PGA TOUR implementing new Integrity Program in 2018

Mitsubishi TENSEI 1K Pro White shafts represent the next evolution of the company’s premium low launch, low spin shaft option. Engineers utilized an abundance of high-tech materials in the creation of the successor to the popular CK Pro White — foremost among these is the 1K Fiber that gives the shaft its name. Super-premium 1K Fiber is three times thinner than Carbon Kevlar, and it produces a tighter, more consistent weave. According to Mitsubishi, this allows for the transmission of more high-frequency vibrations through the shaft to create a signature “1K feel.” In other words, pure shots feel really pure, and on the other side of the coin, it’s easier to tell when a shot hasn’t been struck in the center of the face: a valuable piece of feedback. “The TENSEI 1K series is the result of a years-long collaboration with our team in Japan. TENSEI 1K is the most premium TENSEI part we’ve ever made and uses the most premium materials and most advanced shaft construction technologies we currently have. We pulled out all the stops to try to bring the best shaft we’ve ever made into golfers’ hands across the globe,” said Mark Gunther, VP of Sales and Marketing While the fiber gets top billing, It’s the combination of the 1K Fiber and new XLINK Tech Resin System that showcases the company’s commitment to premium materials and performance. As a refresher, resin binds the layers of a golf shaft together. Unique to Mitsubishi Chemical, XLINK Tech Resin System is an innovative dual-phase process that creates a carbon-rich structure that is universally stronger, while still remaining responsive. According to Gunther, “Tech bonded structures are both higher modulus and higher elongation, two key factors we look for to improve stability.” Tod Boretto, Composite Engineering Executive at Mitsubishi Chemical, broke things down further on the 1K front. What does “1K” refer to exactly? TB: 1K Fiber describes the number of individual carbon fiber filaments that are contained with a fiber bundle. These fiber bundles contain 1,000 (1K) individual filaments of carbon fiber that are smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Normally a carbon fiber bundle, commonly referred to as a “tow” bundle, contains upwards of 3,000 to 12,000 filaments which makes the layers of the carbon weave much thicker and heavier than a carbon weave made from 1K fiber. What does 1K Fiber allow engineers to do, for lack of a better word? TB: The very thin-lightweight nature of the 1K weave allows us to place this layer on the outside of the layered composite construction in the upper section of the shaft where the wall thickness is much thinner than compared to the tip section of the shaft. By placing this thin-lightweight 1K weave in the upper section of the shaft, we minimize the thin section of the shaft from ovalizing during the swing under the loads applied by the golfer. This provides superior stability and minimizes tube deflection. It increases accuracy and face placement of the head at impact. Anything else you’d like to mention about 1K Fiber? TB: An added benefit to the golfer is that the 1K weave is comprised solely of carbon fiber compared to prior TENSEI Designs, which included kevlar/carbon and our proprietary Aluminum Vapor technology. By eliminating the use of materials like Kevlar and Aluminum Vapor, the 1K transmits vibrations from impact faster and over a broader range of frequencies thusly providing critical feedback to the golfer as to where they struck the ball on the face. In other words, ball strikes on the toe or heel of the clubface are more easily felt by the golfer, which allows the golfer to make a swing adjustment while on the course and not in front of a launch monitor. GEARS A final element of the TENSEI 1K Pro White shaft story is the implementation of GEARS 3D motion capture system, which allows Mitsubishi Chemical engineers to measure both the golfer and club simultaneously. Nodes are placed on the club head and shaft to measure how the shaft twists, deflects, droops, loads, etc. For the company, it’s extremely useful to validate new products and prototypes, but equally valuable when it shows designers where to make corrections and adjustments. Zane Nuttall, Manager of Product Development and Innovation on GEARS: “We have always thoroughly tested our products with robotics and player tests. As we continued to apply more resources within this process, we began to work with the GEARS motion capture system to analyze the shaft’s behavior in 3D motion. This allows us to validate existing structures and qualify developmental structures. As we continue to grow, it is important to take our testing processes and systems to the next level.” Weights and flexes TENSEI Pro White 1K 50 (R, S, X, TX Flex) TENSEI Pro White 1K 60 (R, S, X, TX Flex) TENSEI Pro White 1K 70 (S, X, TX Flex) TENSEI Pro White 1K 80 (S, X, TX Flex) This special production will be available only at MCA authorized retailers and dealers with a suggested retail price of $500. (Click here for more information)

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SOUTHPORT, England — It’s been nearly a decade since Royal Birkdale hosted The Open Championship. That means you may need a primer before settling in to watch the 10th Open Championship at these links on the coast of the Irish Sea. Here’s what you need to know to get up to speed on Royal Birkdale. 1. CREAM RISES Nine Open Championships have been conducted at Royal Birkdale. Seven were won by members of the World Golf Hall of Fame, and another one was claimed by a surefire inductee, three-time major winner Padraig Harrington. Eight of the nine Opens at Birkdale were won by players who own multiple majors, and six were won by a player who hoisted the Claret Jug on more than one occasion, including two of the best links players in the history of the game. Both Tom Watson (1983) and Peter Thomson (1965) claimed their fifth and final Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. Thomson finished no worse than second in seven consecutive Opens from 1952-58 (four wins, three runners-up). Watson’s win at Royal Birkdale was his third Open victory in four years (1980, ’82, ’83). The list of winners at Royal Birkdale: 1954: Peter Thomson 1961: Arnold Palmer 1965: Peter Thomson 1971: Lee Trevino 1976: Johnny Miller 1983: Tom Watson 1991: Ian Baker-Finch 1998: Mark O’Meara 2008: Padraig Harrington 2. FAIREST OF THEM ALL Why has Royal Birkdale produced such a strong roster of champions? Perhaps because many players consider Birkdale the “fairestâ€� of the courses on the Open rota. While there’s an infinite amount of opinions about what constitutes a “fairâ€� test, Royal Birkdale’s flat fairways are one reason that many players give the course this assessment. Links courses are known for rolling fairways that were shaped centuries ago. These rolls and swales can lead to unpredictable bounces that can send straight shots bounding into pot bunkers or fescue. Players have less reason for anxiety when their ball lands at Royal Birkdale, though. “You get much more consistent bounces, so the well-struck shots are rewarded and typically end up about where you would anticipate,â€� said Phil Mickelson, who made his Open debut at Royal Birkdale in 1991 (T73) while still an amateur. Why are Royal Birkdale’s fairways flatter than its fellow Open venues? It dates back to the course’s renovation in the first half of the 20th century. Architect Frederick G. Hawtree and five-time Open champion J.H. Taylor, the first English pro to win The Open Championship, routed Royal Birkdale’s holes in the valleys between the property’s sand hills, rather than routing holes over the dunes. This eliminated many of the blind shots and undulating fairways that are commonplace on other links. Another explanation for the strong list of champions here? It is rare to find two consecutive holes at Royal Birkdale that face in the same directions, requiring players to cope with a variety of wind directions. 3. FOREIGN COMMAND Those flat fairways are cited as a potential reason for the success of players from two foreign countries, the United States of America and Australia, at Royal Birkdale. Players from those two countries claimed the course’s first eight Open Championships – five for the Yanks, three for the Aussies. Ireland’s Padraig Harrington finally broke that streak when he won the 2008 Open Championship. Yet the 54-hole leader that year was an Aussie, as 53-year-old Greg Norman tried to win one for the senior set a year before Tom Watson’s thrilling performance at Turnberry. Adam Scott, for one, thinks the success of foreign players at Royal Birkdale is nothing more than coincidence, though he did concede in 2008 that, “some of the links golf courses are a little quirky because they’re so old. “This is certainly a golf course that’s a little more defined than a typical links course because it’s set in amongst the sand dunes and the holes play in between the dunes.â€� 4. TIGHT SQUEEZE While the fairways at Royal Birkdale are fairly flat, they’re also tight. The dunes that line each hole can stand as high as 40 feet tall. They help give spectators unobstructed views but penalize players who stray from the fairway (a plaque on the 16th hole commemorates where Palmer extracted his ball from blackberry bushes en route to his win in 1961). Royal Birkdale’s fairways have an average width of 28 yards, according to Golfweek magazine.  “It’s almost as good a driving test as a U.S. Open,â€� said Justin Rose, who was 17 years old when he finished fourth in the 1998 Open at Royal Birkdale. He, of course, went on to win the 2013 U.S. Open at Merion. In addition to narrow fairways, the course features more than 120 bunkers, including approximately 50 that come into play on tee shots. The emphasis this week will be on driving accuracy, over distance. “It’s pretty darned tough, you know,â€� Miller told PGATOUR.COM. “You have to stay out of those pot bunkers and then those tough pot bunkers and then those mounds that line the fairway with a lot of heather and fescue. If you hit it wild there, it’s pretty tough.â€� Miller said he used a 1-iron on 12 of 14 tee shots per day (on par-4s and par-5s) in his victory in 1976, and he expects the winner to use a similar strategy this year. Many holes feature doglegs that will require players to drive into similar places, so iron play will be the skill that separates players this week. 5. IN THE BLACK A variety of factors determine the winning score in any tournament, but that’s especially true at the Open Championship, where the weather can be as fickle as it is extreme. Links courses have little defense against modern technology when the weather is calm, but high wind and rain are always a possibility. The first seven Opens at Royal Birkdale were won with sub-par scores, but no one has finished under par in the past two trips to Southport. Mark O’Meara shot even par in 1998, while Padraig Harrington’s 3-over 283 was good for a four-shot win in 2008. Winds gusted up to 50 mph that week. Difficult weather along the coast of the Irish Sea contributed to those high scores, but so did some course changes. The greens were rebuilt after the 1991 Open to increase their firmness and contours. Some 6,000 trees were cut down prior to the 1998 Open as well, increasing the exposure to the strong wind that can blow off the Irish Sea. 6. TOUGH START The lengthy summer days on the British Isles allow all player to begin The Open on the first hole. At Royal Birkdale, that means players better be prepared to play from the moment their name is announced. “It hits you hard right away,â€� said Phil Mickelson’s former caddie, Jim Mackay, who will serve as an on-course reporter for NBC/Golf Channel this week. “The first hole is one of the tougher opening holes on The Open Championship rota.â€� Royal Birkdale’s first hole was the second-hardest on the course in 2008, with the 450-yard, par-4 playing to a 4.52 scoring average. There were more scores of double-bogey or worse (40) than birdies (23) on the hole. The first fairway curves in two directions, swinging to the left in the landing area and back to the right around the green. A large mound and pot bunker protect the left side of the fairway, while out-of-bounds is not far from the fairway’s right side. The right side of the green is protected by a large mound. The field averaged nearly a stroke over par (+0.88) on Royal Birkdale’s first two holes in 2008, as players averaged 4.36 strokes on the 421-yard, par-4 second hole. The outward nine features seven par-4s and two par-3s, making for the rare par-34 nine on the PGA TOUR. Also included among the outward nine’s par-4s is the 499-yard, par-4 sixth, a hole that Mackay said “has to be one of the hardest holes in all of golf.â€� 7. FINISHING KICK Royal Birkdale has just two par-5s, and they both come in the final four holes, setting the stage for a late charge … or for a leader to seal his victory with a memorable shot. That’s what happened the last time The Open visited Royal Birkdale, as Harrington secured his win with an eagle at the 17th hole, hitting a 5-wood shot 4 feet from the hole. He had a two-shot lead, but the possibility of an eagle from playing competitor Greg Norman enticed Harrington to take a chance. Tony Jacklin also eagled the 17th to tie Jack Nicklaus in the deciding singles match of the 1969 Ryder Cup and set the stage for one of the most famous moments in the event’s history (more on that below). The 15th hole is 542 yards but often plays into the wind, and the fairway is lined by 13 bunkers. It was among the rarest of finds on the PGA TOUR, a par-5 that played to an over-par scoring average. The field averaged 5.1 strokes in 2008, making it the fourth-hardest par 5 on TOUR that year. There were 93 birdies, compared to 108 scores of bogey or worse. The 17th is 25 holes longer than its compatriot, but it was the easiest hole in 2008. Harrington’s eagle was one of 10 made on the hole that week, and the 17th offered up more than twice as many birdies (191) as the 15th. No. 17 was the only hole to play under par in 2008. 8. AMATEUR HOUR Justin Rose’s hole-out on the 72nd hole of the 1998 Open Championship remains one of the indelible images from Royal Birkdale’s history. Rose, who was just 17 years old, took off his cap and gleefully looked to the sky after he holed out a lengthy pitch shot to finish in fourth place. Amateurs have finished in the top five in the previous two Opens at Royal Birkdale. Ten years later, it was 20-year-old Chris Wood who would find his name on the leaderboards. He finished T5, albeit seven shots behind Harrington. Wood’s T5 at Royal Birkdale in 2008 was the last top-10 by an amateur at The Open until the United States’ Jordan Niebrugge finished T6 at St. Andrews in 2015. There are six amateurs in this year’s field, including Maverick McNealy, who is coming off a T44 finish at last week’s John Deere Classic. McNealy won the Mark H. McCormack medal as the world’s No. 1 amateur. 9. WORTH THE WAIT Royal Birkdale didn’t host its first Open Championship until 1954, nearly a century after the championship began, but since then Royal Birkdale and Royal Liverpool have been the tournament’s most frequent venue (besides, of course, the Old Course at St. Andrews). Royal Birkdale was scheduled to host its first Open in 1940 – four years after its distinctive clubhouse opened – but the event was cancelled because of World War II. The course also hosted the Ryder Cup in 1965 and 1969. The latter ended in a tie after a famous illustration of Jack Nicklaus’ sportsmanship. The competition was tied as Nicklaus and Jacklin, playing in the final match, arrived at the 18th tee. Jacklin had just eagled the 17th hole to draw all square with Nicklaus. The winner of the final hole would win the Ryder Cup. Nicklaus conceded Jacklin’s two-foot putt on the final hole to halve their match, and end the competition in a tie. “”I don’t think you would have missed it, but I wasn’t going to give you the chance, either,â€� Nicklaus told Jacklin, who two months earlier had become the first British winner of The Open since 1951. 10. THE CLUBHOUSE Royal Birkdale’s unique clubhouse will surely draw some eyes this week, as the two-story white structure with large windows sits prominently behind the 18th green. The art deco structure, which opened in 1935, is designed to look like a ship sailing through the sand dunes. It offers panoramic views of England’s Lancashire coastline and the Irish Sea.    

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Brian Gay is the only previous champion of three to tee it up this week as the TOUR heads back to Bermuda for the fourth consecutive season. RELATED: Expert Picks | Sleeper Picks Port Royal Golf Club in Southampton has been the canvas for the previous three editions and will take up that honor again this season. Robert Trent Jones laid out the seaside tract in 1970 and helped bring it up to modern day speed in 1995. The last major renovation was in the 2008-2009 years by Roger Rulewich as he was prepping it for the Grand Slam of Golf (2009-2014). The Par-71 sits at 6,828 for the fourth consecutive edition. Hardly overpowering Port Royal provides only one Par-4 hole stretching past 440 yards. Of the three Par-5 holes two won’t climb past 520 yards and the longest only extends 553 yards. Wind is a constant in this part of the world and defends the course along with elevation changes and doglegs. Only 19 acres of fairway suggests controlling the ball out of the two inches of Bermuda/Zoysia will be a factor this week. The Champion Bermuda greens will be prepped for wind and weather and won’t reach speeds on the Stimpmeter that TOUR pros are used to navigating. Mother Nature will have her say as thunderstorms and rain are in the forecast for tournament days. For the third time in four seasons it will provide full prize pool money and full benefits to the winner. On the line outside of $6.5 million and 500 FedExCup points is a trip to Maui for the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January plus a stroll down Magnolia Lane come April. The previous three winners here have been aged in the 20s, 30s and 40s and were listed at +6000 or worse in pretournament odds. Need more details about the course? Read Rob Bolton’s Power Rankings and Adam Stanley’s The First Look. Please read Statistically Speaking as well! Giddy up! Let’s find Horses for Courses! Horses for Courses High Five -Players listed only if they are in the field for 2022- Brian Gay (Win: +20000; Top 10: +1400; Top 20: +600) Season 2021 champion at age 48. Defense of T12 after playing the final 54 holes 14-under. Claimed T3 in the inaugural event. Owns two rounds of 64 and two rounds of 65 from 12 career total. Patrick Rodgers (Win: +2800; Top 10: +225; Top 20: +200) Only returning player from 2022 top 10 (4th). Best finish in three starts included finding 55 of 72 GIR (3rd) plus just three bogeys and a double. Only hit 20 Fairways. Career best 64 (Round 2) from 12 attempts. Denny McCarthy (Win: +1600; Top 10: +150; Top 20: -145) Final round 63 led to T4 in 2021. Closed 65-68 in 2020 for T15. Kept the streak alive with T39 last season. Of 12 rounds 10 are par or better. Kramer Hickok (Win: +8000; Top 10: +650; Top 20: +300) Hard to ignore three visits all inside T30! All 12 rounds are par or better with 11 in the red. Sat one off the 36 and 54 hole leads in 2021. Cashed T15 on debut followed by T8 and T30 for 30-under aggregate. Russell Knox (Win: +4000; Top 10: +350; Top 20: +170) Breaking my own rule here to include a guy WITHOUT a top 10 payday from three visits! Scotsman sits No. 11 in all-time money cashing T12, T16 and T11. 68.33 scoring average with 10 of 12 rounds in the red. Debut round of 64 is the best. Odds sourced on Tuesday, October 25th at 2 p.m. ET. For live odds visit betmgm. Pipped at the Post Hank Lebioda (Win: +8000; Top 10: +650; Top 20: +300) Lefty closed with 63 on debut in 2020 for T3. Returned for T16 in 2021 before MC last season. Half of his 10 rounds are 68 or better. Harry Higgs (Win: +15000; Top 10: +1200; Top 20: +550) Only visit was 2020 where he was the 54 hole leader by two before finishing second on 20-under. David Hearn (Win: +25000; Top 10: +1600; Top 20: +750) Canadian opened T8-T8 before T39 last season. Of his 12 rounds nine are in the 60s including final round 66s in 2020 and 2021. Ryan Armour (Win: +6600; Top 10: +500; Top 20: +225) Either led or was one back after 18, 36 and 54 holes in 2021 before cashing T8. Matched his debut (T8) finish as first eight rounds were 70 or better. T67 last season included just one round below par. Alex Smalley (Win: +2800; Top 10: +100; Top 20: +225) T12 on debut (10-under) thanks to T12 Fairways, T4 GIR and only five bogeys. Seamus Power (Win: +2200; Top 10: +188; Top 20: -120) Bookend 67s on debut (T12; 10-under) with T12 Fairways and T12 GIR. Circled 18 birdies and an eagle against eight bogeys and a double.. Responsible sports betting starts with a game plan. Set a budget. Keep it social. Play with friends. Learn the game and know the odds. Play with trusted, licensed operators. CLICK HERE to learn more at HaveAGamePlan.org

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