Golf Blog

Archive for May, 2008

In November 2006 Justin Rose won the Australian Masters, claiming his first title for four years. His renewed consistency, including a top 5 finish at the 2007 Masters has seen him surpass his previous best world ranking, by reaching number 26 in April 2007.

As previously mentioned, Rose uses TaylorMade equipment and his driver is a TaylorMade R7 SuperQuad TP driver. The TaylorMade r7 SuperQuad driver features an all-black clubhead, which combined with TaylorMade’s Inverted Cone Technology produces an extremely-high effective moment of inertia. The r7 SuperQuad driver’s exceptionally low-deep centre of gravity and massive club face area makes this driver exceptionally easy to launch on a high, strong trajectory for long carry and phenomenal distance.

Sergio Garcia won his first PGA Tour tournament at the 2001 MasterCard Colonial and won again at the Buick Classic the same year. In 2002, he won the Mercedes Championships and in 2004, Garcia won the EDS Byron Nelson Championship and the Buick Classic for the second time. His sixth PGA Tour victory came at the 2005 Booz Allen Classic. He also plays a limited schedule on the European Tour, where he has won six times. In May 2008, Garcia won The Players Championship on the PGA Tour in a playoff against Paul Goydos. Goydos made double bogey while Garcia made par for the win.

Garcia plays with TaylorMade TP Red Balls. TaylorMade’s TP Red Balls is the embodiment of every Tour player’s ball preference. They have been designed to achieve a tour-calibre trajectory and explosive distance off the tee with that sweet drop and stop accuracy while its innovative dimple design keeps it carrying farther and faster.

Built around an NdV4 Super-Core that’s larger than the TP Black, TaylorMade’s TP Red Balls deliver high COR off the clubface for remarkably fast ball speed and improved distance. Boosted by a thin multi-blend ionomer mantle designed to promote a tour-calibre launch angle and spin off the driver and irons for optimum distance with a winning combination of softer sound and feel. Garcia has been reported as being a big participant in the development process of the TaylorMade TP Red Balls.

Padraig Harrington’s professional career began with success at the European Tour School where he earned his full Tour card for 1996. He made the cut at each of his first nine European Tour events, including five top-10 finishes and a remarkable win at the Spanish Open.

In July 2007 Harrington became the first Irishman to win The Open Championship in 60 years, when he defeated Sergio Garcia in a four-hole playoff. Both players went into the playoff having shot a 7 under 277 for the championship, Harrington subsequently won by one shot.

Harrington’s putter is the Odyssey White Hot XG 2-Ball Putter. The White Hot XG 2-Ball Putter utilises a multi-layer insert that takes feel, feedback and distance control to the next level. Insert Technology allows weight to be shifted to the perimeter of the putter head for a high Moment of Inertia, creating enhanced forgiveness and a superior roll. The new White Hot XG 2-Ball Putters are most responsive putter Odyssey have ever created.

Ernie Els started to play golf properly when he was about 8 years old and is now recognised as one of golf’s truly global players.

In March 2008, Els won the Honda Classic. Els shot a final round 67 in tough windy conditions, which was enough to give him the win by one stroke over Luke Donald. The win marked the end of a three and a half year long stretch without a win on the PGA Tour for Els. The win was his 16th PGA Tour victory of his career.

When not playing golf, Els has a golf course design business, a charitable foundation which supports golf for underprivileged children in South Africa, and a highly-regarded wine-making business.

The irons that Els uses are Callaway X-Forged Irons. X-Forged Irons are built for experienced golfers who are looking for perfect shot making and distance control golf club. Callaway X-Forged Irons have a shorter blade length and the thinnest top-line and narrow sole, meaning that the X-Forged Irons provide the serious golfer with every attribute expected in a quality set of irons.

Miguel Angel Jimenez sealed victory at the BMW PGA Championship on the second play-off hole with a birdie at the 18th after Oliver Wilson only made par. Both players carded final-round 68s, ending up on 11 under, with Jimenez firing a hole-in-one at the 5th.

Jimenez was in joint second with Wilson going into the final day and both players fought out an enthralling duel as Robert Karlsson fell away, the lead changing several times.

Wilson, seven times a runner-up on the European Tour now without ever winning, had four birdies in his opening seven holes while Jimenez briefly moved to 12 under with three birdies and that hole in one.

Jimenez’s victory means that Open champion Padraig Harrington drops out of the top 10 on Europe’s Ryder Cup list while Wilson is now in an automatic spot for the first time in seventh place.

Tiger Woods is considered one of the most charismatic figures in golf’s history; He aims for consistency and although he is better than any other Tour player when he is on top form, his dominance comes from avoiding bad rounds instead of regularly posting extremely low rounds.

Woods plays fewer tournaments than most professionals, and focuses his efforts on preparing for the Majors as well as the best of the rest. Woods is just as cautious off the course as he is when he is on the course; he carries himself in interviews and public appearances with a carefully controlled manner. Woods remains the only golfer to have had more than one streak of at least five straight wins on the PGA Tour.

Tiger Woods’ choice of fairway is the Nike SQ 2 Fairway. The SQ 2 Fairway Woods feature a Monorail Sole design which cuts through all types of lies. Nike have also added weight to the perimeter of the Nike PowerBow to move the Centre of Gravity further back than the original SQ Fairway Wood, which results in higher launch and greater distance.

Trevor Immelman turned professional in 1999. In 2000 he played mainly on the second tier professional tour in Europe, the Challenge Tour, and finished tenth on the Order of Merit. He became a full member of the European Tour in 2001 and has made the top twenty of the Order of Merit three times. He withdrew from the 2006 Open Championship to be with her for the birth of their first child, when he returned in 2007 he finished tied for 60th place. So far this year he has won The Masters tournament so no doubt he will be looking to finish higher than joint 60th at this year’s Open.

Immelman wears Nike Golf Air Tour TW 8.5 Shoes. Whether you’re walking up the 18th of The Royal Birkdale or the 1st of your local golf course, the Air Tour TW 8.5 Shoes will keep you dry, comfortable and balanced when you’re doing your thing. Nike’s Air-Sole unit in the heel works together with a low-profile Air unit to provide lightweight cushioning and comfort with enhanced feel and performance through your weight shift. The natural flex of the foot needed to walk the course in comfort is enhanced with Forefoot Flex Channel grooves. Regardless of terrain, your foot flexes where it’s supposed to, especially on demanding uneven ground and hilly lies.

Luke Donald reached the top ten in the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time in his career in 2006. Donald is mainly found on the U.S. based PGA Tour but is also a member of the European Tour. In January 2007, he reached a career high ranking of 7, and was briefly the highest ranked European golfer and has spent over 50 weeks in the top ten.

Donald plays with Mizuno equipment from tee to green and the irons he uses are Mizuno MP-32 Irons. Mizuno have been making golf equipment since 1906 and since then they have been improving on their tradition of producing superior golf equipment to bring golfers the equipment they need to improve their game. Mizuno MP-32 irons use Mizuno’s patented Grain Flow Forging technology and the breakthrough Cut Muscle design. The MP-32 Cut Muscle design caters for the aggressive shot making of modern golf. Cut Muscle offers both shot making versatility and stability, maintaining a neutral shot bias throughout the set. The centre of gravity is placed 25% deeper than within the MP-33 to create the stability needed for greater trajectory control and aggressive shot-making. Modified U-grooves produce the ideal spin rate for maximum playability in all conditions. Rolled leading edge, cambered mid-sole, and rolled trailing edge deliver consistent striking ability from all types of lies. Mizuno MP-32 delivers long irons that sail high and long, and mid to short irons that produce a penetrating flight to the pins.

Vijay Singh was number one in the Official World Golf Rankings for 32 weeks in 2004 and 2005. His name means Victorious Lion, and he has lived up to it numerous times as he has won three major championships (The Masters in 2000 and the PGA Championship in 1998 and 2004) and was the leading PGA Tour money winner in 2003 and 2004.

Singh uses Cleveland golf equipment and his fairway of choice is the Cleveland Launcher Steel Fairway. The new and improved Launcher steel fairway woods feature a lower profile head which makes it easier to get the ball up in the air. The new Launcher Steel version launches the ball higher than the first generation and produces less backspin than the original for incredible ball flight that results in added carry.

With 33 career victories since making his professional debut at the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, Phil Mickelson ranks second among active players and recently passed Horton Smith to become 13th on the all-time wins list. Phil is nicknamed “Lefty” because of his left-handed swing, even though ordinarily he is right-handed, and is the only left-handed player to win the U.S. Amateur Championship.

Mickelson’s equipment sponsor is Callaway, all of the clubs in his bag are Callaway golf clubs, even his shoes and gloves are made by Callaway. Mickelson’s Driver of choice is the Callaway FT-5 Driver.

Callaway FT-5 Drivers are the most recent advancement in clubhead design utilising Callaway’s innovative Fusion Technology. Fusion Technology creates a unique 50 grams of discretionary weight which provides outstanding stability on off-centre hits, while enabling ball flight customisation for optimal individual performance. The FT-5 Tour Driver has a slightly open face for a look preferred by more accomplished players. The FT-5 Driver offers exceptional distance, performance, accuracy and confidence.