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Davis Love III was still using a persimmon driver in 1997?!

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The revolution of metal drivers was happening quickly in the early-to-mid 1990’s, but Davis Love III was set on sticking with his Cleveland Classic Oil Hardened RC85 persimmon driver. He wasn’t oblivious to the emerging technology, though. He knew exactly what he was doing, and why.

“The Cleveland has been in my bag since 1985,” Love III wrote in his 1997 book, “Every Shot I Take.” “It was given to me by a good friend, Bob Spence. I experiment with metal drivers often; I find – for me, and not necessarily for you – they go marginally longer than my wooden driver, but they don’t give me any shape. I find it more difficult to create shape to my drives off the metal face, which is important to me. …I also love the sound my ball makes as it comes off the persimmon insert of my driver.

“I’m no technophobe,” he added. “My fairway ‘woods’ have metal heads … but when it comes to my old wooden driver, I guess the only thing I can really say is that I enjoy golf more with it, and I think I play better with it…golf is somehow more pleasing to me when played with a driver made of wood.”

Although his book came out in 1997, Love III switched out his persimmon driver for a Titleist 975D titanium driver in the same year.

It was the end of an era.

During Love III’s 12-year-run with the persimmon driver, though, he piled on four wins in the year of 1992, including the Kmart Greater Greensboro Open — now known as the Wyndham Championship.

Love III, who’s captaining the 2022 Presidents Cup United States team next month at Quail Hollow in Charlotte, N.C., is playing in the 2022 Wyndham Championship in nearby Greensboro. In celebration, we took a look back in the archives to see what clubs Love III used for his win in 1992 for an article on PGATOUR.com. We discovered he was using a Cleveland Classic persimmon driver, in addition to a nostalgic equipment setup.

In our latest Two Guys Talking Golf podcast episode, equipment aficionado and co-host Brian Knudson, and myself (GolfWRX tour reporter Andrew Tursky), discuss Love III’s late switch to a metal-made driver, and why he may have stuck with a wooden persimmon driver for so long.

Check out the full podcast below in the SoundCloud embed, or listen on Apple Music here. For more information on Love III’s 1992 setup versus his 2022 WITB, click here.

 

 

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.

10 Comments

10 Comments

  1. Edward

    Aug 8, 2022 at 5:20 pm

    Who would win on the pro tour if players were only allowed woods, forged blades, and balata balls? Tiger.

    • Rich

      Aug 9, 2022 at 9:02 am

      I think the PGA should be like MLB. Standard clubs and balls. Tiger would win.

  2. Hi my name is Davis

    Aug 8, 2022 at 9:06 am

    Love the turd

  3. Garry Flanders

    Aug 8, 2022 at 8:46 am

    This guy says its a 6.5 975D in ’97 https://www.instagram.com/p/CZQooODsU-B/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

  4. Tom Newsted

    Aug 8, 2022 at 8:23 am

    I think thats pretty cool. I remember when the metal woods first hit and many players like Davis Love III, Fred Couples and many others said they wouldnt switch. After the Big Bertha and the Yonnex driver they all started to move over to them. Cobra had a great driver for a little while. This Tiger kid used it in 97 to win some tournament in Georgia.

  5. The truth

    Aug 6, 2022 at 5:17 pm

    Kuch sucks…

  6. Dustin

    Aug 6, 2022 at 11:23 am

    Remember when he spearheaded the fact the Ryder cup was not being paid. The event was making over $20,000,000 and the PGA tour was reaping the $. What if I told you the tour spends over $100m just off top level brass? Non profit?

  7. Hollabachgt

    Aug 5, 2022 at 9:10 pm

    Pretty sure Davis changed from Persimmon to a 976R. The same for Leonard. Who started the 1997 season with Persimmon, but by the Open was playing a 976R.

  8. chip75

    Aug 5, 2022 at 6:33 pm

    If I remember Davis used a persimmon to a record 380+ yards drive during his first few years on tour. The 975D was a huge gamechanger. After that it was the widespread adoption of a solid-ball (Pro V1).

  9. Snoozer

    Aug 5, 2022 at 5:26 pm

    Snore

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Equipment

Interesting clubs at top of bag – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, users are talking about top of bag setups that are non-traditional or thought-provoking in some way. Original poster @SuperSpurs106 inquired about other members who might use unorthodox set-ups to help with gapping issues or weak spots.

They wrote:

“I currently have a PING G430 driver, TM Qi35 3W and a TM Qi4D 7W. Driver and 7W are fine but can’t get on with my 3W and have always struggling with this club over the years. Thinking of adding a 2H which I know would look odd. Just wondering if anyone else had a weird set up at the top of their bag?”

Our members in the forum have offered up their thoughts and personal experiences with non-traditional top of bag set-ups, and their reasoning for thinking outside of the box to begin with. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • BowMain42: “Don’t worry about what “looks” odd. If the club does what you need it to do, it’s the right club.”
  • scooterhd2: “I cant hit 3 woods either. Thats why I roll with a unicorn XL Hibore 2 wood. 400 cc head at 16 degrees of loft and its just a monster 3 wood off the tee. Off the deck, we are playing the f6 baffler. 5 wood at 41.75 inches and its easy to control.”
  • phizzy30: “I had driver, 3 metal, 2/4 hybrid once upon a time as a higher ss player. 4 hybrid is gone and in place is a driving iron nowadays. I don’t think what you’re proposing is weird in anyway, however the yardage gap might be glaringly huge between driver and 2 hybrid. What is it about your 3 metal that has got you all messed up? You could always go 4 metal with shorter shaft and see if that works.”

Entire Thread: “Interesting clubs at top of bag”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

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Equipment

Members of the Mini Driver Club – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, one user has gone searching for fellow users of a mini driver. In a post, @TightFade asked for other mini driver users to chime in with their weapon of choice, the reason for employing a mini, and what club follows it in the bag.

@TightFade asked:

“What mini are you playing? What spot in the bag did it take over? What’s the next club after it? For me: Elyte mini 13.5. Replacing 3w. Next up club looks like it’ll be 5w.”

Our members in the forum have been sharing their own bag setups featuring the mini driver, and the various reasons they purchased one in the first place. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • RCGA: “Ping G430 Max 12* ‘Thriver.’ Next club is a 4w and 2i (I play a weird course).”
  • JMB3: “R7 at 12.75 with Diamana BB 63s. 3w replacement. Next Club: Elyte Ti 5w at 17*.”
  • ColdOkieGolf: “R7 15.5 turned down to 13.5 It replaces the 3w. I found it surprisingly easy to hit off the deck, and it’s very rare that I need or want to hit something beyond 250 from the fairway, so next club is my 7w.”
  • ChaosTheory: “I’m sub-90 MPH with driver. But I’m able to hit DOD. I have been wanting something like the R7 15.5, so I just ordered one. I have a spot in the bag so nothing has to go. But I could see it replacing my trusty 4 wood, which I never use for approach shots. Just tee shots and lay ups. If I drop the 4 wood, I will turn my 7 wood down to ~20 degrees and will have good gaps. I recently tried a thriver build: 12 degree driver turned to 14, with a heavier 44 inch shaft and added head weight. I hit it great. Very accurate and not overly high, but the problem was that it sometimes went as far as a typical drive. And that’s not what I needed. So I will probably turn the 15.5 up to 16.5 or even 17.5. It’s all theoretical at this point. ?”

Entire Thread: “Members of the Mini Driver Club…Check In.”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

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Whats in the Bag

Chris Gotterup WITB 2026 (June)

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  • Chris Gotterup had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.

Drivers: TaylorMade Qi4D (8 degrees), Ping G440 LST (9 degrees @8), Ping G440 LST (7.5 degrees)
Shafts: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS T1100 Handcrafted 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g

Mini driver: TaylorMade BRNR (13.5 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black TX 80 g

5-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (18 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Diamana WB Wood Shaft 83 TX

7-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (21 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana WB Wood Shaft 83 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), Bridgestone Tour B 220 MB (4-9)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper 130 X

Wedges: TaylorMade MG5 (46, 52, 56, 60)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper 130 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X Tour
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol 2.0

Grips: Golf Pride Z Grip Cord

Ball: Bridgestone Tour B X Mindset

Check out more in-hand photos of Chris Gotterup’s clubs here.

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