For those of us from another generation, the disruption of the golf world that we knew well is both exciting and unsettling. The two most potent disruptors are rival golf leagues, not unlike the turmoil seen in the NCAA, and the Anchorman-style gangs of golf reporters. Reconciled to a past era are the dominance of the U.S. PGA Tour and the monthly golf magazines. One element that will not change, at any time in the foreseeable future, however, is the sanctity of the grand slam and golf’s four male major championships. While the LPGA and the PGA Tour Champions have seen a light and added fifth and sixth power titles, the men’s game remains staunchly in the 20th century.
This last topic surges in pertinence each March, just before the playing of The Players Championship. Two camps stake tents and run banners up the poll. One cries out for elevation of the PC to major status, while the other digs a trench around its impregnable quadrilateral. My personal take is this: Every four years since 2016, golf is played at the Olympics. Is Olympic Gold the equivalent of a major title? Yes, it is. It comes around every 1,500 days and brings elite golfers together in competition at the most important athletic event and venue. In my mind, Justin Rose and Xander Schauffele earned major titles in Brazil and Japan, as did Inbee Park and Nelly Korda. As for the Players Championship, why not? The field is stronger by ranking than any major event, and the golf course demands every shot that golfers can create.
The Players Championship is so important to the U.S. PGA Tour that all other tours under its umbrella take the week off. No Korn Ferry, no Tour Champions. The LPGA and the DP World Tour follow suit, which shrinks the amount of watchable golf to two events. On that sour note, let’s run down this week’s play, beginning with the Players Championship and ending with the Asian Tour in Macau.
PGA Tour @ Players Championship: matching luggage for Scheffler
Scottie Scheffler is making a bid to be the player of his generation. From the previous one, a fair number have taken leave from traditional competition. The Johnsons, Koepkas, and Reeds from the 1980s no longer play the events that stand the test of time. The born-in-the-90s generation had its first great champion in Jordan Spieth until he took leave of the senses that brought him to golf’s pinnacle. Spieth’s descent ran opposite Scheffler’s rise.
Scottie Scheffler had won nothing on the PGA Tour until February 13th of 2022. He won on that day in Phoenix, then won three more times by the middle of April. One of those wins was the API at Bay Hill. Last week, Scheffler won for a second time at the Orlando course. Last March, Scheffler won his first Players Championship, by five shots over Tyrrell Hatton. On Sunday, Scheffler dived headfirst into a cauldron of fierce competition. Facing challenges from Olympic champion Schauffele, Open champion Brian Harmon, and U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, Scheffler breathed. As the only man to reach 20 under par, he earned a second consecutive title at Sawgrass and reminded us that it has been two years since he won the Masters and that he is on a tear.
It all began at the fourth on Sunday for Scheffler. After pars at the opening three holes, Scheffler’s driving wedge from 92 yards landed 20 feet shy of the hole, took one large bounce, then spun left, trickling into the hole for eagle. He followed that incantation with another birdie, then two pars. The stretch from 8 to 12 was where the champion made a statement. His quartet of birdies over that run, brought him to 19-under par and let the pursuing pack know that even lower than the winning 17 under in 2023 would be necessary.
And the trio was game. Harman and Clark both dipped below 70, to reach 19 under at the final pole. Schauffele could not find a similar gear and closed with 70 — 69 would have earned him a playoff with Scheffler. It was the extra gear, the ability to go low when all things mattered, that eleveated the now two-time champion to the top of the podium. In five of his eight tour wins, Scheffler has posted a sub-70 round on day four, and four of those have been 67 or lower.
With elegant precision, Scheffler applied the final thrust at the par-5 16th. He played safely away from Pete’s Pond on the right, into the left greenside bunker at the back of the putting surface. His bunker shot was thing of exquisite accuracy, trickling to a planned stop about 20 inches from the hole. The birdie concluded matters and rang the sort of bell that Dye courses tend to display.
Asian Tour @ International Series Macau: Catlin earns playoff victory
There are two sorts of golfers that compete on the Asian Tour, which makes no secret of its alliance with the LIV. The first are the AT stalwarts, the ones who play as golfers have always played, with little guarantee and much pride. The others are the ones who compete on the LIV, eschewing both risk and pride for the guaranteed payday. Their deal costs them world ranking points, so they play in AT events, hoping to qualify for golf’s major events.
This week in Macau, one of those LIV golfers shot 60 on Sunday and did not win the tournament. Hard to believe, you say? Aye, but when another golfer shoots 59 in the third round, follows it up with a 65 on day four, then makes overtime birdie twice at the par-five closer, the razor’s edge of great golf is sharpened. Thus did it happen with American John Catlin and Spaniard David Puig.
It was Catlin who signed for 59, and it took a twisting, eagle putt at the last to enshrine the first-ever, sub-60 on the Asian Tour. It was Puig who closed the gap on Sunday with a 60 of his own, which featured a bogey at the lengthy fifth hole, but was followed by seven birdies and an eagle over the next 13 holes. Catlin had a six-feet putt for the regulation win, but missed. In extra time, Puig nearly holed for eagle at 18, then tapped in for birdie. Catlin’s second danced along the OOB perimeter, before ending on an access road. His drop and pitch left him another six feet to remain alive, and this time, he converted.
At the second go-round of the par-5 finisher, Puig found the green in two, but took three putts from nearly 50 feet. Catlin confronted another challenging pitch for his third, and once again, his wedge game won the day. He tapped in for birdie and the win.
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geohogan
Dec 11, 2018 at 3:21 pm
High prices are due to the tariffs. When the tariffs come off in 2025
and we are at the bottom of the next great depression prices will be much lower.
So much to look forward to!
stephenf
Dec 2, 2018 at 4:11 am
Better be brought to me on each shot by a topless, extremely fit young woman, with an “I’m just bad enough” look.
joey
Nov 25, 2018 at 3:09 pm
$500 per club… now that’s more like in my price range for the best of the best golf clubs.
Tika
Nov 12, 2018 at 1:01 am
So one is redefined c16 iron and another a TMB rebadged…..but cost 2k more……like to see these companies explain why these gonna be so expensive rather than just polish em up and give general “political vague statements”……tungsten, titanium, multi alloys and hollow designs are already being used so what makes these so special……injected with foam or rubber isn’t gonna cut it, lol
Curt
Dec 13, 2018 at 4:14 pm
Same rubber as the proV1’s lol
Ken Tucky
Nov 11, 2018 at 4:45 am
Why the Nike designers gotta be lost and now found?!! Hahaha!! =D That was a good one!!
Scheiss
Nov 10, 2018 at 9:39 pm
In the meantime, Spieth removes the TS2 and puts back the 915 in the bag, and misses the cut
Andrew Levy
Nov 10, 2018 at 2:05 pm
I have hit them both. They were fitting at my club. The 01 is a tmb but a little bit slimmer and short bladed. It was nothing special it just felt clunky. It also didn’t feel that soft. The blade one is the best forged titleist club ever. It felt amazing jumped off the face everything. They even had the four iron with some hybrid shafts in it and it was amazing. But the price tag is so high I will not be giving up my current sticks. Hopefully we see some progression into the 720s. The c16 irons do have characteristics we now see in the 718 tmbs. I am going away next week to try out the proto prov1 and prov1x.
doug
Nov 9, 2018 at 4:59 pm
And fine and dandy and all that, but what’s the point?
These clubs have no connection to the average golfer; none.
And here in Australia, because of the relative weakness of our dollar, they have w@anker/show-pony value, but not much else.
Time for top-end brands like Titleist to take a good, hard look at what Wilson and Cleveland are doing with their ‘Infinite’ and ‘Huntington Beach’ brand of putters. Excellent and affordable kit, at a price that the player on a regular budget can actually afford to buy.
I- and most players I know – are no more likely to spend the kind of money these new irons command, than we are to walk to the Moon. But if Titleist can afford to spend zillions on R&D, just to sell a few thousand sets World-wide…well, good luck to them.
Even at my Australian Top 100 club, most guys I know get the irons they need, spend dollars adjusting the lie/loft/length etc etc…then play those perfect babies until the grooves go.
Mike
Nov 9, 2018 at 12:16 pm
Iron tech is just not evolving fast enough to justify this cost… unless it comes with my own personal RoboCop, which by the looks of the 01 model here, may be a possibility.
ronnie
Nov 9, 2018 at 3:14 pm
I love the shinyer CNCPT 01 model cause its more pretty.
Tom Donnelly
Nov 9, 2018 at 9:43 am
At least we know where the Nike club designers ended up.
ogo
Nov 9, 2018 at 3:10 pm
A second year engineering student could design golf clubs …. which are no technological design challenge. The only challenge is to sculpt the back of irons and the bottom of drivers to suck in the gearhead suckers… it’s called “marketing” and marketing also involves manufacturing decisions…
Dan
Dec 11, 2018 at 1:33 am
Your either trolling or very ignorant. You have no idea what goes into designing a golf club. Is the industry littered with marketing, yes. Why? Because most people are uneducated as to the game so that the marketing jargon is the only way they’ll understand it. Every design change that improves something negatively affects something else. It’s that fact that challenges designers to come up with new ideas to fight physics. Your comment reeks of ignorance
ogo
Nov 9, 2018 at 12:12 am
BREAKING NEWS******* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kuFf8cCQlg
Hailstorm in New South Wales, Australia, hailstones the size of GOLF BALLS!!!
Those Aussies really take their golf seriously !!!!!! 😮
Tom
Nov 8, 2018 at 7:25 pm
If you place an order immediately, you get the sail boat model? “I want that!”
Tom
Nov 8, 2018 at 6:03 pm
Uncle Rico tested these prototypes and “hit the ball clear over that there mountain!”
Blake
Nov 8, 2018 at 4:34 pm
The thing is if im in this price range for irons im just going to get a boutique companies offering before titleist. And i currently play titleist
Robert Pfeil
Nov 8, 2018 at 3:01 pm
Just wait another year and they have a retail set with this technology. That’s how it was with the previous Titleist concept irons/woods.
Ryan Michael
Nov 8, 2018 at 2:54 pm
The rising price of clubs in general will drive new people from picking up the game let alone releases like this! The game needs go down in overall cost. I know you can go cheap with used equipment and put a decent set together for peanuts but there are also people out there who are on the fences about giving golf a try and they read an article about a $4,000 set of clubs and it turns them of to the game all together.
Tom
Nov 8, 2018 at 1:51 pm
They should price them at $1,000,000 per iron and just sell a few hundred sets.
stephenf
Dec 2, 2018 at 4:07 am
you said it.
G-head
Nov 8, 2018 at 12:45 pm
PXG… CNCPT… PXG… CNCPT… PXG… CNCPT… ???? {{{sigh}}}
HBO
Nov 8, 2018 at 12:26 pm
They better hit themselves at that price. Regardless how much you pay for clubs they can’t make you much better than you already are.
Richard Rorty
Nov 8, 2018 at 10:42 am
Flashy equipment for discriminating golfers who are in need of a certain, postmodern, ‘je ne sais quoi’. . .
stephenf
Dec 2, 2018 at 4:08 am
Yeah, something like that. 😉
dat
Nov 8, 2018 at 10:20 am
Should have gone for at least $400,000 per club.
TONEY P
Nov 8, 2018 at 10:06 am
Only a salesman could love those ugly sticks. Now the rich have something else to waste money on.
Brian
Nov 8, 2018 at 8:55 am
Good god are those ugly. A face only a mother could love.
dick head
Nov 10, 2018 at 4:04 pm
you have no idea – a recent online survey showed 85% thought they looked awesome
Ardbegger
Nov 8, 2018 at 8:35 am
Can’t replace my Mizuno SC’s
James Awad
Nov 8, 2018 at 8:34 am
Looks like something some man-bun wearin’ dipstick would think “looks awesome”. Looks like Nike & Cobra had an ugly kid
4K for Titleist?? The cats who can’t properly headweight a custom ordered set – or get the lofts right?
not even if Tiger used ’em to win another major
Yup
Nov 8, 2018 at 2:36 am
CUNcpT
po' boy
Nov 8, 2018 at 1:06 am
OMG!!!! I wish I was the first to see these awesome irons! At $4000 they are boutique clubs for the uber-rich gearheads who don’t have the time to practice… only play at their plush country clubs… oh well…
Tom
Nov 7, 2018 at 9:26 pm
More lipstick on the pigs…..
Roy
Nov 7, 2018 at 4:57 pm
Seems pretty obvious you can build a better product if you are given a higher budget to work with – what makes golf clubs any different??
po' boy
Nov 8, 2018 at 1:08 am
They are status clubs for the uber-rich gearheads who likely can’t play a snot anyway… a statement that I am rich and you aren’t…
Carter
Nov 9, 2018 at 11:51 am
USGA regulations of what clubs can do. That makes clubs different.
Gerald
Nov 7, 2018 at 3:41 pm
So are they saying my tungsten in my AP2s are useless?
Its a hard pass for me.
Ajc273
Nov 7, 2018 at 3:36 pm
I don’t understand the point of this product, especially if they are going to come with a $4,000 price tag. With their MB, CB, T-MB, and AP1, 2, & 3 they seem to have all handicaps and ability levels covered with great clubs. Why would anyone want to pay $4,000 for a set on CNCPT-01 irons when they can get a set of AP1’s for 1/4 the price, unless they just want to tell their friends they paid 4 grand for a set of clubs??
JP
Nov 7, 2018 at 8:30 pm
It’s the pxg effect. My Dad caught a fish THIS big…
golfraven
Nov 7, 2018 at 3:28 pm
Nice but note really hyped about those. Very pleased with my Ap3, T-MB set