required immediate attention.
Many founders would avoid those topics.
Burch spent considerable time talking about them.
Not because he was making excuses, but because transparency appears to be part of how he approaches business. Several times during the discussion he emphasized that honesty matters, even when the answer isn’t particularly flattering. If something isn’t working correctly, he’d rather acknowledge it and fix it than pretend everything is perfect.
That attitude may ultimately become one of the company’s defining characteristics.
Golf equipment is a small world. Reputation matters. Relationships matter. Throughout the conversation, Burch consistently spoke about treating customers the same way he would want to be treated himself.
The products and what’s next
Although Tanso Golf is still in its early stages, the roadmap is already beginning to take shape.
Current offerings include forged irons and wedges, with left-handed options also in development. Additional wedge grinds are being tested, utility irons are progressing through the design process, and a more forgiving hollow-body model is expected to join the lineup in the future.
Growth, however, does not appear to be the immediate priority.
Several times during the discussion, Burch talked about refining processes before accelerating production. Building infrastructure, improving systems, hiring the right people, and making sure the customer experience is solid all seem to rank ahead of rapid expansion.
That measured approach feels intentional.
After years of running businesses and seeing both successes and setbacks, there is little sense that Tanso needs to become something overnight.
Final thoughts
Throughout the conversation, Eric Burch came across as someone who has spent a long time figuring out what matters and what doesn’t.
Product quality matters.
Customer trust matters.
Reputation matters.
Beyond that, much of the noise surrounding the golf industry seems to hold little interest for him.
Tanso Golf feels like the result of those priorities. The irons, wedges, and future products are certainly part of the story, but they are not the entire story. Behind the equipment is a founder drawing on decades of experience, a renewed appreciation for the opportunity to work in golf again, and a desire to build something he can genuinely be proud of.
Whether Tanso grows into a major equipment company or remains a smaller boutique operation is still unknown.
What feels much clearer today is why the company exists in the first place.