Golfing News & Blog Articles

The emergence of mini drivers across nearly all major brands has become one of the surprises of the 2025 equipment season.

If you’re just catching up, TaylorMade, Callaway, Titleist and PXG each have a mini offering available at retail. COBRA has a USGA-approved “Deuce” 2-wood that could be released before the season is over, but it’s possible Srixon could be next to bring a mini to retail.

Landing on the USGA list this week is the Srixon ZXi LS Mini. As is the case with most things USGA list, details are sparse at best, so we don’t know how big this particularly mini is, but we can tell you that a 13.5-degree model has been approved for play. Beyond that, all we can say is that the ZXi LS Mini features Srixon’s REBOUND FRAME technology, while the “LS” moniker suggests low spin—or at least a chassis design based on Srixon’s low-spinning ZXi LS driver.

Will it make it to retail?

The Srixon ZXi LS+ driver was also added to the USGA conforming list this week.

As a challenger brand in the metalwood space, Srixon needs to be selective about what it brings to retail. With that in mind, there’s a good chance that the ZXi LS+ driver that also appeared on the USGA list this week won’t be available outside of the Srixon tour truck.

As for the mini? It remains to be seen.

Spending more doesn’t always mean playing better but, in golf, the best products are often the most expensive. I took a look at some of the gear we’ve tested this year that falls into the “budget-friendly” category but still performs as well as (and sometimes better than) the high-priced options. Here are some of our favorite picks for golfers who want great gear without the premium price tag.

Kirkland Performance+ Golf Balls

The original Kirkland Signature golf ball made waves in 2016 as a Pro V1 challenger for a fraction of the price. Since then, follow-up versions haven’t quite lived up, until now. The latest Kirkland Performance+ (Version 3.5) surprised us by delivering slightly more driver distance and a tighter dispersion pattern than the Titleist Pro V1.

Spin and feel around the greens are close enough to make this a very playable ball for most golfers.

Who It’s For: Golfers who want a high-performance ball with solid distance and playable spin, without paying $55 a dozen.

Who It’s Not For: Players who demand elite-level consistency on every shot or prefer a softer-feeling golf ball.

I was a committed rangefinder person until about two years ago when a GPS speaker (the Wingman View) got added to my cart. Until then, I didn’t realize how much I liked having front, middle and back yardages to the green. Now, I’d be kind of lost without those numbers. Hybrid rangefinders can give you the laser precision you’re used to plus GPS info like hole layouts and green depth. They’re not for everyone, but if you like having all the data, these three are the best place to start.

Garmin Approach Z82

The Garmin Z82 combines laser precision with GPS mapping, displaying hole layouts, hazards and front/middle/back yardages directly in the viewfinder. It’s accurate within 10 inches up to 450 yards and includes advanced features like PlaysLike slope adjustments, wind speed (when paired with a phone) and PinPointer for blind shots.

In our 2025 Best Golf Rangefinder testing, it scored a 9.5/10 and was awarded best hybrid rangefinder.

Lynx Golf, the British reincarnation of the old U.S. brand made famous by Fred Couples and Ernie Els, has won a major fraud judgment against its former commercial representative and R&D director.

A British High Court last week ruled that longtime Lynx club designer, sourcing agent and commercial representative Kevin Woolgar deceitfully obtained millions in “secret” commissions. The High Court also ruled that Woolgar will have to pay back that money, along with an as-yet-determined amount in damages.

The ruling ends a nearly three-year struggle between Lynx and Woolgar, stemming from inflated invoices and accusations of deceit and breach of contract.

Lynx Golf: Just what happened?

Woolgar, in his capacity as sourcing agent and commercial representative, would source clubheads and components from suppliers in Asia. He would also work with those suppliers to design clubs for Lynx and would negotiate pricing. The High Court found that after agreeing to pricing, Woolgar would then inflate pricing in invoices he provided to Lynx. According to court records, Woolgar had been pocketing the difference for over a decade as “secret” commissions.

The court found those commissions would range anywhere from five to 75 percent over the real factory pricing. Over the period in question, Lynx paid Woolgar over $8 million US. It’s estimated that Woolgar pocketed more than $2 million in fraudulent commissions.

Introduction

The Shot Scope G6 GPS watch is designed to provide golfers with full hole maps, dynamic distances, hazard and layup information, and digital scorecard functionality, all without a subscription fee. With more than 36,000 courses preloaded, it promises an easy out-of-box experience for golfers seeking practical course management tools.

Three testers – Nunfa0, aguybadatgolf and schooner44 – evaluated the G6 across multiple rounds, comparing it to their current GPS and rangefinder devices. This recap combines their direct impressions to determine if the G6 deserves a spot on your wrist this season.

Key highlights from testers

Performance summary

Testers reported:

Accurate yardages for front, middle, back, hazards and layups
Useful full-hole maps for strategic planning
Lightweight and comfortable design for all-day wear
Clear setup process, though each tester experienced minor frustrations with charging or firmware updates
Mixed reviews on display brightness, particularly in bright sunlight

Key features

The Shot Scope G6 includes:

Full-hole maps for detailed strategy views
Dynamic front, middle and back distances adjusting to your angle of approach
Hazard, layup and dogleg yardages for smarter decisions
Digital scorecard to track your round
No subscription fees with more than 36,000 courses preloaded
Customizable straps for personalization

Tester insights: performance and impressions

First impressions and aesthetics

Nunfa0

“The watch arrived in good time considering that I live just about as far away from the UK as you can get! It was well packed in a solid box. Inside was the watch, two straps and a letter from Gavin Dear, the CCO of Shot Scope. Personal touches like that are always welcome and show a level of pride in their product that I really like.”

Kurt Kitayama finished a sizzling weekend with a final-round 65 to win the 3M Open on Sunday, beating Sam Stevens by one stroke for his second PGA Tour victory.

We discuss Keegan Bradley as a Ryder Cup playing-captain, the best major moments of 2025, Lottie Woad's victory, 'Happy Gilmore 2' and more.

The post Tour Confidential: Could a playing-captain backfire on U.S. Ryder Cup team? appeared first on Golf.

It wasn’t long ago that the name Kurt Kitayama was top of mind when discussing potential young guns who could consistently sit in the Top 20 of OWGR. After a hard-fought win at the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational, it seemed like Kitayama would keep trending up. He showed more signs at the 2023 PGA Championship […]

The post Kurt Kitayama’s clubs: Inside his 3M Open-winning setup appeared first on Golf.

Kurt Kitayama went on a tear over the weekend at the 3M Open, and he's leaving Minnesota with his second career PGA Tour victory.

The post Kurt Kitayama wins 3M Open with 1 key swing (and 20 weekend birdies) appeared first on Golf.

How did No. 625 in the WAGR rankings win the U.S. Junior Amateur? Sometimes it pays to be shorter off the tee.

The post How ‘shorter’ drives gave U.S. Junior Amateur winner competitive edge appeared first on Golf.

One month after winning the U.S. Senior Open, Padraig Harrington scored his second senior major of the year at the Senior British Open on Sunday.

Joaquin Niemann captured his fifth victory of the season following a three-stroke win on Sunday at LIV Golf United Kingdom.

Two weeks ago, Lottie Woad was the world's No. 1 amateur. On Sunday, the 21-year-old Englishwoman became an LPGA Tour champion in her professional debut.

Thorbjorn Olesen aced the par-3 eighth and shot a 4-under 67 on Saturday in the 3M Open for a share of the third-round lead with Akshay Bhatia.

Hamilton Coleman made a 15-foot birdie putt on the 35th hole to hold on for a 2-and-1 victory Saturday over Minh Nguyen in the U.S. Junior Amateur.

LIV Golf will host an event in South Africa next March, its first in Africa, the league announced Saturday.

It has been a while since Bubba Watson looked like Bubba Watson, but with two changes and some time, he's finally feeling like his old self.

The post At LIV UK, 2 changes have Bubba Watson feeling like his old self appeared first on Golf.

Joaquin Niemann racked up nine birdies Saturday en route to an 8-under 65 that gave him a 6-shot lead heading into the final round at LIV Golf United Kingdom.

Lottie Woad is giving women's golf something it has been searching for this season as she closes in on a historic win at the Scottish Open.

The post Lottie Woad giving women’s golf 1 thing it needs while hunting historic debut win appeared first on Golf.

Padraig Harrington birdied the final hole Saturday for another 5-under 65 for a two-shot lead over Justin Leonard going into the final round of the Senior British Open as the Irishman goes for his second senior major of the year.