Equipment

A Deep Dive: The equipment timeline of David Duval, 1993-2001

Published

4 years ago

May 29, 2020

Like Tiger, David Toms, and Fred Couples there are certain players that I have been obsessed with for years. If you go to my Instagram, you can see it in plain sight. When it comes to DD it was more than the what, it was the why, the how that sparked my curiosity. Let’s face it, in 2000 with the Mossimo gear, Oakley shades, jacked-up physique, and on Titleist staff, was there ever a cooler looking player?

No. There wasn’t or isn’t.

That’s where my interest in Larry Bobka came about. I saw David and Larry walking the fairways of Sahalee at the ’98 PGA Championship.

At the time, I was already knee-deep in David Duval fandom but that experience took me over the top. Bobka had a handful of clubs in his hands and would pass DD a 970 3-wood, Duval would give it a rip and the two would discuss while walking down the fairway. Of all my time watching live golf, I have never been so awestruck.

This is an homage to David’s equipment during his prime/healthy years on the PGA Tour. From his early days with Mizuno, into the Titleist days, and finally Nike.

1993-1995 Mizuno

*This was an interesting time for Duval from an equipment standpoint. The pattern of mixing sets to put together his bag began and it was the time he transitioned from persimmon (Wood Bros driver) into metal woods. It was also the beginning of his long relationship with Scotty Cameron, a relationship that still stands today.

What was in the bag

Driver: TaylorMade Tour Burner 8.5 w/ Dynamic Gold X100 (*he also played with the Bubble XHKP Prototype)

3-wood

King Cobra @14 w/ Dynamic Gold X100

TaylorMade Tour Issue Spoon @13 w/ Dynamic Gold X100

Irons

1993: (1) Ping Eye2, (3-PW) Mizuno Pro TN-87 with Dynamic Gold X100

1994: (1) Ping Eye2, (3-PW) Mizuno Pro TN-87 with Dynamic Gold X100

1995: (2,3) Mizuno TC-29, (4-PW) Mizuno TN-87 with Dynamic Gold X100

Wedges: Mizuno Pro (53, 58) with Dynamic Gold X100

Putter: Scotty Cameron Classic Newport (35 inches, 71 lie, 4 degrees of loft)

Ball: Titleist Tour Balata 100

Glove: Mizuno Pro

1996-2000 Titleist

The beginning of the Titleist years started off quietly. There wasn’t any new product launched and David wasn’t quite the star he would become 12-18 months later. However, it gave Titleist the opportunity to get to know DD and his overall preferences, which aren’t dramatic but certainly unique. He didn’t win in 1996 but did qualify for the Presidents Cup Team and finished that event off at 4-0. So the buzz was going in the right direction and his peers certainly took notice.

It was 1997 that things took off on all fronts and it was the year that Titleist made David Duval the face of the DCI brand and with that decision spawned the greatest cast players cavity ever: the 962B—and also equipped David Duval to go on a 3-year run that was surpassed by only Tiger Woods.

Hence the deep dive article I wrote up earlier this month

What was in the bag

Driver

1996

TaylorMade Bubble Tour 8.5 w/ Bubble XHKP Prototype

1997

TaylorMade Bubble Tour 8.5 w/ Bubble XHKP Prototype

King Cobra Deep Face 9 w/ Dynamic Gold X100

Callaway Warbird Great Big Bertha 6.5 w/ Dynamic Gold X100, True Temper EI70 Tour X

Titleist 975D 6.5 (no line heavier head weight) w/ Fujikura Prototype X

1998

Callaway Warbird Great Big Bertha 6.5 w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

Titleist 975D 6.5 (no line heavier head weight) w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

1999: Titleist 975D 6.5 (no line heavier head weight) @ 7.5 w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

2000: Titleist 975D 7.5 (no line heavier head weight) w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

3-wood

1996

King Cobra @14 w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100

1997

King Cobra @14 w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100

1998

Callaway S2H2 (1 Dot) @14 w/ Fujikura Vista Pro 90X

Callaway Steelhead 3+ @13 w/ RCH 90 Pro Series Strong

Titleist 970 (Dark Grey Head) @13 w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X (only tested this one)

1999

Callaway S2H2 (1 Dot) @14 w/ Fujikura Vista Pro 90X

Cobra Gravity Back 14.5T w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

Irons

1996

(2-PW) Titleist DD Blank Prototype w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (w/sensicore)

(2-PW) Titleist DCI Black “B” w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (w/sensicore)

*This prototype set was a blank set of the DCI Black “B” but with sole modifications.

1997, 1998, 1999, 2000: (2,3) Titleist DCI Black (4-PW) Titleist DCI 962B w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (with sensicore)

*David liked the original prototype version of DG Sensicore X100 that had weight removed from the center of shaft to create better feel and a slightly higher trajectory

24 Feb 2000: David Duval watches the ball after hitting it during the World Match-Play Championships at the La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California. Mandatory Credit: Harry How /Allsport

Wedges

1996: (52 @53, 58) Mizuno Pro, (56 @57) Cleveland 588 RTG w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

1997: (53) Cobra “Trusty Rusty”, (57 @58) Cleveland 588 RTG, (58) Titleist Bobka Grind, (57 @58) Cobra Trusty Rusty w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

1998: (53) Cobra “Trusty Rusty”, (57 @58) Cleveland 588 RTGw/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

1999: (53) Cobra “Trusty Rusty”, (57 @58) Cleveland 588 RTG w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

2000: (53) Cobra “Trusty Rusty”, (57 @58) Cleveland 588 “Gun Metal” w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

PUTTER

1996: Scotty Cameron Classic Newport 1 35 Inches, 71 Lie, 4 Degrees of Loft, Scotty Cameron Long Slant Neck Laguna Custom (double welded neck)

1997: Odyssey Dual Force Rossie 2, Scotty Cameron Pro Platinum Newport “Beached” 35 Inches, 71 Lie, 4 Degrees of Loft w/ PingMan “Blacked Out” Grip

1998, 1999, 2000: Scotty Cameron Pro Platinum Newport “Beached” 35 Inches, 71 Lie, 4 Degrees of Loft w/ PingMan “Blacked Out” Grip

2001: Nike Golf and The Open Championship

The relationship with Titleist Golf ended quickly and when David showed up to Kapalua with a non-Titleist stand bag the rumor mill went nuts. The story (although super speculative) was that David opted out in the middle of a $4.5 million per year deal with Acushnet, a lawsuit followed, but Davids’s stance was that he had a marquee player clause that allowed him to walk if he wasn’t “marquee” aka highest-paid.

Apparently he had a point, Acushnet had recently inked big deals with Davis Love and Phil Mickelson leading someone on the outside to do the math. However, I’m not an attorney, wasn’t there, and have no clue what the legality of any of it was. Point is, he walked and landed at Nike with a new head-to-toe contract.

DRIVER:

Titleist 975D 7.5 (no line heavier head weight) w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

Titleist 975E Prototype 8.5 w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X

Nike Titanium w/ True Temper EI-70 II Tour X (pictured below)

Nike Titanium Prototype 7.5 w/ True Temper EI70 Tour X (featured image)

3 WOOD:

Callaway Steelhead Plus 4+ @15 w/ RCH 90 Pro Series Strong

Nike Prototype @14 degrees w/ True Temper EI-70 Tour X

Sonartec/Excedo (SS-03 head) Driving Cavity @14 w/ Fujikura Vista Pro 90X

IRONS:

(2-PW) Titleist 990B w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (with sensicore)

(2-PW) Nike Prototype “DD” Grind MB w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (with sensicore)

(2) Titleist DCI Black w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 (with sensicore)

WEDGES:

(53) Cobra “Trusty Rusty”, (57 @58) Cleveland 588 “Gun Metal” w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

(53,58) Nike DD Grind w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

PUTTER: Scotty Cameron Pro Platinum Newport “Beached” 35 Inches, 71 Lie, 4 Degrees of Loft w/ PingMan “Blacked Out” Grip

SPEC TALK

Over the years the one constant was David’s iron and wedge specs. As a shut-faced player he has always favored traditional lofts in his irons. However, a cool thing to note is his lie angles remained constant 59.5 (2-4), 60 (5-9). The running theory here was being a shallow (low hands) and shut faced player, keeping the lie angles at a constant (flatter) lie angle allowed him to feel like his angle of attack could remain the same for each iron. It’s just a feeling but that’s what he did. If the “why of it” is true, it looks like he was doing Bryson things before Bryson did.

David Duval Iron/Wedge Specs

Loft/Lie/Length/SW

2-17/59.5/40.25/D5
3-20.5/59.5/39 1/6/D4
4-24/59.5/38 9/16/D4
5-27/60/38 1/16/D4
6-30.5/60/ 37 9/16/D4
7-35/60/37 1/16/D4
8-39/60/36 9/16/D4
9-43/60/36 5/16/D4
P-47/61/36/ 1/16/D5
GW-53/62/35 5/8/D4
LW-58/62/35 9/16/D6

Whew…since this prolific run, David transitioned into some interesting projects with smaller companies like Scratch, B.I.G Golf (AKA Bio-engineered in Germany), back to the mainstream with Nike, and most currently Cobra Golf.

I hope you all enjoyed this walk down memory lane with me, Duval is not only fascinating from a career standpoint but digging into the equipment of DD has been quite the experience.

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Whats in the Bag

Richy Werenski WITB 2024 (May)

Published

9 hours ago

May 2, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

Richy Werenski what’s in the bag accurate as of the CJ Cup Houston Open.

Driver: Titleist TSR3 (10 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana PD 60 TX

3-wood: Titleist TSR2 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 8 X

Check out more in-hand photos of Richy Werenski’s clubs in the forums.

Hybrid: Titleist TSR3 (19 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White Hybrid 90 TX

Irons: Titleist T100 (4-9)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour 105 S

Check out more in-hand photos of Richy Werenski’s clubs in the forums.

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (46-10F, 50-12F), Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks Proto (54-M, 58-L @60)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 Onyx (46-50), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 Onyx (54-60)

Putter: Scotty Cameron prototype

Check out more in-hand photos of Richy Werenski’s clubs in the forums.

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Left Dash

Grips: Golf Pride ZGrip Cord

Check out more in-hand photos of Richy Werenski’s clubs in the forums.

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Equipment

Adam Scott testing green “Masters Use Only” putter + 6 interesting equipment photos from the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson

Published

10 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson event at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas, which, for your geographical reference, is about 25 minutes from Dallas.

In early-week equipment news, we saw some interesting putter testing from Adam Scott, a Maxfli golf ball signing on the PGA Tour, a 16-year-old’s WITB, a PGA Tour player using another PGA Tour player’s backup putter, and Jordan Spieth weighed in on why he recently switched out just his 7-iron (and then made a hole-in-one with it).

With so much to report and so little time to waste on the intro, let’s get right into this week’s equipment rundown from the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

See all of our photo galleries from the week here

Adam Scott’s new L.A.B. putters

Before we get into a couple of the new prototypes Scott has been testing, above is a photo of the L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max prototype putter that he’s been using, and will likely continue to use this week in Texas.

That being said, following the Masters, Scott was looking to try a couple putters with a slightly lighter weight to help with his feel on fast greens.

One of the new prototypes we spotted on Tuesday was a L.A.B. Golf DF3 “Proto 2.1”, custom-built with Scott’s preferred blue colorway, and an Australia-inspired Kangaroo laser engraving…

We also spotted him with a green-colored “For Masters Use Only” Mezz.1 Max prototype…

While it’s unlikely Scott will make a switch this week, it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward, especially on courses with faster greens.

We also got a peek into Scott’s full WITB this week, which consists of a super-mixed set of Srixon irons, including a ZX Utility 3-iron, a ZX-5 MkII 4-iron, ZX-7 MkII mid-irons (5-7) and Z Forged II short irons (8-9).

See Scott’s full WITB from the CJ Cup here

An update on Daniel Berger’s Odyssey Jailbird

Last week in New Orleans, we highlighted Daniel Berger’s Ai-One Jailbird Mini putter because of its unique sightlines.

Well, we have an update.

According to Callaway Tour Manager Joe Toulon, who spoke with GolfWRX.com this week, Berger’s Jailbird Mini is actually from fellow Tour player Tom Kim’s stash. Kim is a prolific putter tester, and the exact putter Berger is currently using was actually originally made for and tested by Kim. The putter didn’t make it into Kim’s starting lineup, however, so he gave the putter back to Odyssey, and it eventually made it’s way onto Berger’s gamer roster.

Jordan Spieth’s new 7-iron

As the story goes, Jordan Spieth changed out his Titleist T100 7-iron on Wednesday before the 2024 Valero Texas Open, and then on Thursday, he used the 7-iron to make a hole-in-one from 199 yards on the 16th hole.

Good timing on that switch, Jordan.

On Tuesday at the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson, GoflWRX.com caught up with Spieth to get the full story on why he switched just the 7-iron.

Our full story is over on PGATOUR.com’s Equipment Report, but here’s a snippet of what Spieth had to say:

“I hit my 7-iron a lot, especially on my own. The spin rates, relative to my 6-iron and my 8-iron, were lower, so it was going too far. I was trying to figure out why, if it was something in the makeup of the iron. I got the lies and the lofts checked, and everything was fine. So finally I was like, ‘Can I just get a new one and see if it fixes it?’

“Maybe there was one other time throughout my career where I changed just one iron, so it’s very unusual. I think it’s just because the grooves were worn down from hitting it too much.”

Ben Griffin signs with Maxfli to play the golf ball

At the beginning of the year, LPGA Tour star Lexi Thompson signed a deal with Maxfli to play the company’s golf ball, and now, Griffin has officially joined team Maxfli, as well, thus expanding the company’s Tour presence.

GolfWRX.com caught up with Griffin on Wednesday in Texas for a video interview about his new golf ball of choice, and how he marks it…

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A 16-year-old is playing on the PGA Tour this week, using a 2-iron!

Amateur golfer Kris Kim, at just 16 years of age, is making his PGA Tour debut this week after receiving a sponsors exemption into the event. In 2023, Kim won both the R&A Boys’ Amateur Championship and the European Boys’ International Championship.

On Tuesday in Texas, we got a look into Kim’s bag, which revealed that he’s currently playing a TaylorMade P-770 2-iron, and a bag full of TaylorMade clubs.

Check out Kim’s full WITB here

A smart golf ball stamping

I’m not going to sit here and pretend to be a big math guy, because I’m not. However, I do recognize David Nyfjall’s purple ball marking as a square root symbol.

While I don’t know the particular significance of the square root symbol for Nyfjall, I do know you have to be fairly intelligent to even consider using a marking like that. Pretty cool stuff from the Northwestern alum, and 2023 Byron Nelson Award winner.

And, with that, we say goodbye to Texas and TPC Craig Ranch. We’ll see you next week at the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte for more insider equipment news and storylines.

For now, don’t forget to check out all of our photos from the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson

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Whats in the Bag

Wesley Bryan WITB 2024 (May)

Published

12 hours ago

May 2, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

Wesley Bryan what’s in the bag accurate as of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Max (9 degrees @10)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana GT 50 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana GT 60 X

Check out more in-hand photos of Wesley Bryan’s clubs here.

Hybrid: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus Rescue (19.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Blue 8 X

Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Takomo 101U (4), Takomo 101T (5), Takomo 301 CB (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Check out more in-hand photos of Wesley Bryan’s clubs here.

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (46-10F, 52-08F, 56-14F), Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks Proto (58-A)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400