It’s not everyday that PGA Tour players call out Internet commenters on their wrong takes. Well, that is until you start speculating about Paul Casey’s putter, I guess.

After GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore posted photos of Paul Casey’s new Scotty Cameron putter, GolfWRX members and Instagram commenters began theorizing about why there was a weight plug in the heel. There seemed to be a general consensus that Casey was trying to remove weight to make the heel section lighter.

Ahead of the 2022 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play event, I caught up with Casey to explain exactly what’s going on.

Before we get to his response, first a bit of the backstory.

Before the weight (on the top), and after.

For years, Casey had been using the same Scotty Cameron GSS Proto putter, with a smooth sole. In 2022, however, Casey started using a very similar looking Scotty Cameron GSS Proto putter, except this one had a weight plug added to the heel. This led commenters to speculate on the reason for the added weight plug.

The only problem is, they were wrong.

When I cornered Casey at the WGC Dell-Technologies Match Play to get his take on the matter, he had already seen the posts and he was seemingly just waiting to respond. Here’s what he had to say…

“People have no idea, it’s quite funny. I read a post the other day, some guy claiming he knew what was going on.

There’s a post on there, the guy is like, ‘Oh, he drilled it out and he removed weight from the heel.’ 

First of all, no.

So what you got to remember is – go ask Scotty – every time you see a plug, it’s adding weight, it’s not removing weight. If you remove weight, you just grind it off. You never see it. To remove weight, you just shave the bottom.

So that plug is… he drilled a hole. You lose about 6 grams. That plug is about 12-13 grams. That gives you about a net gain of about 6-7 grams. Adding the weight to the heel is like adding weight to the heel of a driver. It makes the toe lighter, and it makes the toe faster. In other words, it makes the putter rotate more.

My tendency through the years, and why I went cross handed a while ago, is that I tend to – I don’t shut the blade going back, but it’s probably shut to the path. I don’t rotate the putter. I don’t open the putter as much as I’d like to. So that weight in the heel and lightening the toe allows the putter to rotate better… Look, everybody’s an expert, but I know why I did it.”

Additionally, ahead of The 2022 Players Championship, Casey also added a dot to the topline of his putter, whereas his previous putter had a blank topline with no alignment markings.

According to Casey, after he posted an Instagram video of his putting stroke in February, he noticed that he was aligning the golf ball too much on the toe of his putter. After watching the video back, he realized that he needed to add a dot to the top. 

Before the dot (on the left) and after.

“There’s an Instagram post I put out probably the beginning of the year in February or something like that. I was just doing some gate work, and I was filming my putter from behind. I didn’t notice until I actually put the post out that I was setting up with the ball toward the toe, which is a habit of mine that I’ve had for awhile. You can see it’s on the toe.

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A post shared by Paul Casey (@paul_caseygolf)

“I didn’t notice until I put it out there. I said it’s too much towards the toe. So I just went with the dot. I don’t like a line on the putter. The dot is just nice and simple because then it gets the ball in the sweet spot…everything else stayed the same. Same loft, same lie, same grip. Same stampings. The weight appeared at the beginning of the year, and then the dot appeared the week of The Players. I asked for it three or four weeks before, but sometimes it takes time.

My existing putter has a little Sharpie dot on the top and I practice with it (laughs). I just put a black Sharpie dot. It’s in the locker right now with a black Sharpie on top. The one I’m using now has an official dot.

We just put it on there to see what it would look like. You can always get some acetone and wipe it off.”

And there you have it. There’s no better source for why Paul Casey made changes to his putter than Paul Casey himself. It’ll be interesting to see if any commenters dare correct Casey on this one.

It should also be noted that the switch worked, since Casey finished 3rd at The Players (and won $1.38 million).

To join in on the forum thread about Casey’s new Scotty Cameron putter, click here.

The PGA Tour is in McKinney, Texas this week for the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch, where players will have their final opportunities to tune up for the year’s second major, or to qualify for the event if they haven’t already.

It’s the proverbial calm before the PGA Championship storm next week at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Of course, there’s nothing calm about the Texas wind this week, but you get the point.

As always, GolfWRX was live on site ahead of the Byron Nelson to take a look into players’ bags and see what gear they’re playing, and why.

We saw two particularly interesting custom clubs this week (Justin Thomas’ new putter, and Maverick McNealy’s super custom irons), and caught up with two players’ bags we haven’t photographed in a while (Jason Day and Justin Leonard).

Let’s dive right into this week’s Tour Report from Texas.

Max Homa speaks after his Wells Fargo victory

Following his fourth career PGA Tour victory, Max Homa joined our Two Guys Talking Golf (TG2) podcast to speak on his latest Titleist gear changes, his dream celebrity foursome, and what it feels like to win on the PGA Tour. As a biased co-host of the show, I suggest listening to the entire episode, but if you’re only in it for the Homa interview (understandable), skip to the 41:10 mark in the SoundCloud embed above. Or, check it out on YouTube here.

Odyssey’s Texas wedge

With the dry and windy conditions in Texas, the “Texas wedge” is more of an option this week than usual. For those who may not get the reference, a “Texas wedge” is when you decide to use a putter from off the green rather than chipping the ball into the air. Personally, as someone who has struggled with his chipping in recent years, the Texas wedge can be a savior of wasted strokes around the green.

Need work on your chipping? Check out this GolfWRX article: 5 “secrets” to improve your wedge game.

Details on Justin Thomas’ new Scotty Cameron putter

Justin Thomas has won 14 times on the PGA Tour, and most of his victories have come using the Scotty Cameron X5 Tour putter pictured above. Take particular note of the back cavity, the short slant neck, and the milled face.

Despite his prodigious performance with the trusty X5, Thomas came to the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson with a new putter in the bag. Pictured below, it’s an ultra-custom Scotty Cameron T5 prototype.

While the head shape is nearly identical to his previous gamer, it has smoother milling marks on the face, a plumbers “knuckle” neck, and a plate added to the back cavity.

The “knuckle” neck features a silvered-out shaft piece that helps extend the neck to give Thomas the look and feel that he wants. The slightly different toe hang compared to his previous gamer works to help stabilize the face better throughout his stroke for a more consistent strike and starting direction, according to Scotty Cameron tour rep Drew Page.

The lightweight aluminum back plating in the cavity helps provide the right sound for Thomas. Back at the 2021 British Open, Thomas put a similar prototype putter into play that didn’t have the back plating, and he was looking for a slightly different sound.

“He started working with a knuckle neck last year before the British Open,” Page told GolfWRX on Tuesday. “He put the first version of it in play at the British Open. Then afterwards he came back with feedback for us, what he liked, what he didn’t like, and what he wanted to see out of it. We were able to create that…

“He was like, ‘Alright lets get into current product,’ so that’s why we went that direction. He can see something new, and he knew if he does get into it as a full time thing, there’s no shortage of current product to get, or head shapes, or new heads in that line if we want to alter necks.

“We’re still learning a little bit about everything it helps him with and what he loves. It stabilizes the stroke a little bit. His open to closure rate is just better, it’s more consistent as far as his strike and starting on line. He can feel it throughout the stroke a little bit. A player like that, it’s very much about honing in and being in touch with what they feel throughout the stroke. That produces confidence in being able to make putts, which is huge.”

See more photos of JT’s new putter here.

Embrace yourself

Cooper Dossey, a Ping staffer playing in the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson, speaks with a slight stutter when saying certain words (such as “root beer”), or in certain situations.

Rather than shying away from the speech impediment, Dossey embraces it by stamping his Ping PLD putter with “Stutter King,” and stamping “Root Beer” on his Ping Glide wedge.

Kudos, Cooper.

Cooper Dossey’s Full 2022 WITB. 

Jason Day’s scratched up red Spider, and custom Odyssey protos

This week, we caught up with 2015 PGA Champion Jason Day to check out what clubs he’s using as an equipment free agent in 2022. Click here to see his full WITB.

Last week at the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship, Day switched back into his famous TaylorMade Spider Tour Limited Red putter that he popularized in 2016. Unfortunately, he’s since dropped the putter on a cart path and scratched the sole plate. Luckily, though, the putter still functions properly; it just has more character now.

That wasn’t the only putter he had in the bag on Tuesday, though. Although he said he plans to continue using the red Spider, Day was also testing out two different Odyssey Toulon “J Daytona” mallet putters.

More photos of Jason Day’s 2022 WITB. 

Maverick McNealy’s irons

For most of his professional career, Maverick McNealy has gone back and forth between a set of Callaway Apex MB irons, and a set of Nike VR Pro blades that he’s used for years.

For the last year, however, McNealy and Callaway have been working on an ultra custom 1-of-1 set of Apex MB irons that more closely match the looks, feel and performance that McNealy is searching for.

This week at the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson, McNealy unveiled the set for the first time on the PGA Tour.

Check out the full story behind the custom irons here.

Here’s a snippet of what McNealy had to say about the irons:

“For me, getting that center of gravity out towards the toe, or should I say, getting that center of gravity further away from the hosel, gives me more club head awareness on the way down. It slows down the closure rate and keeps the club face square longer. I found out with other blades, because they’re so short heel to toe, and the center of gravity is so close to the heel, that I was shutting them down too fast for me. So these help keep the club face square on the way back and give me that awareness on the way through.

“We’re measuring offsets, impact height, location, lead groove height, there’s just so many little details that change the way you deliver the club, the way you feel it. The next thing we’re looking at is making sure every iron is spinning exactly the way we want through the bag especially with the new golf ball, the prototype golf ball (Chrome Soft X) that I’ve been playing from Callaway, which is awesome. It’s pretty cool to get to match an iron and a golf ball to hit exactly the flight I want to through the bag.”

Check out all of our photos of the irons. 

Justin Leonard 2022 WITB update

Justin Leonard, a 12-time PGA Tour winner from nearby Dallas, Texas, is playing in the AT&T Byron Nelson this week. The 49-year-old is now likely preparing for his Champion Tours debut in the near future, and nowadays he has a bag full of Callaway/Odyssey equipment. It’s always fun to see what clubs the legends decide to use as they continue into their later years in the game.

Make sure to check out his full 2022 WITB here.

And with that, we wrap up this week’s Tour Report from Texas. We’ll see you next week in Oklahoma for the 2022 PGA Championship!

Check out all of our photos from the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson here.

Wow, what a week it’s been for golf equipment so far at the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

On Tuesday, Adam Scott surprisingly revealed mysterious new custom blade irons with his logo on them, and the Internet collectively went wild. What exactly are the irons, and who made them? Luckily, we spoke with Scott, who clarified everything we wanted to know.

Fellow Aussie Jason Day switched drivers, Carlos Ortiz explained why he continues to play irons from 2013, and we got a look at defending champion Patrick Cantlay’s current setup.

Also, if you like putter switches, this is your week.

Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa and Charles Howell III each put new putters into play. We also caught up with Brandt Snedeker, who switched out his $40 million-winning putter last week, and Jordan Spieth tested out two new custom Scotty Cameron putters ahead of the event.

Like I said, it was a busy week in the gear world.

Below, we cover the inside information on the noteworthy golf clubs and equipment from the Memorial Tournament. Enjoy this week’s Tour Report, and to see all of our photos from inside the ropes, click here.

Bryson DeChambeau’s new LA Golf putter

Long-hitting Bryson DeChambeau made his official return this week from an injury-induced hiatus. Ahead of the event, he tested out a number of LA Golf putters (which he confirmed are essentially identical to his previous SIK Golf putters) in a variety of different hosel lengths. He ended up switching into the putter pictured above on Thursday.

Not only did we take in-hand photos of his entire setup, but DeChambeau also went through his full WITB in the PGA Tour Twitter video below.

Back at it ?@B_DeChambeau takes you through his bag ahead of his return @MemorialGolf pic.twitter.com/tAWbRzUa6g

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 2, 2022

Also, check out his 5-degree Cobra King LTDx driver here. Yeah, 5 degrees.

Collin Morikawa switches to a mallet

Typically, you’ll find Morikawa rolling the rock with a TaylorMade TP Juno blade-style putter. After testing multiple mallet designs this week, though, Morikawa switched into a TaylorMade Spider GT Rollback mallet putter with a single short black alignment line on the crown.

Discussing the change with PGATOUR.com, Morikawa explained that he wanted his hands slightly higher at address, therefore going to a more upright 71-degree lie angle.

Carlos Ortiz speaks on the metal difference

Ortiz plays with a combo iron set, including Ping iBlade long irons (3-5 iron) and Ping S55 short irons (6-PW).

He’s not the only player on the PGA Tour still gaming the S55 irons, which were released to retail back in 2013; Bubba Watson and Matthew Fitzpatrick also still have the irons in their bags.

Curious to know why he personally hasn’t upgraded to new technology in the short irons, I spoke with Ortiz, who explained that it comes down to the metal.

“I think a lot of guys are still using them, like Bubba. The way they used to make the irons I think were better back then. The (iBlade) long irons, I think they can help you get them up in the air and everything, but the (S55) short irons, you don’t need help getting them up or longer or anything, you just need something reliable…”

“I think it’s the metal, it’s just more consistent. You might not hit it as high or as long, but you don’t need that with the short irons, and I think that’s why a lot of people haven’t really changed. I mean, obviously a lot of guys have used these ones to start, but there’s a big difference between these and the new material. They look exactly the same, it’s just the metal. It doesn’t make any difference. See, the metal they use is completely different…[the iBlade’s], you hit it higher, with less spin, and longer, but it’s not as reliable.”

Read the full story here.

Jason Day goes Stealth

Previously playing a 10.5-degree Ping G410 LST driver, Day had something different in play this week at the Memorial. After early week testing, Day switched into a 9-degree TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver equipped with a TPT 15 Lo shaft on Thursday.

Jason Day WITB 2022

Brandt Snedeker speaks on his $50 putter

I never thought I’d see the day that Brandt Snedeker would switch out of his longtime Odyssey White Hot XG Rossie putter. He’s historically been one of the best putters on Tour throughout his career, all while using his trusty Rossie.

Last week at the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge, though, he finally benched it for a Odyssey White Hot XG #8 released in 2007. As he admitted, he’s been putting relatively poorly this year (currently 154th in Strokes Gained: Putting), so he wanted to go with something different.

Speaking with GolfWRX, Snedeker explained the entire backstory.

“It’s got the same insert that I always play, which to me is the most important thing. I’ve always dabbled with center-shafted putters at home. It helps me counteract what I do wrong in my stroke. A friend of mine at home has had this putter, and I’ve always grabbed it when I’m around him and hit a few putts with it.

“I’m like, ‘Can I just borrow this for a minute just to practice with it?’

“He said, ‘Absolutely, Sure.’

“That was like 4 or 5 years ago.

“So I’ve had it ever since then. I mess around with it every once in awhile. I’ve been putting terrible with it this year, so I brought it out to do some drills with it. I got my chalk line and it seems to be working. It kind of corrects a few faults and a few things I’ve been doing wrong. I can’t putt any worse than I’ve been putting this year, so I was like, ‘I’ll try it.’”

See more photos of the putter here.

Adam Scott goes deep on his custom Miura irons

Although Adam Scott has been using custom Titleist 681.AS irons throughout the year, he showed up on Tuesday with an entirely new set of mysterious custom irons with just his logo stamped on the back. As he revealed to GolfWRX, the irons were made by Miura to his exact preferences; he’s always opted for irons with more offset, higher toe sections and thin toplines, but he recently desired something with flatter soles that have less bounce than his previous models.

“Really it’s the sole design that’s the difference,” Scott told GolfWRX. “It’s just a little less bounce. They’re a little flatter and wider on the sole.

“My eye for a blade is very different than most of the stock blades that are being made by the companies today. I grew up with offset, which is almost a thing of the past. Even in larger headed irons these days, there’s little offset out here. But I like it, and it’s hard to find. Titleist made me an amazing set of 681.AS irons that had the offset and were pretty much like the clubs I were using (the Titleist 680 Forged). And this set was made with the idea of less bounce than those…

“I didn’t even ask really for them to stamp my logo on them, but they sent them, which is very cool. They probably knew if they stamped (my logo) on them I couldn’t resist. I got them out on the range pretty quick. They went from the box to the range in about 1.5 minutes.”

On Thursday, Scott officially switched into the new Miura irons.

On our most recent Two Guys Talking Golf podcast, Brian Knudson and myself discuss the Adam Scott Miura irons in-depth. Click here for the audio version of the podcast, and below is the YouTube version if you prefer to watch instead:

Check out our full story on the irons over at PGATOUR.com

Spieth tries out new Scotty Cameron putters

Spieth has used the same Scotty Cameron Circle T 009 putter for basically his entire career, and he’s had tremendous success with it both financially and in the win column.

On Tuesday, though, Spieth brought out two different options to test out, most notably including a Scotty Cameron Tour Only Teryllium TNP putter with a short flow neck. Being that his longtime gamer has a plumbers neck, seeing Spieth roll putts with a flow neck felt a bit odd.

As it turns out, though, the experiments were short-lived. Spieth had only his original 009 in the bag on Wednesday.

Maybe he just needed to scare his longtime putter into behaving better.

Check out more photos here.

Chucky 3 Sticks puts a new putter into play

Charles Howell III is tough to keep up with when it comes to putters. He tests new putters weekly, and he bounces between Newport styles and mallets. In a previous story on GolfWRX, I spoke with Howell III about his testing process and putter philosophies:

“So, for some reason I’ve putted my best historically with more of a Newport style putter with some amount of toe hang, but my eye always wants to go to a mallet putter,” Howell said. “It’s why we’re golfers I guess. We’re strange creatures.”

Ahead of the 2022 Memorial Tournament, I spotted Howell III testing out a L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 putter. I asked him if he was going to put it in play this week. He said he was unsure, but he liked the technology and enjoyed practicing with it.

On Thursday, a photo on Getty Images confirmed that he did in fact end up switching into the putter. Will he keep it in play next week, or even next round? It’s always a toss up with Howell III. That’s why us gear heads love him.

And with that, we say goodbye to Jack’s Place in Dublin, Ohio. We will not be on grounds at the RBC Canadian Open next week, but I’ll try to provide as much gear news and insight as I can from off-site. The next event we’ll be at is the 2022 U.S. Open at Brookline right outside of Boston. See you then.

For all of our photos from the 2022 Memorial Tournament, click here!

Welcome to Detroit, a.k.a the Motor City, a.k.a. The D, a.k.a Motown a.k.a. The 313, a.k.a Detroit has a lot of nicknames, but we can move along now.

Detroit is home to some of the most passionate automotive gearheads in the world, but this story is for the golf equipment gearheads. Car people are still welcome to read, you’ll just need to hamper your expectations; this is about golf clubs.

As the PGA Tour headed to Detroit Golf Club for the 2022 Rocket Mortgage, GolfWRX was live on site during the practice round days to figure out what clubs the pros are playing, what changes they’re making, and why.

No sense wasting any more time on the intro, let’s dive right into this week’s Tour Report.

Tony Finau’s hilarious reason for switching up golf ball markings between holes

Tony Finau, fresh off his 3M Open win last week, spoke to GolfWRX at the Rocket Mortgage about his golf ball markings.

His unique markings are two-fold:

1. The five-line markings on the side help Finau with his aim, alignment and stroke feedback.
2. He marks the front of the golf ball with the initials of one of his five kids.

How does Finau decide which child he’s going to represent on his golf ball, though? His explanation is hilarious.

“I start with one (kid) and see how they perform,” Finau told GolfWRX on Tuesday at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. “If they’re not performing well, I just start switching them out. I’m pretty lenient, I’ll give them some time, but right out of the gate, if it’s lip-out and lip-out in a couple holes, it’s the next one up.

“The good thing is I have five kids, so usually one of them is working, at least.”

Read our full story about Finau over on PGATOUR.com

Webb Simpson switches back into classics

Simpson was in our equipment news in May thanks to his switch to Titleist T100 irons. The changeup was notable because Simpson has always preferred blade irons throughout his career, but the T100’s are cavity-backs.

Well, the change wasn’t for the longterm apparently, since Simpson switched out the T100 irons for his old Titleist 680 Forged MB irons, which were first released to the public all the way back in 2003. He told GolfWRX he made the switch a few weeks after the 2022 PGA Championship because the T100’s were simply too hot.

Find out why Simpson uses a “5.5 iron,” or see more photos of Simpson’s irons in our GolfWRX Forums

Rickie Fowler goes back to his “Tiger Woods” putter

After sending his classic putter to “timeout,” and a year of steady experimentation, Fowler has returned to his Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS prototype putter.

He switched back to the putter at the 2022 Genesis Scottish Open, but we caught up with Fowler in Detroit this week to hear why.

“Just ran its course (with the previous putters) and ready to go back to the trusty,” Fowler told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday. “I mean, I’ve kind of done it through my whole career where I’ll have something for a bit, then go back to something different, change it up.

“She might have needed a little timeout, but hopefully she’s gonna heat up.”

Fowler first used the putter in 2014, and what makes the putter so special is it actually came from a stash of German Stainless Steel (GSS) putters that were stashed away for Tiger Woods. Yes, that means Fowler’s Scotty Cameron putter was made for Tiger, but with the proper permissions, Fowler was able to borrow one. Eight years later, it’s still in play.

Also, a quick moment of appreciation for GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore. The fact that he shot in-hand photos of Fowler’s original putter in 2014, and again in 2022, is a testament to how long he’s been providing GolfWRX with the best WITB photos on the Internet.

See more photos of Rickie’s new-old putter here

SPOTTED: Henrik Norlander’s PXG 0317 ST Milled blade prototypes

We had some breaking news this week at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic. Check out our TikTok post below for everything we know about the unseen irons:

@golfwrx SPOTTED: PXG 0311 ST Milled blade prototype irons, and why Henrik Norlander is using them at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic #detroit #golf #irons #prototype #new #spotted #golftiktok ? original sound – golfwrx

For more photos of the irons, check out our GolfWRX Forum thread here.

Geoff Ogilvy, a putter update

When I saw Geoff Ogilvy’s name on the field list for the 2022 Rocket Mortgage, I couldn’t wait to see what putter he had in the bag. Ogilvy is “scratching the itch” by playing competitive golf two times in the recent three weeks after taking a four-year hiatus.

GolfWRX hasn’t caught up with Ogilvy in four years, though, and we’ve always known him to have an awesome putter. He didn’t disappoint.

OK, so maybe it’s not AS cool as his rusted out custom Scotty Cameron he used back in the day…

But it’s still great to see Ogilvy back out on the PGA Tour, and rolling the rock with some Scotty Cameron heat.

Check out Ogilvy’s full 2022 WITB here!

Sahith Theegala tests out a…mallet putter?

On Tuesday, Theegala, who’s typically a blade putter user, was out on the practice greens hitting putts with a custom Ping PLD mallet putter with five different alignment lines on it.

“Hmm, that’s weird,” I thought to myself.

As it turns out, it actually is pretty weird for him. Theegala told me on Tuesday that he’s only used a mallet putter for two rounds in his entire life, and both rounds came at last year’s Korn Ferry Tour finals.

While he wasn’t positive on switching, he called it a 1-to-2 week experiment if anything. We’ll have to keep an eye on Theegala over the next few weeks to see what he ends up deciding.

See more photos of Sahith’s Ping PLD mallet putter here

And with that, we say goodbye to the Motor City. We’ll see you next week in Greensboro, N.C. for the 2022 Wyndham Championship.

Want more equipment news? Check out the following links:

• GolfWRX Instagram
• GolfWRX TikTok
• All of our photos from the 2022 Rocket Mortgage

Typically, the FedEx Cup Playoffs mark the start of “slow season” for equipment changes on the PGA Tour. This late in the season, players are already dialed into their gear, focusing on the FedEx Cup prize, and awaiting the off-season to conduct more serious gear testing to make any major changes.

That’s not exactly what we saw this week at the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Memphis, though. Big names such as Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth all made changes to their setup this week.

We also got a look at the awesome custom clubs that Penny Hardaway – a former NBA superstar and current head coach for the University of Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team – used during the Wednesday pro-am.

Check out all the gear news you missed from Memphis in this week’s Tour Report below!

Big name WITBs, and their recent changes

With the top 125 players in the FedEx Cup standings collected in Memphis, it was time to dive back into the WITB setups for some of the bigger names on Tour to see if anything has changed. This week, GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore captured WITB photos for Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Cam Smith, Cameron Young, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy, plus we caught up with Jordan Spieth.

We noticed a few changes.

McIlroy, who’s been changing up his 3-wood head quite often throughout the year, changed up his 3-wood shaft this time. We spotted him using a Mitsubishi Kai’li White 80 TX in his TaylorMade SIM2 15-degree fairway wood for a slight adjustment in spin characteristics.

He’s also using a new 58-degree TaylorMade Milled Grind 3 Raw wedge, made with a standard bounce of 11 degrees, except it was bent by one degree to slightly increase the bounce.

Justin Thomas, who continued using his previous TSi3 driver model through the 2022 Open Championship, made the switch into a new Titleist TSR3 driver, equipped with a Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 60 TX in the D1 hosel setting, this week in Memphis. PGATOUR.com has the full story on the switch, but here’s what JT had to say about the new driver:

“The biggest difference is the spin,” Thomas said after his first-round 67. “When I heel it, it doesn’t spin crazy high and when I toe it, it’s somehow spinning a little more. It’s unbelievable in terms of misses…I like it being a little bit open (the D1 setting delofts the driver by 0.75 degrees and opens the face). I don’t like when I can’t see a lot of face because then I feel like I have to get it up in the air and then I start getting underneath it and that gets the two-way miss going. I feel like when I’m driving it my best, although I like to work it both ways, I feel like I aim at something and rip it and it goes pretty straight and falls right. Kind of letting the openness in the club let it fade a little bit.”

Jordan Spieth played in the 2022 Travelers Championship using a TSR3 driver, but has since switched back into his previous TSi3 gamer. At the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship, however, Spieth switched out his longtime TS2 3-wood for a new TSR3 15-degree fairway (D1 setting), equipped with a Mitsubishi Tensei AV Blue 75 TX shaft.

For more WITB photos from the forums, click here

Playoffs?!

Playoffs? You talkin’ bout playoffs?!

Jim Mora, former head coach for the Indianapolis Colts NFL football team, still has one of the most legendary press conferences ever, as you can see in the clip above.

Odyssey, a putter manufacturer that’s known to make custom headcovers for various PGA Tour events throughout the season, made a Jim Mora-inspired custom cover ahead of the first FedEx Cup playoff event this year.

Mora is to the word “playoffs,” as Allen Iverson is to the word “practice.” A great choice for a custom design from Odyssey this week.

See more photos of the playoff headcovers here

The backstory to one of the coolest wedges on the PGA Tour

Funny enough, one of the coolest wedges on Tour doesn’t actually belong to a PGA Tour player – at least, not anymore.

 

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Mike Thomas, father and coach of Justin Thomas, carries around one of his son’s Vokey SM6 wedges every week to use as a walking stick. We’ve written about the wedge before here on GolfWRX, but this week, we collaborated with PGATOUR.com to tell the full story on video, with input from both Mike and Justin. In my somewhat-biased opinion, the video above is well worth a watch if you love custom golf equipment.

Penny Hardaway with a bag full of 1-of-1 custom clubs

Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway, a former NBA superstar and current head coach for the Memphis Tigers men’s college basketball team, played in the Wednesday Pro-Am at TPC Southwind. Mr. 1 Cent showed up with a bag full of mind-blowing 1-of-1 Sub 70 equipment, which he discusses in the video here. The clubs are lasered with the Tigers team logo and Penny’s personal logo, and come with Tigers blue-and-white paintfills (custom work done by @wedge_fx on Instagram).

We also shot photos of Penny’s full WITB; check out some of the highlights below, including his custom staff bag with a shoutout to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics where he helped Team USA win a Gold medal:

New Scotty Cameron, Odyssey and Ping putters 

Apparently, it was a hot week for fresh putters down in Memphis. Scotty Cameron (T-12 proto and Masterful+/Timeless+) , Odyssey Toulon and Ping all unveiled new putters, and we were there to take in-hand photos. Check out a selection of photos below, or click the links above to see more.

New spikes spotted

Lastly, we spotted Ryan Palmer wearing some custom white Jordan shoes equipped with new Soft Spike Tour Flex Pro spikes in their soles. With Penny Hardaway getting a mention in this week’s Tour Report, I found it all-too-fitting to end off the week with a note about sneakers; I wonder what Lil Penny would have to say about them?

And with that, we say goodbye to Memphis, and we’ll see you next week at the 2022 BMW Championship in Wilmington, Delaware.

See all of our photos from the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship here

Welcome to Wilmington Country Club in Delaware, host site of the 2022 BMW Championship. While the golf media was abuzz this week over a secretive player meeting that Tiger Woods flew in to attend, I was busy checking out the equipment that BMW Championship participants had in the bag.

Unexpectedly for this time of year, there were plenty of interesting gear switches, new products spotted, and fresh custom one-off prototypes to hold us over until next season. Justin Thomas made a surprising putter change, we dove into former NBA player J.R. Smith’s golf bag to find an unbelievable (and very purple) 1-of-1 putter, and Ping unveiled fresh raw wedges.

Let’s stop wasting time and get right into this week’s Tour Report from the BMW Championship.

JT’s ultra-custom Scotty Cameron putter

 

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It seemed that Justin Thomas was perfectly content with his custom 1-of-1 Scotty Cameron Phantom T5 putter that he used to win the 2022 PGA Championship. That was until Tuesday at the BMW Championship when the Scotty Cameron rep delivered him another custom 1-of-1 T5 Proto with a custom black sole plate, his logo in the back cavity, a custom Tour Only “Thumb’s Up” logo and his initials on the outer toe, cherry bombs on the back bumpers, a knuckle neck, and a lightly milled face with some more cherry bombs on it.

Tough life switching from one custom Tour Only putter to another, huh?

The custom additions are undeniably awesome, especially if you’re JT, but the real purpose for the switch is the shorter length; the new 1-of-1 is 0.5 inches shorter than the old one. He’s switching from 34.5 inches into 34 inches.

JT explained his reasoning for the shorter length on Wednesday, saying his arms and shoulders sit more comfortably with a slightly shorter length.

 

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GolfWRX profiled the switch over on PGATOUR.com’s Equipment Report this week.

More in-hand photos of JT’s new putter here

Ping unveils new Glide Pro Forged Raw wedges

It’s been years since Ping has offered a raw wedge option, but with enough player demand on Tour, Ping finally delivered. This week, Ping unveiled a slew of Glide Forged Pro Raw wedge options for Tour players. Joaquin Niemann and Taylor Moore wasted no time putting a set of them in the bag.

According to Ping Tour rep Kenton Oates, the raw wedges will rust over time, so we’ll keep an eye on how long that takes and update with photos at a later juncture. Until then, enjoy the photos of Niemann’s wedges below, or check out the full lineup of lofts and grinds here.

NBA star J.R. Smith’s purple Bettinardi, and full WITB

 

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J.R. Smith showed up at the 2022 BMW Championship Pro-Am with dyed orange hair, a matching orange sweater, and a Rolex watch with the diamonds dancing. It was his putter that stole the show, though.

We went deep into the details of the putter over on PGATOUR.com, with comments from J.R. himself, so if you want more info than just the photos, I suggest checking that out. But if you get stuck fawning over the in-hand photos, I completely understand.

Between J.R. and JT this week, it’d be a tough decision which custom one-off putter I like better. I’ll leave that argument to the comments instead.

J.R. Smith WITB

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (8 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-IZ 6 X

3-wood: Titleist TSi3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-BB 7 X

Hybrid: Titleist TSi3 (20 degrees)
Shaft: KBS Tour Hybrid Prototype 95 X

Irons: Titleist T100 (4-9 iron)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Onyx X100

Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM9 (46-10F, 52-12F, 56-10S and 60-04L)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Onyx X100

Putter: Bettinardi Inovai 6.0 “J.R. Smith” custom purple

No Laying Up co-founder Chris “Soly” Solomon makes an appearance

While some may argue Solomon needs a putter upgrade or re-shaft ASAP, I personally believe…well, you’re probably right. That being said, I love the look and character of old and used equipment so much that I’ll give him a pass. Plus, it takes some serious Tour Sauce to show up to a Pro-Am with that flatstick.

In case you don’t know who he is, Solomon is the co-founder and co-host of the No Laying Up podcast. He played alongside J.R. Smith and Tony Finau in the Wednesday Pro-Am, and he was flashing some really cool, old-school inspired headcovers.

Check out all the photos of Soly’s gear here 

Additional photos from Boise

While I was holding it down on the east coast at the BMW Championship, GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore was out in Idaho covering the 2022 Albertsons Boise Open.

And cover it he did.

Greg took 27 photo galleries full of WITB photos, as well as 5 other general galleries, and a forum thread of Scotty Cameron’s custom potato headcovers.

If you wanted Korn Ferry Tour photos, you definitely got them this week. Check out all of the photos here.

Cameron Young’s absurd driver numbers

 

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I’d be curious to know whether Cameron Young would be willing to trade driver launch numbers with me. I don’t have much else to add, those numbers are perfect.

And with that, we say goodbye to Delaware…and Boise. We’ll see you next week in Hotlanta for the Tour Championship where the big money is on the line.

See all of our photos from the BMW Championship and Alberstons Boise Open

During the practice round days of every event during the PGA Tour season, GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore is out taking photos of the golf clubs and equipment that PGA Tour players use. Whether it’s brand new equipment, a club that’s been in the bag for a decade, or a custom 1-of-1 product, Moore is there to photograph it.

As for myself, I rejoined GolfWRX.com this year to team up with Moore each week to tell the stories behind the equipment PGA Tour players use, and to help out taking photos when needed (which is rare, because Moore usually has the inside scoop on everything).

Related: Top-5 gear stories of 2021-22 

While taking a look back over the season’s worth of our weekly equipment photos, I wanted to compile a list of some of my favorites. I was going to narrow it down to my top-10 photos, but there were just too many cool custom builds that we spotted this year to overlook.

So, below are my top-30 favorite equipment photos from this year, with related links for each to see more photos and read the stories behind them. Enjoy the look back from this season, and we’ll see you soon in Napa for the start of the 2022-23 season.

Maverick McNealy’s ultra-custom Callaway Apex 11-iron

Links for more:

• The story behind the club
• Q&A with McNealy about the irons
• More photos of McNealy’s custom irons

Justin Thomas’ new Scotty Cameron T5 “JT” prototype putter

Links for more:

• JT himself explains the putter on video
• The story behind JT’s custom 1-of-1 Scotty Cameron
• More photos of the putter

Charl Schwartzel’s custom Artisan prototype irons

Links for more:

• The story behind Schwartzel’s Artisan irons
• In-hand photos of the irons

Dylan Fritelli’s ridiculously expensive 1-of-1 Callaway Apex TCB sand wedge

Links for more:

• The story behind Frittelli’s custom wedge
• More photos of the wedge

Bryson DeChambeau’s custom 5-degree Cobra King LTDx driver

Links for more:

• More photos of Bryson’s 5-degree driver, and why he uses it

Ben Hogan’s old aluminum prototype iron, with custom grooves

Links for more:

• The story behind Ben Hogan’s prototype iron
• More photos of Hogan’s prototypes

Adam Scott’s 1-of-1 Miura irons, with his logo on them

Links for more:

• The story behind Scott’s custom irons
• Scott himself speaks on the irons, and why he likes them
• In-hand photos of Scott’s irons

Gary Woodland’s long (very, very long) neck Scotty Cameron putter

Links for more: 

• More photos of Woodland’s custom putter

Tony Finau’s heartwarming, hilarious and practical ball markings

Links for more:

• The story behind Finau’s ball markings

Justin Rose shows off a new Axis1 prototype putter

Links for more:

• Rose gives GolfWRX a look at a brand new Axis1 prototype putter
• In-hand photos of the new Axis1 putter

Charlie Woods uses an old backup Scotty Cameron putter that once  belonged to his father, Tiger Woods

Link for more: 

• Charlie Woods is using one of Tiger’s old putters

Former NBA superstar Penny Hardaway’s incredible custom golf clubs

Links for more:

• Penny Hardaway shows off his clubs on video
• The story behind Penny’s golf clubs
• In-hand photos of Penny’s full WITB

Rickie Fowler’s custom Cobra putter, celebrating his daughter

Links for more:

• In-hand photos of Fowler’s fatherly putter

A look inside Annika Sorenstam’s 2022 custom setup

Links for more:

• Annika Sorenstam 2022 WITB

Tommy Gainey’s Odyssey Backstryke putter

Links for more:

• In-hand photos of Gainey’s longtime putter

A perfect look at Tiger Woods’ custom TaylorMade MG3 Raw TW Grind sand wedge

Links for more:

• Tiger Woods full WITB, 2022 PGA Championship

The wear mark on Jason Dufner’s old Titleist 915F 7-wood face

Links for more: 

• Dufner speaks on his nearly decade-old fairway wood
• In-hand photos of Dufner’s fairway wood and 2022 WITB

Jim Furyk’s old Cleveland wedge, with tons of offset

Links for more:

• Furyk speaks on his Cleveland wedge, and why he still uses it

John Daly’s wild club setup at the 2022 PGA Championship

Links for more:

• The story behind Daly’s custom equipment
• John Daly’s full 2022 WITB

NBA player J.R. Smith plays pro-am with an unbelievably cool purple Bettinardi putter

Links for more:

• Smith shows off the Bettinardi proto putter on video
• In-hand photos of the putter
• J.R. Smith’s full 2022 WITB

Justin Thomas’ father Mike has an awesome Vokey wedge

Links for more: 

• Mike and Justin explain the wedge on video
• The full story behind the wedge
• More in-hand photos

Scottie Scheffler signs with TaylorMade, finally replaces Nike VR Pro Limited fairway wood

Links for more:

• Why Scheffler switched out his old Nike fairway wood
• Scheffler’s 2022 WITB

The wild story behind Tom Hoge’s custom Odyssey White Hot OG 2-ball putter

Links for more:

• The full story behind Hoge’s custom putter
• More in-hand photos and full WITB

Piretti’s 1-of-200 custom Augusta National putters

Links for more:

• More information and photos of the putter

Ryuji Imada makes PGA Tour return with a Titleist Bullseye putter

Links for more:

• Imada speaks on his return, and the Bullseye putter
• Imada’s full 2022 WITB from Pebble Beach

Charl Schwartzel’s Scotty Cameron Catalina Classic putter, with Wilson lead tape in the back pocket

Links for more:

• Why does Schwartzel have an upside-down Wilson logo on his Scotty Cameron putter?

Henrik Stenson’s classic Callaway Legacy Black irons

Links for more:

• Stenson speaks in-depth on his classic irons
• Stenson full WITB from 2022

Swag Golf’s custom headcover celebrating Hideki Matsuyama’s Masters victory

Links for more:

• The full story behind Swag’s awesome Hideki headcover

Richard Bland was still using a TaylorMade Burner SuperFast fairway wood

Links for more:

• Bland goes deep on equipment, and why he uses an old fairway wood
• Bland WITB 2022

Webb Simpson’s Titleist 680 MB “5.5 iron”

Links for more:

• Simpson switches back into 680 irons
• More photos of Simpson’s 680 irons

Welcome to the 2022 Presidents Cup Tour Report, where we recap all of the custom gear we spotted this week at Quail Hollow Club in North Carolina.

With national pride on the line, the United States and International teams both brought the heat when it came to custom apparel and equipment. As always, GolfWRX photographer Greg Moore, and myself, Tour Reporter Andrew Tursky, were on site taking photos of all the equipment, and speaking to players about their clubs to get their insights.

This week’s Tour Report highlights Scottie Scheffler’s custom Nike TW USA shoes, Collin Morikawa’s putter switch, Justin Thomas’ custom wedge stamping, Si Woo Kim’s sneaky putter change, and in-hand photos of Jordan Spieth’s longtime Scotty Cameron putter, for good measure.

Watch the video at the top of the story for my full gear recap, or head over to PGATour.com for our Equipment Report from the week.

Also, don’t forget to browse through all of our photos from the week in our GolfWRX forums, including 15 player WITBs, and listen to our latest Two Guys Talking Golf podcast below!

After winning four times in 2022 with a Scotty Cameron Special Select Tour Type GSS prototype blade putter, it appears world No. 1-ranked Scottie Scheffler is making a drastic putter switch at the 2022 CJ Cup.

On Tuesday at Congaree Golf Club, we spotted Scheffler with a new Scotty Cameron T-5.5 Proto mallet putter, with custom engravings on the toe and heel portions.

According to Scotty Cameron rep Brad Cloke, Scheffler has a similar putter at home, and he felt his starting lines were a bit better than his previous blade.

The new putter has three alignment lines at address, specific face millings to match the feel of his old GSS putter, and Cloke said Scheffler is all-in on the putter this week after receiving the new putter last week.

Check out more photos of Scheffler’s new Scotty Cameron putter here. 

Welcome to this week’s Tour Report from the 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina. In case you missed our Two Guys Talking Golf podcast, it was a wild week for golf equipment at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, South Carolina.

New equipment got launched, clubs got broken, big switches went down, and a player’s agent even had to “borrow” a club from a course member’s bag. I’ll recap all of it down below so you don’t miss any of the gear entertainment from the 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina.

Let’s get into this week’s Tour Report:

1) Scottie Scheffler switches out his Masters-winning putter

The week started with a shocker from Scheffler, who was the world No. 1 golfer when the week started. On Tuesday ahead of the event, we spotted Scheffler testing out a new Scotty Cameron T-5.5 Proto mallet putter, which ultimately replaced his previous Scotty Cameron Special Select Tour Type GSS proto blade putter that he started using at the beginning of 2022 (he won 4 times with the old putter in 2022, including the 2022 Masters).

It just goes to show, even winning the Masters with a putter doesn’t mean it’s exempt from getting benched when the putts stop dropping.

Scheffler discussed the switch in-depth, and I covered the full story over on PGATOUR.com. For more photos and discussion of the putter, check out this GolfWRX Forum thread.

2) Shane Lowry speaks on new Cleveland-Srixon gear

Lowry’s bag was packed with previously unseen Cleveland-Srixon equipment when we shot a full WITB with him on Wednesday. Luckily for us, Lowry was willing to share some of his initial thoughts and insight on the new equipment here.

3) Lowry’s five-putter event, explained

On Wednesday, we shot photos of Lowry’s Odyssey White Hot Pro 2-ball putter. It was the same putter he used to win the 2022 BMW Championship in September, and he still had it in the bag on Wednesday at Congaree.

In an innocent kicking accident on the 9th hole on Thursday, however, Lowry’s putter broke. He was forced to use his lob wedge for 2 holes, then he finished the round using a Scotty Cameron putter that his agent took from a course member’s bag (don’t worry, they returned the putter).

Accidentally broke my putter on the 9th hole today…Hour drive to get a replacement. Thanks to the staff at the PGA Tour Superstore in Bluffton for their help. ?? pic.twitter.com/9hpfhDtg1J

— Shane Lowry (@ShaneLowryGolf) October 20, 2022

The following day, Odyssey shipped a White Hot OG 2-ball putter to a local PGA Superstore, which was an hour away in Bluffton. When Lowry went to the Superstore to pick up the putter, he also bought a backup version for $229.99.

pic.twitter.com/PnqjjQbR0s

— Shane Lowry (@ShaneLowryGolf) October 20, 2022

He used the White Hot OG putter that Odyssey sent to him during Friday’s round.

Then, on Sunday, Lowry was spotted using an Odyssey DFX 2-ball putter. That means Lowry used 4 different putters during The 2022 CJ Cup, including his original White Hot Pro 2-ball, the borrowed Scotty Cameron, a White Hot OG 2-ball, and a DFX 2-ball. PLUS, he used a lob wedge to putt for two holes, bringing the tally to 5. Five “putters” in one event! That has to be a record. It simply has to be.

4) Tom Kim goes deep on his putter and putter shaft

Budding superstar Tom Kim has been using ultra-custom Scotty Cameron putters and LA Golf putter shafts throughout his record-setting start on the PGA Tour; Tiger Woods and the 20-year-old Kim are the only two golfers to have multiple PGA Tour wins before turning 21 years old.

We went in-depth with Kim on the backstories to his putter choices over on PGATOUR.com.

4) Tommy Fleetwood faces a dilemma

On Wednesday, we caught up with Fleetwood, who was still deciding between a custom TaylorMade TP Juno putter, and a custom Scotty Cameron Buttonback Masterful putter.

He told GolfWRX that he liked the TaylorMade putter a lot, but he was seeing a bit too much loft. The Scotty Cameron, due to the insert, was presenting a touch less loft, according to Fleetwood.

Ultimately, Fleetwood decided to use the TaylorMade Juno this week at Congaree.

5) Bettinardi reveals new prototype putters

As part of its tour-custom Hexperimental series, Bettinardi launched three prototype mallet putters this week on the PGA Tour (including a lefty version).

Check out all of the Bettinardi Hexperimental prototype putters here.

6) Cam Young’s wild week of equipment

Like Lowry, the long-hitting Cam Young had quite a roller coaster of a week in equipment.

Prior to the event, Young switched into a new Titleist TSR2+ 14.5-degree 3-wood, and a TSR2 5-wood, each of which are equipped with incredibly stiff shafts. He also switched into a SuperStroke Traxion Flatso 2.0 putter grip on his custom Scotty Cameron putter. I asked him about all the changes on Wednesday, to which he replied:

“Yeah, just some tinkering,” Young said in his press conference. “The 3-wood and 5-wood I just feel like I haven’t — I don’t hit the 3-wood very often. I had a 4-wood and I just didn’t hit it that often, so we were just looking to change the setup a little bit to give me some more options. I didn’t play great last week, but those changes we made in those clubs I think worked out really nicely. I kind of like the way that they worked for me in the tournament. And the putter grip is just, I’m always tinkering with something, just trying something new.”

If all the changes weren’t enough, there was more gear news from Young during The CJ Cup.

As the story goes, Young felt like something was off with his driver head on Friday, so he borrowed a driver from Webb Simpson for Saturday’s round. It was a Titleist TSi3 9.5-degree head, and Young switched out the shaft for his gamer Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro White 70 TX shaft.

Check out the full story here.

7) Hideki makes a driver shaft change

Hideki Matsuyama tests numerous driver shafts every week, so that’s nothing new, but he typically plays the event with a Graphite Design Tour AD-DI orange shaft in his driver. This week, however, he switched into a Fujikura Ventus Black 8TX driver shaft to lower spin.

Per @FujikuraOnTour, Hideki has gone Ventus Black in driver and fairway woods (8 TX, 9 TX, 10 TX). Was looking to bring apex and spin down and dial in landing angle.

— Ben Alberstadt (@benalberstadt) October 20, 2022

9) Kisner’s switch

For years, Kisner had been using Callaway Apex Pro Forged irons, equipped with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 125 shafts. On Wednesday, though, we spotted Kisner with a bag full of Callaway Apex TCB irons, each with a custom sole grind, and equipped with Nippon N.S. LSL3 115-gram shafts.

According to a Callaway rep, Kisner was searching for a slightly higher launch and more spin. Kisner was also spotted with a Wilson driver in play this week.

And, with that, we conclude this week’s Tour Report from The 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina.

Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, and tune into the latest Two Guys Talking Golf podcast below!

Four years ago, I wrote an article where I analyzed the putters that the top-50 players in the world were using, and the top-50 players in strokes gained: putting. I wanted to find out whether more mallet-style putters, or blade-style putters, were being used by the world’s best.

In 2018, I found that 44 percent of the top-50 players in the Official World Golf Rankings were using mallet style putters, and 56 percent of the top-50 in strokes gained: putting were using mallet putters.

Flash forward to 2022, and it would seem that more and more top golfers are switching into mallet putters – Scottie Scheffler, for example, just switched into a mallet putter after using a blade-style putter throughout his career.

What are the actual numbers, though? Are more top PGA Tour players really using mallet putters these days, or is the shift overblown?

I wanted to find out.

For my research, I simply went through the most recent GolfWRX WITB photos, and the most recent photos on Getty Images, to figure out what style putter each player in the Top-50 in the OWGR is using, as well as each Top-50 player in strokes gained: putting on the PGA Tour for the 2021-22 season.

Below are the results:

Top-50 in OWGR: Blade or Mallet?

Mallet putter users, 62 percent (31 out of 50)

Rory McIlroy’s TaylorMade Spider Tour mallet putter

Rory McIlroy (No. 1: TaylorMade Spider Tour Hydroblast)

Scottie Scheffler (No. 2: Scotty Cameron T-5.5 Proto)

Patrick Cantlay (No. 4: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto)

Jon Rahm (N0. 5: Odyssey Rossie S White Hot OG)

Xander Schauffele (No. 6: Odyssey O-Works #7 CH Red)

Will Zalatoris (No. 7: Scotty Cameron Circle T Phantom X T-11 Proto)

Justin Thomas (No. 8: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto Tour-Only custom)

Viktor Hovland (No. 11: Ping PLD DS 72)

Sam Burns (No. 12: Odyssey O-Works 7S)

Billy Horschel (No. 16: Ping PLD Sigma 2 Tyne 4)

Cameron Young (No. 17: Scotty Cameron T5 prototype)

Max Homa (No. 18: Scotty Cameron Phantom X T5.5 Prototype)

Sungjae Im (No. 20: Scotty Cameron Flowback 5 Prototype)

Shane Lowry: (No. 21: Odyssey DFX 2-ball)

Abraham Ancer (No. 23: Odyssey White Hot No. 5 Stroke Lab)

Keegan Bradley (No. 25: Odyssey Versa Jailbird)

Sepp Straka (No. 27: Odyssey Tuttle Stroke Lab)

Tyrrell Hatton (No. 28: Ping Vault Oslo)

Kevin Kisner (No. 29: Odyssey 2-Ball 11)

Dustin Johnson (No. 30: TaylorMade Spider GT Black)

Corey Conners (No. 31: Ping PLD Prototype)

Tom Hoge (No. 32: TaylorMade Spider X Hydroblast)

K.H. Lee (No. 33: Odyssey Works Versa 2-ball)

Adam Scott (No. 34: L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 prototype)

Aaron Wise (No. 36: TaylorMade Ghost)

Brian Harman (No. 37: TaylorMade OS CB)

Daniel Berger (No. 43: TaylorMade Spider X Hydroblast)

Jason Kokrak (No. 44: Bettinardi Studio Stock 38)

Harold Varner III (No. 46: Odyssey White Hot OG 7S)

Seamus Power (No. 48: Ping PLD3 Mallet)

Harris English (No. 49: Ping Scottsdale Hohum)

Blade putter users, 38 percent (19 out of 50)

Tom Kim’s new custom Scotty Cameron blade-style putter

Cameron Smith (No. 3: Scotty Cameron 009M Prototype)

Collin Morikawa (No. 9: TaylorMade TP Soto)

Matt Fitzpatrick (No. 10: Bettinardi DASS Prototype)

Jordan Spieth (No. 13: Scotty Cameron 009 tour prototype)

Tony Finau (No. 14: Ping PLD Prototype)

Joohyung “Tom” Kim (No. 15: Scotty Cameron TourType GSS Prototype)

Hideki Matsuyama (No. 19: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS)

Joaquin Niemann (No. 22: Prototype Ping PLD Anser)

Tommy Fleetwood (No. 24: TaylorMade TP Juno)

Ryan Fox (No. 26: Ping Anser 2D)

Thomas Pieters (No. 35: Scotty Cameron Squareback Select 2 Tour Only)

Talor Gooch (No. 38: Odyssey Tri-Hot Two)

Brooks Koepka (No. 39: Scotty Cameron Teryllium TNP2)

Kevin Na (No. 40: Odyssey Toulon Madison)

Kurt Kitayama (No. 41: Scotty Cameron Newport prototype)

Louis Oosthuizen (No. 42: Ping Vault 2.0 Voss)

Mito Pereira (No. 45: Ping Vault 2.0 Dale Anser Stealth)

Paul Casey (No. 47: Scotty Cameron 009M Prototype)

Alex Noren (No. 50: Odyssey O-Works 1W)

Top-50 in Strokes Gained: Putting

Mallet users: 70 percent (35 of 50 players)

Kelly Kraft’s custom Odyssey Versa 1-Ball Red prototype mallet

Lucas Herbert (No. 1: TaylorMade Spider X Hydroblast)

Denny McCarthy (No. 2: Scotty Cameron GoLo N7)

Tyrrell Hatton (No. 4: Ping Vault Oslo)

Beau Hossler (No. 5: Odyssey 2-Ball Ten)

Christiaan Bezuidenhout (No. 6: Odyssey White Hot OG #7)

Kelly Kraft (No. 7: Odyssey Versa 1-ball Red Prototype)

Kevin Kisner (No. 9: Odyssey 2-ball 11)

Sam Burns (No. 10: Odyssey O-Works 7S)

Martin Trainer (No. 12: Scotty Cameron Circle T Prototype Phantom T12)

Chesson Hadley (No. 13: Odyssey White Hot OG 2-Ball)

Mackenzie Hughes (No. 14: Ping Scottsdale TR Piper C)

Rory McIlroy (No. 16: TaylorMade Spider Tour Hydroblast)

Ian Poulter (No. 17: Scotty Cameron T-11 Proto)

Justin Rose (No. 20: Axis1 Rose Prototype)

Billy Horschel (No. 21: Ping PLD Sigma 2 Tyne 4)

Matthew Wolff (No. 23: TaylorMade GT Notchback)

Adam Long (No. 24: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto)

Viktor Hovland (No. 25: Ping PLD DS 72)

Max Homa (No. 27: Scotty Cameron Phantom X T5.5 Prototype)

Patrick Cantlay (T28: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto)

Jon Rahm (T28: Odyssey Rossie S White Hot OG)

Wyndham Clark (No. 31: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto)

Xander Schauffele (No. 32: Odyssey O-Works #7 CH Red)

Vince Whaley (No. 33: Odyssey White Hot OG #7)

Rory Sabbatini (No. 34: Scotty Cameron Flowback Prototype)

Austin Cook (T35: Ping Sigma G Tyne)

Sungjae Im (No. 37: Scotty Cameron Flowback 5 Prototype)

Andrew Putnam (No. 38: Odyssey Stroke Lab Black Rossie)

Sepp Straka (No. 39: Odyssey Tuttle Stroke Lab)

Seamus Power (No. 40: Ping PLD3 Mallet)

J.T. Poston (T41: Scotty Cameron GoLo 5 Black Tour Prototype)

Adam Scott (T41: L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 prototype)

Troy Merritt (No. 43: Yes! C-Groove Mollie Tour)

Jason Kokrak (T46: Bettinardi Studio Stock 38)

Mark Hubbard (No. 50: Odyssey Metal X Milled #9HT)

Blade users: 30 percent (15 of 50)

Matthew Fitzpatrick’s custom Bettinardi blade-style putter

Brendon Todd (No. 3: Sik Pro C-Series)

Cameron Smith (No. 8: Scotty Cameron 009M Prototype)

Matt Kuchar (No. 11: Bettinardi Tour Department SS28 DASS)

Marc Leishman (No. 15: Odyssey Versa #6)

Alex Noren (No. 18: Odyssey O-Works 1W)

Maverick McNealy (No. 19: Toulon Stanford MM Custom)

Matt Fitzpatrick (No. 22: Bettinardi DASS Prototype)

Tommy Fleetwood (No. 26: TaylorMade TP Juno)

Patrick Rodgers (No. 30: Odyssey Toulon San Diego)

Seung-Yul Noh (T35: Scotty Cameron Select Prototype)

Scott Stallings (No. 44: Scotty Cameron Newport 2.6 Prototype)

Brooks Koepka (No. 45: Scotty Cameron Teryllium TNP2)

Justin Lower (T46: PXG Prototype)

Richy Werenski (No. 48: Scotty Cameron Circle T Prototype)

Patrick Reed (No. 49: Odyssey White Hot Pro #3)

Conclusion

In 2018, 44 percent of the top-50 players in the Official World Golf Rankings were using mallet style putters, and 56 percent of the top-50 in strokes gained: putting were using mallet putters.

In 2022, 62 percent of the top-50 players in the OWGR use mallet style putters, and 70 percent of the top-50 in strokes gained: putting were using mallet style putters.

What do you think this means?

To me, it means that each golfer should try as many putters as possible – under the supervision of a professional fitter or local club professional – and find the best possible putter to fit their stroke style and preferences.

Well, that was quick.

At the 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina, Scottie Scheffler debuted an all-new Scotty Cameron T-5.5 Proto putter to help with his starting lines on the greens.

Here’s a look at the custom putter made for Scheffler:

The mallet putter replaced his former Scotty Cameron Special Select Timeless Tourtype GSS Prototype blade putter, pictured below, that Scheffler used to win four times in 2022.

Switching to a new mallet putter seemed drastic at the CJ Cup, because Scheffler was so successful with a blade putter previously.

He ultimately finished T45 at the 2022 CJ Cup using the new mallet.

For the first two rounds of the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba, Scheffler was still employing the custom mallet putter, recording rounds of 65 and 71.

On Saturday, however, as reported by PGATour.com, Scheffler switched back into the four-time winning putter that he used previously. He proceeded to shoot rounds of 68 and 62 on Saturday and Sunday, vaulting him up the leaderboard; Scheffler is currently T3 as of the writing of this article.

“It never goes too far away,” said Scheffler, regarding his trusty blade putter. “It’s probably something I’ll continue to fiddle around with, but I went back to something I’m really comfortable with, and I putted well the last two days.”

When a certain golf club isn’t performing well, sometimes all it takes is a quick trip to the timeout closet to spark success (shoutout to Kris McCormack at True Spec Golf for the reference).

We’ll keep you informed of any further drama that happens with Scheffler’s putter going forward.

After kicking off the season in the Hawaiian Islands, the PGA Tour made the trek back to the mainland this week for The 2023 American Express at PGA West in La Quinta, California. The West Coast swing is officially underway, and GolfWRX was on site for the practice rounds to see all of the new gear that players and equipment companies are unveiling early in the year.

This week was jam packed with switches, launches and testing from big names, including Rickie Fowler, Patrick Cantlay, Jimmy Walker and Will Zalatoris.

You can check out ALL of our photos in the GolfWRX Forums here, or continue reading for my breakdown of the notable gear news from this week at The American Express.

1) Patrick Cantlay tests Ping drivers

Cantlay, who’s no longer a full Titleist staffer, showed up at the 2023 Tournament Sentry Tournament of Champions with an all-black Vessel bag, but he was still using 14 Titleist clubs. Although he’s still using the Titleist TS3 driver at The American Express so far this week, he had two Ping G430 LST drivers in his bag prior to the start of the event. It seems his testing with other brands has commenced as a free agent. We’ll be keeping a very close eye on his equipment decisions going forward, because things could get interesting.

Patrick Cantlay WITB 2023 (The American Express)

2) A long-awaited golf ball switch for Willy Z

As we covered in-depth on the PGA TOUR website’s Equipment Report this week, Zalatoris switched from a Titleist Pro V1 2019 golf ball into a new Pro V1x 2023 golf ball at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions. On Wednesday, we caught up with Zalatoris, who explained that the 2023 Pro V1 was producing spin rates that were actually too low with his driver, but when he tried the new 2023 Pro V1x, he found his perfect match.

According to Zalatoris, the 2023 Pro V1x provides the same performance as his previous 2019 Pro V1, the only difference is that it’s better in the wind.

Here’s what he told GolfWRX on Wednesday:

“I played the V for 3 or 4 years, and then switched to the X. The new ball is really good through the wind … I didn’t really go through any deep testing or anything. I just hit a couple shots downwind, hit a couple shots into the wind, and just see which one does what you want it to do.

“(Titleist) gave me the V at first, because I was playing the V, and my spin rates went down to like 2,000 rpm (with the driver). I had a tough time getting it in the air. And so, I tried the X, and (my numbers) went right back to what I was playing. It’s literally reacting the same (as my previous golf ball), it was just better through the wind. That was kind of it.

“The golf ball is the engine of everything, but I’ve played a Titleist ball my whole life. So as long as it does what you think it’s going to do … this (switch) was really easy. It’s literally the same ball, it just fights the wind better. And it’s not like it’s a drastic difference, it’s maybe like a yard or two, but a yard or two could be the difference between hitting one in the lip of the bunker and having a 6-footer for birdie.”

3) Rickie Fowler’s wild new putter, and the fascinating story behind it

Read the full story over on PGATOUR.com

Slab. City.

Fowler, who changed putters no less than a billion times in 2022, came out to The 2023 American Express with something completely different than we saw last year.

On Sunday, prior to the start of the week, Fowler picked up his caddie Ricky Romano’s putter, and he took an immediate liking to it. On Monday, Fowler went into the Callaway Tour Truck to ask Joe Toulon to build him up something similar to Romano’s setup.

The result? An Odyssey Versa Jailbird with a Micro Hinge face insert, 20-25 grams of lead tape on the sole, and it’s equipped with a SuperStroke Tour 3.0 17 grip. Although the grip is longer, he’s not using it as a belly putter, broomstick, or armlock. Instead, he’s taking his normal stance and grip, he’s simply letting the counterbalancing of the putter work its magic.

Fowler explained how the putter came about, and why he likes the new grip style:

“I’ve been, over the last few years, not putting how I’m used to, or how I want to by any means,” said Fowler, who ranked 161st in Strokes Gained: Putting last season. “Some of it, confidence wise, not having the same feel I’ve always had. The right hand, not making confident strokes. And, I wasn’t necessarily searching. I’ve been grinding and working on my normal stuff.

“I was very shocked, because I never really looked into anything that was longer, counterbalanced, or anything like that. … It’s very interesting, but it’s kind of freeing me up in a way. I’m not changing stroke-wise, or setup, not gripping anything differently than my normal length putter. I just feel like it’s, I don’t know, kind of helping me do some things, and I don’t have to think about it.”

Fowler also switched up his driver and 3-wood during his off-season. Although he told GolfWRX that he’s been using and testing Cobra’s new Aerojet metalwoods for a couple months now, it’s still the first PGA Tour event where Fowler has them in play.

He weighed in on the new Aerojet designs, and his experience so far:

“I mean, ultimately, I wouldn’t put the driver and 3-wood in if I didn’t think they were better,” Fowler explained. “Obviously it’s always something that we try and get in new product, but I was happy with what I had. I was playing last year’s driver, and a 3-wood from a couple years ago, but the new 3-wood was, I felt, a little more forgiving sometimes with a little toe miss. … The Aerojet 3-wood I felt it was a little more stable, but very similar flight characteristics, just a little more forgiving, so that was a nice bonus.

“The driver, pretty similar. I felt the numbers were a bit tighter from the low-to-top end of the face, not as spinny on some misses, and the spin didn’t drop too much on some higher-on-the-face hits. With that, a little tighter with dispersion, left and right. Then I actually went up about a half-degree (in loft) from where I was. The LS is a fairly low-spinning head, which has been great for me.

“Being able to go to something that has a little bit more loft, that can definitely help with the side-to-side dispersion, because once you go down to loft, you can get the ones that kind of squirt right or knuckle left. Loft is your friend if you can have it.”

Head over to PGATOUR.com for my full report on Fowler’s putter, and check out his full 2023 WITB here in our GolfWRX Forums.

4) New putters galore

GolfWRX spotted a slew of new putters at PGA West this week, including Tour launches from Bettinardi, Ping, Scotty Cameron and EvnRoll (click on each company name to see all of the photos and model options…there’s a LOT of new models inside each link).

5) Doug Ghim’s clean custom Scotty

 

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Yeah, wow. No further commentary necessary. Click here for more photos of Ghim’s new custom flatstick.

6) Mizuno’s new driver spotted in the wild

Mizuno officially announced the launch of its new Mizuno ST-X 230 and ST-Z 230 drivers this week, and we spotted the ST-X 230 in Mizuno staffer Greyson Sigg’s bag this week. Interestingly, the ST-X 230 option is the more draw-biased, higher-spinning and higher-flying model, compared to the ST-Z 230.

Learn more about Mizuno’s new drivers here, and see what people are saying about Sigg’s driver, in particular.

7) Patrick Rodgers tests out a giraffe neck

Rodgers, who was previously a Callaway staffer, was already playing an Odyssey Toulon putter with a long plumbers’ neck prior to this year. At The 2023 American Express, we spotted Rodgers testing out a custom Scotty Cameron with an even longer neck, and he tried out a LAB Golf Mezz.1 putter. He was undecided earlier in the week, and we’ll work to confirm which putter he ended up going with for the event. Until then, see what GolfWRX members are saying about his options.

8) Jimmy Walker switches to an Axis1

Over the summer of 2022, Justin Rose unveiled a new Axis1 Prototype putter. Although he didn’t end up switching to it, Billy Horschel put it in play for the 3rd and 4th rounds at the 2022 Tour Championship. This week, Jimmy Walker also put the Axis1 Prototype putter in play after we spotted him putting with it earlier in the week.

9) Aaron Wise goes into a Stealth 2 Plus, with an interesting weight setup

Last year, Wise was using a TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver, so it’s no shock to see him switch into the new Stealth 2 Plus this year. It is a surprise, however, to see that Wise has the adjustable weight all the way in the draw position with the new Stealth 2 Plus, whereas he had the sliding weight in his previous Stealth Plus driver in a neutral position. We’ll provide an update on exactly why he switched up the weights when we have more information.

10) Custom Tour-Only putter covers

Before closing out the Tour Report from this week, I had to mention two new putter covers we spotted.

First up, there’s new Scotty Cameron “Baller Boy” headcovers…

…as well as Zac Blair’s new “The Buck Club” cover inspired by In-N-Out.

And, now that we’re all craving cheeseburgers from In-N-Out, we say goodbye to The 2023 American Express at PGA West. We’ll be back next week on the cliffs of San Diego for the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.

Click here to see all of our photos from The 2023 American Express

On Tuesday, Titleist announced that a new lineup of Scotty Cameron “Super Select” putters are coming soon in 2023. There will be 10 new Super Select putter models in total, but the release is happening in two waves:

• Six new Scotty Cameron Super Select models will hit stores starting March 17, 2023 (Newport, Newport Plus, Newport 2, Newport 2 Plus, Newport 2.5 Plus and Squareback 2)
• Then, four new Scotty Cameron Super Select models will hit stores on May 19, 2023 (Super Select Fastback 1.5, Del Mar and the new GOLO 6 and GOLO 6.5)

Compared to Scotty Cameron’s previous “Special Select” putters, which came out in 2020, Titleist says the new Super Select 2023 putters have new blade and mid-mallet model designs, revamped neck styles, refined shapes, new milling techniques, improved multi-material construction, and “cutting-edge” weight distribution. Scotty Cameron, of course, works closely with tour professionals week-in and week-out, so naturally there’s been a number of changes throughout the lineup since the previous 2020 release.

Overall, there are four major changes you’ll see throughout the Super Select 2023 putter family:

1. “Plus” models: The Newport Plus, Newport 2 Plus and Newport 2.5 Plus models look like traditional blade-style putters, but they’re made with wider dimensions to help promote mallet-like forgiveness.
2. Dual-milling process: To enhance feel, sound and performance, Scotty Cameron is now using a dual-milled process, which he’s used previously on Tour Prototypes, according to Titleist. Here’s how the milling process works: “After a deep-milled pass of the mill across the putter face, a second pass of the mill levels the peaks of the face milling, producing a flatter, more consistent surface for the ball to contact the putter face,” says Titleist.
3. “I-Beam” hosels: Eight of the 10 new models – aside from the Del Mar and GOLO 6 – feature a new hosel design that helps remove weight from the neck of the putter, which was then repositioned into the toe and heel portions of the heads to increase forgiveness.
4. Weight configuration: The multi-material putters (303 stainless bodies and 6061 aircraft grade aluminum sole plates) have weights in the sole that are made from either stainless steel or Tungsten, thus allowing Scotty Cameron to optimize weighting distribution in each model.

Here’s what Scotty Cameron himself had to say about the 2023 lineup:

“With the new Super Select putters, the name just fits. I’ve been creating putters for a long time, and after each line rolls out and gets played, new ideas emerge. There’s always a better way. I try to make all the refinements I can to bring more performance to players, to give them more confidence and, in the end, hopefully more success.

“Key to the 2023 Super Select family are the new ‘Plus’ models, which I introduced on Tour last year, then crafted into a few limited release models to really showcase this new higher-MOI blade design. Now, we have three new ‘Plus’ options in a few of our most popular designs. Additionally, I’ve brought back the GOLO name and shape in a new size. Familiar models like our Newport, Newport 2, Squareback 2, Fastback 1.5 and Del Mar all have our new dual-milling for a great feel off the face that combines the feel of a deep mill with the consistency across the face of mid-mill. Inspired by putters made for tour professionals, I have introduced new I-beam necks and various cosmetic upgrades to the finish and graphics. I’ve tried in every way to make these Super Select putters live up to their name.”

Each of the new Scotty Cameron Super Select putters are slated to sell for $449 apiece (MAP; Minimum Advertised Price), and they come stock with two customizable weights. The blade-style putters come equipped with a Pistolini grip, while the mid-mallets are equipped with a comparatively larger Pistolero Plus grip.

Here’s how Titleist describes the Super Select putter aesthetics:

“New 2023 Super Select stainless steel putter heads all undergo Scotty’s silver mist process for a near-permanent, radiant, yet glare resistant, appearance and texture. The 6061 aircraft grade aluminum components have been misted and anodized in a clear, bright aluminum finish. Scotty’s familiar three-dot theme carries through to the back cavities as unpainted, raw circles milled into the stainless steel. The engravings and sight lines are painted asphalt gray, except on the soles where Scotty Cameron and the ‘+’ symbols on Plus models are accented in cherry red translucent paint.”

Scotty Cameron Super Select March 17 release (six models)

Super Select Newport

Super Select Newport Plus

Super Select Newport 2

Super Select Newport 2 Plus

Super Select Newport 2.5 Plus

Super Select Squareback 2

Scotty Cameron Super Select May 19 release (four models)

Super Select Del Mar

Super Select Fastback 1.5

Super Select GOLO 6

Super Select GOLO 6.5

See what GolfWRX members are saying about Scotty Cameron 2023 putters in our Forums

The West Coast swing continued this week on the cliffs of San Diego at Torrey Pines for the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open, and we caught up with some of the top players (and celebrities) in attendance to see what clubs are in their bag, and what changes they’re making.

As GolfWRX uncovered, Xander Schauffele, Jason Day and Justin Rose made equipment changes ahead of the event. We also caught up with famous celebrities Ben Baller and Gareth Bale to get glimpse at their equipment setups; both players competed in the Pro-Am on Wednesday. We also spotted some new equipment that players were testing, and we caught up with Gary Woodland to check out his new Cobra setup.

Let’s waste no more time and get right into this week’s Tour Report from the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.

Check out all of our photos from Torrey Pines here

Day switches to a new blacked-out Scotty Cameron…and a 7-wood

Back at the 2022 Shriners Open in October, I caught up with Jason Day to learn why he switched into a Scotty Cameron putter for the first time in his career, and what he liked about his new rounded mallet putter. He said the previous putters he used in the last few years – TaylorMade’s Spider Tour, and Odyssey’s Toulon Daytona – sat a bit too square, and looked as if they were pointing left of the target. The rounder Scotty Cameron mallet looked to point a bit more to the right, helping him to start the ball on a better line.

Here’s a look at his original Scotty Cameron build:

Last week at The 2023 American Express, however, Day switched into a nearly identical head, except this time it was made with a “Tour Black” finish. He ended up finishing 2nd in Strokes Gained: Putting on the week, and we caught with him on Tuesday at the 2023 Farmers Insurance this week to get a look at the new putter for ourselves:

Could this be the putter that helps Day get his magic back on the greens?

I went into way more depth into the putter switch over on PGATOUR.com, so click the link if you’re interested. We also have more photos and discussion of the putter in our GolfWRX Forums.

For this week, due to the particularly heavy rough and firm greens at Torrey Pines, Day also put in a TaylorMade Stealth 7-wood, equipped with a Mitsubishi Kuro Kage 80X shaft. His caddie says he flies it about 245-250 yards and lands softly.

Check out more photos and discussion of Day’s switches here

Schauffele finally changes up his 3-wood

While Schauffele upgraded into a new Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond driver at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions, he kept his old Epic Speed Triple Diamond 3-wood in the bag that week. As we covered in our full story on PGATOUR.com, he struggles with 3-woods that spin too low when he hits a right-to-left shot; he doesn’t want the ball coming in too hot and not being able to hold the green.

Since then, however, he found a new Paradym Triple Diamond 3-wood setup that minimizes that concern. His new 16.5-degree HL fairway wood, which is actually bent down to 15.3 degrees, has helped Schauffele tighten spin variation due to the spin consistency across the face.

He put the new 3-wood into play on Wednesday at Torrey Pines.

Xander Schauffele’s full WITB at the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open

Woodland’s new Cobra setup

Gary Woodland officially signed an equipment deal with Cobra at the beginning of 2023, and we finally got a first look at his full WITB setup as a full-time Cobra staffer at the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open. Most notably, Woodland switched into a new set of Cobra King MB irons, which he said are “literally off the rack.”

Check out the rest of his 2023 WITB here

Hideki tests an all-new Graphite Design putter shaft

According to Graphite Design rep Erik Boysen, there have been only two prototypes made of a new Graphite Design putter shaft, and Matsuyama tested one of them this week at Torrey Pines. The shaft is designed to provide increased stiffness and stability throughout the stroke. While Matsuyama isn’t putting it in play just yet, we’ll certainly keep an eye on his putter shaft going forward, and keep an eye on Graphite Design to see how this product may progress.

Join the discussion about the new shaft prototype here

Ben is a Baller

Ben Baller is a famous actor/jeweler/designer/entrepreneur/avid golfer/TaylorMade staffer, and he was also on the winning Pro-Am team this week.

Ahead of his victorious round at Torrey Pines, we got a look at all the clubs in Baller’s bag.

We expected nothing less than an eye-popping custom Scotty Cameron Masterful putter, engraved with his name and paint-filled with Lakers yellow. Uniquely, though, Baller went with a driver-less setup to help avoid the rough at Torrey Pines, so he went with a top-end setup full of TaylorMade Stealth2 and Stealth fairway woods and hybrids.

He fills out his bag with TaylorMade Stealth irons, TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges and custom TaylorMade golf balls with his logo on them.

Check out Ben Baller’s full WITB here

Kickin’ it with Gareth Bale

 

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Gareth Bale – a newly retired Welsh soccer player (or footballer, if you prefer) – also teed it up alongside Ben Baller on the winning Pro-Am team. While we didn’t get a chance to capture photos of every club in Bale’s bag, we managed to capture a few photos of his setup.

He doesn’t have a bad golf swing, either, especially for being a former world-class member of Real Madrid and Tottenham.

 

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Justin Rose switches drivers

The last time we caught up with Rose at the 2022 Cadence Bank Houston Open, the equipment free agent had an old TaylorMade M2 2016 driver in the bag. He’s been conducting extensive driver testing recently, though.

This week, he ended up switching to a new Callaway Paradym 8.5-degree head, equipped with a Fujikura Ventus Black 6X shaft.

Justin Rose full 2023 WITB at Torrey Pines

Ben Martin’s new EvnRoll putter

Martin was previously using an old Guerin Rife mallet putter, but he switched into a new EvnRoll EV5.2 mallet putter at the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open.

James Hahn shows up with a mixed bag

Former PXG staffer James Hahn has apparently gone the free agent route in 2023, since he showed up at Torrey Pines this week with a mixed-brand setup, which includes a Titleist driver, TaylorMade fairway wood, PXG hybrid, Callaway irons, Titleist Vokey wedges, and a Scotty Cameron putter.

See what GolfWRX members are saying about Hahn’s new free agency and golf clubs

TaylorMade’s San Diego head covers

TaylorMade’s Carlsbad HQ is just down the road from Torrey Pines, so the company typically designs some San Diego-inspired headcover heat when the PGA Tour comes into town. The 2023 Farmers Insurance sunset versions certainly did not disappoint.

Unfortunately, the sun is also setting on this week’s Tour Report from Torrey Pines. We’ll see you next week as the Tour travels up the West Coast to Pebble Beach.

Check out all of our photos from Torrey Pines here

Welcome to Monterey Peninsula, one of the most beautiful golf properties in the world, for the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

In my opinion, this week is one of the most interesting weeks of the year for golf equipment entertainment. That’s because the field is stacked with celebrities who have varying levels of skill sets and industry access. Getting a peek at how the celebs setup their golf bags is intriguing and unpredictable; you just don’t know what kind of golf clubs you’ll find.

Also, Jordan Spieth, a celebrity in his own right in the golfing world, made a shocking driver change this week, and we got an awesome Arnold Palmer history lesson at Pebble Beach.

It was a packed week in the golf equipment world, so lets get right into this week’s Tour Report from the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Michael Pena is a gear head?

Actor Michael Pena, who’s a single digit handicap golfer, was testing out two different drivers – a Callaway Paradym and a Ping G430 – at the beginning of the week. By the time the event started, Pena opted for the Paradym. He was also testing out two different putters – a Bettinardi BB8 and BB8 Tri.

Testing out different clubs at the event to get as dialed as possible? Pena must be one of us.

Michael Pena 2023 WITB

Carlton’s saucy putter

Alfonso Ribeiro, best known for his role as Carlton in the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, has been a longtime participant in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and he carries a low single digit handicap.

Ribeiro has fresh clubs almost through the bag, using Ping’s new G430 metalwoods and i230 iron models. He does, however, use an older Ping Sigma2 Tyne putter, which was released back in 2018. The putter is caked with lead tape on the sole, too, proving Ribeiro always does things with a touch of flair.

Alfonso Ribeiro 2023 WITB

Charles Kelley’s old flatstick

 

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Charles Kelley, a country singer and lead vocalist for the band Lady A, uses a TaylorMade Ghost Manta putter, which was first released in 2012. The paint job has certainly seen brighter days, but golf balls don’t care about the aesthetics of a golf club. If it works, it works, and Kelley says it hasn’t left the bag in three years.

Charles Kelley 2023 WITB

Kira’s 7-wood

Kira K. Dixon, a reporter for the Golf Channel and Miss America 2015, has an eclectic golf bag setup, highlighted by a Callaway Epic Max, which she equips with a Project X Cypher Fifty 5.5 shaft.

Kira Dixon 2023 WITB

Macklemore embraces bogeys

“Thrift Shop” rapper Macklemore isn’t the best golfer in the Pro-Am field, but his outfits are certainly some of the most eye-catching. The Seattle native actually has an entire lifestyle golf brand, called the Bogey Boys, which has a uniquely fun fashion style that also embraces bogeys on the scorecard. His “Bogey Boys” brand name is laser etched onto his custom TaylorMade P-790 irons.

Macklemore 2023 WITB

Amanda puts the mic down

Amanda Balionis Renner, a CBS Sports reporter, is usually the one asking golfers the questions. This week ahead of the event, however, she competed in celebrity challenges at The Hay, and we were able to get a look inside her club setup. She was spotted with all-new Callaway Maradym metalwoods, new Paradym irons, and a custom Odyssey Toulon putter with a white-and-green LA Golf shaft.

Amanda Balionis Renner 2023 WITB

Darius unveils a new PXG driver?

Unveiling unreleased golf club prototypes isn’t usually the norm for celebrity golfers, but who better to show off a new PXG Gen6 0311 XF driver than musician and PXG staffer Darius Rucker? Judging by the looks of Rucker’s Gen6, PXG has spread out the three weight ports to the outer perimeter of the soles, which is likely to add forgiveness to the design.

Darius Rucker 2023 WITB

Arnold Palmer’s $250k irons

Behind the first tee at Pebble Beach is a putting green, and surrounding that putting green is a line of golf shops with green awnings. One of those shops, called “Golf Links to the Past,” is filled with antique memorabilia and awesome stories to tell.

Along the back wall, a set of Arnold Palmer’s game-used irons is on display. In fact, they’re Palmer’s personal Wilson Staff Model Dyna-Powered custom irons that he used to win 14 times in 1960-61, including the ’60 Masters, the ’60 U.S. Open, and the ’61 Open Championship.

They’re selling for a cool $275,000 at Golf Links to the Past.

How did the store acquire the golf clubs, and why are they worth so much money? Click here for the entire story.

Another Arnie story you may not have known

Across the street from Pebble Beach’s clubhouse is the Pebble Beach Visitors Center, and it’s well worth a visit for anyone interested in the history of the golf course and the surrounding area. There’s gold nuggets all over the place inside. One that particularly caught my interest was the “Palmer on the Rocks” story told in the photo above.

Check out more photos and stories from Pebble Beach here

ScHoolboy Q – Wedge of the Year, ft. Callaway

ScHoolboy Q, a rapper who sings hits such as “Man of the Year” and “THat Part,” is an avid golfer with keen eye for fashion – check out his ski mask look on Wednesday for proof. He also covers up his golf clubs with stylish “Malbon Golf” headcovers, and he has an awesome blue-and-orange Callaway Jaws Raw wedge with a laser-etched Q on the back.

ScHoolboy Q 2023 WITB

Josh Allen’s insane Tour-Only Scotty Cameron

 

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NFL quarterback Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills has a smooth-yet-powerful golf swing, and he also has one of the coolest gear setups of any player in the Pro-Am field. In the video interview with GolfWRX.com above, Allen shows off his Jordan sneaker putter cover, ultra-custom Scotty Cameron putter, and a new TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver.

Click here for more Josh Allen WITB photos, and check out our full story on Allen’s clubs over on PGATOUR.com

Jordan Spieth’s shocking driver change

Photo Credit: PGA TOUR

For the last several years, Spieth has mostly opted for Titleist’s TSi3 driver. He had a brief stint with Titleist’s new TSR3 driver model at the 2022 Travelers Championship, but he’s struggled to upgrade from his trusty TSi3.

This week, however, ahead of the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Spieth began experimenting with the Titleist TSR2 model, instead of the TSR3. Working with Titleist tour rep J.J. Van Wezenbeeck, Spieth found the TSR2, set in the D-1 hosel setting, was able to keep his spin numbers more consistent and provide greater forgiveness when hitting shots of varying trajectories and shot shapes.

On this week’s PGA Tour Equipment Report, we went in-depth on Spieth’s surprising driver change: Take a read here

A look at Camilo Villegas’ golf club lofts

Villegas has Srixon’s new ZX7 MKII irons in the bag, but his lofts are far from stock. Since Villegas writes his club lofts inside the back cavities, we can see his 7-iron is lofted at 36 degrees, which is 4 degrees weaker than the stock 32-degree iron spec. Interestingly, Villegas also plays one of the weakest driver lofts on the PGA Tour: a Titleist TSi3 11-degree head, although it’s in a C1 setting, which decreases it by 0.75 degrees.

Kevin Kisner’s new Wilson set

Kisner made one of the biggest off-season equipment switches on the PGA Tour, signing a new deal with Wilson for the first time in his career. This week at Pebble Beach, we got our first look at his equipment setup as a full-time Wilson staffer.

Check out his full setup: Kevin Kisner’s 2023 WITB

And, with that, we say goodbye to the beautiful cliffs of Pebble Beach. We’ll see you next week for “The Greatest Show on Grass” at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open in Arizona.

Click here to see all of our photos from Pebble Beach

Tiger Woods won 14-of-his-15 major championships using a custom Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS (German Stainless Steel) putter, which he first put in play in 1999. After all these years, he still had it in the bag this week at the 2023 Genesis Invitational.

It’s arguably the most famous and most valuable piece of golf memorabilia in history, and I had the pleasure of getting an up-close look this week at Riviera Country Club.

Woods recently experimented with a Scotty Cameron putter grip at the 2022 PNC Championship, but he’s since switched back into the Ping PP58 pistol grip, which he’s mostly used on the putter since 1999. The Scotty Cameron grip was slightly larger and heavier than his familiar Ping grip, which worked well when he added lead tape to the back cavity. However, when he took the lead tape off (you can see remnants of the lead tape in the back cavity), the extra grip weight effected the feel of the putter. So, the lead is off and the Ping grip is back on.

Dents, paint chips, imperfections and all, enjoy our photos below of the most famous putter in golf history.

See more photos of Tiger’s putter in our GolfWRX Forums

Welcome to the 2023 Genesis Invitational – a.k.a Tiger’s event – at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California.

Tournament host Tiger Woods was always expected to be on site for the event, but he surprised the golfing world by actually playing in the tournament despite lingering questions about his injuries. Lucky for us, we got a special look at his golf clubs, including his famous Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter.

Aside from Woods’ clubs, it was an entertaining week in golf equipment overall, with notable switches from Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Jordan Spieth, and Adam Scott.

Let’s get into this week’s Tour Report below for all of the equipment highlights.

Jordan Spieth (finally) changes putter grips

Spieth is still using his familiar Scotty Cameron 009 putter head, but he switched into a new SuperStroke Zenergy Flatso 1.0 grip this week. It was about time, too, because his previous SuperStroke Traxion grip was nearly falling off because it was so worn out. As previously reported, SuperStroke’s new Zenergy grips feature enhanced texture in the gripping zone, and a number of new colorways. Justin Thomas switched into a new “JT” Zenergy grip last week, and Xander Schauffele switched into one this week, too.

Tommy Fleetwood makes a putter change

Fleetwood is a prolific putter tester, but he’s not always a putter switcher. Although he frequently tries out new putters, he tends to revert to his familiar Odyssey White Hot Pro #3. This week, however, Fleetwood tested out an Axis1 TM Elite prototype putter with a face insert, and he decided to put it in play.

Here’s a closer look, thanks to Axis1…

 

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Click here for more in the GolfWRX Forums

Adam Scott’s putter from down under

 

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On Monday, while playing a practice round at The Los Angeles Country Club North course in preparation for the 2023 U.S. Open, Scott started testing out a custom blue L.A.B. Golf MEZZ.1 long putter with dancing kangaroos on the sole, equipped with a TPT prototype shaft. Apparently, the testing session went well because he put the putter in play this week at the Genesis Invitational.

Aside from the blue colorway, Axis1 also adjusted his lie angle from 79.5 to 78 degrees, helping Scott get the putter more flush to the ground at address. He also tested out a Ping G430 LST driver, but decided to stick with his former TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver, which offered a slightly more penetrating flight to navigate this week’s windy conditions.

Adam Scott’s full WITB at the 2023 Genesis Invitational

Rory McIlroy makes a mid-event driver switch

We spotted Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus at the 2023 Waste Management Phoenix Open, but he ended up staying in his original Stealth Plus. And, although he started out the Genesis Invitational using the Stealth Plus in round 1, he switched into the new Stealth 2 Plus for round 2 after a range session following his first round. According to a TaylorMade rep, he found the Stealth 2 Plus to offer faster speeds and overall distance.

See Rory’s full WITB here

The GOAT’s putter, and an iron change

Woods made two minor changes to his bag setup since the last time we saw him at the 2023 PNC Championship. He switched out his previous P-770 3-iron for the new 2023 P-770 model, and he switched out the Scotty Cameron putter grip he used at the PNC, replacing it with a familiar Ping PP58 Pistol grip.

 

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This week, we also got an especially up-close look at Woods’ famous Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter that he’s used to capture 14-of-his-15 major championship victories.

More up-close photos of Woods’ putter in our GolfWRX Forums

And with that, we say goodbye to Riviera and the 2023 Genesis Invitational. We’ll see you next week at The 2023 Honda Classic for the start of the Florida swing.

For more WITB photos from this week at the Genesis Invitational, click here!

Tiger Woods’ custom Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter has been in his bag for 14-of-his-15 major championship victories, and it’s one of the most famous and valuable golf clubs of all time.

Here at GolfWRX.com, we take photos of golf equipment. And, since Woods still uses the putter, we recently took some up-close photos of the putter face.

For more photos of Tiger Woods’ clubs, check out his full 2023 WITB here.

As the photo shows, he has a wear mark directly in the center of the face. In order for a wear mark like that to show on GSS metal, just from impacting a golf ball, it likely takes thousands, or hundreds of thousands, or millions of center strikes.

Yeah, he doesn’t miss the center of the face often.

I wondered, to myself, what this photo might look like when enhanced, manipulated, and re-imagined by Artificial Intelligence. Honestly, I don’t know exactly how A.I. works, but I had a blast running Tiger’s photo through a combination of utilities to see what it came up with. Entertainment value aside, the A.I. photos also helped to highlight the pronounced wear mark.

Let’s get right to it. Here are 10 of my favorite A.I.-edited photos of Tiger’s famous Scotty Cameron putter.

(They get progressively weirder as we go!)

• For more photos of Tiger Woods’ clubs, check out his full 2023 WITB 

Isolated and enhanced: Look at all the scratches, dents and dings!

Abstract art anyone?

Yeah, that’s a lot of scratches (I think A.I. may have added just a few)

A.I. is starting to recognize the center mark…

Cherry bomb: Scotty Cameron would be proud

The Lost City of Birdies

Tiger Woods x Space Jam

Throwing darts

Is… that Arnold Palmer?

A.I. started getting a little bit out of hand at the end, but it’s still pretty cool nonetheless. Somehow A.I. even seemed to know that Arnold Palmer was a pilot who reportedly flew over 18,000 hours.

Wild stuff.

What do you think of the A.I. images of Woods’ famous putter? If you want to see more, let us know in the comments below!

For more photos of Tiger Woods’ clubs, check out his full 2023 WITB 

In case you forgot, Y.E. Yang took down Tiger Woods at the 2009 PGA Championship at Hazeltine with arguably the most famous hybrid shot in history. Holding a one stroke lead on the 72nd hole, while trying to hold off a man who never loses, Yang hit a dagger approach shot to six feet using a TaylorMade 2007 TP Rescue 21-degree hybrid.

Yang actually carried two TaylorMade Rescue TP hybrids that week (19 and 21 degrees), which is exactly one less hybrid than he has in the bag at this year’s 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill.

As a current PGA Tour Champions player and former PGA Champion, the 51-year-old is set to tee it up this week using a bag that’s fit for The Hybrid King.

His electric green-and-white stand bag features three Ping G430 hybrids (19, 22 and 25 degrees), each equipped with Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 115 “SX” Hybrid shafts.

The SX flex is a rare offering that’s between an S-flex and an X-flex.

His longest iron is a Ping i230 6-iron, which his caddie says he recently put back into the bag to replace what used to be his fourth hybrid.

 

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Other notable items currently in Yang’s bag include eye-popping blue and yellow IOMIC NO 1 grips, a 1-of-1 custom Scotty Cameron T2 GSS putter (check out the video above), and throwback Titleist Vokey prototype wedges that are stamped with “Yangsta” on the back cavities.

Oh yeah, he also uses club tubes inside the slots of his stand bag to protect his grips…

It’s the type of equipment setup that hardcore gear heads, casual golf fans, and everyone in between can all appreciate.

The Hybrid King unites us all.

On Wednesday before the start of the PGA Championship, GolfWRX.com took an up-close look at his entire setup.

Check out Y.E. Yang’s full 2023 PGA Championship WITB here