This special ingredient could determine the Zurich Classic of New Orleans winner

The great start to the Tour Championship was nice and all. But he arrived with no expectations, given the biggest part of the week, the birth of his and wife Erica’s first child, a daughter, had already happened.

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Two weeks ago, Tiger Woods teed off at the PNC Championship with something new under his iconic Tiger headcover. We knew from photos that the new driver in the hands of the 82-time TOUR winner (and TaylorMade staffer) was a TaylorMade Stealth Plus. The club had appeared on the USGA’s list of conforming driver heads just days before Woods played the PNC alongside his son Charlie. Given the traditional January release calendar, we assumed the new line would be launched shortly. However, we didn’t have any additional details about the club or its curious red-and-black face. With the official launch of TaylorMade’s Stealth driver line today, however, we can offer some more details on the clubs Woods wielded en route to a second-place finish with son Charlie at Orlando’s Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Woods’ driver was a TaylorMade Stealth Plus, which is one of three models in the just-announced TaylorMade Stealth lineup. The other two family members are the Stealth and Stealth HD (High Draw). The Stealth Plus features an adjustable weight track and is meant to be more workable than the Stealth. “First of all, they have moved the (center of gravity) more forward so I’m able to curve the ball more, and you guys all know that I’ve always been a player that has worked the golf ball,” Woods said at the PNC. “It’s given me the ability to hit draws and hit cuts. “I didn’t like having just only one shot. The driver setup that we had for Augusta allowed me to draw the golf ball. But when I hit the cut, it was really short. I don’t have that difference anymore. They are very similar, which is huge. “And hey, got to love the colors.” The centerpiece technology of the Stealth driver line is likely one you’ve already seen in shots of Woods’ Stealth Plus: a carbon-fiber face. In a surprising departure from industry-standard titanium, TaylorMade engineers turned to carbon. More specifically, 60 layers of strategically arranged carbon sheets to construct the face of the Stealth for better energy transfer. TaylorMade touts a thinner, lighter, larger face that features a higher COR (coefficient of restitution) and improved face geometry. “In the mid-2000s, our research team developed an understanding that the weight of the face can affect impact efficiency, more specifically, the lighter the face, the more efficient the impact and the better the ball speed,” says Brian Bazzel, TaylorMade’s Vice President Product Creation. “We realized titanium faces could only take us so far and carbon would be the face material of the future. This breakthrough design of a lightweight carbon face in Stealth, has created a whole new starting line, a new era of drivers, a new threshold of performance and a new platform for more innovation.” TaylorMade engineers took advantage of the lightweight carbon material by creating a 26-gram face, which is 40% lighter than a titanium face of equivalent size. Because of that weight savings, the face size of Stealth is 11% larger than SIM2 and SIM2 Max drivers and nearly 20% larger than the 2020 SIM driver. The weight savings and larger face size made possible by the 60X Carbon Twist Face delivered significant ball-speed increases during player testing when comparing Stealth Plus and Stealth to the 2021 SIM2 and SIM2 Max drivers at better player swing speeds. Working in conjunction with the carbon fiber face is TaylorMade’s nanotexture face technology: A thin polyurethane layer on top of the carbon fiber creates a surface that is both strong and flexible for improved launch. It’s calibrated to produce ideal friction in dry conditions and features full-face scorelines that also perform particularly well in wet conditions. “The technological innovation of our nanotexture technology brings the entire face together and was a key to making this driver a reality,” said Tomo Bystedt, Senior Director Product Creation, Carbonwood Drivers. “Without this revolutionary cover design, we could not have achieved the launch and spin performance required to extract the optimal performance in dry as well as wet conditions. Once we added the nanotexture technology to the grooves, we were able to unlock the full performance of a carbon face.” TaylorMade also worked to give the Stealth line better sound than previous carbon drivers. Instead of muted, low-energy sounds, engineers were able to create a bright and powerful sound and feel profile. The Stealth Women’s driver combines the technology of Stealth HD in a slightly lighter head weight and with a unique colorway and aesthetic. It maintains the high MOI head design for easy, high-launch with a touch of draw. TaylorMade also announced a line of Stealth fairway woods, rescue clubs and irons on Tuesday. Woods had a 15-degree Stealth Plus 3-wood in his bag at the PNC Championship. So, now we know more about Tiger’s driver. For more on the clubs he played at the PNC Championship, click here.

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Sergio Garcia ends a seven-year absence from the PGA TOUR venue he helped design, while Kevin Chappell makes his first career title defense as the TOUR heads back to Texas for the third of five stops this year. Beau Hossler, a former University of Texas standout who just missed a Masters berth in a Houston Open playoff, heads a solid list of players with Texas ties. That also includes Garcia – now an Austin resident – former PGA Championship winner Jimmy Walker and Jhonattan Vegas. FIELD NOTES: U.S. Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk returns to San Antonio for the first time since 2015, with two top-10 finishes in three visits to TPC San Antonio. … In all, the lineup features six of the top 30 in the current world rankings. … Joaquin Niemann, who held the No.1 amateur ranking for nearly a year, will make the VTO his professional debut. The Chilean teen already holds conditional Web.com Tour status…. The list of international invitees also features two-time major champion Martin Kaymer, India’s Shubhankar Sharma and England’s Chris Paisley. For Paisley, it’s his first start on U.S. soil since his college days at Tennessee. … Julian Suri, a Florida native who has spent the past two years on the European circuit, hopes to build on his top-10 finish in Houston earlier this month. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 points. STORYLINES: Garcia tees it up for the first time since a disappointing title defense at the Masters, where a 13 at Augusta National’s feast-or-famine 15th produced a hole too big to climb out of. Garcia was a consultant on the host AT&T Oaks course, but hasn’t been back since its 2010 debut. … John Senden makes his second PGA TOUR start since taking a nearly yearlong break to deal with his son’s brain tumor. He was on track to make the cut at the RBC Heritage, until a bogey/bogey finish put him on the wrong side of the line. … Chappell now seeks to become the third man this century to win back-to-back in San Antonio. Justin Leonard did it in 2000-01, followed by Zach Johnson in 2008-09. COURSE: TPC San Antonio (AT&T Oaks), 7,435 yards, par 72. Winding through Texas Hill Country north of the city, the Oaks tends toward a minimalist look and feel – often employing native vegetation as a peril for wayward shots. Garcia served as a consultant in the 2010 Greg Norman design, which is widely considered to present a tougher challenge than its sibling Canyons layout built by Pete Dye. The Oaks’ most memorable moment may have come in 2011, when Kevin Na recorded a 16 at the par-4 ninth hole after struggling to free himself from rocks and underbrush. A year later, Na returned with a chainsaw for a good-natured publicity shoot. 72-HOLE RECORD: 254, Tommy Armour III (2003 at LaCantera). TPC San Antonio record: 274, Adam Scott (2010), Martin Laird (2013). 18-HOLE RECORD: 60, Bart Bryant (3rd round, 2004 at LaCantera), Zach Johnson (3rd round, 2009 at LaCantera). TPC San Antonio record: 63, Matt Every (1st round, 2012), Martin Laird (4th round, 2013). LAST YEAR: Chappell finally notched his long-awaited first PGA TOUR victory, ramming home an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole to hold off Brooks Koepka’s Sunday charge. Chappell began the final day with a one-stroke advantage, but found himself tied going to the 18th tee after Koepka birdied ahead to complete a 7-under-par 65. Two solid shots left the California native 89 yards from the pin, where he got the ball below the hole to set up the winning putt. Chappell’s triumph followed four runner-up finishes the previous season, including THE PLAYERS Championship and TOUR Championship. Tony Finau and Kevin Tway tied for third, three shots behind Chappell. HOW TO FOLLOW TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 3:30-6:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1-2:45 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 8:15 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (featured groups), 3:30-6:30 p.m. (featured holes). RADIO: Thursday-Friday, 1-6:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com).

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