Weekly 18: Losses lead to wins — just ask Kizzire, who edged Fowler

Throughout this year, GolfWRX.com has been hard at work on the Equipment Report, keeping PGATOUR.com readers informed on the latest equipment releases, player staff deals, “What’s in the Bag?” (WITB) changes, custom Tour designs, and the stories behind them all. Here are the top 10 gear and equipment stories on TOUR in 2022. 1. Tiger Woods makes big equipment changes in 2022 Woods teed it up just three times on TOUR, including the Masters, PGA Championship and The 150th Open. In every appearance he made, however, Woods made headlines in the equipment world. At the Masters, Woods showed up with essentially the same club setup he used when playing in the 2021 PNC Championship, but he shocked the world with a change to his footwear. For decades, Woods has been the face of Nike Golf shoes, but due to his prior injuries and surgical repair, he wore FootJoys at the Masters instead. He explained the surprising switch-up in a press conference: “I have very limited mobility now,” he said. “Just with the rods and plates and screws that are in my leg, I needed something different, something that allowed me to be more stable. That’s what I’ve gone to. Nike’s been fantastic over the years of providing me with equipment … and … we’ve been working on trying to find something to allow me to do this and swing again. We’re still going to continue doing it, and hopefully we’ll have something soon.” At the PGA, Woods arrived with new irons and wedges in the bag. He started Thursday using two new TaylorMade P770 driving irons (2 and 3), each with True Temper’s new Dynamic Gold MID Tour Issue X100 shafts. The MID shaft was launched in 2022 and is designed for slightly higher spin and launch angles compared to the True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts he uses in his TaylorMade P-7TW irons (4-PW). During rounds two and three at Southern Hills, though, Woods played with just one of the P770 driving irons, opting to put his usual TaylorMade M3 5-wood back in the bag. He was also using two new TaylorMade MG3 Raw wedges (56 and 60 degrees), which were newer models compared to the MG2 wedges he used at the Masters. Then, at The 150th Open at St. Andrews, Woods made four changes to his bag setup: 1) He changed into a Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X shaft in his TaylorMade Stealth Plus 9-degree driver. 2) He switched into a True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shaft in his TaylorMade P770 3-iron. 3) He continued using an MG3 Raw 60-degree wedge, but switched back into an MG2 56-degree wedge. 4) He added lead tape to the back cavity of his Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter. Check out Woods’ full WITB from The Open Championship at St. Andrews: Driver: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (9 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X 3-wood: TaylorMade SIM Titanium (15 degrees) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70T X 5-wood: TaylorMade M3 (19 degrees) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80 TX Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3-iron), TaylorMade P-7TW (4-PW) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 Wedges: TaylorMade MG2 (56 degrees), TaylorMade MG3 Raw (60 degrees) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS prototype Ball: 2022 Bridgestone Tour B XS Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord Here are changes he made for the PNC Championship, a 36-hole scramble alongside son Charlie; the duo finished T8. 2. J.R. Smith’s show-stopping purple Bettinardi putter After retiring from the NBA, basketball star J.R. Smith enrolled at North Carolina A&T and joined the school’s golf team. In August, Smith played in the BMW Championship Pro-Am, and he dropped jaws with his custom purple Bettinardi Inovai 6.0 putter with star engravings on the face, and a wild hosel construction. “I’ve been fortunate to be in a situation where people want to help me, and help my golf game get better,” Smith said. “So it worked out. One of my boys who took me (to Bettinardi), he had a purple (putter). Then it was like, alright, I gotta outdo him, or we gotta match a little bit. So we both went with the purple.” Speaking with Tom Sopic from Bettinardi’s Hive Team, GolfWRX learned that Smith visited the company’s custom fitting studio in Tinley Park, Illinois to get dialed into his 38-inch putter. “He’s obsessed with the game of golf, and it has become a major passion in his life,” Sopic said. “He hit seven putts in a row on Quintic (a putting analysis system) that had perfect numbers in all categories right after he got his new putter. The iconic Stinger Bees on the sole are a staple within the Bettinardi brand, and a major symbol of The Hive. “His putter is a one-of-one, with a star-engraved 1.5-degree face piece, fitting for the superstar that is J.R. Smith.” Read the full story here 3. Scottie Scheffler signs with TaylorMade, dumps his longtime Nike fairway wood Scheffler had an unbelievably hot start to the year, winning two PGA TOUR events before March (2022 WM Phoenix Open, Arnold Palmer Invitational). At the time, Scheffler was an equipment free agent, so he could play any clubs he wanted. The week of THE PLAYERS Championship, however, Scheffler announced that he signed an equipment deal with TaylorMade. While the timing seemed odd, Scheffler justified the decision by notching two more wins at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and The Masters Tournament. He explained the TaylorMade decision to GolfWRX’s Two Guys Talking Golf podcast following his Masters victory: “I would say first and foremost [the reason] would be the driver,” Scheffler said. “I already used the (TaylorMade P-7TW) irons for a while. I like the irons. But the (TaylorMade Stealth Plus) driver, when we did testing over the winter, I saw some pretty nice gains. It was one of those things, like, I know I’m going to use this driver, I know I’m going to use the irons, so maybe let’s see if we can work something out. Just because having consistency with their brand, obviously I trust what they do. To be part of the family and be part of the team was pretty cool for me, and so we wanted to work something out with them, and we were able to get it done. I’m happy to be part of the team.” Scheffler made a noteworthy fairway wood switch before the Masters, too. Prior to signing with TaylorMade, he’d been using a Nike VR Pro Limited 13-degree fairway wood for years, but he switched into a new TaylorMade Stealth HL 16.5-degree. “One of the things I’ve struggled with was actually hitting 3-woods too far, and also just not seeing all my shots,” Scheffler told GolfWRX. “These guys did something to the (Fujikura Ventus) shaft, honestly I can’t even remember what they did, but it was something with the tipping. They may have tipped it a couple extra inches and moved some weight around the head, and then started with a higher loft and bent it down…and it was a pretty seamless transition. I saw the shots I wanted to see. My mishits were more accurate with the TaylorMade than they were than my Nike.” We spoke to Scheffler in-depth about his equipment, and what it was like to have a green jacket for the first time. Check out that full story here 4. Justin Thomas puts (another) 1-of-1 Scotty Cameron putter in play Thomas won the PGA Championship in May with a custom Scotty Cameron T5 prototype with a “knuckle neck,” but he put an all-new Scotty Cameron T5 prototype in play at the BMW Championship. Aside from the obvious aesthetic customizations – which include his personal “JT” logo – the new putter was built a half-inch shorter than his previous putter to let his arms hang more naturally. “For me, a tendency I have with my putting is to get a little bit this way (left shoulder up) and open,” Thomas said. “I’ve … been playing a lot of golf with Patrick Cantlay. He obviously has very long arms and his putter is very short. (I was noticing) just how naturally his arms go on the club, and I felt like that wasn’t the case for me … and I think that has something to do with my bad tendencies. “If I can be a little bit more comfortable at setup, then that’s obviously one less factor I have to worry about.” Unbeknownst to the public, the new “JT” putter had been in the works since February. Click the link here to read the full story After all the putter switches and custom builds throughout the year, however, Thomas ended up right back into the Scotty Cameron X5 Tour mallet putter that he started the year with. He played in the Hero World Challenge, The Match and the PNC Championship using his trusty X5 Tour putter. As the new year approaches, Thomas’ putter decisions will be interesting to follow. Will he commit to his old flame, will he find comfort in one of the new prototypes he tested in 2022, or he will he bring out some all-new 2023 prototypes? 5. Tiger Slam irons up for auction The clubs purportedly used by Tiger Woods during the Tiger Slam (his wins at the 2000 U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship, 2001 PLAYERS and Masters) went up for auction in March. The clubs were first bought in 2010 by Houston businessman Todd Brock, who publicly acknowledged for the first time that he was the owner of the clubs. He kept them in a frame in his office after purchasing them. Why sell them now? He wants someone else to enjoy them. “I got to enjoy them for 11-12 years,” Brock told PGATOUR.COM. “I live a boring life. I don’t entertain a whole lot, so they weren’t getting the eyes on them that they deserve.” Click here for the full story. 6. Custom iron trend 2022 was undoubtedly the year of new custom “personal” player irons on the PGA TOUR. Adam Scott debuted his mysterious personal-logoed Miura irons at the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday. Justin Rose unveiled his “JR” Miura irons on Halloween, and he provided further context at the Cadence Bank Houston Open. Later on, Webb Simpson revealed his Titleist 682.WS irons at The RSM Classic. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Collin Morikawa – one of the best iron players on the PGA TOUR throughout his career – switched into TaylorMade P7CM custom irons at the Hero World Challenge. The new prototypes replaced his previous TaylorMade P-730 short irons, which he had in the bag for over four years. “They’re brand new,” Morikawa said in the Bahamas. “I’ve been using them for probably two weeks now. They’re not too far off from the P730s that I’ve been using pretty much since I turned pro. I was fortunate enough to do some iron testing with TaylorMade – which I’ve never done – and go into the whole sole pattern, and bounce, and width of an iron. There’s nothing wrong with 730s, I … love them, that’s why I played them for probably four-and-a-half years now. But there’s just certain shots here and there that come out of nowhere.” It seems the trend of PGA TOUR players switching into ultra-custom irons isn’t slowing down as 2023 approaches. Which player joins the custom wave next? Stay tuned. 7. Scottie Scheffler’s putter saga Scheffler kept the equipment world on its toes in 2022 by signing with TaylorMade and making several impactful gear switches early in the year. His putter switch-ups late in the year kept things entertaining, as well. At the beginning of 2022, Scheffler switched into a Scotty Cameron Special Select Timeless Tourtype GSS prototype blade putter, and it stayed in the bag for each of his four PGA TOUR victories. A cold stretch with the putter in the middle of the year, however, ultimately culminated in Scheffler debuting a new Scotty Cameron T-5.5 Proto mallet putter at THE CJ CUP in South Carolina” “I typically don’t like changing equipment at all, but I’ve been using (the new putter) now for probably two, three weeks,” Scheffler said at THE CJ CUP. “Late in the year I putted what felt like to me pretty poorly, I was really streaky. I was trying a few different things and that’s not really a way to improve when … felt like I was kind of blindly throwing darts just trying to find something. Sometimes I was lining the ball up, sometimes I wasn’t.” The switch didn’t last long, though, and Scheffler switched back into the Special Select Timeless blade before his weekend rounds at the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba, which he concluded with rounds of 68-62. “It never goes too far away,” said Scheffler following his 9-under 62 with his familiar putter. “It’s probably something I’ll continue to fiddle around with, but I went back to something I’m really comfortable with and I putted well the last two days.” Scheffler finished T3 in Mexico, T9 at the Cadence Bank Houston Open and runner-up at the Hero World Challenge to finish up his year. Don’t be surprised if the four-time winning Special Select Timeless has a solidified place in Scheffler’s bag throughout 2023. 8. Inside John Daly’s wild golf bag and recent gear changes Wedges covered with lead tape? Just another day at the office for John Daly. Click here for the full story. Daly’s son John II isn’t afraid to experiment with his setup either. Click here for more on his wild 3-iron utilized at the PNC Championship. 9. Tony Finau heartwarming, hilarious ball markings While some players use dots or lines to give their balls a unique appearance, Finau marks his kids’ initials on his Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot ball. They have to earn their way onto daddy’s ball, however. He doesn’t put all five sets of initials on each ball. He starts with one set, then cycles through the roster based on performance. He’ll use his wife’s initials, as well. Click here for the full story. 10. Tom Hoge wins with one-of-a-kind putter North Dakota native Tom Hoge earned his first career TOUR title at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February, utilizing a custom putter with a long line and plumber’s neck, the likes of which are not commonly seen on TOUR. His caddie played a part as well. Click here for the full story.

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The Super Season comes to a close this week. The TOUR’s top 30 performers are at East Lake Golf Club to for the finale of a 50-event run that included six major championships. Under the TOUR Championship’s Standing Strokes format, a player’s performance in the previous 49 events will determine his standing before he tees off Thursday (click here to see what the leaderboard will look like before play begins). Only one man can win the FedExCup but just making it to East Lake is an impressive accomplishment. Here’s a quick look at the 30 men who separated themselves from the pack and made it to this year’s TOUR Championship. RELATED: Course, field preview for The TOUR Championship | FedExCup 101 | How they will begin with ‘Starting Strokes’

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