Richard Mille

Gerry “Bubba” Watson is a 35 year-old American professional golfer and Richard Mille Ambassador. The RM038 was released in 2011 and is a manual wind tourbillon with a power reserve of 48h a variable inertia free-sprung balance to assist with shock resistance. The baseplate and bridges are made of very rigid titanium allowing an open architecture but supporting the tourbillon. It produces a very 3-dimensional watch on the wrist which is helped by a sapphire crystal with anti-glare coating on both sides.

The case measures 48mm x 39.7mm x 12.8mm and is made from a light but strong magnesium alloy (89% magnesium with 6% yttrium and 5% rare earths) coated using an electro-plasma oxidation process which makes the material both hard and scratch resistant.

Wikipedia tells me that Bubba has one of the longest drives on the PGA Tour (average 320m). I am not a golfer but I have heard several horror stories of mechanical watches being damaged by a golf swing, so I can only imagine the forces that go through a delicate tourbillon escapement. The RM038, following on from the Nadal RM027 tourbillon, is the perfect advertisement for Richard’s approach to watchmaking with innovative and functional materials; substance over marketing fluff.

The finish on the case has a soft comfortable feel and is not at all metallic. White is still the ‘in’ colour for cars and on a white rubber strap the watch looks cool and ultra-modern.