NEWS FROM THE TOUR VANS
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There is no guarantee that top players will gravitate towards new lines of equipment. We’ve seen many occasions in recent years when an older model of club stays in the bag because comfort trumps potential advancements in technology.
This year, there appears to be very few reservations about making that leap.
Cameron Smith won the Sentry Tournament of Champions in record-breaking fashion with a set of Titleist Vokey Design SM9 wedges in hand. He led a group of 14 players – Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay and Max Homa included – who showed up to Kapalua with the new model. It was the most played model of wedge during the week.
“For me the biggest difference in these new ones is the longer ones, the 46 and the 52 (degree), I feel like I’m able to flight a little bit more,” Smith said after his win. “They’ve been so far so good for me.”
Titleist continued that momentum at the Sony Open where the brand swept all major equipment categories for the 25th time since 2019. There were 204 Vokey wedges in play amongst the 144 competitors in the field at Waialae Country Club.
Meanwhile, Callaway got off to a hot start with their Rogue ST being the most-played driver at Kapalua. Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, Phil Mickelson, Abraham Ancer, Talor Gooch and Kevin Kisner were among those who made the switch.
Another gear story to watch throughout this year will be Collin Morikawa and his new TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver. Morikawa produced his best strokes gained off-the-tee numbers of his career to open 2022, gaining 3.56 shots on the field. During November’s testing period, the two-time major champ only needed about 30 minutes to be convinced to switch from his SIM driver.
Although he’s not known for having a ton of pop off the tee, Morikawa’s additional 3-4 mph of ball speed could help him get that much closer to the hole to set up his prolific iron play.
“Any time you can get a little more ball speed, get a little more distance, it’s going to be helpful,” Morikawa said. “To actually see that, not work any harder – like I haven’t gotten that much stronger, I haven’t gotten that much bigger – but to get that just little extra out of it, it’s going to be beneficial sometimes on certain holes.”
Of course, this time of year is not just about players signing new deals and starting to play new lines of equipment. Some players decide to part ways with brands, and we’ll be keeping an eye on where those players land. Lydia Ko, Wyndham Clark and Pat Perez are no longer on the PXG website, meaning those players are likely going to play different clubs this year. Also, Adam Scott and Jimmy Walker are now only in a ball, shoes and glove deal with Titleist. It’s likely both will continue to play some Titleist clubs, but they are no longer officially staff members.
Sean Fairholm