Golfing News & Blog Articles

There is a lot of cool gear in the golf equipment world that doesn’t always fit neatly into Most Wanted Tests or Buyer’s Guides. You still want to know how it performs. In our We Tried It series, we put gear to the test and let you know if it works as advertised.

What We Tried

TaylorMade MyTP Custom putter interface – The online design interface that allows golfers to create customized versions of TaylorMade’s Juno and Soto blade putters.

Your Custom Builder

Dave Wolfe – MyGolfSpy writer and putter fanatic. I’ve tested hundreds (maybe thousands) of flatsticks.

TaylorMade MyTP Interface

Like the MySpider design interfaces, the number of options is the most significant feature in the system. For a putter to be truly custom, you must be able to pick enough features to make it unique to you. Here are the options available with the MyTP program:

Tiger Woods announced that he had another back procedure. So what does that mean for him in 2021? We look at the year ahead.

The PGA Tour heads to California for Jack Nicklaus' tournament at the PGA West TPC Stadium Course. Our experts offer their best bets for the event.

Justin Thomas says he understands being dropped by a sponsor after uttering an anti-gay slur.

Vokey has added M Grind Gap Wedges to its WedgeWorks platformThe new offering provides an alternative to the F GrindThe price is $199, including customization

There were signs last year that Vokey WedgeWorks was evolving from a place exclusively for limited-run specialty wedges to a means to expand the SM8 lineup without forcing inventory into retail shops. That was the case with last year’s low bounce K, and that’s the case today with the new addition of the Vokey WedgeWorks M Grind collection.

The M Grind itself isn’t new. It’s a staple of the Vokey retail lineup. That said, the retail version is currently limited to lob wedge lofts (56° to 62°). With the WedgeWorks M Grind collection, Vokey is expanding its M Grind offerings to include 50°, 52°, and 54° gap (and I suppose sand) wedge options.

The Vokey WedgeWorks M Grind gap wedges include all of the technology of the standard retail offerings in lower lofts. That’s most of the story.

D.J. Trahan will not play in this week's The American Express after becoming the 22nd player to test positive for the coronavirus since the PGA Tour returned to competition in June.

 

The post NCGA Member Outing – Green Hills appeared first on Northern California Golf Association.

Tiger Woods will miss the Farmers Insurance Open and the Genesis Invitational after having a microdiscectomy procedure to remove a pressurized disc fragment that was pinching a nerve in his lower back.

Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Donald Trump just one day after the attacks at the U.S. Capitol, said she wouldn't "spend any energy looking back" at the timing of the ceremony.

This year’s PGA Merchandise Show has been cancelled, leaving some wondering: is attending the show even worth the effort?

0:22 – Most Wanted Driver Test check-in7:31 – 2021 PGA Merchandise Show has been cancelled18:20 – The worst products from Desperation Row24:36 – Embargo Update: New releases from Callaway and Taylormade32:34 – Why do old/similar club designs keep resurfacing?

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The post The End of the PGA Show? | NPG 68 appeared first on MyGolfSpy.

Phil Mickelson, who 30 years ago won on the PGA Tour as an amateur, begins his 2021 season this week. So what is fair to expect? Plus, making sense of Bryson DeChambeau and more.

TaylorMade SIM2 Max and SIM2 Max OS Irons – Key Takeaways

New Cap Back Technology allows for greater face flexPolymer badge create a hollow cavitySofter ECHO Damping System improves feel over previous models$799 steel, $899 graphite, available February 19th

The 2021 TaylorMade SIM2 Max irons are going to make a fascinating case study: Just how much better can TaylorMade make their signature game improvement better in just one year?

You can’t assume TaylorMade started the SIM2 Max project the day after going “pencils down” with the 2020 SIM. That’s not how R&D works. But there are enough changes, upgrades and enhancements to make the TaylorMade SIM2 Max irons one to watch come Most Wanted time.

TaylorMade’s game improvement irons have been middle of the pack or worse Most Wanted performers ever since M4’s third-place finish in 2018. That hasn’t hurt sales any as the SIM Max and its bigger and stronger brother, the MAX OS, were last summer’s No. 2- selling irons behind the Callaway Mavrik. The Mavrik, ironically, finished behind SIM – and next-to-last – in last year’s Most Wanted.

Go figure.

Still, TaylorMade is giving SIM2 Max some rather significant upgrades. We’ll see if they are enough to move it up the Most Wanted leaderboard. But in the meantime, let’s see what they’re all about.

Key Takeaways

TaylorMade is releasing three fairway models and two hybrid models.The SIM2 rescue is a new iron-like hybrid.SIM2 fairway woods ($299-$399 MSRP)SIM2 hybrids ($249-$279)

We are in the throes of “release SZN.” If you’re not down with the lingo, it’s basically the post-holiday period in which many of the major manufacturers debut their new equipment. In this instance, it is the TaylorMade SIM2 fairway woods and hybrids.

Before COVID knee-capped retail sales in 2020, TaylorMade seemed poised to claim its status as the No. 1 selling metalwood brand. No doubt, this was due to the early success of its SIM driver. However, driver sales tend to be a pretty solid indicator of sell-though on fairway woods and hybrids.

As a result, some brands held off on scheduled 2020 equipment updates. Others tried the “early discount” approach to grab some sales while big box stores remained closed. Then the industry went bananas and here we are, more or less back on schedule.

TaylorMade SIM2 Fairway Woods

TaylorMade is, once again, going with three models in its fairway wood stable: SIM2 Ti, SIM2 Max and SIM2 Max D. By name alone, it appears to be roughly the same setup as the outgoing SIM line. And to some degree, it is, though TaylorMade is quick to point out that it’s worked to create more separation between models. The objective of “increased model differentiation” (my term) is becoming a theme in 2021 and it’s reasonable to expect that to continue.

The TaylorMade SIM2 driver family includes three models (SIM2, SIM2 MAX, SIM2 MAX D).Each of the models has a single-piece face cup and a forged aluminum ring to support the crown and sole.Retail price is $529.99. Availability starts Feb. 19.

With the release of the TaylorMade SIM2, SIM2 MAX and SIM2 MAX D, the company reaffirms its commitment to the shape (and, I suppose, the in motion) portions of the story behind last season’s SIM drivers. With SIM2, the shape carries on because speed is still important (you don’t say?) and so aerodynamics remain important, too.

So, much of what we first saw with SIM carries over with SIM2 drivers. A ubiquitous TaylorMade technology has been chopped, however, and the materials and construction used to create the signature SIM (and now SIM2) shape have been replaced with different and potentially compelling materials.

In some ways, SIM2 is pretty much the same as the original. In other meaningful ways, it’s significantly different.

Given the announcement of new PGA TOUR staffers late last week, it’s not particularly surprising to see PXG 0811 GEN4 drivers on the USGA conforming clubs list. What is surprising is that, with GEN2 being its current lineup of metalwoods, the company appears to be skipping GEN3 entirely.

A line of drivers so good they skipped an entire generation?

TBD, obviously.

PGA TOUR Staff announcements from @PXG.

New troops:

Jim Herman
Sung Kang
Danny Lee
Luke List
Henrik Norlander
Adam Schenk
Kyle Stanley
Hudson Swafford

— Tony Covey (@GolfSpyT) January 15, 2021

As per usual, the USGA pics don’t tell us everything we’d like to know. The description (and the sole of the driver) reference AV Carbon Fiber Tech but beyond that, there’s not much to go on. AV could be short for the technology or, like Titleist’s ATI face, it could refer to the company that produces the carbon material used in the driver.

Monterey Peninsula Country Club

June 21-25, 2021

Player Information / Pairings / Results

*Pairings will be posted one week before the championship*

 

Key Takeaways

Shaft profiles based on Nippon Tour 105/125 iron shaftsAvailable through Nippon distributors at the end of January.Uses Torayca 1100G+ Pre-preg and 7-axis/9-axis construction

The Nippon N.S. PRO Regio Formula MB+.

It’s a long name with a simple value proposition. For golfers who find optimal performance with one of Nippon’s Modus Tour iron shafts, why not create a commensurate driver (or fairway) shaft? At face value, it’s a concept that seems to almost make too much sense. Almost.

So, why now and why Nippon?

One or the Other

Historically, shaft companies produced either steel or carbon-composite (graphite) shafts. And to some degree, that’s still the dominant structure, though we are seeing some brands crossing the aisle. For two seemingly similar products, the materials, technology and designs are actually quite different.

Three shots behind with six holes to play, Kevin Na birdied three straight holes and finished with an up-and-down birdie from behind the 18th green for a one-shot victory in the Sony Open on Sunday.

Brendan Steele had the lowest score of his PGA Tour career with a 9-under 61, giving him a two-shot lead and another chance to win the Sony Open.

Nick Taylor holds a 2-shot advantage at the Sony Open, but a large pack that includes Stewart Cink and Webb Simpson is chasing the leader in sunny Hawaii.