Making his first start as a Nationwide Tour member, Titleist Brand Ambassador Robert Gates sealed a one-shot victory in the Michael Hill New Zealand Open over fellow Titleist Brand Ambassador Andrew Dodt. Gates finished at 14-under 274 for the tournament, and became the 13th player to win in his Nationwide Tour debut. He began the 2010 season with full exempt status on the Nationwide Tour after finishing T-42 at the 2009 PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament, and the win extends his status on the Tour through 2011 and additionally gives him full exempt status on the PGA Tour of Australasia through 2012 should he wish to accept membership.
Gates led from the first round of the Nationwide Tour season-opener and had extended his lead to six shots by the 8th hole in the final round, but some wayward shots combined with birdies from the Australian Dodt saw the pair equal at 14-under with two holes to play. Dodt found trouble on the 71st hole, however, and his double-bogey gave Gates his two-shot margin back heading to the final hole. Through the green in two shots, Gates made a clutch three-footer to get up-and-down for par after Dodt had made birdie, thus securing the one shot victory.
Titleist Brand Ambassador Robert Gates with the Michael Hill New Zealand Open trophy.
What’s in Robert Gates’ bag at the Michael Hill New Zealand Open:
Ball: Pro V1x
Driver: 909D3 (9.5°, UST Mamiya ATTAS 9X)
Fairway: 909F3 (13°, Fujikura ZCOM Pro95 X)
Irons: MB (4-PW, True Temper Project X 6.5)
Wedges: Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C 252.08, Spin Milled C-C 256.14, Spin Milled C-C 60-V (all wedges with True Temper Project X 6.5)
Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Newport Fastback
February 2nd, 2010
PGA Tour – Farmers Insurance Open:
Ben Crane Captures the Farmers Insurance Open
Titleist Pro V1x loyalist Ben Crane collected his third career PGA Tour victory at the Farmers Insurance Open. The win vaulted Ben from 109th to 56th in the Official World Golf Ranking, putting him inside the coveted field of 64 for the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. The win was Crane’s fourth top-ten finish in six starts at Torrey Pines, including a T-7 finish at the 2009 tournament.
Crane led the field in greens in regulation, hitting 87.5% for the week. 2009 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Marc Leishman (T-2) was fourth in GIR, hitting 79.2%.
Michael Sim (T-2) was the best putter last week at Torrey Pines, averaging 27.3 putts per round and 1.596 putts per greens in regulation with his Scotty Cameron Newport Squareback.
Tour rookie Rickie Fowler (T-5) made his first start at the Farmers Insurance Open, but not at Torrey Pines. He played the 2008 United States Open as an amateur, finishing T-60.
PGA Tour rookie and Pro V1x loyalist Alex Prugh should circle this week on his calendar every year. He finished in a tie for fifth at the Farmers Insurance Open this year and was hoisting the trophy at the Nationwide Tour’s Michael Hill New Zealand Open in 2009.
Rookie Troy Merritt, 2009 PGA Tour Qualifying School medalist, has now fired six rounds in the 60s in his first 13 rounds on Tour. Merritt’s T-15 finish followed up a T-63 at the Bob Hope Classic and T-20 at the Sony Open.
Brendon de Jonge (T-37) fired the only bogey-free round of the weekend when he posted a 70 during Saturday’s third round.
Worldwide Tours:
Robert Karlsson won the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, capping his comeback from an eye ailment that plagued him for most of the 2009 season. Karlsson’s victory lifted him to 17th in the Official World Golf Ranking. This was Robert’s tenth European Tour victory and first since the Alfred Dunhill Links in October 2008.
Rookie Robert Gates won his very first Nationwide Tour start at the Michael Hill New Zealand Open. Gates started the 2010 season with full exempt status on the Nationwide Tour after finishing T-42 at the 2009 PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament. Gates, who turned pro in 2008, played one other Tour event as a pro, finishing T-47 at the 2009 Valero Texas Open.
February 1st, 2010
Much like countryman Marc Leishman, Titleist Brand Ambassador Michael Sim also spent a portion of his practice days for the Farmers Insurance Open visiting the various Titleist facilities near Torrey Pines Golf Course to help him prepare for his 2010 PGA Tour season. Michael hopes to continue the strong form that saw him capture the 2009 money title/Order of Merit on both the Nationwide Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia, Player of the Year honors on the Nationwide Tour, a “battlefield promotion” to the PGA Tour courtesy of three wins on the Nationwide Tour, and a spot in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings.
Michael worked with Titleist fitters at the Acushnet Test Facility on Wednesday to help with a wedge gap fitting as well as a 2-iron replacement. He told his fitter that there was too much of a yardage gap between his AP2 9-iron (+1/4″ and 43° loft) and Spin Milled C-C 248.06 (standard length and bent to 47° loft). After testing several pitching wedge variations on the launch monitor, Michael was fit into a Spin Milled C-C 248.10 at +1/4″ and standard loft. His yardage gap between the two clubs was reduced from 18 yards to 12.
Making his return to the States from playing back home in Australia, Michael was also looking for a club to replace the 695CB 2-iron he had been gaming. Michael told his fitter that the 2-iron was a good club in Australia, but not as good on the PGA Tour due to the low trajectory and shallow landing angle. He prefers the look of irons rather than hybrids at address, though, so the team built him an older Tour Prototype 503i with a Project X 6.5 shaft that matches his irons. After a few shots on the launch monitor with the new utility iron, it went straight in the bag for this week’s event.
Michael’s final stop before heading back to Torrey Pines for the tournament was at the Scotty Cameron Putter Studio. Here’s what he had to say about the visit after his round Friday:
“I’ve been rolling the putter tremendously the last two days. I went to the Scotty Cameron studio on Wednesday afternoon and had a look at my putting stroke with Paul Vizanko, and it wasn’t as good as what it was last year when I went in there, and managed to correct that in probably 20 minutes. Yeah, just rolled the ball pure the last two days, and even with the greens a little bit bumpy with the Poa and the amount of rain they’ve had, it didn’t really affect my ball. I’ve probably got to thank him a lot for that.”
Despite a rough start on Thursday (4-over through three holes), the preparation seems to have Michael on form once again. He finished Thursday’s round on the difficult South Course strong to get back to 1-over 73, and after a sizzling 10-under 62 on the North Course on Friday, he finds himself only two shots back heading into the weekend.
What’s in Michael Sim’s bag this week at the Farmers Insurance Open:
Ball: Pro V1x
Driver: 905R (8.5°, Mitsubishi Diamana White 83X)
Fairway: 909F2 (13.5°, Mitsubishi Diamana Blue 93X)
Utility: Tour Prototype 503i (19°, True Temper Project X 6.5)
Irons: AP2 (3-9, True Temper Project X 6.5)
Wedges: Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C 248.10, Spin Milled C-C Prototype 54.12, Spin Milled C-C 60-T (all wedges with True Temper Project X 6.5)
Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Newport Squareback
Titleist Brand Ambassador Michael Sim preparing
for his first start of the 2010 PGA Tour season.
January 29th, 2010
Titleist Brand Ambassador Marc Leishman visited the Acushnet Test Facility in Oceanside, California this week as he prepared to compete in the Farmers Insurance Open at nearby Torrey Pines Golf Course. Marc is entering his second full season on the PGA Tour, and he’s looking to improve upon his 2009 Rookie of the Year campaign that included eight top-25 finishes, over $1.7 million in earnings, and a trip to the season-ending TOUR Championship. Qualifying for the TOUR Championship also earned Marc a spot in this year’s Masters Tournament, and he had Augusta National in mind as he worked with the Titleist fitters at Oceanside this week.
First, Marc was fit for a 19° 909H hybrid to replace his Tour-only AP2 2-iron. Marc has been a 2-iron player for a number of years, and it’s a club that performs well in the firm, fast, and windy conditions of his native Australia. On the PGA Tour, however, Marc needs a higher launching and softer landing trajectory for long distance approach shots that the 2-iron was not delivering. After working with both steel and graphite shafts in the 19° 909H, Marc went with the UST Mamiya Axivcore Tour Black Hybrid 100X and put it straight into the bag this week at Torrey Pines.
Marc also spent some time working with different lob wedges. He is currently using a Vokey Design TVD 58, but feels that he catches the ball too high on the face from time-to-time. The fitters had him try a few different wedges with less bounce, and Marc left with a 60-L bent to 58°. Although that wedge isn’t in the bag this week, don’t be surprised if you see it once conditions get a bit firmer on Tour.
Finally, the fitters had Marc try a few driver/shaft options to help him turn the ball over more easily. Marc predominately plays a fade and typically likes to eliminate the left-hand side of the golf course, but mentioned that he wouldn’t mind having the option of moving the ball from right-to-left for a certain tournament in early April. Using the SureFit system, Marc was able to quickly try out a few different shaft options and determined that the Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6X (now available through Titleist Custom Clubs) performed similarly to his current gamer with the added workability he was seeking. Like the new wedge, this new driver set-up didn’t make it in the bag this week, but we’re sure Marc will be working with it in the coming weeks as he gets closer to his first round starting time in Augusta.
What’s in Marc Leishman’s bag this week at the Farmers Insurance Open:
Ball: Pro V1x
Driver: 909D2 (8.5°, Oban Devotion 6X)
Fairway: 909F2 (13.5°, Oban Devotion 8X)
Hybrid: 909H (19°, UST Mamiya Axivcore Tour Black Hybrid 100X)
Irons: AP2 (3-9, True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100)
Wedges: Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C 248.10 (bent to 47°), Spin Milled C-C TVD 54 (bent to 53°), Spin Milled C-C TVD 58 (all wedges with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100)
Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 T10 Select
Titleist Brand Ambassador Marc Leishman testing wedges at the
Acushnet Test Facility in Oceanside, California.
January 29th, 2010
The desert oasis that is the Abu Dhabi Golf Club welcomes the European Tour for the fifth playing of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship. This event marks the start of the European Tour’s “Desert Swing” – a series of events which also sees the Tour visit Doha and Dubai over the coming weeks. This three-tournament swing has become more and more popular with the players over the years thanks to a combination of perfect weather, excellent golf courses and generous prize funds. For many, Abu Dhabi marks the start of the 2010 season and many of the world’s top players, including Titleist Golf Ball loyalists Lee Westwood and Henrik Stenson and Titleist Brand Ambassadors Rory McIlroy and Geoff Ogilvy, are in the field. McIlroy is now undoubtedly one of golf’s hottest properties following a sensational 2009 season while Ogilvy comes to Abu Dhabi having already claimed victory at the PGA Tour’s season-opening SBS Championship.
Rory McIlroy makes his first start of the 2010 European Tour season this week in Abu Dhabi.
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January 22nd, 2010
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