Equipment

TOUR REPORT: McIlroy switches drivers during Genesis Invitational (plus Tiger’s iron change)

Published

1 year ago

Feb 17, 2023

Welcome to the 2023 Genesis Invitational – a.k.a Tiger’s event – at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California.

Tournament host Tiger Woods was always expected to be on site for the event, but he surprised the golfing world by actually playing in the tournament despite lingering questions about his injuries. Lucky for us, we got a special look at his golf clubs, including his famous Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter.

Aside from Woods’ clubs, it was an entertaining week in golf equipment overall, with notable switches from Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Jordan Spieth, and Adam Scott.

Let’s get into this week’s Tour Report below for all of the equipment highlights.

Jordan Spieth (finally) changes putter grips

Spieth is still using his familiar Scotty Cameron 009 putter head, but he switched into a new SuperStroke Zenergy Flatso 1.0 grip this week. It was about time, too, because his previous SuperStroke Traxion grip was nearly falling off because it was so worn out. As previously reported, SuperStroke’s new Zenergy grips feature enhanced texture in the gripping zone, and a number of new colorways. Justin Thomas switched into a new “JT” Zenergy grip last week, and Xander Schauffele switched into one this week, too.

Tommy Fleetwood makes a putter change

Fleetwood is a prolific putter tester, but he’s not always a putter switcher. Although he frequently tries out new putters, he tends to revert to his familiar Odyssey White Hot Pro #3. This week, however, Fleetwood tested out an Axis1 TM Elite prototype putter with a face insert, and he decided to put it in play.

Here’s a closer look, thanks to Axis1…

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Click here for more in the GolfWRX Forums

Adam Scott’s putter from down under

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On Monday, while playing a practice round at The Los Angeles Country Club North course in preparation for the 2023 U.S. Open, Scott started testing out a custom blue L.A.B. Golf MEZZ.1 long putter with dancing kangaroos on the sole, equipped with a TPT prototype shaft. Apparently, the testing session went well because he put the putter in play this week at the Genesis Invitational.

Aside from the blue colorway, L.A.B. also adjusted his lie angle from 79.5 to 78 degrees, helping Scott get the putter more flush to the ground at address. He also tested out a Ping G430 LST driver, but decided to stick with his former TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver, which offered a slightly more penetrating flight to navigate this week’s windy conditions.

Adam Scott’s full WITB at the 2023 Genesis Invitational

Rory McIlroy makes a mid-event driver switch

We spotted Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus at the 2023 Waste Management Phoenix Open, but he ended up staying in his original Stealth Plus. And, although he started out the Genesis Invitational using the Stealth Plus in round 1, he switched into the new Stealth 2 Plus for round 2 after a range session following his first round. According to a TaylorMade rep, he found the Stealth 2 Plus to offer faster speeds and overall distance.

See Rory’s full WITB here

The GOAT’s putter, and an iron change

Woods made two minor changes to his bag setup since the last time we saw him at the 2023 PNC Championship. He switched out his previous P-770 3-iron for the new 2023 P-770 model, and he switched out the Scotty Cameron putter grip he used at the PNC, replacing it with a familiar Ping PP58 Pistol grip.

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This week, we also got an especially up-close look at Woods’ famous Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS putter that he’s used to capture 14-of-his-15 major championship victories.

More up-close photos of Woods’ putter in our GolfWRX Forums

And with that, we say goodbye to Riviera and the 2023 Genesis Invitational. We’ll see you next week at The 2023 Honda Classic for the start of the Florida swing.

For more WITB photos from this week at the Genesis Invitational, click here!

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An UP-CLOSE look at Tiger Woods’ famous Scotty Cameron putter

Andrew Tursky

He played on the Hawaii Pacific University Men's Golf team and earned a Masters degree in Communications. He also played college golf at Rutgers University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

5 Comments

Carolyn

Feb 18, 2023 at 11:30 pm

Come on people get a clue if some of the best Drivers of the golf ball in the world cannot hit a fairway with a custom version of a club what chance is there a $700 copy of that driver is going to work for the amateur. All smoke and mirrors. a good swing hits the fairway not an expensive golf club.

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M

Feb 18, 2023 at 1:16 am

Tampon tampon! Put a stamp on!

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Benny

Feb 17, 2023 at 8:17 pm

If thats GSS then why is it rusting? His GsS was uikt several years before any GSS made it into Cameron putters. 6-7yrs from what I remember.

Why has Cameron tried so hard for so many years to get Tiger to switch?

Is that GSS really gss?

If the world were to find out a magnet sticks to Tigers wand it would certainly ruin the GSS empire Cameron built.

Just saying….

Reply Report comment
- Paulo
  
  Feb 19, 2023 at 6:13 am
  
  I doubt anyone would care
  
  Reply Report comment
- Tom 54
  
  Feb 21, 2023 at 11:05 am
  
  I’m just wondering why his putter has so many dings on it. I’ve had nice Scotty Cameron putters for years and as long as it’s covered mine still look damn near perfect. As yes that rust is very concerning too.The cover comes off when you walk to the green and it gets put back on when you leave. Even though that putter has won 14 of his 15 majors it sure looks beat up to me.
  
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Equipment

A shocking Backstryke putter appearance + 7 interesting gear photos from the Zurich Classic

Published

5 hours ago

Apr 25, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to New Orleans, where TPC Louisiana plays host to the 2024 Zurich Classic. In between breakfast beignets and nightly Creole feasts, PGA Tour players are also competing in the unique two-man format at the Zurich this week.

Although the vibes in Nawlins are a bit lighter-fare than the recent back-to-back competitions the Masters and the RBC Heritage signature event), the gear news was no less serious this week.

We spotted some recent changes from Rory McIlroy, a very rare Odyssey Backstryke putter, dove into the bag of legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and spotted Patrick Cantlay continuing to test new equipment.

Get your beads out and crack your crawfish, because it’s time for an equipment rundown from The Big Easy (meaning New Orleans, of course, not Ernie Els).

See all of our photos from the Zurich Classic here

Rory’s on-and-off lob wedge

Since the end of 2023, Rory McIlroy has had an on-again, off-again relationship with a Titleist Vokey K-Grind lob wedge. In his last start, it was on, and the wedge is back in the bag again this week. We got a great look at the complicated grind that McIlroy uses.

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A full look into McIlroy’s bag above also shows that he switched out of the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper that he used at the RBC Heritage, and he’s back into the Qi10 core 3-wood. As we discussed last week, McIlroy will likely keep the BRNR around as a course-specific club, trading it in and out for the 3-wood.

See Rory McIlroy’s full 2024 WITB from the Zurich here

Turning Back the clock

Unless Tommy Gainey is in the field, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Odyssey’s Backstryke technology make an appearance on the PGA Tour.

But then, when you least expect it, Russ Cochran shows up.

For more than a decade – since the 2013 Sony Open in Hawai’i – Cochran has been stuck on 599 PGA Tour starts. This week will be his 600th.

Cochran is in the field at the Zurich this week playing alongside Eric Cole, whose regular caddie is Reed Cochran, Russ’s son.

The Backstryke putter was first released back in 2010, and its unique design helps shift the axis point of the putter closer to the CG of the head. And, the putter is getting a nod this week at the Zurich Classic, thanks to Cochran’s 600th career PGA Tour start.

The putter is certainly awesome, but don’t forget to check out Cochran’s full WITB from this week.

Drew Brees with a Super Bowl winning Scotty Cameron putter

Drew Brees, a legendary retired quarterback for the hometown New Orleans Saints, made an appearance at the Zurich’s Wednesday Pro-Am, playing alongside Zach Johnson, Ryan Palmer, and current Saints QB Derek Carr.

Brees’ bag included a TaylorMade Stealth2 Plus driver, a BRNR Mini 13.5-degree, a Stealth 5-wood, a mixed set of P-790 and P-760 irons, Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedges, and a custom Scotty Cameron “New Orleans Saints” putter, which Scotty made for Brees following his Super Bowl MVP-winning performance in 2010.

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It should also be noted that Brees has his Venmo QR code as a bag tag.

If you’re gambling with Brees on the course, just know that not having cash won’t work as an excuse.

Brilliant.

See Drew Brees’ full WITB from the Zurich here

Stricker’s unrecognizable putter

Steve Stricker has made numerous upgrades to his bag recently, including a new TSR3 driver and T100 irons, but his longtime Odyssey White Hot No. 2 putter is still going strong. It’s the most recognizable unrecognizable putter ever.

Here’s a better look at Stricker’s flatstick, which he started using back in 2007.

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Patrick Cantlay has opened the equipment-switching floodgates

Over on the PGA Tour’s Equipment Report this week, we covered Cantlay’s recent switch into Ping Blueprint S irons, and a Titleist TSR2 driver.

Cantlay hadn’t switched irons for about seven years, so the iron switch he made at The 2024 Masters came as a shock to the norm. He simply isn’t one to change gear very often, so anytime Cantlay makes a switch, it’s news.

It seems the floodgates of equipment testing have opened up a bit for Cantlay, who was also spotted testing a custom Scotty Cameron blade putter on Tuesday this week. By Wednesday, Cantlay was back practicing with his familiar Scotty Cameron T5 Proto mallet, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.

Daniel Berger’s custom Jailbird site lines

Berger, who’s currently using Odyssey’s Ai-One Mini Jailbird mallet putter, has a unique 3-dot, 2-line alignment on the crown of his navy-white-navy-white mallet putter. Looking down at the putter, it’s easy to see why this alignment system would help; it just seems impossible to set up to the ball off-center, or misaligned to the target.

Also, for anyone worried, you can rest easy. Yes, he’s still playing the 2013 TaylorMade TP MC irons, which we highlighted in our recent “Modern Classics: Old vs. New” video testing series.

FitzMagic teams back up

Brothers Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick are teaming up once again at the Zurich this year, and Bettinardi Golf hooked them up with some festive “FitzMagic” headcovers to match this week.

See what else is in Alex Fitzpatrick’s WITB here

And, with that, we say goodbye to the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, including 30 unique photo galleries full of equipment photos.

We’ll see you next week in Texas for the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson!

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