Holder McIlroy looking to make history at Players

Ever wonder what it’s like to have a putt to win the FedExCup, THE PLAYERS Championship, or a major? Or wanted to know how the body reacts to a putt to make a cut? Soon, you will be able to see such data from PGA TOUR players. WHOOP, the Official Fitness Wearable of the PGA TOUR, is launching the WHOOP Live for Charity initiative, which will highlight player biometric data during defining moments throughout the season. Players featured in WHOOP Live for Charity videos and social content will receive a $10,000 contribution to the charity of their choice on behalf of WHOOP and the TOUR. Fans can follow these moments at #WHOOPLIVE. “I really like looking (at my WHOOP data) after tournaments to see what my heart rate was like,” PLAYERS champion Justin Thomas says. “I can get a specific look and be like, ‘Why did it go from 110 to 140? What was going on?” The 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions, which Thomas won in a three-way playoff over Xander Schauffele and Patrick Reed, provided a great example of what is possible under the WHOOP Live for Charity Initiative. According to WHOOP data, Thomas’ average heart rate during the final round at Kapalua was 114 beats per minute. It spiked at 154 bpm during the tournament’s stressful conclusion. The WHOOP Live for Charity content will sync highlights with illustrations of a player’s heart rate to deliver new content that provides fans further insight into the performances of the world’s best players. This photo of Thomas’ big birdie putt in his playoff with Collin Morikawa at the 2020 Workday Charity Open provides another example of how WHOOP data can illustrate how players’ biometric data changes during a tournament’s closing holes. Live heart rate is hardly the only metric WHOOP uses to help people personalize their workouts. WHOOP tracks metrics like heart rate variability (HRV), respiratory rate, sleep staging, and cardiovascular load to provide actionable insights around recovery, strain, and sleep. HRV measures the variance between heart beats to show if the body is ready to perform at optimal levels. “I started wearing WHOOP because I just wanted to know more about my body and myself and how I recover. I just wanted to optimize what I do,” said another former PLAYERS and FedExCup champion Rory McIlroy. “In this day and age in golf, with the technology that’s out there, everyone is closer together. The difference between the No. 1-ranked player in the world and the No. 100 is actually pretty small. I want to do everything I possibly can to get an advantage. For me, WHOOP is one of those things that can give me an advantage.” WHOOP lets players know if their body needs more rest or is ready to take on the day. It can also let them know if they’re getting the right type of sleep, and how factors like diet or other behaviors can impact the quality of their rest. And in recent times, it has even warned players that they may have been infected with COVID-19. “So much of what’s powerful about technology is it can connect everyone on this planet,” WHOOP CEO Will Ahmed told PGATOUR.COM. “And you have up-and-coming golfers and aspirational athletes who can look at their WHOOP data in comparison to the best golfers in the world and that makes the experience even better. “We formalized this partnership for two reasons. First is to improve player health and performance and provide as much data as we can to the players to help them understand their bodies. And the second is to produce WHOOP Live which will bring physiological data to fans. I think this is really innovative and first of its kind – the fact you will see heart rate and other data on top of replays and television broadcasts. It’s really exciting and it’s a formula that could be the future for sports broadly. When you see some of the highlights with that data on top you as a fan feel something, you feel a closer connection to the player and what they just experienced.” Last summer, upon the TOUR’s return to golf, more than 1,000 WHOOP Straps were distributed for players, caddies and other essential personnel at PGA TOUR, Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Champions events, with accompanying membership for health monitoring. “I don’t take it off, ever,” Thomas said. “More so at the beginning, learning what’s better for me and what helps me sleep and what helps me recover better. Now I’ve worn it long enough that I know. It’s just part of my life, I don’t even notice I have it on, but I still look at it every day. “It’s more diet and eating close to bed, what you’re eating, how that helps you sleep. It’s a lot of little things and experimenting. I’m willing to make sacrifices in my life if it makes me feel better, play better, perform better.” Thomas stresses that every person will have a different learning experience. For example, using melatonin to sleep can make him feel groggy but may be helpful to others. Thomas has also noticed his recovery is better when he drinks more water. “What works for Rory doesn’t work for me, what works for me doesn’t work for him, doesn’t work for you, doesn’t work for everybody,” Thomas said. “I wanted to figure out what was good for me, and if I’m going into the weekend of The Masters, the PLAYERS, or any other tournament, and I’m playing really well and I have a three-shot lead, I need to know what I need to do this afternoon, tonight, before bed to where I feel like I’m going to sleep my best. If you can control what you can control, at least it gives you a better probability for what you want to achieve.” Stewart Cink, who won this season’s Safeway Open at 47 years old, also is WHOOP a member. “I think most everybody out on TOUR is using WHOOP. There’s a couple of things that I might just pay closer attention to, like the recovery is important nowadays. I’m still trying to figure out exactly the best way for me to recover,” Cink says. “I mean it’s so much more than just getting the eight hours of sleep, it’s a little different and it’s pretty accurate. It’s a neat tool and I enjoy learning a little bit about myself and the way my body sort of physiologically goes through the day and recovers and exerts itself.”

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There are plenty of players within reach of the PGA Championship. Two names stand out most: Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka. But there are others with a shot. It’s time to assess the notable names on a jam-packed leaderboard.

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Hideki Matsuyama is never complacent, especially when it comes to equipment. The defending Masters champion is constantly testing and tweaking his gear to find the perfect fit for his game. As a Cleveland/Srixon staffer, Matsuyama works closely with the company’s fitters, builders and designers to refine head shapes, dial in launch parameters, and get the right setup. “Hideki is always looking for a way to be better, even after winning the Masters,” a Srixon representative told GolfWRX. “There is a purpose for the processes, such as finding a solution for a current issue or preparing for an upcoming major tournament. Hideki is not afraid to change his specs, even if they have been successful for him. There is always room for growth.” MORE THE MERRIER Matsuyama’s passion for experimentation is illustrated by the fact that he regularly has 20-plus clubs in his bag during practice days, exceeding the 14 he’s limited to in competition. Aside from making the bag very heavy during practice rounds, the extra clubs and shaft options make it easy for Matsuyama to test equipment every week. When GolfWRX took photos of Matsuyama’s clubs at this year’s Farmers Insurance Open, he had 20 clubs in his bag, including extra wedges and shafts. SWITCH IT UP Matsuyama also had two different Srixon ZX7 drivers in the bag at the Farmers. If you look closely near the hosel of the driver pictured on the left below, you can see that it has different labeling than the other version; this likely means the driver has different loft or internal weighting for slightly different launch and spin than the driver pictured on the right. Matsuyama isn’t afraid to make changes, even if a club helped him win a major. He’s using a Srixon ZX7 driver this week after winning last year’s Masters with a ZX5. The ZX5 may create a bit more ball speed, but the ZX7 is slightly more forgiving and thus provides more accuracy, according to Srixon. A NOTCH ABOVE Matsuyama is one of the top iron players on TOUR. His average ranking in Strokes Gained: Approach over his eight seasons is 6.6. One interesting characteristic of his Srixon Z-Forged irons are the small notches on the heel and toe sections of the sole. Back in 2021, Srixon told GolfWRX that Matsuyama is a strong believer in the benefits of these notches. “Hideki is one of the leaders in developing the toe and heel notches,” Srixon said. “He strongly believes the toe and heel notch creates a more consistent, smooth turf interaction. Hideki has always had these notches in his irons, and he was a huge part of bringing the notches back in the ZX line.” EYE TEST Matsuyama also is very particular about offset, which is the space between the leading edge on the face of the iron and the hosel. More offset gives players more time to square the club because the clubface is behind the hosel. The clubs for your everyday player have more offset than those used by TOUR players. “With regards to offset, Hideki prefers some offset over zero offset in his irons,” Srixon told GolfWRX. “He has the most specific eye, and he loves to tinker and test all products. The key areas for Hideki when it comes to irons are the general hosel shape and taper consistency, the blend between the face flat and hosel, and most importantly the smooth transitions from the hosel into the leading edge – there needs to be offset as he wants the transition to be smooth and almost straight.” GRIND TIME When it comes to his wedges, Matsuyama is especially discerning about the sole grinds and how they match up with specific course conditions. “Hideki doesn’t change his 52-degree sole often, but he is constantly tinkering with his 56 and 60,” Srixon told GolfWRX. “All three soles have a subtle C-grind shape. The 56- and 60-degree have an aggressive heel relief. Hideki also utilizes a similar subtle leading-edge grind to the one that is in his irons. Hideki will vary the width and bounce angles of the three (soles) depending on the conditions and shots that he is looking to hit. These three tiers as well as the sole radius (the sole curvature from heel to toe) allow us to manipulate the sole design to achieve the turf interaction and versatility that he may be asking for without changing the address shape. In the 56 and 60, Hideki plays a very straight leading edge with little-to-no offset. He plays his 60 and 56 weaker to help remove the offset and maintain a very straight, smooth transition from the hosel to leading-edge.” ON THE GREEN Matsuyama is also constantly testing new Scotty Cameron putters, mostly opting for a Newport-style blade head made of GSS (German Stainless Steel) material, with a single line on the black flange, a red-and-black color scheme, and a smooth milled face. While the particulars of Matsuyama’s gear setup are always changing, and he keeps plenty different options around during practice days, below is Matsuyama’s expected WITB setup come competition time on Thursday at the Masters. Driver: Srixon ZX7 (9 degrees) Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 8TX 3-wood: TaylorMade SIM2 (15 degrees) Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 9TX 5-wood: Cobra RadSpeed (17.5 degrees) Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 10TX Irons: Srixon Z-Forged (4-9 iron) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Wedges: Cleveland RTX 4 Forged (52, 56 and 60 degrees) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Putter: Scotty Cameron GSS prototype Ball: Srixon Z-Star XV

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