WITB: Kevin Chappell – Texas Open
Kevin Chappell is one of a few Nike players who still keeps some of the brand’s hardware in his bag despite being a free agent.
Like many others though, it’s the TaylorMade woods which are the clubs of choice for the 30-year-old American.
The rest of his bag is very much pick ‘n’ mix.
During his practice round he had a hybrid from the Japenese brand Fourteen Golf and a couple of PXG wedges helped him to his first PGA Tour win.
Fourteen Golf was established in 1981 and have hand-crafted forged irons for some of the best players in the world.
The HI-877 hybrid which was in Chappell’s bag has a very distinctive yellow finish and looks like an old-school driving iron.
The brand say it combines the forgiveness of a hybrid and the shot shaping ability of a utility iron.
And you should hope so too with a retail price of $350…
For the event itself he went with the TaylorMade 5-wood instead.
But Chappell must have a penchant for premium clubs as he used the PXG 0311T Milled wedges which are created from a solid block of stainless steel.
These, as used by staffers Billy Horschel and Zach Johnson, will set you back around £350 per wedge. We will be testing these out in a couple of weeks time so can let you know if they are worth it!
Chappell went with a mix of the Nike Pro Combo and MM Proto irons but we have seen him using the Mizuno MP-25 earlier this year.
We’ll keep an eye on his bag over the coming months to see if he continues to chop and change or sticks with this winning formula.
“It couldn’t happen at a better place for me,” Chappell said of his maiden win.
“Just hit me that this was my first ever PGA Tour start was Valero Texas Open back in 2008, so very special to me this event. I have a runner-up here and definitely had me motivated to get a win here.”
Kevin Chappell WITB
Driver: TaylorMade M1 2016, 10.5˚ (Aldila 2KNV Blue 70TX)
Fairways: TaylorMade M1 2017, 15˚ (Aldila 2KNV Blue 80TX), TaylorMade M1 2017, 18˚ (Aldila 2KNV Blue 90TX)
Hybrid: Fourteen Golf HI-877, 18˚ (Aldila Rogue 110 MSI U-Tour 115X)
Irons: Nike Pro Combo 4-6, Nike MMProto 7-9 (True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100)
Wedges: Nike Engage Square-Sole, 48˚, PXG 0311T Milled, 52˚, 56˚ and 60˚
Putter: Scotty Cameron T5MB
Ball: Nike RZN Tour Platinium
*Chappell went with the TaylorMade M1 5-wood instead of the Fourteen Golf hybrid
Driver test: Callaway GBB Epic v TaylorMade M1
TaylorMade M1 Driver review
Equipment: TaylorMade M1 driver – behind the tech
James Savage
Former equipment editor of NCG. Inconsistent ball-striker and tea-maker.
