News

Showtime In Georgia – The Masters

Published

16 years ago

Apr 6, 2010

Face it, no matter how highly regarded any PGA Tour event prior to The Masters is, it is simply a preamble to one of the greatest weeks in golf. That is even more significant this year with the return of Tiger Woods to the game.

It really is hard to believe that Tiger will be making his 16^th appearance at Augusta National and despite his recent off course owes his four wins since 1997 cannot be disregarded when all comes into account this week.

I waited to publish The Masters tournament preview this week, not to allow the initial Tiger Woods press conference to come and go, but simply to have a little greater assessment of where his game stands. Flagstick Golf Magazine Instruction Editor Kevin Haime, the 2000 Canadian PGA Teacher of Year, followed the Tiger and Fred Couples during their practice round on Monday at Augusta National and says he gives the ball striking edge to Couples. Even Couples said that Tiger was not as sharp as usual.

Of course, by the time Thursday rolls around Tiger will have played approximately eight practice rounds over the venerable ANGC layout but is that enough to have him ready to compete in a major championship after a 20 week layoff? It is hard to say but with his track record at this major it is hard to leave him out of the picture. Since his win in 2005 he has only been out of the top five once…a tie for 6^th last year. When he is at Augusta National you better make room for his name on the upper half of the leaderboard. He still has to be favored to at least be in the mix when the final holes play out on Sunday. He will start at 1:42 on Thursday with Matt Kuchar and K.J. Choi, a congenial match-up that should favor Woods.

As always at Augusta you have to have a close look at the past champions and their ability to don another Green Jacket. After all, nobody but them has the knowledge of what it truly takes to win the coveted prize.

The slashing style of Angel Cabrera resulted in a win last year but I have hard time imagining him defending the title. Although he has made the cut in all his seven PGA Tour starts in 2010, he has but one top ten finish. A t-73^rd at last week’s Shell Houston Open would not exactly measure up as a confidence boost for this week.

Mickelson has not lived up to the hype this year but wins of ’04 and ’06 are valuable memories he can draw on for inspiration.

Playing with Cabrera on Thursday will be Jim Furyk, not a past winner here, but a player who looks renewed and focussed for this season. Because of that, and his fine record of play at Augusta he is my dark horse pick – if that is possible in an elite field of 97 players, the largest field on 44 years. Without the ability to hit the ball exceptionally long, look for Furyk to surgically dissect the course much like Zach Johnson did during his 2007 victory. Furyk tied for 10^th in 2009.

2003 winner Mike Weir might also be an unexpected factor this week. Like Woods, Weir will have to fight the physical stresses of allergies with the pollen count in Augusta at extreme levels.

Speaking with Weir last Tuesday he said his game is not as sharp as he would like, particularly with his driving. “My season, so far has been a bit of a mixed bag – there has been some good play in their just not the consistency I’m looking for. At the same time I feel confident with my game; I feel good. I am looking forward to Augusta.”

Weir says he will stick to the Scotty Cameron Napa blade putter he first put into play at the Accenture Match Play where he birdied 9 of his first 10 holes played with it. He expects to lean on that putter and his typically fine iron play this week, especially if his driving does not come into form.

Hard to be ignored in this mix is Ernie Els. The only 2-time winner on the PGA Tour this year, Els is not only hitting the ball exceptionally well, he is putting with renewed confidence thanks to a flat stick recently shortened by one and a half inches. That bravado, especially on the short putts, will be an effective tool at Augusta National if he can stay in form.

Other Hot Pairings

Group 7 / 8:56 – (International Flare) The early lead could come from this group on Thursday. Martin Kaymer, Luke Donald, and Geoff Ogilvy are strong prospects and don’t be surprised if they can post a strong number for others to chase.

Group 10 / 9:29 – (Power Play) I’m betting this trio will generate a few roars. Bombers Dustin Johnson and Alvaro Quiros will give Oliver Wilson a show he will have to try and stay out of. Hopefully DJ and AQ don’t get caught up in seeing who can reach the most par fives in two and remember there is a major championship taking place.

Group 13 /10:13 – (Hot Commodities) Ernie Els, Anthony Kim, and Ryo Ishikawa. Need I say more? Confidence and momentum are not lacking with the exception of Ishikawa who has yet to carry his Japanese success over to the United States. But certainly has the potential to do so.

Group 25 /12:36 (Two Studs & a Chaperone) – Will Kenny Perry shows Camilo Villegas and Rory McIlroy how to tackle AGNC with veteran poise or will the youngsters teach Perry what it is like to play golf without nerves again?

Group 29/ 1:29 (Three Corners) – Harrington, Schwartzel, and Cink may hail from different parts of the world but they share an affinity for winning. By week’s end Schwartzel might just join them as a major champion himself.

This report provided to GolfWRX.com by Flagstick Golf Magazine (www.flagstick.com)

News

Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge

Published

12 hours ago

May 31, 2026

Ben A

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (10 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70 6.5 TX

3-wood: Titleist TS3 (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX

7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Project X Denali Black 80 TX

Irons: Titleist T250 (4), Titleist T100 (5-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold AMT (4-6), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (7-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F @47, 50-08F @51, 54-10S @55, 60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48), S400 (47)

Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X5 Tour Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

News

Charles Schwab Challenge Tour Report: MacIntyre, Åberg and Spaun all switch putters, TaylorMade launches new Spider

Published

3 days ago

May 29, 2026

Alistair Cameron

There must be something in the water. Or potentially on the greens. A whole host of big-time players decided that the Charles Schwab Challenge was the perfect place to test out new putters.

With the 2026 U.S. Open just around the corner, defending champion J.J. Spaun made a surprising switch away from his center-shafted Df3 and into L.A.B. Golf’s OZ.1i HS – the heel-shafted mallet putter.

“Just something I kind of wanted to change the way the putter was looking, just a completely different look than the DF3 that I’ve been using for the last year and a half,” Spaun told GolfWRX about the swap. “So it’s just easier to line up for me with less onset looking design, and it’s just something I felt like switching it up and seeing how it goes.”

You can find more about the putter and the reasoning behind Spaun’s change here.

Robert MacIntyre also decided to change the flatstick at Colonial Country Club. He’s using a custom Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5R. The Scotty team created a specially-milled face featuring horizontal grooves and shortened the plumber’s neck to increase toe hang.

Another custom feature of the build is the welded wings added to the rear of the putter, similar to those found on the Phantom 11 head.

It’s potentially part of a major overhaul to his bag. The Scot has recently switched from the Titleist Pro V1 to the Pro V1x golf ball, added the new GTS2 driver, and is currently testing a GTS 3-wood that could replace his ancient TaylorMade AeroBurner 3-wood.

Ludvig Åberg joined the trio of superstars making alterations on the greens. He’s added a Scotty Cameron Phantom 3.2.

It’s not Åberg’s first putter switch of the season. He had been using different versions of his usual Odyssey Versa #1 head to try to get better speed control on the greens.

? Ludvig Åberg is using a new putter! He’s playing a @ScottyCameron Phantom 3 head. First major putter switch, although he has been changing loft and heads in the Odyssey #1 style this season.
Here’s a Phantom 3 built for him earlier in the season https://t.co/oGrNk6p0hz pic.twitter.com/edRbpk22m4

— Alistair Cameron (@ACameronWRX) May 28, 2026

Currently, a Tour-only offering, the Phantom 3 head is a half-moon mallet shape. Like the previous version that GolfWRX captured at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which Åberg never put in play, the current version appears to feature the Studio Carbon Steel face insert and chain-link face milling. Instead of the all-black version one, Åberg’s current flatstick is in the metal finish.

Rico Hoey’s make-shift Jailbird

Some of the best builds on Tour have a certain Frankenstein theme to them.

Odyssey decided to do this when breeding a turtle and a bird together. The result, Rico Hoey’s latest broomstick.

The custom Jailbird S2S Tri-Hot head includes an aluminium-milled insert from the unreleased TRTL head, which the team machined down to fit the face of the Jailbird after removing the usual Ai-Dual insert.

The team also filled the wings of the putter with epoxy to redistribute mass away from the face, with the metal insert weighing more than the original.

Hoey was also spotted with a custom Damascus Milled Jailbird Mini broomstick. Check out the full gallery here.

Brant Snedeker’s full WITB

Arguably, the PGA Tour’s feel-good story of the year so far was 45-year-old Brandt Snedeker returning to the winner’s circle for the first time in nearly 8 years.

His victory didn’t come without some equipment updates, either. The Presidents Cup Captain added the 2016 M2 driver equipped with a Fujikura Speeder Evolution 661. It’s a shaft that’s even older than the driver.

The historic driver setup might have been added because Snedeker was missing some antique vibes. He recently switched out his 2-decade-old Odyssey Rossie White Hot XG for a TaylorMade Spider Tour X.

He first put the Spider in play at the Cognizant Classic. Still, at the Valspar Championship, he tested TaylorMade’s True Path Alignment versus without, and preferred the added aim benefits he was getting. In previous testing, the biggest thing Snedeker noticed was the launch and how quickly the ball got to true roll from the Spider and its Pure Roll insert compared to anything else he had tried.

Check out Snedeker’s full what’s in the bag during this week’s episode of “Inside the Ropes” from Colonial.

Everything’s bigger in Texas

TaylorMade Golf chose the second stop of a Texas two-step in Dallas as the spot to launch the tour’s latest Spider putter.

On-site Monday at Colonial Country Club, GolfWRX’s Tour Photographer Greg Moore captured the new Spider ZT Max putter ahead of the Charles Schwab Challenge.

The Max version of TaylorMade’s zero-torque putter style has a larger footprint than the original ZT, which will likely lead to a higher MOI thanks to wider perimeter weighting.

The original ZT is made of high-density 303 stainless steel at the front, and then a lower-density 6061 aerospace aluminum on the back to create a high-MOI foundation, with a center shaft featuring slight forward shaft lean and 25mm onset behind the leading edge.

The Spider ZT Max also appears to use the ZT cambered sole, which is also seen on the recently Tour-launched Spider Tour, Tour X, F and V models, which were first spotted at the RBC Heritage.

Brian Harman gamed the original Spider ZT for his victory last year at the 2025 Valero Texas Open, and the putter also saw victory on the DP World Tour in the hands of Michael Kim for his FedEx Open de France win.

Check out the full gallery here.

Odds and Ends

Project X officially Tour launched the Titan Yellow shaft, just a few days after Wyndham Clark played it for the first time and won The CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The shaft features a smoother feel in the handle compared to past Project X wood shafts, along with a firm midsection and firm tip. The Synex Technology allows a player to feel more load in transition without losing the feel of the clubhead. Titleist launched the GTS300 back at Quail Hollow, and just a few weeks later, it’s in the bag of Justin Thomas. Could this be a test run for Shinnecock?

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the ShopRite LPGA

Published

4 days ago

May 28, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX Tour Photographer Greg Moore was on site in Galloway, New Jersey, ahead of the ShopRite LPGA powered by Wakefern to snap some WITB photos and more.

Check out links to all the photos below!