Defending champ Schauffele leads US PGA Tournament of Champions

Viktor Hovland successfully defending his title at the Hero World Challenge. Check out his equipment setup below. RELATED: Final leaderboard from Hero Driver: Ping G425 LST (9 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Speeder TR 661 TX (45.75 inches) 3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (15 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X Utility: Titleist U510 (3) Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI Hybrid 85 X Irons: Ping i210 (4-PW) Shafts: KBS Tour-V 120 X Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50-12SS, 56-06SS), Ping Glide 2.0 (58-12TS) Shafts: KBS Tour-V 130 Putter: Ping PLD DS 72 Prototype Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Grips: Golf Pride MCC

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Viktor Hovland made a rare mid-tournament equipment change during his win at last week’s Hero World Challenge. He started the week at Albany Golf Club with a Ping i210 3-iron in his bag. Seeking a higher trajectory with his long approach shots after the wind died down on the weekend, however, he swapped it out for a 7-wood that he’d only started using a few weeks earlier. Ping’s TOUR manager, Kenton Oates, had been strongly suggesting for some time that Hovland add a 7-wood to his arsenal. Hovland, however, felt a utility club or long iron worked best in the slot between his 3-wood and 4-iron. When he first arrived on the PGA TOUR, he played a 21-degree Callaway X-Forged UT iron. More recently, the 24-year-old Norwegian has had a Titleist T200 3-iron and a Ping i210 3-iron in the slot. He changed his mind, however, after testing the 7-wood of fellow TOUR player Lanto Griffin on the range at the Shriners Children’s Open in October. According to Oates, Hovland “changes from tournament to tournament” and was targeting a 240-yard carry with the club in that slot in his bag. Hovland switches each week between the 3-iron and the 7-wood depending on the characteristics of that week’s venue. When he’s looking for higher, softer-landing approach shots in the 240 to 260-yard range, or playing a long, fast course, Hovland will opt for the 7-wood. When facing a shorter or tighter golf course where he might use the club off the tee, he opts for the 3-iron. He also uses the 3-iron in windy conditions to keep the ball closer to the ground. Indeed, Hovland had the latter in his bag at the start of the Hero. After the wind died down during the final rounds of the Hero, Hovland switched out the 3-iron for a Ping G425 Max 7-wood with a Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 X shaft. Hovland’s switch is part of the 7-wood’s increasing popularity on TOUR. Oates said many of the 7-woods he builds are “more like 6-woods.” They are usually set in Ping’s “small minus” or “minus” loft sleeve setting, which reduces the loft of the club by 1 or 1.5 degrees. So, instead of playing at 21.5 degrees, the club plays at 20 or 20.5. Additionally, Ping will often build the clubs with a shaft that is shorter than standard length.

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The Butterfield Bermuda Championship has announced a newfound partnership with Aspen Bermuda Limited for 2022 in their quest to move closer to a more sustainable future for Bermuda’s annual PGA TOUR event. Many new and innovative solutions are being implemented at the tournament this year and thereafter to create an ever-increasingly environmentally friendly event. Mark Pickering, CEO of Aspen Bermuda Limited says “Aspen Bermuda Limited is proud to be the inaugural sustainability partner of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship as we continue our commitment to our local communities”. Plastic is detrimental to Bermuda’s oceans, wildlife, and population. As the harm caused by single-use micro-plastics increases, it becomes a prominent issue that requires close attention from the sporting events industry. Therefore, the Butterfield Bermuda Championship is taking great strides to implement a successful “green” event plan, which is intended to set the sustainability standard of excellence for other sporting events to follow. 2022 Event plans include a vast reduction of single-use plastic passing through Port Royal Golf Course throughout the tournament. Water stations positioned throughout the golf course will enable attendees to re-fill their water bottles with no bottled water available to purchase on-site. Aspen Bermuda Limited will giveaway 500 reusable water bottles daily at the entrance gate to promote single-use plastic awareness. In addition, the volunteer headquarters is reducing plastic waste by providing reusable water bottles to all Butterfield Bermuda Championship volunteers. Concession stands will serve drinks in reusable cups rather than single-use plastic cups. The on-site TAG recycling programme, new in 2022, involves collaboration with the Ministry of Public Works, Keep Bermuda Beautiful (KBB) and Cerobin. The specially designed Cerobins, placed throughout the golf course, will separate tin, aluminium, and glass from general waste. This separation helps to ensure the TAG items are processed correctly at Bermuda’s local recycling facility. All other regular trash will be disposed of at Tynes Bay, where the incinerator converts waste to energy. Transportation throughout the tournament is an extensive logistical operation. The 2022 championship will move entirely to electric buses to transport its volunteers, spectators, and tournament guests. Tournament staff are using a fleet of electric cars to move around the island in the advanced months of the tournament to reduce the event’s carbon footprint. This year, the Butterfield Bermuda Championship has partnered with Bermuda Sands and Cutter & Buck to produce an environmentally friendly uniform. The polo shirts produced by Bermuda Sands are made from 90% recycled water bottles. Volunteer jackets produced by Cutter & Buck are also made from recyclable materials. 2022 sees the move from paper tickets, pairing guides and course maps to a digital format. All mentioned will be accessible via a smartphone and a QR code, reducing paper waste significantly. A continuing partnership with Keep Bermuda Beautiful (KBB) will help to ensure that areas of Bermuda impacted directly by the tournament are maintained and that the Butterfield Bermuda Championship leaves no trace on the local environment. These areas include the ferry docking station, Whale Bay beach, Munro Beach Cottages beach and Pompano. The tournament staff also partake in beach clean-ups to help maintain the coastline of Bermuda. In addition to this, tournament staff regularly participate in KBB clean-ups to help maintain the beauty of Bermuda, specifically in Southampton and around Port Royal Golf Course. These areas include sections of the railway trail, roadsides and bus stops, the Rockaway ferry dock and various south shore beaches.

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