J.R. Smith swings into NIL game, to rep apparel

For the best players in the world, the way a putter feels at impact can determine the longevity of a flat stick. It’s part of the reason why Jordan Spieth, Tiger Woods and Brandt Snedeker, just to name a few, have relied on the same putter or insert for years — they know what they’re getting in the feel department, which allows them to dial-in distance control and improve their overall consistency. For Woods, it’s the firmer, “clickier” feel of the German Stainless Steel on his Scotty Cameron Newport 2 “GSS” putter that allows him to decipher a good putt from a mishit. For others, a softer feel is preferred, giving the sensation of the ball staying on the face slightly longer at impact. With PING’s new Sigma 2 putter series, which consists of 10 head options, the feel shades slightly to the softer side via a dual-durometer Pebax elastomer face material. The lightweight elastomer is commonly used in the sole of athletic shoes for its elasticity properties and high-energy return compound that delivers a soft yet responsive feel at impact. The soft front layer of the face is geared for shorter putts while the firmer back layer offers solid feedback and distance control for long-range efforts. The face design also features PING’s True-Roll (TR) face technology. By varying the depth of the grooves across the face — with the deepest grooves in the center and getting gradually shallower toward the perimeter to equalize ball speed — speed and control can be improved on center-hit and mis-hit putts off the heel or toe. “Feel is difficult to quantify as there are a lot of opinions and preferences about how a putter should feel,â€� said PING president John K. Solheim. “The Sigma 2 has a very soft feel with a lively response, similar to a solid-face putter. It is designed for the golfer who prefers a putter on the softer side of the spectrum but with the response of a firm face, including more consistency on longer putts. Rounding out the offering is a USGA-conforming, adjustable-length shaft that allows the golfer to choose between 32 and 36 inches to fit their stroke and posture. With the help of an adjustable tool that inserts into the top of the grip, length can be increased or decreased a 1/4-inch while the grip remains perfectly aligned during the process. “The adjustable shaft is just a really cool technology,â€� said Solheim. “Our engineers took a very complex technical challenge and simplified it for the benefit of golfers. It allows you to experiment with various lengths and ultimately self-fit yourself. You’re no longer limited to a specific length measurement.” Three pistol grip options are offered in the midsize PP60, slightly heavier PP61 (inspired by the popular PP58) and PP62, which has a more rounded shape to promote “quieter hands.” Here’s a look at all 10 putters (Platinum and Stealth finishes) in the lineup, including the new Fetch mallet. Anser The Anser is the winningest model in PGA TOUR history, and its newest iteration has the traditional heel-toe ballasts that boost MOI, plus pleasing contours, a clean top rail and simple alignment line. The blade design and medium head weight make this putter proficient from any distance. The mid-hang balance targets players with a moderate rotation in their stroke, and thus fits a large percentage of golfers. Putter type: Blade Finish: Platinum or Stealth Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 350 grams Stroke type: Slight Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $215 ZB 2 The ZB with a modern twist. The deeper center cavity and heel-toe weighting increase moment of inertia by more than 25% in this new model and make it as forgiving as an Anser. The heel-shafted weighting is engineered to fit players with more rotation in their stroke and those who have a pull tendency. This putter’s blade design and medium head weight provide versatility from anywhere on the green. Putter type: Blade Finish: Platinum Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 350 gram Stroke type: Strong Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $215 Arna Inspired by the timeless design of the Anser, this mid-mallet model features a flow-style hosel that complements the head’s soft arc shape and compact profile. The 360-gram head weight ensures stability on shorter putts while offering distance control on lag putts. The mid-hang balance fits golfers with a moderate rotation in their stroke. Putter type: Mid-Mallet Finish: Stealth Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 360 grams Stroke type: Slight Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $215 Kushin C This center-shafted model with added emphasis to the toe and heel ballasts will appeal to golfers drawn to the visual symmetry and stability of a face-balanced design. Prominent ball-width alignment features and micro-lines on the center cavity allow for easy alignment. The 360-gram weight and center-shaft design keep the head very stable on short putts in particular. The face-balanced design is optimized for players with very little rotation in their stroke or a push tendency. Putter type: Mid-Mallet Finish: Platinum Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 360 grams Stroke type: Straight Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $215 Fetch A distinctive golf-ball-size center hole in this new design allows you to pick up the ball or remove it from the cup with the putter head and not have to bend down. This circular shape allows for efficient perimeter weighting, creating an extremely high MOI for a putter its size. Its 365-gram head is extremely stable on shorter putts. The face-balanced design works well with players who have little rotation in their stroke or a tendency to push putts. Putter type: Mallet Finish: Platinum Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 365 grams Stroke type: Straight Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $235 Tyne Boasts a PGA TOUR-winning design, back by popular demand for its stability and ease of alignment. New micro-lines visible from address provide added texture and a contrast that amplifies the ball-framing and parallel alignment. The 365-gram head stays extremely stable on short putts and delivers ample feel for longer attempts. The Tyne can be custom built as face-balanced or mid-hang to be optimized for straight or slight-arc stroke types. Putter type: Mallet Finish: Stealth Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 365 grams Stroke types: Straight, Slight Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $235 Tyne 4 The stability and ease of alignment of the original Tyne are re-created in this heel-shafted version. The heavier 370-gram head is optimized for a smoother stroke tempo and designed to improve consistency, especially on shorter putts. The short hosel offers a distinctive – and popular – look at address, and the heel-shafted balance is particularly effective for golfers with more rotation in their stroke or a pull tendency. Putter type: Mallet Finish: Platinum Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 370 grams Stroke type: Strong Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $235 Wolverine H Its angular shape combines with ball-shape geometries and a long alignment line to simplify aiming for improved accuracy. To promote consistency, the heavier 370-gram mallet head provides a very high moment of inertia for extreme forgiveness, especially on shorter putts. The mid-hang balance ensures better all-round performance for a wide range of golfers. Putter type: Mallet Finish: Stealth Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 370 grams Stroke type: Slight Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $235 Valor A new model, this high-MOI mallet features a uniquely designed heel-toe ballast profile that contributes to its incredible stability and ease of aiming, with help from a long, contrasting alignment line. On shorter putts in particular, the added stability of the heavier 365-gram design offers a big performance advantage. This putter can be custom-built as either a face-balanced or mid-hang design to be optimized for golfers with almost any stroke type. Putter type: Mallet Finish: Stealth Adjustable-length shaft: 32 inches to 36 inches Head weight: 365 grams Stroke types: Straight, Slight Arc Lie angle: 20 degrees plus-or-minus four degrees Loft: Three degrees plus-or-minus two degrees Price: $235 PGA TOUR SUPERSTORE: Buy equipment here

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AUGUSTA, Ga. – Sure, Patrick Reed played Augusta National while starring at the college just miles down the road, a privilege extended annually to the Division I schools in the state of Georgia. Those rounds were on a shaggier, slower version of Alister Mackenzie’s masterpiece, though. Reed and his teammates were playing a very different Augusta National on those occasions when they drove down Magnolia Lane instead of the cleverly-named Magnolia Drive (so close, but so far!) that leads into Forest Hills, the public course that the Augusta State Jaguars called their home. The Augusta National that players face during Masters week is almost unrecognizable from the one that’s seen any other week. Conditions change so dramatically on the tournament’s eve that players talk about the Green Jackets “flipping the switchâ€� that makes the course exponentially firmer and faster overnight. That’s why Reed’s experience from his amateur days was little help, if any, when it came to the first major of the year. It showed in the high scores he kept shooting at what could be considered a hometown major. Nine of his 12 rounds at Augusta National were over par and none were lower than 70. His scoring average in his first four Masters was 74.3, and he was 21 over par in his previous six rounds. Last year, he shot 76-77 to miss his second cut in four Masters starts. Not exactly a record that portended future success. It didn’t look like Reed would be adding green to the red, white and blue that already filled his closet. For a player with majors on his mind, the repeated failures at the only annual site of a Grand Slam event was unacceptable. This year, Team Reed embarked on a “deep diveâ€� to try to solve the riddle that is Augusta National. That meant back-to-back, eight-hour days in the week heading into the 2018 Masters. On the first day, they only played four holes – Nos. 1, 2, 12 and 13 – while walking the golf course with a local caddie to look for the ideal lines off the tees and flat putts on the undulating greens. Kirk estimates they hit 20 shots in those eight hours. “Maybe 30,â€� he said. “And about 5,000 putts.â€� The next day, they played 18 holes in eight hours, a pace that makes Saturday at your local muni look like a two-ball with Brandt Snedeker and Usain Bolt. Reed hit multiple tee shots on each hole, searching for the optimal target for all the potential combinations of wind direction and hole location. They took their time around the greens, as well. “To play well on this golf course, you have to operate on such a non-linear plane,â€� Kirk said. “If you try to just go point-to-point (in a straight line), you’re going to get killed out here.â€� On Monday of Masters week, while most eyes were trained on the threesome of Tiger Woods, Fred Couples and Justin Thomas, Reed played alone behind them. It took him three hours to play nine holes. The long hours were worthwhile. Team Reed cracked the code, resulting in the first major championship for its 27-year-old CEO. Reed used his exhaustive education of Augusta National to shoot 15-under 273, just three shots off the tournament’s scoring record. His first three sub-70 rounds at the home of the Masters (69-66-67) gave him a three-shot lead after 54 holes. The final round wasn’t as good, but it was good enough. He hung tough through the trials and travails that can be expected on a player’s maiden voyage into major contention. He finished one shot ahead of Rickie Fowler and two ahead of a surging Jordan Spieth, who shot a final-round 64 despite a bogey at the final hole. Reed also held off Rory McIlroy, with whom he played in the final group. McIlroy shot a final-round 74 to extend his quest for the Career Grand Slam another year. Reed couldn’t help but notice that the fans and media were pulling for those other players. He thrives on slights, both real and perceived. It’s why his best play is in international Cup competition. “No one expects me to go out and win,â€� said Reed, who admit that the lack of support “fueled my fire.â€� Most of his peers will avoid listening to TV commentators in the hours before the final round, but Reed was watching when all but one of Golf Channel’s commentators picked him to lose his three-shot lead. Reed also noticed the tepid response he received on the first tee, compared to the enthusiastic roars for “Rors.” Combine Sunday’s lack of support with his copious course notes, and it created a winning combination. Late on Sunday afternoon, one of Augusta National’s club professionals congratulated Kirk on his student’s victory. “No one worked harder,â€� he said. Reed now has six PGA TOUR victories, including a major, World Golf Championship and FedExCup Playoffs event. He’s fifth in this season’s FedExCup standings. Like many of his peers, Reed uses a collective noun when discussing his on-course efforts. Team Reed includes his wife and former caddie, Justine; her brother, Kessler, who now carries Patrick’s bag; Kirk, the swing coach, and Gregory, Reed’s college coach at Augusta State who now serves as his performance coach. They spent the past few months trying to find Patrick the right clubs after he struggled last year with his equipment. He started the year without an equipment deal, giving himself the freedom to tinker but also the burden of experimenting with the endless options available. “It was a big distraction,â€� Kirk said. “Instead of spending time on skill training and doing things to help his golf game, we were testing shafts and heads and balls.â€� The setup he used to win the Masters wasn’t finalized until last month. He settled on a Ping G400 driver at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and put a Titleist Pro V1 into play at the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship. He also put an old set of Callaway irons in his bag earlier this year. The new clubs helped him have three consecutive top-10 finishes entering the Masters, including a runner-up at the Valspar Championship. Justine is more than just the mother of their two children, three-year-old Windsor Wells and four-month-old Barrett Benjamin. She’s involved in all his decisions, even poring through the data to find the holes at Augusta National that gave her husband trouble. Patrick credited her for convincing him to hit 3-wood off the first tee instead of driver, which helped him play one of the course’s hardest holes in even par. He’d averaged 4.7 strokes on the hole in his previous Masters. He birdied the hole for the first time in this year’s second round. A change in trajectories also helped. The standard scouting report on Reed notes his strong preference for a draw. He worked to add a fade before the Masters to help him hit some of the fairways he’d consistently struggled to find. When Reed had trouble producing that shot shape during a practice session, Kirk told him to “scrap all the rulesâ€� and do whatever it took to move the ball left-to-right. It required an exaggerated swing, with an Arnold Palmer-esque follow-through, for Reed to go against his natural ball flight. He had hesitations about unveiling the unorthodox swing on TOUR, but the shot was crucial to his victory. Finding more fairways is important for Reed, who isn’t one of these 20-somethings who gets it done with prodigious distance off the tee. He ranks 52nd on TOUR in driving distance (299.4 yards). “When he can be in the fairway, he’s tough to beat,â€� Gregory said. “He’s as good as anybody in the world from 150 yards and in.â€� Augusta National famously favors a draw, the trajectory played by its co-founder Bobby Jones, but there are several holes where it helps to hit the tee shot left-to-right, including the par-5 eighth and 15th holes, as well as the finishing hole. The new shot shape was one reason Reed was on record-setting pace on the par-5s, playing his first 12 in 13 under par. He eagled both of the second nine’s par-5s on Saturday to take control of the tournament. He parred all four on Sunday, but still was just two shots off the tournament’s par-5 scoring record. Clinging to a one-shot lead, he played the 18th hole perfectly to clinch his first major. “He’s a throwback. He’s a shotmaker. He loves to move the ball,â€� said Gregory, who celebrated his 43rd birthday Sunday by watching his student’s victory. “Augusta rewards a creative mind, not someone who only sees only one shot, especially around the greens.â€� But it also takes local knowledge. That was the added ingredient this year. “It takes time to learn this golf course,â€� Gregory said. “Jordan Spieth is the exception.â€� And, for this year, Patrick Reed rules.

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