Kim leads by 1 after 1st round at Valero Open

With Tiger Woods set to descend upon Augusta National, another generation of fans will get to witness some golf magic that seemed, not so long ago, improbable.

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As players get bigger, faster and stronger on the PGA TOUR, low-launch, low-spin driver shafts have become commonplace for those with high swing speeds. Fujikura’s Ventus is the latest shaft to offer what the shaft manufacturer calls a “TOUR-driven tip stiff profile” with low torque throughout the shaft. For those players with high swing speeds, low torque throughout the shaft should reduce twisting at impact for a tighter overall dispersion. The stiff overall profile comes from a full length pitch 70-ton pitch fiber at 45 degrees in the bias layer that’s designed to improve consistency and was shown to boost Moment of Inertia (MOI) for more center face strikes during testing. During the Safeway Open, TOUR winner Cody Gribble and Andrew Landry became the first two players to use the shaft in their driver (Gribble) and fairway wood (Landry). Gribble noted during testing that his impact location was better overall with Ventus than the company’s Speeder Pro Tour Spec shaft he was using at the time. Ventus is currently offered on TOUR in three different models (6, 7 and 8) and two flexes (6-S, 6-X, 7-S, 7-X and 8-X). Weights range from the mid 60 grams (6-S and 6-X) to mid 80 grams (8-X).

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Former champion Adam Scott gave early bird fans at The Honda Classic a thrill when he stripped off his shoes and pulled off a stunning par save from the water at PGA National. Scott's approach shot on the par-4 11th hole - his second of the round - found itself drifting right from his line and came down short and in the water hazard. But with the ball only partially submerged Scott decided to attempt to play it from the wet muddy lie - local alligators be damned! RELATED: Affect of water balls on Florida Swing "I blocked my 7-iron and when I got up there I figured I could play it, but I called in a rules official because incredibly there were some electrical cables in the penalty area around my ball that I needed to move," Scott explained to PGATOUR.com. "I was able to move them, get my shoes and socks off, roll the trousers up, get my waterproof jacket on and get in the water with my lob wedge. From there I just played it like a full bunker explosion shot and got it to about 12-feet." For a split second it looked like the veteran might overbalance on his follow through and go for a swim, but he showed great poise to stay relatively dry. Scott then converted the 11-foot, 10-inch par putt - a critical save given he'd already bogeyed his opening hole. "It took a little bit of time to get the pond mud off me but was certainly nice to make the putt. Easy par right?" he smiled. Scott is familiar with the water around the course having won the trophy in 2016 despite making a quadruple bogey with two water balls in the third round. He also entered this week tied with Hideki Matsuyama having the most water balls (11) of the 2021 Florida swing thus far. Thankfully for the 16-time PGA TOUR winner his 12th wet shot in the last few weeks didn't hurt him on the scorecard and he eventually signed for a steady 1-under 69. "You can survive hitting it in the water once or maybe twice for a tournament," Scott said Tuesday. "The experience of playing these Florida golf courses for 20 years, it’s inevitable you’re going to hit one in the water, especially around here when it’s windy. You’re going to have to accept it and do the best you can to get past that hole and rebuild." Scott wasn't the only player to get his gear off at the 11th on Thursday. Sebastian Cappelen also found himself in a similar predicament and decided to attempt the shot sans shoes and shirt. The bare-chested Dane - who did find the green but was unable to convert his par putt - brought back memories of former FedExCup champion Henrik Stenson playing a shot from the water at Doral in 2009 in his underwear. The greatest water shot on TOUR though surely must be that of Bill Haas in the 2011 TOUR Championship. In a playoff with Hunter Mahan - with $11.4million on the line - Haas got up and down from the hazard on the 17th hole to stay alive and won the FedExCup a hole later.

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