GOAT of GOATs: Tiger takes on Federer

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Gary Woodland shot an 11-under 61 to tie the course record Friday and join Marc Leishman in a share of the second-round lead at the CIMB Classic. Woodland and Leishman (62) were at 14-under 130 on the revamped TPC Kuala Lumpur West course. Woodland’s bogey-free nines of 30-31 matched the 61 that Justin Thomas shot while winning the event in 2015, his first of two titles in a row in Kuala Lumpur. Shubhankar Sharma (64) and Paul Casey (65) were tied for third, one stroke behind. Both golfers had stretches of four birdies and an eagle in five holes. First-round leader Bronson Burgoon shot 69 and was two strokes behind, tied with Scott Piercy (67) and Austin Cook (68). Thomas shot 69 and was five strokes behind. Defending champion Pat Perez closed with a birdie to shoot 69 and was nine strokes off the lead. Ernie Els shot 72 and was 10 strokes behind. There is no cut in the 78-player field.

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For years, PGA TOUR players have used raw wedges to help maximize spin around the greens for increased control of their wedge shots. Raw wedges, versus those that have a finish or coating applied, reduce the material between the golf ball and the grooves to ensure maximum friction as the ball runs up the face of the wedge. Callaway’s new Jaws Raw wedges – which replace the previous Jaws Mack Daddy 5 (MD5) wedges – have raw faces and extremely sharp grooves to enhance greenside spin. While Callaway is officially launching the Jaws Raw wedges to PGA TOUR players this week at the Travelers Championship, a number of players have already put them into play. Marc Leishman, Xander Schauffele and Kevin Kisner, for example, have each used the wedges in recent weeks. In fact, as Callaway reports, nine Jaws Raw wedges were in play at the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday. “I love the look,” said Marc Leishman. “I actually used to grind the leading edge of my old wedges to look like this (straighter leading edge). I’ve actually been playing with it since (the Zurich Classic of New Orleans), I took it from the photo shoot.” The relatively quick adoption of these wedges — very, very quick in Leishman’s case — can be attributed to Callaway’s willingness to work with TOUR players when developing the new wedges. Legendary wedge designer Roger Cleveland and the Callaway team used feedback from TOUR players to make a number of changes to the new Jaws Raw wedges compared to the previous Jaws MD5 models. The new Jaws Raw wedges introduce tungsten weighting and progressive hosel lengths to provide the optimal center of gravity for increased feel, trajectory control and forgiveness. The higher-lofted wedges have longer hosels that are balanced by two tungsten weights in the toe section. This configuration helps balance CG from heel-to-toe, but also moves it slightly higher to influence a lower shot with greater spin. The lower lofted wedges, on the other hand, have shorter hosels and less tungsten weighting in the toe sections to help lower CG for higher-flying shots from the fairway. Kevin Kisner, who’s been using the 52-degree Jaws Raw wedge, told GolfWRX.com on Monday that the “grooves are more aggressive, and I find it easier to hit from the fairway on full shots.” The raw-faced wedges have ultra-sharp grooves with a 37-degree wall angle. They also have groove-in-groove technology, which feature micro-milled grooves at a 20-degree angle to promote added spin on both straight-faced and open-faced shots. Golfers will notice that the new Jaws Raw wedges have a straighter leading edge, the toe pad has been muted to reduce glare, and they feature a smooth transition from the hosel section to the heel area that doesn’t show a pronounced “hook.” This feedback comes directly from TOUR players, according to Callaway. With 17 loft-grind combinations in total, the Jaws Raw wedge lineup introduces an all-new “Z” grind. The Z grind – which Callway says is used by Leishman – is a low-bounce option, but there’s significant chamfer, or roundness, on the leading edge to help reduce digging at impact and eliminate chunk shots. Other grinds in the Jaws Raw family include the standard S-grind, the versatile C-grind, the wide-soled W-grind, and the high-bounce X-grind. Available to the public on July 22 for $179.99 in steel, $189.99 in graphite, the Callaway Jaws Raw wedges will be available in either a Raw Face Chrome or un-plated Raw Black Plasma option. Brian Stuard, for example, opts for the Raw Black Plasma option, as pictured below. It’s important to note that the faces of the wedges are raw, which means they will rust over time. The stock shaft options include True Temper Dynamic Gold Spinner 115 grams (steel) and Project X Catalyst 80 grams (graphite), with a stock Lamkin UTx Charcoal grip. Callaway’s Jaws Raw wedges will have up to 13 color options to choose from within the Callaway Customs platform, as well as different medallions, emojis, and stamping options for further personalization.

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