Throwback Thursday: An historic first win for metal woods
The Background
Gary Adams, founder of TaylorMade, faced rejection when metal woods were first introduced back in 1979. Legends such as Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson were among the golfers to turn their nose up at the idea.
The Scene
Ron Streck, who had decided to put them in play, carded opening rounds of 68-68-62 and held a three-shot lead going into the final day of the 1981 Houston Open.
But torrential rain in Texas’ largest city meant Sunday was a complete washout. The tournament was cut to 54 holes and Streck was announced champion before he’d even got out of bed.
With it, Streck became the first ever PGA Tour winner using the revolutionary sticks from TaylorMade.
The Legacy
The win was the first of many for TaylorMade with metal woods and they have gone on to have some of the best players in the world use their clubs and win on a consistent basis.
Dustin Johnson and Jason Day are brand ambassadors, while the company also recently snared Tiger Woods after Nike pulled out of the equipment market – though since joining TaylorMade the 14-time major champion has only played 54 holes, having missed the cut at Torrey Pines and pulled out after the first round in Dubai.
Streck, though, would never win on the PGA Tour again after making history. He came closest just four years later at the San Diego Open but was defeated in a play-off by Woody Blackburn.
The now 62-year-old plys his trade on the Champions Tour where he has been victorious once.
Ready, steady, golf! Hang on – do you want to play or are you waiting for me?
Do you have any pre-round rituals?
When you realise it’s time to find a hobby away from golf
Matthew Beedle
Matthew has been playing golf since he was around 13 and took up the game at a local nine-hole municipal course with his friends before joining Pontefract & District Golf Club just over the hedge.
Still a member of Pontefract with a handicap of 3, he currently sits on the board of directors to help with digital and marketing initiatives in order to improve membership and visitor income.
Matthew graduated university with a First Class in Sports Journalism from Leeds Trinity University and has been working in the golf industry since graduating.
NCG’s social media & marketing manager, Matthew’s main job role is to increase website traffic to the National Club Golfer website via our email and social media channels as well as driving entries to grow our NCG Top 100s Tour events amongst other tasks.
Not one to change his equipment too often, Matthew currently plays the TaylorMade M2 driver which has lasted the test of time in his bag. Elsewhere, you’ll find him using the TaylorMade Stealth 2 three-wood with a Ping G425 Crossover 2-iron to aid his long game.
Through his 4-iron to Gap Wedge, Matthew uses the Ping i500 irons accompanied by Ping’s Glide 3.0 56-degree and 60-degree wedges.
Another club that has stood the test of time in his bag is a Nike Method Core MC-3i putter which has had to have the SuperStroke grip changed at least three times. Ball of choice is the Titleist ProV1.
