Toy Box: Scott proves clutch with Cameron prototype
Adam Scott delivered two pressure-packed putts on Sunday – one that earned him a spot in a playoff, the other a Masters title – courtesy of a new Scotty Cameron putter.
“I’ve worked pretty hard with Scotty Cameron on a putter this year,” said Scott, referring to his 49-inch Scotty Cameron by Titleist Futura X prototype. “I had a kind of backyard garage prototype in my bag for a couple of tournaments, but now it looks more like a production model.”
The Futura is a high-MOI putter designed to be resistant to twisting. It includes eight-way adjustable weights. The geometric head is a mallet style with large metallic circles on the heel and toe.
Scott also used a Titleist 913D3 driver (9.5 degree); the Masters was the first time he had used the club in competition. His driver is 44.75 inches and equipped with a Graphite Design Tour AD Di8 X shaft.
The rest of Scott’s bag: Titleist 910Fd fairway wood (15 degree, with Fujikura Rombax Pro 95 shaft); Titleist 712U (2-iron) and 710 MB (3-9 irons, with KBS Tour X flex 130-gram shafts); Vokey Design SM4 (48 degree), Spin Milled (54 degree) and SM4 TVD (60 degree ...
The Toy Box Winner's Circle: Masters edition
In a new weekly video called The Toy Box Winner's Circle, our David Dusek breaks down Adam Scott's winning bag at the Masters. From his Titleist 913D3 driver to his Scotty Cameron putter, we tell you how Scott's equipment made an impact on his performance at Augusta National.
My Bag at the Masters: A look at Adam Scott's equipment
Adam Scott became the first Australian to win at Augusta National by defeating Angel Cabrera in a playoff on Sunday evening. Scott used this Titleist equipment to earn his victory at the 2013 Masters:
DRIVER: Titleist 913D3 (9.5 degree) with a Graphite Design Tour AD DI-8 shaft
FAIRWAY WOOD: Titleist 910F.d (15 degree) with a Rombax Pro 95 shaft
IRONS: Titleist 712U (2) and 710 MB (3-9) with KBS Tour shafts
WEDGES: Vokey Design SM4 (48 degree), Spin Milled (54 degree) and SM4 TVD (60 degree) wedges – all with KBS Tour 130-gram shafts.
PUTTER: Scotty Cameron for Titleist Futura X prototype
BALL: Titleist Pro V1
My Bag at the Masters: Thorbjorn Olesen
Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen means "Thunderbear," and he certainly roared to life at Augusta National on Sunday. Playing in his first Masters, the 23-year-old carded a 68 using the following Nike gear:
DRIVER: Nike VR_S Covert Tour (9.5 degree) with a Graphite Design DI 7X shaft
FAIRWAY WOOD: Nike VR_S Covert (15 degree) with a Mitsubishi Rayon Diamana 'ahina 80x
HYBRID: Nike VR_S Covert Tour (18 degree) with a Mitsubishi Rayon Fubuki AX Hybrid X
IRONS: Nike VR Pro Blade (3-9) with Royal Precision Rifle Project X 6.5 shafts
WEDGES: Nike VR Pro (46, 54 and 58 degree) with Royal Precision Rifle Project X 6.5 shafts
PUTTER: Nike Method 001
BALL: Nike 20XI
My Bag at the Masters: Brandt Snedeker
On moving day at Augusta National, Brandt Snedeker shot a 3-under 69 to grasp a share of the lead with Angel Cabrera. The two men are at 7-under 209. Snedeker crafted his bogey-free round with the following:
DRIVER: TaylorMade Burner SuperFast (8.5 degree) with a Fujikura Motore VC 7.2 shaft
FAIRWAY WOOD: Tour Edge Exotics CB4 (13 degree) with a Fujikura Motore Speeder 8.1X shaft
HYBRID: Ping Anser (20 degree) with a UST Mamiya 100 X shaft
IRONS: Bridgestone J40 Cavity Back (4-PW) with SteelFiber i95 Constant Weight shafts
WEDGES: Bridgestone J40 (52, 56 degree) and Titleist Vokey Design TVD (60 degree) with True Temper Dynamic Gold S400 shafts
PUTTER: Odyssey White Hot XG Rossie
BALL: Bridgestone B330
My Bag at the Masters: Angel Cabrera
AUGUSTA, Ga. Some players can't seem to rise to the occasion when golf is played on its biggest stages. But Angel Cabrera doesn't have that problem. Here's what the Argentinian, who won the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont and the 2009 Masters, is playing this week at Augusta National.
DRIVER: Ping G25 (8.5 degree) with an Aldila Tour Green 75X shaft
FAIRWAY WOOD: Ping G25 (15 degree) with an Aldila RIP Alpha 80X shaft
IRONS: Ping i20 (3), Ping S56 (3-PW) with True Temper X100 shafts
WEDGES: Ping Tour with Gorge Grooves (54, 58, 62) with True Temper X100 shafts
PUTTER: Ping Scottsdale TR Shea H
BALL: Titleist Pro V1x
Jack Nicklaus uses namesake driver in Masters' ceremonial start
AUGUSTA, Ga. When Jack Nicklaus outdrove Gary Player and Arnold Palmer on Thursday morning in the ceremonial opening of the Masters, he used a 45-inch Nicklaus ML4 driver with a stiff shaft. The loft was 9 degrees, and the club had a customized Secret Grip from Boccieri Golf.
The grip was a wrap version of the all-weather Secret Grip introduced in January at the PGA Merchandise Show. Both grips weigh 92 grams, including a 17-gram tungsten weight.
A normal grip weighs about 50 grams. The heavier Secret Grip is designed to act as a counterbalance, lowering the swingweight and raising the balance point.
The wrap grip probably will be added to the line, according to a Boccieri spokesman.
In damp and overcast conditions, Nicklaus hit a 237-yard drive off the first tee at Augusta National Golf Club. Player's drive was 235 yards, while Palmer had the shortest but straightest drive – 218 yards in the middle of the fairway.
Luke Donald's Masters arsenal includes MP-H4 3-iron
AUGUSTA, Ga. Mizuno USA officials have high expectations for their new MP-H4 irons, which were boosted even more when Luke Donald practiced with the 3-iron and immediately put it into his bag.
Donald, the former world No. 1, is carrying the MP-H4 3-iron at the Masters. According to Chuck Couch, director of golf club marketing for Mizuno USA, the MP-H4 long irons are generating considerable interest among touring pros.
The 2-iron through 7-iron of this forged set are hollow, with the two-piece head (forged carbon steel and stainless steel) joined together by plasma welding. Hollow construction allows Mizuno to maneuver the weight for increased stability and a higher trajectory. Meanwhile, the short irons and wedges are solid metal.
At Augusta, Ping showcases adjustable putters
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- It is clearly the age of adjustability in golf clubs, yet no other major equipment manufacturer besides Ping is selling adjustable-length putters to consumers. Ping is promoting its new adjustable Scottsdale TR line, in which the putter length can be changed between 31 and 38 inches.
TR stands for True Roll, and Ping is using variable depth grooves to increase the rollout on putts that are hit off-center. Hitting putts solidly can be difficult, particularly on long putts, so Ping searched for a solution. Here’s what the company came up with: Deeper grooves in the center and shallower groves toward the heel and toe, designed to equalize ball speeds and enhance distance control.
A dozen different TR blade and mallet models are available. At the Masters, four Ping staff members showed up with putters belonging to the TR family.
The four Ping players and their putters: Angel Cabrera (Shea H model, 37 inches), Hunter Mahan (ZBS, 34.5), Louis Oosthuizen (ZBS, 33) and Lee Westwood (Anser 2B, 38).
Before the tournament started, Oosthuizen switched from the TR version of the ZBS to the original ZBS. Still, Ping representatives were pleased with three TR putters in the field ...
Fitting Month: Trackman adds science to art of fitting
Hunter Mahan spent much of the early season looking for a new 3-wood, and on the Wednesday before the Shell Houston Open he was testing clubs again.
Mahan rocketed one shot after another into the blue Texas sky as his caddie, John Wood, looked on. Also watching was Matt Rollins, Ping's senior PGA Tour manager, who had leaned four seemingly identical Ping G25 fairway woods against Mahan's bag.
Occasionally Rollins glanced down at an iPad Mini that lay on the turf next to a small, orange-faced box that stood about seven feet behind Mahan. After every shot, numbers flashed across the iPad's screen, verifying what the three witnessed – and why they saw it.
The box was a Trackman, a product that has become so popular on the PGA Tour that it's become almost synonymous with launch monitors.
"We've tested all kinds of stuff and used all kinds of stuff," Rollins says, "but at the end of the day we keep going back to Trackman."
Keith Sbarbaro, TaylorMade's vice president of tour operations, agrees.
"It's great because you can use it to fit any club that's being swung," he says. "I've never ...
Sandy Lyle draws Masters attention with giant Black Swan
AUGUSTA, Ga. Black Swan and its slightly smaller sister, Black Hawk, are among the most-distinctive putters in golf.
There was a Black Swan sighting Thursday at the Masters, as former Masters and British Open champion Sandy Lyle used the putter while shooting a 1-over-par 73.
Both Black Swan and Black Hawk have huge rectangular black heads. They are probably the largest putter heads in golf. The concept of inventor David Kargetta, a longtime automotive engineer, was to enhance stability and create a putter that is extremely forgiving on off-center hits.
In his demonstrations, Kargetta likes to place three balls side by side, then use one of his putters to hit all three balls simultaneously. Invariably the three roll about the same distance.
The first Black Swan sighting came at the Sony Open in Hawaii in 2012, when Matt Every nearly won the tournament with a fearsome putting display. Later that same year, Lyle used the putter to shoot closing rounds of 66-64 and tie for fourth in the the Senior PGA Championship.
Shortly thereafter, Lyle put the putter in his closet. For the Masters, he reunited with the Black Swan.
“At the Senior PGA, I had a very, very good ...
Bag of the day: Marc Leishman
An Australian has never won the Masters, but Marc Leishman took one big step toward becoming the first by shooting a 66 on Thursday afternoon. Here is a complete list of the clubs in his bag this week at Augusta National:
DRIVER: Titleist 913D2 (9.5 degree) with an Aldila RIP Phenom 70X shaft
FAIRWAY WOOD: Titleist 913F.d (15 degree) with a Mitsubishi Diamana S+ Series 82X shaft
IRONS: Titleist 712U (2) with a Mitsubishi Fubuki AXH 500 shaft; Titleist 710 AP2 (3-4); 712 MB (5-9) with NS Pro Modus 3 shafts
WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Design (48, 54, 58 degrees) with NS Pro Modus shafts
PUTTER: Scotty Cameron for Titleist Tour Rat 2 prototype
BALL: Titleist Pro V1x
Woods switches to VRS Covert 3-wood
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Tiger Woods carried a new Nike VRS Covert 3-wood in Thursday’s opening round of the Masters, replacing the Nike VR Pro Limited Edition 3-wood he had used for more than a year.
Woods has used a series of 15-degree Nike 3-woods, from a VR Pro in 2011 to the VR Pro Limited Edition in 2012 to the current VRS Covert.
Earlier this year, at Doral, Woods switched to a 19-degree Nike VRS Covert 5-wood. This same 5-wood was adopted earlier this year by Rory McIlroy, meaning the top two players in the world have switched to the same 5-wood in 2013.
Nike makes two VRS 5-wood models, one called VRS and the other named VRS Tour. Ironically, Woods and McIlroy use the standard VRS version (retail price $199.99). Why? Because it produces more spin, creating a higher ball flight and softer landing.
Nick Watney, on the other hand, uses the 19-degree VRS Tour 5-wood for a slightly lower trajectory.
Toy Box: John Peterson's Masters Odyssey
AUGUSTA, Ga. John Peterson gained attention at the U.S. Open for stuffing his putter cover in his back pocket while attempting putts at the Olympic Club. It was a move more common for an amateur playing his home course on a Sunday, not a competitor in a major championship.
There was no putter cover in Peterson's pants pocket Thursday at Augusta National, and no, it's not because he's become accustomed to pro life.
Peterson switched to a mallet putter – an Odyssey White Hot #7 – earlier this week. The larger headcover doesn't fit in his pocket. He had been using a center-shafted Anser-style putter.
"I love it," Peterson said of his new putter. "I'm going to sleep with it tonight."
Peterson needed 32 putts Thursday after hitting 13 greens.
At Masters, Bradley sticks with Odyssey Sabertooth
AUGUSTA, Ga. Touring pros are very particular about their golf equipment, a current example being Keegan Bradley.
Bradley is a Cleveland/Srixon staff member but has a contract allowing him to use a putter from another company. So golf fans have become accustomed to viewing Bradley with a 46.5-inch Odyssey Sabertooth belly putter.
He won the 2011 PGA Championship with that putter, and he has used it ever since.
Because Bradley has gained 10 pounds, he figured he might be more comfortable with a slightly shorter Sabertooth. Emphasis should be placed on slightly, because we’re talking about a quarter of an inch.
Odyssey came to the Masters with a 46.25-inch Sabertooth for Bradley. Furthermore, at his direction, the putter head was painted with a black-and-white scheme used on the Odyssey Versa putter.
It sounded great, but Bradley ultimately decided to putt with one of his original 46.5-inch backup Sabertooth putters. Putting is all about feel, he explained, and this one felt great.
Nobody disputes the word (or the feel) of a major championship winner.
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